The Indo-Pacific is a strategic system encompassing the Indian and Pacific oceans, reflecting the expanding interests and reach of China and India as well as the enduring role of the US. The Lowy Institute's International Security program presents a weekly selection of links illuminating the changing security picture in this increasingly connected super-region.
- With the 21st ASEAN regional forum wrapped up in Myanmar, the South China Sea is a hot topic this week. Is ASEAN beginning to take a harder line on the issue?
- David Brown proposes that the US should organise a multilateral coast-guard force that could be used to confront Chinese vessels in the disputed territory of the South China Sea. Carl Thayer argues that the US ought to leverage its alliances in the region, and not confront China directly.
- Meanwhile, the Philippine Navy wants to make the South China Sea a tourist destination.
- Following the launch of their joint paper last week, Rory Medcalf and C Raja Mohan argue in The National Interest that middle power coalitions can create stability in Indo-Pacific Asia.
- Are relations between New Delhi and Beijing undergoing a reset?
- Gareth Evans and Joseph S Nye are debating what Japan's move towards ‘collective self-defence’ means for the region.
- Is a stronger bilateral relationship between the US and India the key to strategic stability in the Indo-Pacific?
The Lowy Institute International Security program's work on Indo-Pacific security is supported by two grants from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.