January 5: Myanmar

Myanmar’s troops launch an attack on Indian separatists of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN) who are fighting to create their own state in India’s northeastern state of Nagaland and keep their camps on Myanmar’s territory. Myanmar and India plan joint operations against the rebels.

January 6: Mongolia

Russia agrees to forgive $10 billion of Mongolian debt, which was accumulated during the 70 years Mongolia was a Soviet satellite state. Mongolia will repay $300 million, which will be raised through state bonds. Mongolia’s debt to Russia and China was slowing the country’s economic development.

January 13: Thailand/Malaysia

Thailand and Malaysia start joint land and air border patrols following a series of attacks in southern Thailand and its imposition of martial law in three provinces. The two countries disagree about who is behind the attacks, blaming both bandits and Muslim separatists.

January 16: South Korea

South Korean Foreign Minister Yoon Young-kwan resigns amid disagreement with the country’s president and his advisors on foreign policy and relations with the U.S. Yoon advocates closer cooperation with the U.S. and adopting a harder approach toward North Korea.

January 16: China

After inspecting the southern Chinese province of Guangshou, the World Health Organization finds evidence that links the SARS virus to civet cats, concluding that SARS originated in animals. China also begins human trials of the SARS vaccine. SARS has killed 774 people and infected 8,000 around the world since it appeared in China in 2002.

January 20: China

China starts deploying 500 peacekeeping troops to Liberia. The contingent represents China’s largest contribution to a United Nations peacekeeping operation. The deployment is the result of China’s strong political and economic relations with Africa. It also reflects the fact that the new Liberian government switched its recognition from Taiwan to the People’s Republic of China.

January 22: North Korea

U.S. weapons experts return from North Korea, where they inspected a nuclear facility at Pyongyang. They say they saw no proof that North Koreans are producing a nuclear bomb at this site. However, the leading nuclear scientist, Siegfried Hecker, is skeptical and says he was shown what looked like weapons-grade plutonium.

January 23: Thailand

The European Union bans all imports of Thai poultry products after Thailand announces that the bird flu has spread to humans. The EU is Thailand’s biggest importer of poultry meat after Japan.

February 4: Myanmar

Twenty-five ethnic groups and alliances convene a meeting during which they reject the roadmap to democracy defined by Prime Minister Khin Nyunt. They also call for the military government to start talks that would include the opposition National League for Democracy (NLD). The NLD won general elections in 1990 but the military prevented it from taking power.

February 9: North Korea

The UN World Food Program (WFP) says a funding crisis has caused it to run out of food. As a result, more than 6 million North Koreans will not get emergency food aid until April. For the past nine years, North Korea has been suffering from food shortages caused by floods, economic mismanagement, and the consequences of the breakup of the Soviet Union, which was the country’s chief contributor.

February 15: Myanmar

Myanmar’s officials release the vice chairman of the National League for Democracy (NLD), Tin Oo, from prison and put him under house arrest. Other top leaders of the NLD, including Aung San Suu Kyi, have already been placed under house arrest. They were all arrested following clashes with the supporters of Myanmar’s military regime last May.

February 16: South Korea

The South Korean parliament ratifies its first bilateral free-trade agreement with Chile after months of heated debates and a series of violent protests by Korean farmers. Under the agreement, Chile will lift tariffs on South Korean cars, mobile phones, and electronic goods while South Korea will allow Chilean copper and agricultural goods into its markets. South Korean agriculture is inefficient, and farmers feel exposed to the dangers of an open market.

February 19: Japan

Japan signs a $2 billion deal with Iran to develop Iran’s Azadegan oil fields, whose reserves are estimated at 26 billion barrels. Japan will have a 75 percent interest, and Iran the remaining 25 percent. Japan depends on imports of almost all its energy needs. For Iran, it is the largest foreign project since the Islamic Revolution.

February 27: Japan

A Japanese court sentences to death Shoko Asahara, the leader of the Aum Shinrikyo cult, for ordering the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway, which killed 12 people and injured thousands.

March 12: South Korea

South Korea’s parliament impeaches President Roh Moo-hyun for endorsing a pro-government party and for incompetence. The ruling suspends the president’s power until a Constitutional Court review. The impeachment is a culmination of a power struggle between the president and the opposition-controlled National Assembly.

March 19: Myanmar

The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) distributes food to around 400 families in Myanmar who are affected by HIV/AIDS. Myanmar is believed to have one of the highest rates of HIV in Asia, with half a million people infected.

March 27: Taiwan

Taiwan’s opposition files a lawsuit in the country’s supreme court demanding a recount of the votes from the country’s presidential election and an inquiry into the shooting of President Chen Shui-bian. The president was reelected by less than 30,000 votes and the opposition says he won a sympathy vote.

April 16: South Korea

South Korea’s liberal Uri Party wins, for the first time, the majority in the National Assembly, changing the country’s political spectrum. The Uri Party says it will continue the country’s foreign and economic policies, but it urges the parties that impeached President Roh Moo-hyun to withdraw their vote. The main charge against the president was that he violated his neutrality by officially supporting the Uri Party.

April 21: North Korea/China

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il finishes his secret visit in China during which he discussed his country’s economic problems and visited a model farm. China also urged Kim Jong-il to soften his position on nuclear issues. China is North Korea’s main ally and a mediator in the nuclear negotiations.

April 26: Asia

Twenty-three states sign a UN-sponsored treaty on road systems at a meeting of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) in the Chinese city of Shanghai. Like the ancient Silk Road trading route, 87,000 miles of roads will connect Asia with Europe, invigorate regional economic integration, and reduce the isolation of many landlocked Asian countries.

April 26: China/Hong Kong

China’s most powerful legislative panel rules that Hong Kong will not have direct elections for its leader in 2007 and says that political reforms will have to be introduced gradually. The Beijing-backed Hong Kong chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, supports China’s ruling and calls for the activists to end their protests.

May 5: Indonesia

Indonesia announces the official results of last month’s elections. The Golkar Party of former President Suharto took 21.6 percent, winning over President Megawati Sukarnoputri’s party, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P), which won 18.5 percent. The results indicate people’s disappointment with Megawati’s government and might damage her chances for re-election in July.

May 18: Taiwan

Taiwanese officials end a recount of the contested presidential election, in which President Chen Shui-bian won by less than 30,000 votes. Over 1,000 judges and officials, who examined every one of the 13 million votes cast in March, uncovered nearly 40,000 disputed votes. Most of these votes, however, belong to President Chen, which makes it unlikely for the election result to be overturned.

May 18: China

Kazakhstan and China sign an agreement to build a 770-mile-long oil pipeline from Kazakhstan to the Chinese border. Kazakhstan is looking for new markets to expand production of its vast oil reserves and China needs new energy sources. China is also interested in developing economic ties with the other countries of Central Asia.

June 4: North Korea/South Korea

North Korea and South Korea reach an agreement on reducing military tensions. North Korea agrees to set up a telephone hotline between the rival navies, and to share radio frequencies and visual signals. North Korea also agrees to open new roads through the military buffer zone after its southern neighbor promises to ship 400,000 tons of food aid.

June 7: China/United States

The world’s largest car producer, General Motors, announces that it plans to invest over $3 billion and double its capacity in China over the next three years. China is the fastest-growing car market in the world.

June 15: China

Chinese President Hu Jintao signs several agreements with Uzbek President Islam Karimov during a state visit in Uzbekistan’s capital, Tashkent. The agreements cover mostly oil and gas development, as well as China’s other investments in Uzbekistan. China has become one of Uzbekistan’s main trading partners.

June 15: China

A new report from the United States Congress accuses China of supplying Iran with nuclear technology in exchange for oil. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission declares that China supervised the installation of equipment to enrich uranium in Iran.

June 20: Philippines

The Philippines congressional committee declares Gloria Arroyo the winner of the presidential race by one million votes after a contentious recount that took six weeks. The opposition contested the election on the grounds of widespread irregularities.

June 29: Malaysia/Indonesia/Singapore

Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore sign an agreement to tighten security and fight piracy in the Malacca Strait. Each country will provide up to seven patrol boats and share radio frequencies. More than 50,000 ships use the Strait for commercial purposes annually, and just last year 450 ships around the world reported pirate attacks. Almost 100 crew members are dead or missing.

July 5: Australia/Thailand

Australia and Thailand sign a free-trade agreement, which will boost the economies of both countries by billions of dollars. Thailand’s main exports to Australia include cars, fruit, and vegetables, while Australia’s main exports to Thailand consist of fuel and chemicals.

July 19: Philippines

The Philippines withdraws all its troops from Iraq in order to meet a demand by Iraqi militants who threaten to execute a Filipino hostage. The pullout is strongly criticized by other allies as giving in to terrorist demands and setting a bad precedent.

July 25: China

China and the United States sign an agreement to increase the number of flights between both countries by 460 percent over the next six years. Under this new deal, the number of flights is raised from the current weekly 54 to 249. Also, U.S. airlines will be allowed to build hubs in China beginning in 2007, and increase the number of new flights in 2006, 2008, and 2010.

July 26: China

Indian and Chinese officials meet in Delhi for a two-day conference devoted to finding a solution to a long-running border dispute between the two countries. India accuses China of occupying a piece of territory in Kashmir while China claims a piece of territory in the northeastern Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh.

August 4: China

China and Pakistan conduct joint antiterrorism exercises in the western Chinese autonomous region of Xinjiang, which is populated by Muslim Uighurs. Many Uighurs aspire to an independent state in East Turkestan. After the September 11 attacks on the United States, China labeled these nationalists as terrorists. The joint China-Pakistan maneuvers are the first of their kind to be conducted inside China.

August 5: Japan/North Korea

Japan resumes food aid to North Korea, preparing 125,000 metric tons of various items, including medical supplies. It is estimated that at least five million North Koreans depend on foreign food aid, and famine caused many to flee the country.

August 12: Singapore

Singapore swears in its new prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, the son of the island-state’s founding father, Lee Kuan Yew. There are hopes that the new prime minister will promote policies of openness.

August 20: Mongolia

Mongolia’s parliament appoints a new prime minister, Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj of the Democratic Coalition, ending two months of deadlock after contested elections. Elbegdorj, who has a master’s degree from Harvard University and served as prime minister for eight months in 1998, agrees to share power with the Mongolian People’s Revolutionary Party (MPRP).

August 23: Singapore

In his national address, Singapore’s prime minister, Lee Hsien Loong, offers financial incentives to encourage bigger families in order to boost a record-low birth rate. Singapore’s birth rate dropped last year to 1.26 babies per woman, compared to a rate of 5.8 in the 1960s. The government is concerned that the aging population may hinder future growth.

September 9: Indonesia

A huge explosion outside the Australian Embassy in Indonesia’s capital, Jakarta, kills eight people and injures about 100. The police blame this suicide attack on the militant group Jemaah Islamiah.

September 13: China

Pro-Beijing parties win a majority of seats in Hong Kong’s legislative elections, gaining 34 out of 60 seats, while pro-democracy parties increase their seats only by three, reaching 25. Thirty of the Legislative Council seats are elected by popular vote, and 30 by special interest groups favoring pro-Beijing relations.

September 19: China

Chinese President Hu Jintao takes over the leadership of the powerful Central Military Commission, which gives him vast influence in such areas as security and foreign policy, and consolidates his position as supreme leader of the country.

September 28: North Korea

North Korea announces that it has turned plutonium from 8,000 spent fuel rods into nuclear weapons, which it needs for self-defense against the perceived U.S. nuclear threat.

September 29: Brunei

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei signs several amendments to the 1959 constitution, allowing the first elections in 40 years. Fifteen members of the parliament will be directly elected while he will appoint 30 others. Brunei’s last direct election took place in 1962 and was won by a party opposed to royal rule.

October 4: Indonesia

Indonesia confirms the victory of former general Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the country’s first direct presidential election. He says his priorities as president will be fighting widespread corruption and creating jobs.

October 14: Cambodia

Cambodia’s Royal Throne Council chooses Norodom Sihamoni as the new king after his father abdicated a week ago. The new king is a former ballet dancer and his only previous public experience was the post of ambassador to UNESCO. The monarch’s position in today’s Cambodia is mostly symbolic, although it is still greatly respected by the Cambodian people.

October 15: China

In the Chinese capital, Beijing, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Hu Jintao sign several agreements which include the demarcation of borders, resolving a 40-year-old border dispute. But the main issue of building a pipeline to exploit oil from Siberia remains unresolved. China and Japan, both in great need for energy, have been competing for Russia’s oil.

October 19: North Korea

U.S. President George W. Bush signs a law which allocates $24 million to promote human-rights groups in North Korea and makes North Koreans eligible for asylum in the U.S. Until now, the U.S. has treated North Koreans as citizens of South Korea.

October 25: Myanmar

The head of Myanmar’s military government, General Than Shwe, meets with India’s prime minister, Manmohan Singh, and signs three agreements on security, cultural exchange, and hydroelectric power. It is the first visit by a Myanmar’s leader to India in almost 25 years.

November 1: South Korea

As a part of a global realignment plan, the United States withdraws most of its troops from the truce village of Panmunjom on the North-South Korean border. South Korean troops will replace the American soldiers. The U.S. will pull a third of its troops out of South Korea by 2008.

November 3: Taiwan/Vanuatu

Taiwan establishes diplomatic relations with the small South Pacific island of Vanuatu, making it the 27th country recognizing Taiwan as a separate entity. Most of these allies are small Latin American and African countries.

November 8: Thailand

In an open letter, 144 Thai academics from 18 universities condemn the government’s policy of force in the Muslim south and call for Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to change its failed policies and apologize for the deaths of 85 Muslims who died of suffocation while in police custody.

November 23: China

Accompanied by a large number of Chinese businessmen, Chinese President Hu Jintao pays an official visit to Cuba, where he meets with Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Both sides discuss cooperation in tourism and telecommunication. China also agrees to invest $500 million in Cuba’s nickel industry. The two communist countries are also expected to strengthen their military cooperation.

November 23: China

World leaders conclude a conference on the future of Iraq, which took place in the Egyptian resort town of Sharm el-Sheikh and was attended by the Arab League, the Organization of the Islamic Conference, the G8 nations, and China. The participants adopt a joint declaration, which declares support for the January 30 Iraqi election and emphasizes the leading role of the UN in helping Iraq prepare for the election. The declaration, however, does not set a timetable for the withdrawal of the coalition troops.

December 10: Japan

Japan introduces constitutional changes to ease some restrictions on its defense policy and military to allow a greater role in global military cooperation. While the new National Defense Outline reinstates the principle of the 1945 pacifist constitution, it also partially lifts arms sales bans to allow joint missile research with the U.S. and highlights Japan’s wider role in global peacekeeping missions.

December 12: Philippines

A bomb explosion in a crowded market in the port city of General Santos on the southern tip of the Philippine island of Mindanao kills at least 14 people and injures 60. There are several militant groups active in the region, including Muslim militants from the Abu Sayyaf group, which is linked to the regional militant network, Jemaah Islamiah (JI).

December 14: China

Taiwan’s President Chen Shui-bian resigns as chairman of his Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) after the party’s failure to win a majority in recent parliamentary elections. The result of the elections may signify political gridlock, with the president’s proposals facing the parliament’s opposition.

December 17: Japan

Japan and the United States sign an agreement on joint cooperation in ballistic missile defense systems, which began after North Korea shot a missile over Japan in 1998. After this joint research, both countries plan to start joint production.

December 24: China

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez offers China access to Venezuela’s oil fields as part of a trade deal between the two countries. The agreement will allow China to operate Venezuela’s oil fields and to invest in new refineries. Venezuela has already offered to supply 120,000 barrels of fuel oil a month to China. The move is Chavez’s attempt to diversify Venezuela’s markets and reduce its dependence on the U.S.

December 26: Asia

A 9.0 magnitude earthquake takes place off the coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean, setting off the tsunami waves that hit the coastlines of several Southeast Asian countries and eastern Africa 4,000 miles away. Without warning, the sea surges kill thousands of people, leave hundreds of thousands homeless, and devastate the coastal areas of Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Malaysia, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. Aceh province in Sumatra, India’s Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the Thai vacation resort of Phuket are among the worst hit.