Access Asia

Australia, which became the first country to ban social media for minors, is planning to crack down on Big Tech further. The government introduced new legislation to force social media firms to allow users to opt out of algorithms. The proposed laws also aim to strengthen online child protection. Opposition lawmakers say such measures would amount to government censorship.  

Following devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet, Access Asia takes a closer look at the fragile state of the Himalayan mountains. Dr Arun Bhakta Shrestha, an expert on the environment and risk management in the Himalayas, explains why it's so difficult to detect glacier movements in advance and says that the tragedy could serve as an opportunity to improve the way nations develop infrastructure in the resource-rich region. 

On this edition of Access Asia, we speak to a former FBI official helping Youlin Chen's family. The 54-year-old American scientist has been detained on espionage charges in China since November 2024, when he was visiting relatives in Beijing. His family has chosen to speak out after quiet diplomacy failed to secure his release.

On this week's edition of Access Asia, we bring you a report from Japan, where visa fees have been increased for foreign nationals applying for permanent residency. The government is also considering introducing a language requirement. While Japan needs foreign workers to help offset an ageing population and a declining birth rate, the nationalist government has continued to tighten its immigration policies.

On this edition of Access Asia, we find out why anger is brewing in South Korea after the country's national team was eliminated from the World Cup. We also ask our Sports Editor why China hasn't managed to make it to football's top tier despite massive investment. Plus, Japan's prime minister heads to India as both countries seek to strengthen ties.

Japan's imperial family is running out of male heirs, and a debate over how to preserve the hereditary lineage that has continued unbroken for centuries is dividing the nation. Meanwhile, Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako wrapped up their two-week trip to Europe, and Japan took note that their royal Dutch and Belgian hosts both have women in line for the throne. FRANCE 24's Aurore Dupuis breaks down the looming succession crisis in the world's oldest monarchy. 

In this edition of Access Asia, we explore why the world's most populous country struggles to qualify for the World Cup, despite a growing appetite for the sport. We also explore how artificial intelligence could be about to revolutionise medicine and blue-collar work.

This week, a town north of Tokyo shut down nearly 100 schools following a spate of bear sightings. In another Japanese town last week, a bear attacked four people, opened a water tap and unlatched a window to escape a building it had been trapped in. So are bears becoming a bigger threat? FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer speaks with Kazuhiko Maita from the Institute for Asian Black Bear Research and Preservation, who has survived nine bear attacks himself, about what's behind the recent crisis in Japan.  

On this edition of Access Asia, we explore how India’s nascent Cockroach Janta Party has tapped into the frustrations of the country’s youth. We speak with the party’s spokesperson, Saurav Das, who tells us that the movement is demanding accountability from the government. Political scientist Christophe Jaffrelot also weighs in on why young people in India are disillusioned and what the country’s opposition parties can learn from the viral movement.

It is one of the world's fastest-growing industries. Cyber fraud operated out of scam centres scattered across the Mekong region generates tens of billions of euros every year -- by some estimates, equivalent to 40 percent of the region's combined GDP. This edition of Access Asia takes a deep look inside the scam industry with analysis from Jason G. Tower, senior expert at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

As a trial of former organisers of Hong Kong's Tiananmen vigils has concluded, FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer speaks with Wu'er Kaixi, one of the student leaders who led mass protests leading up to the brutal 1989 crackdown. Nearly 37 years since the tragedy, the exiled campaigner laments China's continued oppression of dissident voices and ethnic minorities. 

Donald Trump has wrapped up a high-stakes visit to China. While host Xi Jinping warned that the Taiwan issue, if mishandled, could lead to conflict between the two superpowers, the US president took a muted approach and remained silent on the question. Lev Nachman, political science professor at National Taiwan University, tells FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer that the silence was welcomed by the Taiwanese as a sign the US would not change its longstanding policy. 

In this edition of Access Asia, we look ahead to the US president's upcoming visit to China. While both sides will be seeking to reset ties, the war in Iran is set to cloud the trip. We also speak to an Australian artist of Indian descent who is currently in residence in Paris. We explore how Sid Pattni's work examines issues of identity and belonging through a post-colonial framework.

From North Korea to Japan to the United States, the members of K-pop band 1VERSE are from diverse backgrounds. Yuka Royer sat down with Seok, Aito, Kenny and Nathan, as they made a stop in Paris during their world tour. 

A year after the deadly terror attack in Kashmir, relations between India and Pakistan remain at an all-time low. Since then, Islamabad has emerged as a key mediator seeking to end the war in Iran. On Access Asia, we're joined by Indian MP Dr Shashi Tharoor to find out what India makes of Pakistan's push for peace.

China's President Xi Jinping has broken a six-week silence about the war in Iran, vowing to take a "constructive" role in efforts to end the conflict. Beijing is wary of being drawn into a war it took no part in, and faces a delicate balancing act between its long-term partnership with Iran and its strategic interests in the Middle East and beyond. Yuka Royer speaks with Ja Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, about what's behind Beijing's calculations. 

It has been more than 50 years since humans last ventured this close to the Moon. Now, the Artemis II mission is refocusing attention on the space race between the United States and China. Camille Knight explains the two superpowers’ competing lunar ambitions.

With Iran effectively turning the Strait of Hormuz into a toll gate, energy shortages are worsening across Asia. Amid the supply crunch, countries are increasingly turning back to coal for electricity, potentially slowing efforts to tackle climate change.

On this week's Access Asia we look at how Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator to end the war in Iran. The Atlantic Council's Michael Kugelman tells us the conflict spillover risks are particularly acute, adding that Pakistan badly wants to avoid getting dragged into the war.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi travelled to Washington hoping to strengthen ties with the United States. The visit turned into a delicate balancing act amid US President Donald Trump's growing pressure on allies to help the US in the Iran war. Yuka Royer discusses the visit with James Schoff, Senior Director at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA.

Asian nations, including India, are feeling the impact of the ongoing war in Iran. We explore how dependent the region is on West Asia for energy and consider whether New Delhi should position itself as a mediator to help bring the conflict to an end.

The fallout of the US-Israeli war on Iran is reverberating across Asia. China has condemned the attack and the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei, but is staying well clear of the conflict itself. Developing Asian economies that rely on remittances face uncertainty as millions of migrant workers are caught in the crossfire. The war is also unsettling Pakistan, which shares a restive border region with Iran. We get expert insights in this edition of Access Asia. 

In this edition of Access Asia, we explore what the recent visit by India's prime minister to Israel means for both sides. Narendra Modi's public embrace of Benjamin Netanyahu may have raised eyebrows at home, but it is part of New Delhi's broader strategic vision. We ask our analyst whether New Delhi has abandoned the Palestinian cause. Plus, we find out whether the rise in South Korea's birth rate is here to stay. 

As France and India kick off the 2026 "Year of Innovation", Access Asia is on the ground in New Delhi, just weeks after landmark free trade agreements were signed with the EU and the United States. 

As plenty of drama plays out on the slopes of the Milano-Cortina Olympics, Malaysian alpine skier Aruwin Salehhuddin is giving it her all as the only athlete representing her country. From the Olympic Village, she shares her excitement and pride with Yuka Royer, and speaks about her dream of spreading winter sports in Southeast Asia.