artificially divided eurasia into the middle east, south asia, central asia, southeast asia, east asia pettersson university did this, think tanks did this, the pentagon did this, the cia and state department did this. is it is flowing together into one organic continue. the other and navigable land of inland data from the horn of asia to the indonesian archipelago and new york all the way to the see of japan. as i said earlier, the navy and marine corps have been on to this for some time. in october of 2007, the navy issued its maritime strategy document for the next few decades where it said where as it has been a two ocean navy, atlantic and pacific it would in the future, would be oriented toward the indian ocean and the pacific. the atlantic is a great ocean. it is no longer contested in geopolitical terms so much. the real conflict is in the greater indian ocean and the pacific. the marine corps in june of 2008 issued its position statement for the next few decades where it indicated that the united states marine corps would be active principally in the indian and western pacific

asia. universities did this. think tanks tidbits. the pentagon did this. the cia and state department all did this. and when i'm here to say tonight is that these divisions are collapsing. it's all falling together into one organic continuum, especially the southern navigable rimland of your ratio from the horn of africa through the indonesian archipelago and north all the way to the sea of japan. now, as i said earlier, the navy and marine corps have been onto this for some time. in october 2007 -- 2007, the navy issued its maritime strategy document for the next two decades, where it said that whereas it had been a two ocean navy, the atlantic and pacific, the wood in the future is still be a two-way ocean navy, but would be oriented towards the indian ocean and the pacific. the atlantic is a great ocean, but it's no longer contested in geopolitical terms so much. the real arc of conflict is in the greater indian ocean and the pacific. the marine corps in june 2008 issued a vision stateme

, central asia, southeast asia, east asia, universities did this, think tanks did this, the pentagon did this, the cia and the state department all did this. and what i'm here to say tonight is the these divisions are collapsing. it's all flowing together into one organic continuum, especially the southern overland of your ratio for the horn of africa to the indian nation archipelago north all the way to the sea of japan. as i said earlier the navy and marine corps have been onto this for some time. in october 2007 and 2007, the navy issued a maritime strategy for the next few decades, where it said it has been a two ocean navy in the pacific but would be oriented in the indian ocean and the pacific. the atlantic but it's no longer contested in geopolitical terms. the real art growth conflict is in the greater indian ocean and the pacific. in june 2008fic. in june 2008 issued a vision statement for the next few decades, where it indicated that the united states marine corps would be at a principally in the indian and western pacific ocean. why is this? first of all, the indian ocean

it is not just one community but many communities that come from north asia, south asia, southeast asiapacific islands. all of us are here to pay homage to the leaders getting awards but also to thank the heritage committee for all the work they have done. can we call up claudia chang to presenter this proclamation? it was not for her and the committee, this would never have happened. please give her a round of applause. [applause] all the committee members are on page three or four of the handbook. problems, a political system in which to many people have lost faith, and the new government will face the worst inheritance of any incoming government for least 60 years. that is exactly why it is so important that we have strong, stable government that lasts. a strong, stable government, which has the support of the public to take the difficult decisions that are needed if we are going to put this country back on the right track for a stronger future. there is one further point i want to make. i believe that it is not just important for this country to have strong and stable government. it

how should asia handle the eu credit anxieties? >> well, the european union is a very important trade partner for china, south korea and japan. so whether the eu economy is healthy or not is crucial for the asian economy as well. now, this chart shows japan and china's export destinations by size. in 2009, europe was china's biggest export partner surpassing the united states. the eu is also japan's third biggest export destination after china and the u.s. japan and china aren't simply watching what's happening in the eu. they are offering to help. on january 5th, china's vice premier met with the spanish prime minister. lee said that china was willing to buy a large amount of spanish government bonds. china has also said that it intends to help greece and portugal. japan has pledged its help as well, offering to buy more than 20% of a bond issued by the eu. the eu will issue the bond at the end of the month in a bid to help ireland. >> translator: it would be appropriate for a large economy like japan to help boost market confiden

leaders gathered in central asia where it was really needed. still we had some other very important declarations adopted there but it has confirmed that in the principle of invisibility of security. says the new so what is up with. this story a community of security. here atlantic region of most russian and the concepts. in this three minutes or so of course reflects the initiative which coincide with these days we've. provided by russia so we're seeing the steel blade say to be the move usually remains the platform for using more consideration of. matthew. and now the situation has changed we will be with us expects that so we see where you got him we'll go back to its roots to its origins. becoming was asian as. c.v.s. by charging the valley father father says it has been conceived through the woman platforms multiple before it's too much or a result of the she is so lots of issues depend on whether we ever see you will remember before restore its structure of lvalues we believe the more than year. it has the adult and you charts will need to

they went out to protect and liberate asia.americans, general macarthur in world war ii at the end of the war says the mission is now completed. george bush and others talk about our war against terrorism and in the holy war you get into a manichean black-and-white world. we are pure your evil japanese or the islamist, we are the pure, you were the corrupt. we are the innocent, you are the people, we are the victims, you are the victimizer and nobody is able to understand how complex all of this is. i wrestled a lot with the book with the evil because i believe in evil i just don't think anyone has a real monopoly of it and i think it is a very powerful force. >> host: you talk about the kind of religious faith, not religion but face based etiology that people believe in the condition so strongly that they think that it's almost like religion or the fight based but this idea that when we go to war and iraq the kind of pinnacle of the neoconservative domination of the american fought and a lot of think tanks including liberal, n

state special envoy on here asia and the g. . morningstar. prime minister putin signed an agreement with his bulgarian counterpart recently on this project do you think that we might see investments from from western europe maybe from the united states going into this house tree i don't know i know the goal of south stream is to get more investments from western europe certainly the italian company in involved. but whether or not other companies would want to invest i can't i can't speak for those companies what if gas problem decides to take part in the book what would you say well be a reaction our position has been consistent. that if gazprom wants to take part in a bucco that that's ok with us that up to fifty percent of the gas bucco is open for competitive bidding. under the exemption from the third party. access. provisions. i'd like to see gazprom be a supplier to the bucco i think it would be in a minority position. and but it would also show that. gazprom can participate and projects not necessarily. in a majority position but i thi

what is the current state of european asian relations europe is of no interest asia view europe as a landmass that tweezers the pacific ocean with russia and europe are not a whole but you have a picture there was an alliance then we can say europe reaches the pacific that this is the reason europe needs russia and i'm not sure russian is europe but europe at the moment needs for russia what were the ones that. are for in one of your interviews you spoke about the role of poland and said it could become a. each between europe and russia what kind of bridge and what are the current dynamics of russian polish relations machine door until very recently it seemed like a great idea but now represent between russia and poland has actually happened and i think however that some politician who's smart politicians foresaw this and even prime minister donald to disk he was bringing poland closer to russian with a plane crash ball and has always been the final frontier of europe russia began after that france here is also in close contact with ukraine the question of ukraine is very delicate an

and east asia that are concerned about china. our traditional allies, japan and korea and vietnam. and i think in east asia other countries are sufficiently concerned about the possibility that the rise in china may impinge on their interest. they are willing, passively, to cooperate with the united states. if china becomes a threat at think they would join. i don't think they're willing to be active and certainly not willing to give us up in any other part of the world including the part of the world where i think we faced the largest and most serious immediate threat. >> of going to ask you one more question. if there is a vacuum, at least a partial vacuum because of our entrenchment history would say there are players who will be sensitive to take advantage of that to be the two big ones you would have to worry about are china and russia. the classic realist by john would say there is no real argument here. we never solve these problems without a first-class power conflict. what is your view on how likely it is that we are goi

because the entire history of international relations is moving away from europe it's played out in asia even the u.s. . is refocusing its foreign policy on asia where of the huge countries that will plays a big roles located here in asia or latin america but that's a different question now what is the current state of european asian relations europe is of no interest asia view europe as a landmass the tree shoes the pacific ocean with russia and europe i'm not a whole but if a picture there was an alliance then we can say europe reaches the pacific if this is the reason europe flees russia and i'm not sure russian is europe but europe at the moment needs russia whether we're going to. or in one of your interviews you spoke about the role of poland and said it could become a great. between europe and russia what kind of bridge and what are the current dynamics of russian polish relations machine door until very recently it seemed like a great idea but now represent between russia and poland has actually happened and i think however that some politician who's smart politicians foresaw thi

. -- i am from radio free asia. [unintelligible] what you think is the best way to handle north korea, and what do we need or what do we have to do? >> let me point out that it was chris hill who said that. i have been saying that for eight years. i believe in the power of redemption. i believe -- chris can apologize to me and everyone else that he ignored. welcome to the right side of the bait, finally. the north koreans will not be talked out of their nuclear weapons program. that is as clear as it could be. i think the united states has to focus on the only ultimate solution to the north korean nuclear weapons problem, and that is the peaceful reunification of the peninsula. as long as the regime exists, the nuclear weapons threat will remain, and no one should have any illusions that we can appeal to the north koreans somehow to loosen up their policy for the good of their people. the north korean population now is on an individual basis for -- four to 6 inches shorter than the population of south korea. that is

and south asia. and i think that getting reassurance to our friends and placing a check on may be china's regional ambitions will be necessary. but what more shall we be doing with these countries to encourage trade investment? and what more should we do to let the u.s. business community now their return on investment is a negative one in terms of china? that gets out occasion in the journal, but not often enough. >> thank you. the gentleman side has expired. and now virtually our last question and answer five minute will be from nebraska. >> thank you, madam chair, for the time and thank you, gentlemen for appearing before us today. i have a fairly lofty sense for me. basically says i want to stress the importance of managing our complex relationship with china in a manner that honors the transcendent principles that define our national purpose and identity. but let me stop there. as a look out in the audience here, i see a number of young people. and i think it's important to get your mind around

our friends and allies across the asia pacific region would agree.e them to choose between relations with beijing, and relations with washington. all of this calls for careful, steady, dynamic stewardship of this critical relationship. and an approach to china on our part that is grounded in reality, focused on results, and true to our principals and interests. and that is how we intend to pursue a positive, cooperative, and comprehensive relationship with china. now i'm sure you will hear that phrase quite a bit over the next week. positive, cooperative, and comprehensive relationship. because that really does capture our hopes for the future and that is how our two presidents have described this relationship. but you cannot build a relationship on aspirations alone. that is what makes this a critical juncture. as i said at the outset, the choices we both make in the months ahead will help determine whether our relationship lives up to it's promise, and it's up to both of us to translate high-level pledges of summits and state visits into action. re

presence in the asia-pacific. the overall effect was a decline in china's position in the asia-pacific and rise in the position of the united states. meanwhile the obama government made clear to the chinese government and to the world that the united states is prepared to undertake military measures needed to deal with the buildup of chinese forces targeting americans and american interests in the asia-pacific. it also helped move china to curb north korea's repeated provocations by warning privately as well as publicly that the united states viewed north korea and nuclear weapons development as a direct threat to the united states. over the past few months china has tried to ease differences with the united states in the period leading up to the current visit of president hu jintao. there have been some different things in calling the situation between the united states and china over the various areas of difference. looking out president obama wants to pursue closer engagement with china as part of the administr

they agreed to continue working together to bring stability to east asia, including north korea. before the meeting kan told gates he is determined to deepen the japan-u.s. alliance. kan added that he is looking forward to expressing the sentiment to u.s. president barack obama when they meet in the spring. gates agreed with kan. he said sustaining strong relations between the two countries is important amid the unstable situation in the region. prior to the talks with kan gates met with foreign minister seiji maehara and defense minister toshimi kitazawa. >>> u.s. president barack obama has mourned the victims of the shooting rampage in arizona. six people died, and a congresswoman was left in critical condition. obama spoke at a memorial service in tucson on wednesday. >> we mourn with you for the fallen. we join you in your grief. and we add our faith to yours that representative gabrielle giffords and the other living victims of this tragedy will pull through. [ cheers and applause ] rather than pointing fingers or assigning blame, let's use this occasion to expand our moral

countries that will play the big roles loki's here in asia or latin america but that. question you know what is the current state of european asian relations europe is of no interest asia view europe as a landmass the tree shoes to pacific ocean russia and europe are not a whole picture there was an alliance then we can say europe reaches the pacific this is the reason europe flees russia and i'm not sure russia is europe but europe at the moment of needs russia what were the one that appears. before in one of your interviews you spoke about the role of poland and said it could become a bridge between europe and russia what kind of bridge and what are the current dynamics of russian polish relations machine door until very recently it seemed like a great idea but now represent between russia and poland has actually happened i think however that some politicians use smart politicians for solace even prime minister donald to think he was bringing poland closer to russia before the plane crashed the ball and has always been the final frontier of europe russia began after

dry skies are going to dominate much of eastern asia this weekend. strong high pressure in place over china. you will notice that it's going to be very cold. now, northern locations, northern china up into mongolia as well, just a frigid blast of arctic air is going to be coming down, bringing those temperatures down below average. japan will also be dealing with continued snow for the western coast and up into northern locations. friday into saturday gets a little bit weaker, but by saturday night it will become intense again. you need to watch out for avalanches when you have all that snow just continuing to, you know, accumulate, especially since it's been snowing like this for about a month. so do watch for that. down towards the south, the philippines continuing to see rain moving through. mostly showers, not quite as heavy as it was, but it will continue to rain and the wind will also be pretty intense into the weekend. here are your temperatures, 10 degrees in tokyo, partly cloudy skies. just about freezing in seoul and beijing. dry skies but

statement saying we are going to asia. now you and i know that it was done with sort of a standard campaign speech. and also it was something that was said to the europeans where they believed that europeans had felt neglected. but the ancients didn't fell neglected or they didn't know we left. when they say we returned a number of seemly people in china took this is a challenge. that we were coming back to confront them. which wasn't the intention at all. but this is how miss understandings can arise. >> charlie: is this an opportunity and can you accomplish this in a washington state visit where these two people hu jintao barack obama does it better so you can -- >> no you can't do it in a one day visit. when nixon went to china he went five days and he spent six hours a day talking. but what you can do and what we have done is to convey the intention and the seriousness of the intention and to begin the process. and thereby can give instructions each to their system that that's how they want the work to be done. but if

and the asia-pacific economy as estimated over $1 trillion annually. the region is home to 15 of the world's 20 largest ports with nine of them located in china alone and china has become the largest trading partner of japan, india, taiwan australia and south korea all allies are partners of the united states and the asia-pacific region is also home of five of the largest standing army is in the world in india, pakistan, the republic of korea, north korea and china, and that doesn't even include our own military force. so this extraordinary growth that we have witnessed and dynamism of the region and that of china and india and in particular has been made possible by 60 years of peace stability and prosperity. yes there have been some significant selections during this period but on balance it is a part with remarkable stability and prosperity and much in bed by the sec and openness of the global commons and the laws and institutions with much of that traced back to the presence in the region and engagement with allies and partners. remarkable as that

asia is one thing. let me tell you that asia includes japan, india, vietnam, the other aussie on countries and they have quite different views about the role of china. in fact most of them are very much in favor of an american president to balance an increase in chinese power. so that means a history that people use when they say the narrative of the 21st century is going to be like the 20th century, is wrong. germany had passed britain and industrial production by 1900, 14 years before world war i. if what i said is correct, that make the argument in great detail in the book, china is not going to be equal to the united states and power for decades and perhaps even longer. if that is true, then we don't have to have the second half of the equation. in the fear it created. americans can be more relaxed about how we deal with the rise in china. is going to be a long-term relationship of competition and cooperation and we are going to have to learn to walk and chew gum at the same time. both halves of tha

countries that will play the big roles are located here in asia or latin america but that's a direct question you know what is the current state of european asian relations europe is of no interest asia view europe as a landmass and tweezers to pacific oceans russia is your of the not a whole but if you picture there was an alliance here then we can say europe reaches the pacific affairs and this is the reason europe flees russia and i'm not sure if russian is europe but europe at the moment of needs russia well of course so it's not on and on course at one point you predicted the collapse of the soviet union and you knew forecasts for more than russia. that's the fear and now i don't email records that she's selling when i was writing about the soviet union i didn't see it as a forest or a look at it again and saw so many there negative elements but i couldn't help but ask myself how long will it last i don't make forecasts as a rule or a historian discover i look at the past and try to figure out what's happening in the prime.

now what is the current state of european asian relations europe is of no interest asia view europe as a landmass that tweet used to pacifica own. russians you're of are not a whole but if a picture there was an alliance here then what is sailing europe reaches the pacific to fill in this is the reason europe flees russia and i'm not sure if rationally is for europe but europe at the moment of need for russia well of course so worth my time and on course at one point you predicted the collapse of the soviet union and you knew forecasts for more than russia. that's the fear now i don't hear any good ideas that you saw when i was writing about the soviet union i didn't see it as a full harvester i looked again to eat and saw so many there negative elements that i couldn't help but ask myself how long will it last i don't make forecasts as a rule or the story of how i look at the past and try to figure out what's happening in the present i think russia has come a long way over the past twenty years it is having some difficulties as countries do it's not easy it is reducing the marquess

a very warm -- who rolled to an asia -- ruled tunisia. the death toll rises to 500 and many more are still stranded. prosecutors are investigating silvio berlusconi over a nightclub dancer. >> to asia is probably best known as a tourist's playground. -- tunisia. the north african country is just experiencing a dramatic few hours of political unrest. zine al-abidine ben ali was president for a quarter of a century. his extended family is spread in positions of power. he has fled the country and the people -- in a tv address the prime minister said he had taken over as interim president. he vowed to respect the constitution. >> icall on the all the sons and daughters from all walks of life and from all factions to try to be responsible and show unity. to enable our country which we love dearly to overcome this difficult situation and restore its stability. i promise to carry out this responsibility by respecting the constitution. and to carry out the political and social reforms already announced with consultation from all factions in the c

the recovery is due mainly to strong exports to emerging economies in southeast asia. are robust domestic demand pushed up china's imports to $1.4 trillion and its trade surplus shrank to $183 billion. the united states and other countries have been criticizing china for keeping its currency undervalued to expand its trade surplace. the subject is likely to come up between chinese president hu had you jintao and barack obama next week. >>> let's look at the markets. tokyo stocks were slightly down on tuesday morning after a three-day weekend. the nikkei ended the morning session at 10,516, down 0.2 per cent. the yen's gains against the euro and dollar are weighing down share prices. the dollar edged down against the yen in tokyo on tuesday morning. the greenback is changing hands at 83 yen. they attribute the decline to euro selling on overseas markets stemming from concerns about debt problems in portugal. >>> south korea has made a counter proposal to north korea for talks after rejecting the talks for dialogue. it could the talks would focus on yeonpyeong island. th

. >> and we will discuss the waning power of asia. >> asia is where the economic growth will compound over the next year or two. >> hello and happy new year. 2010 was the year the bureau crisis started. could 2011 be the year the euro falls apart? george osborn told european finance ministers that the bureau needs to get the house in order. >> here they come. ed >> no. >> wellcome. >> it is just nine years since i've watched the first notes, now in the middle of a euphoric crowd. now the euphoria has stopped. ed there is a credit problem of the court. last year showed the fold, bailout, and contagion. the pictures showed anger and unrest. will this be the make or break year for the -- the euro? >> europe's problem countries are still giving cause for concern. greece is struggling to meet the conditions of the bailout. social unrest is rising. ireland -- its banks have been facing penury for a generation. the country everyone is worried about now is spain. over the next three months, spain and portugal have to raise 225 billion euros on the bond market. both countries have been downgra

at the moment, the boom regions for german exports are china, southeast asia, brazil, russia, and thebian peninsula. export growth is 40% to 50% higher than the previous year across the board. but by far, the most demand for german exports comes from within the european union. france alone accounts for 10% of german exports. after a drop due to the recession in 2009, products made in germany are again in demand. there are several reasons for this relatively moderate growth and wages have kept german prices competitive. that effect is compounded by a relatively weak year, which makes german products cheaper to buy. at least outside the eurozone. 20 years ago, german exports were worth less than 400 billion euros per year. the record year so far west 2008, with exports worth just under $1 trillion in euros. then came the global economic crisis. still, analysts expect exports in this year to exceed the one trillion mark for the first time. the order burt -- the order books are full and companies are hiring new workers again. not all sectors are benefiting equally from the robust export d

and i think the biggest test of the next few years is whether america and europe and africa and asia can working together in cooperation to build economic policies that mean that you have sustained growth and environmental improvements, sustainable growth in you can create jobs. and i estimated to can create 50 million extra jobs and this would help america used it this period of unemployment if we have coordinated policies across the world. so the message i have from my experience and learning from what we have to do to counteract the financial crisis in 2008 and in 2000 - that there are a global problems and the need global solutions. you can't have the financial stability in america if this financial instability and every other country. you can't have good environmental policies in america that work if they are going to be undermined by bad environmental policies elsewhere. and you can't have growth without trade and that means that you have to cooperate with other countries to do so. this week is the week of the nobel peace prize been awarded, controversial as you know, to a chin

you're creating a consumer market in asia this twice the size of a consumer markets in america. the second thing that's going to happen is if we trade freely with other countries and don't become protectionist, then we can get the pictures of these markets. there's a danger or protectionist sentiments at the moment. people say we've got a problem because of that imports imports from other countries. think of it the other way around. we got an opportunity here because we've got a huge export market that free trade can allow us to benefit. the third thing will happen in the future for going to make the most of these new opportunities that are unheard of since the industrial revolution is there's got to be global cooperation. if companies don't work together, the more fun the world will grow more slowly and more people will be unemployed and more people have lower standards of living than is possible that if we work together. and i think the biggest test of the next few years is whether america and europe and africa and asia can work together in cooperation to build economic polici

so asia's transformation holds great promise. the size and complexity of asia-pacific region and the patterns and power, economic, military, diplomatic, cultural, you name it, makes the course of regional events far from certain. our principle task is to nurture the infrastructure and the architecture that have facilitated it in the region. failure to do that could derail the region's hard-earned progress and can lead to the type of competitions that could undo much of the progress that we have seen in recent decades. it's not in china's interest nor the region as a whole. in many ways, many are too obvious to enumerate here, china has a role to play to promote, peace and prosperity. with the second largest economy in the world, there can be no future that this region would benefit significantly from positive contributions from china. secretary gates has said in the strong, responsible and prosperous china. and we welcome and encourage china's active and positive contributions to the stability, resilience and growth of the region

we're joined in the studio by the senior director of asia and thanks for being with us. steve yates, the president of the counsel here in washington dc serving in the bush cheney administration for security affairs in the first term of the administration. thank you for being with us. so much at stake with this meeting going on, the issue of protocol and ceremony, but also the business and trade relations, currency and human rights. what will come from this visit? >> guest: actually i think beyond the long list you provided because there's a lot on the security side of the relationship, and from the evidence at this point, it suggests some of the biggest gains are in the security relationship. the chinese had a statement on north korea that acknowledged their rich uranium program and really pushed hard to get the north koreans back to an agreement they signed back in september of 2005, but it violated and on iran they were forward leading. i think the administration was happy with that dimension. if you step back, it might be the main purpose of this visit was to set this