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ASEAN-Australia relations will grow

Location:

ASEAN/AUSTRALIA

Besides a leaders’ plenary and retreat, there were events linked to four thematic tracks: business; climate and clean energy; maritime cooperation; and emerging leaders…

Afghan Taliban will look past UN in seeking engagement

Location:

AFGHANISTAN

The Taliban were invited but refused to attend. There was no decision on appointing a UN special envoy for Afghanistan as mandated recently, although UN Secretary-General Antonio…

France’s Macron seeks to refocus domestic agenda

Location:

FRANCE

Macron lacks a parliamentary majority and the political atmosphere is acrimonious following the passage of controversial pension reforms. Rebooting the government might create the…

Wagner leader poses a threat to Putin’s Russia

Location:

RUSSIA

On the back of his mercenaries’ success in Ukraine, he has used social media to berate the defence ministry, the general staff and Putin himself, albeit indirectly, as a doddery…

Japan will raise defence spending and cut deficits

Location:

JAPAN

The budget is likely to be enacted by the end of the current fiscal year in March 2024. Rapidly increasing military spending reflects drastic changes in Tokyo’s defence policy. On…

Qatar’s diversification plans will lag regional rivals

Location:

QATAR

PMI data indicate that the non-oil private sector continues to expand in 2023 as the government attempts to diversify its economic base away from gas dependency. Regulatory reform…

Religious freedom will slowly expand in Vietnam

Location:

VIETNAM

Catholics are a sizeable minority religious group in the country, numbering roughly 7 million out of a population of nearly 100 million. Vietnam and the Vatican have not had…

China’s economy needs a consumption boost

Location:

CHINA

The pace and structure of consumer spending influences China’s ability to lift global growth as it imports more. Longer term, consumption matters to living standards in China and…

New Kyrgyzstan language law will raise Russia tensions

Location:

CENTRAL ASIA

A new language law entered into force on July 18 that reflects the president's determination to promote Kyrgyz. Russia’s foreign ministry has protested. The controversy highlights…

UK parties have little room for migrant policy change

Location:

UK

Although most of this reflects refugee flows and rising student numbers, migration for work has also been high. This has increased the size of the labour force, boosting GDP and…