A Mid-Year Check on US Asia Policy

Asia Geopolitics | Security

Goodbye INDOPACOM and hello (again) Middle Eastern distractions.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth hosts the First Plenary: U.S. Strategy for Peace in the Indo-Pacific during the IISS Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore, Singapore, May 30, 2026.

Today on The Diplomat’s Asia Geopolitics podcast hosts Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) and Katie Putz (@LadyPutz) take stock of U.S. Asia policy at the midpoint of 2026, discussing the recent renaming of INDOPACOM and last month’s Shangri-La Dialogue. What are the perception of U.S. Asia policy among regional players amid recurrent distractions caused by conflicts in the Middle East and the uncertain future of China-U.S. relations?

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