Taiwan’s 2026 local elections will test whether cooperation between the KMT and TPP can evolve from parliamentary coordination into a more durable electoral alliance. The opposition parties are ...

Japan’s US$10 billion POWERR Asia initiative, announced in April 2026 to strengthen Southeast Asian energy resilience amid the Strait of Hormuz conflict, addresses immediate fossil fuel supply chain ...

The China–Japan–South Korea (CJK) trilateral summit framework is effectively stalled, with the tenth summit delayed indefinitely as Japan–China friction over Taiwan and defence policy compounds a long ...

Though its political momentum has fluctuated, the Quad provides an important platform for cooperation between Japan, the United States, India and Australia. Yet its coherence increasingly depends on ...

The new government’s budget is an ambitious response to its first annual budget since the 2025 Gen Z protests. Yet its ambition is accompanied by a targeted reform agenda aimed at overcoming the ...

Japan’s plan to cut the consumption tax on food to 1 per cent for two years from April 2027 is driven by Prime Minister Takaichi’s personal conviction rather than empirical evidence or expert input.

After months of US and Israeli strikes in 2026, Iran must rebuild its missile force if it is to deter further attacks on its territory. Tehran has collaborated with North Korea on missile technology ...

In March 2024, Hanoi and Canberra elevated their ties to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) — Vietnam’s highest diplomatic tier — making Australia one of its most trusted partners. But with ...

Bank Indonesia’s independence, a cornerstone of Indonesia’s post-Asian Financial Crisis economic credibility, is under growing pressure as President Prabowo Subianto pushes for greater liquidity and ...

Shiro Armstrong is Professor of Economics and Director of International Partnerships at the Crawford School of Public Policy at The Australian National University. He is Director of the ...

Amitav Acharya is Distinguished Professor of international relations at American University in Washington, DC and the author of ‘The End of American World Order’. Acharya is also UNESCO Chair in ...