The rules-based order is under stress in the Indo-Pacific and, according to the latest report from Freedom House, democracy has declined for an 18th consecutive year globally. Both Japan and Australia have strong commitments to development assistance in the region, but a new report from the United States Studies Centre (USSC) argues that this is not enough to counter elite capture, misinformation and other malign influences in the region.

What are the stakes for democracy promotion in the Indo-Pacific? How much daylight is there between the Japanese and Australian approaches to development assistance and democracy promotion? Where can the countries go from here?

USSC Non-Resident Senior Fellow Dr Lavina Lee spoke with Research Director Jared Mondschein about these questions and the new report she edited.

Aligning values and interests: Japanese and Australian democracy support in the Pacific and Southeast Asiawas edited by Dr Lavina Lee and features Chikako Kodama, Hitsubashi University Graduate School of Law PhD candidate; Dr John Lee, Hudson Institute Senior Fellow; Dr Yuki Miyoda, University of Tokyo Graduate School of Frontier Sciences project researcher; and Prof. Hiroaki Shiga, Yokohama National University professor at the Graduate School of International Social Sciences. It is now available for download.

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Produced by: Elliott Brennan

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