[Recording] Taiwan’s Deeply Divided Government

Ever since elections in 2024 gave the presidency to one party and the legislature to its rivals, Taiwan’s political arena has been the scene of non-stop drama. When the Nationalist Party and its ally in the legislature tried to expand their power to oversee the executive branch, the Constitutional Court ruled them out of line and the legislature responded by shutting down the court. When the Democratic Progressive Party-led executive branch claimed power to exercise a pocket veto of legislation it didn’t like, the opposition in the legislature began a process to impeach the president even though they lack the numbers to achieve their goal. Nathan Batto, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Political Science in Taiwan’s Academia Sinica and expert on Taiwan’s elections, will explain how Taiwan’s government structure, political culture, and other factors have contributed to the current crisis, how the Taiwanese public is responding, and the possible impact on Taiwan’s delicate international standing. 

China’s Role in the Arctic

The Trump administration’s efforts to secure more control over Greenland have put China’s activities in the Arctic under a spotlight. Since 2018 when China declared itself to be a “near-Arctic state” with strategic interests in the region, it has expanded its Arctic research activities, acquired more icebreaking vessels, conducted Arctic patrols with Russia, and sent a ship from Asia to Europe through the Arctic Ocean along Russia’s northern coast – a route China has dubbed the “Polar Silk Road.” But is any of this activity contrary to international law or dangerous to the US? Professor Yuanyuan (Kate) Ren at the University of Dayton School of Law, an international law scholar who formerly worked at the Polar Research Institute of China, will explain how China interprets international law at the polar regions and what is publicly known about its Arctic goals.

[Recording]Democracy for a Sustainable World

Recorded on January 21, 2026.

The path to global sustainable development is participatory democratic global governance – the only truly effective path to confronting pandemics, military conflict, climate change, biodiversity loss, and potential overall ecological collapse. So says James Bacchus in his new book, Democracy for a Sustainable World: The Path from the Pnyx. Bacchus argues that global democracy and global sustainable development can only be achieved jointly. Beginning with a visit to the birthplace of democracy in ancient Athens, a hillside called the Pnyx, Bacchus explores how the Athenians practiced democratic participation millennia ago. He draws on the successes and shortfalls of Athenian democracy to offer specific proposals for meeting today’s challenges by constructing participatory democratic global governance for full human flourishing in a sustainable world. Learn more.

Chinese Global Environmentalism

We find ourselves at a remarkable moment in global environmental governance. China actively supports green development on the global stage, while the US under the Trump administration rejects the Paris Agreement and actively opposes the development of renewable energy and electric vehicles. Professor Alex Wang of the UCLA School of Law will introduce his new book, Chinese Global Environmentalism, which examines how China came to embrace green development and how it promotes a developmental form of environmentalism that differs from Western conceptions.

[Recording] Taiwan Legal: What Do Trade Agreements Say About Taiwan?

The contested polity of Taiwan is poor in official diplomatic relationships but rich in economic ones. Although the Republic of China, the official name of Taiwan’s government, has diplomatic relations with only twelve states, it has investment agreements with thirty-three states and free trade agreements with nine. It’s also a member of the WTO and several multilateral economic rule-setting bodies. In this installment of our occasional speaker series, “Taiwan Legal,” Professor Pasha Hsieh of Singapore Management University will discuss whether trade and investment agreements convey “implied recognition,” and whether Taiwan’s strong economic ties make its legal identity more robust.

[Recording] Outbound Investment Restrictions and International Law’s Challenge

In January, the United States inaugurated restrictions on U.S. investment in certain Chinese advanced technology sectors. At the time, the Outbound Investment Rule was portrayed as an incremental measure, a modest extension to fill loopholes in the existing investment screening regime. But while perhaps the logical next step in the securitization of the economy, Professor Harlan Cohen of Fordham Law School argues that the Outbound Investment Rule actually reflects a momentous shift in the relationship between governments and business, one playing out in the United States and around the world and worth attention. Unlike traditional investment screening, he explains, the Outbound Investment Rule operates like a sanctions regime, designed not to protect the U.S. economy, but to hamper the advancement of another.

[Recording] Taiwan Legal: What Does International Law Say About Defending Taiwan?

The United States and other countries that engage in friendly but unofficial relations with Taiwan generally maintain “strategic ambiguity” on the question of whether they would help Taiwan defend itself against a possible armed attack by China. Their decision would undoubtedly be affected by many factors, including how the world would regard third-party intervention (especially military intervention) in a China-Taiwan conflict. Would the United Nations, and international law more generally, view third-party military intervention in a cross-Strait conflict as an illegal use of force? In this installment of our occasional speaker series, “Taiwan Legal,” Professor Julian Ku of Hofstra University School of Law will explain what international law says about the use of force for self-defense and collective self-defense.

[Recording] Singapore’s Quick Rise as an International Arbitration Center

Singapore now ranks with Paris and London among the top-3 venues for international arbitration, despite being much newer on the scene.  Lucy Reed, president of the Singapore International Arbitration Centre Court, a prominent arbitrator and international lawyer, will explore the reasons, which include government commitment, supportive legislation, first-rate courts, Maxwell Chambers, SIAC, and a truly international outlook.

International Law for Whom?

International law and the international order are currently challenged on two fronts: externally, by the Global South; and internally, by the United States under its own leadership. What does this mean for the future? In his new book, The Law and Politics of International Legitimacy (Cambridge University Press, 2025), Jean-Marc Coicaud explores this question by examining the role of legitimacy in international life. Drawing on his first-hand experience in Asia, where he lived for nearly a decade, Coicaud also considers how regional powers—particularly China and Japan—may influence the reshaping of international law and the global order.

Remembering Jerome A. Cohen: Field Builder, Rights Advocate, and Mentor

Jerome A. Cohen, professor emeritus of law at New York University and founding director of the law school’s U.S.-Asia Law Institute, who passed away on September 22, 2025, introduced the study of China’s legal system into American law schools. Through his writings, teaching, private diplomacy, and public advocacy, he was an influential advocate for human rights and the rule of law in China and across East Asia as the region emerged from colonialism and post-war authoritarian rule to become an economic powerhouse

The Value of US-China Education Exchanges

As political and economic trust between the United States and China deteriorates year by year, some non-profits and scholars in both countries continue to swim against the tide, organizing exchange programs designed to build mutual understanding and trust. One of these is the U.S.-China Education Trust (USCET), a non-profit founded by former US Ambassador Julia Chang Bloch that supports American studies and other education programs at Chinese universities. Last May, when the US State Department announced that it would “aggressively revoke visas for Chinese students,” USCET issued a public statement decrying what it called a threat to the “broader foundation of US-Chinese relations.” Ambassador Bloch and USCET Executive Director Rosie Levine will explain why they continue to believe in the value of bilateral education exchanges, drawing on USCET’s more than two decades of experience.

US–China Competition and the International Order

Intensifying rivalry between the United States and China is reshaping the international order. The transactional diplomacy of the Trump administration is accelerating the erosion of established institutional guardrails. In this challenging moment, University of Tokyo Professor Ryo Sahashi says that Japan is working to reinforce global stability. Through careful management of its alliance with the US, proactive engagement with European and Indo-Pacific partners, and cooperation with Global South nations, Japan is trying to maintain regional balances, prevent conflict escalation, and preserve economic networks and free trade. Professor Sahashi will share his policy recommendations for how Japan and like-minded nations can collaboratively navigate the shifting global landscape.

Multipolarity, Civilizations and Universality in International Law

The international legal order is fragmenting into multiple “geo-legal orders,” in which the interpretation and operation of international law will increasingly depend on the spheres of influence of leading states and political groupings. This raises a basic question: how will a multipolar international order work? What normative constructions will emerge to bind the new geo-legal orders together? Dr. Malcolm Jorgensen, a senior research fellow at the Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law, will share his current research in progress.