Pacific Affairs

🏆 Announcing the 24th William L. Holland Prize Winner!

We are thrilled to recognize Toshiko Tsujimoto, 立命館大学／Ritsumeikan University, as the winner of the William L. Holland Prize for the best article published in Pacific Affairs, Vol. 98 (2025).
Her article, “Deterring the Right to Justice: Structural Coercion and the Trafficking of Filipino Female Entertainers in South Korea,” which appeared in vol. 98, no. 2, was selected through a rigorous multi-stage review of voting by our Executive Committee and wider Editorial Board. Board members praised Tsujimoto's study for its original insights, rich ethnographic research, and policy relevance, which taken together offer a powerful analysis of structural coercion with real-world impact. Full Article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.5509/2025982-art1

We also extend warm congratulations to our runner-up, Mai Truong, Marquette University, for her paper "Perceived Protest Efficacy: How Economic and Diplomatic Ties with China Influence Support for Anti-China Protests Over South China Sea Disputes". Full Article: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.5509/2025983-art2

Read more about the award: https://pacificaffairs.ubc.ca/about/holland-prize/

What does it mean when a North Korean leader admits he got something wrong?

In the upcoming June Issue, Minkwan Kim, Yonsei University, examines how Kim Jong-un has quietly shifted tactics by moving away from the outright denial that defined his predecessors toward selective acknowledgment of policy failures, particularly in the aftermath of natural disasters that are increasingly difficult to conceal in today's information environment.

Kim calls this strategy "managed fallibility": by owning limited failures, Kim Jong-un projects the image of a responsive, accountable leader—all while keeping authoritarian control firmly intact. It's a fascinating window into how authoritarian regimes adapt to survive, and what legitimacy looks like when the old playbook stops working.

📖 Read the full article in Pacific Affairs June Issue: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0030851X.2026.2661488
Image Credit: Korean Central News Agency

What do the 2025 Philippine midterm elections tell us about the state of democracy in the Philippines?

A new Perspective in our March issue: Aries Arugay and Maria Elize Mendoza at UP Diliman argue that three emotional narratives—remorse, resentment, and resilience—shaped the results. Voter dissatisfaction with President Marcos Jr.'s administration and the breakdown of the "UniTeam" alliance hurt the Alyansa slate. The legal troubles of the Dutertes, rather than weakening them, rallied their supporters and raised their political profile. And despite years of losses, liberal and progressive candidates are beginning to win back legislative ground.

With the 2028 presidential race approaching, this piece offers essential context on where Philippine politics stands today.

Read "Remorse, Resentment, and Resilience: The 2025 Midterm Philippine Elections": https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/0030851X.2026.2626217

📢 New in Pacific Affairs | "Reframing Growth: Elite Paradigms and Korea's Green Pivot" by Sun Park

Why did South Korea go green in 2020–2021 despite being deeply locked into fossil fuels and nuclear energy? Park's answer: it wasn't about Paris compliance—it was elite-driven, with political entrepreneurs recasting climate policy as industrial strategy and economic opportunity.

The study draws on process tracing and 22 elite interviews to show how that shift got locked into law, bureaucracy, and corporate practice and why it survived a change in government.

Read the full paper in the March issue: https://www.tandfonline.com/eprint/FEEZFZUZC89KWTIMFUIE/full?target=10.1080/0030851X.2026.2629091

New article in the March issue: "Governing Asymmetric Interdependence Networks" by OneSun Cho at Science and Technology Policy Institute in Korea

Submarine cables carry the bulk of the world's internet traffic and how states secure them reveals a lot about power, position, and strategy in the global network. A new study finds that while the US and Japan face similar threats, their policy responses diverge sharply: the US pursues aggressive, outward-facing hypersecuritization as a network hub, while Japan opts for quieter domestic resilience as a spoke state—achieving its security goals without escalating tension.

Read more for free till June 1: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0030851X.2026.2626216

Why are more Vietnamese workers cashing out their pensions early? 🇻🇳

In this month's issue, Tu Phuong Nguyen's article "Pension Withdrawals and the Paradox of Social Protection in Vietnam" unpacks a striking contradiction at the heart of Vietnam's pension scheme. For factory workers in export-oriented sectors, two tensions stand out:
1. The reform’s emphasis on long term security sits uneasily with workers’ present needs, including their care responsibilities.
2. Pension eligibility is premised on continuous participation in formal employment, an assumption that clashes with workers’ experiences of job insecurity in a volatile labour market.

The result? Early withdrawals become a coping strategy, yet often create new insecurities.

Read more in our March issue 👉🏽 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0030851X.2026.2626215

**New Article Alert | March Issue**

In "Navigating a Cautious Pivot: Strategic Circumspection and Knowledge Diplomacy in Malaysia's Engagement with Iran under Anwar Ibrahim," author Maziar Falarti reveals how Kuala Lumpur has carefully repositioned itself since 2022—not through political or religious solidarity, but through academic exchange, research collaboration, and science diplomacy.

Falarti highlights how middle-income states can use knowledge diplomacy to expand strategic flexibility... even under the pressure of U.S. sanctions and complex domestic sensitivities.
A timely read for anyone watching how the Global South navigates today's geopolitical landscape.

👉🏽 Read it online: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0030851X.2026.2626214
or see in our March print issue, coming soon!

Pacific Affairs is heading to the Association for Asian Studies, Inc. (AAS) Annual Conference and this year, it's practically in our backyard! 🍁

Join us at Booth 320 in the Exhibition Hall at in beautiful Vancouver, BC, March 13–15, 2026.

Have an article idea? Looking for a home for a planned special issue? Interested in reviewing books? Or just want to say hi? Come find us — we'd love to chat.

Stay tuned: dates and times to meet the Editor coming soon!

As 2025 draws to a close, Pacific Affairs extends its sincere thanks to our authors, editorial board, reviewers, and—most of all—our readers around the world.

The year ahead brings important changes, and we are excited to be pushing out into new waters. For those who haven't had the chance to read it, these forthcoming developments are outlined in our Editor’s letter from the December 2025 issue.

With gratitude for your continued commitment to Pacific Affairs, here's wishing all of you a happy, prosperous, and healthy 2026!

Want to learn more about the history of globalization and its backlash? Read Marina Yue Zhang's review of "Deglobalization: Short Histories" by Edward Ashbee.

DEGLOBALIZATION: Short Histories | By Edward Ashbee - Pacific Affairs (UBC Journal) Marina Yue Zhang

Interested in the state formation of China in a global context? Check out Edward Wang's book review of "Birth of the Geopolitical Age: Global Frontiers and the Making of Modern China" by Shellen Xiao Wu, a book providing insights into the relation between frontier expansion and modern geopolitics. https://tinyurl.com/mrfjw6jy