On Friday, April 11th, the Hamilton Lugar School’s (HLS) 21st Century Japan Politics and Society Initiative (21JPSI)* co-sponsored a panel on “U.S. East Asia Strategy in the New Administration” as part of HLS’ flagship annual conference on America’s Role in the World—higher education’s premier nonpartisan foreign policy conference.
That the two-day conference’s final panel—held on a sunny Friday afternoon, no less—attracted a standing-room only audience of roughly 150 students, faculty, staff, and community members is a clear testament to the extremely high degree of interest at Indiana University in Japan, East Asia, and America’s role in the world.
Chaired and moderated by 21JPSI founding director/HLS professor Adam Liff, the panel featured distinguished experts on East Asian politics, economics, and security from nonpartisan institutions based in Washington, D.C.: Mireya Solís, Director of the Center for Asia Policy Studies, Philip Knight Chair in Japan Studies, and Senior Fellow in the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution; Abraham Denmark, Partner at The Asia Group consultancy and former Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia; and Scott Kennedy, Senior Adviser and Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
The panel discussion covered a wide range of topics, including the Biden Administration's legacy in East Asia, changes and continuities in U.S. strategy under the new Trump administration, and the increasingly diverse array of challenges posed by China and North Korea. During the moderated conversation and audience Q&A, the panelists reflected on the major successes and shortcomings of Biden's approach and highlighted the strategic shifts and policy decisions that are shaping the future of U.S. engagement in East Asia under “Trump 2.0.” Attracting particular attention were the implications of successive U.S. administrations’ departure from America’s longstanding role as the leading advocate for free trade and regional economic integration, the consequences of the new administration's transformation of U.S. tariff policy, the economic, political, and strategic importance of Taiwan, and how third parties (e.g., Japan; Europe) are likely to respond to recent U.S. policies.
All told, the event provided valuable insights into the rapidly evolving dynamics of U.S. engagement in East Asia and the strategic shifts likely to shape the region's future under the new administration. In addition to the ~150 in-person attendees, the panel was also live-streamed online.