Asia & the Pacific Policy Studies最新文献

This article examines system- and unit-level drivers that create a lattice work of Indo-Pacific alliances and security partners. Consequently, these developments are leading to a multilateral security network that is comparable to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO). It observes the emergence of an Asian-style NATO in the Indo-Pacific region, which is gradually replacing the Cold War-era hub-and-spoke system of alliances. It argues that this type of security architecture has emerged as a result of Chinaʼs rise as a great power in the Indo-Pacific region, with a focus on expansion in the South and East China Seas, as well as Washingtonʼs decision to engage Beijing in strategic competition. The following variables indicate the formation of this Asian-style NATO: a changing US grand strategy vis-à-vis China, the creation of mini-laterals, and US alliesʼ efforts to confront Chinaʼs expansion and aggression by strengthening their alliance with the US. In conclusion, the article argues that this Asian-style NATO is still in its formative stages compared to the time-tested, well-established, and highly institutionalised Euro-Atlantic NATO.

This editorial introduces a special issue that examines the drivers, pathways, and policy implications of inclusive rural transformation (RT) across Bangladesh, China, Indonesia and Pakistan. Drawing on the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) multi-country project, the issue advances a stage-based analytical framework—grounded in Huang Segmentation—to understand how institutions, policies, and investments (IPIs) shape long-term structural and livelihood changes in rural economies. The collected articles provide new empirical evidence on RT measurement, stage segmentation, and the role of targeted public interventions, complemented by comparative analyses of irrigation, gender inclusion, infrastructure, water governance, and engagement with global value chains. Together, they highlight that RT is a multi-decade, path-dependent process that requires adaptive, stage-specific facilitation prioritising inclusiveness and sustainability. Insights from diverse country experiences, as well as Australiaʼs productivity-driven transformation, underscore the importance of strong institutions, gender-responsive policies, and integrated approaches to water and resource management. This special issue contributes a coherent diagnostic and policy toolkit for accelerating equitable and sustainable RT in developing economies, offering guidance for both researchers and policymakers navigating the challenges of structural transformation in the Asia–Pacific region.

The Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) has emerged as a viable intergovernmental organisation with a vibrant security portfolio. With its recent expansion it now boasts ten members, including rising great powers Russia, China, and India, as well as nuclear-armed Pakistan, and regional power Iran. However, the organisation is beset with internal inconsistencies and regional rivalries (Pakistan-India, India-China in particular) that may preclude its viability. Despite this, the SCO, led by China and Russia, has set itself up as a major counterweight to NATO and other security organisations in Eurasia. This article examines the feasibility of the SCO in forming its own concert of powers in Eurasia in the new multipolar system, with three powers—China, India, and Russia balancing in Eurasia. The research will feature a multi-methods design, based on the aggregate capabilities model, and using statistical analysis of arms trading and defence budgets amongst the SCO powers, that will enhance the specific case studies. This includes examining what system- and unit-level factors are pushing the member states towards a regional concert, including internal and external, and what unit-level factors may, or will, prevent a concert from forming.

The “Future of Governing” has been discussed for over 20 years. Many scholars agree that the transformation of government is prevalent; however, questions remain unanswered regarding the direction of these changes and how they have unfolded differently across countries. By analysing all the press releases of the US federal departments (including large agencies such as the SSA and EPA) and the corresponding ministries of the South Korean government, this study responds to those questions. Since the primary function of press releases is to announce and inform the public about the administrative actions of the departments, they are suitable for analysing changes in perspectives in practice. We mapped each press release in embedding space using downstream tasks of a pre-trained language model and clustered them into market, participative, flexible, deregulated governance, or traditional hierarchy model. Identifying trajectories of these changes through dimension reduction and clustering analysis, this study found a significant shift toward participative models in the US, while South Korea exhibited a gradual and incremental movement toward market models. This study contributes to the extant literature on governance by tracking evolving governance perspectives and offering several insights into administrative reforms.

This article analyses AUKUS through the theoretical lens of neo-offensive realism, with its distinctive emphasis on the articulation between system-level and unit-level variables for understanding alliance formation and dynamics. In so doing, it examines both system-level, geostrategic developments that pre-dispose the AUKUS partners to collectively balance against China, and the unit-level national politics of those countries, which differentially shape engagement with and enthusiasm for AUKUS. Empirically, the article charts systemic changes in relative economic and military power between China and the AUKUS partners, drawing on data from the World Bank and the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. This is followed by an examination of those contradictory unit-level forces that tend towards the consolidation of AUKUS, while simultaneously generating political opposition. Here official documents from the defence agencies of all three participants are examined. Finally, the article considers the future of AUKUS.

I examine the changing nature and characteristics of China-Russia partnership in the context of their escalating rivalries with the US, using the two-level explanatory framework. This article begins with an investigation of the causal impact of the shifting global power balance on China-Russia relations at system-level level, followed by an analysis of various domestic factors that shape the two revisionist powersʼ individual strategic behaviours at unit-level level. I scrutinise three cases of Russia and Chinaʼs responses to external pressures, 2014–2018, 2018–2022, and 2022–2024. I demonstrate how Russiaʼs reduced room for manoeuvre led to making concessions towards China in such areas as energy and security, ultimately strengthening the ties between the two states. In turn, Moscowʼs lack of capabilities prevented it from supporting China in the areas of economic and technological competition with the US. I also briefly discuss the impact of Trumpʼs initial policy moves for the Sino-Russian relationship.

US-China competition in the Indo-Pacific is setting the stage for a new tale of alliance politics. To contain Beijingʼs expanding power and influence in the Indo-Pacific, Washington is currently leading several coalitions, namely the US-Japan Alliance, Quad, Squad, and AUKUS; To counter US balancing efforts, Beijing is now strengthening its own alliances especially the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the China-Russia partnership. Using an integrative review approach, this article synergises the existing system- and unit-level theories into a “Power-Balancing Coalition Framework” (PBCF) for investigating the 21st century alliance politics. This framework hypothesises that system-level forces (i.e., relative power distribution across states/blocs of states) will dispose countries to “behave similarly” in terms of engaging a power-balancing coalition in a similar direction, on the one hand; it also hypothesises that unit-level forces (i.e., stateʼs geopolitical position, political-economic systems, and ideology) will domestically shape states to drive countries to “behave differently” in terms of engaging a power-balancing coalition in a different pace, on the other hand. Such a framework has the potential to shed light on state alliance behaviours not only in the Indo-Pacific but also all over the world.

This study provides an in-depth analysis of Chinaʼs film trade policies following its accession to the World Trade Organisation in 2001. It examines the factors behind the limited international success of Chinese films. Through a corpus-based critical discourse analysis of nine national policy documents (2001–2020), the research investigates how the Chinese government has aimed to develop its domestic film industry while maintaining strict control over cultural trade. It finds a strategic shift toward a state-regulated socialist cultural market, employing mechanisms such as censorship, licensing, import quotas, and state monopolisation to mitigate the influence of global trade liberalisation. The study also highlights the governmentʼs use of film festivals and exhibitions as tools for political propaganda, aligning them with foreign policy objectives and promoting official ideology. These practices underscore the tension between Chinaʼs aspirations for cultural soft power and its reliance on state control, which may hinder the global appeal of Chinese films.

The South China Sea crisis remains a major geopolitical flashpoint involving overlapping territorial claims, contested legal interpretations, and increasing external interventions. This article analyzes the historical development of state claims, the legal implications of the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling, and the evolving roles of major powers, particularly the United States and India. Incorporating recent developments, including the Philippinesʼ renewed alliance with the United States under President Marcos Jr., expanded U.S. military presence, and Indiaʼs strategic engagement through energy cooperation and the Quad, the study highlights the complex interplay of law, diplomacy, and power politics. While UNCLOS provides a normative framework, enforcement challenges persist, and strategic competition continues to intensify. This study concludes that proactive diplomacy, regional cooperation, and adherence to international norms are essential for mitigating tensions and maintaining stability in the Indo-Pacific region.

Early childhood development sets the starting point for future health, learning, and wellbeing; hence, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) recognise the importance of early childhood development in the global agenda. Therefore, we present evidence of the possible influence of prolonged biomass use for cooking on early childhood development at the household level using data from MICS 2018–19 for Kiribati. Results indicate a clear negative relationship between household exposure to biomass fuel usage and physical and cognitive childhood development indicators. In addition to this, respiratory diseases were significantly higher among the children of the household using biomass fuel, which points to the extent of the serious threat that biomass fuel usage poses to childhood development. These findings have important policy implications for promoting early childhood development in Kiribati, where the use of biomass for cooking is prevalent. The study recommends scaling up the use of clean cooking fuels in the region. For this, the government may consider prioritising the phase-wise introduction of affordable and cleaner fuel alternatives for low-income households primarily using biomass fuel. This will help protect vulnerable populations, particularly children, from adverse health effects of biomass fuel.