Why the European Parliament’s support for Taiwan matters

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

The EU’s foreign and security policy is indeed driven by member states and any decision on EU policy concerning China and Taiwan, or any third country for that matter requires the unanimous support of all EU member states.

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Japan’s climate policy in light of COP26

Written by Florentine Koppenborg

There is a striking disconnect between Japan’s greenhouse gas emissions reduction targets on the one hand and the energy strategy adopted to achieve them. An important step would be to reduce Japan’s reliance on coal, the single biggest cause of climate change.

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Indigenous deterrence capabilities and inter-Korean relations

Written by Elisabeth Suh

The upcoming presidential elections in March 2022 will set Seoul’s tone for the next five years. Which scenario is more likely to unfold in the medium-term, however, depends also on North Korea and the broader geopolitical setting.

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In Conversation: Kerry Brown on “China’s World”

On one hand, there is a China that is complex, runs on different drivers depending on the issue one is talking about and is often poor at communicating, or resentful that it needs to communicate and do things that it sees everyone else doing without the need to explain themselves.

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Australia’s defence policy in the grey zone

Written by Benjamin Herscovitch

Without discounting the possible threats that nuclear-powered submarines are designed to head off, Australia’s immediate priority remains competition with China in numerous scenarios short of war.

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The politics of Taliban recognition

Written by Michael Kugelman

For the United States, giving Kabul access to aid — including nearly USD $10 billion in foreign reserves frozen by Washington — is hard to justify without recognising the regime.

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With the exclusion of Myanmar’s junta, can ASEAN remain relevant and effective in the Myanmar crisis?

Written by Joy Joy

Most importantly, ASEAN and the international community must recognise that the future of Myanmar belongs to its people. They must listen to the voices of the Burmese people and their democratically-elected representatives while making meaningful engagements to help resolve the crisis.

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President Biden’s welcome return to Asian multilateralism

Written by Susannah Patton

The President’s positive statement at least opens the door for US allies and partners to put forward their views on US regional economic engagement. The United States’ offer to host APEC in 2023 should give high-level impetus for the development of this economic framework.

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EU-India strategic partnership: Time to co-create the Indo-Pacific governance

Written by Stefania Benaglia

At the end of the day, since the two sides are building their strategic partnership on shared values, particularly multilateralism, these need to be promoted in the region. If the EU and India are true to their words, they must find a way to co-create a governance system for the region.

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Sri Lanka: Navigating geopolitics, regional asymmetry, and a national crisis

Written by Nilanthi Samaranayake

Outreach to address COVID-19 economic distress perpetuates the inaccurate perception that Sri Lanka is heavily indebted to China and is therefore prone to advancing Beijing’s geostrategic ambitions.

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Russia and Pakistan: Strange partnership

Written by Vuk Vuksanovic

Pakistan needs partners among great and regional powers concerned about the fate of Afghanistan. Russia, on the other hand, had to strengthen its diplomatic and market ties with non-Western countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America as a result of the Ukraine Crisis and worsening relations with the West.

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Indonesia: The cost of repressing Islamists

Written by Nava Nuraniyah

The attack on an Ahmadiyah mosque in Sintang, West Kalimantan on 3 September is but one indication that the existing anti-radicalism campaign has merely served as a political weapon to target government enemies, rather than defending minorities.


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See you later, Zooxanthellae!

By Claudia Schildknecht

Due to a lack of political intervention, researchers currently expect the reefs to disappear worldwide by the middle of the century. If we lose coral reefs, we lose the rainforest of the sea. We would lose 25 per cent of the fish that live in this ‘underwater rainforest’, leaving large marine animals without food.

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China: The missing presence at COP26

Written by Barbara Pongratz and Nis Grünberg

Calculations have shown that China needs to peak earlier than 2030 to keep global warming below 1.5°C. At this point, a degree of climate competition might be even more useful than cooperation. The EU needs to overtake China in its commitments and lead by example.

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China’s new ‘space vehicle’

Written by Joe Varner

This is more about an aggressive hegemonic China's conventional warfighting capabilities and ensuring they have free reign in the Western Pacific against states like Taiwan without facing the prospect of nuclear war.

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The continuities in Trump’s and Biden’s foreign policies

Written by Richard Johnson

As Biden preaches his commitment to being “ethical, straight, telling the truth, supporting our allies, all those good things”, observers might wish to jot in the corner “France, Afghanistan, tariffs”. The list will likely grow.

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