Asia
Economic diplomacy brief: TPP post-Trump, China backs coal, Austrade shake-up
Time for RCEP to step up
Donald Trump’s abandonment of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal has left his Australian allies with the awkward choice. They can either play…
Beware of provocation in the South China Sea
American Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson has provoked controversy with statements about possible actions by the United States in the South China Sea. In testimony at a…
Missed opportunities at the Australia-Japan summit
Although it took place at Kirribilli House, just around the corner from where I live, I can unfortunately claim no inside information on last weekend’s Sydney summit between Prime…
India: Still blaming victims for violence against women
Last year, I wrote in the Interpreter about Modi’s panic button policy approach to increasing concerns about women’s safety in India.
Fast forward seven months and on New Year’s…
Malaysia's Rohingya aid flotilla: Activism for its own sake
For several years, Malaysian religious and human rights organisations, often claiming support from the 100,000+ Rohingya Muslim community in the country, have rebuked Prime…
South China Sea: Tillerson throws a rhetorical bomb
US Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson has made some potentially explosive remarks about the South China Sea at his Congressional confirmation hearing:
In comments expected…
Defence fracas shows fault lines in Australia-Indonesia relations
The dust has settled on a tumultuous few days when it fleetingly appeared as if material Indonesia found offensive at a Perth army base had precipitated a bilateral crisis.
For…
Central Asian connectivity: Going beyond China
Central Asia is experiencing a connectivity boom, with China’s ‘Belt and Road Initiative’ the most dominant vision for the region. Yet this dominance has started to worry Central…
The year to come: Northeast Asian security in 2017
The consensus seems to be that 2016 was terrible (perhaps because your favorite celebrity died, or because you still have not processed that Donald Trump did actually…
Asia’s educational arms race
Once again East Asian countries have dominated the global education tables. In recent weeks, both the Trends in Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and the OECD’s Programme for…