Global Asia

Dear Reader

WHEN LEADERS of the 21 member economies of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum meet in Gyeongju, South Korea Oct. 31-Nov. 1, they will do so at a time of growing worries about the world economy and the status of APEC’s traditional commitment to free trade, regional co-operation and a liberal economic order. Strategic competition between the US and China, coupled with President Donald Trump’s unprecedented attempt to rewrite the rules of world trade, have unnerved governments and businesses in APEC countries in a way that little has in the forum’s 33 years. There is a stirring fear that the collective spirit of co-operation aimed at building shared prosperity is giving way to a fractured world where countries that once saw their future in globalization must now choose sides. As one writer in this issue of Global Asia mused, “Is APEC doomed?” 

A lot is at stake. Despite current challenges, the Asia-Pacific’s economies remain the most dynamic in the world. Yet they also include hundreds of millions of people who remain in poverty and whose hopes rest with continued growth and economic reform. While APEC has never been a rule-making body, its moral authority and tradition of leadership by example has been a potent force in Asia’s economic success in recent decades. That is precisely why it must now rise to the occasion and deepen its role as a forum for the region’s economies to thrash out differences and find new ways to move forward together. 

As the essays in this issue’s cover package show, there is reason for optimism, despite the current climate of uncertainty. Possible areas for continued co-operation and collective action include the digital economy, AI, innovation, green and sustainable development, and demographic challenges. Equally important, the latest APEC summit in South Korea will provide a chance for leaders to meet. As Global Asia was going to press, it appeared that Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping might hold their first in-person meeting since Trump returned to the presidency.

Elsewhere, our In Focus section examines the latest upheaval in Thailand’s long history of political turmoil. Yet another member of the vaunted Shinawatra clan — which has dominated Thai politics for more than 20 years — has been ousted, this time on the heels of a violent border clash with Cambodia. The saga illustrates not only the complex and seemingly intractable obstacles to democracy in Southeast Asia’ second-largest economy, but also the ongoing tensions between Thailand and Cambodia.

In our Features section, we explore the increasingly aggressive maritime challenge that China is posing to Japan and why Tokyo must now get tough with Beijing or risk its own security; how China is joining the growing number of countries seeking to exploit the economic and strategic opportunities of the Arctic; how the rivalry between China and the US is reshaping global geopolitics; and how Trump’s overtures to Pakistan are sending a strong signal to Moscow and Beijing, as well as India.

As always, our Book Review section examines some of the most engaging recent books on Asia.

Sincerely yours,

Chung-in Moon

Editor-in-Chief

David Plott

Managing Editor