This month we explore rising economic tensions in Northeast Asia, as Japan and South Korea respond to a new wave of US tariffs. We also turn to Myanmar, where a devastating earthquake has worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis. Despite urgent calls for aid, the junta is blocking relief efforts while pushing ahead with its plans for elections amid ongoing conflict.
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Read MoreWritten by Hunter Marston
Despite the opportunity presented by American retrenchment, China lacks the soft power to step in as a natural leader and its economic and political influence continue to be met with suspicion by regional elites.
Read MoreWritten by Chris Estep
Trump should decisively establish his administration’s approach to competition with China by issuing his own Interim National Security Strategic Guidance document and endorsing it in a televised speech from the Oval Office.
Read MoreWritten by Emma Whitmyer
Seoul and Tokyo should begin preparing for a future in which they navigate regional challenges without a close ally who shares the same values.
Read MoreThis month, alongside our usual roundup of events, we examine how India is balancing oil imports amid geopolitical pressures and the impact of defunding Radio Free Asia on US soft power in the Indo-Pacific.
Both developments underscore the shifting balance of influence, where economic choices and media narratives are shaping global power dynamics.
Read MoreWritten by Melissa Conley Tyler and Viet Dung Trinh
By balancing domestic production and free trade, the Future Made in Australia Act aims to promote economic growth, create jobs, and support Australia's transition to a net-zero emissions economy.
Read MoreThis month we examine Berlin’s economic and political challenges, a tough stance on China, and Southeast Asia’s reaction to the arrival of the Trump 2.0 presidency amid US policy uncertainty.
Read MoreWritten by Dr Una Aleksandra Bērziņa-Čerenkova
Risks remain for Europe not just internally, but also externally, as China's support for Russia in its war against Ukraine and US pressure for a unified transatlantic approach limit the EU's room for manoeuvre.
Read MoreWritten by Chhay Lim
Policies that force Cambodia into a binary choice risk deepening its reliance on China and undermining US efforts to maintain influence in Southeast Asia.
Read MoreWritten by Anny Boc
Beijing’s passive approach only reflects its dilemma of balancing its regional interests with its need to preserve strategic ties with both Russia and North Korea, especially as the competition between China and the United States is likely to intensify.
Read MoreWritten by Dr Seohee Park
This crisis represents more than a domestic Korean political drama; it tests the resilience of regional alliances and could accelerate broader geopolitical shifts in an increasingly complex Northeast Asian landscape.
Read MoreWritten by Uwe Hoering
With every further escalation, the pressure to close ranks, to form hostile blocs and thus the danger of a military confrontation grows.
Read MoreWritten by Lucas Myers
The Quad’s role is clearer in 2024 than in 2017 or 2007. It coordinates and ensures the provision of public goods in an era of great power competition that is about much more than just traditional hard power security.
Read MoreIn this In Forum, 9DASHLINE asks several experts what to expect from the next US administration and its potential impact on the Indo-Pacific region.
Read MoreWritten by Lionel Fatton
Amid China’s growing belligerence and strained Sino-Taiwanese relations, Tokyo is trapped in an intensifying deterrence-entrapment dilemma. To solve it, Japan has resolved to become more engaged in regional security dynamics to reduce the risk of cross-strait conflict, thereby lowering the probability of entrapment.
Read MoreWritten by Dr Seohee Park
Beyond its borders, the yen’s fluctuations have sent ripples throughout the Indo-Pacific region. As regional economies are also influenced by the yen’s depreciation, the spectre of competitive devaluations looms large.
Written by Solomon PM
Contrary to substantive and decades-long literature speculating as to the destabilisation posed by China’s rise, at least in the case of 88rising, this rise has shown signs of being peaceful and mutually beneficial, as well as providing meaning and fulfilment for individuals on both sides of the divide.
Read MoreWritten by Emma Chanlett-Avery
A decisive shift in US policy towards isolationism and “America First” could disrupt or downgrade ‘trans-Atlantic’ and Indo-Pacific alliances.
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