Trump’s Second Term and the Future of the QUAD: Transactionalism, Alliances, and the Indo-Pacific Order

This webinar, part 8 of the Europe–Asia Webinar Series and hosted by YCAPS and ISDP, examines how Donald Trump’s return to the White House for a second term could reshape the QUAD and the wider Indo-Pacific order. Drawing on insights from European, Indian, and Japanese perspectives, the panel explores the future of U.S. regional engagement under a renewed “America First” framework—where transactional diplomacy, alliance skepticism, and economic nationalism redefine strategic expectations.

Speakers will assess whether Trump’s second term will weaken or transform the QUAD’s cohesion as a pillar of regional security. How might tariff pressures, unilateral policies, and a revived confrontational stance toward China affect the Indo-Pacific balance of power? Can India, Japan, and Australia adapt their strategies to sustain the QUAD’s momentum amid U.S. unpredictability?

The discussion situates the QUAD within an evolving Indo-Pacific architecture marked by uncertainty, competition, and recalibration. It argues that the coming years may test whether the QUAD remains a vehicle for shared democratic values or becomes a transactional alignment of convenience. Moderated by Dr. Jagannath Panda (ISDP) and Mr. Isak Nordenberg (YCAPS Europe), the event will feature critical insights from Mr. Don McLain Gill and Dr. Astha Chadha before opening the floor for questions and discussion.

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Speakers:

Mr. Don McLain Gill is a Filipino geopolitical analyst, author, and lecturer at the Department of International Studies, De La Salle University. He is also an Indo-Pacific Research Fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. He has written extensively in the form of books, book chapters, peer reviewed journals, and professional commentary articles on Philippine foreign policy, maritime secutity, and India-Southeast Asia security relations Sent from my iPhone

Dr. Astha Chadha is an Associate Professor of International Relations at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, and an invited lecturer at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, Beppu. She is currently a Communications Officer at Religion and IR Section (REL) of International Studies Association (ISA), Researcher at Democracy Promotion Center, Beppu and Women Peace and Security (WPS) fellow at Pacific Forum, Hawaii. She publishes on India-Japan relations, South Asian security, Indo-Pacific affairs, and religion in world politics.

Webinar Cost: Free of charge
Chair: Dr. Jagannath Panda, ISDP
Co-Chairs: Isak Nordenberg, YCAPS
Format: This event will be on-the-record. Questions are encouraged. It will be recorded.
Registration: Required via this link.
Co-Sponsor: Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP)