This is an old revision of the document!
Table of Contents
A Revised History of the Future : Notes on China, India and Asia
Why is Myanmar still described as a Military Junta? Didn't they have elections recently?
From what I've been able to gather, the elections were a sham and the ruling party is a front for the military junta (hell, their ideology is listed as “Pro-Military Junta” on Wikipedia!), so I don't think I need to change it. The junta hasn't fallen from or ceded much (if any) power, they're just going through the motions of “democracy” to satisfy ASEAN and foreign critics.
North Korea and South Korea are still both divided in 2080, surprisingly.
Not really. Despite everyone hoping the Kim regime will fall, they simply don't. It takes until 2048 for a Kim to come to power that actually wants to repair relations and liberalize, and it takes him 30 years to transform the country from a totalitarian fortress state to an authoritarian semi-capitalist one. Even by 2080, the two are ready to talk about closer relations, but South Korea is still much more developed and wealthy (though now its closer to where East and West Germany were at reunification than the present NK/SK situation).
How much is English used in China? At roughly the same level as today? Do most Chinese speak English?
Most living in Urban China speak English, especially those in the Middle Class or higher. They're also likely to know some bits of Hindi and Spanish.
How close are Iran and India? And how much does either side act like it's an equal partnership?
Close, though Iran acts as if their relationship is more equal than it really is. Until the 2060s, India relied on Iran for the majority of its fuel. Post-Peak Oil, however, Iran is heavily subsidized by India to maintain its budget. India has been a good influence on Iran, however, and India's culture of democracy has helped keep Iran a democratic state since the Green Revolution. However, as the Middle East has now destabilized again, some in the Indian government are wondering whether or not Iran is becoming a liability to Indian foreign policy.
As of 2080, what is the current status of Pakistan? And how are their relations with India?
Pakistan has slowly been stabilizing since an almost Somalia-level collapse in the 20s and decades of lawlessness for 30 years after. Since 2052, the Indo-Pakistani rivalry has been considered more or less resolved and relations between the two governments are now rather close. The normalization of relations between them led into the creation of ISTO in 2060, as it was the merger and expansion of existing Indo-Pakistani and Indo-East African anti-piracy task forces.
What level of influence do India and China has in ASEAN, North and South Korea and Mongolia?
ASEAN is torn between India and China, though leans more toward India thanks to Indonesia being a firm Indian ally via ISTO. The other ASEAN members are politically and financially indebted to both Beijing and New Delhi, so it's not uncommon for cloak-and-dagger shenanigans to go on in Southeast Asia. The big difference separating 2080s ASEAN with Cold War Europe is that India and China are friendly rivals, not bitter enemies, and more concerned with business contracts/money than balance of power politics.
What is China and Taiwan's relations like in by 2080? Now that China is democratic is Taiwan open to unifying or is it still put off by the Communist government? Or has Taiwanese nationalism developed to a point that it no longer claims to be the Republic of China?
China and Taiwan only recently normalized their relations after decades of warming up to each other, spurred on by closer business links and China's democratization. However, Taiwan is not interested in reunification - it's been over 130 years since the split, nobody in Taiwan considers themselves “Chinese” anymore. Taiwan is interested in a closer relationship, however, and that's something I'm going to eventually get into. They've retained the name “Republic of China” thus far, but no longer claim right to rule the whole of China.