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Sebastian Strangio

Sebastian Strangio

Sebastian Strangio is Southeast Asia editor at The Diplomat. 

In 2008, he began his career as a reporter at The Phnom Penh Post in Cambodia, and has since traveled and reported extensively across the 10 nations of ASEAN. Sebastian’s writing has appeared in leading publications including Foreign Affairs, the Los Angeles Review of Books, and The New York Times, The Diplomat, and Nikkei Asian Review, among many others. He is the author of “Hun Sen’s Cambodia” (Yale, 2014), a path-breaking examination of Cambodia since the fall of the Khmer Rouge, and “In the Dragon’s Shadow: Southeast Asia in the Chinese Century (Yale, 2020). 

Alongside his journalistic work, Sebastian has also consulted for a wide variety of economic risk firms and non-government organizations, and is quoted frequently in the international media on political developments in Southeast Asia. Sebastian holds a B.A. and Master’s degree in international politics from The University of Melbourne. He currently lives in Adelaide.

You can get in touch with Sebastian via Twitter, Facebook, or email.

Posts by Sebastian Strangio
January 29, 2024

Myanmar Junta Sends Representative to ASEAN Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

By Sebastian Strangio
Marlar Than Htaik, the permanent secretary of the junta's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is attending this week's two-day retreat in Laos.

January 29, 2024

Myanmar Court Sets March Auction for Imprisoned Leader’s Villa

By Sebastian Strangio
The lakeside villa, where Aung San Suu Kyi spent more than 15 years under house arrest, will go under the hammer on March 20.
January 25, 2024

Philippines Military to Provide ‘Unimpeded’ Access to Sea Resources, Defense Chief Says

By Sebastian Strangio
The new "comprehensive archipelagic defense concept" will seek to secure Manila's access to resources lying within its Exclusive Economic Zone, including in the South China Sea.

January 25, 2024

Thai Constitutional Court Clears MFP Leader of Breaching Election Law

By Sebastian Strangio
Pita Limjaroenrat, the leader of the Move Forward Party, can rejoin Parliament – but more legal challenges loom.

January 24, 2024

Rohingya Ocean Death Toll Worst in Nearly a Decade, UN Says

By Sebastian Strangio
Deteriorating conditions in the refugee camps of Bangladesh are pushing increasing numbers of people to take their chances on dangerous sea voyages.

January 24, 2024

Philippine President Says He Won’t ‘Lift a Finger’ to Help ICC Probe

By Sebastian Strangio
The International Criminal Court is investigating the extrajudicial killings that occurred on the watch of former President Rodrigo Duterte.
January 23, 2024

Myanmar Military Tribunal Sentences Brigadier Generals to Death for Kokang Surrender

By Sebastian Strangio
The sentences come at a time of growing discontent with the leadership of junta chief Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing.

January 23, 2024

Philippines Again Condemns ‘Provocative’ Chinese Actions in South China Sea

By Sebastian Strangio
The condemnation came after the Philippine Coast Guard reported another incident in the vicinity of Scarborough Shoal on January 12.

January 19, 2024

Prabowo’s Lead Holds Steady in Latest Indonesia Election Poll

By Sebastian Strangio
Support for former Jakarta governor Anies Baswedan is building, setting up a potentially interesting run-off election in June.

January 18, 2024

Thai Activist Gets More Prison Time For Insulting King

By Sebastian Strangio
Arnon Nampa, a prominent leader of the mass protests of late 2020, faces 14 charges under the country's draconian lese-majeste law.

January 18, 2024

Singapore’s Ex-Transport Minister Charged With 27 Offenses, Including Corruption

By Sebastian Strangio
The graft case against S Iswaran is the first against a Singaporean cabinet member in nearly four decades.
January 17, 2024

Thai Prison Officials Again Defend Treatment of Jailed Former PM

By Sebastian Strangio
Amid claims of preferential treatment, the Department of Corrections says that its refusal to refer to Thaksin Shinawatra as an "inmate" is standard practice.

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