Asia Insight

In this episode, we interview Jonathan Elkind (Columbia University, former Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Energy) and Clara Gillispie (NBR) about U.S. energy policy in Asia. Elkind and Gillispie discuss the role of energy in the “Free and Open Indo-Pacific” strategy, how countries in the region are responding, what U.S.-China trade tensions have to do with energy, and what they’d like to see from the Trump administration’s policies in the future.

2:30 How did your interest in energy policy begin?

4:50 What is the U.S. energy policy towards Asia?

8:49 Can you separate energy policy from broader policy toward Asia?

10:15 How do Japan and South Korea fit into our energy policy?

12:30 What are the primary concerns from other countries in the region? How have they been reacting to U.S. policy?

15:33 What is the future of U.S.-Russia relations on energy?

18:40 What are the prospects for a Russia-Japan energy pipeline?

20:12 How are U.S.-China tensions on trade affecting energy policy?

• References the report, “A Natural Gas Giant Awakens: China’s Quest for Blue Skies Shapes Global Markets”

27:55 How is the energy industry handling uncertainty in U.S. policy?

35:50 What have you seen in the Trump administration’s approach to investing in emerging energy technology?

40:20 What do you wish the administration would consider as it formulates energy policy?

43:58 What is the most promising energy source for the future and why?

45:00 What book on energy would you recommend to an Asia generalist?

• Richard Rhodes, Energy: A Human History
• Varun Sivaram, Taming the Sun: Innovations to Harness Solar Energy and Power the Planet
• Meghan O’Sullivan, Windfall: How the New Energy Abundance Upends Global Politics and Strengthens America's Power