Asia
Pakistan’s gamble with Russian oil
News of the arrest of former prime minister Imran Khan has roiled Pakistan in the past day, which is the latest development in a long-winding saga. Much of the instability in the…
Malaysia’s Anwar seeks Asian Monetary Fund and “dedollarisation”
The Asian Monetary Fund was an idea that Japan first proposed in 1997 following the Asian financial crisis. At the time, Anwar Ibrahim, a rising star in Malaysian politics, firmly…
Hydro-hegemon? Complexities of shared rivers between China and India
Transboundary river governance has long been a headache for governments in Asia. One of the region’s most complex cases is the bilateral governance of the Yarlung Tsangpo…
“Play defence” in any collective response to China’s economic coercion
Many Western governments consider Beijing’s frequent use of economic sanctions a “clear and present danger” to the global economy which erodes the rules-based order. Canberra…
Does Thailand’s election matter?
Southeast Asia’s autocrats still want electoral legitimacy: it’s a paradox that’s particularly clear in the intentions of Myanmar’s junta and Cambodia’s strongman ruler Hun Sen to…
Japan’s Article 9: Pacifism and protests as defence budget doubles
Golden Week in Japan is so-named for the coincidence of public holidays starting at the end of April and continuing through until 5 May. In a good year, and in between weekends,…
Indonesia’s dilemma as China pushes a “Global Security Initiative”
China’s vision for a “Global Security Initiative” was first set out by President Xi Jinping at the Boao Forum in April last year. While promising ambitious change, especially for…
The “Indo-Pacific” is here. Yet “Asia-Pacific” lives on
Geopolitical imagination offers a mental map in which there is no one way of framing the world. Power contests often change this mental topography. “Asia-Pacific” and “Indo…
Choosing openness in the international economy
The Covid pandemic was good for isolationists and xenophobes, and bad for globalisers and internationalists. Yet since the agricultural revolution, one of the keys to prosperity…
What price will Laos need to pay to be saved, and will China pay it?
Laos offers a fascinating case study about China’s approach to debt. How much will Beijing be willing to concede on the debt owed by a friend and fellow communist country?
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