Chapter 1: Introduction and Analytical Framework Across the Asia-Pacific, questions of gender justice are inextricably linked to the region’s most pressing international challenges. From the intensifying climate crisis to shifting patterns of economic interdependence and rising geopolitical rivalries, the policies governments pursue beyond their borders are deeply connected to struggles over equality, representation, and human rights within their own borders. This region—home to immense cultural diversity, sharp inequalities, and a complex mix of governance systems—provides both fertile ground and significant barriers for embedding feminist principles in international policy. The animating questions for this study flow from these realities: How are feminist principles being interpreted, adapted, or resisted in Asia-Pacific international policies? What political, institutional, and socio-cultural barriers shape the possibilities for integration? Where are the most viable entry points for advancing gender justice in foreign, development, and regional agendas? And what localised strategies or best practices can inform global frameworks and debates? These questions matter not only for women, girls, and the marginalised groups whose lives are directly affected, but also for the broader project of reshaping international relations in ways that privilege human security, solidarity, and sustainability over narrow state-centric imperatives. This report critically examines how feminist principles are advancing within the Asia-Pacific’s international policy landscape, connecting the domestic and the global. Across the region, governments are adopting new gender and development priorities at home, whether through quotas for women in politics, national climate strategies that acknowledge gendered vulnerabilities, or peace and security plans that commit to women’s inclusion. These domestic frameworks shape how states project themselves abroad, influencing their positions in climate negotiations, trade talks, aid strategies, and migration governance. We analyse how these principles transition from the national to the international arena, and how states, civil society movements, and regional organisations adopt, adapt, or resist feminist approaches. In reality, though, the regional context is diverse and highly complex. On the one hand, the Philippines was the first Asian country to adopt a Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) National Action Plan(NAP), and Mongolia has pledged to adopt a Feminist Foreign Policy(FFP). Indonesia has spearheaded United Nations(UN) resolutions on women’s participation in peacekeeping, while Australia has launched a comprehensive International Gender Equality Strategy. On the other hand, India has not adopted a WPS National Action Plan, while Nepal has imposed paternalistic restrictions on women migrants, and several states in the region have seen backlash from conservative and 12 Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung e.V.