<p>The Asia-Pacific is home to more people than any other region. Centered on the western rim of the Pacific Ocean, this region includes the easternmost countries of continental Asia as well as the archipelagos that punctuate the coast. Several of these countries, most notably China, experienced rapid economic growth in the second half of the 20th century, giving the region a new sense of global economic relevance that continues today. That relevance, however, depends largely on China, a power in transition whose rise is testing the network of U.S. alliances that have long dominated the region. How effectively Beijing manages its transition will shape the regional balance of power in the decades to come.</p>

Centered on the western rim of the Pacific Ocean, the Asia-Pacific region includes the easternmost countries of continental Asia as well as the archipelagos that punctuate the coast. 

Asia-Pacific

Australia

Samoa

Brunei Darussalam

Cambodia

China

Timor-Leste

Federated States of Micronesia

Fiji

Indonesia

Japan

Kiribati

Laos

Malaysia

Marshall Islands

Mongolia

Myanmar

Nauru

New Zealand

North Korea

Palau

Papua New Guinea

Philippines

Singapore

Solomon Islands

South Korea

Taiwan

Thailand

Tonga

Tuvalu

Vanuatu

Vietnam

Beyond Quantitative Easing

The New Silk Road

Modernizing China’s Military

The U.S. and the Balance of Power

Globalization

Social Issues

Coping With a Nuclear North Korea

Moscow Looks to the East

China in Transition

A Japanese Awakening

Asia-Pacific: Among Great Powers

Southeast Asia: Burdened by Consensus

Assessments

Mozambique

Mexico

United Kingdom

Security personnel walk on a road with buses blocking an entrance gate to protect impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol from a possible second arrest in Seoul on Jan. 6. If Yoon is not arrested, the opposition could again seek to impeach the country's acting president due to his insufficient support for the arrest efforts, worsening foreign perceptions of political instability in South Korea.

Economics

Politics

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Mozambique's President Takes Office, the U.K. Chancellor Visits China

Angola

Cote d'Ivoire

Ghana

Kenya

Nigeria

Argentina

Brazil

Canada

Ecuador

United States

Algeria

Iran

Iraq

Israel

Jordan

Kuwait

Qatar

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Syria

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Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Yemen

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Belarus

Russia

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World map on a dark digital background representing global communication and global finances.

Cyber

Energy

Military & Security

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2025 highlights high-impact, low-probability risks and trends from the annual forecast presented in more extreme terms.

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2025

Media

Podcasts

How do demographic trends impact military power?

Applied Geopolitics: Demographic Decline and Military Manpower: Understanding the Shifting Role of Troops in Conflict

Environment, Science & Technology

What is Salt Typhoon, and what happened in the recent hack against U.S. telecommunications companies? 

Essential Geopolitics: Unpacking China's Salt Typhoon Operation

U.S.-China Relations

Sub-Saharan Africa

Americas

Middle East and North Africa

Europe

Eurasia

South Asia

Israel-Hamas Conflict

Trade disruptions, shifting military conflicts and domestic political turbulence will shape global affairs in 2025. 

2025 Annual Geopolitical Forecast: An Excerpt

Venezuela

Lebanon

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro waits for the arrival of other heads of state of members of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our America regional trading bloc during the XXIV ALBA-TCP Summit in Caracas, Venezuela, on Dec. 14, 2024. 

The Weekly Rundown: Inaugurations in Ghana and Venezuela, Yoon's Potential Arrest in South Korea

Columns

On Geopolitics

Cargo containers painted with Chinese and U.S. flags.

In this scorecard, we take a critical look at our hits and misses in forecasting geopolitical events over the past year.

Grading Our 2024 Annual Forecast

U.S.-Iran Relations

Palestinian Territories

As 2025 approaches, we look back at the previous year and consider the top five events as measured by geopolitical impact.

2024: A Geopolitical Review

Global Elections

The flags of Australia, the Solomon Islands, Nauru and Papua New Guinea clockwise starting from the upper left. Canberra will have to fulfill its commitments to keep Beijing's influence at bay as island countries play the two off each other.

Canberra will have to fulfill its commitments to keep Beijing's influence at bay as island countries play the two off each other. 

Australian Efforts to Counter China in the Pacific Will Require Follow-Through

India

The Geopolitics of Water

Water utilities are uniquely vulnerable to cyberattacks due to frequent financial and security limitations, exposing water-stressed countries to threats from hacktivists and foreign adversaries.

 The Geopolitics of Water: Cyberattacks' Impact on Water Stress in the U.S. and Beyond

Japan and Indonesia agreed to strengthen security cooperation, including joint development of maritime defense capabilities, The Asahi Shimbun reported on Jan. 13. 

Japan, Indonesia: Maritime Defense, Food Security Deals Signed

U.K. Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng signed a series of bilateral agreements at the 2025 U.K.-China Economic and Financial Dialogue in Beijing on Jan. 11, as revealed in a press release by the U.K. government the same day. 

U.K., China: Chancellor Reeves Unveils Economic Agreements with China During Beijing Visit

The U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security on Jan. 13 announced a new interim final rule that will create a new export control regime for artificial intelligence technology, and it will go into effect in 120 days.

U.S.: New Broad AI Technology Export Rule Aims To Limit China’s Access 

Tribal violence and a viral video depicting grim alleged acts of mutilation and cannibalism in Papua New Guinea have drawn global attention as the country prepares to celebrate its 50th independence anniversary with international leaders in 2025, BenarNews reported on Jan. 10.

Papua New Guinea: Tribal Violence Underscores Unstable Security and Investment Environment

Japan's Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba discussed the need to "examine the [electoral] system beyond party lines" and revisit the lower house electoral system at a Jan. 6 press conference, Jiji Press reported on Jan. 10.

Japan: Diet Reform Could Stoke Long-Term Political Instability

South Korea's acting President Choi Sang-mok said the government was open to restarting talks with striking doctors, including negotiating the medical school recruitment quota for 2026 "from a zero basis," Yonhap News Agency reported on Jan. 10.

South Korea: Government To Start From Scratch in Doctors' Strike Talks

Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar announced that Nigeria would expand defense cooperation with China regarding domestic weapons production and military training, The Punch reported on Jan. 10.

Nigeria: Government To Strengthen Defense Cooperation With China, Seek Expanded Yuan Currency Swap

Earth's average surface temperature in 2024 was 1.60 degrees Celsius above preindustrial temperatures, the European Union's Copernicus Climate Service confirmed on Jan. 10. 

Global: Average Surface Temperatures Breached 1.5-Degree Threshold in 2024

Asia-Pacific

SITUATION REPORTS

Japan, Indonesia: Maritime Defense, Food Security Deals Signed

U.K., China: Chancellor Reeves Unveils Economic Agreements with China During Beijing Visit

U.S.: New Broad AI Technology Export Rule Aims To Limit China’s Access

Papua New Guinea: Tribal Violence Underscores Unstable Security and Investment Environment

Japan: Diet Reform Could Stoke Long-Term Political Instability

South Korea: Government To Start From Scratch in Doctors' Strike Talks

Nigeria: Government To Strengthen Defense Cooperation With China, Seek Expanded Yuan Currency Swap

Global: Average Surface Temperatures Breached 1.5-Degree Threshold in 2024

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