mzwheeler.bsky.social - Profile | ThreadSky | a Reddit-style client for Bluesky

As I wrote earlier today, the Trump administration's projects of domestic political repression and militarized immigration enforcement have converged in California. www.crisisgroup.org/united-state...

submitted 1 day ago • 2 comments

"Trump reneged on more than a billion dollars the Biden administration promised to tribes for renewable energy and salmon recovery."

submitted 18 hours ago • 2 comments

In case anyone's interested in Buddhism and how young people engage with organized religion in Thailand!

submitted 2 days ago • 0 comments

Noem’s language in this reported letter to the Pentagon is a further illustration of how the administration has sought to repurpose the terminology and tools of counterterrorism and war against migrants and domestic political opponents. www.crisisgroup.org/united-state...

submitted 3 days ago • 0 comments

President Trump has now pardoned 9 members of Congress convicted of crimes

submitted 15 days ago • 101 comments

According to Cambodian Army spokesperson Mao Phalla, one Cambodian soldier was killed in a brief exchange of fire at a disputed border area between #Cambodia and Thailand.

submitted 16 days ago • 0 comments

NEW REPORT | The U.S., China and the Search for a New Equilibrium As China projects its advancing military capabilities and the U.S. sends mixed messages about security assurance, Washington and Beijing should resume talks to manage any risks of escalation. www.crisisgroup.org/asia/north-e...

submitted 29 days ago • 0 comments

A new report finds the bottom 60% of U.S. households—or two-thirds of the population—can't afford a “minimal quality of life": housing, health care, and other necessities. "Indicators like GDP and unemployment tell us the economy is thriving. But they don’t reflect the reality of most Americans."

submitted 30 days ago • 53 comments

WhileTrump claims Bessent brokered a “total reset” of 🇺🇸 🇨🇳 economic ties, it’s not evident 🇺🇸came out ahead. Trump’s gambit, far from inducing 🇨🇳 to capitulate, ultimately showcased how much Beijing’s capacity for asymmetric retaliation has grown since his first term www.crisisgroup.org/united-state...

submitted 31 days ago • 0 comments

The lèse majesté and computer crime cases against American academic Paul Chambers will be dropped, according to a statement by the Office of the Attorney General. Dr. Chambers was arrested weeks ago and is not only fighting against the charges but also his visa revocation.

submitted 43 days ago • 1 comment

This indicates a fundamental misunderstanding of the reconciliation between the US & Vietnam over the last three decades since normalization. The deep level of trust rests on open & honest dialogue and the hard work of countless diplomats on both sides. www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/w...

submitted 52 days ago • 0 comments

“The Trump administration has told its senior diplomats in Vietnam not to take part in events marking the 50th anniversary of the end of the war” www.nytimes.com/2025/04/22/w...

submitted 52 days ago • 23 comments

NEW: My commentary for @crisisgroup.org on how the Trump administration has repurposed the terrorism framing and applied it to cartels, migrants, and domestic political opponents. www.crisisgroup.org/united-state...

submitted 59 days ago • 4 comments

NEW BRIEFING | A Rebel Border: India’s Evolving Ties with Myanmar after the Coup Newly announced border controls could undercut New Delhi's approach to rebels holding most of Myanmar’s periphery. Fine-tuned policies would better serve its ends. www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-e...

submitted 63 days ago • 0 comments

Condemning the Arrest of Scholar Paul Chambers on Lèse-majesté: 112WATCH condemns his arrest and urges the Thai government to uphold academic freedom and prevent the politicisation of Article 112. April 4, 2025 112watch.org/condemning-t...

submitted 70 days ago • 0 comments

Thailand is charging US academic Paul Chambers with article 112 & Computer Crimes Act based on @iseas-singapore.bsky.social description of an academic program that was neither written nor published on line by Paul. So how were these charges developed? Who is responsible? www.hrw.org/news/2025/04...

submitted 65 days ago • 0 comments

#BREAKING: American academic Dr. Paul Chambers, a renowned expert on the Thai military and security apparatus, has been arrested for lèse majesté and denied bail by a Phitsanulok court.

submitted 66 days ago • 3 comments

Japan and NATO plan to take their partnership to the next level by stepping up information-sharing and defense-industrial cooperation, NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told The Japan Times in an exclusive interview.

submitted 67 days ago • 6 comments

Local media reports that Dr. Paul Chambers, historian and Thai military history expert has been arrested on lesé-majeste (article 112) charges. Dr. Chambers is a critic of Thai military involvement in politics and so called “khaki capitalism” #article112 #lesemajeste #thailand

submitted 70 days ago • 1 comment

Powerful piece by @rebtanhs.bsky.social @washingtonpost.com #MyanmarEarthquake #USAID: www.washingtonpost.com/world/2025/0...

submitted 72 days ago • 0 comments

Myanmar’s earthquake comes at a time when a beleaguered, illegitimate junta is locked in an existential battle with its opponents. Many observers are understandably questioning whether Myanmar’s generals are sincere in their calls for international help. www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-e...

submitted 72 days ago • 1 comment

New by me @foreignpolicy.com: I argue that despite the seeming normalcy of the US-Japan defense ministerial over the weekend, Tokyo shouldn't be under any illusions about the potential risks to the alliance. foreignpolicy.com/2025/04/01/j...

submitted 72 days ago • 8 comments

Was speaking with a USAID person yesterday explaining how at any other time countless phone lines wld be buzzing, working groups stood up, go-teams and aid being dispatched to after the Myanmar quake. Now ... nothing.

submitted 76 days ago • 169 comments

Very much a long-shot, but I'm trying to figure out the first name of a French military officer, Captian Lucar (Lucas?), who was invited by the Japanese Army in 1921 to teach an eight-week course on anti-aircraft maneuvers. All I have is the Japanese rendering of the family name, リュカー Any ideas?

submitted 75 days ago • 4 comments

Coverage of the impact of the earthquake in Myanmar from @myanmar-now.bsky.social Lots of collapsed buildings in Mandalay, reports of significant damage in Naypyitaw. State of emergency declared by Junta in Mandalay, Sagaing, Naypyidaw, Magway, Bago regions as well as northeastern Shan State...

submitted 77 days ago • 1 comment

JUST IN: Fire and heavy damage at Mandalay University in Myanmar, reports of casualties

submitted 77 days ago • 1 comment

My god—a major earthquake (a Richter ~7.7) causes a skyscraper to collapse in Bangkok. Hope all the construction workers made it out.

submitted 77 days ago • 55 comments

MYANMAR EARTHQUAKE What we know: - 7.7 scale quake, 10 km deep recorded in Mandalay, Myanmar at ~ 13.20pm BK time - felt in Thailand as far as Bangkok, buildings swaying - images and footage of damage What we don’t know: - extend of damages - no. of casualties

submitted 77 days ago • 1 comment

Looking forward to discuss Australia, Trump 2.0 and the need for multidimensional approaches in a world of transactional realpolitik. I'll be ISEAS in Singapore on Mon 24 March, sign up here: t.co/csLDmvvibv

submitted 84 days ago • 0 comments

Stability in Myanmar’s Chin State is likely to hinge on unifying the two main armed factions now in control and whose disputes have threatened to prompt a wave of violence and tempt the military to try reconquering parts of the state. www.crisisgroup.org/asia/south-e...

submitted 85 days ago • 0 comments

In 1940, the presidents of Yale, Columbia, and Harvard urged the government and country to fight fascism. It was national news.

submitted 87 days ago • 3 comments

“predictability of our allies is a greater asset to take into account. We have to believe that, in all circumstances, these allies will be on our side.” —Portuguese Minister of Defense. www.airdatanews.com/instead-of-f...

submitted 91 days ago • 5 comments

“fresh militant attacks are a reminder that a cessation of hostilities is more often an effect of peace talks than a precondition.” My thoughts on violence in southernmost Thailand.

submitted 93 days ago • 0 comments

Separatist insurgents in Thailand’s deep south carried out a deadly attack on a government office in Su Ngai Kolok district in Narathiwat province. The deliberate attack on civilians was an apparent war crime under international humanitarian law.

submitted 94 days ago • 0 comments

Post a photo you took with no context to bring some zen to the timeline

submitted 94 days ago • 0 comments

Online seminar on the new Prabowo presidency - this will be a very informative event for anyone interested in Indonesian politics events.humanitix.com/the-prabowo-...

submitted 99 days ago • 1 comment

UPDATE: Thai Natl. Police Chief Kitrat Phanphet also confirms the deportation of 40 Uyghurs and China's "assurances they're being looked after" as well as Thai officials traveling there to follow-up. He also says it was a National Security Council decision.

submitted 106 days ago • 0 comments

Rare partial win in Thai courts as reporter is acquitted of using force to interfere with an official while investigating a Extrajudicial killing. However the mother of the person killed was sentenced to 6 months suspended and a fine. prachataienglish.com/node/11318

submitted 107 days ago • 0 comments

Since the end of the fighting in Cambodia, nearly 20,000 people have been killed and about 45,000 injured by leftover war explosives. The number of casualties has declined over time; last year there were 49 deaths. #cambodia #landmines #conflict #khmerrouge #usa

submitted 110 days ago • 0 comments

📆 SAVE THE DATE | Violence and Politics in Haiti’s Transitional Government 🎧 Online event ⏰ 26 February | 10am Port-Au-Prince | 4pm Brussels | 10am New York Register here 🔽 www.crisisgroup.org/how-we-work/...

submitted 112 days ago • 0 comments

Speaking to reporters in Mae Sot after seeing off a return flight of Chinese scam center workers from Myanmar, Thai Def Min Phumtham Wechayachai says the dozen flights until Sat carrying 600 home are "all for now" and new talks between China and Myanmar needed for more repatriations.

submitted 113 days ago • 0 comments

My analysis for The New Humanitarian. There're many foreign experts on #Myanmar who I respect, but I made a conscious decision to champion Burmese (not Bamar) voices for this story. Thanks for trusting me with your thoughts. You know who you are. #Burma www.thenewhumanitarian.org/analysis/202...

submitted 115 days ago • 0 comments

U.S. described unflatteringly on front page of main South Korean right-wing daily as a "security gangster" for its proposal to take Ukrainian rare earths in exchange for military assistance.

submitted 116 days ago • 1 comment

Speaking to people over the last few days about this, there's a sense that these cuts are brutal, thoughtless and will empower autocrats across SEA and beyond. USAID is deeply flawed, everyone knows this, but one big loss will be shreds of transparency in an often authoritarian region.

submitted 121 days ago • 0 comments

Thailand has cut electricity, internet and fuel supplies to five border areas in Myanmar, in an attempt to choke scam centres, which have put a damper on arrivals of foreign tourists. The move comes as PM Paetongtarn Shinawatra begins her official visit to China www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJMq...

submitted 127 days ago • 0 comments

Within Southeast Asia, deep cuts to USAID have already resulted in the suspension or curtailing of a wide range of programs targeting land mine clearance, health services for refugees, and education. Bart Édes and Luke Hunt discuss Trump's impact on the region.

submitted 128 days ago • 0 comments