Asia
Is Pakistan fuelling a Taliban takeover?
As districts fall to the Taliban one after another without resistance, the government in Afghanistan has squarely put the blame on Pakistan for the mayhem in the country.
This is…
“I am a Taiwanese”: Eastern Europeans see a Cold War in East Asia
The politics of the Baltic states do not often create much of a stir in East Asia. That changed in October last year when the prime minister-elect of Lithuania, Ingrida Šimonytė,…
Man on a mission: Biden’s withdrawal from Afghanistan
President Joe Biden’s decision to withdraw all combat troops from Afghanistan in a short space of time aligns with the priorities of the Democratic party, but it would be a…
India-US ties: Work in progress
Diplomatese papered over the political turbulence in India during US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s two-day official visit to the country on 27 and 28 July.
Narendra Modi’s…
Russia and Vietnam: An alliance of convenience
Russia is one of the biggest suppliers of weapons to Southeast Asia, with Vietnam alone a major customer for Russia’s arms. While it is estimated that throughout the 1980s Moscow…
China threatens the West’s primacy, not its democratic systems
Some Western leaders, including Scott Morrison, have begun to describe the contest with China in starkly ideological terms, as a defence of democracy against authoritarianism…
China’s Afghan conundrum
Beijing traditionally looked with discomfort at the presence of US troops in Afghanistan, urging Washington to withdraw. Now, as the security situation in Afghanistan deteriorates…
Why China and North Korea decided to renew a 60-year-old treaty
Sixty years have passed since the China-North Korea Treaty of Friendship, Co-operation and Mutual Assistance was signed on 11 July 1961. On the anniversary this month, China’s…
Bad news for Vietnam’s Mekong Delta
The release of recent research from the Netherlands adds an additional insight into what is happening in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta, the country’s all-important food producing region…
Podcasts
Lowy Institute Conversations: Sophie McNeill on Chinese students and academic freedom in Australia
In this episode of Conversations, Jennifer Hsu talks with Sophie McNeill about academic freedom, Australian universities, Chinese international students and the Chinese government…