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The Thirsty Dragon: Myanmar’s Dam Dilemma with China
August 3rd, 2019
Via BBC, a report on the controversial Myitsone dam, at the source of the Irrawaddy river: In 2011, construction work on a massive dam project in Myanmar’s restive Kachin state was halted after large protests. China is now lobbying hard for the work to resume, but as BBC News Burmese’s Soe Soe Htoon found, local […]
Read more »The Parched Tiger: Why India Must Get Its Act Together On Water Diplomacy
June 22nd, 2019
Via Brahma Chellaney, interesting commentary on the need for India to activate more efforts around water diplomacy: Narendra Modi’s rise as the dominant force in Indian politics cannot obscure the daunting foreign-policy challenges he faces, including on transnational water issues. For example, communist-ruled Nepal’s tilt towards China is apparent not only from the mandatory Mandarin in many […]
Read more »Impact of Hindu Kush and Himalayan “Grand Melt”
May 11th, 2019
Via The Diplomat, a look at the impact that the melting of the Hindu Kush and Himalayan glaciers would have upon the region: In the last century, human migration in South Asia, the world’s most populous and most densely populated region, was largely caused by geopolitics, wars, socioeconomic constraints and environmental disasters. By the end of […]
Read more »Water Dangers In South Asia
February 13th, 2019
Via the Third Pole, a detailed look at how – with glacier retreat, permafrost melt, and extreme rainfall events – the countries of the Hindu Kush Himalayas have to start cooperating far more closely, or pay a huge price: Water in the Hindu Kush Himalayan (HKH) region is going through large and dramatic changes, caused […]
Read more »Laos: New Hydropower Dams, Old Mekong Worries
April 21st, 2018
Via The Diplomat, a report on growing concerns around the future of the Mekong River as Laos continues its hydropower ambitions: Laos has not been reluctant to let the world know about its ambition to become the largest energy exporter in the region, or the “Battery of Asia.” As of part of efforts to realize its […]
Read more »The Thirsty Dragon: China Flexes Its Control On The Mekong
January 11th, 2018
Via The Asia Times, an article on how the recent Mekong-Lancang Cooperation summit did more to facilitate Beijing’s economic penetration than address the waterway’s many problems: Was it truly worth Chinese Premier Li Keqiang traveling all the way to Phnom Penh for the second Mekong-Lancang Cooperation (MLC) summit? As the MLC leaders’ meeting closed on Wednesday, […]
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