The Indo-Pacific is the geopolitical centre of the world and combines the Asia-Pacific and the Indian Ocean into a single region. As a strategic concept, the Indo-Pacific captures the interest of global powers like the U.S., China, India, Australia, Japan, and the UK, and tests NATO’s ability to adapt and maintain global peace in an inter-connected world. The program’s mandate is to provide Canadians with an analysis of security challenges in the region and to uncover the interplay of global powers, amidst emerging multipolarity in the region.
Abstract: The United States (US) and its Southeast Asian non-NATO major ally, the Philippines, have just concluded the fourth US – Philippines 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue hosted in Manila on July 30, 2024. In Part 1 of this special report, Contributing Writer Mark Davis Madarang Pablo examines the key takeaways from this historic meeting. This analysis Read More…
Recent media coverage of the West’s involvement in mitigating tensions between China and Taiwan has generally focused on the same handful of questions: Has China increased its aerial and naval drills near Taiwan’s shores, and why? What is the likelihood of a direct military conflict between the United States and China over Taiwan’s sovereignty? What Read More…
On August 26, 2022, NATO’s Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg warned Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau about Russia and China’s investments and intentions to build military, commercial, and industrial capacities in the Arctic. This is not new information. Russia and China made their Arctic strategies publicly available in 2009 and 2018, respectively. News articles frequently detail their interests and successes in the region. Despite this, Canada has Read More…
As Russia experiences growing isolation since its invasion of Ukraine, Moscow has sought to deepen its relationship with the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK). This relationship, which had previously collapsed with the Soviet Union’s dissolution in 1991, has witnessed a prominent resurgence. The new relationship is marked by secrecy and mutual assistance aimed at Read More…
Recently, Hong Kong lawmakers further contributed to the decay of democratic and civil rights in the city by passing a second bill designed to suppress dissent. The Government of Canada firmly expressed its opposition to these developments. Yet, in the absence of new substantive policy measures, its statements ring hollow. If the Government of Canada Read More…
Why does Hong Kong have its own team representing it at the Olympics? Why do some Hong Kongers refuse to identify as Chinese? It is because, until this day, the international status of Hong Kong is still unclear. This has implications not only for Hong Kong, but also for mainland China’s domestic and international stability. Read More…
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) most recent attempt at forcibly reshaping Hong Kong in its own image occurred on March 19th, 2024, when the Government of Hong Kong passed The Safeguarding National Security Bill (Safeguarding Security Bill). The Bill reinforces The Law of the People’s Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the Hong Read More…
India’s recent agreement with Iran on the operation and development of Chabahar port is a significant development in the geo-political equation in the Indian Ocean. Under the agreement, Indian company India Port Global Limited (IPGL) would take over the management of the strategically important port located on the Gulf of Oman for 10-years with an Read More…
China has a significant position in global commercial shipbuilding and its control is growing, granting it a formidable strategic industrial advantage in modernizing and expanding the capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN). This is important as the PLAN’s modernization, in numerical and tonnage, combined with its intention to move beyond a littoral naval Read More…
FOIP and RBIO Under Threat While many of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member-states are heavily preoccupied with providing military assistance to Ukraine’s self-defence against Russia’s war of aggression in the eastern flank, the latest string of events in the Indo-Pacific is a growing cause of concern that could spark a regional armed conflict Read More…