Insight: What is happening in Europe and Asia in June 2026?

Asia:

1. ⁠7.8-magnitude earthquake strikes Mindanao, killing dozens in southern Philippines

   HN - A magnitude 7.8 earthquake hit the area off the south coast of Mindanao in the early hours of June 8, 2026, resulting in at least 37 fatalities amid 138 aftershocks reported and expected further tremors.
   

   The earthquake occurred on the opening day of a new academic year, leading to panic in neighboring schools. To be specific, many students huddled outside in Davao Occidental, a collapsed roof of a campus in Davao del Sur, and over 100 students participating in the flag-raising ceremony in Davao City sustained bruises amid the panic. Nevertheless, there were no fatalities reported from these cases.

   As a result of these disasters, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) released a serious warning of tsunamis to inhabitants of nine coastal provinces. The US Embassy in Manila urged residents of these areas to evacuate immediately to higher ground. At the same time, the Philippine government ordered evacuations and deployed rescue efforts by order of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center stated that the tsunami threat had essentially passed about five hours after the earthquake [CNN, U.S. Embassy, PHIVOLCS].

2. Thailand revives $30 billion land bridge project to bypass Malacca Strait

   HN - The Thai government has decided to revive the "Land Bridge" project with an estimated total cost of around $30 billion. In this project, a new shipping route through southern Thailand will reduce congestion when travelling through the Malacca Strait. Two deep-water ports have been built, including Chumphon Port in the east and Ranong Port in the west, intending to reduce logistics costs by about 30% and shortening transit times by up to 14 days for goods between Southern China, the Indian Ocean and the Middle East.  

   The project also focuses on attracting medium-sized cargo ships rather than large super container ships. Despite its significant economic potential, the project still faces many challenges. Particularly, many experts are concerned that having to unload goods twice at both ends of the port will negate the time advantage. Furthermore, local fishermen and farmers, who are concerned about environmental pollution and the loss of livelihoods, are expressing strong opposition to this project [NationThailand, ICSF, DailyTimes].

3. Southeast Asia braces for severe El Niño amid drought and haze fears

   HN - Southeast Asian nations are facing the return of the severe El Niño weather phenomenon, predicting to bring extreme drought conditions and threaten the lives and food supplies of millions in the region.

   The biggest concern is the risk of widespread forest fires in Indonesia due to the prolonged heatwave, causing severe air pollution not only in Indonesia but also spreading to nearby nations such as Singapore and Malaysia. To deal with this issue, Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto has ordered relevant agencies to implement forest fire prevention measures as early as possible.

   El Niño also causes severe water shortages, impacting the region’s vital rice crops. Declining food supplies combined with other global geopolitical uncertainties risk driving up food and oil prices, putting significant pressure on the economies of Southeast Asian nations in the coming period [ChannelNewAsia, TheGuardian, DW].

4. Bangladesh deploys army ahead of Awami League anniversary amid political tensions

   HN - Ahead of the anniversary of the founding of the Awami League, the Bangladeshi government ordered a military buildup in six districts from June 22 to June 30, citing security concerns and the potential for violent attacks from former party members in public areas. The government will concentrate its military presence in metropolitan regions, including Dhaka, Chattogram, and Gazipur.

   The Awami League is one of the oldest political parties in Bangladesh, founded by former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in June 2025, 1949. Although it was the leading party in achieving peace in the country in 1971, it disbanded on August 5, 2024. Hasina fled to India during the political turmoil of 2024. In November 2025, her death sentence was officially announced. Many high-ranking party officials have been arrested, are under investigation, or have left the country [Reuters, IndianNewsNetwork].

• China expands economic outreach to South Asia through trade cooperation

  HN - On June 29, the Ministry of Commerce in China emphasized the importance of expanding regional cooperation with South Asia amidst a turbulent and uncertain global environment. Officials believe this move will help boost China's trade partnerships, improve supply chain connectivity, economic sustainability, and create new investment opportunities in the region.

  Specifically, the economic outreach to South Asia will include: 

  - Strengthening cooperation in the supply chain and expanding collaborations related to transportation and energy, directly contributing to the development of e-commerce and biomedicine;

  - Ensuring a cooperation target of $200 billion by 2025 and a 15.8% annual growth rate in the first four months of 2026; and

  - Creating opportunities for bilateral cooperation in the region and promising preferential exchange rates for businesses.

  [Reuters, AMR]

Europe:

1. EU joins Pax Silica initiative to strengthen AI chip supply chains

   MA - On June 25, the European Commission (EC) signed the Pax Silica Declaration, joining 23 other economies in strengthening semiconductor and artificial intelligence (AI) supply chains.

   Among other agenda, the bloc signed the Joint Statement on AI opportunity aimed to align its members on a pro-innovation and pro-growth innovation approach into regulating the said technology through empowering startups, builders, developers and other relevant private sectors while securing the global AI supply chain. [European Commission, U.S. Department of State, U.S. Embassy in Poland, Reuters, Euractiv].

2. Europe experiences record heatwave, attributed to climate change

   MA - Heatwaves have been spreading in major parts of Europe, with major cities in Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the Balkans  reporting heat-related illnesses and deaths.

   According to the World Meteorological Organisation and independent climate scientists, the heatwave is caused by human-induced climate change which was prolonged by disrupted transportation, strained energy systems and heightened risk of wildfires.[World Meteorological Organization, Reuters, Euronews, BBC].

3. EU pushes tech sovereignty with cloud and chip laws

   MA - The EC further unveiled its tech sovereignty package on June 3 to reduce the European Union (EU)’s dependence on foreign technology providers.

   Two major parts of the package include the European Chips Act 2.0 and the Cloud and AI Development Act, which seeks to expand the region’s domestic cloud computing, semiconductor industries and AI through prioritising providers based in the EU for critical sectors such as public administration, healthcare and energy. This is amid the increasing concern of Europe’s increased reliance on US technology firms and the intensifying competition in semiconductor and AI development. [European Commission, Tech Policy, AP News, CNBC].

4. EU opens first accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova MA - In addition, the EU has commenced the first cluster of its accession negotiations with Moldova and Ukraine on June 15 following the EC’s 2023 decision to grant candidate status to both countries.

   
   

   The negotiations began with the “Fundamentals” cluster which covered areas such as democratic institutions, fundamental rights, rule of law, judicial reform and public administration which are considered foundational in these two applicants’ accession process.[European Council, Al Jazeera, European Western Balkans, EU Neighbours East].
   

5. EU leaders agree 12-month renewal of Russia sanctions

   MA - For the first time in its history, the EU agreed to extend the economic sanctions against Russia for another year in support of Ukraine in the two countries’ ongoing conflict.

   
   

   The leaders of the Union have argued that the restrictive measures will remain in place until Russia decides to end its actions against Ukraine. These measures particularly target key sectors of the Russian economy, including energy, technology, trade and energy which will remain in force until July 2027 after the formal adoption by the Council of the EU. [European Council, Reuters, Kyiv Independent, EU Law Live]

Contributors: HN: Kim Khánh Hà (Hanna)

4. LA: Laksmitha Anindyanari