Introduction The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been responsible for conducting military diplomacy since the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in 1949. In the 1950s, military cooperation was limited almost entirely to other communist nations and insurgent movements in Southeast Asia. In... MORE

Known as the “Pivot to Asia” and informally announced by Vladimir Putin in early 2012, Russia’s strategic (re)orientation to the Asian markets and China, in particular, seems to be failing to work as planned (Mn.ru, February 27, 2012). New evidence, broken down into five categories,... MORE

Introduction On March 31, Chilean regulators unconditionally approved the $3 billion sale of Chile’s Compañía General de Electricidad (CGE) to the Chinese state-owned electric utility company State Grid (InfoBae, March 31).  The deal follows China Southern Power Grid’s 2018 purchase of a 27.7 percent interest... MORE

Introduction The Chinese-born Australian journalist Cheng Lei (成蕾) was formally arrested by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in early February after having been detained for six months in Beijing. Her arrest was confirmed by the PRC on February 8, with Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson... MORE

Introduction Located at the crossroads of global shipping lanes, Sri Lanka has become a significant recipient of Chinese economic and military influence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). For its part, Sri Lanka has largely welcomed China as a major investor and strategic partner in... MORE

Introduction As U.S.-China tensions have continued into the Presidency of Joseph R. Biden, climate change is seen by some to be a rare area for bilateral collaboration (21st Century, December 22, 2020; The Paper, January 20). However, despite the U.S.’ official return to climate diplomacy... MORE

Introduction On February 1, the Myanmar military (also known as the Tatmadaw) staged a coup to overthrow the democratically elected National League for Democracy (NLD) government and subsequently imposed a year-long state of emergency. NLD leaders, including State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and President... MORE

Introduction The accelerated repression of Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities inside and outside of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) since 2016 has highlighted the Chinese state’s extreme methods of governance and power projection abroad. The crisis in Xinjiang has become a liability for the... MORE

Introduction Since 2016, Chinese Communist Party (CCP) policies in Xinjiang have not only shaken the lives of Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other groups inside and outside the region, but also heralded a new era in the CCP’s domestic governance and power projection abroad (China Brief, December... MORE

Introduction Relations between the People’s Republic of China (PRC), Taiwan, and the Vatican have begun to shift and bear significant implications for the region as well as for the role of the United States in the Indo-Pacific. Since the Republic of China (ROC) government relocated... MORE