The late Shinzo Abe will be remembered for many things – not least the shocking manner of his death – but possibly the most consequential of his achievements was the popularising of the term “Indo-Pacific”. Until fairly recently, it was mostly the preserve of marine biologists and oceanographers. In geopolitics the word used for much the same region was “Asia Pacific”. Even four years ago, when we discussed it at an afternoon session at a conference in Kuala Lumpur, it was unclear whether the new term would catch on or would suffer the same fate as those official-sounding organisations that most people have never heard of (and if you do know all about the Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Co-operation, I’m impressed).
Today, however, it is everywhere. The US has an Indo-Pacific strategy. So does the EU. So does Australia. The Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) has an “Outlook on the Indo-Pacific”. Last year, the UK published a “defence tilt to the Indo-Pacific”. Even the Jean Monnet network of universities – which refers to the Asia Pacific on its website – is now going to investigate “the role of the EU in the Indo-Pacific”.
There have been various iterations of the idea. Those put forth among others by Australia, Indonesia, Asean and India in the past have not all been entirely the same, which is why I concluded after the conference discussion mentioned above that the concept was “clear as mud”.
But the version of the Indo-Pacific that appears to have won the contest of ideas is that associated with Abe. In 2007, he made a speech to India’s parliament in which he talked of a “broader Asia” taking shape “at the confluence of the two seas of the Indian and Pacific Oceans".
Asia Pacific served everyone very well for decades. Why change it in the first place?
“By Japan and India coming together,” he said, “this ‘broader Asia’ will evolve into an immense network spanning the entirety of the Pacific Ocean, incorporating the United States of America and Australia. Open and transparent, this network will allow people, goods, capital, and knowledge to flow freely.” This is generally agreed to mark the beginning of the “free and open Indo-Pacific” vision later outlined by then prime minister Abe and of the Quad – the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue between the four that Abe named – as Chitrabhanu Kadalayil wrote in these pages last week.
The Quad was initiated in 2007, but hit a pause when Kevin Rudd became prime minister of Australia. They “pulled a jenga piece out and the whole thing crumbled for a bit,” as Shahriman Lockman of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia puts it. But it later resumed as key to Abe’s version of the Indo-Pacific in 2017. “Abe had good timing,” says Mr Shahriman. “He had a good relationship with [former US president Donald] Trump who subsequently adopted it.” The US Pacific Command was renamed the US Indo-Pacific Command in 2018, the same year the Department of Defence produced a report on the Indo-Pacific, later followed by the State Department’s “shared vision” of a “free and open Indo-Pacific”.
But this is why the term cannot be said any more to be a neutral replacement for the Asia Pacific. “If you were a major power, the hyphenation of the two largest oceans would make strategic sense,” explains Elina Noor of the Asia Society Policy Institute in Washington. “They span not only Asia's maritime and land masses, but also encompass the Pacific islands and abuts the continental coasts of America, Africa, as well as Australia. But the geopolitical connotation of this term that came alive particularly during the Trump administration made some in Asia – long accustomed to the term Asia Pacific, instead – wary and nervous of its implications."
That’s a polite way of putting it. Not unfairly, China sees it as a way to contain its rise, and has complained vociferously about it. In May, the country’s foreign ministry put out a statement saying that “facts will prove that the so-called ‘Indo-Pacific strategy’ is essentially a strategy for creating divisions, a strategy for inciting confrontation, and a strategy for destroying peace”, while Foreign Minister Wang Yi said it was “doomed to fail”.
The problem with an Indo-Pacific anchored by the Quad is that it will inevitably be seen as anti-Chinese. Attempts are sometimes made to sidestep this issue. More honest is the approach of Matt Pottinger, Mr Trump’s deputy national security adviser, who recently wrote of the Quad: “While not a military alliance, it has nonetheless become a marquee forum for addressing disinformation, supply-chain blackmail, debt-trap diplomacy, illegal fishing and other misconduct by Beijing.” Mr Pottinger, an Asia expert, believes that Abe’s vision of an Indo-Pacific was specifically to counterbalance China.
This is why some, including me, are very reluctant to use the term. Asia Pacific served everyone very well for decades. Why change it in the first place, and especially to something that is so undeniably loaded? But Indo-Pacific is going to be unavoidable, even more so after US President Joe Biden unveiled his Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity this May. Member countries that would probably rather stick with Asia Pacific, such as Malaysia, will have no choice but to use the words when talking about this agreement.
This may suit hawks who secretly – or not so secretly – yearn for a clash between the US and its allies and China. For others, it is to be hoped that the Asean Outlook, which calls for “inclusiveness” and “an Indo-Pacific region of dialogue and co-operation instead of rivalry”, gains currency.
At the moment, however, it is Abe’s version of the Indo-Pacific that is in the ascendancy. Whether that will truly contribute to greater peace and security in the Asia Pacific and beyond remains to be seen. But for good or for ill, this aspect of his legacy is secure.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Your Guide to the Home
- Level 1 has a valet service if you choose not to park in the basement level. This level houses all the kitchenware, including covetable brand French Bull, along with a wide array of outdoor furnishings, lamps and lighting solutions, textiles like curtains, towels, cushions and bedding, and plenty of other home accessories.
- Level 2 features curated inspiration zones and solutions for bedrooms, living rooms and dining spaces. This is also where you’d go to customise your sofas and beds, and pick and choose from more than a dozen mattress options.
- Level 3 features The Home’s “man cave” set-up and a display of industrial and rustic furnishings. This level also has a mother’s room, a play area for children with staff to watch over the kids, furniture for nurseries and children’s rooms, and the store’s design studio.
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(Studio Rockers)
Results for Stage 2
Stage 2 Yas Island to Abu Dhabi, 184 km, Road race
Overall leader: Primoz Roglic SLO (Team Jumbo - Visma)
Stage winners: 1. Fernando Gaviria COL (UAE Team Emirates) 2. Elia Viviani ITA (Deceuninck - Quick-Step) 3. Caleb Ewan AUS (Lotto - Soudal)
1,000 Books to Read Before You Die: A Life-Changing List
James Mustich, Workman
South Africa World Cup squad
South Africa: Faf du Plessis (c), Hashim Amla, Quinton de Kock (w), JP Duminy, Imran Tahir, Aiden Markram, David Miller, Lungi Ngidi, Anrich Nortje, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Dale Steyn, Rassie van der Dussen.
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Young women have more “financial grit”, but fall behind on investing
In an October survey of young adults aged 16 to 25, Charles Schwab found young women are more driven to reach financial independence than young men (67 per cent versus. 58 per cent). They are more likely to take on extra work to make ends meet and see more value than men in creating a plan to achieve their financial goals. Yet, despite all these good ‘first’ measures, they are investing and saving less than young men – falling early into the financial gender gap.
While the women surveyed report spending 36 per cent less than men, they have far less savings than men ($1,267 versus $2,000) – a nearly 60 per cent difference.
In addition, twice as many young men as women say they would invest spare cash, and almost twice as many young men as women report having investment accounts (though most young adults do not invest at all).
“Despite their good intentions, young women start to fall behind their male counterparts in savings and investing early on in life,” said Carrie Schwab-Pomerantz, senior vice president, Charles Schwab. “They start off showing a strong financial planning mindset, but there is still room for further education when it comes to managing their day-to-day finances.”
Ms Schwab-Pomerantz says parents should be conveying the same messages to boys and girls about money, but should tailor those conversations based on the individual and gender.
"Our study shows that while boys are spending more than girls, they also are saving more. Have open and honest conversations with your daughters about the wage and savings gap," she said. "Teach kids about the importance of investing – especially girls, who as we see in this study, aren’t investing as much. Part of being financially prepared is learning to make the most of your money, and that means investing early and consistently."
The bio
Favourite book: Peter Rabbit. I used to read it to my three children and still read it myself. If I am feeling down it brings back good memories.
Best thing about your job: Getting to help people. My mum always told me never to pass up an opportunity to do a good deed.
Best part of life in the UAE: The weather. The constant sunshine is amazing and there is always something to do, you have so many options when it comes to how to spend your day.
Favourite holiday destination: Malaysia. I went there for my honeymoon and ended up volunteering to teach local children for a few hours each day. It is such a special place and I plan to retire there one day.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Results
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HOW DO SIM CARD SCAMS WORK?
Sim swap frauds are a form of identity theft.
They involve criminals conning mobile phone operators into issuing them with replacement Sim cards, often by claiming their phone has been lost or stolen
They use the victim's personal details - obtained through criminal methods - to convince such companies of their identity.
The criminal can then access any online service that requires security codes to be sent to a user's mobile phone, such as banking services.
