A nation must think before it acts.
Asia
How China Dictates the Rules of the Game
Recently, news coverage of Asia has focused on Donald Trump’s trade war against the People’s Republic of China (PRC). While it is an important story, as we have seen ad nauseam with Mr. Trump, he changes his mind quite...
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All Politics Is Local, In North Korea Too
North Korea is involved in an international process, negotiating with both South Korea and the United States. This poses a methodological curiosity of sorts for those who study and try to make sense of its politics, foreign as well...
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Trade War: Acting Without Thinking
The Trump administration has launched a no-kidding trade war with China—and no one who knows Donald Trump well is surprised. If this president has one core belief, it is that the U.S. has been the victim of unfair trade...
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Dismantling North Korea’s Nuclear Program
The Kim-Trump Summit last month, though largely a propaganda exercise, produced a measure of civility and goodwill—what Trump called a “special bond”—between the leaders that could bode well for future political relations. However, firm agreement on a path forward...
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Malaysia (er, Mahathir) Rebooted: Malaysia’s Foreign Policy Interlude
Mahathir Mohamad is back. After serving as Malaysia’s prime minister from 1981 to 2003, the 92-year old Mahathir returned to his prior post in May 2018. He came back at the head of a new political coalition, Pakatan Harapan,...
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A Grander Strategy at Work?: North Korea, China, and Trump’s Suspension of the U.S.-South Korean Military Exercise
President Donald Trump’s summit with North Korean Chairman Kim Jong-un in Singapore lasted only a few hours. But it still stirred controversy. In a surprise move, Trump agreed to suspend the annual U.S.-South Korean military exercise called Ulchi Freedom...
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After Singapore: From Bilateral Summitry to Multi-Party Diplomacy?
The narrative that the U.S. has made major concessions to North Korea while gaining very little in return is now the mainstream view in the Western expert commentary on the June 12 Singapore summit between Donald Trump and Kim...
Read more »Expanding Influence: Big China in Little Djibouti
Majalla In early May, Djibouti, a small African country located at the critical juncture between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, made headlines for a surprising reason: the United States demarched the People’s Republic of China for shining...
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The Trump-Kim Summit: Its Significance for Six-Party Diplomacy
Donald Trump has upended not only the sanctions regime, but also the framework of diplomacy involving North Korea. A scramble is bound to ensue for leverage in shaping the geopolitics of Northeast Asia and for asserting national identities in...
Read more »China, Japan, and the Singapore Summit: No Seat at the Table, but Very Much Present
The long-discussed summit between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un—beset by doubts and delays—finally took place on June 12. The meeting itself was brief—a 35 minute closed-door discussion with only the two leaders’ translators present, followed by a public meeting...
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