Asia
Economic diplomacy: Australia Inc’s new world order
Risky business
Australia’s sovereign wealth fund – the Future Fund – was established 15 years ago when the rivers of gold from selling iron ore to China were just starting to…
An Afghan test leaves Australia’s principles wanting
When the Taliban emerged from the wastes of Afghanistan in the 1990s, the international community was caught completely off guard. Intelligence on the ground was pretty much non…
China’s digital currency takes shape
China’s financial system is changing. The country’s new Digital Currency Electronic Payment (DCEP) – a digital payment and processing network run by the Central Bank of China…
The evolving Taliban-ISK rivalry
The attack on evacuation efforts at the Kabul airport by the Islamic State- Khorasan Province (ISK, ISKP, or ISIS-K) triggered much speculation about the Afghan Taliban’s ability…
Japan’s nuclear identity and the complicated endgame
Book Review: Akimoto Daisuke, Japan’s Nuclear Identity and its Implications for Nuclear Abolition (Palgrave Macmillan, 2020)
It has been rare in recent years for the…
Turbulence, the Taliban, and Turkey’s role in Afghanistan’s future
Amid the chaos of the Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, regional players including Turkey have been jostling to position themselves with the new regime and take advantage of the…
Reports
Submission to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Australia’s Response to the Coup in Myanmar
The following Joint Submission to the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia was made by the Lowy Institute’s Ben Bland and Hervé Lemahieu on Australia’s response to the coup…
Rich, hot and popular: the taming of Chinese celebrities
Chinese celebrities are in trouble with the Chinese Communist Party.
The Party has cracked down on a number of Chinese celebrities, including the billionaire actor and filmmaker…
Europe and the South China Sea
In the 16th century the Portuguese were the first Europeans to navigate the South China Sea and lay eyes upon the thousands of islands and reefs that lay in these waters. Long…
Deliberate ambiguity of China’s new “territorial waters” declaration
Increasing military exercises in the South China Sea by the US Navy and partners from other nations aim to send a message to Beijing that its assertive territorial claims to these…