Editor’s Note
by Mattia Peroni, Lead Editor - Mekong Belt Desk
Some plans work exactly as intended right up until they don't. In Myanmar, junta leader Min Aung Hlaing sat for his first Western interview since the 2021 coup hoping to project a rebuilt image to the world, only for TIME's "dictator" headline to trigger a public ban on the outlet and drag back into view the war and economic collapse the interview was meant to distract from. In Thailand, Bangkok's declarations of climate resilience at the UN ran headlong into a very different reality at home, as monsoon flooding across all 50 districts forced the postponement of a national election and exposed how far the city's infrastructure lagged behind its pledges. And in Laos, months of quiet containment measures against African Swine Fever weren't enough to keep the disease from reaching Vientiane's dinner tables, pushing pork prices up 50% and closing off even the informal cross-border workarounds families relied on.
Myanmar 🇲🇲
Rare Western Interview Brings Myanmar Junta Back Into Spotlight
by Myat Moe Kywe
A rare interview granted by Myanmar’s military juntas to a major Western outlet has ignited a sharp domestic backlash this week, even as it exposes the junta’s broader campaign to rebuild credibility with both its regional neighbors and the West.
TIME magazine published the piece, titled “Myanmar’s Dictator Wants to Rebuild Ties With the West,” on September 23, based on an interview conducted at the President’s Office in Naypyidaw on August 28 between Min Aung Hlaing and TIME’s Editor-at-Large, Charlie Campbell. It marked Min Aung Hlaing’s first interview with Western media since he seized power in the 2021 coup, and came months after Campbell first pitched the interview towards Myanmar’s regime in late April under the working title “The Future of Myanmar,” framed around regime efforts toward peace and stability.
The final product was far from what Naypyidaw anticipated. TIME’s headline flatly labeled Min Aung Hlaing a “dictator,” and the article repeatedly referred to him as a military leader who “calls himself President,” language that appears to have particularly made the regime publish a condemnation statement against TIME and Campbell. The regime responded by blacklisting Campbell, demanding the story’s removal, and banning TIME in Myanmar, accusing the outlet of failing to accurately reflect the answers given and of including “non-constructive writing, interviews with other individuals and unfounded commentaries.”
Inside the story, Min Aung Hlaing used the platform to press for sanctions relief, framing renewed engagement as mutually beneficial for Myanmar and the international community. On the long-stalled Rohingya repatriation agreement, he tied progress to the rollback of legal challenges against the state, warning that without movement the matter becomes unresolvable. He was noncommittal on a possible amnesty for Aung San Suu Kyi, saying it depends on her, while leaving room for reconsideration on the military’s part.
The interview did not occur in isolation. It follows a deliberate pattern of outreach by Min Aung Hlaing toward fellow ASEAN states since his inauguration as president, including bi-lateral state visits to Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, and Cambodia — trips regional and international media have cast as a “diplomatic comeback tour” as reported on Straits Time. Combined with the TIME sit-down, observers read the moves as a coordinated push to normalize the regime’s standing on two fronts simultaneously: consolidating legitimacy within ASEAN while testing the waters for a reset with the West.
Yet the article’s broader reporting undercut that narrative. It documented a military stretched by a civil war showing no sign of ending, a failing economy that has contracted sharply since the coup alongside a weakened Myanmar Kyats and collapsing foreign investment, and a regime increasingly reliant on Beijing and Moscow for military and diplomatic support.
This week’s development has put Myanmar back into the international spotlight through a rare interview with its military leader. What was intended as an opportunity for the regime to present its case to the West instead produced a storyline to reignite the story of what is happening in Myanmar, with its subsequent backlash from the regime against TIME drawing further attention to the story and the wider realities it sought to present.
Myat is a B.A. graduate in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics. She has interned at The Asia Foundation in Washington, D.C., and she has also worked as a summer research assistant at the Centre for Policy and Innovation (CRPI), gaining experience in research and analysis. Her work focuses on civic engagement, gender, youth leadership, and community development.
Thailand 🇹🇭
How Heavy Rain and Structural Vulnerabilities Deepen Crisis Across Bangkok
by Paranut Juntree, in Bangkok
On September 26, 2026, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) expanded its emergency disaster declaration across all 50 districts of the capital. While framed as an immediate administrative step to unlock emergency relief funds and mobilize citywide support, the decision underscores a profound structural vulnerability for millions of residents and working-class communities struggling to navigate an inundated urban landscape.
The primary trigger for the acute flooding was a series of intense monsoon downpours exceeding 300 mm of accumulated rainfall over a short span. However, the severity of the flooding exposes deeper, systemic failures rooted in Bangkok’s unsustainable urban planning. Decades of uncoordinated development, concrete coverage, and the loss of natural water retention zones have left the low-lying metropolis severely constrained. Compounded by ongoing land subsidence, Bangkok’s aging canal network and pumping systems quickly reach capacity during severe downpours. Water trapped in secondary streets and residential sub-districts cannot discharge efficiently into the Chao Phraya River, creating protracted urban pools. To assist displaced citizens and vulnerable groups, the BMA had to open temporary shelter centers inside municipal schools, distributing sandbag barriers and mobilizing utility vehicles for stranded commuters.
This physical paralysis immediately spilled over into civic life, creating unexpected friction around democratic participation. A notable casualty of this emergency was the nationwide Social Security Board election. Originally scheduled for late September to choose employer and employee representatives, the election ran into severe logistical obstacles as major transit routes, polling venues, and administrative centers across Bangkok and nearby provinces became inundated. Recognizing that flooded roads and disrupted public transit would systematically disenfranchise millions of insured workers unable to reach polling booths, the Social Security Office (SSO) ultimately issued an emergency postponement. The delay illustrates how fragile infrastructure can compromise fundamental institutional and democratic processes.
The ongoing inundation on the ground stands in stark contrast to Thailand’s high-level diplomatic engagement at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). While Thai representatives at UNG highlight national commitments to climate adaption, carbon neutrality, and the Sustainable Development Goals, the paralysis across the country’s capital highlights an execution gap between international policy pledges and local resilience. While multilateral advocacy for loss-and-damage support remains essential, the domestic crisis demonstrates that global diplomacy must be grounded in immediate, functional urban adaptation at home.
To uphold the country’s commitments to public safety and long-term climate resilience, the Thai government and municipal leaders should establish clear operational frameworks to safeguard urban communities from recurring climate disasters. Guaranteeing climate-resilient infrastructure and institutional adaption would ensure domestic governance aligns with international standards without compromising democratic participation and public safety.
Paranut has a background in advocacy, with experience in policy research, communications, and civic engagement across both the NGO and government sectors. As Thailand’s Youth Delegate to the United Nations, he represented Thai youth in global dialogues on migration, education, and human rights, championing inclusive policymaking. He holds a degree in political science with a specialization in international relations.
Lao PDR 🇱🇦
Swine Fever Outbreak Widens Across Laos
by Thongsavanh Souvannasane, in Vientiane
Pork has all but vanished from some markets in Vientiane Capital, and the Lao-style barbecue buffets that Lao people love for their sliced pork belly are quietly swapping in beef and buffalo to keep the grills running.
The cause lies hundreds kilometers away, where African Swine Fever (ASF) has torn through 15 districts across seven provinces, killing or forcing the culling of nearly 13,000 pigs nationwide.
As of 17 September, 9,066 pigs died from the disease and a further 3,688 culled to break the chain of transmission.
The outbreak traces back to Namtuan village, Xayabouly district, in mid-June, when it had reached only two provinces. Within weeks, it swept through 38 villages across six districts of Xayabouly and 17 villages in Bountai district, Phongsaly Province.
ASF is a highly contagious viral disease affecting domestic and wild pigs, with a mortality rate close to 100 percent in infected animals, according to the World Organisation for Animal Health. It does not infect humans, though people can spread it between pigs through contaminated clothing, equipment, or food. Its economic toll is severe nonetheless, wiping out herds and disrupting pork supply chains from farm to kitchen.
This is not Laos’ first brush with the virus, which struck first in March 2019 in Toumlan district, Salavanh Province, in the south, before spreading nationwide and subsiding within a year, aided by COVID-19 border closures that limited the movement that spread it. This time, the disease has taken root far to the north, beginning in Xayabouly Province.
Officials blame illegal smuggling, unregulated pork trading, and farmers secretly selling meat from dead pigs at cut-rate prices, a practice that only accelerates the spread.
The government has moved to contain it.
The Prime Minister’s Office issued a notice on 10 September banning pork imports from abroad and tightening monitoring of pig movement between provinces. Xayabouly has gone further, banning the purchase, sale, and transport of pigs outright and setting up 19 checkpoints at border crossings and district and provincial boundaries.
Response teams have buried and disinfected infected livestock and distributed disinfectant, dewormer, and insecticide to affected farms.
Back in the capital, the squeeze is showing up in wallets.
Pork prices have jumped from a typical LAK 60,000 to 70,000 (USD 2.7 to 3.1) per kg to as high as LAK 90,000 (USD 4), even though authorities have not confirmed an outbreak in Vientiane Capital itself. Beef has followed, rising from around LAK 160,000 (USD 7.1) to between LAK 170,000 and 200,000 (USD 7.6 and 8.9) as shoppers switch over.
Residents who once crossed the Mekong bridges into Thailand for cheaper meat can no longer carry it back across the border, closing off one of the last workarounds left.
For now, with the outbreak still active and no end in sight, shoppers, restaurateurs, and farmers alike, in Vientiane and beyond, are left to adjust.
Thongsavanh is a journalist from Laos with a background in English-language media. He graduated from the Lao-American Institute with a Diploma of the Arts in English and contributes to independent news platforms. His reporting focuses on environmental issues, socio-economic development, and geopolitics.
Cambodia 🇰🇭
Cambodia Stock Index Soars to 4-Year High in August Trading Boom
by Malai Yatt, in Phnom Penh
Strong company fundamentals and resilient economic sentiment sparked a massive market rally on the Cambodia Securities Exchange in August, boosting daily trading volumes by roughly 300 percent over early 2026 averages as both local and institutional investors flooded the market.
In August, 2026, the market condition on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX) gained
strong interest and active participation, with trading activity, trading volume, and share price surging sharply even as the annual dividend payout season has come to an end.
According to CSX’s official report, in August, the CSX Index closed at 541.02, an increase of 18 percent during the month and up nearly 28 percent over the first eight months of the year. Exceptionally, on August 26th, the index soared to 560.09, marking its highest level in the last four years (since March, 2022).
Furthermore, the average daily trading value in August reached KHR 3,175 million (almost $800,000), increasing approximately 300% compared to the daily figure across the first seven months of 2026.
“This positive momentum was driven by several key factors such as share prices remained
appealing relative to corporate potential and business fundamentals, historical dividend yields were strong, and listed companies reported positive financial performance and healthy growth in Q2, 2026”
CSX reported that 2,006 new trading accounts were opened in August alone, reflecting widespread public awareness and growing interest in the opportunity of generating additional income through equity investments. Alongside rising liquidity, investor participation also remarkably set a new record.
The actual figures testify to the resilient growth potential of Cambodia’s capital market. The
expansion of investor participation serves as a vital catalyst for the CSX to further broaden its services, develop new financial products, and modernize its technology infrastructure to serve a broader range of the interests of investors, the report added.
On September 10, Hong Sokhour, Royal Government Delegate in charge as CEO of the CSX confirmed that “CSX has a total of 28 listed companies, comprising 12 equity-listed companies and 16 corporate bond-listed companies. Collectively, these 28 companies have successfully raised approximately $720 million from the securities market.
Regarding the market performance, the average daily trading volume for the first eight months of 2026 increased by nearly 150 percent compared to 2025, with average daily trading value rising to $290,000, he added.
Overall, the CSX is experiencing sustained, resilient growth, driven by strong corporate performance, attractive dividend yields, and solid business fundamentals. This broadening public interest and institutional backing are providing a strong participation to expand its financial products.
Editorial Deadline 26/09/2026 11:59 PM (UTC +8)
