On this edition of Access Asia, we speak to a former FBI official helping Youlin Chen's family. The 54-year-old American scientist has been detained on espionage charges in China since November 2024, when he was visiting relatives in Beijing. His family has chosen to speak out after quiet diplomacy failed to secure his release.

We also find out how businesses in Herat, Afghanistan, are suffering as women become increasingly reluctant to venture out following the Taliban's latest crackdown on its strict dress code. Plus, we look at Japanese Gen Z workers embracing an office culture some are calling 'corporate machismo’.

On this edition of Access Asia, we find out why anger is brewing in South Korea after the country's national team was eliminated from the World Cup. We also ask our Sports Editor why China hasn't managed to make it to football's top tier despite massive investment. Plus, Japan's prime minister heads to India as both countries seek to strengthen ties.

On this week's edition of Access Asia, we bring you a report from Japan, where visa fees have been increased for foreign nationals applying for permanent residency. The government is also considering introducing a language requirement. While Japan needs foreign workers to help offset an ageing population and a declining birth rate, the nationalist government has continued to tighten its immigration policies.

We also bring you a report on how Chinese factories producing air conditioners have become beneficiaries of Europe’s increasingly frequent heatwaves.

And temples in India turn to robotic elephants for religious ceremonies, easing animal welfare concerns.

Japan's imperial family is running out of male heirs, and a debate over how to preserve the hereditary lineage that has continued unbroken for centuries is dividing the nation. Meanwhile, Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako wrapped up their two-week trip to Europe, and Japan took note that their royal Dutch and Belgian hosts both have women in line for the throne. FRANCE 24's Aurore Dupuis breaks down the looming succession crisis in the world's oldest monarchy.

But first, the European Union has come under fierce criticism for hosting a Taliban delegation for "talks. While the EU insisted that the meetings with the Afghan militants on the issue of migration did not amount to legitimising their rule, rights groups said building ties with the Taliban flew in the face of the EU's values.

Also on the show: The AI frenzy has sent the value of South Korea's top semiconductor firms skyrocketing. Their employees have also found themselves in hot demand – both on the job and marriage markets.

Plus: A "durian tsunami" has stormed Malaysia, where a nationwide oversupply has sent prices plunging. This year has seen a bumper crop for the fruit known for its pungent smell – much of which is unsuitable for export – meaning locals are taking advantage of cheaper prices while producers are facing a stinky situation.

In this edition of Access Asia, we explore why the world's most populous country struggles to qualify for the World Cup, despite a growing appetite for the sport. We also explore how artificial intelligence could be about to revolutionise medicine and blue-collar work.

This week, a town north of Tokyo shut down nearly 100 schools following a spate of bear sightings. In another Japanese town last week, a bear attacked four people, opened a water tap and unlatched a window to escape a building it had been trapped in. So are bears becoming a bigger threat? FRANCE 24's Yuka Royer speaks with Kazuhiko Maita from the Institute for Asian Black Bear Research and Preservation, who has survived nine bear attacks himself, about what's behind the recent crisis in Japan.

Emerald Maxwell reports on how authorities caught a large bear this week after days of standoff in the Japanese town of Utsunomiya.

Plus, Charlotte Lam takes a closer look at how Japan's ageing population and disappearing hunters have led to increasingly frequent bear attacks, and how people in Japan still love the animal despite deadly incidents.

On this edition of Access Asia, we explore how India’s nascent Cockroach Janta Party has tapped into the frustrations of the country’s youth. We speak with the party’s spokesperson, Saurav Das, who tells us that the movement is demanding accountability from the government. Political scientist Christophe Jaffrelot also weighs in on why young people in India are disillusioned and what the country’s opposition parties can learn from the viral movement.

It is one of the world's fastest-growing industries. Cyber fraud operated out of scam centres scattered across the Mekong region generates tens of billions of euros every year -- by some estimates, equivalent to 40 percent of the region's combined GDP. This edition of Access Asia takes a deep look inside the scam industry with analysis from Jason G. Tower, senior expert at the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.