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Sholto Byrnes

Sholto Byrnes

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Sholto Byrnes is an East Asian affairs columnist for The National. A commentator and consultant based in Kuala Lumpur, he previously held senior roles at the Independent and New Statesman in London, set up and edited a quarterly international affairs magazine in the Arabian Gulf, and was a senior fellow at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia. He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2009 and a corresponding fellow of the Erasmus Historical and Cultural Forum in 2019.
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Articles

Thai Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra was suspended from office this month. Bloomberg
CommentHow a simple phone call shook Thai politics

The Shinawatras have been a force in Thai politics, so one scandal may not be enough to take them down

CommentJuly 02, 2025
Former US President Joe Biden delivers remarks about the Aukus pact in the White House, in Washington, on September 15, 2021. The then Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, left, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson participated virtually. EPA
CommentHow Australia benefits if a security pact with the US gets canned

For Australia, the only sensible path is to try to build an Asia-Pacific security architecture that includes China

CommentJune 27, 2025
Activists during a solidarity protest in support of the Palestinian people, in Jakarta, on Thursday. EPA
CommentSouth-East Asian countries are siding with Iran – this isn't surprising

Support for Israel has always been low to the point of unmeasurable among Muslim-majority nations

CommentJune 20, 2025
From left, US Senator Barry Goldwater (1909 - 1998), US President Ronald Reagan (1911 - 2004), and writer and TV host William F Buckley Jr (1925 - 2008) in1987. (Photo by LMPC via Getty Images)
Can the man who paved the way for Trump heal divisions in the US?

A closer look at a new biography of William F Buckley Jr that upends common notions about the conservative movement

OpinionJune 12, 2025
South Korean President-elect Lee Jae-myung sets off for his inauguration ceremony at the National Assembly on Wednesday. Reuters
CommentSouth Korea's Lee Jae-myung is the right man to deal with Donald Trump

The new president's in-tray is full, but his pragmatism could be an asset for a troubled country

CommentJune 04, 2025
Leaders of Gulf Co-operation Council member states and the Association of South-East Asian Nations with their Chinese counterparts in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday. Reuters
GCC and Asean show civilisations can work together, despite the differences

Their relationship can be much more than just a matter of material progress, and shared and equitable prosperity

CommentMay 29, 2025
The Bandung Conference of 1955 was essentially a meeting of Asian and African states that were newly independent. Getty
CommentHow a 1955 conference in Indonesia formed the bedrock for today's Global South

The contributions of the Non-Aligned Movement are tremendous, yet they have been largely overlooked in the West

CommentMay 08, 2025
Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong speaks next to Senior Minister Lee Hsien Loong at a People's Action Party rally ahead of Saturday's general election. Reuters
CommentWill the Trump tariffs slow Singapore's political evolution?

The governing party hasn't lost an election, yet its concern that any opposition gains in Saturday's vote could undermine stability is misplaced

CommentMay 01, 2025
When Malaysians think of former prime minister Abdullah Badawi, they will think of him with a kindly smile on his face. AP
Abdullah Ahmad Badawi was the 'quiet man' of Malaysian politics

People appreciate the recently departed former prime minister more than they did during his time in office

CommentApril 24, 2025
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, in April 2017. AFP
CommentTrump has done a good job of making Xi the reliable partner in the room

While some countries are closer to China, most wish for balance and no one quite knows what security guarantees mean under Trump

CommentApril 11, 2025
A Buddhist monk gestures near a damaged pagoda in the aftermath of Friday's earthquake in Amarapura township, Mandalay, Myanmar, on April 2. AP
CommentMyanmar's earthquake exposes its political paralysis

Some see the disaster as an omen that could spell the end of Senior General Min Aung Hlaing’s rule in the country

CommentApril 02, 2025
BYD's Yangwang U9 electric supercar. BYD
CommentWhat BYD outpacing Tesla says about global consumer sentiment

'Made in China' is quickly becoming a mark of quality, especially for those who don't like America's toxic politics

CommentMarch 27, 2025
British and American forces fire 105mm artillery rounds during a live fire exercise at Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan in 2002. Getty
CommentDon’t mourn the death of the failed old world order. Start building a better one – now

It is a time for trying to come up with new systems and orders that suit the real world of today

CommentMarch 21, 2025
Rodrigo Duterte was president of the Philippines from 2016 to 2022. Reuters
CommentDuterte’s arrest puts the ICC back on trial in the Global South

The court’s uneven implementation of its arrest warrants appears neither credible nor impartial to some

OpinionMarch 12, 2025
US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hold a joint news conference in the White House last month. AP
CommentWhat explains Trump’s odd contradictions between Israel and Ukraine?

For the US President, the political is personal

CommentMarch 07, 2025
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