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National Commentaries

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June 16, 2016 National Commentaries
A View from Japan

No other diplomatic event in recent years has benefitted Prime Minister Abe Shinzo more than the G7 Ise-Shima summit held on May 26 and 27. G7 summits held […]

Tanaka Akihiko*

Consumption tax, G7 Ise-Shima Summit, G8 Okinawa Summit, Global Fund, Health, Hiroshima visit, Infrastructure, Internationalism, Okinawa ID Initiative, Women
April 28, 2016 National Commentaries
A View from the United States

Inadvertent escalation or Chinese expansion? Two very different fears compete for attention in the proliferating discourse on the risk-rich imbroglio  of the South China Sea. Some fear an […]

Donald K. Emmerson

Nine-dash line, Pax Sinica, South China Sea, sovereignty, UNCLOS
April 28, 2016 National Commentaries
A View from Australia

From Indonesia’s perspective, the defense of its territorial waters from incursions and the protection of its natural resources from exploitation are key priorities. China’s aggressive behavior in reclaiming […]

Natalie Sambhi

Global Maritime Fulcrum, Maritime security, Natuna Islands, non-alignment, Pribumi
April 28, 2016 National Commentaries
A View from Indonesia

On March 20, 2016, a Chinese coastguard vessel intruded into Indonesia’s territorial sea near the Natuna Besar Island, the largest island in Indonesia’s Natuna Islands located in the […]

Ristian Atriandi Supriyanto

code of conduct, Illegal fishing, Indonesian-Sino March confrontation, Nine-dash line, sovereignty
February 12, 2016 National Commentaries
A South Korean Perspective

"US-ROK-Japanese Trilateral Security Cooperation"   Despite the practical necessity of trilateral security cooperation among the United States, the Republic of Korea (ROK), and Japan, conditioned by changes in […]

Choi Kang*

comfort women, Regional commons, Regionalism, unification
February 11, 2016 National Commentaries
A Japanese Perspective

"US-ROK-Japanese Trilateral Security Cooperation"   In the mid-1990s, when Japan and the United States redefined their alliance and revised the “Guidelines for Defense Cooperation between the United States […]

Yamaguchi Noboru*

Regionalism, Track 2 talks, US deterrence
February 11, 2016 National Commentaries
A US Perspective

"US-ROK-Japanese Trilateral Security Cooperation"   When President Barack Obama announced his much-touted “rebalance” to Asia in a speech in Australia in November 2011, his administration believed that its […]

Michael Auslin

Democracy, Hub-and-Spokes, National security, Regionalism
December 18, 2015 National Commentaries
The Malaysian POV: The Elephant in the Room – Is the Emerging Third Pillar Reshaping Asian Architecture and Regional Responses?

"The November Summits in Retrospect"   There was an elephant in the room at the recently concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila as well as at […]

Kuik Cheng-Chwee*

"Belt and Road" Initiative, China hub, Common Destiny, Regionalism
December 18, 2015 National Commentaries
The United States POV: Southeast Asian Reactions to the Firmer US Posture in the South China Sea

"The November Summits in Retrospect" Summitry is often seen as a way for national leaders to directly hash out disagreements and reach some accommodation. That was not the […]

Felix K. Chang

National security, Regionalism, South China Sea Initiative
December 18, 2015 National Commentaries
The Japanese POV: Japan-US-Australian Trilateralism

"The November Summits in Retrospect" The “quasi-alliance” (jundomei) is an increasingly fashionable term of the Japanese government as well as the wider policy community in Tokyo to describe […]

Yusuke Ishihara

Capacity-building assistance, China gap, National security, Naval cooperation, Quasi-alliance, Regionalism, Rules-based order