This week in Australian foreign affairs: Fijian PM visits, Lithuanian President in Canberra, Marles in Korea and Japan for Defence Ministers’ Meetings, $10 million in humanitarian assistance for Gaza, and more.

Victor D. Cha and Ramon Pacheco Pardo’s Korea, a New History of South & North is a highly engaging essay written by two prominent academics in Korean Studies for the general public. The authors share their decades of research, observations, and engagement with Koreans, North and South, from an American and European perspective.

In climate change, Australia's targets have become least ambitious by a significant margin compared to the other countries in the OECD. Beyond a focus on supporting green technology companies, policies are necessary to initiate a gradual shift in the Australian economy and ensure its competitiveness in a low-emissions global future. 

Ten years after launching the Belt Road Initiative (BRI), Beijing finds itself in a precarious balance between the self-proclaimed inclusiveness of the initiative and its shrinking flexibility in intensifying conflicts. With fewer foreign leaders visiting Beijing, this grandiose summit reveals the inherent tension between inclusive value and China’s diplomatic practice in a more divided world.

Kurdistan is there: a reliable, battle-tested partner for developing a truly secure regional Middle East. Its resolute dedication, proven resilience, and adept management of security issues, along with its leadership in tackling challenges, makes it an indispensable ally in the pursuit of lasting peace and safety across the Middle East.

Long-standing unresolved colonial history and territorial issues between China and Japan, as well as the two countries’ opposing world views, have increasingly manifested in the escalation of tensions. With high-level political/diplomatic communication at a standstill, the relationship has become adrift.

Despite positive rhetoric toward building women’s leadership and political representation in the Pacific, progress has been slow and uneven. New approaches to building gender equal political spaces are necessary.

In the last decade, China’s been steadily increasing its presence in the western Indian Ocean.  That worries India and France, and has the potential to change the balance of power in the Indian Ocean region.

The United States (US) has a strong institutional presence among Pacific Island Countries, dating back many years. However, while new promises of engagement with the region are many, the search for implementation is still ongoing. 

This week in Australian foreign affairs: Albanese, Marles and Wong on Hamas attack on Israel; Cheng Lei returns to Australia; sixth Philippines–Australia Ministerial […]