Water wars: Mekong River another front in U.S.-China rivalry
The Mekong River has become a new front in U.S.-China rivalry, environmentalists and officials say, with Beijing overtaking Washington in both spending and influence over downstream countries at the mercy of its control of the river’s waters. It’s a confrontation in which the Trump administration – ...
Kay Johnson, Panu Wongcha-um
4 Dams on the Upper Mekong in Yunnan, China: 2011-2019
These photos document the construction of four dams – from north to south, Wunonglong, Lidi, Tuoba, and Huangdeng (see map below) – along a 200-kilometer stretch of the upper Mekong in Yunnan, China, and the transformation of the river from a free-flowing current to a ...
Scott Ezell
Pointing out culprits of Mekong’s problems is not our mission: MRC Secretariat CEO
The 4th Mekong River Commission Summit, held in Vientiane on 4-5 April 2023, saw heads of state and ministers from Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam come together to discuss the sustainable development of Southeast Asia’s greatest river. At its conclusion, the four countries signed the ‘Vientiane Declaration’, in ...
Aron White, thethirdpole.net
ASIA 2016: Conference on water resources and hydropower development in Asia

This international conference will take place in Vientiane, Laos, 1-3 March 2016. The event is organised by the International Journal on Hydropower and Dams, IEA, IFC, the World Bank and others. ...
Sebastian Strangio on China in the Mekong region
With far-reaching implications for the upcoming elections in Myanmar and with the US tentatively wading into river governance, the Mekong region has become a contentious staging ground for China’s wider goals in Southeast Asia. Sebastian Strangio’s new book In the Dragon’s Shadow: Southeast Asia in the Chinese Century draws ...
Tyler Roney
New Industrial Estate to Link Isaan with Mekong Nations
A new industrial estate, currently under construction in northeastern Thailand, is primarily designed as a logistics and freight forwarding center in connection with neighboring countries, confirmed a senior government official on Monday. The industrial estate in Udon Thani province, which is now 50 percent complete and ...
Xinhua News Agency
Mekong: When the river runs dry
It has been a bad year for the Mekong. An unusually long period of drought has brought water levels to some of the lowest measurements in recent years. There are fears that the drought will have a particularly negative effect on the Tonle Sap River, connecting ...
Milton Osborne
Thai lockdown sparks exodus of 60,000 migrant workers: ministry official
About 60,000 migrant workers living in Thailand have fled the country since authorities shut malls and many businesses at the weekend to curb the spread of the coronavirus, a Thai interior ministry official said on Wednesday. Thailand’s latest measures have left many without jobs and prompted ...
Panarat Thepgumpanat
The changing face of ASEAN

With much of ASEAN stuck in the economic doldrums and its senior members beset with issues ranging from unprecedented levels of corruption to violent insurgencies and maritime disputes with China, the regional bloc has known better days. But from the most unlikely corners of northern ASEAN, a more ...
Vietnam braces for severe impact of Mekong River’s record low water levels
The Mekong River’s water level during this year’s early flood season, from June to July, is among the lowest on record, according to the Mekong River Commission (MRC), with experts warning of impending consequences on the upcoming dry season in Vietnam. Water levels in the Mekong ...
Ratana decries lack of UXO aid

A top Cambodian demining official slammed US President Barack Obama’s widely heralded pledge to increase demining aid to Laos on September 6, faulting the US for what he characterised as its “marginal assistance” to Cambodia’s demining efforts. In a speech at the 2016 ASEAN Summit in ...
More dams would devastate the ailing Mekong River
Once, not that long ago, the Mekong River in Southeast Asia was a formidable waterway. Navigating much of the 4,350km-long river was a real challenge. The Mekong, which originates in China and empties into the South China Sea in Vietnam after passing through four other ...
Daniel T Cross
How wasps saved Asia’s forests
In our recent study, we combined field observations and satellite imagery to show how the tiny pest-killing lopezi wasp (Anagyrus lopezi) helped combat deforestation in Thailand, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, and Vietnam by controlling a pest that was devastating cassava crops across the region. Keep reading ...
Meteorological Department Warns Northern Thailand to Brace for Heavy Rain and Mekong River Overflows
The tropical storm is expected to blow over Hong Kong and China’s Hainan island during September 13-14 and this will bring more rain to Laos and Thai provinces bordering Mekong river with danger of river overflows. Keep reading ...
MRC announces Mekong Day event to celebrate signing of Mekong agreement

Today marks the 22nd anniversary of the signing of the Mekong Agreement between Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand and Viet Nam. It is a founding agreement on regional collaboration on water management that established the Mekong River Commission.The MRC will celebrate the Mekong Day tomorrow with ...
Mekong Tourism Forum 2018 - Nakhon Phanom Thailand

The Mekong Tourism Forum 2018 will open its doors from 26 to 29 June 2018 , to provide a cooperative platform for public and private sector stakeholders in the tourism industry. The venue is Nakhon Phanom in Thailand’s North-East, the major Thai-Laos border town at ...
Mekong river literature award presented
Twelve writers from six nations in the Mekong River Delta received Mekong River Literature Awards in a ceremony held in Hanoi on June 15. The event gathered 30 writers from six countries in the region which are Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos, Myanmar and China. Keep reading ...
Cambodia attracts over 333 mln USD investment from ASEAN in 2017
Cambodia attracted the fixed asset investment of 333.4 million U.S. dollars from its ASEAN member states in 2017, according to a government’s report on Friday. ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Keep reading ...
Mu Xuequan
Orphaned Myanmar elephants blanketed against cold
When an unexpectedly cold front from China descended on parts of Southeast Asia this past week, people in Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia bundled up in coats to stave off the region’s unusual weather. But what’s an elephant to do?Keep reading ...
The Bangkok Post Reporter
Lower Mekong Initiative (LMI) Women’s Leadership Project (WLP) Calls for Applicants

For applicant from Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam To be an agent for change in your community, consider applying for the LMI Women’s Leadership Project. Deadline: 15 Oct. 2018 Click here to fill out the application ...