Indo-Pacific Security Initiative

A retired US general reflects on his earlier and controversial prediction that the United States and China were headed for conflict.

Our Indo-Pacific experts share how US allies and partners in the region are reacting to the United States’ latest National Defense Strategy, which calls for them to take on a more active role in their own security.

South Korea is beginning to acknowledge that cross-Strait stability is increasingly a foundational element of overall regional security.

The growing ties reflect a shared understanding that deterrence in the twenty-first century is global.

US President Donald Trump’s high-profile intervention in the Thai-Cambodian border dispute delivered a cease-fire, but its violation exposes the fragility of tariff diplomacy and raises questions about the durability of coercive US diplomacy in the region.

Atlantic Council experts delve into the newly released document outlining the Trump administration’s principles and priorities for US foreign policy.

Could submarine drones help the United States deter or counter a Chinese attack on Taiwan? The Aquatic Tiger wargame was designed to find out. The Atlantic Council’s Indo-Pacific Security Initiative reports on the wargame’s findings, with implications for the US government, the defense industry, and more. 

Growing collaboration and cooperation between the United States, South Korea, and Australia could be key to maintaining security and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific. The Atlantic Council and the Korea Foundation gathered rising experts from the United States, South Korea, and Australia to identify obstacles to that cooperation and opportunities to overcome them.

China uses different tactics for different aims: slow but persistent maritime incursions off the coast of the Philippines and high-speed aerial harassment in Taiwanese airspace. But Manila’s responses offer useful lessons for Taipei. A new study of the Philippines’ experience shows what Taiwan can do to create limits on Chinese action without triggering open conflict.

Situated between China and Russia, and with an abundance of vital natural resources, Central Asia is an area of strategic interest for Tokyo and Washington. Beijing and Moscow currently enjoy overwhelming political, economic, and cultural influence, which limits other countries’ ability to constructively shape the region. Some friction has emerged between the two authoritarian powers as post-Soviet dominance over Central Asia erodes and Chinese economic influence takes its place.

A decade from now, the United States will face even tougher challenges in the Indo-Pacific than it does today. With this in mind, the Atlantic Council’s Guardian Tiger tabletop exercise series is preparing mid-level government and military leaders to address such threats.

Economic security has emerged as a national security priority in Tokyo and Washington as both confront challenges posed by China’s civil-military fusion and economic coercion. The alignment of Tokyo and Washington on strategic views of China and the convergence of their economic security priorities has created a new era of alliance cooperation on these issues.