pacific forum History of Pacific Forum

PacNet #18 – Abduction Diplomacy and the Six-Party Talks

It has been a busy month in Tokyo. High-level representatives from several nations trying to negotiate a nuclear weapon-free Korean Peninsula gathered on the sidelines of an academic meeting to see if the Six-Party Talks can be restarted after a long hiatus. While all eyes were focused on whether U.S. Assistant Secretary of State Chris […]

PacNet #17 – Hu’s Visit: Hot Economics, Luke-Warm Politics

I had dinner Thursday night with Hu Jintao! He was hoping for George Bush. Instead he got me (and about 900 other guests, mostly from Washington and New York think tanks and business councils involved in trade with China) in a suit-and-tie (as opposed to black tie) dinner at a downtown D.C. hotel ballroom (rather […]

PacNet #15A – President Hu’s Visit to the U.S.: the Taiwan Stake

Chinese President Hu Jintao’s visit to the United States this week and his meeting with President George W. Bush at the White House will be closely watched in. Southeast Asia will be particularly concerned with the geostrategic tussle between Washington and Beijing; they note with renewed concern troubled cross-Strait relations, which could make or break […]

PacNet #16 – Comparative Connections Summary

The April 2006 Issue of Comparative Connections is now available online: Regional Overview: Let Freedom (and Democracy) Ring! U.S.-Japan Relations: Unfinished Business U.S.-China Relations: Discord on the Eve of the Bush-Hu Summit U.S.-Southeast Asia Relations: U.S. Ratchets Up Regionalism and Boosts Ties with Muslim States U.S.-Russia Relations: The Lines Are Drawn U.S.-Korea Relations: Forward on […]

PacNet #16 – Comparative Connections Summary

The April 2006 Issue of Comparative Connections is now available online: Regional Overview: Let Freedom (and Democracy) Ring! U.S.-Japan Relations: Unfinished Business U.S.-China Relations: Discord on the Eve of the Bush-Hu Summit U.S.-Southeast Asia Relations: U.S. Ratchets Up Regionalism and Boosts Ties with Muslim States U.S.-Russia Relations: The Lines Are Drawn U.S.-Korea Relations: Forward on […]

PacNet #15 – Hu’s Not Coming to Dinner, but …

In his first official visit to Washington D.C. on April 20, Chinese President Hu Jintao is not coming to a White House dinner. Nor is the Bush-Hu summit expected to yield any breakthrough in many areas of the closely intertwined but somewhat strained bilateral relationship. Thirty-five years after the “ping pong diplomacy” that lead to […]

Issues & Insights Vol. 06 – No. 06

Long-standing security alliances with Japan and the Republic of Korea have been a cornerstone of U.S. engagement in Northeast Asia and with the broader Asia-Pacific region. “Boots on the ground” ensured that Washington stayed deeply involved in Asian affairs and remained attuned to regional developments. Those alliances have come under increasing scrutiny as the regional […]

PacNet #13 – 2006 National Security Strategy: It’s All About Democracy

The 2006 National Security Strategy (NSS) document has just been released. News coverage has focused on one word: preemption.  Largely overlooked has been the much greater emphasis on the promotion of democracy as the primary objective of American foreign policy in the second George W. Bush administration. How far and fast China proceeds down the […]