1+ hour, 38+ min ago  (343+ words) The Quad's value was never in the optics " Delhi is a chance to prove it can function without leaders-level signalling. The Quad's problem is not relevance. It is momentum " and whether it can be sustained without a leaders' summit. The…...

13+ hour, 15+ min ago  (525+ words) South Korea cannot outspend China in Africa " but in fisheries governance and port capacity, it does not need to. South Korea's approach in Africa has often looked inland for opportunities in minerals, infrastructure, manufacturing, digital government, and development finance. That…...

3+ day, 3+ hour ago  (215+ words) The Eswatini episode made headlines, but Beijing's pressure now reaches into civic spaces across the continent, too. Eswatini matters precisely because it remains Taiwan's last diplomatic partner in Africa. Over the past decade, China has successfully persuaded several African states…...

3+ day, 4+ hour ago  (726+ words) A Danish political stalwart has invited Australia to a proposed new club of middle power democracies that aims to unite against the economic coercion of global bullies. Against the backdrop of an alphabet soup of leader summits producing hotly debated,…...

3+ day, 6+ hour ago  (450+ words) A maintenance deal for C-130 Hercules aircraft may be routine in peacetime " in a US"China contingency, Indonesia's legal exposure would change. Recent hostilities involving the United States and Iran offer a reminder of this reality. Modern conflicts rarely remain confined…...

3+ day, 13+ hour ago  (362+ words) Australia speaks of itself as an Indo-Pacific nation and the region has a deep history in its suburbs. At short notice, I attended a small dawn service in Dandenong this past'Anzac Day " the most memorable part of the morning coming…...

4+ day, 4+ hour ago  (152+ words) A US court sentencing exposes the gap between India's democratic self-image and conduct abroad. On 29 May, a US court is set to sentence Indian national Nikhil Gupta to between 19 and 23 years in prison, along with a fine of up to…...

4+ day, 6+ hour ago  (223+ words) A rushed change to New Caledonia's voter eligibility deepens divisions just weeks before local elections. Who gets a vote in local elections is one of the biggest challenges for New Caledonia " an issue with a vexed history. France's new changes…...

4+ day, 13+ hour ago  (259+ words) Few leaders can bear to know when their time is up. After winning an election last month, the new Chief Minister of India's State of Tamil Nadu, Vijay, tried to appoint his astrologer to a government position as "Officer on…...

5+ day, 2+ hour ago  (362+ words) The visit of a cabinet minister to an APEC forum is a small move " but it marks the highest official contact since the stoush over Taiwan. On 15 May, Hitoshi Kikawada, Japan's minister in charge of gender equality, visited Shanghai to…...