IINA: Australia’s Strategic Importance to Japan’s Energy Policy

The accident at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station following the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, marked a major turning point in Japan’s energy policy. Since then, nuclear power generation has stalled. Coal and natural gas-fired power plants have played a central role in maintaining a stable electricity supply. Against this backdrop, Australia has provided a stable supply of fuels necessary for Japan’s thermal power generation. At the same time, challenges related to coal development and natural gas exports are emerging in Australia.

By Masahide Takahashi, Senior Research Fellow, Middle East Institute of Japan

SPF China Observer: Developments Surrounding Launch of Taiwan’s Indigenous Sub Hai Kun — Background Behind Commissioning Delay and Its Implications for Taiwan’ Security —

In recent years, the Taiwan Strait has seen increasingly aggressive military activities by China, which regards Taiwan as a target to be “reunified” as part of its own territory.

IINA: 【Cooperation between European and Indo-Pacific Powers in the U.S. alliance system project: Policy Paper Vol. 14】 Closing the Arctic Gaps: NATO Allies and Partners Can Protect Their Homelands by Updating Their Defense Force Postures

Despite the war in Ukraine, Russia has not scaled down its commitment to develop its Arctic region from the Barents Sea to the Bering Strait. As analyzed in earlier publications, the Northern Sea Route connects Russia to China, encouraging the two countries to cooperate on developing the energy and shipping potential of Russia’s Arctic coastline. The route also allows them to expand military-strategic collaboration to benefit their economies while posing a hard power threat to the United States and its allies.

By Liselotte Odgaard, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute