Why, in a global communion of 1.4 billion faithful, has the modern conclave not looked beyond Europeans for a new pope? And what would need to change for it to do so?

Universal free lunches can reduce social stigma, ensuring all students feel comfortable receiving meals without economic or health-related discrimination.

President Prabowo Subianto delivered a closed-door address to 1,500 state-owned enterprise (SOE) leaders at the Danantara Indonesia Town Hall Meeting on Apr. 28, held at the Jakarta Convention Center. The unexpected decision to exclude the press from the event has raised concerns about transparency, particularly given the public role of SOEs in shaping Indonesia’s economic trajectory.

What if the real threat to democracy in Indonesia lies elsewhere? Not in the palaces of monarchs long deprived of state power, but in the everyday workings of dynastic political families.

As if the decline in press freedom in Indonesia were not already difficult enough for journalists, now they also have to deal with a more fundamental, if not existential question, on whether practicing journalism is a sustainable livelihood.

Given the urgency of the situation, what is standing in the way of negotiations between the US and China?

ASEAN needs to conform to the EU’s trade policy, which is rules-based and bound by its commitments to sustainability, labor rights and democratic values.

Our simulations confirm what economists have been asserting for years: Trade wars do not have winners.

The incidence and mortality rates of cervical cancer remain alarmingly high in Indonesia.

Does the recent Constitutional Court's ruling truly safeguard the digital rights of Indonesian citizens, or is it merely symbolic progress in a system still riddled with ambiguity?

The passing of Pope Francis on April 21 has struck the global community to its core. From the outset of his papacy, Francis made a difference. He was a man of many firsts: the first Jesuit pontiff, the first Latin American pope, and the first pope born outside of Europe since the 8th century. Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, he chose the Latin name Francis for his pontificate in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi, the 13th-century Italian friar who, in his words, was a man of poverty and peace “who loves and protects creation”.

Indonesia needs to aggressively pursue other opportunities such as long delayed Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IEU-CEPA) and similar trade pacts.

Nuclear energy does not tolerate ambiguity, discretion or improvisation; it requires inflexible regulation, full procedural discipline and long-horizon accountability.

Richer developed countries score higher on financial security and life evaluation but poorer nations more than make up for this on meaning, purpose and relationships.

The new, government-commissioned reference on national history presents several problematic issues in its arrangement and content, lending it the appearance of a revisionist exercise that aims to legitimize the current regime.

Trump 2.0 is an activist, imperial presidency, both at home and abroad.

Is this program essential and strategic now for rural development? The simple answer is no.

We are on the precipice of a world trade war. Active and strategic economic diplomacy will be needed to avoid it.

A planned revision of the Financial Sector Development and Strengthening Law (P2SK) by Indonesia’s House of Representatives (DPR) may go beyond its original intent, potentially redrawing the central bank’s mandate in ways that could blur the line between fiscal and monetary policy, as well as reignite concerns about Bank Indonesia’s (BI) independence.

The Surakarta brouhaha should trigger a comprehensive review of special regions and the formation of new regions in general as practices that could undermine our democratic institutions.

Today Nazism is once again rearing its head in Europe.

Iran may be willing to agree to a ceiling on uranium enrichment in return for sweeping sanctions relief and the right to retain its existing nuclear infrastructure.

As a non-nuclear country, Indonesia can strategically reinforce its leadership not only in disarmament advocacy, but also in championing development-oriented cooperation under the NPT framework.

Seventy years after Bandung, the spotlight often falls on its political legacy, but what is often forgotten is that the Bandung Spirit was never merely political, but also profoundly cultural.

While international lines are useful for comparison, they can be misleading if used as the basis for local poverty assessments.

Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka is facing mounting pressure, mostly for underperformance, in the seven months since taking up the job. The latest sign of tension in his relationship with President Prabowo Subianto was when the latter asked former president Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to represent him at last week’s funeral ceremony of Pope Francis in the Vatican. This is a job normally reserved for the VP. There was no explanation for why Prabowo gave the assignment to Jokowi, Gibran’s father and the country’s president from 2014 to 2024.

The sweeping re-election victories of Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in their respective parliamentary elections on Saturday should be a significant relief for President Prabowo Subianto.