South East Asia

Even as the whistleblower Daniel Ellsberg of the Pentagon Papers passed away, his second secret remains hushed. On June 16, the 92-year-old Daniel Ellsberg passed away. At RAND, he contributed to a top-secret 47-volume study of classified documents on the Vietnam War. Even though the war had been acknowledged to …

Change is upon us“Change is coming that hasn’t happened in 100 years and we are driving this change together.” These were the words of Xi Jinping, China’s leader and the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, when bidding farewell to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow in March …

Moscow and Beijing should “lead the correct direction of global governance reform,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping. Xi underlined that the development of the bilateral ties between China and Russia has become “a strategic choice made by both countries based on their own national and people’s fundamental interests.” Xi added …

China may have the opportunity to turn Russia into its vassal, but it has no compelling reason to do so.Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia-China cooperation has grown in all directions. Moscow makes no bones about the fact that it is betting on China in the …

“Proudly carry the great banner of socialism with Chinese characteristics and fight in unity to build a modern socialist country in all aspects.” This is the motto of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), which regularly appears in official documents and proclamations of People’s Republic of China. It emphasizes socialist character …

On July 6, 2023, around 1,182 cadres, belonging to as many as eight Adivasi militant groups from Assam, laid down 304 sophisticated arms and 1,460 rounds of ammunition, at a ceremony held at the Srimanata Shankardeva Kalakshetra at Guwahati in the Kamrup (Metro) District of Assam (The tribal groups indigenous …

Another frenetic cycle has ended, not with a bang, but a whimper. There is a pattern here: every few months – sometimes less – Indian authorities drum up hysteria about a new and imminent catastrophe that, we are led to believe, the Khalistanis are preparing to inflict on the evidently …

Topped off by a curious ‘coup’ attempt in Russia, June was a fascinating month with new geopolitical economic developments, twists and turns on many fronts: As US President Biden wooed, wined and dined India’s Prime Minister Modi (who was once refused a visa to America), France’s Macron sought an invite …

The US and Chinese economies are closely interconnected, but their ties are eroding. Despite record levels of US–China bilateral trade in 2022, the trading relationship is becoming less interdependent. Rising tensions between Washington and Beijing are driving US and Chinese investors away from each market. Perhaps the most consequential aspect …

China may have the opportunity to turn Russia into its vassal, but it has no compelling reason to do so. Since the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Russia-China cooperation has grown in all directions. Moscow makes no bones about the fact that it is betting on China in …