Posts tagged Pacific
Slowing the escalatory spiral over Taiwan

Written by Amanda Hsiao and Ivy Kwek

A long-lasting solution on Taiwan will be difficult to realise anytime soon. However, avoiding miscalculation and slowing the escalatory spiral that the parties are currently engaged in are achievable outcomes that Taipei, Washington, and Beijing should prioritise.

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Papua New Guinea in 2022: Key issues and future challenges

Written by Teddy Winn

The challenge for the incoming government will be to continue upholding PNG’s foreign policy practice of ‘friends to all, enemies to none’ while not destabilising existing bilateral arrangements the country has with its regional partners, including its closest and long-time partner, Australia.

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Stemming the tide: The strength of Pacific regionalism

Written by Alan Tidwell

For the Pacific Islands, bilateral deals with the PRC may chip away at the regional consensus over time, but in turn, Beijing’s energy will inevitably spark new challenges to regionalism.

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Australia’s civil maritime security strategy may not be so 'civil'

Written by Edward Sing Yue Chan

Information sharing is even more difficult for states when it involves cooperating with non-state actors because they are cautious about the connections companies and individuals may have with other states.

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Bitcoin to bombs: Illicit money and the preservation of Kim Jong-un

Written by Casey Babb

If he is going to be compelled to behave differently, or if regime change is the end goal, policymakers, practitioners, and cyber experts need to cut off North Korea’s digital “bank robbers”.

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Resets and challenges: Implications of Australia’s 2022 federal election

Written by Sian Troath

Labor has made it quite clear that they see the value in diplomacy and soft power, the former of which languished under the previous government while the latter was openly derided.

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Australian election 2022 — security, foreign policy and climate change

Written by Kate Clayton

However, it is still too close to call, as demonstrated by the 2019 election where Labor’s predicted win did not actually materialise. If the Labor Party is elected, the Indo-Pacific will likely see a more proactive and engaged Australia that centres regionalism and climate change at the heart of its foreign policy strategy.

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New Zealand’s strategy in the Pacific: Intentional and consistent

Written by Henrietta McNeill

New Zealand’s approach in the Pacific is intentionally predicated on having long-standing trusted relationships with the Pacific Islands region, emphasising Pacific agency rather than acting reactively and impulsively.

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The Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat: Challenges and unity

Written by Daniel Julian Savua

While the PIF started in the era of regionalism and cooperation between nations, it has now turned to individualism with some nations taking steps that are best for them rather than the region.

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Uncharted waters: In search of Slovenia’s long-term China strategy

Written by Valentina Vengust

As a small country without the economic or political leverage of the bigger players, openly pursuing and advocating for the formation of an EU-wide unified strategy towards China could be extremely beneficial for Slovenia to attain its own foreign-policy goals.

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Cope North 2022: Deepening security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific

Written by Bec Strating

Both the 2022 Cope North exercise and the Tonga example highlight concerns that hard and soft security are not so easily distinguishable.

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China's IUU fishing fleet a growing threat to global food security

Written by Joseph Hammond

Perhaps most importantly, more effort should be put into enhancing the enforcement and naval capabilities of states involved where significant IUU fishing is present from Africa to the South Pacific.

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Solomon Islands stress: what happened, why and what does it all mean?

Written by Tess Newton Cain

The other development, which has received very little attention, was the reported departure of 140 “traumatised” Chinese nationals from the Solomon Islands by chartered flight to Guangzhou.

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2022: Russia the other Pacific power

Even if Russia does not play a key role in the competition between the major powers of the Indo-Pacific right now, the country could become an indispensable partner in the future geopolitical constellations in this most significant geographical area.

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Why the European Parliament’s support for Taiwan matters

Written by Zsuzsa Anna Ferenczy

The EU’s foreign and security policy is indeed driven by member states and any decision on EU policy concerning China and Taiwan, or any third country for that matter requires the unanimous support of all EU member states.

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China’s new ‘space vehicle’

Written by Joe Varner

This is more about an aggressive hegemonic China's conventional warfighting capabilities and ensuring they have free reign in the Western Pacific against states like Taiwan without facing the prospect of nuclear war.

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Three hawks and a dove: Defence issues and the 2021 LDP election

Written by Corey Wallace

Kishida’s increasingly muscular security stances also reflect toughening attitudes towards China within Japan’s political elites and public opinion throughout the spectrum. Ultimately, it is very likely that the Chinese government will be disappointed that Kishida is not a sheep in wolf’ clothing.


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Militaries need to get their act together on the climate crisis

Written by Dhanasree Jayaram and Radhika Ajayan

It is high time that militaries, especially major ones, are brought under the ambit of the Paris Agreement. Without making these massive institutions accountable, the window for preventing the worst effects of climate change will likely close.

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