Beyond the Indus

Japan’s longest-serving post-war prime minister left a long list of achievements with geopolitical significance.

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss the geopolitical legacy of former Japanese Prime Minister Abe Shinzo.

Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to The Diplomat’s  podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or .

If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .

A conversation with David Richards about life under the junta.

Why are the leaders of Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, and Japan heading to a NATO summit?

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss the 2022 NATO summit in Madrid. The episode also covers the G7’s 2022 leaders’ summit and the BRICS summit.

Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to The Diplomat’s  podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or .

If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .

The Shangri-La Dialogue returned to convene for the first time since 2019 this year. What was on the agenda?

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss takeaways from the 2022 Shangri-La Dialogue.

Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to The Diplomat’s  podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or .

If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .

Don't call the IPEF a free trade agreement.

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss the Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and economic statecraft in Asia.

Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to The Diplomat’s  podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or .

If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .

A conversation with director Karl Malakunas.

Palawan island in the Philippines has emerged as a battlefield for a tiny network of environmental crusaders and vigilantes who are trying to protect its spectacular natural resources, powder-white beaches, and lush forests, which have made it one of Asia’s hot new tourist destinations.

They are also the subject of a new feature-length documentary "Delikado" from director Karl Malakunas who pressed ahead with its production after one of the vigilantes was shot dead in 2011.

"Delikado" follows Bobby, Tata, and Nieves as they risk their lives in trying to stop politicians and businessmen from destroying what is perhaps the Philippines’ last ecological frontier.

The documentary also exposes how outgoing President Rodrigo Duterte's notorious "war on drugs" has been used as a political tool to control the levers of economic and political power while claiming thousands of lives.

It is also the subject of an investigation by the International Criminal Court, which has said the drug war might constitute a crime against humanity.

Meanwhile, the clearing of rainforests to make way for large-scale tourism continues, an issue that has afflicted countries across Southeast Asia and further afield.

Malakunas spoke with The Diplomat’s Luke Hunt about the making of "Delikado" and its global release, with initial screenings in the United States and Australia to follow.

A conversation with author Charlotte McDonald-Gibson.

Security laws imposed around the world to curb the spread of COVID-19 enabled the authorities to crackdown on militancy, which resulted in a brief respite from they type of terrorist attacks that had become all too familiar during the first two decades of this century.

But as author Charlotte McDonald-Gibson notes, the pandemic could lend itself to increased isolation and the same factors that have enabled groups like the Islamic State (IS), al-Qaida, and the now defunct Jemaah Islamiyah in Southeast Asia to find support from remote corners of the globe.

In her latest book, ", the veteran foreign correspondent chronicles the lives of eight people who succumbed to the influence of hardliners, and endured the wrath of an unforgiving society when seeking redemption.

As the 20th anniversary of approaches, McDonald-Gibson says governments in Southeast Asia, Europe, and the United States cannot afford the luxury of believing that extremism and terrorism are no longer the threat that once plagued many countries.

She says digital platforms like 4chan and 8chan played an important role in cultivating extremists and points to a in Buffalo, New York, last week as an example.

Her book includes a British Muslim who traveled to Syria and joined IS, far-right extremists who backed Donald Trump for the U.S. presidency, and a Norwegian Neo-Nazi who ventured into South Africa to fight against the government of Nelson Mandela.

Women also feature prominently in the book, and there are two Australians, one from the far right and the other from the extreme left, who overcame their differences and finally emerged as friends.

McDonald-Gibson spent a decade working in Bangkok and Phnom Penh, and is currently based in The Hague, where she says growing disconnects were among the root causes of people taking to terrorism at a young age and had to be dealt with in the home.

“People don’t deradicalize overnight,” she said.

A conversation with veteran academic Carl Thayer.

What is Beijing up to in the Southern Pacific?

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss the drivers and consequences of China’s new security pact with Solomon Islands. The episode also covers the role of China is Australia’s upcoming federal elections.Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to The Diplomat’s Asia Geopolitics podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or . If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .

Russia's invasion of Ukraine has limited relevance for understanding the risks of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

Podcast hosts Ankit Panda () and Katie Putz () discuss the continuing implications of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. This episode covers the lessons for understanding risks to Taiwan from China, the economic impact on Central Asian countries, and the political and diplomatic responses across the region more broadly.

Click the play button to the right to listen. If you’re an iOS or Mac user, you can also subscribe to  Asia Geopolitics podcast ; if you use Windows or Android, you can subscribe , or .

If you like the podcast and have suggestions for content, please leave a review and rating on iTunes and TuneIn. You can contact the host, Ankit Panda, .