Asia
The battle for Africa
In his first overseas trip as US President, Joe Biden has flagged he intends to rally European allies in a critical “battle between democracies and autocracies”, and “make it…
Economic diplomacy: Trade deals for a fast-growing family
Worker vs worker vs student
Almost five million Kiwis have always been at least cousins. And Scott Morrison’s distinctive contribution to regional security has been his embrace…
Australia’s China politics heats up
After a long period of uber-bipartisanship in the handling of China relations, Labor has opened a clear line of attack on the Morrison government.
Last month, at the…
Beijing could easily encourage people to have more children, but won’t
On 1 June, I woke up to the news that the Chinese government had announced that it will allow all couples in the country to have three children, an increase from two. I joked to…
Myanmar, terrorism and the demands of international politics
During the 1970s and 1980s, when international terrorism was capturing global headlines and exercising the minds of governments and security experts, there were heated arguments…
A rising Bangladesh starts to exert its regional power
The recent announcement that Bangladesh would provide US$200 million in aid to Sri Lanka is an important turning point as that country moves from being an impoverished supplicant…
Myanmar pushes ASEAN to the brink
There is an anxious wait for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to effectively intervene in Myanmar’s political crisis caused by the February 1 military coup. The Myanmar…
Commentary
Unrivalled Xi Jinping still has challenges
Originally published in the Australian Financial Review. China’s ruling party and its leader are now masters of everything they survey. But can the economy keep delivering when…
China overtakes America in presidential diplomacy
Joe Biden is about to fly to the United Kingdom on his first foreign visit as US President. Biden will attend the G7 summit in Cornwall from 11–13 June, head to Belgium for…