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Making the Most of FDI
The endogenous relationship between the determinants of FDI and the determinants of FDI spillovers cannot be shrugged away in a changing economic scenario of world politics. Natasha Agarwal in her piece argues that policymakers need to recalibrate and go beyond the traditional variables such as direct tax incentives to multinationals. New-age FDI policies would need a holistic approach requiring policy intervention on all fronts of economic development, domestically and internationally. For example, just like financial market development can ease credit constraints in the domestic economy facilitating FDI spillovers, visa reforms could also ease labor shortages in the domestic economy also facilitating FDI spillovers. Accordingly, a comprehensive FDI policy would include policies targeting domestic financial sector liberalization and visa policy reforms, writes Agarwal.
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Strategic Standoffs: How Repeated Games Illuminate the Future of South China Sea Disputes
What happens when international disputes turn into a game of chess, where every move has a consequence? Explore this dynamic in this thought-provoking article, "Strategic Standoffs: How Repeated Games Illuminate the Future of South China Sea Disputes." This piece by Brian Iselin outlines the strategic factures causing the problem, and then uses Repeated Game Theory to unravel the persistent tensions in the South China Sea, where power plays and strategic interests converge over vital maritime routes. From the militarization of islands to the subtle tactics of coast guard confrontations, learn how these interactions are not random but part of a calculated series of actions, echoing the principles of game theory. If you're captivated by the strategies nations use to assert their power on the global stage, this article will provide a novel perspective on the potential paths toward cooperation or escalation. Perfect for scholars, strategists, and anyone fascinated by geopolitical chess games.
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Maldives Walking Tight Rope between India and China
Like all the South Asian small states, the Maldives has been subjected to major power politics. There are five principles of Maldives’ foreign policy (mostly reciprocating with India’s ‘Panchsheel’) and six goals that revolve around sovereignty, identity, and Islamic nationalism. But due to the increasingly tense geopolitical environment, foreign policy adaptation has been a challenging task for the Maldives. As a result, Maldives’ internal political environment is largely polarized to ‘Anti or Pro- India or China’ when it comes to managing the changing geopolitical discourse. This issue brief by Saroj Kumar Aryal and Alexander Droop aims to untangle the sources of Maldives’ foreign policy toward China and India so as to identify how the Maldives has adjusted to the changing geopolitical environment in South Asia.
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Positive Paranoia: Chinese Interpretations of Indo-Pacific Geopolitics
This Focus Asia paper co-authored by Julie Chen, Jagannath Panda and Richard Ghiasy seeks to interpret Chinese narratives on Indo-Pacific geopolitics by reviewing Chinese state media and scholarly opinions on Indo-Pacific geopolitics. For this purpose, the paper also examines the PRC’s interpretation of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (the ‘Quad’ comprising Australia, India, Japan, and the U.S.) and the interplay with the three middle-power Quad partners. Similarly, it explores China-Europe dynamics in Chinese state media and official discourse, given the expansion of the European Union’s strategic interest in Indo-Pacific geopolitics. The paper argue that the Chinese scholars share many views with those of official state media. This is particularly evident in views of U.S. motives to contain China, dismissals of any U.S. success, and fault-finding with U.S. traditional and potential allies. Yet, Chinese scholars reveal different interpretations of the evolution of U.S. Indo-Pacific policies and the space for U.S.-China cooperation within the Indo-Pacific strategy confines. This work is part of a Stiftung Mercator-funded project titled “Order in the Indo-Pacific: Gauging the Region’s Perspectives on EU Strategies and Constructive Involvement.” Read the paper here.
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A Strategy to Securitize the Economy? The EU’s Partnerships in the Indo-Pacific
ISDP-KIIP Webinar on May 17: Welcome to join us for this event - the relevant questions that this panel will address: How would the EU navigate geopolitical complexities in the Indo-Pacific to secure its economic interests? How effective will the EU’s Economic Security Strategy be as a supportive framework of its Indo-Pacific approach, and in countering the economic influence of other major players in the Indo-Pacific, such as China? In particular, how can it strengthen the EU-Indo-Pacific supply chain connection? What partnerships and alliances should the EU prioritize to enhance economic security in the region? How does its Economic Security complement those of its partners like Japan, Australia, India, and ASEAN? How can the EU balance its economic interests with its values of human rights and environmental protection in its dealings with Indo-Pacific nations?
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70 Years of “Panchsheel”: China’s (Un)Peaceful Betrayal
Jagannath Panda writes on why and how India should draw a strategic compatibility with the West on China's radical revisionism in the Himalayan region. He argues that the Himalayan concerns have been overshadowed by China’s maritime threats and are often seen by the West as a result of the bilateral fight between India and China. It is this aspect that Indian diplomacy needs to course correct. The China-India boundary dispute is indeed a bilateral affair and the West should not interfere in the negotiation process or have a say. However, as the West is perturbed about China’s military adventurism in the South China Sea, it should also be concerned about China’s military adventurism in the Himalayan region, more so maybe given its technological superiority here. The Himalayan region certainly needs greater international awareness and interest in both the public domain and among lawmakers/policymakers, in the U.S. Congress and the European Parliament (in the West) for instance, argues Jagannath Panda.
Latest Publications
Positive Paranoia: Chinese Interpretations of Indo-Pacific Geopolitics
This Focus Asia paper seeks to interpret Chinese narratives on Indo-Pacific geopolitics by reviewing Chinese state media and scholarly opinions on Indo-Pacific geopolitics. For this purpose, the paper also examines […]
Why Taiwan Matters to Europe
The Taiwan issue is known to be sensitive for Beijing, one of its so-called core interests. Taiwan has no diplomatic recognition among European Union member states but informal relations and […]
70 Years of “Panchsheel”: China’s (Un)Peaceful Betrayal
This April, India and China commemorate the 70th anniversary of the “Five Principles of Peaceful Co-existence,” or commonly known in India as the “Panchsheel Agreement,” being first formally articulated in the […]