Tajik Migrants Brace for Moscow’s Ire (April 3, 2024, Institute for War and Peace)
Tajik nationals in Russia are feeling the backlash following the March 22 terrorist attack in Moscow that killed nearly 150 people, with fears that Russian officials plan to instrumentalise already widespread prejudice against labour migrants.
What’s Behind Qatar’s Decision to Release 8 Indian Nationals Convicted of Espionage? (February 14, 2024, The Diplomat)
Although this saga might seem to be good fodder for a spy thriller, it has played out amid a similarly dramatic shift in India’s Middle East policy over the last few months, namely with regard to Israel.
Kuwait’s path towards renewal and reform (April 8, 2024, Gulf News)
Last Thursday, a group of colleagues were privy to the preliminary details of a reform initiative. This plan, underscored by principles such as maintaining the law’s prestige and citizens’ dignity and engaging with the Legislative Council in a manner that aligns with constitutional mandates and serves the public interest, signals a hopeful direction for addressing the concerns voiced by many in the Kuwaiti community.
The Western Sahara conflict: A fragile path to negotiations (August 3, 2023, Atlantic Council)
Moroccan diplomats continue to engage with the UN envoy, but refuse to abandon the 2019 roundtable format or negotiate beyond their autonomy plan. The Polisario remains open to discussing the envoy’s proposals, but skeptical of the current circumstances for negotiations due to a lack of international attention toward the conflict and a weak negotiating position.
Maldives Grapples with Repatriation Amidst Rising Religious Extremism (January 29, 2024, The Diplomat)
There is an urgent need to understand the allure of extremist ideologies, the factors that drive individuals to participate in foreign conflicts, and the willingness of some radicalized individuals to commit acts of violence both within the Maldives and in foreign conflict zones.
Opinion: A cry for the refugees of emptied Nagorno-Karabakh: ‘We are nobody’ (March 11, 2024, The Washington Post)
Azerbaijani television last week showed giant shovels demolishing what had once been the parliament building of the ethnic Armenian breakaway region known as Nagorno-Karabakh. It was a symbolic final blow to an area whose more than 100,000 people have fled, leaving deserted villages and empty streets.
Elections in South Asia key for regional dynamics (March 4, 2024, GIS Reports Online)
Five countries in the region, including India, will have had elections this year before the United States presidential vote in November. The results of elections in Maldives, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Pakistan, along with its own polls, will affect New Delhi’s strategic decisions and future relationships with states it sees as part of its historical neighborhood.
China's Xi says nobody can stop 'family reunion' with Taiwan (April 10, 2024, Reuters)
Chinese President Xi Jinping told former Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou on Wednesday that outside inference could not stop the "family reunion" between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, and that there are no issues that cannot be discussed. Since the defeated Republic of China government fled to Taiwan in 1949 after losing a civil war to Mao Zedong's communists, no serving Taiwanese leader has visited China.
Winning Hearts on a Korean Island (April 8, 2024, China Media Project)
A recent series of events on South Korea’s remote Jeju Island offers a glimpse in miniature of China’s vast global media diplomacy campaign to paint the most pleasant picture of Xinjiang, where the country has been accused of serious human rights abuses.
Ex-Taiwanese President Ma visits China to help build social and cultural links (April 1, 2024, NBC News)
Ma left Taipei on Monday with a student group on an 11-day trip that underlines continued interactions in education, business and culture despite Beijing’s threat to use military force against the self-governing island democracy to achieve unification.
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Joann Pittman
Joann Pittman is Vice President of Partnership and China Engagement and editor of ZGBriefs. Prior to joining ChinaSource, Joann spent 28 years working in China, as an English teacher, language student, program director, and cross-cultural trainer for organizations and businesses engaged in China. She has also taught Chinese at the University …View Full Bio
Blessing Asia
In October-2022 more than 500 Christian leaders from across Asia gathered in Thailand for the Asia 2022 Congress, sponsored by the Lausanne Movement and various partnering organizations. I had the opportunity to participate in the Congress virtually and was mightily blessed. From Bible exposition to K-pop worship, and through seminars and workshops, the participants were encouraged by the stories of what God is doing in countries all over Asia. Clearly, God is on the move.
A beautiful vision was portrayed in a video of the popular worship song The Blessing, featuring singers from all over Asia. Here it is:
Many of the sessions have already been posted on their website and to their YouTube channel.
One that I found particularly helpful considering all that is going on in China was a presentation titled Church and State Relationship in Asia Today. You can see the video here.
I encourage you to spend some time on their website; there are fantastic resources for understanding God’s work in Asia today.
Original link: https://www.chinasource.org/resource-library/blog-entries/blessing-asia/
Image credit: Andrea Brucker, via Unsplash
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