Asia

Honduras Ditches Taiwan for China

In March 2023, China signed a joint communique with the Honduran Foreign Ministry declaring that “Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory,” breaking relations with Taiwan after over eighty years of Honduran-Taiwanese relations. A few months later, in...

Read more »

China’s Belt and Road Initiative: Politics Over Economics

When international delegates to the Third Belt and Road Forum gather in October 2023, they might find the focus of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has shifted again. If that happens, it could prompt some to wonder anew...

Read more »

Japan’s Security Engagement with the Philippines

In June 2023, Japan’s sent its largest coast guard patrol ship, the Akitsushima, to the Philippines. There, it participated in trilateral exercises with its Philippine and American counterparts for the first time. Four months earlier, Tokyo prepared what amounted...

Read more »

Another Washington Declaration: US Nuclear Weapons on the Korean Peninsula

Sending Kentucky to Korea  On July 18, 2023, the USS Kentucky, an Ohio-class ballistic missile submarine, docked in Busan, South Korea. The USS Kentucky is one of 14 Ohio-class submarines tasked with conducting nuclear deterrence patrols and carries up...

Read more »

America Should Pay Attention to Anti-China Sentiment in South Korea

South Korea is no stranger to walking the tightrope between the United States and China. In terms of foreign policy, South Korea is determined to remain close to the United States defensively while maintaining its close economic relationship with...

Read more »

Contemplating Peace Between India and Pakistan

Abstract India-Pakistan relations are at an inflection point with India’s dramatic revocation of Kashmir’s autonomy and its desired objective to transform the nature of the Kashmir conflict from a “bilateral” (involving Pakistan) to a “unilateral” status (excluding Pakistan). Pakistan, on the...

Read more »

The Quad, AUKUS, and I2U2 Formats: Major Lessons from Minilaterals

Abstract Over the past two decades, a trend has emerged where US partners and allies look outside of their bilateral relationship with the United States and pre-existing multilateral bodies to join ad-hoc networks. They are joining these networks to...

Read more »

US-Philippines Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement Revived

An American fighter jet or warship operating near Taiwan or in the South China Sea might soon be able to resupply at a nearby base in the Philippines. No longer would it need to fly or sail to far-off...

Read more »

Upholding Civil Society in Afghanistan Against the Taliban Regime

Following a twenty-year war shrouded in bloodshed, the United States military pursued a messy withdrawal from Afghanistan in August 2021. This abrupt troop evacuation, coupled with the Afghan government’s unsuccessful ceasefire and the 2020 Doha Agreement, has empowered the...

Read more »

ASEAN in 2023: What to Expect

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is a regional organization consisting of ten Southeast Asian member states. Established in 1967, it aims to promote economic and security cooperation in the region. The annual rotation of the ASEAN chairmanship...

Read more »