Author: Tan Hsien-Li, NUS

Throughout its 50-year history of regional cooperation, legalisation and institutionalisation have not featured all that prominently in ASEAN’s diplomatic repertoire. Especially in its formative years, ASEAN relied on political flexibility and institutional informality, eschewing binding legal relations. Even as laws and institutions were developed in ASEAN, adherence to them remained underwhelming. Read more…

Author: Victoria Hui, University of Notre Dame

Beijing is increasingly brazen about violating the ‘one country, two systems’ model and replacing it with de facto direct rule. In the aftermath of the Umbrella Movement in December 2014, Chen Zuoer, former chairman of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macau Studies and the former deputy director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, vowed to rein in ‘Hong Kong’s governance’. Read more…

Author: Rashed Uz Zaman, University of Dhaka

As South Asia’s international presence increases in importance, Bangladesh must carefully consider its traditional security concerns and the challenges arising from its position in the region. Any discussion about Bangladesh’s security inevitably focuses on its geographical location. Particularly, India’s dominance of the region has significantly shaped Bangladesh’s foreign and security policy. Read more…

Author: Colin Mackerras, Griffith University

At a time when globalisation from the West appears to be in retreat, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) is a potent symbol of the rise of China-based globalisation. Read more…

Author: Kazuhiko Togo, Kyoto Sangyo University

Mid-2017 is certainly a time to remember for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. His cabinet approval rating fell drastically from around 60 per cent in March to below 30 per cent in July. Abe’s fall from grace started with the Moritomo Gakuen scandal in Osaka. Read more…

Author: Greg Raymond, ANU

The Thai Supreme Court will hand down its postponed verdict on former Thai prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s involvement in a rice subsidy scheme on 27 September 2017. We will know then if her apparent decision to go into exile was warranted. Read more…

Authors: Jong-Wha Lee, Korea University and Warwick McKibbin, ANU

The Korean peninsula is currently the most dangerous flashpoint in the world. North Korea may now be capable of launching an intercontinental ballistic missile that can hit major US cities. It is highly unlikely to give up its nuclear weapons, despite harsh sanctions by the United States and the United Nations. Read more…