‘Quad’ Quietly Gains Steam As Way To Balance China

Potentially the most important meeting in Asia this week isn’t on any official summit agenda, features no head of state and certainly doesn’t include China. Senior officials from Australia, India, Japan and the US—a set of countries known as “the Quad”—plan to meet today on the sidelines of a regional summit in Singapore. Read Here […]

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An Emerging Indo-Pacific Infrastructure Strategy

The reaction to this week’s announcement by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of a US$113 million infrastructure fund is that it was more than a tad underwhelming. When set against potentially upwards of US$1 trillion in financing for China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – to which the new US fund is a thinly veiled response – that […]

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Australia’s Fight Against Chinese Political Interference

Last December, while introducing legislation to outlaw foreign interference in Australian politics, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull told the Australian Parliament that the scale of the threat to Australian democracy and sovereignty from foreign influence campaigns was “unprecedented.” Turnbull did not name any country in particular, but the proposed laws were clearly aimed primarily at Chinese covert interference. […]

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Modi Wants No Part Of China-US Rivalry, But Still Manages To Keep Beijing Happy

With Washington’s Indo-Pacific strategy set to boost India’s role in the region, New Delhi is working hard to avoid being caught in the middle of the growing rivalry between China and the United States, observers said. That might have explained why Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi appeared to avoid mentioning the “quadrilateral strategic dialogue” – a […]

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China’s Looming Financial Crisis

Governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia Philip Lowe’s speech last week highlighting the risks to the Chinese financial system from shadow banks – non-bank financial institutions often operating in more lightly regulated wholesale markets – has once again drawn attention to the major economic risk in China. Read Here – Lowy Institute

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The Empire Haunts Britain

The Windrush scandal reveals the complex reality of Britain’s relationships with its former colonies. Those who champion the Commonwealth now might need to reckon with its past before investing too much hope in its future. Read Here – The New York Times

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The Queen’s Favourite Club

Is there anyone in the world who has known as many international leaders as the Queen? Theresa May might be her 13th prime minister, but that pales into numerical insignificance when one adds up all the Commonwealth leaders she has met. In the independent realms where she is, or has been, head of state she […]

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Small Dots, Large Strategic Areas: US Interests In The South Pacific

Given the rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape – or, more accurately, seascape – of the South Pacific, the region poses several strategic challenges to the US and its allies. As Australian National University’s Joanne Wallis has argued, over the past several years the South Pacific has seen the creation of alternative regional institutions, increasing Chinese investment and strategic […]

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