| This week, Desmond Doulatram highlights the crucial role of Marshallese women in conflict resolution, environmental sustainability, and advocating for nuclear justice. We revisit a Special Report by Becky Alexis-Martin and colleagues, on the benefits and challenges related to victim assistance and environmental remediation in the Pacific Islands, on the occasion of the 4th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). And we share details about our upcoming webinar focusing on how Cross-Strait relations might evolve under the Trump administration.
As always, we share recent activities from our network, including analysis on China’s nuclear force buildup, South Korea’s domestic politics, and the implications of the Trump administration for China, India, and ASEAN countries. |
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Kora Lejmanjuri: Women are the Peacemakers
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Desmond Doulatram explores the pivotal role of women as peacemakers, or “Lejmanjuri,” within the cultural, historical, and political context of the Marshall Islands, emphasising their integral connection to the idea of nuclear justice. By examining the matrilineal traditions and the enduring influence of female leaders in conflict resolution, environmental sustainability, and nuclear activism, he counters Western narratives that often overshadow indigenous voices with White privilege and saviorism.
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Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons: Victim Assistance and Environmental Remediation in the Pacific
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This week, on the occasion of the 4th anniversary of the entry into force of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) on 22 January, we revisit the special report co-authored by Becky Alexis-Martin, Qurat Ul Ain, Kolby Kaller, Ben Donaldson, and Matthew Maslen on the legacy of nuclear weapons in the Pacific Islands, and the role that the TPNW can play in realising nuclear justice.
The authors focus on Articles 6 and 7 of the Treaty, which requires States Parties to pursue environmental remediation and provide victim assistance to individuals and communities harmed by the use and testing of nuclear weapons. They offer recommendations on how the TPNW can operationalise these commitments, including through the creation of an Environmental Remediation and Victim Assistance Trust Fund.
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Trump and the Cross-Strait Status Quo – views from Taiwan, ASEAN and the US
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Join us on 20 February at 10AM KST for a webinar on how to maintain the status quo across the Taiwan Strait, under the second Trump administration. Kristy Hsu will discuss her APLN report with experts including Anne Hsiao, Ja Ian Chong, and APLN Senior Research Adviser Frank O’Donnell. The discussion will be moderated by APLN Policy Fellow Joel Petersson Ivre.
This webinar will be hosted by the Asia-Pacific Leadership Network (APLN) in cooperation with Taiwan-ASEAN Studies Center at Chung-Hua Institution of Economic Research.
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APLN has over 160 members from 22 countries in the Asia-Pacific.
Each week we feature their latest contributions
to global and regional security debates.
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| Chung-in Moon, APLN Vice Chair, wrote for The Korea Times and emphasised that South Korea must prepare for potential challenges posed by a second Trump presidency, including heightened defence cost-sharing demands, strained alliance relations, and trade protectionism. |
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| Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan, Resident Senior Fellow at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI), explored China’s unexpected nuclear force buildup and urged regional allies, such as Australia and Japan, to make China’s nuclear threat a key agenda item with the US, starting with this week’s Quad meeting. |
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| Peter Hayes, Director of the Nautilus Institute and Honorary Professor at the University of Sydney, co-wrote a paper with Leon Sigal and argued that historical insight is essential to understanding the current political turmoil in the ROK and its implications for the incoming Trump Administration’s policies towards the DPRK. |
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| C. Raja Mohan, Visiting Research Professor at the Institute of South Asian Studies, National University of Singapore, wrote for The Indian Express and highlighted that India, whose relationship with the US has steadily risen along an upward arc over the last two decades, must now prepare to deal with a transactional Trump, who is determined to put America First. |
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| Elina Noor, Senior Fellow in the Asia Programme at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, was quoted by The Edge Malaysia, citing growing concerns in the Global South about escalating tensions between China and the US and emphasising the need for ASEAN to diversify its collaborations. |
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| Shen Dingli, Professor at the Institute of International Studies at Fudan University, was interviewed by Voice of America, where he commented that Beijing believes China and the US can still reach a consensus and avoid many misunderstandings that arose during the first Trump presidency if both sides prioritise efforts to stabilise bilateral relations. |
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