11/11/2025 - Strategic Balance in the Indo–Pacific Region

When: 11 November 2025, 10:30-11:50
Where: MUP Prague-Strašnice building, Dubečská 900/10, Prague, Room 305
Speaker: Dr. Karl P. Kucera

China remains the dominant power in the Asia-Pacific, though the US still balances its influence, particularly regarding control of sea lanes, access to resources, and strategic interests in the South China Sea. The Indo-Pacific sits at the heart of today’s global geostrategic balance. While recent U.S. policies suggest weaker support for traditional allies, Washington has renewed engagement through the QUAD and AUKUS alliances to counter China’s rise. The QUAD plays a central role in maintaining regional stability, despite tensions over trade. If U.S. credibility with allies erodes further, regional uncertainty could spur Japan and others to seek independent deterrents. Other key security pacts, such as the Five Power Defence Arrangement, also contribute to maintaining balance in the Asia-Pacific.

Speaker: Dr. Karl P. Kucera is an environmental and development expert with more than fifty years of international experience in integrated river basin and coastal zone management, climate change impact assessment, and environmental planning. He has led and contributed to major projects across Southeast Asia—especially in Indonesia, Malaysia, and Vietnam—as well as in Africa and Europe, focusing on water resources, irrigation, land use, and disaster-risk mitigation. His professional background spans government and university research, consulting, and applied fieldwork for institutions such as the National University of Singapore and SOAS University of London.