Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts with the label Japan and South East Asia

A Japan-Singapore-India Maritime Partnership ( Source- The Diplomat / Authors- Satoru Nagao and Koh Swee Lean Collin)

Image credits- VOA Source- The Diplomat Authors- Satoru Nagao and Koh Swee Lean Collin The Indo-Pacific region has been fraught with maritime issues, including an array of non-traditional security threats, notably seaborne piracy and terrorism – two salient challenges highlighted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he addressed the valedictory function of India’s recent International Fleet Review. This warning came at an apt moment when regional waters have seen a recent spike in the number of piratical attacks and sea robberies. At the same time, the prospect of extremism and militancy spreading from land to the maritime domain constitutes a very real threat. But without a doubt, simmering tensions in the East and South China Seas have overshadowed reports of, say, pirates in regional waters. In the South China Sea especially, the situation has taken a turn for the worse. Between October 2015 and February this year, the U.S. Navy conducted freedom of navigati

Japan Dreams Of A Chinese Energy Chokehold – Analysis ( Source- Eurasia / Author- Robert Shines)

Image credits- You Tube/ Author Source- Eurasia Review Author- Robert Shines “Diamond of Democracies” was a term used to refer to a would-be alliance between the U.S., Japan, Australia, and India and their collective efforts to counter the rise of China. However, Japan has patiently and carefully formulated its own bloc for this very same purpose. Additionally, these plans were complemented by pre-Ukraine Crisis overtures toward Russia to resolve their Kuril Islands dispute. Former Colonies Awaken Echoing their mother country’s path to preeminence, both India and Australia are making strides in building formidable navies able to project power locally and deny access to potential enemies. India’s value to Japan is twofold. First, it is a huge Asian land power with a contemporary history of animosity with China, namely their 1962 border skirmish. It also serves to keep China’s attention divided in the event of a clash with Japan, much like China keeps India’s at

China and Japan's Battle for Influence in Southeast Asia ( Source- The National Interest / Author- Machael Mazza)

G-8 Meeting ( Source- Wikimedia Commons / Credits- White House) Source- The National Interest Author- Michael Mazza On his inaugural visit to Southeast Asia as president of China, Xi Jinping announced a plan to build a “maritime silk road.” In November of the following year, the Chinese government established the Silk Road Fund, and contributed an initial $40 billion, which will be used to invest in both overland transportation infrastructure and in “expanding ports and industrial parks in Asia, the Mideast, Africa, and Europe.” Given Southeast Asia’s market size, economic potential, and location, it is a key link in China’s maritime silk road plans. Earlier this year, with significant international participation, China established the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank or AIIB. The bank “will focus on the development of infrastructure and other productive sectors in Asia, including energy and power, transportation and telecommunications, rural infrastructure and ag