<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

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Philippines

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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

The Australian flag flies at half mast over Parliament House on Jan. 22, 2026, in Melbourne, Australia, to honor the victims of the Bondi shootings.

Military & Security

Politics

Passed in response to the Bondi Beach attack, the legislation will likely fuel legal and federal-state friction, deepen opposition fragmentation and entrench security policy as a persistent fault line in Australian politics.

The Political Impact of Australia's Gun Reform and Anti-Hate Bills

Snapshots

Zhang Youxia, senior vice chairman of China's Central Military Commission (CMC), attends the opening of the fourth plenary session of the National People's Congress on March 11, 2023, in Beijing, China. 

The removal of Xi's closest military ally signals an acceleration of his push to eliminate internal threats and heightens uncertainty about the president's decision-making on Taiwan, potentially raising the risk of future conflict.

China's High-Level Military Purge Raises Risk of a Miscalculation on Taiwan

Israel

Palestinian Territories

United Kingdom

India

Egyptian trucks and heavy machinery on Oct. 26, 2025, on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

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

The Weekly Rundown: A Gaza Border Reopening, EU Leaders Visit India

A man walks past a billboard for the 14th Congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam outside the National Convention Center in Hanoi on Jan. 15, 2026. 

Economics

The five-yearly event will likely codify a more centralized, security-anchored governing model, while setting ambitious goals for economic growth and administrative reforms, though internal and external pressures will hinder implementation.

Previewing Vietnam's 14th National Party Congress

Columns

On Geopolitics

United States

Europe

Global Trade

U.S. protectionism has dramatically weakened the rules-based, multilateral trade regime established after World War II, driving governments to increasingly view trade through a national security lens rather than purely an economic one.

The Geopolitics of Trade: Conclusion

Greenland

Denmark

France

Switzerland

Ukraine

Russia

A sniper police officer on the Congress hotel during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum on Jan. 24, 2025, in the Alpine resort of Davos, Switzerland.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The Weekly Rundown: Davos, Europe Steps Up Greenland Deployments

Venezuela

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi (right) and Venezuelan Foreign Minister Yvan Gil (left) attend a meeting in Beijing on May 12, 2025.

U.S. pressure on the new Venezuelan government will briefly cool China's engagement in Latin America and could renew trade tensions with Washington, though Maduro's removal is unlikely to affect China's calculus regarding Taiwan.

Assessing China's Response to the U.S. Capture of Venezuela's Maduro

U.S.-China Relations

Nigeria

Colombia

Cuba

Mexico

Iran

Norway

Pakistan

Cyber

Environment, Science & Technology

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2026 highlights high-impact, low-probability risks and trends from the annual forecast presented in more extreme terms.

RANE's Top 10 Risks for 2026

U.S.-Iran Relations

Benin

Uganda

Canada

The Greenlandic flag on Jan. 8, 2026, on the roof of Tivoli Castle in Copenhagen, Denmark. Ukraine security talks and a Gaza peace plan will be in the spotlight at Davos.

The Weekly Rundown: Elections in Uganda and Benin, Canada's Carney Goes to China

Media

Forecast Webcast

Energy

Join our analysts for this webcast recording exploring key topics identified in RANE's 2026 Annual Geopolitical Forecast.

2026 Annual Geopolitical Forecast Webcast

Deputy Chairman Hsiao Hsu-tsen of Taiwan's opposition Kuomintang (KMT) met with Director Song Tao of China's Taiwan Affairs Office in Beijing on Feb. 3 to revive party-to-party talks that ended in 2016, the Taipei Times reported.

Taiwan: KMT Revives Dialogue With Chinese Communist Party

The European Commission opened an in-depth investigation under the EU Foreign Subsidies Regulation into Chinese wind turbine manufacturer Goldwind, according to a Feb. 3 commission press release.

EU, China: Brussels Opens Subsidy Probe Into Chinese Wind Turbine Maker Goldwind  

Hong Kong SAR, China

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said on Feb. 2 in a media interview that Hong Kong would, for the first time, issue its own five-year plan and lead an interdepartmental task force to align the territory's economic policies with those in China's 15th Five-Year Plan for 2026-2030.

Hong Kong: Territory to Issue First Five-Year Plan in Line With China

Two new impeachment complaints were filed against Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte, reviving a case previously shelved on procedural grounds, while separate impeachment complaints against President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. have advanced into House committee review, Rappler reported Feb. 2.

Philippines: Parallel Impeachment Proceedings Go Forward

Taiwan's legislature sent a $13 billion supplemental defense budget proposed by the opposition Taiwan People's Party to committee for review, with the new bill a slimmed-down version of the $40 billion budget proposed by President William Lai that the committee has refused to review 10 times, the Taipei Times reported on Jan. 30.

Taiwan, U.S.: Opposition Efforts Unlikely To Sate Washington's Demands on Defense, Trade

Panama

Panama's Supreme Court annulled the contracts held by a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison to operate two ports on both sides of the country's canal, El Pais reported on Jan. 30.

Panama, U.S., China: Panama's Supreme Court Nullifies CK Hutchinson Ports Contracts

The Australian government said a U.S. decision to step back from broad government-backed minimum price guarantees for critical minerals will not derail its national critical minerals strategy, reaffirming plans for a strategic reserve and alternative demand support mechanisms, Reuters reported on Jan. 30.

Australia, U.S.: U.S. Price Floor Pullback Tests Critical Minerals Cooperation

The European Union and Vietnam formally upgraded relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership, Vietnam's highest diplomatic tier, according to a 60-point joint statement published by Vietnamese state media on Jan. 29.

EU, Vietnam: Brussels, Hanoi Upgrade Ties to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

Asia-Pacific

SITUATION REPORTS

Taiwan: KMT Revives Dialogue With Chinese Communist Party

EU, China: Brussels Opens Subsidy Probe Into Chinese Wind Turbine Maker Goldwind

Hong Kong: Territory to Issue First Five-Year Plan in Line With China

Philippines: Parallel Impeachment Proceedings Go Forward

Taiwan, U.S.: Opposition Efforts Unlikely To Sate Washington's Demands on Defense, Trade

Panama, U.S., China: Panama's Supreme Court Nullifies CK Hutchinson Ports Contracts

Australia, U.S.: U.S. Price Floor Pullback Tests Critical Minerals Cooperation

EU, Vietnam: Brussels, Hanoi Upgrade Ties to Comprehensive Strategic Partnership

Forecasts

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