Maldives remains an important partner for India and Japan in maintaining peace, stability, prosperity, and access to the sea lanes running through the region.
Protesters have forced the Bangladesh prime minister to resign and flee. Meanwhile, Japan and India are still heavily invested in the country's development.
China is investing heavily in upgrading the 1,300km Karakoram Highway that connects it to Pakistan. Some see it as a dangerous debt trap, others as a...
Japan should redouble its efforts at helping improve the capabilities of the PALM10 Pacific island countries in areas like maritime law and disaster relief.
For PM Kishida, host country Italy's focus on bilateral relations and participating in Indo-Pacific security was a key takeaway from the G7 summit.
The Japan-Italy talks focused on global and regional security issues and their joint development with the UK of a next-generation fighter aircraft.
The proposed Kra landbridge would be costly but offer an interesting bypass to shipping through the Malacca Strait if Chinese participation can be limited.
China did little on its BRI pledges to Manila but the immediate provocation was its aggressive attacks near the Second Thomas Shoal in the Philippines EEZ.
Like Japan, the Philippines is part of the "first island chain" and strategic terrain for defending the region's small democratic bloc from an aggressive China.
China's massive Belt and Road initiative cost a trillion dollars and failed to achieve any goals. Now, Xi Jinping is recasting it as "small and beautiful."
Xi Jinping himself delivered a major speech at the third One Belt, One Road summit, but it was to a smaller audience than before, hinting at...
China and Russia cannot be trusted as they wantonly disregard international law and human rights and collude to oppose the existing international order.