Michael Richardson
Kim's posturing forces US to play regional bodyguard
Michael Richardson Asia-Pacific allies and security partners of the US are scrutinising every move made by Washington as North Korea threatens to strike South Korea and launch missile attacks against American bases in...
Michael Richardson
Troubling signs of the rise of Chinese ultra-nationalists
Michael Richardson The recent Japanese protest that Chinese warships recently locked their weapons-control radars on to a Japanese navy destroyer and a military helicopter in two separate incidents not far from the...
Western empire strikes back
Michael Richardson The US and its allies are in the midst of a major expansion of missile defences in East Asia and the western Pacific.
Michael Richardson
China steps up to the final frontier
Michael Richardson China has opened its domestic satellite navigation network to commercial use across the Asia-Pacific region in a move that underscores its emergence as an independent space power challenging the...
Michael Richardson
Predicted oil glut could put global producers over a barrel
Michael Richardson The entrenched notion that the world will soon start running short of oil was jolted earlier this year when an expert study concluded that contrary to what most people believe, oil supply capacity is...
Michael Richardson
China's leadership transition has the Asia-Pacific on edge
Michael Richardson Now the US elections are over, Asia's attention is focused on China where a once-in-a decade leadership transition is underway.
Michael Richardson
Antarctica could follow same path as Arctic sea ice melt
Michael Richardson When sea ice covering the Arctic Ocean fell to a record low-level last month, much of the analysis in Asia and the Pacific focused on the opening of new and shorter commercial shipping routes to...
Michael Richardson
Chinese navy grows new muscle to flex in region
Michael Richardson China's accelerated production of an advanced destroyer will tilt the regional balance of power at sea in its favour.
Michael Richardson
China's interest is guarding its subs
Michael Richardson The tug-of-war over the South China Sea is seen mainly as a struggle among rival claimants - China, Taiwan and several South-East Asian states - for control of valuable fisheries as well as sea bed...
Michael Richardson
Food or fuel - that is the question
Michael Richardson Fears of another global food crisis have reignited a fierce debate over whether crops should be used for food or transport fuel.
Michael Richardson
Nationalism and political tensions rising in north-east Asia
Michael Richardson Japan and South Korea, allies of the United States since World War II, are supposed to be part of an Asia-Pacific counter- balance to China's growing power and its expansive maritime and island...
Michael Richardson
Asian region has potential to drive global revival
Michael Richardson Amid concerns about sagging growth in both advanced and developing economies, Australia - which is heavily dependent on Asian demand - may take heart from the region's potential to drive a global...
Michael Richardson
Uranium on the laser's edge
Michael Richardson The United States is on the verge of approving a licence later this month for the world's first plant to enrich uranium on a commercial scale for civilian nuclear power reactors using laser...
Michael Richardson
Fears grow of a looming food crisis in east Asia
Michael Richardson When Indonesia announced last week that it would suspend an unpopular import tax on soybeans for the rest of the year to restrain a sharp rise in the price, it underscored nervousness rippling...
Michael Richardson
Gunboat diplomacy, China-style, only heightens tensions
Michael Richardson There is a saying in international diplomacy: watch what countries do, rather than what they say. China's recent actions in asserting its claims to ownership and other forms of jurisdiction over...
Michael Richardson
China's ageing workforce is a 'ticking time bomb'
Michael Richardson Just four years from now, China will pass a milestone. Its huge workforce will peak and start shrinking.
Michael Richardson
Tensions between Asia's two giants
Michael Richardson Japan's ambassador to China warned last month that the Tokyo municipal government's plans to buy islands in the East China Sea, which China claims but are administered by Japan, could trigger an...
Michael Richardson
World gas boom to reshape market
Michael Richardson When Japan was hit by a devastating earthquake and tsunami in March last year, forcing the shutdown of the entire nuclear power industry, it created a gaping hole in the energy supply system of the...
Michael Richardson
Enforcing its claims is proving tricky for China
Michael Richardson China could easily grab control of the disputed Scarborough Shoal fishing grounds in the South China Sea using its increasingly modern and powerful armed forces.
Michael Richardson
Arctic find could cause major shift in climate debate
Michael Richardson Two years ago, a Canadian research team alarmed climate scientists when it published the results of a survey of the oceans.
