 | Our Big Story this week focuses on the Quad -- the grouping of the U.S., Japan, Australia and India -- and the probable defense of Taiwan in the future from China's advances. Our Diplomatic Correspondent Ken Moriyasu points out that, from the U.S. point of view, the involvement of India is critically important to contain China and that U.S. President Joe Biden's visit to Tokyo was successful in that sense.
I personally am impressed with a quotation from political scientist Samuel Huntington's book "The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order", in which he writes: "What the West sees as 'universal,' the non-West sees as 'Western.'" I think this point is the Achilles' heel of Biden's strategy.
I agree with the view of Bilahari Kausikan, former permanent secretary of Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He says, "Not every country in this region finds every aspect of Western democracy universally attractive, nor does it find every aspect of Chinese authoritarianism universally abhorrent." As Bilahari noted, "The world is a much more complex place."
Among Quad nations, India seems to be very well aware of the complexity of the world and probably that is why the country sometimes appears reluctant to follow U.S. initiatives.
In this world, which is divided between what Biden calls democratic states and autocratic states, it is critical to secure such strategically important goods as semiconductors. The U.S. move to invite one of the most advanced chipmakers in the world, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., to set up shop on its soil is aimed at so-called economic security.
Making pledges might be easy, but carrying them through, less so. Business Spotlight by our Silicon Valley Correspondent Yifan Yu and Taipei correspondents Cheng Ting-Fang and Lauly Li shows that hiring talent is proving to be the biggest bottleneck for TSMC's investment plan in the U.S. Yifan Yu visited its chip plant under construction in Phoenix, Arizona, and reports on the reality of the project.
It provides a lesson for Japan as well, for the country is also planning to invite TSMC to build a factory in Kumamoto.
Asia Insight features LGBT+ rights in Asia. In a sense, this is another story of Taiwan, because the island is a rare example in the region to legalize same-sex marriage. It should be noted that even an LGBT+ "paradise" like Thailand, where people can freely express their sexual orientation without harassment, still does not allow same-sex marriage.
Market Spotlight is a good story giving an overview of the trends regarding capital flows in Asia. According to the story, fundraising by China-focused venture capital firms has fallen sharply, from $27.2 billion in 2021 to just $2.1 billion so far in 2022. In comparison, venture capital funds focused on Southeast Asia and India have raised $3.1 billion so far in 2022, already nearing the $3.5 billion they raised in the whole of 2021.
As an editor of business media in Asia, I thought that, going forward, it could be a good idea for Nikkei Asia to focus more on Southeast Asia and India.
For weekend reading, I recommend a story in the Life section on Singapore's best places for brunch. In my view, Singapore is a place where cuisines are still evolving because of the interaction between its various ethnicities.
Tea Leaves on sport and music events in Asia is also recommended. The author John Duerden says, "If a concert in Bangkok is similar to one in Birmingham, the same can't be said of watching the big soccer teams in Asia."
That could be true. My favorite football team, Paris Saint-Germain, will visit Japan next month. Many fans like myself are looking forward to watching magical play by Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Sergio Ramos and Marquinhos.
They are all heavily used in promotional material for the visit, but people should be prepared for the worst-case scenario that none of them end up playing, but remain on the bench.
Stay safe and healthy, and have a wonderful weekend!
Shigesaburo Okumura
Editor-in-chief, Nikkei Asia
Follow me on Twitter @ShigesaburoO
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