Iran Foreign Minister's Defiant Message to the U.S.

Relations between Iran and the United States, never good, have recently grown worse. On April 8, the Trump administration designated Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, prompting Tehran to slap the same designation onto the U.S. military’s Central Command. And last week, the U.S. announced it would no longer exempt Iran’s oil-buyers from sanctions enforcement designed to thwart Iran’s nuclear program.

In the wake of these events, Iran’s U.S.-educated foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, appeared at Asia Society New York for a lively, comprehensive conversation with Asia Society President and CEO Josette Sheeran. Zarif asserted that Iran would continue to sell its oil to foreign buyers in spite of American pressure. He also revealed that the U.S., Iran, and Saudi Arabia had agreed to a ceasefire in Yemen’s war — but that Saudi Arabia pulled out at the last minute. And for the first time, Zarif made public his offer to negotiate a prisoner exchange with the U.S., which, according to the Iranian diplomat, had not responded.

Want to learn more? Asia Blog has five takeaways from Zarif’s appearance. You can also check out the latest episode of the Asia Abridged podcast as well as the complete exchange between Zarif and Sheeran.

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ARTS

Asia Society Announces 2020 Triennial

Asia Society’s inaugural Triennial of Asia, a festival of art, ideas, and innovation, will launch in New York in spring 2020. This first edition of the Triennial will include a multi-venue exhibition, policy discussions, forums, and performances. The centerpiece, an exhibition entitled We Do Not Dream Alone, will open to the public on June 5, 2020, and continue through August 9.

Rooted in New York City, the exhibition is conceived of as a platform and forum for exchange and engagement with the rich tapestry of Asian cultures that make up a significant, yet less historically understood demographic of the city. The Triennial will be the first recurring multi-venue, multimedia exhibition initiative in the United States dedicated to contemporary art from and about Asia.

The New York Times called Asia Society’s Triennial the museum’s “biggest bet yet” on contemporary art. Find out more about this extraordinary event, organized by Asia Society Museum Director Boon Hui Tan and Asia Society Museum Senior Curator Michelle Yun.

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POLICY

China's Belt and Road Forum — What You Need To Know

Last week China welcomed more than 5,000 delegates from across the globe to Beijing for the annual Belt and Road Forum, a gathering that displays the size and scope of China’s signature foreign policy initiative, launched in 2013 by President Xi Jinping. Consisting of large-scale infrastructure investments encompassing billions of dollars in a vast array of countries, the Belt and Road Initiative is often referred to as China’s Marshall Plan. More recent evidence, however, suggests that not every recipient of Chinese largesse is enthusiastic about the arrangement. A ChinaFile conversation published last week wonders whether this year’s forum marks an exciting beginning for the BRI — or the beginning of the end.

“There’s been a lot of blowback,” Daniel Russel, vice president of international security and diplomacy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, said today on CNN. “The good news is that the Chinese clearly have heard that. The question mark is whether there would be more than sweet sounding rhetoric and promises. The world, frankly, has ‘promise fatigue’ when it comes to China.”

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UPCOMING EVENTS

On May 1, an all-star panel of guests including former U.S. Ambassador Cameron Hume will discuss the stakes of Indonesia’s elections, the results of which will be announced on May 22nd, at Asia Society New York. The breakfast conversation, which will be available via webcast, starts at 8:30 a.m. New York time.

On May 2, Asia Society New York hosts Reshma Saujani, founder and CEO of Girls Who Code, and Nina Davuluri, the first Indian-American woman to win Miss America, for a discussion of their experiences as women in the traditionally male-dominated science and technology industries. The program will begin at 6:30 p.m. New York time and will be webcast globally.

On May 4, Asia Society New York will host the fourth annual Lahore Literary Festival New York, a celebration of the arts, literature, and culture of contemporary Pakistan. Tickets are available for both the afternoon and evening sessions — click here for the full schedule of speakers and discussions.

The diplomat Richard Holbrooke, who among other posts served as the chair of the Asia Society, is the subject of the new biography Our Man, written by The Atlantic’s George Packer. On May 7, Packer will discuss his book with Suzanne Nossel of PEN America and Asia Society Executive Vice President Tom Nagorski. The live webcast will begin at 6:30 p.m. New York time.

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