Jonah Bock is the Assistant Director for Research at The Alliance Futures Initiative. His own work focuses on strategic competition, Pacific Islands geopolitics, and China's influence in the region. He brings experience spanning policy research, open-source intelligence, and futures analysis — not the kinds he reads in sci-fi.
Background
Prior to joining TAFI, Jonah served as a Senior Research Assistant at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute USA, where he published widely on Pacific Islands affairs in outlets including The Diplomat, The National Interest, and The Strategist. His work has examined topics ranging from U.S. strategic competition with China in the Pacific to Taiwan's diplomatic relationships, naval shipbuilding policy, and the geopolitics of individual island nations such as Palau and Kiribati.
He also held a virtual student federal service internship with the Department of State's East Asia and Pacific Bureau, supporting research on China's efforts to erode Taiwan's diplomatic partnerships in the Pacific.
At TAFI
Jonah produces the PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor, a weekly open-source intelligence product providing systematic tracking of Beijing's public diplomatic activities across the nine Pacific Island Countries hosting Chinese missions.
Education
He holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs from American University's School of International Service, with a minor in Chinese Language. Jonah studied abroad in Taiwan, where he ate very well and took a couple of courses too.
Recent Work
China Works the Interior
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 28
China’s Ambassador briefs Naoeroan MPs on Beijing’s ethnic unity law and holds a second party-to-party exchange with Vanuatu’s Land and Justice Party; a Chinese diplomat reaches the Solomon Islands’ Temotu Province for the first time.
Close Protection, Aerial Surveillance, and a Spy Ship in Suva
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 27
China’s Police Liaison Team completes close protection training for the RSIPF officers who guard the Solomon Islands’ political leadership; the embassy in Port Vila donates drones to Vanuatu Correctional Services; Beijing’s defence attaché in Suva marks the return of a donated hydrographic survey ship.
Beijing Sends Buyers to Port Moresby
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 26
A PetroChina delegation lands in Port Moresby days after Taiwan suspends spot LNG purchases; Guangdong signs a media letter of intent in Apia; China’s National Immigration Administration donates six vehicles to the Solomon Islands Immigration Division.
China’s Model on the Offensive
TAFI Perspective
Beijing’s 15th Five-Year Plan promotion in the Pacific Islands is a governance-model export. All nine PRC embassies have run coordinated advocacy, and in Naoero, Kiribati, and Tonga they moved past description into offering to help host governments design their strategies along Chinese lines.
China Addresses Taiwan Holdouts
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 25
Chinese diplomats publish one-China principle op-eds in Fiji and the FSM using PNG’s Taipei office closure as their opening; Liu Weimin defends the missile test in Tonga; China hands over 161 CHEC/Huawei-built telecom towers in the Solomon Islands.
The CCP Takes Its Party Act to the Pacific
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 24
The CCP’s International Liaison Department makes its first recorded Pacific visit; Chinese ambassadors and provinces run six training programs for 130+ Pacific Islanders; PLA 99th anniversary receptions across three capitals.
China’s Nauru Ambassador Hitches a Ride to Kiribati
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 23
China’s Ambassador to Nauru accompanies President Adeang to Kiribati’s independence day; Solomon Islands FM signs an economic framework in Beijing; PNG closes the Taipei Economic Office.
Fiji Picks Australia; China Stays Anyway
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 22
Days after Fiji signed the Ocean of Peace Alliance with Australia, China’s defense attaché donated to the RFMF, attended the Commander’s birthday, and toured a frontline Fijian battalion.
China and Taiwan Both Come Bearing Gifts
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 21
China and Taiwan each donate to the Pacific Islands Forum in parallel bids for influence; Qian Bo engages the PIF Secretariat and Tonga’s PM.
China Delegates Pacific Diplomacy to the Provinces
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 20
Jiangsu Province leads China’s engagement with Fiji and Solomon Islands; Qian Bo briefs Pacific Islands diplomats in Nanjing on the Seven Cooperation Platforms.
China’s Police Walk a Fiji Beat
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 19
China resumes police equipment handovers to Fiji and runs an intensive seminar campaign across the region.
Fengqiao Lite in Lau Valley: China’s Grassroots Policing Model Adapts to the Solomons
PRC Pacific Embassies Monitor · Wk 18
China’s policing partnerships in the Solomons; coordinated Dialogue Among Civilizations push and a Nauru media broadcast.