Letter From the Editors

Welcome to the August issue of The Diplomat Magazine.

Political and economic analyses seem to assume that there is a “right” answer – that this president or that prime minister has the power to solve the issue of the day (even if examples of such success are rare). But in today’s interconnected world, all too often the problems facing a government – and even more, a particular person – were created by decision-makers far away or long since dead (or both). What then? How do you respond to a conundrum you didn’t create and, indeed, may have little control over?

This month’s lead articles are all about governments and individuals trying to make the best of a difficult situation, whether that’s third countries being caught in the middle of a geopolitical rivalry, a neophyte prime minister inheriting complex structural issues, or a group of athletes finding a way to thrive in the fighting ring when their country itself is a battlefield.

If the U.S.-China trade war, and looming geopolitical competition, can be embodied by one company, it’s the Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei. To the United States, Huawei is a thief of intellectual property at best, and a channel for Chinese espionage at worst; to its supporters in China and elsewhere, the firm is a low-cost provider of cutting-edge technology – and any criticisms are due to U.S. jealousy. With Washington pressuring its allies to ban Huawei and China exerting equal pressure to prevent that outcome, there seems to be little room for middle ground. Yet, as five regional experts reveal in this month’s cover article, Singapore, South Korea, India, Japan, and Australia have all staked out strikingly different, and at times deliberately ambiguous, positions on the Huawei question. Each country is trying to figure out how to serve its own interests as the debate unfolds – and, with it, the implied U.S.-China battle for technological dominance.

Speaking of geopolitical rivalries: In December 2016, 22 states recognized Taiwan. By August 2019, only 17 still do. As Alexandre Dayant, a research fellow at the Lowy Institute, points out, over a third of Taiwan’s remaining allies are small Pacific Island states. These states – Kiribati, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, the Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu – have taken advantage of the tug of war for recognition between Taipei and Beijing. The ideological battle between China and Taiwan, propelled by the growth of their separate interests in the region, is playing out in the Pacific; for the states of the region it’s both a boon and a threat.

Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan swept into office last summer promising a “New Pakistan.” But Colin Cookman, a program officer with the United States Institute of Peace, notes that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party’s tenure so far has been defined by more of the same. Continued legal action against Khan’s rivals, the tightening of press freedoms, and growing economic challenges undercut efforts to realize promised social welfare reforms. In his piece, Cookman charts the rise of the PTI to power, discusses its first year at the top, and ponders its prospects in year two.

There’s no shortage of fighting in Afghanistan, but a budding local mixed martial arts league has managed to harness the heat and violence of battle for the sake of entertainment. Over the course of four years, the Snow Leopard Fighting Championship has moved from putting on fights at the outskirts of Kabul to drawing in foreign fighters (the good kind) and snagging even ESPN coverage. Journalist Michelle Tolson charts the course of Afghanistan’s mixed martial arts (and sports in general) at a time of seemingly perpetual conflict, economic stagnation, and talk of peace.

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