Read the latest news, commentary, and analysis from the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia.
Essay
A summary of the December 11-12, 2025 conference, jointly organized by the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia, John F. Kennedy; School of Government, Harvard University; East Asian Institute, National University of Singapore (NUS); and the National School of Development, Peking University.
In Partnership with Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, NUS.
Newest
Feature
Massachusetts state representatives Tackey Chan and Tram Nguyen on the importance of Asian American representation in state government.
Feature
In a visit to the Kennedy School, the country’s first Cambodian American mayor argues that there has never been a better time for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to run for office.
Feature
Speaking at Harvard Kennedy School, Bangladesh Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen MC/MPA 1979 noted that the country plans to be poverty free by 2041. Yet challenges—like climate change and rising fuel costs—loom large.
Essay
In a new essay, Hai Nguyen draws on oral histories to reflect on the 50th anniversary of the Paris Peace Accords. Nguyen reminds us of the question many are still asking a half-century later: When foreign powers withdrew from Vietnam, why did compatriots still fight to the death?
Feature
Historian Fredrik Logevall discusses why the agreement that ended U.S. involvement in Vietnam never led to the promised “peace with honor”
Feature
While China has been reluctant to criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, HKS Professor Tony Saich believes that Beijing is treading a fine line in not alienating the West and risk becoming sanctions targets themselves
Q+A
Tony Saich says demonstrators, angered over draconian COVID policies, are adopting tactics used in 1989.
Q+A
As twice a decade conclave of party leaders concludes, Tony Saich asks whether Xi risks creating a “Putin syndrome” for China.
Q+A
With a new ban on forced labor and frustration over Beijing’s continued support of Russia mounting, the EU’s relationship with China is set to reach a new low.