What happens to diplomacy when a global health crisis undermines trust, institutions, and state credibility? This book shows how COVID‑19 pandemic transformed health into a strategic instrument of foreign policy in the Indo‑Pacific. It explores how states, such as China, Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, used health diplomacy to rebuild influence, manage reputation, and compete for credibility. Drawing on comparative case studies and neoclassical realism, the book demonstrates why bilateral cooperation eclipsed multilateral frameworks during the pandemic—and what this means for soft power, global governance, and future crises. It offers timely insights into health diplomacy as a core tool for contemporary international relations.