China
Where next, Jack Ma?
On the morning of Monday 10 September, China’s most famous billionaire announced plans to step down as head of the company he founded. Jack Ma (马云) revealed he would leave…
China’s Muslim ban
At first, Chinese authorities in her village in Xinjiang removed the crescents from the mosque, Auken told me. Then the imam and the boy responsible for the call to prayers…
How Taiwan deters China – and can do better yet
Against the backdrop of China’s rise as a military power, Taiwan’s defence is often portrayed as a lost cause. However, the Lowy Institute’s Asia Power Index (API)…
PNG: new friend versus old, APEC and polio
The condemnation of China last week by Nauru’s President Baron Waqa at the Pacific Island Forum leaders’ meeting may have been bolstered by Taiwan’s substantial investment in that…
China’s trans-Himalayan tango with Nepal
Crossing the China-Nepal border via Tibet and the Himalayas is as formidable as it has been for centuries. To drive from Tibet’s capital city Lhasa to the Gyirong checkpoint…
Political blackmail in the Taiwan-China contest
Last month, El Salvador announced it will establish diplomatic relations with China. Under the “one China” policy, this meant El Salvador had to break official diplomatic ties…
China’s tech bubble
In the four decades that have followed China’s initial stage of post-Mao “Reform and Opening Up”, the world has learned to expect great things from the Middle Kingdom’s centrally…
The threat within: Pakistan’s ties to China
Last month, a suicide bomber in Pakistan’s Balochistan province attacked a passenger bus transporting 18 Chinese engineers from Saindak town in the southwest to…
Lies, damn lies, and Chinese statistics
Lies, damn lies, and statistics, and of course to that list should be added Chinese statistics.
After reporting three quarters of 6.8% GDP growth – even though the economy and…
Will Solomon Islands abandon Taiwan?
Over the last couple of years Taiwan has been steadily haemorrhaging diplomatic allies. Countries from Africa, Central America and the Caribbean have switched allegiance to…