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June 1, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Japan (June 2020)

The spring of 2020 saw a downturn in Sino-Japanese relations, which were now embroiled in the pandemic war of words, with little else on the foreign policy radar. […]

Editorial Staff

"Belt and Road" Initiative, Cold War, COVID-19, Northern Territories, Senkaku Islands, Wolf Warrior Diplomacy
May 25, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Russia (May 2020)

One message stood apart in Russian coverage of international relations in the Indo-Pacific in the early spring of 2020: what is the impact of the pandemic on China […]

Editorial Staff

"Belt and Road" Initiative, Cold War, COVID-19, Eurasian Economic Union, Wolf Warrior Diplomacy
April 22, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: China (April 2020)

As 2020 began, Chinese authors were busy not only summing up the far-reaching results of 2019 but also putting them in broad analytical perspective. China’s other bilateral relations […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Dong Jiaxin*)

"Belt and Road" Initiative, Cold War, community of common destiny, COVID-19, Six-Party Talks, Xi Jinping
April 13, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Japan (April 2020)

Geopolitics were not high on the media’s attention list in the first months of 2020; we need to look back a little to capture the state of the […]

Editorial Staff

Abe-Putin summit, COVID-19, GSOMIA, Senkakus, Shinzo Abe, Tokyo Olympics
March 30, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Russia (March 2020)

Russians agree that this is a period of transformation, but there are differences regarding the nature of the changes. Essentially, three schools of thought can be discerned in […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Olga Puzanova)

"Belt and Road" Initiative, community of common destiny, Coronavirus, COVID-19, Eurasian Economic Union, Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping
March 23, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: South Korea (March 2020)

In February 2020, the South Korean government tackled the coronavirus outbreak, also known as COVID-19. Following the diagnosis of “patient 31” in Daegu, the virus spread rapidly, and […]

Yumi Ko

Coronavirus, COVID-19, Korea-phobia, Special Measures Agreement, THAAD, Three nos
February 6, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Japan (February 2020)

Ahead of Xi Jinping’s anticipated visit in spring, one might have expected Japan to be in an upbeat mood toward China, as was the case in advance of […]

Editorial Staff

"Belt and Road" Initiative, "Hate Korea”, China-Japan-ROK summit, free and open Indo-Pacific, GSOMIA, RCEP, Tsai Ing-wen
February 6, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: China (February 2020)

As 2019 ended, Xi Jinping’s relations with neighboring leaders drew scrutiny. Whereas over the past year his ties to Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin often captured the spotlight, […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Dong Jiaxin*)

"Belt and Road" Initiative, “New India”, China-Japan-ROK summit, free and open Indo-Pacific, Moon-Xi summit, SCO, US-China trade war
January 23, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: South Korea (January 2020)

In December 2019, tensions increased on the Korean Peninsula as North Korea’s self-imposed year-end deadline approached. North Korea conducted two rocket engine tests at Tongchang-ri to pressure the […]

Yumi Ko

byungjin policy, GSOMIA, Moon-Xi summit, Mount Paektu, Strait of Hormuz, US-ROK alliance
January 23, 2020 Country Reports
Country Report: Russia (January 2020)

An aura of bravado pervaded Russian publications at the end of 2019. Putin had succeeded in diplomacy around the world, reestablishing Moscow as a decisive voice in world […]

Editorial Staff (with the assistance of Olga Puzanova)

China-Japan-ROK summit, Greater Eurasia, GSOMIA, Moon-Xi summit, US-China trade war