News
Cambodia blocks 17 media websites before vote
The government blocked access to independent media websites just hours before polling in the country’s controversial national election begins. Phos Sovann, director general of information and broadcasting at the Information Ministry, confirmed a total of 17 websites – including Voice of America, Radio Free Asia ...
Lao's controversial hydro ambitions
Mountainous and landlocked Lao PDR, known as the “Battery of Asia”, is building dozens of dams at breakneck speed so it can sell energy to power-hungry neighbours as a fast track out of poverty. But the communist country’s ambitious power plans are highly controversial. Keep reading ...
China, neighbors seize 17.6 tonnes of drugs in joint operation
A six-nation joint operation against rampant drug crimes along the Lancang-Mekong region has seized 17.6 tonnes of narcotics and apprehended 15,000 suspects in three months starting May, Chinese police said Thursday. Police have also seized 330.6 tonnes of chemicals to be used in drug manufacturing ...
Cambodia to evacuate 25,000 people downstream of collapsed Laos dam
An estimated 25,000 people are being evacuated from a northern Cambodian province following extensive flooding due to the collapse of a massive hydropower dam in neighboring Laos. Authorities in Stung Treng province are attempting to evacuate towns and villages downstream from the dam, which has ...
Laos vows action after dam failure with 131 still missing
Lao authorities ordered closer monitoring of hydroelectric facilities as they investigate why a dam in the country’s southeast collapsed earlier this week, killing at least 27 people and leaving 131 missing. Floodwaters that rose to rooftops were slowly receding Thursday as villages began digging out ...
Flood alert as Mekong water rises
Residents in Nakhon Phanom were on Thursday warned to brace for possible flooding after the water level in the Mekong River rose to 11 metres, two metres away from overflow, due to downpours caused by tropical storm Son-Tinh. Keep reading ...
Vietnam offers aid to victims of dam collapse in Laos
Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung on July 26 handed over 200,000 USD in aid relief from the Vietnamese Government to Lao Ambassador to Vietnam Thongsavanh Phomvihane in order to help the country in the aftermath of the collapse of the Sepien-Senamnoi hydropower dam. Keep reading ...
Programme helps raise Mekong Delta’s resilience to climate change effects
The Integrated Coastal Management Programme (ICMP) in the Mekong Delta region has brought about marked economic benefits to targeted localities, heard a conference in Can Tho city on July 24. The programme was launched in 2011 at a cost of 23 million EUR (26.9 million USD) ...
72nd joint patrol on Mekong River starts
The 72nd joint patrol on the Mekong River with law enforcement from China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand started on Tuesday. Six vessels and more than 100 law enforcement personnel participated in the mission, aiming to crack down on crime in the region. Keep reading ...
Addressing development along the Mekong river
Pou Sothirak, executive director of the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, sat down with Khmer Times’ COO Kay Kimsong to discuss the Mekong river and Cambodia’s role in its conservation in light of China creating the Global Centre Mekong Study (GCMS) to conduct academic ...
