Curtain-raiser on the Shangri-La Dialogue, with the man who runs the show: James Crabtree of IISS

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With the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue kicking off in Singapore on Friday, June 2, Kaiser chats with the organizer’s managing director for Asia, James Crabtree, about the history, structure, and significance of this Asian answer to the Munich Security Conference, James, who joined the Institute for International Strategic Studies in 2021, offers a great sneak-peek and a curtain raiser on the three-day event, which will bring ministers and secretaries of defense together from all over the region and beyond.

05:54 – What are the differences between the Munich Security Conference and the Shangri-La Dialogue?

10:21 – Notable past Shangri-La Dialogues

14:42 – Who are the guests of this year’s Shangri-La Dialogue?

19:53 – The programming of the Shangri-La Dialogue

26:48 – The Chinese participation in the event and the background of China-US and Sino-Japanese relations

34:16 – European delegations in recent years attending the event and the challenges they face

37:42 – The connotation of Indo-Pacific as opposed to the Asia-Pacific

41:17 – The dynamics on the axis China-India-US and a multipolar vision for Southeast Asia

52:33 – The current intentions for the bilateral relationship between the United States and China?

A complete transcript of this podcast is available at TheChinaProject.com.

Recommendations:

James: The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914 by Christopher Clark; and The Pigeon Tunnel: Stories from My Life by John le Carré

Kaiser:  A Perfect Spy: A Novel by John le Carré 

Mentioned:

The Billionaire Raj: A Journey Through India’s New Gilded Age by James Crabtree