A graphic shows the Equal Earth cartographic projection. The United Nations General Assembly voted on Sept. 4, 2026, to back a resolution spearheaded by several African countries to adopt a map that makes their continent bigger while shrinking North America and Europe, which aimed at “a more accurate representation“ of continental landmasses.

A road map for the next UN secretary-general

The next secretary-general will fill the most prominent position in multilateral governance at a time when multilateralism is arguably at its nadir.

20 hours ago

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Fiscal rule, self-discipline and the state budget

If the government seeks a better balance between fiscal stability and economic growth, adopting a springboard approach is the path forward. ...

21 hours ago

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Pakistan-US ties: A new chapter for an old friendship

Both countries will benefit from a more meaningful, multidimensional and consistent relationship built on a historical foundation and oriented toward a forward-looking framework, as will the wider region and the world. ...

17 hours ago

The Latest

United States President Donald Trump (left) and Chinese President Xi Jinping talk on Oct. 30, 2025, as they leave after a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Busan, South Korea.

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Different times, shared hearts: What brings China and the US together

Long before treaties and summits, the enduring bond between China and the United States was forged in classrooms, cockpits and ballparks by ordinary people with extraordinary hearts.

18 hours ago

A Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF) crew walks towards a CH-47 Chinook helicopter ahead of Defense Minister Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin's visit to the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force's (JMSDF) ship JS Kunisaki on Sept. 15, 2026, at Kijing port in Mempawah, West Kalimantan. In his visit, Sjafrie held a limited meeting with the Japanese officers on the joint waterbombing missions to extinguish forest and land fire in the province.

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When citizens demand accountability for forest fires

As toxic smoke returns to West Kalimantan, a landmark class action is putting Indonesia's environmental governance on trial, testing whether citizens can legally force the state to protect them from preventable disaster.

19 hours ago

Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara (center left) speaks at the APBN Kita press conference in Jakarta on Sept. 19, 2026.

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Don’t waste Indonesia’s macroeconomic opportunity

Many advanced economies that once set the benchmark for macroeconomic discipline now struggle with problems more common to emerging markets. For emerging economies with sound policies, this creates a rare opportunity to narrow the credibility gap.

1 day ago

Designing the future: Students attend a visual communication design training session on April 13, 2026, at Saint Joseph Catholic vocational high school in Jakarta.

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What PISA keeps telling us about foundations

Indonesia’s latest PISA performance remains below the targets, but the broader trajectory contains genuine progress.

1 day ago

The newly acquired aircraft carrier Giuseppe Garibaldi (left), now KRI Sriwijaya, is accompanied by KRI Brawijaya (center) and KRI Prabu Siliwangi as they sail past Bangka waters on Sept. 17, 2026.

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The sensible roles and harsh realities of KRI Sriwijaya

To justify its steep price tag, Indonesia’s first aircraft carrier must balance realistic support roles against the risk of becoming a costly ceremonial white elephant.

1 day ago

Smoke billows from nickel smelting plants at the Indonesia Weda Bay Industrial Park (IWIP) in Lelilef, North Maluku, on July 7, 2024.

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Indonesia’s nickel curbs struggle to convince markets

Indonesia is learning that building a dominant position in the nickel market is the easy part. Leveraging its influence over supply to control prices is proving much trickier.

1 day ago

An aerial view shows houses lying deluged in sludge after flash floods at Devighat, Bidur municipality, along the confluence of the Trishuli and Tadi rivers in Nepal's Nuwakot district on Aug. 27, 2026.

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Nepal floods obliterate final excuses for climate inaction

A deadly Himalayan avalanche has exposed the catastrophic human toll of global climate inaction, turning Nepal’s tragedy into an urgent test of whether world leaders will finally pay climate reparations or face international legal accountability.

1 day ago

Two 'ojek' (online motorcycle transportation) drivers wait in traffic on June 24, 2026 with passengers wearing the helmets of Gojek and Grab in the Kampung Melayu Besar area of South Jakarta.

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Labor bill must protect workers, not just employment relationships

To protect millions in an era of subcontracting and gig platforms, Indonesia’s new labor bill must ensure that basic rights follow the worker, not just the corporate contract.

1 day ago

President Prabowo Subianto and Russia's President Vladimir Putin shake hands ahead of a meeting on Thursday on the sidelines of the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia.

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Diversification, not alignment: Reading Indonesia's Russia tilt

By courting Vladimir Putin as a strategic counterweight to Beijing, President Prabowo Subianto is reviving Indonesia’s non-aligned doctrine—hedging against Chinese dominance by adding a risky, sanctions-heavy third pole to Jakarta's geopolitical chessboard.

2 days ago

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When the pieces start playing themselves: AI in anarchy

As frontier AI models begin orchestrating covert operations on their own, the line between weapon and strategist collapses - leaving global order unequipped for a world where the pieces move themselves.

2 days ago

The floating panels of a solar power plant at Cirata Dam in Purwakarta regency, West Java, are seen from above on Sept. 26, 2023.

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No industrial off-takers, no 100 GW solar

Indonesia’s 100-gigawatt solar dream won’t fail for lack of sunlight, but for lack of buyers—unless the country connects its mineral downstreaming to the national grid.

2 days ago

Balancing act: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (center) presides over the second and final day of the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi on Sept. 13, 2026, flanked by Russian President Vladimir Putin (left, front), and Chinese President Xi Jinping (right, front).

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ASEAN warms to BRICS without sacrificing centrality

Southeast Asia is not swapping geopolitical camps—it is expanding its diplomatic toolkit to ensure it never has to choose between them.

2 days ago

A customer scans Japan's unified QR code JPQR to make a payment using the Quick Response Indonesia Standard (QRIS) on Aug. 25, 2025, at World Expo 2025 in Osaka, Kansai, Japan.

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Can QRIS digitize MSME credit?

The national standard for QR code payments has helped millions of small businesses move toward digital financial inclusion. The next step in this evolution is to use the data generated to enable access to financing.

2 days ago

Supriyono (center left, onstage), also known as “Botok”, an activist from Pati regency, Central Java, speaks during a demonstration outside the Senayan Legislative Complex in Central Jakarta on Aug. 27, 2026, urging lawmakers to immediately pass the asset forfeiture bill.

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Popular discontent is justified. Authoritarianism is not the answer

The people's fight against oligarchy, corruption and foreign dependence won't be won by sliding back into authoritarianism, but by building a democracy strong enough to hold power to account.

3 days ago

Leaders of participating countries gather for a photograph on Sept. 13 during the 18th BRICS Summit in New Delhi.

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BRICS seeks to give the Global South a bigger voice

The grouping increasingly represents emerging and middle powers across regions that share common development priorities and seek a greater voice in institutions shaping global affairs.

3 days ago

A doctor attends to a toddler receiving a measles vaccine on March 27 at the Ibrahim Adjie community health center (Puskesmas) in Bandung, West Java.

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AI in RI healthcare: Opportunities and risks

From the perspective of Indonesia’s national health policy, AI is an innovation. Ensuring that innovation is safe, equitable and trustworthy is a critical issue when it comes to AI in the health sector.

3 days ago

A woman takes a photo of an electronic display showing negative movements across the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) Composite index on Feb. 2, 2026, at the bourse’s South Jakarta headquarters.

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Which ASEAN equity laggards could soon become leaders?

While AI-fuelled equity gains in North Asia have hogged the spotlight this year, select ASEAN markets have quietly staged a breakout of their own.

3 days ago

A Manggala Agni forest firefighter struggles to extinguish a forest and land fire in Rambutan village, Ogan Ilir regency, South Sumatra, on Sept. 12, 2026.

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Why Indonesians feel increasingly bitter today

Indonesia’s rising public anger reflects deeper structural pressures, from elite impunity to digital manipulation, eroding trust in democratic institutions.

3 days ago

President Prabowo Subianto (center), accompanied by Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka (right), shakes hands with Papua Governor Mathius Fakhiri (left) on Dec. 16, 2025, prior to a meeting with 46 regional leaders from Papua along with 10 executive committee members of the Acceleration of Papua’s Special Autonomy Development at the State Palace in Central Jakarta.

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Federalism and the middle way of decentralization

To survive in an unstable world, Indonesia must master the delicate art of the middle way: keeping a firm hand at the center while fixing the fractured, graft-prone machinery of regional autonomy.

3 days ago

A satellite image shows black smoke rising from the Saudi Arabian East-West oil pipeline south of Medina in the Hejaz Region, on Sept. 10, 2026.

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The American shield is cracking

America’s inability to protect bases in the Persian Gulf and Jordan and its regional allies’ territory signals a historic blow to its imperial system.

4 days ago

Humanoid and quadruped robots participate in a demonstration calling for the regulation of artificial intelligence on Sept. 7 in Warsaw.

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When AI stops asking permission

AI agents need protective layers, not a lecture about good behavior.

4 days ago

Jobseekers wait in line on June 8 during the opening of the 2026 Bogor Job Fair at Plaza Jambu Dua in Bogor, West Java.

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What if young people create, not just seek, jobs?

The future job market belongs not to those waiting for a vacancy, but to the graduates equipped to turn society’s friction into economic opportunity.

4 days ago

Haze shrouds the Kuala Lumpur skyline on Aug. 26 amid high levels of air pollution from regional wildfires. Indonesia has for weeks battled wildfires that have led to school closures and thousands of people requiring medical treatment, with smoke also reaching neighboring Malaysia and Singapore.

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Regional haze casts pall on ASEAN’s influence

The return of haze underscores a sobering reality: while ASEAN has policies designed to combat it, the problem continues to occur.

4 days ago

A thick haze shrouds Manila on Sept. 1 in smoke from fires in Kalimantan in this photo taken in Quezon City, the Philippines.

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Cross-border crises test Indonesia’s regional credibility

When environmental crises cross borders, government communication becomes crucial to managing their impacts and protecting Indonesia’s international reputation.

4 days ago

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Mobilizing middle powers in a multi-directional world

Middle powers are critically important in at least two spheres of influence: in the UN and in protection against mass atrocities.

4 days ago

An orangutan named Sampurna receives emergency treatment after being rescued on Aug. 30 at a palm-oil plantation near an area affected by wildfires, in Kuala Satong village, Ketapang regency, West Kalimantan.

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What do dead monkeys reveal about Indonesia's wildfire toll?

The flames may eventually die down, but for the wildlife trapped in Indonesia’s charred forests, the real crisis of hunger, trauma and displacement has only just begun.

6 days ago

Real wheels: A member of the Indonesian Army (right) helps a boy down from a Komodo armored vehicle by state arms maker PT Pindad on Aug. 24, 2026, during a military exhibition at Living World Grand Wisata in Bekasi, West Java.

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Hidden fiscal risk behind Indonesia’s military expenditure

Indonesia is entering an era of bigger defense budgets and small budgetary visibility. Yet the institutions that allow the legislature and the public to determine where money goes have not strengthened.

6 days ago

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