About

Sebastian Strangio is a journalist and author focusing on Southeast Asia. Since 2008, his reporting from across the region has appeared in more than 30 leading publications in the United States, Europe, and Asia.

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Author Archive
Thai Monuments Are Disappearing in the Dead of Night

Thai Monuments Are Disappearing in the Dead of Night

This week’s student protests are part of a backlash against a monarchist elite trying to erase Thailand’s democratic history.
The World According to Cambodia’s CPP

The World According to Cambodia’s CPP

If the West truly wants to change Hun Sen’s behavior, it needs to understand how he sees the world.
Don’t hold your breath for a dramatic Southeast Asian pushback against China

Don’t hold your breath for a dramatic Southeast Asian pushback against China

As US-China tensions grow and temperatures rise in the South China Sea, Southeast Asia will only become more tense, anxious and constrained.
The Myanmar Mirage: How the West got Burma wrong

The Myanmar Mirage: How the West got Burma wrong

Just few years ago, Myanmar (also called Burma) was widely seen as an international success story.
City of light

City of light

The backwash from Sihanoukville could be felt most of the way up National Road 4, the dilapidated two-lane highway linking Cambodia’s capital to its southern coast.
European trade threats could backfire in Cambodia

European trade threats could backfire in Cambodia

Pressure from Brussels risks deepening Phnom Penh’s close engagement with China
Why Cambodia yields to China's strategic commands

Why Cambodia yields to China’s strategic commands

The possible establishment of a Chinese naval presence in Cambodia is the logical outcome of long-flawed U.S. policies towards Phnom Penh.
Vietnam learns to live in China's shadow

Vietnam learns to live in China’s shadow

Four decades on, China’s 1979 border war is officially ‘forgotten’ in Hanoi.
Thai Politics Has a Princess but No Storybook Endings

Thai Politics Has a Princess but No Storybook Endings

With elections coming, the junta still fears the specter of Thaksin Shinawatra.
Cambodia's Potemkin election -- what will come next?

Cambodia’s Potemkin election — what will come next?

Despite being free from the friction of meaningful opposition, fresh challenges loom for long-ruling Hun Sen
Sanctions will not resolve the Hun Sen problem

Sanctions will not resolve the Hun Sen problem

China gives Cambodia’s strongman the option to ignore Western pressure
Turning east

Turning east

By most accounts, the past few years have been anni horribiles for human rights and democracy in Southeast Asia.