May 14,2019

Winning the ideological competition with China

The 2017 US National Security Strategy describes a vision of the international arena defined by a return of great power competition, with China as the leading rival of the United States seeking to challenge the liberal international order.1  As Robert Kagan recently argued, authoritarianism has reemerged as “a profound ideological, as well as strategic, challenge.”2  Ideology, ..

Scott W. Harold
"Belt and Road" Initiative , America First , China Dream , Confucius Institutes , Donald Trump , free and open Indo-Pacific , Liberal international order , United Front , Xi Jinping
May 10,2019

The Case of Japan under Abe Shinzo

Consider the paradox of Prime Minister Abe Shinzo, who presented himself as the Japanese leader most committed to pursuing value-laden issues, becoming touted by 2019 as the one world leader in the caldron of Northeast Asia eschewing such issues for pragmatic pursuit of the national interest. Whether dealing with the leader of the United States, China, or Russia, Abe has established himself a..

Gilbert Rozman
"Belt and Road" Initiative , comfort women , free and open Indo-Pacific , Northern Territories , Yasukuni Shrine
May 10,2019

Korea’s Choice: Synopsis of the Asan Plenum 2019

The theme of this year’s Asan Plenum was Korea’s Choice, and the core question regarded a choice between reaffirmation of the ROK-US alliance and prioritization of reunification with the long-separated northern part of the peninsula. For the first time in seven decades this choice had become a serious factor in Seoul’s diplomatic thinking. In many panels, both Koreans and Am..

Editorial Staff
Donald Trump , Global Korea , inter-Korean summit , Kim Jong-un , Moon Jae-in , US-ROK alliance
May 10,2019

The Case of Sino-Russian Relations in the US Shadow

Studies of the history of the Cold War find the impact of values so overwhelming that national interests were left on the sidelines by Beijing and Moscow to their deep, later regret. Claims by both Moscow and Beijing over the past quarter century to be building a relationship based only on national interests defy evidence in plain sight. Throughout both periods, Washington looms high over t..

Editorial Staff
Donald Trump , Liberal international order , Sino-Soviet split , Strategic Triangle , Vladmir Putin , Xi Jinping