Asia
Indonesia–US relations: sweating the small stuff
The US and Indonesia have declared an overarching “strategic partnership” to meet broader challenges, from regional architecture building to global governance. At least, this was…
Democracy and peace frustrated in Myanmar: remembering U Ko Ni
It is one year since U Ko Ni, a prominent lawyer and advocate for constitutional reform, was assassinated in Myanmar. This was one of many incidents in 2017 that indicated a sharp…
Asia’s escalating missile race
If the Cold War was one long arms race, the modern era could be accurately described as an arms jog. Countries are defined less by how many nuclear warheads they have,…
The Vietnamese Communist Party’s corruption hunt
On Monday, Vietnam’s former transport minister Dinh La Thang was sentenced to 13 years in prison. Another prominent figure, Trinh Xuan Thanh, received a life sentence for …
Joining the dots to Vancouver
Represented by Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade Frances Adamson, Australia was one of 20 countries that participated in a conference last week on…
What a US–China trade war would look like
Sometime soon, US President Donald Trump will announce his plan to respond to what the administration calls China’s “economic aggression”. When he does, it is not only China that…
The China factor in India’s commitment to ASEAN
India will host ASEAN leaders as its chief guests during the commemoration of the country's 69th Republic Day on 26 January, reflecting the importance New Delhi places on…
Getting away with murder: lies, damned lies, and Chinese police statistics
This article is based on Episode 17 of The Little Red Podcast, featuring Børge Bakken and Louisa Lim.
Last week’s letter of the week in the Jamaica Gleaner was ‘Taking a leaf out…
Will Jakarta no longer be Indonesia’s capital?
'There’s no wind, no rain, but Minister for National Development Planning Agency (BAPPENAS) Bambang Brodjonegoro on Monday announced that the government plans to move the capital…
Britain can be a power in Asia
Recently the Lowy Institute’s Aaron Connelly argued that there is not much Britain can do in Asia because British power is diminishing. This is unsurprising.
One of the…