Developing a twin-track process of economic support and civil society engagement is a substantial challenge as trust in the international community within Myanmar is low. It remains hard for outside players, especially Western actors, to exert influence in the country’s peace process, legislation, and ministries.
There will likely be a great deal of idealism in Biden’s foreign policy; one example of this is his promise to convene a summit of world democracies within the first year of his presidency. Such a move could start to rebuild key relationships, a talent for which Biden is known.
Chinese scholars reportedly made a case for Tajikistan to 'return’ the Pamir region, which once ‘belonged to China’. This perhaps is a signal that Beijing is keen to develop greater control of territories adjoining the troubled provinces of Xinjiang and Tibet.
With China’s purchasing power over the next decade forecast to grow more than that of the US, Japan, India and Indonesia combined, expect Australian businesses to craft more sophisticated strategies to manage coercive risk, rather than just looking to sell more to other markets.
Differences between the current White House and an incoming Biden administration could be thrown into sharp relief in response to an ICBM test-fire by the North, as one is charged (even in its dying days) with protecting the US, while the other is chomping at the bit to set a new course in two months time.
The NLD failed to set clear policies to deal with misinformation or the deliberate spreading of misleading information. Worse, it has targeted journalists and critics of the government for speaking out, while it did nothing to challenge military-linked opponents who spread misinformation.
There are various propositions, like data trust, data coalitions, data cooperatives but the core idea is how not to fall into authoritarian intelligence on one side, and surveillance capitalism on the other. This is where Taiwan can help, it is my ambition, and, I think, is also an ambition for the EU.
The more fiercely the West condemns Suu Kyi, the better her domestic political prospects. In 2017, Western media criticism sheltered her from uncomfortable questions about her passive role in the Rohingya crisis.
Understood from this perspective, the participation of Australia in this year’s Malabar exercise along with the three other participants elevates the geostrategic significance of the exercise and marks an additional sphere of engagement in the already many-tiered network of alliances that the Indo-Pacific has given rise to.
Reliance on China for Cambodia’s economic recovery is likely to further fuel anti-China sentiment in the country – with pre-COVID-19 patterns of anti-China, nationalist discourse returning and strengthening.
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.
Europe must make it clearer that it is every European country’s sovereign right to conduct relations with Taiwan, or any country for that matter just as it is China’s right to do so for itself. Europe must also reject Beijing’s weaponisation of its economic means. Demand for economic reciprocity has been a priority for the EU. Political reciprocity and mutual respect should be just as important
The United States is heading towards difficult times and needs to get its house in order before it can play any kind of substantive global leadership role. Trump’s first presidency has not just injured America’s moral standing but has also undermined the country’s credibility among its friends and allies.
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.
In November we invite articles that seek to provide commentary and analysis on the issue of minorities within the context of the Indo-Pacific. Writers may wish to address areas such as human security, discrimination, migration, difference, power, etc.
Driven by massive suburban shifts, including shifts driven by women voters and wider demographic changes, Georgia and Texas have together shifted towards Biden.
Since the border conflict in May this year, India has chosen to be both, more assertive, and less interested in Beijing’s many sensitivities. While the Quad is expected to be a strategic deterrent to China, Taiwan could prove to be an important economic counterbalance.