China
Making sense of the known unknowns in the South China Sea
I'd like to thank Hugh White for his continued thoughtfulness and collegiality in our ongoing exchange on the South China Sea. I thought it might be interesting to pivot from…
Commentary
A Chinese threat to Australian openness
Originally published in the New York Times (Photo: Flickr/Mark爱生活)
Merriden Varrall
Chinese spy ships: The devil in the detail
Recent posts in The Interpreter (by Iain Henry, Euan Graham and James Goldrick) have commented on the presence of a Chinese intelligence-gathering ship off the Queensland Coast…
Time for Five Eyes to coordinate on Chinese tech investment
The recent exposure of Chinese influence-peddling inside the Australian political system is just one example of China’s growing influence and willingness to act in Western states…
For sale, cheap: Armed drones
Once the domain of only a handful of states, weaponised drones are now part of the military arsenal of no less than a dozen countries. That number is set to expand after China…
Empathising with China
The recent presence of a PLA-N auxiliary general intelligence vessel off Queensland has generated some interesting discussions. Euan Graham and James Goldrick are right that the…
Let’s be clear: China would call America’s bluff in the South China Sea
It seems to be widely agreed that Washington’s current policy of well-worn talking points and low-key FONOPS in the South China Sea [SCS] isn’t working. Ely Ratner and I have been…
Doklam: Paths ahead for India and China
As the India-China standoff at the Doklam tri-junction area enters its second month, it is clear this is the most serious crisis between the two countries in 30 years. There are…
China sees the West behind Liu Xiaobo
The reaction in China to the death of Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo last week is both surprising and illuminating. Surprising in that few in the West would have expected anger…
Enter the dragon: Thailand gets closer to China
The recent announcement that the leader of Thailand’s ruling military junta, General Prayut Chan-Ocha, would use the controversial Article 44 to speed up construction of the…