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Aug 14, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Yasuo Takao |Ernils Larsson |Abul Rizvi |Michael Barr
Author: Yasuo Takao, Curtin UniversityAfter the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant accident, radioactive water has been generated daily inside the plant. But even after the disaster, voters were still less concerned about nuclear energy than other major issues such as employment. In April 2021, as public concern around nuclear energy was limited, the Japanese government decided to release the treated water into the ocean when it was deemed safe to do so.
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Aug 13, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Liam Gammon |Ernils Larsson |Abul Rizvi |Michael Barr
Author: Liam Gammon, ANUYou have to give credit to Indonesian President Joko Widodo for his commitment to the old cliche that Javanese politicians like to communicate their intentions through symbols and hints. With presidential elections six months away ‘Jokowi’ has painstakingly avoided an explicit endorsement of any candidate. Yet it’s become the worst-kept secret in Jakarta that the President increasingly sees advantage in having his defence minister, Prabowo Subianto, succeed him in 2024.
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Aug 12, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Andrew Kennedy |Ernils Larsson |Abul Rizvi |Michael Barr
Author: Andrew B Kennedy, ANUHigh-tech decoupling between the United States and China is deepening. While Chinese controls on high-tech trade and investment are nothing new, US restrictions are increasingly striking. In late 2022, the US government introduced new measures to limit China’s ability to access advanced computing chips, develop and maintain supercomputers, and manufacture advanced semiconductors.
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Aug 10, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Faizal bin Yahya |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Faizal Bin Yahya, NUSIn 2021, Southeast Asian unicorns — privately owned billion-dollar businesses — came into the spotlight because of an increased inflow of private equity funding for tech start-ups. The region’s growing smartphone usage among its young demographic, expanding middle class and growth in internet users led to investment in the sector.
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Aug 8, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Craig Emerson |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Craig Emerson, Emerson EconomicsAustralia has an opportunity to develop and share a simplified trade system that could be the new-generation equivalent of tariff reductions in the pursuit of free and open trade. Since the mid-1980s, Australian governments have undertaken the arduous process of transforming the Australian economy from inward-looking and protected by high tariffs and quotas to an open, competitive economy. In 2023, Australia’s highest tariff rate is just 5 per cent.
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Aug 7, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Francis E Hutchinson |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Francis E Hutchinson, ISEAS-Yusof Ishak InstituteOn 12 August 2023, six of Malaysia’s thirteen states will elect their state assembly representatives. State elections are traditionally held at the same time as parliamentary polls. But rather than holding their state polls with the 15th general election (GE15) in November 2022, several state leaders opted to complete their full terms.
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Aug 6, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Martina Baradel |Michael Barr
Author: Editorial Board, ANUTime flies when you’re having fun — online. It’s been a quarter of a century since the WTO’s Declaration on Global Electronic Commerce at the Second Ministerial Conference in 1998. In the declaration, ministers called for a comprehensive work program within the global trade body to develop rules for what was at the time a still fairly minor part of the world economy. Two and a half decades later, it is obvious that regulation has not caught up with reality.
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Aug 6, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Ken Heydon |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Ken Heydon, LSENegotiations for the third iteration of the China–ASEAN Free Trade Agreement continued beyond June 2023. Of the three issues highlighted by Chinese Deputy Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen, green economy and supply chain management are of compelling importance. They offer major opportunities for liberalising trade in environmental goods and services and in further strengthening ASEAN’s vital linkages in its value chain with China.
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Aug 5, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Aristyo Rizka Darmawan |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Aristyo Rizka Darmawan, ANUThe United States and Papua New Guinea recently concluded a comprehensive Defense Cooperation Agreement. The agreement will give the US military unimpeded access to many PNG key naval facilities. This new agreement is expected to increase the US military presence in the Pacific region amid the intensifying US–China rivalry.
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Aug 3, 2023 | 
eastasiaforum.org | Shailendra Singh |Ernils Larsson |Shreya Sharma |Michael Barr
Author: Shailendra Bahadur Singh, University of the South PacificTwo studies, the 2023 Lowy Institute Poll and a 2020 Whitlam Institute report, provide interesting insights on two interrelated issues — how Australians perceive their country’s role in the Pacific, and how Pacific Islanders view Australia in relation to development and diplomacy in the region.
