When covering Asia, it's rarely the case that there is too little to say. A region which boasts a rogue nuclear state, the second and third largest economies in the world, the largest global population - the list goes on.
And it seems clear now that even Transatlantic issues are intricately bound up in what happens in Asia. If you need convincing, just ask people stretching from climate change campaigners to Wall Street bankers.
In a twist of irony, just as global eyes focus increasingly on Asia (and in particular China), Asian eyes are increasingly looking inward at internal issues. In Japan, for example, it is the internal party difficulties of the new Government which are currently dominating the headlines.
Equally in China it would be a mistake to think that external issues such as US arms sales to Taiwan are vexing the man in the street.
An online poll just before March's National People's Congess (China's parliament) asked Chinese citizens what subjects should be discussed. High up on the list were not issues like Taiwan or the Dalai Lama, but rather corruption, income disparities and soaring house prices.
That's because in China, all politics really is local, to paraphrase an American quotation. In this issue, we look at how the country's external stance is often dictated by domestic needs. And we hear from China experts that the whole stability of the country rests on being able to satisfy these needs.
Factoring this knowledge into viewing China's position on everything from climate change to North Korea's missile programme is crucial, if we are to understand those positions. Everything external comes second - keeping the country together, developing and stable comes first.
China's leaders know that their key audience is their home one. And in this, they may well be studying the wisdom of Confucius - perhaps particularly his quote 'When anger rises, think of the consequences'.
Paul King, Editor