Carnegie Endowment for International Peace - Asia Program

Obama and Xi Should Talk Tech, Not Trade

Yukon Huang — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

As Xi Jinping, China’s designated next leader, visits the United States, he faces protests over unfair competition and currency manipulation. More worrying than a trade war, however, is the potential for increased tension over technology transfers between China and the United States.

More than Moscow: Protests in Russia, 1991 and 2011-2012

Matthew Rojansky, Harley Balzer — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

In August 1991 and again in the aftermath of the December 2011 Duma elections, protest movements appeared not just in Moscow and St. Petersburg but across Russia.

Mr. Xi Comes to Town

Douglas H. Paal — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit to the United States will be an opportunity to represent America’s issues frankly and privately. However, it is important to leave partisan politics out of the visit.

What the Russian Protests Can -- And Can't -- Do: Why Putin's Grasp on Power Remains Firm

Maria Lipman, Nikolay Petrov — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

The latest anti-government protest in Moscow on February 4 is further evidence that Putin's legitimacy is slowly eroding.

Russia and Syria

Matthew Rojansky — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

The Russian government's support for the Assad regime and refusal to endorse UN sanctions against Syria has earned Moscow condemnation from Arab citizens and diplomats alike.

Russia’s Syrian Stance Reasoned but Politically Costly

Dmitri Trenin — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Russia's position on Syria is often described as a result of Damascus being Moscow's political ally, a major arms client, and a fellow authoritarian regime, but the reality is more complex.

Russia's Line in the Sand on Syria

Dmitri Trenin — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Moscow’s position on Syria is primarily shaped by the recent experience of Libya, strong doubts concerning the Syrian opposition, and suspicions about U.S. motives.

Obama-Saakashvili Debriefing with Tom de Waal

Thomas de Waal — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:00:00 +0000

President Obama has praised Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili for his track record of reform and reaffirmed U.S. support for Georgia’s future membership in NATO, but he also hinted that Saakashvili should step down once his term ends.

Mitt Romney’s China Policy

Michael Swaine, Oliver Palmer — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

China’s impact on the U.S. economy and its rising global power gives China a significant role in the Republican primaries for the 2012 U.S. presidential elections.

Will Georgia’s Leader ‘Pull a Putin’ or Trust His People?

Thomas de Waal — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

If Georgian President Saakashvili can leave the scene gracefully when his term ends and allow a more pluralistic politics to emerge in Georgia after him, he will set a good example to the rest of the former Soviet Union, Russia included.

Kazakhstan’s Political (r)evolution

Martha Brill Olcott — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Recent violence in Zhanaozen in December has forced Kazakhstan's authorities to rethink political, economic, and social policies. Only time will tell if the changes will have their desired effect, but it is the country's population that will make the ultimate judgment.

Ukraine's Underachieving Economy Since 1991

Pekka Sutela, James Collins — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

While there were high hopes for Ukraine’s speedy transition to a wealthy free market democracy and full membership in the European and Euro-Atlantic communities when it declared independence in 1991, it has fallen short of these targets.

The Russian Pre-Election State of Affairs

Ihor Samokysh, Lilia Shevtsova — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin seem to have staked their futures on Putin’s victory in the first round of the presidential elections and are working to remove any possible opponents who might be able to appeal to Putin’s electoral base.

Southeast Asia in 2012: Four Clouds and a Silver Lining

Vikram Nehru — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Four worrying trends cast a cloud over Southeast Asia in the new year, but there may be a silver lining in Myanmar's re-entry into the international community.

Russia's Demographic Crisis

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 10:00:00 +0000

Russia has witnessed an unsettling trend of long-term population decline since the mid-1990s, with alarming mortality rate statistics, falling fertility rates, and waves of emigration draining the nation of its best and brightest.