Asia

The federal government should work with Asia to rebuild the global economy and embrace international opportunities presented by the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Australian National University’s Asian Bureau of Economic Research. The bureau’s new Asian Strategy for Recovery and Reconstruction after COVID-19 urges the Australian government, along with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations […]

Thae and Ji aren’t the first North Korean defectors to be elected to parliament. But suspicion of defectors remains an ongoing legacy of the national security threat North Korea is seen to pose to the south.

Vietnam – a developing country that has a large land border with China and a population of 97 million people – has not reported a single death from coronavirus. As of April 21, the country had reported 268 cases of COVID-19, the disease associated with the new coronavirus, with more than 140 people making a […]

The Western Australian government hopes to “diversify” the economy with its first Asian Engagement Strategy.  The plan centres on tourism, energy, primary industry, mining and technology in regional WA, and encourages local businesses to take export opportunities.

The Canberra “beltway” needs more intelligence on what Australians are thinking, says the new DFAT head. As the forces of protectionism rally, she pondered the declining public trust in governments and foreign policy.

Incoming public service chief Martin Parkinson opens up about his approach to reform, the need for political leadership, more risk taking and innovation from public servants, and a bipartisan policy on Asia.

Trade with Asia may be booming but Australian business invests more in New Zealand than all of south-east Asia, revealing a woeful level of real commercial engagement with the booming Asian region.