China
China’s intelligence gathering ships change the equation
Exercise Talisman Sabre has finished, and the Australian, American and Japanese units involved have dispersed to their bases or operational deployments. So has the Chinese ship…
The trouble in the air on a tense Tuesday in Northeast Asia
Last Tuesday (23 July) was a bad day in Northeast Asia, not just for what happened but what it foreshadows. Tensions are rising. After all, it’s not every day that a South Korean…
The importance of trust in preserving Antarctica’s future
For international governance of the near-pristine expanse of the Antarctic, consensus decision making is powerful indeed. This model, is the modus operandi of Antarctic law, and…
China’s head-spinning defence white paper
Readers of the white paper China’s National Defence in the New Era can be forgiven for their headaches as they move from one conflicting statement to another in Beijing’s latest…
What the rest of Asia thinks about China’s Belt and Road Initiative
If scientists are right, 85% of what comprises the universe is unseen, so-called “dark matter” material that neither reflects nor emits light. In recent times, “south-south”…
Trump and Xi need a trade deal and they need it soon
With resumed contact between US trade negotiator Robert Lighthizer and China’s negotiator Vice Premier Liu He, the 12th round of trade talks between the US and China may take…
What Tom Cruise can teach us about great power competition
Last week Paramount Pictures released the trailer for its much-hyped Top Gun sequel, Top Gun: Maverick. The new movie sees Tom Cruise reprise his role as Pete “Maverick” Mitchell,…
Xi Jinping: much more than just one man
Book Review: Xi Jinping: The Backlash by Richard McGregor (Penguin, Lowy Institute, 2019)
Richard McGregor has written a dazzling account of the first six years of the Xi Jinping…
Richard McGregor on the backlash against Xi Jinping - podcast out now
Episode 5 of the Lowy Institute’s new podcast, Rules Based Audio, is out today. In Xi Jinping - The Backlash, Lowy Senior Fellow Richard McGregor discusses his new…
The heights of China’s ambition in Antarctica
China has become more and more active in Antarctica in recent years – both in research and in the international framework of agreements known as the Antarctic Treaty System…