On 28 February 2023, I delivered a guest lecture at the University of Sydney about coneptualisation and flashpoints in the Indo-Pacific region.
“The term “Indo-Pacific” has now become a central feature of the strategic discourse in regional security affairs. This is the result of the US and Japanese led policies calling for a “Free and Open Indo Pacific” (FOIP), to which Australia, and to some extent India, have also subscribed. In essence the Indo-Pacific represents a rescaling of the extant “Asia Pacific” region to recognize the increasing importance of the Indian Ocean and maritime security issues, alongside economic connectivity. It has become the centrepiece in the grand strategies of the US and its allies. Meanwhile, China, while “rejecting” the concept of “Indo-Pacific”, has its own competing vision and regional strategy. This lecture highlights major developments in the geopolitics of that have been brought about by these competing visions of the regional order. It also discusses about Australia’s major security concerns in the region, including the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, and the South Pacific.
