APARC News
Analysis and insights from our experts
Shorenstein APARC scholars share findings from their academic and policy-relevant research and provide thought leadership on pressing issues impacting Asian nations and U.S.-Asia relations.
APARC Newsletters
Sign up to receive updates from our experts and programs delivered to your inbox.
Follow Us
News
Filter:
Between Hope and Caution: One American’s View of Indonesia’s Election
Commentary / April 15, 2019
On April 17, Indonesia, the world’s fourth largest country and the third largest democracy after India and America, goes to the polls. APARC’s Don Emmerson reflects on what the fifth national election means for the twenty year old democracy.
China Is Pushing Back Against Taiwan for These Three Reasons
Commentary / April 8, 2019
On March 31, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that two Chinese Air Force (PLAAF) J-11 jets crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait. This violated the long-held tacit agreement between China and Taiwan that neither side should cross the median line.
Audio: APARC Scholars on China’s Belt and Road Initiative
Commentary / April 4, 2019
APARC's Direcror of the Southeast Asia Program Donald K. Emmerson, Center Fellow Thomas Fingar, and Oksenberg-Rohlen Fellow David M.
In Seattle Talk, Former Ambassador to Afghanistan Explains Strategy to Combat Extremism in ‘Fragile States’
Commentary / April 2, 2019
Karl Eikenberry is a retired Army officer whose two tours of Afghanistan duty — and later service as ambassador to that nation — left him keenly aware of the limits of U.S. military power.
As a soldier, Eikenberry launched the still-ongoing effort to build an Afghan military force capable of fending off the Taliban. As a diplomat, he was stationed at the Kabul embassy during President Barack Obama’s surge that would eventually push American troop strength in Afghanistan to more than 100,000 service members in an attempt to improve security.
Karl Eikenberry Discusses the Second Report of the Task Force on U.S.-China Policy and Its Recommendations for Managing the Increasingly Competitive U.S.-China Relationship
Commentary / March 20, 2019
Three years into the Trump administration, “the United States and the People’s Republic of China find their bilateral relationship at a dangerous crossroads,” write Orville Schell of the Asia Society and Susan Shirk of the University of California San Diego (UCSD), co-chairs of the Task Force on U.S.-China Policy, at the opening of a recently published report,
There’s a Silver Lining in the Clouds Over the North Korea Negotiations
Commentary / March 1, 2019
HANOI—On Thursday afternoon, as it became clear that lunch between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and U.S. President Donald Trump was off and that there would be no signing of an agreement between their two countries, storm clouds briefly gathered over Hoan Kiem Lake in Hanoi.
In the nearby Metropole hotel, the mood had darkened as well.
Video: KQED Newsroom Talks to Yong Suk Lee about the Trump-Kim Hanoi Summit
Commentary / March 1, 2019
Following the anticlimactic conclusion of the Trump-Kim summit in Hanoi, KQED Newsroom spoke with our Korea Program Deputy Director Yong Suk Lee about the surprising outcome of the summit and what's next for U.S.-DPRK diplomacy. Watch:
Why Walking Away from Kim's Deal May Have Been the Right Move
Commentary / February 28, 2019
President Trump caught the world by surprise once again yesterday with a decision not to sign a deal with his North Korean counterpart, Chairman Kim Jong-un, in Hanoi, Vietnam. While walking away is a common tactic in working-level negotiation, what happened in Hanoi was a rare case and the least expected outcome.
Read the full article on Axios.
The Chemistry Between Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un
Commentary / February 27, 2019
At first glance U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un seem like an unlikely pair. A few years back they were calling each other “Rocket Man” and a “dotard,” and tension between the United States and North Korea was escalating rapidly in 2017. But in a few days they are slated to meet for the second time, and according to Trump they had “fallen in love” not long after their first encounter. What could have created such intimate bond between the two?
Success of Second Trump-Kim Summit Will Lie in the Details
Commentary / February 26, 2019
This post was originally published on Axios.
Transcript: Andrew Kim on North Korea Denuclearization and U.S.-DPRK Diplomacy
Commentary / February 25, 2019
Prices for Denuclearization of North Korea
Andrew Kim
Remarks delivered at Stanford’s Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center | February 22, 2019
We have a long history of negotiating with Pyongyang on denuclearization. These negotiations have been in different formats from bilateral talks to trilateral talks to four-party talks to six party talks. We learned many lessons through these engagements.
Stanford scholars discuss the diplomacy of denuclearization
Commentary / February 25, 2019
Siegfried S. Hecker, FSI Senior Fellow Emeritus, with Elliot A. Serbin, at the Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC)
The Second Trump-Kim Summit Must Settle the Big Questions
Commentary / February 19, 2019
“There is no detailed definition or shared agreement of what denuclearization entails....” These words were not from critics of ambivalence in the Trump administration’s nuclear negotiations with North Korea. Rather surprisingly, they were the words of the U.S. Special Representative for North Korea, Stephen Biegun, during his speech at Stanford University last month.
Podcast: Donald K. Emmerson on How Southeast Asian Nations Balance China-U.S. Relations
Commentary / February 8, 2019
As tension grows between China and the United States, its effects are felt across Asia. APARC's Southeast Asia Program Director Donald K.
Opinion: Next Korea, Next Generation
Commentary / January 23, 2019
Researchers in the Korea Program regularly contribute to Korean media on the Korean affairs ranging from education and economics to politics and North Korea nuclear issues. The articles are in Korean language.
Nationalist Populism in South Korea (Gi-Wook Shin, August 18, 2019)
Gi-Wook Shin on Korea
Commentary / January 23, 2019
Gi-Wook Shin, director of the Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center and of the Korea Program, regularly writes on Korean affairs for Korean audience. His recent articles in Munhwa Ilbo, a South Korean daily newspaper, are listed below. Note: these articles are written in Korean.
Three ambiguities should be resolve in Hanoi (Gi-Wook Shin, February 13, 2019)
Whence Korean Denuclearization
Commentary / January 16, 2019
North Korea’s state-owned news agency ran a wire story with tremendous significance just before Christmas, making clear that unilateral denuclearization is not going to happen. As part of a detailed explanation of Pyongyang’s position, it said: “When we refer to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, it, therefore, means removing all elements of nuclear threats from the areas of both the north and the south of Korea and also from surrounding areas from where the Korean peninsula is targeted.
Only a drastic measure towards denuclearization can resolve the current stalemate with North Korea
Commentary / January 10, 2019
In a recent interview with Korea Times, Gi-Wook Shin, director of APARC, said "only a drastic measure [by North Korea] can resolve the current stalemate." Shin also urged Moon administration to rework its North Korea policy.
Read the full interview in Korean language here.
APARC Scholars Respond to "Chinese Influence and American Interests" Report
Commentary / January 7, 2019
On November 29, 2018, a working group, co-chaired by Larry Diamond, senior fellow at the Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies and at the Hoover Institution, and Orville Schell, Arthur Ross director of the Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations, released the report “
Video: Thomas Fingar on the 40th Anniversary of China-U.S. Diplomatic Normalization
Commentary / December 18, 2018
China’s increased capacity is not incompatible with U.S.
The Highest Stage of Colonialism?
Commentary / November 28, 2018
On October 22, Thum Ping Tjin delivered a talk at Stanford on Singapore’s political development and evolution under the ruling People’s Action Party. Audio from the talk, along with a transcript, is now available on his website.
APARC Scholar on Taiwan's Local Elections
Commentary / November 28, 2018
The ruling Democratic Progressive Party suffered a large setback in Taiwan’s local elections on November 24, 2018, with voters delivering a sharp rebuke to President Tsai Ing-wen.
We curate here commentary and analysis on the election results from Kharis Templeman, Project Manager for the Taiwan Democracy and Security Project.
Culture of Extreme Studying Leaves Young South Koreans Ill Prepared for Real Life
Commentary / November 16, 2018
Research Scholar Discusses Japanese Company’s IPO Plans
Commentary / November 14, 2018
Kenji Kushida spoke with Marketplace following Japanese holding company SoftBank's IPO announcement (Runtime - 2 minutes).
The Sanctions Effect in North Korea: Observations from Rason
Commentary / October 24, 2018
“Prices for some products [in North Korea] have fluctuated slightly, but shortages are not reported, and consumption still continues, " writes Andray Abrahamian for 38 North following a visit to North Korea for the 8th International Rason Trade Fair.