Foreign Policy Blogs

Asia & Pacific

Of Muslim Women in India

Of Muslim Women in India

After the 1947 partitioning, one third of the total Muslim population in the British colony were to remain in India. Today, Indian Muslims still have trouble finding their voice and a sense of community.

read more

China Teaches Kids to Catch Spies, Warns Women against Foreign Men

China Teaches Kids to Catch Spies, Warns Women against Foreign Men

China is now teaching kids to be spy-catchers and warning women against dating handsome foreigners who might be agents of a hostile government.

read more

China and Russia Join Hands for Internet Censorship

China and Russia Join Hands for Internet Censorship

China and Russia are trying to establish a system of their own for internet governance as an alternative to the “hegemonic” Western system they fear.

read more

Brunei, Silent Claimant in the South China Sea

Brunei, Silent Claimant in the South China Sea

In contrast to the more vocal governments in Manila and Hanoi, not much is heard these days concerning Brunei’s claims in the South China Sea.

read more

Beijing Frets Over Hong Kong Independence Movement

Beijing Frets Over Hong Kong Independence Movement

Nearly two decades later, many in Hong Kong are calling for the territory to become an independent city-state along the lines of Singapore, which is probably what should have happened in the first place.

read more

Beijing’s Man in Bangkok: Wang Zhimin and the Thai-Chinese Soft Power Machine

Beijing’s Man in Bangkok: Wang Zhimin and the Thai-Chinese Soft Power Machine

Amorn Apithanakoon, known in Chinese as Wang Zhimin, is the CEO of one of Thailand’s biggest entertainment companies, Wang is also an officer in several Thai-Chinese “community organizations” that serve as political front groups for the Chinese government in Thailand. If Beijing succeeds in drawing Thailand into China’s authoritarian orbit, no small thanks will be due to his long years of pro-Beijing activism in the kingdom.

read more

10 Characteristics of Chinese Diplomacy in the Xi Jinping Era

10 Characteristics of Chinese Diplomacy in the Xi Jinping Era

Since Xi Jinping the became supreme leader of the People’s Republic of China, the country’s foreign policy has shown greater proactivity and confidence, with more emphasis being placed on constructive engagement with international institutions.

read more

Asia-Pacific Trilateral Meeting: shaping a new regional strategy

Asia-Pacific Trilateral Meeting: shaping a new regional strategy

On March 31, Washington hosted the 2016 Nuclear Security Summit (NSS), gathering more than 50 leaders from all over the world. Despite the clear absence of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea and Iran, the Obama Administration’s commitment to fostering nuclear non-proliferation in the Asia-Pacific region remains on the top of Washington’s agenda.

read more

Will Beijing Declare Another Air Defense Zone?

Will Beijing Declare Another Air Defense Zone?

In a potential geopolitical tit-for-tat, some analysts warn Beijing may soon declare an air defense identification zone (ADIZ) in the South China Sea, should the U.S. go ahead with plans to conduct a freedom of navigation exercise announced for April.

read more

U.S. Announces New Freedom of Navigation Exercise in the South China Sea

U.S. Announces New Freedom of Navigation Exercise in the South China Sea

On Friday, the U.S. Navy officially announced another episode of its planned “freedom of navigation” series in the South China Sea, shortly after U.S. President Barack Obama met with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a nuclear summit in Washington.

read more

Chinese Nightmare: Education and Thought Control in Xi Jinping’s China

Chinese Nightmare: Education and Thought Control in Xi Jinping’s China

The smallest, most ordinary scrap of information can often speak volumes about the direction in which a nation is going. A case in point from China is a Fuzhou, Fujian Province public schools memo dated Feb. 29, 2016, on the subject of “moral education” and “education for the Chinese Dream.”

read more

I Am Human

I Am Human

When attacks such as the one in Paris last year or the latest in Brussels take place, the world rises up in solidarity. Having spent the better part of my life in Pakistan, I know that our loss is ours alone, any solace we seek must come from within our borders.

read more

U.S. Warns China Against an Exclusion Zone

U.S. Warns China Against an Exclusion Zone

On Wednesday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work warned Beijing against declaring an exclusion zone in the South China Sea, calling any potential announcement as “destabilizing,” and vowing the United States would not recognize such a zone.

read more

Blood Brothers?: China’s Push for Influence in Myanmar

Blood Brothers?: China’s Push for Influence in Myanmar

China has responded to its apparent loss of influence in Myanmar by unleashing an aggressive propaganda and organizing campaign aimed at countering Western influence and cultivating a pro-Beijing grassroots political base particularly among ethnic Chinese in Myanmar.

read more

Jakarta Reacts Strongly to Chinese Coast Guard Intrusion

Jakarta Reacts Strongly to Chinese Coast Guard Intrusion

By defying international law using “traditional fishing grounds” as an excuse, China’s latest show of aggression in the South China Sea has only heightened tensions among its neighbors, and provided the region’s militaries an excuse to increase defense spending.

read more