Asia Rising

China’s presence in Latin America has expanded rapidly over the past two decades, reshaping the region’s economies, politics, and strategic landscape. From major infrastructure projects and digital ecosystems to shifting patterns of trade, finance, and influence, Beijing’s role is becoming both more complex and more contested. Guest: Margaret Myers (Managing Director, Institute for America, China, and the Future of Global Affairs, Johns Hopkins SAIS; Senior Advisor, Inter-American Dialogue) Recorded 19th November, 2025

Across the Indo-Pacific rising geopolitical tensions, democratic backsliding, and climate-related instability are increasing the risk of violent conflict. Yet far less attention — and funding — is devoted to preventing crises before they occur. Early-warning, multi-track diplomacy, locally grounded peacebuilding, and whole-of-government coherence are all strategies that can be employed to develop a more effective approach. How can governments, aid agencies, and regional bodies work together to spot risks early and build resilience? What part should Australia play in linking diplomacy, aid, and security? And how can prevention be woven into regional cooperation across Southeast Asia and the Pacific? Panel: William Leben (Senior Analyst, Development Intelligence Lab) Assoc. Professor Jasmine Westendorf (Co-Director of Initiative for Peacebuilding, University of Melbourne) Dr Natalie Sambhi (Executive Director, Verve Research) Professor Bec Strating (Director, La Trobe Asia) Recorded on 20th November, 2025.

Over the past decade, China has moved from maintaining a relatively modest nuclear deterrent of around 300 warheads to constructing hundreds of new missile silos and expanding toward a projected 1,000 warheads by the 2030s. This is happening alongside breakthroughs in nuclear energy and technology, positioning China as both a nuclear power and nuclear supplier on a global scale. Guest: Dr Rajeswari Pillai Rajagopalan (Resident Senior Fellow, Australian Strategic Policy Institute, Canberra) Recorded on 30th October, 2025.

South Korea has unique security challenges when compared to many of its neighbours. Like many it lives in the shadow of giants like China and Russia, but the ever-present threat of North Korea is less than 50km from its capital, Seoul. While its alliance with the United States remains important to Korea’s security and foreign policy outlook, there are many possibilities for stronger ties to allies and partners. This could present opportunities to enhance maritime security cooperation between Australia and Korea and better coordinate maritime capacity building with other states the region. How can Australia and South Korea develop an effective regional partnership? What are the opportunities and limits presented by moving the relationship forward? A La Trobe Asia / UWA Defence and Security Institute event Panel: Dr Troy Lee-Brown (Research Fellow, Defence and Security Institute, UWA) Professor Bec Strating (Director, La Trobe Asia) Afeeya Akhand (Fellow, Australian Strategic Policy Institute) Dongkeun Lee (Policy Fellow, Asia-Pacific Leadership Network) Recorded on 8th September, 2025

When Hu Yaobang died in April 1989, throngs of mourners converged on the Martyrs' Monument in Tiananmen Square to pay their respects. Following Hu's 1987 ouster by party elders, Chinese propaganda officials had sought to tarnish his reputation and dim his memory, yet his death galvanized the nascent pro-democracy student movement, setting off the dramatic demonstrations that culminated in the Tiananmen massacre. Guest: Robert L. Suettinger (Author of The Conscience of the Party: Hu Yaobang, Chinas Communist Reformer) Interviewer: Professor James Leibold (Politics, La Trobe University) Recorded 16th June, 2025.