Central Asia & Caucasus Data

The Chinese Year of the Fire Horse has a new, unexpected mascot: Draco Malfoy. Associating the Harry Potter antagonist with China’s Year of the Fire Horse might seem odd or whimsical. But it has much to teach us about the complexities of Chinese Mandarin wordplay, online participation and meme-making culture. A search for Malfoy memes The post Face of China’s Year of the Fire Horse? Draco Malfoy, of course appeared first on Asia Times.

China’s demographic crisis is no longer a distant projection buried in academic journals or UN forecasts. It has become an observable fact, confirmed by official statistics and increasingly felt across Chinese society. In January 2026, China’s National Bureau of Statistics reported that the country recorded its lowest birth rate since 1949. Fewer than eight million The post China’s demographic crisis has moved from theory to fact appeared first on Asia Times.

Indonesia has announced a US$7-8 billion partnership to build a large-scale electric vehicle battery ecosystem. The project, called Titan, involves state-owned companies Antam and Industri Baterai Indonesia, together with a Chinese consortium led by Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt. The goal is to develop a fully integrated battery supply chain, from raw materials to finished batteries. Battery The post Will China power or pollute Indonesia’s EV battery dream? appeared first on Asia Times.

As Washington once again contemplates its approach to Cuba, familiar voices are calling for more aggressive policies to hasten the end of the Castro-era political system. This reflexive interventionism ignores both the lessons of history and the realities of contemporary geopolitics. The fundamental problem with regime change as a policy goal in Cuba is that The post The mirage of regime change in Cuba appeared first on Asia Times.