INDO-PACIFIC GEOPOLITICS SHIFTS TOWARD ECONOMIC SECURITY

The most important Asia & Oceania story is the tightening link between geopolitics, trade, and regional security across the Indo-Pacific. Major powers and regional middle powers are increasingly using trade rules, digital regulation, supply chains, and alliance coordination as tools of strategic competition. China’s influence, U.S. policy toward allies and tariffs, and the role of partners such as South Korea and India are all shaping the region’s balance of power. The broader trend is that Asia-Pacific security is now being defined as much by economic statecraft and technology policy as by military deterrence.