The annual meeting of the ADB, Asia’s leading development bank, is where you can feel the pulse of Asia. It was quite upbeat this year. Paying due but sober attention to China’s infrastructure focused Belt and Road initiative, the ADB nudges Asia to embrace new technologies to further drive growth in Asia. Panelists discussed whether
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Discussions around the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) tend to focus on its tangible aspects; primarily related to physical infrastructure including roads, rail and power plants. However, in addition to the two tangible “Silk Roads” – the Silk Road Economic Belt (land route) and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (sea route), a third “Silk Road”
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Time and again, China’s compliance with international law is a contentious issue between the People’s Republic of China and the European Union. Contrary to the widespread belief in the West, China does not treat law as unimportant but references it frequently. However, both sides have a very different approach to law. Where do these differences
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At the 19th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party last October, China’s President Xi Jinping outlined the country’s future foreign policy. In Europe, most observers interpreted Xi’s speech as a turn to a more nationalist foreign policy that strives for fundamental changes in the international order along the lines of Chinese interests. This perception
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Given the global attention received by the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), and its impact on international affairs, it is remarkable how ambiguous the initiative remains. This is hardly astonishing, as Chinese foreign policies tend to strategically focus on general trajectories and leave more elasticity in comparison to Western ones. A reason for the government’s
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Having recently raised its economic status from low-income to lower-middle income, and on its way to becoming an upper-middle income country by 2030, increasingly open to foreign investments and businesses and with a dynamic and tech-savvy young population, Cambodia is a country that cannot leave its Muslim minority behind on its fast-paced development path. Despite
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The ADB commemorates its establishment 50 years ago and reflects on the lessons learned from the Asian crisis 20 years ago. The ADB cooperates with but distinguishes itself from the AIIB and focuses on quality projects and poverty reduction. Will Europe look on as China leads the rest of Asia in setting new standards for
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As the threat of another North Korean nuclear test looms large and the EU tightens its sanctions on the Kim Jong Un regime, the prospect of using an engagement policy with Pyongyang to seek a change in its behaviour seems unpalatable if not hopeless. However, effective engagement could possibly be the most promising approach to
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As the Asian Development Bank (ADB) approaches its 50th anniversary, its relevance is challenged by the enormity and the diversity of the region it serves and, many would add, by the advent of the parallel Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) dominated by China. At the 49th Annual Meeting held in Frankfurt Chancellor Angela Merkel commended
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Indian foreign policy under the Modi administration is becoming more ambitious and innovative in its scope, as India moves from the periphery to the center of international relations. India is tactically exploiting its natural advantages through its renewed focus on soft power and its subsequent strategic deployment to further India’s foreign policy objectives in an
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