Bridging The Oceans

In this episode, Veerle and Andrew Small, Senior Transatlantic Fellow with the German Marshall Fund's Asia Program, discuss the presence of Chinese tech in Europe and explore whether there is an alignment of views and policy approaches on mitigating the risks arising from some Chinese corporations. What role is there for NATO in this effort, and how can Europe cooperate with the US in third countries? With transatlantic differences on norms and policy priorities still prevalent, transatlantic convergence still has some ways to go.

In this episode, Veerle is joined by Dr Bates Gill, Professor of Asia-Pacific Security Studies at Macquarie University and Senior Associate Fellow at RUSI, to discuss China's interests, ambitions and strategy in the Indo-Pacific region. Despite Beijing's dismissal of the term 'Indo-Pacific' as a US construct, China approaches the Indian and Pacific Oceans as a connected space that is critical to its national security and global presence. The question is: what role does it seek to play?

In this episode, Veerle is joined by Marco Aliberti, Senior Research Fellow at the European Space Policy Institute (ESPI) in Vienna, Austria, to discuss the priorities and interests of Europe and the US in outer space and to examine their stances and perspectives on Chinese ambitions in space. While transatlantic cooperation on outer space seems like a natural fit, the partnership is complicated by the debate over competition and cooperation with China.

This week, Anna Powles, Senior Lecturer at the Centre for Defence and Security Studies at Massey University in New Zealand, discusses how history, identity and geography help shape the complex geostrategic landscape in the South Pacific. As a vast maritime region, the South Pacific has multiple sub-regional groupings, various multilateral fora and a wide range of security challenges. Thus, Indo-Pacific strategies toward the South Pacific are anything but straightforward.

In this episode, Veerle is joined by Martijn Rasser, a Senior Fellow in the Technology and National Security Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), to discuss the ongoing transatlantic debate around technology and the digital domain. From secure supply chains of critical components like semiconductors to a push to promote liberal standards, the US and Europe are looking for ways to cooperate to ensure that the international digital domain remains free, open and secure. Will the Biden administration's approach differ from that of Trump? How aligned are the US and Europe on tech cooperation, as well as norms and standards promotion? And where should the transatlantic community focus next?

Japan is a long-standing dialogue partner of ASEAN and has deep ties with its member states. Tokyo has emphasised ASEAN centrality as a key principle within its Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy, and an effective engagement with the grouping is seen as an important component of how Japan seeks to achieve its objectives in the region.

This episode highlights the different forms of interaction undertaken by Japan in Southeast Asia – particularly with the Philippines – and discusses the utility of non-military engagement for fostering greater cooperation. Dr Kiba also outlines the threat perceptions and security needs of the Philippines as well as the role of extra-regional actors in the Indo-Pacific.

Veerle is joined by Raffaello Pantucci, Senior Research Fellow at RUSI and at the RSIS in Singapore, to explore the current state of Europe-China relations. Tensions are running high following the imposition of sanctions by the EU as well as by the UK, the US and Canada over human rights violations in Xinjiang. And these are made worse by Beijing's retaliatory measures targeting China-focussed academics, analysts, and research institutions. But the EU and the United States are not perfectly aligned on how to view Chinese behaviour, or on how to mitigate existing concerns.

Indonesia is a regional economic heavyweight and its role in the Indo-Pacific region, the economic engine of the world, is only expected to grow. However, the country's foreign and security policy have not received adequate attention. Ambassador Desra Percaya highlights Indonesia's position on some of the region's ongoing security questions.

This episode seeks to highlight Jakarta's perspective on the role of China in the region, as well as the situations in Myanmar and Xinjiang, and explores the question of whether Indonesia considers ASEAN as being effective in addressing some of these challenges. Ambassador Desra also lays out how Indonesia views the growing interest of extra-regional powers like the United Kingdom in the Indo-Pacific, and identifies some of the areas in which Indonesia would welcome cooperation and collaboration.

This week, Veerle is joined by Professor David Capie, Director of the Centre for Strategic Studies and Professor of International Relations at Victoria University in Wellington.

Given the strong policy focus on the Indo-Pacific by Australia, it may be surprising that New Zealand's strategic thinking is still in flux. This week, David explains what the push and pull factors have been for New Zealand in looking afresh at what the Indo-Pacific means to the country and how it can balance interests in the wider region with its immediate policy priorities in the Pacific and Southeast Asia. While New Zealand's traditional focus in the Asia-Pacific has been on trade and economic relations, it is increasingly starting to think more critically about potential geopolitical and security challenges. For a country limited in resources and geographically a long way from fellow Indo-Pacific countries, creative partnerships will be the way forward to take advantage of the opportunities in the region and address the challenges that lie ahead.

This week, Veerle is joined by Jonathan Berkshire Miller, Director and Senior Fellow of the Indo-Pacific Programme at the MacDonald Laurier Institute in Ottawa.

The Canadian government is re-examining the country's role in the Indo-Pacific. Multilateralism, strong support for the international rules-based order and a greater focus on trade through multilateral frameworks such as the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership seem certain to figure in this examination. However, what will shape Canada's broader security role in the region? And how will Ottawa's currently strained relationship with Beijing evolve?