Asia
India-Australia relations: Positivity might be coming at a cost
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese probably didn’t realise when he stepped into a Hindu temple in Western Sydney last month for a routine photo op during the election campaign that…
Hyundai takes the driver’s seat in Indonesia’s EV market
In March, President Joko Widodo helped launch Indonesia’s first locally made electric vehicle – the IONIQ 5 – at a ceremony for a new automotive plant operated by the…
How the Abe era reshaped Japan’s foreign and security policy
Book review: Line of Advantage: Japan’s Grand Strategy in the Era of Abe Shinzo, by Michael J Green (Columbia University Press)
Michael Green’s examination of Japan’s foreign and…
India’s inconsistent adherence to the Women, Peace and Security agenda
The coup in Myanmar, a Taliban takeover in Afghanistan, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, all occurring in the last 18 months, have each underscored that women bear a…
Stemming the tide of piracy in Southeast Asia
In April, the International Chamber of Commerce published a new report on piracy and armed robbery against ships. Among 37 incidents recorded worldwide in the first three months…
Thailand seeking to profit from a global food crisis
In response to worldwide supply chain issues caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – who between them previously accounted for nearly one-third of global wheat supplies –…
Timor-Leste, China and Australia, and the influence contest
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi last week concluded a Pacific tour – featuring some diplomatic gains and losses – with a 24-hour visit to Timor-Leste. The visit marks the island…
The Pyongyang problem for the Quad
North Korea at least waited until US President Joe Biden had left Asia before launching another volley of missiles to splash into the sea. American officials had braced for a…
Wong’s Bahasa pitch to Indonesia
Many years back while a journalist with The Age in Melbourne, I interviewed Marty Natalegawa, then Indonesia’s foreign minister. Natalegawa had studied at university in Canberra,…
Commentary
China Is Beating the U.S. in the Battle for Influence in Asia
Originally published in The New York Times.