Regional Security: Indonesia, the US and more than a dozen allies kicked off “Super Garuda Shield” drills in Sumatra and Borneo until Sept 11, with East Timor among observers—mixing special forces infiltration and cyber defence as Jakarta seeks to deter aggression while keeping its “free and active” diplomacy. People-to-People & Research: Timor-Leste President José Ramos-Horta met Indonesia’s Prabowo in Jakarta with about 20 Nobel laureates; Prabowo urged collaboration with Indonesian researchers to strengthen the science ecosystem, framed under a “good neighbor” policy. Trade & Investment: Timor-Leste and Australia, with Property Council NT, announced the Darwin to Dili Business & Investment Summit and Invest Timor-Leste 2026 (Oct 27–30) to connect business and government through briefings, site visits and B2B matchmaking. Blue Economy: Dili hosts the OceanX Symposium: Science for a Blue Future (Aug 28) to turn OceanX marine findings into action for conservation, fisheries, tourism and marine research. Digital & Connectivity: Telin highlighted Timor-Leste links at BATIC 2026 in Bali, as the conference pushed connectivity, cloud and AI ecosystem partnerships across APAC. Policy Watch (Migration): Australia’s proposed student visa tightening—dependants limits, course-change restrictions and “visa hopping” curbs—could affect Timor-Leste-linked exemptions and onshore applicants.