Inadequate security and a simple ruse featuring hi-vis vests saw $157 million worth of French crown jewels stolen from the Louvre this week.

Audacious and simple. That's textbook art heist.

History shows that many of history's greatest heists are brazen and opportunistic, relying on renovations and poor security.

Timor Leste will become ASEAN's newest member, a historic moment for the nation given President José Ramos Horta once said that it was easier to get into heaven than ASEAN.

But the headline of the summit is the attendance of US President Doanld Trump. 

The attendance of any US president at the ASEAN summits is seen as a test, of the group’s international relevance, and US interest in the region. What do all the parties want from the visit?

The US President Donald Trump is due to arrive in Malaysia this weekend to attend ASEAN, before heading to Japan on Monday and South Korea later in the week.

The trip comes in the aftermath of his decision to freeze trade talks with Canada - a huge US trading partner.

Nations in the region are all alert to an anticipated meeting between Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, which could defuse or escalate the roiling trade war between the two nations.

Griffin Dunne is the star of the Martin Scorsese movie, After Hours, an actor in American Werewolf in London, the son of the late Vanity Fair writer, Dominic Dunne, and the nephew of the author of Joan Didion. He produced and appeared in a Netflix documentary of his aunt, The Centre Will Not Hold. 

He’s also the author of a new memoir, The Friday Afternoon Club. 

Griffin Dunne is in Sydney for the Sydney Writers Festival's year-round program at the State Library of NSW. he'll also be appearing at the Newcastle and Canberra writers' festivals.

• Guest: Griffin Dunne - Writer, Producer, Director

Anthony Albanese will meet the US President Donald Trump at the White House next week, ending months of speculation about the failure to secure a meeting. 

There is a lot at stake: the AUKUS submarine plan, the issue of tariffs, and pressure on allies to cut trade ties with China. 

However the meeting comes with a degree of uncertainty for the Prime Minister as Mr Trump has a habit of ambushing visiting leaders. 

Darcy Niland's Australian classic The Shiralee is a story of family breakdown, and hard-boiled masculinity and love on the margins of 1950s Australia. 

The bestselling book has been adapted for the screen twice. The 1957 film starring Peter Finch and the 1987 mini-series featuring Bryan Brown have become iconic renditions of Australian bush culture. 

Now, playwright Kate Mulvany has adapted the book for the stage, drawing on her own relationship with her father to create a rich and timeless tale.

For decades, Australia has been grappling with the notion that our future security and prosperity relies on our integration in Asia.

Yet there was a 75% decline in enrolments in South-east Asian languages at Australian universities between 2004-2022.

At the current rate of decline, Bahasa Indonesia won't be taught in a single Australian school by 2031.

So how do Australians learn to live more effectively in our region? 

Gift-giving has been part of foreign policy since the dawn of diplomacy. It dates back to ancient Egypt. 

As Prime Minister Anthony Albanese embarks on a diplomatic tour of the US, UK and the UAE, which includes an official visit with President Trump at the White House, what is he packing as a gift for Donald Trump?

The BBC's Tom Bateman travelled with Donald Trump for the President's day-long trip to the Middle East to clinch the Gaza agreement. Tom reflects on that day - one of the most critical moments after two years of war between Israel and Hamas..

And Elise Labott discusses the diplomatic breakthrough from the perspective from United States, where Ukraine President Volodomyr Zelensky has met with Donald Trump  for talks on whether to arm Ukraine with Tomahawk missiles capable of striking deep into Russia.

In his new book, Professor Stephen Hopper delves into the ancient history, biology, and cultural significance of the Australian eucalyptus tree. In addition to his approach as a botanist, Hopper honours Indigenous knowledge systems to better understand how we can help preserve them amid the challenging future that they face. 

• Guest: Professor Stephen Hopper, Botanist,  University of Western Australia