Skip to main content
The Interpreter

Interpreter - Menu Links

  • Articles
  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • About

Published daily by the Lowy Institute

  • 24 Jan 2023
    • Asean
    • Japan
    • Sustainability

    Japan and ASEAN: 50 years of maritime strategy

    Thư Nguyễn Hoàng Anh
    Collaboration on ending illegal fishing and piracy in the region is important. But there are also bigger fish to fry.
  • 16 Jan 2023
    • India
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Technology
    • United States

    Towards meaningful Quad cooperation on intelligence

    Arzan Tarapore
    Collaborative AI capabilities would allow the partners to deepen military cooperation, should leaders choose that step.
  • 19 Dec 2022
    • India
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • United States

    A focused direction for the Quad

    Erin Mello
    Doubling-down on existing initiatives – rather than new goals – will see the grouping deliver tangible public goods.
  • 5 Oct 2022
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • South Korea
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • United States

    Hot button issue: North Korea’s bold new nuclear stance

    Gabriela Bernal
    Regional leaders would do well to focus on engagement with Pyongyang after missile launches set a dangerous precedent.
  • 28 Sep 2022
    • Japan

    “Predatory cult”: the shadow of Unification Church over Abe’s funeral

    Lydia Khalil
    Researcher Sarah Hightower explains Japan’s reckoning over the influence of a controversial sect in Japanese politics.
  • 21 Sep 2022
    • Indonesia
    • Japan
    • Sex and Gender

    Economic diplomacy: Womenomics shifts from Tokyo to Jakarta

    Greg Earl
    Can a female finance minister in Indonesia avoid the demographic dilemma that has handicapped Japan’s evolution?
  • 13 Sep 2022
    • India
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Trade
    • United States

    The Quad needs a stronger economic message

    Rena Sasaki
    Trade is the path to regional prosperity, but the four partners stand divided on how this can be achieved.
  • 8 Sep 2022
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • South Korea

    Can Seoul and Tokyo mend ties?

    Gabriela Bernal
    Defence talks this week are a good sign. But a lot of history stands in the way of cooperation, even over North Korea.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Japan

    The shadow of Abe

    Donna Weeks
    The contentious changes brought about by the former prime minister will be debated for years to come.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Japan
    • India
    • Australia
    • Defence & Security
    • Global Issues
    • Environment
    • Coronavirus
    • Climate change
    • United States

    The Quad needs a futures focus

    Abhijnan Rej
    A better – and public – understanding is needed of the cascading effects of regional challenges.
  • 27 Jul 2022
    • Trade and Investment in the Asia Pacific
    • Timor-Leste
    • Asean
    • Japan
    • Australia
    • Australian trade, investment & economy
    • Trade
    • Pacific Islands

    Economic diplomacy: The Pacific beats ASEAN for nervous investors

    Greg Earl
    Abe Shinzo’s passing and the Timor oil spy case dismissal reveal new thinking about what national security means.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • Japan

    Abe Shinzo: the Quad stands as his Indo-Pacific legacy

    Teesta Prakash
    Driven by a vision of democratic peace spanning two seas, Japan’s former prime minister transformed regional diplomacy.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • Japan

    Abe’s drive to “bring back Japan”

    Ryosuke Hanada
    The former prime minister was a policy entrepreneur in debates that will guide the country’s future.
  • 26 Jul 2022
    • Japan
    • Sustainability

    What a waste! Japan’s food sustainability challenge

    Yusaku Yoshikawa
    Imported food has an environmental cost. And a nationwide effort is needed to drastically cut the amount discarded.
  • 25 Jul 2022
    • Asia Pacific Security
    • Japan

    Abe Shinzo: Australia’s “best friend” in Asia

    David Walton , Akimoto Daisuke
    Shinzo Abe was a pioneer of Australia-Japan relations in a complicated geopolitical region.
  • 28 Jun 2022
    • China
    • Japan
    • North Korea
    • South Korea
    • Taiwan
    • United States

    Contingency plans: South Korea and cross-Strait security

    Henry Storey
    Seoul’s new administration faces critical choices over Taiwan and its relationships with Washington and Beijing.
  • 27 Jun 2022
    • Asean
    • India
    • Japan
    • Australia and Asia
    • United States

    Why Australia shouldn’t put all its eggs in the Quad basket

    Henry Storey
    The regional security pact is yet to prove its worth. Options must be kept open, with minilaterals top of the list.
  • 10 Jun 2022
    • Japan
    • Review

    How the Abe era reshaped Japan’s foreign and security policy

    Ryosuke Hanada
    Abe Shinzo put in place a strategy that will not only endure but also influence other nations in view of China.
  • 8 Jun 2022
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • North Korea

    The Pyongyang problem for the Quad

    Cherry Hitkari
    North Korea poses a challenge for regional security, and so often China has stood to benefit from such instability.
  • 31 May 2022
    • Trade
    • Resource security
    • Australia
    • Japan
    • Energy

    Japan-Australia: building a hydrogen supply chain

    Akimoto Daisuke
    Efforts to develop a network for cleaner energy in the Indo-Pacific marks a practical step for closer relations.
  • 26 May 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • Technology

    “Black ships”, the Quad and space

    Philip Citowicki
    Satellite technology underpins the attempt to tackle China’s illegal fishing.
  • 26 May 2022
    • United States
    • Australia
    • India
    • Japan

    Albanese steps cautiously through the Quad wrangle

    Donna Weeks
    Japan’s media enthusiastically covered the “diplomatic debut” of Australia’s new PM, expecting continuity over change.
  • 17 May 2022
    • Asia
    • United States
    • Australia
    • India
    • Japan
    • Russia
    • Energy
    • Ukraine

    No Gas: Lessons from Poland and Bulgaria for the Quad

    Angus Houston , Marc Grossman
    The risk of disrupted energy supplies is not only in Europe but a danger in the Indo-Pacific, too.
  • 17 May 2022
    • Asia
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan

    AUKUS: More than meets the eye

    Jada Fraser
    A series of small, overlapping initiatives are combining to bolster the security architecture of the Indo-Pacific.
  • 8 Apr 2022
    • India
    • Japan

    How Japan can help nudge India away from Russia

    Ryosuke Hanada
    India’s biggest security headache remains a belligerent China, and Japan should look to help ease this challenge.
  • 21 Mar 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • India
    • Japan

    Does the Quad Plus add up?

    Susannah Patton
    The four-way security group should walk its talk about an inclusive region by stepping up dialogue with other countries.
  • 14 Mar 2022
    • Nuclear Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament
    • Japan
    • Ukraine

    Ukraine war triggers debate on Japan’s nuclear option

    Purnendra Jain
    In a new and volatile strategic environment, a decades-old commitment on non-proliferation is up for discussion.
  • 17 Feb 2022
    • United States
    • Japan

    Okinawa’s vocal anti-US military base movement

    Olivia Tasevski
    Environmental damage and gendered violence are flashpoints on the tiny island dominated by US troops.
  • 9 Feb 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan

    Delivering promises will show steel in Quad

    Indrani Bagchi
    Presidents Xi and Putin make a deliberate show of solidarity, but Quad partners should focus on boosting defence ties.
  • 21 Jan 2022
    • Asia Pacific Security
    • Japan

    Australia–Japan defence cooperation in the grey zone

    Peter Layton
    Clever use of deterrence techniques, air defence zones and artificial intelligence are critical for the military allies.
  • 19 Jan 2022
    • Japan

    Japan’s low-tech world

    John West
    A glacial move towards digitalisation has left much of the country’s workforce and public servces in the last century.
  • 11 Jan 2022
    • Defence & Security
    • Australia
    • Japan

    Japan and Australia ties blossom

    Tan Ming Hui
    A new defence pact marks a stronger partnership for countries driven together by shared values and regional dynamics.
  • 27 Oct 2021
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • European Union

    AUKUS? Quad? FOIP? A fragmented approach cannot counter China

    Yatharth Kachiar , Priya Vijaykumar Poojary
    Only a coherent policy for the Indo-Pacific will work. The West needs to offer a strong economic balance to Beijing.
  • 7 Oct 2021
    • Global Economy
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • Japan

    Economic diplomacy: Japan’s new PM joins the (supply) chain gang

    Greg Earl
    New research shows Australia may be an export diversification role model.
  • 30 Sep 2021
    • Japan

    Meet Japan’s new PM

    Purnendra Jain
    Asia’s oldest democracy looks for a steady hand on the tiller in a time of regional flux.
  • 14 Sep 2021
    • Japan

    Tokyo2020+1 wraps up as Japan’s next race begins

    Donna Weeks
    With candidates jostling to take over from Yoshihide Suga, a late sprint from behind can’t be ruled out.
  • 6 Sep 2021
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Nuclear Non-Proliferation, Arms Control and Disarmament
    • Japan

    Japan’s nuclear identity and the complicated endgame

    Tom Corben
    The legacy of a complex nuclear history weighs heavily on a country torn between deterrence and disarmament.
  • 18 Aug 2021
    • Japan

    The double challenge for Suga

    Purnendra Jain , Takeshi Kobayashi
    Japan’s Prime Minister cleared a massive Olympic hurdle. But will he trip up on the politics to follow?
  • 6 Aug 2021
    • Global Issues
    • Japan

    Life in a host city, at home, live-streaming the Olympics

    Donna Weeks
    Watching on from a tatami floor in Tokyo, the sport is great, the geopolitics just as good.
  • 20 Jul 2021
    • Global Issues
    • Japan

    Postcard from Tokyo 2020+1

    Donna Weeks
    Sport and politics make an unhappy union at one of the most controversial Olympics ever.
  • 14 Jul 2021
    • China
    • Japan

    Olympic glory: Tokyo’s success is a win for Beijing

    André Leslie
    China has just as much riding on a successful Tokyo 2020 Games as Japan.
  • 22 Apr 2021
    • Asia
    • United States
    • Trade
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • Japan
    • Technology

    Economic diplomacy: Supply chains, ASEAN wanes, and Japan’s coal dump

    Greg Earl
    Will government have to pick a winner for 6G networks to show the US and Japan as “global leaders in innovation”?
  • 22 Apr 2021
    • Asia
    • Japan
    • International law

    Toxic reaction to Japan’s Fukushima water dump

    Aristyo Rizka Darmawan
    Experts insist the release of treated radioactive water is not dangerous. Legal challenges might find otherwise.
  • 12 Apr 2021
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan

    The Quad (finally) delivers: Can it be sustained?

    Susan Thornton
    The future of the grouping might well be determined by China’s behaviour.
  • 8 Apr 2021
    • Japan
    • Human rights
    • Sex and Gender

    Legalising same-sex marriage in Japan

    Akimoto Daisuke
    A court ruling has thrown down the challenge to Japanese politicians to ensure equality before the law.
  • 16 Mar 2021
    • Defence & Security
    • United States
    • Australia
    • India
    • Japan
    • Southeast Asia
    • Coronavirus

    The Quad gives a boost to India’s vaccine diplomacy

    Teesta Prakash
    Countering China’s influence is one thing. But fostering regional cooperation plays to the strengths of the grouping.
  • 15 Mar 2021
    • Defence & Security
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Asean
    • Australia
    • China
    • India
    • Japan

    A new “concert” to govern the Indo-Pacific

    Pang Zhongying
    For Quad leaders emphasising an “inclusive” region, there may be a ready-made example for involving China.
  • 4 Feb 2021
    • Japan
    • South Korea

    History haunts Japan–South Korea ties

    Henry Storey
    Geopolitical expediency has previously pushed South Korea and Japan closer together, but a painful past keeps intruding.
  • 27 Jan 2021
    • Australia
    • Japan
    • Coronavirus

    Using the Australian Open as a Tokyo test run

    André Leslie
    Two international sporting events thousands of kilometres apart are linked by a common opponent.
  • 20 Jan 2021
    • Japan

    Japan under Suga: The delicate balancing act

    Alexi Heazle
    The PM must satisfy more hawkish views on China at home, as well as Washington’s expectations of greater burden-sharing.
Pagination
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • Current page 1
  • Page 2
  • Page 3
  • Page 4
  • Next page ››

Stay informed with the latest commentary and analysis on international events from experts at the Lowy Institute and around the world.

Register

The Interpreter features in-depth analysis & expert commentary on the latest international events, published daily by the Lowy Institute

© Copyright 2023 Lowy Institute

  • Debates
  • Contributors
  • Articles
  • About
  • Comments Policy
  • My Bookmarks
  • Terms of Use
  • Site map
  • My Admin
  • Log In