Asian Insider: Panama’s out, who’s next? | Saving Kolkata’s big yellow taxis

Dear ST reader,

We hope you’ve been keeping well. 

A new frontier has opened up for US-China rivalry: Latin America. 

China has in the last two decades cultivated ties with over 20 countries in the region, not least via its infrastructure-building Belt and Road Initiative. But Panama pulled out of the programme earlier this month, soon after a visit from US Secretary of State Mark Rubio. Our correspondent in Beijing, Lim Min Zhang, analyses this tussle for influence and whether other LatAm countries will follow in Panama’s wake.

Over in Washington, hugs and handshakes greeted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi – ample sign that his bromance with President Donald Trump is well and truly alive. Whether this goodwill can ward off tariffs however, remains to be seen. 

Meanwhile, Mr Trump’s freeze on foreign aid continues to reverberate around the world. Indonesia’s health programmes, and the hundreds of workers employed under them, are amongst those affected, reports Stania Puspawardhani from Jakarta. 

Finally, take a nostalgic ride with Debarshi Dasgupta as he reminisces about Kolkata’s iconic yellow Ambassador taxis, and rues the day they might vanish from the city’s roads.

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