Foreign Service Institute on LinkedIn: The U.S. Department of State and USAID have a long history of supporting… (2025)

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese met with the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Mr. Pham Minh Chinh, as he visited Canberra after attending the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Melbourne last week. Together, they announced a comprehensive strategic partnership, elevating ties between Vietnam and Australia to a new level.What are the specific areas of cooperation?How will the comprehensive strategic partnership contribute to regional peace, stability, and prosperity?How do minilateral arrangements in the Indo-Pacific region complement multilateral frameworks? Will growing minilateralism strengthen or weaken the regional security architecture of the Indo-Pacific?https://lnkd.in/ga66YVeX

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Ethan Kapstein gave a virtual seminar at USAID on his recent book, “Exporting Capitalism: Private Enterprise and US Foreign Policy.” The talk covered the history of US efforts to promote private sector development, including in such fragile and conflict-affected states as Afghanistan. A lively question-and-answer session covered such issues as industrial policy and how USAID can most effectively engage with local firms. Check out the new book here: https://lnkd.in/gnE8ZAe7

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More from our highly insightful conversation with Dr Rebecca Sta Maria!

ASEAN-India relations have grown remarkably over three decades, evolving into a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership." Despite challenges from shifting geopolitics and technological transitions, the recent 20th ASEAN-India Summit in September 2023 marked significant progress. Hon'ble Prime Minister Modi's 12-point plan and joint statements on maritime and food security underscored commitment to collaboration.In succession to the Hon'ble PM's plan, the ASEAN-India Centre (AIC) at RIS is hosting a seminar to analyze summit outcomes, focusing on PM Modi's proposal, non-traditional maritime security, and food security. Through three technical sessions, the seminar aims to propose actionable strategies for bolstering ASEAN-India cooperation.RIS DC The ASEAN Secretariat Ministry of External Affairs, India Ina Krisnamurthi Sachin Chaturvedi Narendra Modi

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Check out latest blog by Mary Wong on international engagements at the subnational levels of government. What has been your experience, lessons learned and good practices? https://lnkd.in/d-DbDgv8

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The Delhi-based Council for Strategic and Defense Research published my first commentary for 2024. This piece examines the impact of the changes in Philippine foreign policy under the Marcos Administration on ASEAN-China relations in the next few years. https://lnkd.in/gbjwCAnK

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This year marks the first year of the #2050Strategy Implementation. As host and chair of the upcoming #PIFLM53, there is a lot to look forward to, Tonga! (no pressure)One of the key deliverables I am looking forward to, is the 2050 Baseline Report, which will give us an overall picture of how the region is doing in key areas outlined in the 2050 #ImplementationPlan.This emphasizes the importance of the Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning #MEL mechanism. It underscores the crucial role of investing in our region's national statistical systems. This investment ensures we can collect, analyze, and use quality data to track our progress and meet our goals.#PIFLM53 #Pacific2050 #Tonga

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Read my perspectives on "Navigating Eastern Africa’s Community (EAC) governance pitfalls amidst expansion in membership"Executive Summary The brief opines that the goal of achieving enhanced collaboration and mutual benefit among nations as envisaged in the EAC treaty, could be hampered by the threats of political tensions and infighting among member countries. The situation is exacerbated by pursuit of expansion without addressing internal issues, thereby, undermining lasting cohesion of the bloc. If these setbacks are not tackled early enough, the undercurrents portend the instability of the bloc and may weaken its dominant role in championing integration in the African continent. Key mitigations include forestalling intra-EAC tensions; monitoring the geopolitics of the region; managing peace and security concerns; and regional leadership. The brief recommends that the Council of Ministers should establish a political mechanism to manage regional geostrategic interests, prioritize the management of peace and security as well as economic expansion interests; revitalize confidence in the regional leadership; and invigorate EAC Dispute Resolution Mechanisms#EAC#Economicbloc#Governance#Pitfalls#ExpansionMinistry of East African Community AffairsUNDP

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What would a Harris presidency mean for #SoutheastAsia?#AP4D Advisory Group's Fitri Bintang Timur offers some thoughts in this Australian Strategic Policy Institute staff analysis, which also looks at #defence, #US foreign policy more broadly, China, India, climate and engaging youth."Harris’spolicy towards Southeast Asia, if she wins, is predicted byseveralanalystsfrom the region to be a continuation of the Biden administration’s. That includesprovidingan unprecedentedUS$1.2 billionin economic, development and security assistance to the region andafurtherUS$90 million funding for #ASEAN."👉 Read the piece at https://lnkd.in/gH8DkjHQ

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The meeting discussed bilateral cooperation in various fields, such as trade, investment, defense, security, education, health, and regional and international issues. The two sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the strategic partnership between Vietnam and Australia, and expressed their support for a free, open, inclusive and rules-based Indo-Pacific region. The meeting also witnessed the signing of several agreements and memoranda of understanding on cooperation in areas of mutual interest.https://lnkd.in/gCCw4vuZ

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