Michael W. Michalak

Asia's Power Plays: The Economics of Geopolitics

Prerna Suri, Karen Brooks, Curtis S. Chin, Evan Medeiros, Michael W. Michalak, Yasuhide Nakayama

Panelists Karen Brooks, Curtis Chin, Evan Medeiros, and Yasuhide Nakayama analyzed the shifting Asia-Pacific security landscape, highlighting China's growing economic coercion and military expansion alongside North Korea's escalating missile threats. While the U.S. withdrawal from the Trans-Pacific Partnership created policy discontinuity under the Trump administration, Japan under Prime Minister Abe successfully led the TPP-11 initiative to maintain high-standard trade rules. Concurrently, Southeast Asian nations like Indonesia and the Philippines are pursuing infrastructure-led growth and diversifying partnerships to mitigate over-reliance on Beijing and navigate rising non-tariff barriers.