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Japan and South Korea both set visitor records last year, and more travellers say a story helped bring them: a TV drama, an anime or a K-pop group. On the CNA Correspondent podcast, Korea and Japan correspondents Lim Yun Suk and Michiyo Ishida tell Arnold Gay how life was injected back into Busan, Numazu and Uto.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

America has voted, but will anything really change for the rest of the world? From the Iran war and Trump's tariffs to the AI race with China, the US midterm elections have consequences far beyond Washington DC. Can a Democratic Party-controlled Congress rein in Donald Trump and the Republicans? Or will he still have a free hand to act overseas? Host Genevieve Woo and Senior Correspondent Simon Marks unpack the results, the political battles ahead and what they mean for Asia and the rest of the world. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Born and raised in South Korea, some children of transnational families have lived their entire lives believing they were Korean. But years after their parents sought official advice about dual citizenship, some are discovering they may have lost their Korean nationality. On the CNA Correspondent podcast, Senior Correspondent Lim Yun Suk talks about meeting families caught in anguish and uncertainty. How did this happen in a society where multicultural marriages are on the rise? And can South Korea’s nationality laws keep pace? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Two decades ago, Japan killed more than 4,000 black bears in a single year and conservationists feared for the species. Last year, it culled more than 12,000 after bears killed 13 people. Our Senior Correspondent Michiyo Ishida explains why bears are turning up in cities such as Sendai and Utsunomiya, what a new minister-in-charge of bears can change and if a roadmap that cuts wild bear numbers by 30 per cent leaves room for coexistence. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Drug-driving cases in Taiwan have surged more than 200-fold since 2021. But the accidents are only the visible part of a much bigger problem. Genevieve Woo speaks with CNA Senior Correspondent Victoria Jen, who investigated a drug market that is growing increasingly digital - from teenagers tumbling into addiction to drugs that can be ordered online and delivered within an hour. We examine how Taiwanese authorities are racing to keep up. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

China has a huge appetite for durian and Vietnam wants a bigger bite of the market. But getting the fruit across the border is only part of the challenge. From winning over Chinese consumers to improving quality and speeding up customs, CNA's Otelli Edwards speaks with Shenzhen Correspondent Deborah Wong and Hanoi Correspondent Leong Wai Kit about what Vietnam is up against and why this durian boom tells a much bigger story about relationships and trade at the China-Vietnam border. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia is dealing with two very different groups of foreigners - Chinese and Korean players squeezing local businesses on price, and tens of thousands of stateless Rohingya refugees it never recruited but has hosted for years. Now, as local resentment rises, and talk of repatriations to Myanmar increases, Arnold Gay asks CNA Senior Correspondent Melissa Goh how and where Malaysia is drawing the line.   See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Donald Trump gave Xi Jinping a lavish welcome for their summit in Washington, but expectations of a major breakthrough were low even before the Chinese leader arrived. With both presidents facing pressures at home, how much of this meeting was about changing the US-China relationship and how much was about showing their own audiences who's holding the cards? Genevieve Woo speaks to correspondents Olivia Siong and Nick Harper to unpack what actually changed on trade, tech and Taiwan, and what the summit tells us about where the balance of power now lies. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Deadly heatwaves in Europe. Floods, typhoons and scorching temperatures across Asia. Extreme weather is no longer just an environmental story. It's reshaping economies, disrupting livelihoods and exposing how prepared or lacking some countries really are. From Brussels to Bangkok, correspondents Will Denselow and Jack Board examine with Genevieve Woo why governments are still scrambling despite decades of climate warnings, what adaptation looks like on the ground, and why the difference between a crisis and a manageable disruption ultimately boils down to preparation, not prediction. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Indonesia has warned that its wildfires may last until early November, with the haze expected to keep air quality in parts of the region in the unhealthy range. As the country combats stubborn peat fires that can smoulder underground and flare up again, Malaysia is battling blazes of its own, while Singapore and other nations cope with the fallout. After decades of transboundary haze, why is Southeast Asia still struggling with the same problem? CNA Senior Correspondents Saifulbahri Ismail and Melissa Goh report from Indonesia and Malaysia on the people fighting the fires, communities living dangerously close to them and the wildlife at risk as the haze takes hold. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thailand is now looking at clamping down on firearms, following a spate of shootings, including a 14-year-old student who went on a killing spree in his school. But with millions of legal and illegal firearms circulating through the country and deeper problems around violence, will the new measures hold? Genevieve Woo speaks with Saksith Saiyasombut about Thailand's gun control challenge. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thousands remain missing after catastrophic floods swept across the Nepal-Tibet border. Correspondents Jack Board and Rebecca Bundhun look beyond the devastation to the people living through the aftermath - families searching for loved ones, survivors returning to what is left of their homes and communities beginning the long process of rebuilding. What does recovery really mean when the search is still not over? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the remote fishing village of Lamalera, on Indonesia's Lembata Island, whale hunting isn't sport or industry - it's survival. This tradition has been practised the same way for hundreds of years and passed down the generations. CNA Senior Correspondent Saifulbahri Ismail spent part of the whaling season with the fishermen, the harpooners and the families who wait on the beach for them to return. Arnold Gay finds out whether Lamalera's centuries-old way of life has a future anymore. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A fast-growing livestream industry is giving young people in China a new way to earn a living and pursue their dreams. But behind the polished performances are long hours, intense competition, emotional labour and an algorithm that can make or break careers. In this episode of the CNA Correspondent podcast, Otelli Edwards speaks with Correspondent Melody Chan, who followed one of Shenzhen's largest livestreaming companies to meet the performers and production crew driving this booming business.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For centuries, Japan has defined matcha through ritual, craftsmanship and the legendary tea-growing town of Uji. But today, China has quietly become the world's biggest producer, supplying around 70 per cent of global output. As global demand soars, which country will shape the future of matcha? Genevieve Woo speaks to CNA Senior Correspondent Michiyo Ishida in Tokyo and Correspondent Tan Si Hui in Beijing, exploring the growing contest between heritage and scale, tradition and technology, as two neighbours take very different paths to satisfy the world's matcha obsession.  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.