U.S. President Joe Biden praised Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s “bold” leadership on a series of global crises as he welcomed the Japanese leader to the White House on Wednesday for wide-ranging talks that touched on the delicate security situation in the Pacific, the war in Ukraine, the Israel-Hamas conflict, and more. Kishida’s official visit, which … Read more
The Democratic Party (DP) won a landslide victory again on Wednesday, signaling South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s lame-duck status for his remaining three years in office. Out of 300 seats in the National Assembly, the DP won 175 seats, while the ruling People Power Party (PPP) won 108. Adding other seats won by opposition parties … Read more
Taiwan is now a geopolitical hotspot. Bloomberg Economics assesses the global economic impact of a war over Taiwan at $10 trillion – dwarfing the blow from the war in Ukraine or the COVID-19 pandemic. Some nations are trying economically and militarily to deter China from reunifying Taiwan by force. In fact, the best deterrent is … Read more
Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio’s state visit to the United States – highlighted by his meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden on April 10 – crystallizes the fundamental tenets of the Japanese post-war security architecture, while also affirming the new reorientations of the U.S. strategy for the Indo-Pacific. This comes at a time of significant … Read more
As U.S. President Joe Biden hosts Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio for a state visit, and prepares for a historic trilateral summit also including the Philippines’ President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., China is emphasizing its own partnerships. On April 8, the same day Kishida arrived in Washington, D.C., Russia Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov began a two-day … Read more
South Korea’s liberal opposition parties were expected to win a landslide victory in Wednesday’s parliamentary election, initial exit polls suggested, a result that if confirmed would make conservative President Yoon Suk-yeol a lame duck for his remaining three years in office. The joint exit polls by South Korea’s three major TV stations – KBS, MBC, … Read more
Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio is on an official state visit to the United States with a firm eye on underscoring the importance of the Japan-U.S. alliance in Asia. Kishida’s trip marks the first state visit by a Japanese leader to the U.S. in nine years. Kishida is expected to move forward with joint economic … Read more
Chinese President Xi Jinping and former Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou met on April 10 at 4 p.m. at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Earlier media reports suggested that Ma and Xi would meet on April 8. It has been speculated that the original date of the meeting was changed so that Ma … Read more
Few weeks are as historic in the shared history of Japan, the Philippines, and the United States as this one. The focus this week will be on these countries’ three leaders — Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, U.S. President Joe Biden, and Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos, Jr. — and their summit in Washington. But … Read more
April 3 began as a typical day for the people of Taiwan. Workers and students set out on their usual commutes as cities across the island bustled with the usual activities of daily life. At 7:58 a.m. local time, during the peak of morning rush hour, a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the east coast of … Read more