ASIAN STUDIES

Nicky Hager
(Author, and Investigate Journalist based in Wellington, New Zealand)

Copyright: http://www.nickyhager.info

The Security Intelligence Service is New Zealand’s internal intelligence agency, which was set up to spy on New Zealanders and foreign people and organisations within New Zealand who are regarded as a threat to the country’s security. ‘Security’ has a very specific meaning for the SIS: it is defined in the SIS legislation as covering espionage, sabotage, terrorism and ‘subversion’ (planning to overthrow the state by force) plus two poorly defined recent extensions covering threats to New Zealand’s ‘international and economic well being’. The SIS also vets people in or applying for senior government jobs, gives security advice to government departments and, in recent years, it has begun some overseas intelligence collection operations, about which very little is yet known.

By Dr. Andreas Liaropoulos *

Copyright: www.rieas.gr

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the relationship between Greece and the Republic of China (Taiwan).  The aim is not only to explore the nature of the bilateral relationship, but also to evaluate the importance of the European Union (EU). In order to do that, we will first refer to the context of the EU-Taiwanese relations. Having defined the general context of the EU-Taiwanese relations, we will then focus on how Athens and Taipei view each other. In the end, we will attempt to highlight areas and issues were both countries can benefit from a stronger and more productive partnership.........   Read more

Anis H. Bajrektarevic
(Geopolitics of Energy Editorial Member, and Chairperson for Intl. Law & Global Pol. Studies, Vienna, Austria)

Copyright: Anis H. Bajrektarevic on line

As the recent maritime contests in both the South and the East China Sea has shown, Beijing underestimated an emotional charge that the territorial disputes carry along, as well as the convenience given to the neighbors to escalate these frictions in order to divert public attention from their own pressing domestic socio-economic and political issues. A costly, spiral and dangerous game of the reinvigorated nationalistic rhetoric, it presently instigate a climate that could easily hijack the next Asian decade as a whole......  Read more

Copyright: Taipei Representative Office in Greece

The Republic of China has made impressive headway in improving cross-strait and foreign relations over the last four years. This progress stems from the government’s adherence to viable diplomacy, a farsighted approach that removes obstacles preventing the nation from cooperating more effectively with its diplomatic allies and partners in the international arena....  Read more 

Copyright: Taiwanese Delegation in Athens, Greece. 

In remarks made on the morning of August 5 at the Opening Ceremony of the Special Exhibition on the 60th Anniversary of the Coming into Force of the Treaty of Peace between the Republic of China and Japan, which was co-hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Academia Historica at the Taipei Guest House, President Ma Ying-jeou expressed his concern regarding rising tensions over the Diaoyutai Islands. He proposed the East China Sea Peace Initiative aimed at easing these tensions, and called on all parties concerned to show restraint, shelve controversies and settle the dispute in a peaceful manner. It is hoped, he said, that reaching a consensus on a code of conduct in the East China Sea, and on establishing a mechanism for cooperation on exploring and developing resources in the East China Sea, would help ensure peace in this region.

(Why Indonesia and Japan are pivotal in Asia)

Anis H. Bajrektarevic
( Geopolitics of Energy Editorial Member & Chairperson for Intl. Law & Global Pol. Studies, Austria)

Copyright: Anis H. Bajrektarevic on line

On the eastern, ascendant flank of Eurasian continent, the Chinese vertigo economy is overheated and too-well integrated in the petrodollar system. Beijing, presently, cannot contemplate or afford to allocate any resources in a search for an alternative. (The Sino economy is low-wage- and labor intensive- centered. Chinese revenues are heavily dependent on exports and Chinese reserves are predominantly a mix of the USD and US Treasury bonds.) To sustain itself as a single socio-political and formidably performing economic entity, the People’s Republic requires more energy and less external dependency. Domestically, the demographic-migratory pressures are huge, regional demands are high, and expectations are brewing. Considering its best external energy dependency equalizer (and inner cohesion solidifier), China seems to be turning to its military upgrade rather than towards the resolute alternative energy/Green Tech investments – as it has no time, plan and resources to do both at once. Inattentive of a broader picture, Beijing (probably falsely) believes that lasting containment, especially in the South China Sea, is unbearable, and that – at the same time – fossil-fuels are available (e.g., in Africa and the Gulf), and even cheaper with the help of warships.