<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

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

Military & Security

Politics

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

Israel

Palestinian Territories

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.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

Russia-Ukraine 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: 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

India

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

The Danish-flagged DMS Lauge Koch, an offshore Royal Danish Navy patrol vessel, docks at the Port of Nuuk on March 12, 2025, in Nuuk, Greenland.

Scenarios for the coming year range from unilateral military action by the United States to a U.S.-Denmark agreement to expand Washington's capabilities on the island.


How Could the U.S. Seek To 'Take' Greenland?

Sub-Saharan Africa

Americas

Middle East and North Africa

Eurasia

South Asia

As elections reshape political incentives worldwide, 2026 will see major powers recalibrate diplomacy and conflict, raising the risk of fragile deals, regional instability and sudden escalation.

2026 Annual Geopolitical Forecast: An Excerpt

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

Yemen

A U.S. Marine Corps F-35B fighter jet takes off from Jose Aponte de la Torre Airport on December 15, 2025 in Ceiba, Puerto Rico. If U.S. strikes escalate and cause significant casualties, it could make retaliatory measures -- including the arbitrary detention of U.S. citizens in Venezuela or the harassment of energy sector vessels in the region -- more likely.

The Weekly Rundown: South Korea's President Visits Beijing, U.S. Operations in Venezuela

A citizen-filed impeachment complaint accuses Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. of constitutional violations and betrayal of trust with respect to the country's ongoing flood control embezzlement scandal and the arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte, respectively, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 19. 

Philippines: Impeachment Complaint Filed Against President

The value of Indonesia's rupiah fell to its weakest level since the 1998 Asian financial crisis after President Prabowo Subianto nominated his nephew, Deputy Finance Minister Thomas Djiwandono, as deputy governor of the country's central bank, the Financial Times reported on Jan. 20.

Indonesia: Central Bank Nomination Stokes Loss of Independence Concerns

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom and China established a forum to discuss cyber attacks, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 20. 

China, U.K.: Governments Set Up Cyber Dialogue

Following Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney's Jan. 16 meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, Carney announced at a news conference that Canada had agreed to exchange the 100% tariff on Chinese electric vehicles for a scaling quota system, while China will cut tariffs on Canadian canola seeds from 84% to 15%, AP reported the same day.

China, Canada: Deal To Cut Tariffs Comes With U.S. Top of Mind

Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodriguez said in an annual address before the National Assembly that Venezuela is a sovereign nation that has the right to maintain ties with Russia, China, Iran and Cuba, El Pais reported on Jan. 15.

Venezuela: Rodriguez Outlines Challenging Balancing Act in Speech Before National Assembly

Hundreds of suspected cyberfraud operators rapidly vacated casino compounds in Sihanoukville, Cambodia's notorious scam hub, AFP reported Jan. 16.

Cambodia: Hundreds of Fraudsters Flee Sihanoukville

The United States and Taiwan signed a trade deal to drop U.S. tariffs on Taiwanese goods from 20% to 15% and for Taiwan to invest $250 billion into U.S. manufacturing, including of semiconductors, which includes $100 billion already pledged by Taiwan's main chipmaker TSMC, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 15.

U.S., Taiwan: Trade Deal Reached, Includes Partial Relief for Chip Tariffs

U.S. President Donald Trump signed a presidential proclamation on Jan. 14 placing a 25% tariff on certain advanced semiconductors under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.

U.S.: Washington Implements Narrow Tariffs on Semiconductors, Delays Decision on CRM Tariffs

Asia-Pacific

SITUATION REPORTS

Philippines: Impeachment Complaint Filed Against President

Indonesia: Central Bank Nomination Stokes Loss of Independence Concerns

China, U.K.: Governments Set Up Cyber Dialogue

China, Canada: Deal To Cut Tariffs Comes With U.S. Top of Mind

Venezuela: Rodriguez Outlines Challenging Balancing Act in Speech Before National Assembly

Cambodia: Hundreds of Fraudsters Flee Sihanoukville

U.S., Taiwan: Trade Deal Reached, Includes Partial Relief for Chip Tariffs

U.S.: Washington Implements Narrow Tariffs on Semiconductors, Delays Decision on CRM Tariffs

Forecasts

ANALYSES

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