From North Korea to Japan to the United States, the members of K-pop band 1VERSE are from diverse backgrounds. Yuka Royer sat down with Seok, Aito, Kenny and Nathan, as they made a stop in Paris during their world tour. 

A year after the deadly terror attack in Kashmir, relations between India and Pakistan remain at an all-time low. Since then, Islamabad has emerged as a key mediator seeking to end the war in Iran. On Access Asia, we're joined by Indian MP Dr Shashi Tharoor to find out what India makes of Pakistan's push for peace.

China's President Xi Jinping has broken a six-week silence about the war in Iran, vowing to take a "constructive" role in efforts to end the conflict. Beijing is wary of being drawn into a war it took no part in, and faces a delicate balancing act between its long-term partnership with Iran and its strategic interests in the Middle East and beyond. Yuka Royer speaks with Ja Ian Chong, a political scientist at the National University of Singapore, about what's behind Beijing's calculations. 

It has been more than 50 years since humans last ventured this close to the Moon. Now, the Artemis II mission is refocusing attention on the space race between the United States and China. Camille Knight explains the two superpowers’ competing lunar ambitions.

With Iran effectively turning the Strait of Hormuz into a toll gate, energy shortages are worsening across Asia. Amid the supply crunch, countries are increasingly turning back to coal for electricity, potentially slowing efforts to tackle climate change.

On this week's Access Asia we look at how Pakistan has emerged as a key mediator to end the war in Iran. The Atlantic Council's Michael Kugelman tells us the conflict spillover risks are particularly acute, adding that Pakistan badly wants to avoid getting dragged into the war.

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi travelled to Washington hoping to strengthen ties with the United States. The visit turned into a delicate balancing act amid US President Donald Trump's growing pressure on allies to help the US in the Iran war. Yuka Royer discusses the visit with James Schoff, Senior Director at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation USA.

Asian nations, including India, are feeling the impact of the ongoing war in Iran. We explore how dependent the region is on West Asia for energy and consider whether New Delhi should position itself as a mediator to help bring the conflict to an end.

The fallout of the US-Israeli war on Iran is reverberating across Asia. China has condemned the attack and the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei, but is staying well clear of the conflict itself. Developing Asian economies that rely on remittances face uncertainty as millions of migrant workers are caught in the crossfire. The war is also unsettling Pakistan, which shares a restive border region with Iran. We get expert insights in this edition of Access Asia. 

In this edition of Access Asia, we explore what the recent visit by India's prime minister to Israel means for both sides. Narendra Modi's public embrace of Benjamin Netanyahu may have raised eyebrows at home, but it is part of New Delhi's broader strategic vision. We ask our analyst whether New Delhi has abandoned the Palestinian cause. Plus, we find out whether the rise in South Korea's birth rate is here to stay. 

As France and India kick off the 2026 "Year of Innovation", Access Asia is on the ground in New Delhi, just weeks after landmark free trade agreements were signed with the EU and the United States.