Country Report: South Korea (August 2022)
In July and August, the strategic dilemma of South Korea in navigating the contest between the US and China was put into sharp relief by the ratcheted-up military […]
Country Reports
South Korea
Country Report: South Korea (June 2022)
Country Report: South Korea (May & June 2022) Munkyoung Shin and Jung Seyoon President Yoon Suk-yeol’s first two months in office gave a glimpse of South Korea’s shift […]
Country Report: South Korea (April 2022)
Country Report: South Korea (March & April 2022) Shin Munkyoung and Jung Seyoon The outcome of South Korea’s presidential election in which the conservative candidate Yoon Suk-yeol won […]
Country Report: South Korea (February 2022)
In January and February, with increasing tension across the border between Russia and Ukraine, the US seemed to move the focus to Europe after its withdrawal from Afghanistan, […]
Country Report: South Korea (January 2022)
As the 2022 presidential election slated for next March looms large, South Korean newspaper headlines in November and December were dominated by coverage of the election campaign trails […]
China
Country Report: China (July 2022)
In mid-2022, Chinese analysts reflected on Sino–US relations under the Biden administration, prospects for improvement, and whether the two countries are entering a “new Cold War.” While largely […]
Country Report: China (December 2021)
In late 2021, Chinese analysts devoted significant attention to the Biden administration’s global technology policy, asserting that technological competition has become a key facet of the broader strategic […]
Country Report: China (October 2021)
In mid-2021, Chinese analysts continued to focus particular attention on India. They assessed the Modi administration’s economic diplomacy and its implications for regional relations. They also carefully evaluated […]
Country Report: China (June 2021)
In mid-2021, a Chinese analysis assessed the long-lasting impact of former Prime Minister Abe on Sino–Japanese relations. The author lamented the deterioration of Sino–Japanese relations in April, especially […]
Country Report: China (April 2021)
In early 2021, Chinese analysts assessed new directions in US foreign policy under the Biden administration, with particular reference to China and Russia. They examined the impact of […]
Japan
Country Report: Japan (July 2022)
The year 2022 has unfolded strikingly differently from Japanese expectations. Although already in retirement, Abe Shinzo had set the agenda that was expected to prevail. This included not […]
Country Report: Japan (April 2022)
Country Report: Japan (March-April 2022) Only one subject, understandably, has preoccupied Japanese media coverage of foreign relations over the past two months: the war unleashed by Russia in […]
Country Report: Japan (February 2022)
Two themes have garnered the bulk of attention in Japan’s foreign relations at the beginning of 2022: (1) Japan-Russia relations in the context of the looming war over […]
Country Report: Japan (December 2021)
The autumn of 2021 was a time of transition in leadership without indication of any shift in foreign policy. The relationship with China had turned colder in 2020 […]
Country Report: Japan (August 2021)
International relations were mostly on hold in July, August, and the first half of September as Japanese concentrated on the Tokyo Olympics and the election for LDP president […]
Russia
Country Report: Russia (July 2022)
The shadow of the Ukraine war loomed large over Russian writings on East Asia, whether China, the Korean Peninsula, Japan, or the BRICS. China’s success versus the US […]
Country Report: Russia (March 2022)
February 4 and February 24 stand as watershed moments in Russian coverage of relations with China, with spinoffs for discussions of India and Japan. In January, there was […]
Country Report: Russia (May 2022)
The February 4, 2022 joint statement of Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping launched a new phase in Sino-Russian relations, which acquired clear meaning when Russia went to war […]
Country Report: Russia (January 2022)
In late 2021 and the beginning of 2022, close attention was paid to the Biden-Xi virtual summit, the summit of the democracies, Sino-US tensions over Taiwan, the impact […]
Country Report: Russia (November 2021)
If during the first half of 2021 debates emerged over the merits of an alliance with China, Sino-Russian relations fell under the radar in the fall. Casting doubt […]
ASAN PLENUM 2019
OPEN FORUM
Explaining Japan’s About-Face on Russia
The Kishida-Biden and Quad summits of May 23-24, 2022 showcased not only Biden’s determination to turn the Ukraine war into a catalyst for a more vigorous US policy […]
Hakamada Shigeki
Synopsis of Indian Thinking about China, 2018-2022
On May 23-24, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Tokyo for the Quad summit amid intense scrutiny of India’s positions on the Ukraine War (then starting its fourth […]
Constantino Xavier
20 Ways China Is Losing the Ukraine War
In the spring of 2022 after the contours of the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine had become clear, the impact on China also became apparent. Altogether, this […]
Gilbert Rozman
National Commentaries
“South Korea’s High Stakes Diplomacy, 2016-2019”
United States
National Commentary: The United States The prevailing attitude in the DC think tank community is that rarely has such a consequential presidential visit to Asia occurred. Three takeaways […]
Editorial Staff
South Korea
On the one hand, the Biden visit to Seoul drew praise for Yoon Suk-yeol in his inaugural summit on the world stage. He boosted the image of Seoul […]
Editorial Staff
Japan
US-Japan relations had been on the upswing under Abe, but various uncertainties lingered. Obama was considered too weak on China. Abe’s wooing of Putin and early antagonizing of […]
Editorial Staff