Asia
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Can Korea avoid another war?
In the current edition of the prestigious publication Foreign Affairs Robert E. Kelly and Min-Hyung Kim argue a strong case for South Korea to build nuclear weapons to counter the military threat from North Korea. “Assembling even a limited arsenal would give South Korea greater strategic independence and reduce its constant anxiety over the shifts Continue reading »
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Western tourists rediscover Chinese mainland, HK
Fifty years ago, I enjoyed an overnight stay in Hong Kong while on my way from Melbourne to visit the United Kingdom for the first time. Hong Kong was already established as a “tourist and shopping paradise” by then. I remember being somewhat bewildered by the crowds of people everywhere I went. But it was Continue reading »
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Caste divisions among Indian diaspora remain in Australia
Australian politicians’ inability to understand the complexity of the Indian diaspora is, in part, fostering division among these migrants, the Guardian Australia claims in analysis published on Sunday (December 8). Continue reading »
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South Korea’s martial law fiasco: legitimation crisis in the imperial vassal state
In the wake of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s 6-hour coup, Western pundits have opined that this was an affirmation of South Korean democracy’s robustness and resilience, its institutional maturity and strength. Continue reading »
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Before 1770, produced, written and directed by Sheikh Wesam Charkawi
In 2019, I was Australia’s Consul-General in Makassar, and I remember meeting a group of Muslim Australians from western Sydney: they were planning to make a film about the Makassar-Northern Australia relationship. Their leader was Sheikh Wesam Charkawi, a tall, bearded man of middle-age, in haji cap and long white robes. Continue reading »
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President Prabowo’s plan for joint development with China hits a snag
A non- prejudicial clause can end internal bickering. Continue reading »
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Forty years on, no justice for Bhopal victims – Asian Media Report
In Asian media this week: Disaster survivor says she wishes she had died. Plus: Macabre dispute over Pakistan protest deaths; Trump’s new term, crisis time for AUKUS: Martial law becomes South Korea’s democratic moment; Fentanyl America’s problem, says Beijing; Women’s freedom means no going back on population decline Continue reading »
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A five-minute scroll
Australia will pay an increasingly heavy price for its belief in US propaganda, writes Scott Burchill. IDF film shows soldiers damaging humanitarian aid, while the plight of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails is brought to light. CCTV footage shows the moment a bomb explodes in a University hospital in Idlib, Syria. In Asia, South Korea’s Continue reading »
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Another unwelcome ICC arrest warrant?
On November 27, the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced that he is seeking an arrest warrant against Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, the head of Myanmar’s military junta, for his role in the commission of crimes against humanity against his country’s Rohingya minority. Continue reading »
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Imran Khan and Pakistan’s deepening chaos
Even as more than 40 lives were lost last week in the latest resurgence of sectarian violence on Pakistan’s northwestern flank bordering Afghanistan, the nation’s media remained focused primarily on a nationwide “do or die” protest focused on the capital, Islamabad, and organised by the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI). Continue reading »
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A five-minute scroll
A defendant who spied on JUlian Assange during his embassy asylum faces criminal charges for falsifying evidence. At the UN the State of Palestine reiterates that despite of labes of ‘terrorism’ Palestinian people have a seven -decade just cause while Piers Morgan interviews Francesca Albanese. In Pakistan, Imran Khan supporters are being brutally attacked, while Continue reading »
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Philippines maritime legislation does not impede freedom of navigation and overflight over the archipelago
The Philippines enacted two enabling legislation on 8 November 2024. Known as Republic Act (RA) 12064 or the Philippine Maritime Zones Act; and Republic Act (RA) 12065 or the Philippine Archipelagic Sea Lanes Act, the legislation has attracted a fair number of criticisms from the region among those not familiar with the 1982 UN Convention Continue reading »
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War games? Let’s play peace
Why volunteer for the military? Academics have some answers. Continue reading »
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“A position of fear”: Economics, security, and Australia’s China debate
I feel like I have been operating from a position of fear in Australia’s China debate, and I don’t want to anymore. I don’t want my country to be operating from a position of fear, and we have, writes Amy King. Continue reading »
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From non-aligned Indonesia, a picture paints a thousand misunderstandings
There is more to the eye in the official photo and video of Indonesia President Prabowo on the phone to President-elect Trump. Australia misses the vital details. Continue reading »
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Xi warns Trump: Don’t test our red lines – Asian Media Report
In Asian media this week: ‘Seven pillars of wisdom’ on US-China links. Plus: India’s selfishness-is-good ideology; Marles locking in US-Japan defence ties; Non-aligned Indonesia’s balancing act; ‘Tsunami of change’ in Sri Lanka election; Lonely hearts kindle companionship economy. Continue reading »
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Are APEC and G20 irrelevant?
There are 21 members of The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and its purpose is to ease trade throughout the member countries. The aims of APEC are noble and good, they are to create greater prosperity for the people of the region by promoting balanced, inclusive, sustainable, innovative and secure growth and by accelerating regional Continue reading »
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Indonesia’s Jokowi does a Machiavelli
Power is the proverbial drug that leaders find hard to quit. Continue reading »
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The countries fuelling Myanmar’s civil war
China has the biggest influence on Myanmar’s civil strife but Russia also has sway, supplying arms to the military junta. Continue reading »
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Legislative trends on anti-interference in major Western countries
When Hong Kong’s policy makers were formulating the offence of foreign interference endangering national security, they did not operate in a vacuum. International models were examined, and they heavily influenced the final product. They included the National Security Legislation Amendment (Espionage and Amendment) Act 2018 of Australia, now incorporated into the country’s Criminal Code Act Continue reading »
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One word fouls straits settlement – “Overlapping”
It was supposed to be the Tour Triumphant, showing that Indonesia – the globe’s fourth-most populous nation – has a cosmopolitan new boss who can stride the world stage with panache. But cashiered former general Prabowo Subianto has tripped badly. Continue reading »
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“An integral part of China”: America, Taiwan and Elon Musk
The outcome in the recent US presidential election may yet push Taiwan in directions at variance with those advocated in a new article published in the America journal Foreign Affairs, which argues that: “China’s Gray-Zone Offensive Against Taiwan is Backfiring”. Continue reading »
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Trump’s election triggers anxiety – Asian Media Report
In Asian media this week: World must brace ‘for extreme chaos’. Plus: Beijing pivots towards military junta; Yoon now engulfed in political strife; Haggling intensifies to decide on Japan’s leader; Indonesia’s debate over joining BRICS; Anwar Ibrahim always one of the elite. Continue reading »
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Moderates begone: ‘TIS THE AGE OF THE DESPOT
Prabowo Subianto has got his diary right: First overseas handshake from the new President of Indonesia is for his bankers in Beijing, President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang. Trump can wait. Continue reading »
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Does Australia really want to be the “tip of the spear”, projecting Western power?
AUKUS, increasingly seen as a dud deal, though an expensive one, with a $368 billion price tag, stands as the clearest example of the cognitive dissonance besetting the Australian body politic. Continue reading »
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Come in now Indonesian democracy, your time is up
It took less than a week for the reality to be exposed. Even Deputy PM Richard Marles must now acknowledge that the nation next door he praises for its moderation and democracy is now a military dictatorship and a serious threat. Continue reading »
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Breaking the deadlock in Japan-North Korean relations
To break the deadlock in Japan-North Korea relations, Japan’s new Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, has proposed liaison offices in the capitals of both countries to resolve the poisonous abductees issue – the fate of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea in the seventies and eighties. Continue reading »
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“The possessing of nuclear weapons is immoral”: Will US Bishops heed Pope’s pronouncement?
Nihon Hidankyo, Japan’s nationwide organisation of atomic bomb survivors, was awarded the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize. Continue reading »
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China looks to turn a page with Japan, Britain, and Israel
And India announces breakthrough with China on the troubled border. Continue reading »
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Nobel messages from East Asia, 2024
Early in October 2024, the Norwegian Nobel Committee announced the award of two major prizes: the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize to the Japanese grassroots peace organisation Nihon Hidankyo (Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organisations), and the literature prize to the Korean novelist, Han Kang. From both winners came messages addressed to our troubled Continue reading »
