Letter From the Editors

Dear Readers,

Welcome to the March 2018 issue of The Diplomat magazine. This month, we’re taking on some of Asia’s thornier problems in detail. Some issues are recent (the current break in Australia-China relations, for example, traces back to a news report last year on Chinese influence operations in Australia); others are centuries in the making (as is the case for the historical bitterness plaguing Japan-South Korea relations). Problems at the elite level impact the grassroots  – see, for example, the very personal political wrangling that has hamstrung Timor-Leste’s government – and vice versa, like the way HIV and poverty combine in Indian society to create a impediment to government development goals.

In our cover story, Merriden Varrall, director of the East Asia Program at the Lowy Institute, looks at the current turmoil in Australia-China relations, sparked by a growing debate over Chinese political influence in Australia. After outlining the angry rhetoric from both sides, Varrall asks the $100 billion question: will talk transform into action that has a marked impact on the underpinnings of the relationship?

Next, Khoo Ying Hooi, senior lecturer at the Department of International and Strategic Studies, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, University of Malaya, outlines the political turmoil that has shaken one of Australia’s near neighbors: the tiny young democracy of Timor-Leste. With the opposition and minority government at an impasse, Timor-Leste will hold a redo of last year’s parliamentary elections, posing a stiff test for the 16-year-old country.

Then Brad Glosserman, a visiting professor at the Tama University Center for Rule-making Strategies and a senior advisor for Pacific Forum in Honolulu, explains that while it seems logical on paper for Japan and South Korea to cooperate, the very roots of each state’s national identity puts them at odds. Pragmatism may prevail, given both states’ concerns about China and North Korea, but only to a certain point.

Finally, freelance journalist Ritu Mahendru examines the nexus between poverty, sex work, and HIV in India. Noting that limited economic opportunities both increase the risk of exposure to HIV and prevent the most marginalized from accessing treatment, Mahendru makes the case that social protection programs – especially no-strings-attached cash transfers – could help India tackle its HIV epidemic.

We hope you enjoy these stories, and the many more within the following pages.