Written by Tom Sharpe
Without knowing what the Royal Navy task group’s specific movements will be (and they will be largely classified until after each stage), it is obvious that FONOPS would form a large part of HMS Queen Elizabeth’s operational output in the Indo-Pacific.
Read MoreWritten by Kuan-Ting Chen
Whoever occupies the White House after November has now clearly experienced first-hand that Taiwan can indeed help. With enough work already carried out here in Taipei, Washington has an unparalleled opportunity to elevate the status of this small but mighty nation to a regional leader — in line with its own goals for engagement with the Indo-Pacific region.
Read MoreWritten by John Pollock
After conducting the largest ever Varuna exercise off Goa in May 2019, the Chief of France’s navy Admiral Christophe Prazcuk announced that the French and Indian navies would undertake joint maritime security patrols in the Indian Ocean. The first such patrol took place in March 2020 utilising P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine aircraft.
Read MoreWritten by Alexey D Muraviev
It came as no surprise that a month later, the honour guards of the People’s Liberation Army marched in Red Square as part of grand celebrations to mark the 75th anniversary of Soviet victory over Germany. The event was heavy on symbolism — yet another way for the two rivals to signal their growing closeness.
Read MoreWritten by Amelia Hadfield
What began as a single protest in 2003 has now turned into a consolidated, permanent anti-government structure, including a wide range of citizens and stakeholders from across and beyond Hong Kong, all of whom are largely united in their demands to preserve democracy and autonomy for Hong Kong.
Read MoreWritten by Frank O’Donnell
The growing pressure upon the Modi government to be seen to be robustly responding to China’s Ladakh incursions threatens to accelerate increasingly aggressive developments in Indian nuclear doctrine and posturing.
Read MoreWritten by Hanh Nguyen
While US-Vietnam relations lack the official name of a strategic partnership, the substance of bilateral cooperation is already at this level. As China continues to press its territorial and strategic ambitions in the South China Sea and Sino-US relations deteriorate, US-Vietnam ties will continue their upward trajectory.
Read MoreWritten by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy and Ma Junjie
Germany’s economic might has been decisive in shaping bilateral ties, but also EU-China relations. Trade cooperation has ensured Berlin a position of strength within the EU vis-à-vis China. But cooperation has turned into rivalry, jeopardising Germany’s leading role in high-tech manufacturing.
Read MoreWritten by Abhishek Mishra
The African continent increasingly occupies a central place in India’s strategic calculus. While India and Africa’s trade, investment, and capacity building initiatives are growing, it is the maritime-security partnership where ties are set to evolve.
Read MoreWritten by Shah Suraj Bharat
After Myanmar announced its COVID-19 Economic Relief Plan, analysts warned that Beijing would take advantage of these measures and push through infrastructure projects under the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor (CMEC), which falls under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Read MoreWritten by Ian Hall
There can be little doubt that what just happened in the Galwan River Valley constitutes the biggest test yet faced by Narendra Modi’s government. Modi’s options are, however, constrained.
Read MoreWritten by Rishap Vats
Touted as a “game-changer”, CPEC is one of the earliest manifestations of the BRI, and despite the hurdles, we shouldn’t be neglecting the underlying strategic aspects of this grand project. For Pakistan, it is about transforming its economy and making sure CPEC becomes a harbinger of prosperity.
Read MoreWritten by Zachary Haver
Beijing’s relentless pattern of assertiveness in the South China Sea is reinforcing existing perceptions of China as an irresponsible power. Beijing could have seized on COVID-19 as a chance to earn goodwill in Southeast Asia. Instead, China adopted the opposite approach.
Read MoreWritten by Hunter Marston
China presents itself as a good neighbor intent to help along Myanmar’s ceasefire negotiations, but it has refused to distance itself from its more nefarious connections to armed groups operating in the country.
Read MoreWritten by Dinesh Bhattarai
The resurgence of China and India as major powers brings immense opportunities but new dynamics to Nepal’s doorsteps. Nepal cannot choose between India and China and thus must walk a delicate path between the two most populous nations in the world.
Read MoreWritten by Lisa-Maria Hönig
With the rest of the world preoccupied with the fallout from COVID-19, it looks as if China is in the process of revolutionising its infosphere and taking steps towards its strategic goals: ”ending the hegemony of the dollar, and reducing technological dependence on the US for foundational technologies.“
Read MoreWritten by Pawel Behrendt
The Cold War set the stage and script for later acts we are now seeing in the South China Sea drama. When China took islands from Vietnam it showed that under favourable conditions, the decline of the USSR, that it was ready to use force.
Read MoreWritten by Joe Varner
Russia’s return as a player in the Indo-Pacific is significant and when coupled with Chinese military and political power represents a serious threat to United States of America and its Pacific allies.
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