East Asia

What the latest US sanctions bill means for Russia—and for China, India, and Iran

By Maia Nikoladze

If it passes, the bill would affect several major countries that currently trade with Russia, and those effects should be factored into US planning.

The best AI you can own is Chinese. The West needs to close that gap quickly.

By Ivan Ferrari

The controls the West built around the data center do not reach the laptop, and the answer is to compete on open models.

Why banning open-source AI is a bad idea

By JP Schnapper-Casteras

The best response to capable Chinese open models is not to make US developers less capable. It is to build better, safer, more competitive US models—open and closed.

How Japan is managing the energy shock

By Ben Cahill

Japan has so far managed the Hormuz oil market disruption comparatively well, but it will have to reassess its long-term energy strategy.

Washington is pushing Brazil toward China

The current trajectory raises the odds that over time more Brazilian firms will prefer partnering with Chinese suppliers and financiers.

Germany is finally waking up to the China challenge. And Beijing is gearing up to respond

By Jessie Yin

As Berlin confronts the effects of the China Shock 2.0, the EU will need to proceed strategically. After all, Beijing has expanded its economic statecraft toolkit to counter the EU's anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties.

Strategic Litigation Project Quarterly Newsletter: Responding to emerging crises

By Gissou Nia

The latest updates on the Strategic Litigation Project's work advancing human rights and accountability.

A weak yen spells trouble for Japan—at home and abroad

By Hung Tran

Japan’s weak yen is not a market anomaly. Structural capital outflows, shifting investment patterns, and dollar strength are keeping pressure on the currency—and creating potential new tensions with Washington.

Balancing openness and control: Cross-border health data and AI governance in China

By Kenton Thibaut

In China, health data is no longer just a medical resource—it is a strategic asset at the center of AI competition.

The case for a US Northeast Asia Command

By Christopher Lee, Ben Blane, and Markus Garlauskas

To maximize its deterrent and warfighting effectiveness in the Indo-Pacific region, the United States must reform its military command-and-control structure in Northeast Asia.