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#Japan and #India’s #Policy Tightrope on #Myanmar #Protests https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/japan-and-indias-polic/ The Myanmar crisis has spilled well beyond its borders, with Karen refugees seeking #protection in neighbouring #Thailand and the #Tatmadaw targeting civilians #protesting the February #coup d’état. Increasing cases of #violence have registered with the #international #community, as #casualties crossed more than 100 on a single day. In the wake of the violence, defence chiefs from the #United #States, #Australia, New #Zealand, #South #Korea, the #UK and others came together to issue a joint statement calling on the military junta to desist from further violence. #GPM #Geopolitics

#Indonesia’s Omnibus #Bill in #Geopolitical Perspective https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/indonesias-omnibus-bil/ Indonesia has imposed a new regulation, called the #Omnibus Bill or #Job #Creation Bill (Indonesia: Undang-Undang Cipta Kerja), to boost #investment, especially #foreign direct #investment, and enlarge the employment opportunities, though at the #expense of the interests of #workers and the #environment. The Omnibus Bill has been met with resistance from #trade #unions, #civil #society and #intellectuals since it was first proposed by #Joko #Widodo at his second term #inauguration. But the #government and #national #legislative body chose to remain silent, and have slowly advanced the bill’s formulation and #enforcement. #GPM #Geopolitics

#Middle East Gamechanger? Gauging the #China-#Iran Deal https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/middle-east-gamechange/ The leaders of China and Iran agreed on a $400 #billion #economic and security deal last week, establishing a 25-year roadmap for deepened cooperation. The #agreement amounts to a #diplomatic and #economic lifeline for Iran, which has languished for years under the weight of #US #sanctions. For #China, it announces the rising #power’s arrival in a highly strategic #region, and its growing willingness to engage directly in #regional politics. Does the #China-#Iran #deal mark the beginning of the end of #US #hegemony in the #Middle #East, or is this another case of a moonshot investment accord whose projects never actually see the light of day? #GPM #Geopolitics

#Impeachment, Apathy, and #COVID19 Loom over #Peru Polls https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/impeachment-apathy-and/ On April 11, #Peruvians will elect two vice #presidents and a new #parliament to five-year terms. They will also narrow the field of #presidential candidates down to two, who will then compete in a runoff #election scheduled for June 6. This second round is all but assured given the fractured field of candidates, nearly all of which stand a chance of making it past the first #ballot. But despite the competitive nature of the contest, #voters remain deeply skeptical that the election can produce a #government capable of enacting much-needed reforms to #Peru’s #constitutional order. #GPM #Geopolitics

#US-#Philippine #Alliance: #Duterte Demands #US ‘Pay’ to Salvage #Troop Deal https://www.geopoliticalmonitor.com/us-philippine-alliance/ On the 11th of February, exactly one year after #Philippine president #Rodrigo #Duterte announced his intention to terminate the #Visiting #Forces #Agreement (#VFA) with the #United #States, both sides began talks to salvage the troop deal. The VFAin place since 1998allows #American troops to be 3stationed in the Philippines and is key to implementing the mutual #defence #treaty signed by the two #Pacific #allies in 1951. #Duterte, a fierce critic of past American #colonial rule over the Philippine archipelago, aimed to reduce its influence; yet concerns over #Beijing’s actions in the #South #China #Sea have brought #Manila to the negotiating table. #GPM #Geopolitics