New Trends in Japan's“Indo-Pacific”Strategy

Introduced by the late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and inherited and developed by Fumio Kishida,Japan's“Indo–Pacific”strategy has gradually taken shape.This strategy can be deemed a broad vision,covering a wide range of topics and an extensive network of partners,with a strong trend of pan-securitization.It is a comprehensive inter national st rateg y based on Japan's alliance policy and China containment strategy,following a global,security-oriented approach.Driven by considerations such as maintaining its economic status,realizing its long-cherished dream of becoming a political powerhouse,and containing China,Japan has stepped up its“Indo–Pacific”strategy,which may influence global development,undermine regional maritime security,and impede China's reunification process.Meanwhile,Japan's“Indo–Pacific”strategy faces the triple challenge of a strategic overdraft,the unstable economic foundations,and the weak external support.These constraints may not suffice to reverse the direction of Japan's“Indo–Pacific”strategy in the short term but will limit its effectiveness.

The Indo-Pacific Strategy of the United States from Russia’s Strategic Perspective

The Trump administration of the United States has accelerated the advancement of the‘‘open and free Indo-Pacific’,strategy since 2017.From a geopolitical point of view and in terms of its national interests,Russia has generally been critical of this strategy,believing it has posed certain challenges to its“Pivot to the East”strategy.Meanwhile,Russia is rejoicing for not being the primary target of US containment in the region and has sensed a new opportunity for exercising its Asia-Pacific diplomacy in the context of the Indo-Pacific strategy.Based on this situation,Russia has made a flexible and pragmatic policy response to it.However,Russia will inevitably face many restraints.In the future,Russia will seek to maximize its strategic interests on the basis of adhering to its inherent principles of Asia-Pacific diplomacy.

Vulnerability and Conservation of Nearshore Cetaceans to Increasing Vessel Traffic:The Indo-Pacific Humpback Dolphin in the South China Sea

A comprehensive risk assessment to evaluate the vulnerability of the nearshore cetaceans to increasing marine traffic is lacking.In this study,the risk to Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins(Sousa chinensis)in the main habitats in China was assessed based on a semiquantitative spatial vulnerability analysis.85%of the(sub)population which overlapped with the lanes of ferries and/or cargo vessels,with exposure scores of 1.23±0.31(calculated based on the proportion of sea routes that overlap the dolphin’s range).A combination of high exposure to the sea routes and sensitivity to marine traffic would render the(sub)populations to be highly vulnerable(EPRE:5.21 and XM:4.47).A low frequency of vessels and an awareness of the ecology assures a low vulnerability(SH:2.43,EZ:2.73).Uncertainty scores were commonly lower for the higher vulnerable populations,and higher for the lower vulnerable populations,suggesting additional field data and more monitoring are necessary.Six years of field data have been used to analyze the influences of various types of marine traffic on humpback dolphin behavior.Fishing and non-fishing vessels were significantly different(χ^(2)=65.19,p<0.01).The humpback dolphins were attracted by fishing vessels(83.1%)but avoided non-fishing vessels(95.2%).We recommend a management with seasonal and geographical constraints,to balance economic development and environmental conservation.

Japan-UK Security Cooperation in the Context of the Convergence of the Indo-Pacific Strategy and Global Britain

Japan-UK security cooperation has been deepening as the Indo-Pacific Strategy has converged with Global Britain,which has become strongly Indo-Pacific-oriented.In terms of their cooperation on security,the two countries have close security interactions,high-level security consultations,numerous mechanisms on security cooperation,frequent defense cooperation and exchanges between forces,and cooperation geared at a response to the Korean nuclear issue.In particular,Japan and the UK regard Indo-Pacific security as the strategic focus of their cooperation,and this underscores the rules-based international order.There are multiple motivations for Japan and the UK to strengthen their security cooperation,and the deepening of their security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region is to a great extent due to strategic factors,including responding to the US strategic adjustment,Japan and Britain’s respective proactive strategic demands,the improving strategic positions of the Indopacific region,their seeking to shape the regional order in the Indo-Pacific,and so on.Despite facing challenges,Japan-UK security cooperation is continuously strengthening against a background of deepening strategic convergence between the two countries and great power competition.

India and the Indo-Pacific Strategy Vision： Orientation, Involvement and Limits

In 2017, the Trump administration formally articulated its vision for the Indo-Pacific strategy, replacing "Asia-Pacific" with"Indo-Pacific"in policy papers and taking measures to promote the realization of an "Indo-Pacific dream". This represents a significant adjustment in US regional policies. An important power in the Indian Ocean region, India is perceived as key to the successful implementation of this Indo-Pacific strategy. Generally speaking, the current Indian government and strategy circle actively support the upgrading of the"Indo-Pacific"concept from a geographical and academic term to a US vision for foreign strategies, anticipating that India could garner significant strategic benefits from it. Given this, New Delhi will continually adapt its foreign policies to the US Indo-Pacific strategy and may even direct the development of the strategy to counter the Belt and Road Initiative, work with other nations to balance China's influence and finally make the rise of India as a great power a reality. Nonetheless, the Indo-pacific strategy is in its early stages, and the content is not completely pro-India currently. On top of this India is still skeptical of the US and will proceed cautiously, leaving room for maneuver in the future,fully tapping into the benefits of the Indo-Pacific strategy and avoiding direct confrontation with China.

The Trend of Indo-Pacific Strategy and its Impact on the U.S.-Japan Alliance——Creating and evolving of dual ambiguity, dual assurance and dual check strategies

In recent years, since the Obama Administration, the policy discussions on the Indo-Pacific region have gradually moved from conceptualization to strategy. The Indo-Pacific strategy is established during the Trump Administration, in which, Japan played a leading role. The Indo-Pacific strategy is advanced jointly by the United States and Japan. In this process, the three characteristics of dual ambiguity, dual assurance and dual check are taking shape, which has a compound influence on the Japan-U.S. alliance and showed the interaction between tension and synergy. Compared with the Asia-Pacific strategy, building a huge Indo-Pacific strategy requires more costs, and Indo-Pacific countries are paying close attention to its development trend.

FOIP 2.0: The Evolution of Japan’s Free and Open Indo-Pacific Strategy

Introduction Since Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched a new foreign policy doctrine at the opening session of the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development(TICADⅥ)on August 27,2016,Japan’s"Free and Open Indo-Pacific"strategy,or FOIP,has stimulated a broader debate on the future Indo-Pacific regional order.

Russia-India Relations:New Changes and Prospects

Among the major countries in the world,Russia and India are two that have always maintained relatively stable relations.However,recent years have witnessed profound transitions in the regional and global strategic environments,hence increasing divergence between their foreign policy strategies.Furthermore,the traditional drivers of cooperation between the two countries are weakening,such that their disagreements are accumulating in plain sight.Their perceptions and policies surrounding the Indo-Pacific,in particular,have created significant strategic discord.In the foreseeable future,the foundational basis for strategic cooperation between Russia and India will not be fundamentally shaken,but reversing the trend of their drifting foreign policies will prove to be difficult.The gap between the two sides will continue to exist and is likely to further enlarge.The trajectory of Russia-India relations will entail changes in the international and regional landscapes.Overall,a stable Russia-India relationship is in China’s best interest.

巴基斯坦大国外交调整透视

Pakistan,China’s all-weather strategic cooperative partner,has recently undergone a significant adjustment in its major country diplomacy,particularly in its policies toward the United States and Russia.The triangular relationship among Pakistan,the United States,and Russia has changed from a previous severely unbalanced state,in which the Pakistan–United States relationship is stronger and the Pakistan–Russia relationship is weaker,to a relatively dynamic equilibrium state in which the Pakistan–United States relationship declines while the Pakistan–Russia relationship rises.At the same time,although Pakistan’s policy toward India and China has continued the central tone of Pakistan–India confrontation and Pakistan–China friendship,several new changes and trends have emerged.While Pakistan–India relations are generally tense,Pakistan has performed active management of crises to keep conflicts from getting out of control and leading to war or other combat.Pakistan has long actively maintained friendly relations with China and is focusing on promoting practical cooperation in the form of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor.The current round of adjustment to Pakistan’s major country diplomacy stems from multiple internal and external factors.Externally,the United States has begun to promote its“Indo-Pacific”strategy,and the Ukraine crisis has played a catalytic role as well.Internally,these changes can mainly be ascribed to the major changes in Pakistan’s leadership,as well as the country’s severe domestic political and economic challenges,as well as the urgent need for external support,especially from major countries,to improve the domestic situation.Pakistan’s major country diplomacy adjustment has had relatively obvious geopolitical and security impacts so far at the global and regional levels,but it is limited by the international situation,its own strategic orientation,and national conditions.Pakistan’s relations with major countries continue to face structural challenges.

South China Sea-A Conflict-Prone Place?

A military escalation between China and the United States in the South China Sea(SCS)is staged which resembles the Cold War crisis in Europe in the 1950’s and 1960’s.The PRC has reclaimed and fortified its holdings in the SCS since 2013;in 2017,the US has declared an“Indo-Pacific Strategy”to contain China.Due to differences of interest of the relevant countries,it will be difficult to create an effective united front against China in the near future.It remains to be seen whether armed conflict between China and the US be avoided.