In a world under siege from a relentless virus, Asia's resilience was tested to the utmost. Asia Focus staff look back at key events
ASIA
Gone viral: The first reports of a mysterious viral infection started trickling out of Wuhan, China in late 2019, and by the end of January the World Health Organization (WHO) declared a "public health emergency of international concern". As a stricken world prepares to celebrate the New Year, the threat is far from over -- in many places it's worse than ever -- but the arrival of vaccines offers some hope. Beyond the millions of lives disrupted by sickness and death, economic disruption and job losses have been severe, most notably in sectors such as travel and tourism on which many countries depend heavily. On the other hand, the protracted pandemic has led to a "new normal" including the concept of working from anywhere, while social distancing and other healthy habits could help us fight future scourges.
New view from Washington: Joe Biden on Jan 20 will take office as the 46th president of the United States after defeating Donald Trump in the Nov 3 election. The Republican incumbent has yet to concede but has all but exhausted his legal challenges to the result. Mr Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris -- whose mother comes from India -- are expected to re-engage the US with Asia and the global economy, as well as international organisations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), from which Mr Trump withdrew.
Trade breakthrough: After years of negotiations, 15 Asia Pacific economies signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on Nov 15 at a virtual Asean summit hosted by Vietnam. The world's largest free trade agreement (FTA), first conceived in 2011, covers nearly a third of the global population and 30% of its gross domestic product. The 10 Southeast Asian economies and five key trading partners -- China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand -- have signed on but India opted out over concerns about cheap Chinese imports. The deal will take effect once it is ratified by at least six Asean countries and three non-Asean states.
Japan
Adieu Abe: Shinzo Abe announced his resignation on Aug 28 citing ill health, just four days after he had set a record for the longest uninterrupted term as Japan's prime minister -- nearly eight years. His successor and close ally, Yoshihide Suga, has vowed to stay the course on Abenomics, the pro-growth policies championed by Mr Abe, including a focus on revitalising regional economies. While history is expected to view Mr Abe kindly, his reputation -- and that of Mr Suga -- could be stained by a continuing investigation into allegations that political funds were improperly used to subsidise parties for voters.
Gamesmanship: One of the highest-profile casualties of the pandemic was the 2020 Summer Olympics. Despite being rescheduled for July 23 to Aug 8, 2021, the Games are still known as "Tokyo 2020" for marketing and branding purposes. Organisers this month said the delayed Games would cost at least an extra US$2.4 billion as the postponement and new health measures inflate a budget that was already over $13 billion. And even with the arrival of Covid vaccines, it's not certain whether foreign visitors will be allowed and under what conditions. Enthusiasm is also waning in Japan, where a poll in July showed just one in four people wanted to see the Games held in 2021.
China
Beijing's long reach: China dramatically tightened its grip on Hong Kong, imposing a sweeping national security law, in a move decried by Western nations as a threat to the territory's freedoms. The law outlaws subversion, secession, terrorism, and "colluding with foreign forces to undermine national security". A response to tumultuous anti-government protests in 2019 and early 2020, the law also empowers Beijing to set up a national security agency in the city with staff from the mainland. Hong Kong media tycoon and Beijing critic Jimmy Lai, who has UK citizenship, earlier this month became the most high-profile figure charged under the law. A dozen other Hong Kong activists are being held incommunicado on the mainland after being snatched at sea. Other pro-democracy activists are lying low or in jail. Joshua Wong and two other high-profile colleagues are spending 7-13 months behind bars for their role in rallies in 2019. -- Clearing the air: China surprised the world with a vow that its carbon dioxide emissions would peak by 2030 and that it would be carbon-neutral by 2060, raising questions about whether it can radically alter its status as the world's top emitter within 40 years. President Xi Jinping's announcement at the UN General Assembly in September won accolades from climate advocates who hope it will lead developing countries to follow suit.
India
Border bust-up: Indian and Chinese troops engaged in aggressive standoffs starting in early May in disputed border areas, including Pangong Lake straddling Ladakh and Tibet, and between Sikkim and Tibet. The deadliest clash in over 50 years on the disputed Himalayan border left 20 Indian troops dead in brutal hand-to-hand fighting. Both sides have ramped up infrastructure work in disputed areas, but as the year drew to a close, they began diplomatic talks to find a solution that could lead to troop pullbacks.
Citizenship spat: The new citizenship law that the Indian government pushed through Parliament late in 2019 remains a source of friction, even though it has yet to benefit a single person. The Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) promises citizenship to all Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, Jains, Parsis and Sikhs who migrated from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan on or before Dec 31, 2014 and have lived in India for five years. It makes no such promises to Muslims. Government data show 31,313 refugees who have been waiting for years to get citizenship would qualify under the law, but no one has been approved yet.
South Korea
Covid setback: In April, South Korea was being held up as an example of how to contain the coronavirus outbreak. A combination of aggressive testing, contact-tracing and isolation helped it flatten the curve -- without a single day of lockdown. The government embarked on "coronavirus diplomacy" with countries struggling with bigger outbreaks, and even released a guide to managing a pandemic, the Korean way. The country beat back a second wave of infections in late June, but in December the "living with the virus" strategy -- as the country of 51 million calls it -- was being tested again. While case numbers are still small compared to the US and Europe, Korea saw new infections top 1,000 for five straight days in mid-December, a staggering jump from an average of about 100 in previous months.
Australia
Bad to worse: After a year of steadily worsening relations, China in November released a 14-point list of grievances against Australia, along with curbs on a host of Australian products, including tariffs of up to 200% on Australian wines. Australians were outraged when a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman posted a doctored image of an Australian soldier holding a knife to the throat of an Afghan child, trolling Canberra over alleged war crimes by its soldiers. While some observers cite Australia's call in April for an inquiry into the origins of Covid-19 as a tipping point, others say the roots of the feud are much deeper. Canberra has been increasingly vocal about Beijing's aggressive policy in the South China Sea and alleged attempts to meddle in Australian political affairs.
Laos
Dammed if it does: Laos continues to pursue its ambition to be the "Battery of Asia", submitting plans for a new hydropower dam on the Mekong River to the Mekong River Commission (MRC). The US$2-billion Sanakham plant is to be developed by a subsidiary of Datang International Power Generation Co Ltd of China. Hydropower is central to the Lao government's plan to export around 20,000 megawatts of electricity to its neighbours by 2030. Sanakham is the sixth of nine planned mainstream Mekong dams inside Laos. But Thailand is not happy with the potential environmental impact of the dam and has hinted it may invoke a section of the Mekong River Agreement to halt it.
Singapore
Migrants in spotlight: Tightly packed dormitories housing thousands of foreign workers emerged as one of Singapore's biggest challenges in its fight to contain the coronavirus. The full extent of the spread only became known this month. Nearly half of the 323,000 workers living in the dorms are now known to have had Covid-19 at some point, far higher than the official tally, and indicating the virus spreads widely among people who may not have any symptoms. Officially, the city-state has reported 54,500 infections in dormitories since the pandemic began, or 93% of all confirmed cases. But serology test data revealed on Dec 14 showed 98,000 more infections. Even now, workers are only allowed out to go out to work sites and occasionally to shop in designated stores.
Terms of trade: Britain signed a free-trade deal with Singapore, giving it a key foothold in Asia as it seeks to forge its own path after leaving the European Union. The agreement largely replicates an existing EU-Singapore pact, with duties to be eliminated by November 2024 on some US$22 billion in trade. Non-tariff barriers are also being cut on electronics, cars and vehicle parts, pharmaceutical products, medical devices and renewable energy generation.
The Philippines
Nature's wrath: President Rodrigo Duterte says climate change may be contributing to the increase in extreme weather events in the Philippines. "The problem now, whether we accept it or not, is climate change," he said, adding that his government would "redefine" efforts against illegal logging and mining. He made the comment after Typhoon Vamco roared through Luzon in November, killing at least 67 people and triggering some of Metro Manila's worst floods in years. Vamco was the 21st storm to hit the Philippines this year.
Myanmar
Suu Kyi in command: The ruling party led by the highly popular Aung San Suu Kyi won a resounding victory as expected in the Nov 8 general election, which went ahead even as a spike in Covid-19 infections sharply curtailed campaigning. Of the 476 seats contested, the National League for Democracy took 396, six more than it won in 2015. The military-backed main opposition Union Solidarity and Development Party saw its seat total slip to 33 from 42 in 2015, while ethnic minority parties won 47 seats. The NLD landslide came despite the party having made little progress on its campaign promises, such as achieving peace with ethnic armed groups and revising the constitution.
Vietnam
Rare growth: Vietnam is one of the few countries in Asia expected to record economic growth this year, even if it is only 2-3% compared with 7% in 2019. The country has recorded only 1,140 Covid infections, with 35 deaths, and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has said his first priority is to continue containing the pandemic. The country has, however, faced a series of recent natural disasters. Floods and mudslides in October killed 105 people and left 27 others missing in the central provinces.
Malaysia
Gamble backfires: Political turmoil erupted in Malaysia when Mahathir Mohamad unexpectedly quit as prime minister, apparently betting that members of the fractious governing coalition would beg him to come back. They didn't, and the long career of the 94-year-old appears to be over. Also in tatters are the hopes of old rival Anwar Ibrahim, 72, who had been expected to succeed Dr Mahathir. Instead, lawmakers rallied behind Muhyiddin Yassin, despite Dr Mahathir's warnings that doing so would bring a return of corruption and cronyism. Prime Minister Muhyiddin did, however, survive a tough leadership test in December after lawmakers approved his 2021 budget in the lower house of parliament.
Indonesia
Capital idea on hold: The Indonesian government's much-touted plan to relocate the national capital from Java to Borneo hit a wall amid the Covid pandemic, with a top official saying authorities would "evaluate it" after the crisis passes. President Joko Widodo in August 2019 announced a US$33-billion project to build a new capital city in East Kalimantan, citing worsening traffic, land subsidence, flooding and other problems in Jakarta. A "soft groundbreaking" was supposed to be held this year with first-phase completion in 2024. While the government must now focus on the pandemic and has committed almost $50 billion to revive the economy, the new capital will become a priority next year, said Planning Minister Suharso Monoarfa.
Cambodia
Hun Sen's wrist slapped: The European Union took a stand against the increasingly authoritarian ways of Prime Minister Hun Sen and human rights violations, suspending some trade preferences for Cambodia in August. The country will lose about 20% of the perks it enjoys under the Everything But Arms (EBA) scheme that the EU offers to 48 poor countries. Significantly, garments and footwear exported to the EU will face a tariff of 12%. Global brands, including Adidas, Puma and Levi Strauss, have urged Cambodia to reform, but Hun Sen said the country would not "bow down" to foreign demands. The United Kingdom, eager to build trade bridges now that it is no longer in the EU, announced in mid-December that it would grant Cambodia trade privileges under its Generalised Scheme of Preferences.