August 28,2019

Abe’s Korea Policy

Sandwiched around the G20 Osaka summit were Abe’s “honeymoon” with Trump, called the best relationship ever with the United States, and Abe’s “nightmare” with Moon Jae-in, called the worst relationship with South Korea since the 1965 normalization. Are the two extremes in Japanese foreign policy related? What is driving Abe’s foreign policy at the e..

Gilbert Rozman
"Belt and Road" Initiative , free and open Indo-Pacific , G20 summit , GSOMIA , Trans-Pacific Partnership , US-China trade war , value diplomacy
August 28,2019

Moon’s Failed Balancing Act

The mood was decidedly upbeat in South Korea around this time last year: following the “historic summit” between Donald Trump and Kim Jong-un in Singapore, many praised Moon Jae-in as the “master mediator.”1 When Trump contracted cold feet just two weeks before his meeting with Kim, Moon staged a surprise inter-Korean summit to dispel their growing misgivings; the Si..

Eun A Jo
“No Japan” movement , G20 summit , GSOMIA , Korea Passing , nuclear diplomacy , Panmunjom handshake , THAAD , US-China trade war
August 28,2019

Trump’s Illusions

In the eyes of US observers, the G20 summit was more a series of bilateral meetings than a multilateral summit, more a prelude to Trump’s visit to the Korean Peninsula and meeting with Kim Jong-un, and more a round in the on-again off-again talks with Xi Jinping over trade than a turning point. Trump overshadowed other leaders, driving the newsworthy coverage, and reshaped the agenda aw..

Editorial Staff
"Belt and Road" Initiative , free and open Indo-Pacific , G20 summit , History Wars , nuclear diplomacy
August 28,2019

Modi’s Middle Way

How many acronyms can one invent to signal a country’s foreign policy interests? Many, if you are Narendra Modi. The Indian prime minister recently spoke about an India-France “In-Fra” alliance. Last year he reportedly coined or popularized the JAI (Japan, America, India) and RIC (Russia, India, China) trilaterals. There’s also his SAGAR concept (Security and Growth for..

Constantino Xavier
"Belt and Road" Initiative , free and open Indo-Pacific , Japan-America-India trilateral , non-alignment strategy , Russia-India-China trilateral , Security and Growth for All in the Region