LSPRI2650 Geostrategy and Security in the Indo-Pacific

This is an introductory course, which examines major geostrategic and security issues in Asia and the Indo-Pacific. It explores the key sources of conflict and instability in the region, as well as the opportunities for cooperation and conflict resolution.

With a rising China under Xi Jinping and growing tensions with Taiwan, a re-engaging US under Joe Biden, a “normalising” Japan, an India with its "Act East" policy, a nuclear-armed and provocative North Korea under Kim Jong-un, as well as ongoing territorial, historical and sovereignty disputes, the Indo-Pacific is increasingly important in global military and strategic terms, in addition to its significance in economic ones.

In the post-Cold War era, the region has been undergoing a major shift in the balance of power, while still struggling with the legacies of the Cold War. At the same time, various multilateral initiatives for regional security cooperation centred on ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations, ASEAN 10), as well minilateral groupings based on the "Indo-Pacific" concept, have steadily advanced.

This course provides students with the necessary analytical tools to understand and critically engage with the key debates, players and phenomena that define the geo-strategic and security landscape of Asia and the Indo-Pacific in the 21^st century.

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She is a Professor in International Relations of the Asia-Pacific. She teaches at the School of Political and Social Sciences, Université Catholique de Louvain, as well as the Department of Politics, University of Antwerp, Belgium. She is concurrently an Adjunct Professor at the Brussels School of Governance (BSoG) of the Free University of Brussels, as well as an Associate Fellow, Global Fellowship Initiative, at the Geneva Centre for Security Policy (GCSP) in Switzerland.

Her teaching and research interests include international relations in Asia and the Indo-Pacific region with an emphasis on security. She focuses, in particular, on Japanese foreign and security policy; alignments and major power relations in the Indo-Pacific region; security and geopolitics of the Taiwan Strait and the Korean Peninsula, as well as regional security cooperation in Asia and EU-Asia relations.

Prof. Atanassova-Cornelis has authored more than 80 academic articles, book chapters, briefing papers and reports covering various topics related to Asian politics and security, and Asia-Europe relations. She has delivered more than 200 guest lectures and presentations at conferences, high-level expert meetings, and universities in both Europe and Asia.

Personal Website: https://www.uantwerpen.be/nl/personeel/elena-atanassova-cornelis/mijn-website-/

Contact at UCL: elena.atanassova@uclouvain.be

Office hours: by appointment