UPTEMPO: The United States and Natural Disasters in the Pacific
Publisher: New America
Author(s): Francis Gassert, Sharon Burke, and Rachel Zimmerman
Date: 2020
Topics: Climate Change, Conflict Causes, Disasters, Humanitarian Assistance
Countries: China, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Philippines, Thailand
Climate change is increasing natural disasters in the Indo-Pacific region, even as the vulnerability and exposure of the region’s huge population rises. There will likely be an increasing demand for military humanitarian and disaster relief missions, which has implications for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command’s plans, personnel, platforms, and relationships in the region. China and other regional powers are improving disaster response capabilities, which may help the region overall improve its response or resilience, or may reduce U.S. influence in the region. No matter what, the fate of all Pacific peoples will be tied together, as the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare.