Once again, it’s time for business leaders to step forward As earlier posts have argued, relations between Washington and New Delhi – which not too long ago seemed destined to reach for the stars – are now feeling the heavy tug of gravity. In place of soaring rhetoric and high-profile undertakings, ties between the two […]
Just a quick post to draw attention to a short piece by Georgetown’s Victor Cha, who, while touring China with the Hoyas, witnessed the Great Brawl of China first hand. Given Cha’s up-close and personal experience of the event and his recent book on the politics of sport in East Asia, he is doubly qualified […]
The government said Tuesday that Japan’s jobless rate climbed to 4.7 percent in July, up 0.1 percent from a month earlier, while household spending fell a real 2.1 percent to 280,046 yen ($3,649). While a jobless rate of 4.7 percent seems relatively low considering that the U.S.’s unemployment rate for July was 9.3 percent, this […]
In her most recent post at CFR’s Asia Unbound, Elizabeth Economy lays out the range of Chinese reactions to PM Noda’s election, which has spanned, in her words, “from the bleak to the belligerent.” She writes, “Chinese analysts point out that the prime minister has not renounced his comments to the effect that Class-A Japanese […]
This isn’t going to be one of my typical analytical postings, but there was some interesting news as well as a few fascinating/disturbing videos that were brought to my attention this week that I felt I simply had to share. Firstly, there was a chilling scene outside a Phnom Penh money exchange yesterday that resulted […]
The recent election of Noda Yoshihiko as president of the Democratic Party of Japan, and thus Prime Minister, has set off a flurry of commentary on the foreign policy implications of the new party leadership, particularly as it relates to the reception of the leadership change in China and South Korea. Though little is available yet […]
The ruling Democratic Party of Japan chose a new president, and in effect, a new prime minister, today. Japan’s newest prime minister, the sixth in five years, is Yoshihiko Noda. The former finance minister was chosen over other top runners, including former Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara and Trade Minister Banri Kaieda. The new prime minister […]
Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan stepped down today under pressure from the opposition Liberal Democratic Party, factions within his own Democratic Party of Japan, and low approval ratings. In announcing his resignation in a televised speech, Kan said: “Under the severe circumstances, I feel I’ve done everything that I had to do. Now I would […]
A son of Salmaan Taseer, the liberal governor of the country’s powerful Punjab province who was shot dead by his own security guard in Islamabad in January, has been kidnapped by masked gunmen in Lahore. Taseer’s loss did not end the family’s miseries nor did the tragedy dissuade them to speak up for liberal values […]
Civil society in Cambodia is typically a very contentious issue. A few months ago, I attempted to dichotomize the diverging opinions on this subject by highlighting the urgent need for NGOs in the developing world whilst pointing out that many of these institutions are fatalities of their own benevolence. The problem, of course, is rooted […]
Two days ago a mob of villagers stoned to death a Taliban commander and his body guard in the Nawa District of Helmand Province. The news had gone under-reported for some time even though the New York Times picked it up. Today a few more outlets ran the news. No doubt the Pentagon and the […]
Moody’s downgraded Japan’s credit rating one step to AA3 Wednesday, citing the country’s massive debt, weak growth prospects and constant political uncertainty. The downgrade came as no surprise to analysts, and bond markets remained relatively calm. A rating of AA3 is regarded as a very low risk, but somewhat susceptible to long-term risks. Standard & […]
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