Under China’s Shadow, India Looks to Australia

For the past few years, as China’s emergence has cast an increasing shadow over the region, Canberra’s strategic thinkers have tried to interest New Delhi in the concept of the “Indo-Pacific” as the two former colonies of Britain, now two leading democracies, find common ground. Those strategists in Australia, the shores of which are washed […]

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Nuke Test Gives US ‘Excuse To Boost Its Military’

China urges caution and opposes moves that increase tension. The United States and its allies may boost their military presence in the Asia-Pacific region, citing Pyongyang’s nuclear test, analysts said. The comments came as China engaged in a flurry of diplomacy on Wednesday to ease regional tension. “More drills by the US and its allies […]

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Battered in China, Japan Inc. Looks to Southeast Asia

As China and Japan fight over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, Yeap Swee Chuan is benefiting. Yeap is president and chief executive officer of Aapico Hitech, a Thai auto parts maker that supplies Toyota and Honda as well as small and midsize Japanese companies. The company’s stock price has more than doubled in the […]

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7 Reasons China and Japan Won’t Go To War

The sequel seldom improves on the original. Yet Shinzo Abe, Japan’s newly re-elected prime minister, has already displayed more conviction during his second spell at the Kantei than in the entire year of his first, unhappy premiership. Political energy is a plus only when it’s wisely deployed however, and some fear that Abe is picking a […]

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The Worldview of Lee Kuan Yew

Befitting an individual who will be turning 90 this year, Lee Kuan Yew is increasingly reflective these days—about his life, the memories that he shared with his wife of 60 years, and the lives that their three children have led.  Unlike most his age, however, he is also preoccupied with the challenges that his country […]

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The Pivot Didn’t Cause China’s Misbehavior

You’ve pulled a nifty diplomatic hat trick when you convince your main competitor to blame himself for your bad behavior—and to consider canceling his opposition to that misbehavior to mollify you! Yet China might pull off such a feat if it protests so long and loudly against the Obama administration’s “pivot” to Asia that Washington […]

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Forget Asia – Time to Pivot to Europe

Don’t look now, but for all the buzz about the Obama administration’s “pivot” to Asia and the Trans-Pacific Partnership, momentum is building on both sides of the Atlantic for a U.S.-EU free trade agreement that could be at least as consequential in shaping the world order. In fact, considering the messy geopolitical landscape with few […]

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