Can Asia Power a “Gold Age” of gas?  
    

Earlier this month, International Energy Agency (IEA) chief economist Fatih Birol told a 350-strong audience here in Singapore that Asia could help drive a new “golden age” of natural gas in the coming years. Feverish demand from China and India, coupled with the emergence of Australia as an emerging liquefied natural gas (LNG) giant, could send gas use skyrocketing by more than 50% to account for a quarter of the world’s energy demand by 2035. (CogitASIA)

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A landslide, yet inconclusive   
      

How will Yingluck Shinawatra rule Thailand after she led her Pheu Thai party to a landslide election victory on Sunday? How much of the decisions she makes as the new prime minister will be dictated by her brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, the real power behind the party, who is currently living in exile? How long will the Bangkok political elite tolerate this government-by-proxy, and how long will it be before the Thai military, with the nod of the king, decides to step in again and seize power? (The Jakarta Post)

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Vietnam’s carefully managed anger  

    

For five consecutive Sundays this past month, protesters in Hanoi have gathered close to the Chinese embassy to protest China’s recent actions in the South China Sea (known as the East Sea in Vietnam). (The Diplomat)

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The risk of ‘disaster nationalism’   
   
It is feared that Japanese people's singular focus on pulling together after the March 11 disasters will cause them to withdraw from foreign affairs.                      (The Japan Times)

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The Thinker: Islam in Office   
  
Governance is Indonesia’s greatest challenge. In 1998, after 32 years of authoritarianism, the people demanded a democratic system and got one. In the ensuing 13 years, they have demonstrated a remarkable commitment to democratic values. They have twice directly elected a president and vice president, and directly elected more than 500 regional executives and 17,000 regional representatives. The question now is how well these elected officials are governing.          (The Jakarta Globe)

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Can Indonesia mediate the South China Sea dispute?  
  

Tensions over the overlapping claims in the South China Sea (SCS) have mounted in the past months, with hostilities accelerating since the beginning of June. The row between China, Vietnam and the Philippines has urged current ASEAN chair, Indonesia, to step up.        (East Asia Forum)

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Myanmar’s delicate dance with ASEAN    
  

In a controversial visit by a Burmese delegation to China, President Thein Sein recently announced that Naypyidaw fully supports Beijing’s contention that it owns most of the South China Sea (to which at least six other Asian states have historically laid claim). Separately, recent speeches by both U.S. Senator John McCain and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have pointed out Naypyidaw’s failure to improve its abysmal human-rights record, despite its membership in ASEAN since 1997. At first glance, it seems that ASEAN’s influence over Naypyidaw is minimal at best, and that Myanmar has been grossly disloyal to its nine Southeast Asian partners. (CogitAsia)

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