Day: March 27, 2025
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China’s High-Speed Rail Network Passes 50,000 km With New Line
China’s high-speed rail network has crossed 50,000 kilometers of operating track, state media reported, with authorities opening a new line linking Xi’an and Yan’an in northwestern China on Friday. China marked the milestone by launching the Xi’an–Yan’an high-speed route in ...
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Questions Around Saint Vincent and Grenadines’ Ties with Taiwan
Wednesday’s press briefing at the Chinese Foreign Ministry seemed to plant a discussion about Saint Vincent and the Grenadines’ future diplomatic relations with Taiwan. The tiny island state has an election today, with the Taiwan issue at play. A reporter from ...
Tonga Gets Full Diplomatic Treatment Amid Pacific Tensions
Tonga’s King Tupou VI wrapped up a 6-day visit to China that saw him meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Premier Li Qiang, and Zhao Leji, the head of the National People’s Congress’s Standing Committee. The visit saw the signing ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: Xi Jinping Reaffirms Support for Maduro
The Pentagon has reportedly flagged the Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba, the electric vehicle leader BYD, and the search engine provider Baidu for inclusion on a list of companies that assist the Chinese military. The decision was reportedly made before the recent talks between Presidents Xi and Trump. It’s ...
China at COP30 and the New Politics of Climate Change
With the U.S. absent from two major international summits this month, the G20 in South Africa and the COP30 in Brazil, we got an early look at what the post-American order is starting to look like. In both instances, China moved ...
Uber Deploys Chinese EV Minicars For its Budget Option in South Africa
Uber is deploying compact electric vehicles from China, introducing a fully electric ride-hailing option to the South African market. At the center of the rollout is the Henrey four-seat minicar, imported by Valternative Energy, a South Africa–based clean-mobility company. Valternative, ...
India Launches $815 Million Plan to Cut Reliance on China for Rare Earth Magnets
India has approved a more than $800 million plan to boost production of rare earth magnets in an effort to secure supplies and cut its dependence on imports from countries like China. Rare earth permanent magnets (REPMs), some of the strongest ...
Thailand Revamps EV Incentives as Chinese Brands Surge
Thailand has rewritten its electric-vehicle incentive rules, revamping Thailand EV incentives by shifting deadlines and tightening subsidy conditions. The National Electric Vehicle Policy Board approved the changes at its first meeting under the new administration, ...
Thailand Turns to China to Lift Tourism With 1,000 Charter Flights
Thailand is turning to China to drive a recovery in foreign tourism, leaning on a surge of planned chartered flights. The Tourism and Sports Ministry said Thailand expects more than 1,000 charter flights from China, Macau and Taiwan through mid-2026 as authorities target a return to ...
Trump Advises Takaichi Not to Provoke China on Taiwan: WSJ
U.S. President Donald Trump advised Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi not to provoke China over Taiwan's sovereignty, the Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, after a diplomatic spat between Tokyo and Beijing. The row between Asia's two biggest economies was triggered by ...
East Africa Court Dismisses Activists’ Case Over Massive Franco-Chinese Oil Project
The East African Court of Justice has dismissed a case challenging TotalEnergies' massive oil project in Uganda and Tanzania, after civil society groups sought a full trial over the controversial development. Four civil society groups first filed a petition in 2020 ...
As U.S. Ties Fray, Vance Heads to Kenya Where China’s Presence Grows Larger
U.S. Vice President JD Vance will travel to Kenya at the end of next month, according to Africa Intelligence, marking the first high-level American visit to the East African nation since Donald Trump returned to office in January. The trip comes ...
As Indonesia Seeks to Restructure Rail Debt, China May Use Talks to Broaden Yuan’s Global Role
Indonesian debt talks with Chinese creditors over restructuring $7.3 billion of loans used to build the Southeast Asian country's high-speed railway are on track, according to sources on both sides, but there are some confusing signals emanating from the negotiations. Luhut ...
As Trump Departs, China’s Li Qiang Steps In to Champion Free Trade at ASEAN Summit
Chinese Prime Minister Li Qiang arrived in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, on Monday to take part in the ASEAN leaders' summit that started over the weekend. Li's arrival came one day after U.S. President Donald Trump left Malaysia to continue his ...
Addressing China, U.S. Gets Full Rare Earth Access from Malaysia
The United States is moving to lock in Malaysia as a secure economic and strategic partner in Southeast Asia. The U.S.–Malaysia rare earths agreement ties market access to U.S. rules on critical minerals, rare earths, technology, data, labor, and national ...
US, China Outline Trade Truce Plan Ahead of Trump–Xi Talks
The United States and China said they have agreed on a basic outline to limit their trade fight, and U.S. President Donald Trump said he expects to “have a deal with China” when he meets Chinese leader Xi Jinping this week.
U.S. Navy Fighter Jet and Helicopter Crash in South China Sea
The U.S. Navy said a Navy fighter jet and a helicopter crashed in South China Sea on Sunday. The separate incidents happened about 30 minutes apart in waters that China says fall under its sovereignty using what it calls the “nine-dash line.” “All personnel involved are ...
Pentagon Chief Hegseth Set for Multi-Country Asia Tour
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will visit four Asian countries in the coming days, the Pentagon announced Sunday, his second tour of the "priority" region where Washington is urging increased spending by allies to counter China. The Pentagon said in a ...
‘Smooth and Easy’: India and China Resume Direct Flights as Ties Improve
By Sailendra Sil The resumption of direct flights between India and China after a five-year suspension was hailed by arriving passengers Monday, a move important both for trade and a symbolic step as Asia's giants cautiously rebuild relations. ...
Critical Minerals Weekly Digest: Strategic Shifts and the New Critical Minerals Landscape
This is a free preview of the upcoming Critical Minerals Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service launching in Summer 2025. Introduction This week’s developments signal a turning point in global ...
China at UN Warns of Return to ‘Cold War Mentality’
Chinese Premier Li Qiang warned Friday against a return to a "Cold War mentality" and defended multilateralism and free trade, in a veiled criticism of the United States from the United Nations. The Chinese premier made no explicit reference to U.S. ...
Iranian Experts Debate the Future of the Iran-China Relationship After the Twelve-Day War
By Theo Nencini and Veronica Turrini The Israel–Iran conflict of June 13–24, 2025 – christened the “Twelve-Day War” by U.S. President Donald Trump following his precariously brokered truce – represented the culmination of a protracted, multidimensional, and steadily escalating confrontation between Tel Aviv ...
U.S. Call for Intervention in China-Brazil Nickel Deal
The American Iron and Steel Institute, a U.S. industry lobbying group, called on the White House to intervene in a $500 million deal in Brazil that it says would increase China’s stake in global nickel supplies. This follows the announcement in ...
How China is Transforming Africa’s Power Sector
African imports of Chinese solar panels over the last year jumped by 60% to over 15 MW, a new record. The clean energy research body Ember published a report yesterday detailing Chinese solar exports to the continent. It uses Chinese customs data to show a marked year-on-year increase ...
Customer Feedback Shaping Spiro’s E-bike Design in Uganda
E-mobility solutions in African countries like Uganda are driven not only by Chinese EV technology but also by local innovations, which are creating solutions for everyday mobility challenges. It is often rare that you hear ...
Indonesia Deepens Ties With Xinjiang Despite Human Rights Concerns
When the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin) opened its doors to Xinjiang’s state-linked conglomerates this month, the event was billed as a milestone in deepening trade ties. Executives from Jakarta and Urumqi spoke glowingly of “mutual respect” ...
Why China’s Middle-Class Families Are Flocking to Kenya for Summer Trips
In the summer of 2023, a curious travel trend began surfacing on Chinese social media feeds: middle-class parents were flying their children halfway across the world, not to Disneyland or a European city, but to Kenya’s grasslands. For China’s aspirational urban families, East Africa has suddenly become ...
China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: Changan’s 932-Mile EV Battery, Chery’s SA Crash Test and Nairobi’s New E-Tuktuks
This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service launching in Summer 2025. This week, news broke of Chinese automaker Changan's plans to unveil an electric vehicle (EV) with ...
China’s GEM Seals Nickel Deal with Indonesia’s SWF Danantara
China’s battery materials giant GEM has signed a head of agreement with Indonesia’s sovereign wealth fund Danantara to build a nickel and recycling hub. The agreement, confirmed by Danantara investment chief Pandu Sjahrir on Tuesday, marks the fund’s first ...
Popular Chinese Commentator Deflects Dam Criticism by Turning the Lens on India and the West
As China forges ahead with construction on what may become the world’s largest hydropower project on the Yarlung Tsangpo River, Chinese state-linked voices are mounting a vigorous defense against Indian and Western skepticism. In a recent commentary, former Global Times editor-in-chief Hu Xijin pushes back against ...
Congo’s “La Sape” Fashion Culture Through the Unlikely Lens of a Chinese Vlogger
A newly released 2.5-hour documentary titled The Fashion Bible by Chinese travel vlogger and former state media journalist Zhang Jun, known online as “Uncle Bing” (饼叔), has quietly dropped on the Chinese social video platform Bilibili, offering one of the most ideologically layered explorations yet of ...
Startup in Malawi Bets on Chinese Tech to Power an EV Shift
For years, Malawi, the world’s fourth-poorest country, has suffered from chronic fuel shortages. However, in a sunbaked workshop on the outskirts of the capital, Lilongwe, a team of local electric vehicle (EV) technicians is working to overcome this anomaly. Huddled around ...
China, U.S. Ink Rare Earth Deal; More Trade Pacts Coming
The United States and China have signed a long-awaited framework agreement aimed at restarting rare earth mineral shipments and easing trade tensions ahead of a critical July tariff deadline, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick confirmed this week. The deal, finalized ...
The Art of (Watching) War: China’s Fading MENA Moment
By Felix Brender 王哲謙 Amid escalating conflicts across the Middle East since 2023, Beijing has been increasingly silent. Long eager to position itself as benevolent and neutral, China has offered little more than carefully worded statements while the region spirals. It ...
It’s Payback Time For a Lot of Those Chinese Loans
Borrowers in Africa and other developing regions are expected to repay $35 billion of Chinese loans this year, with two-thirds of the amount coming from the world's poorest countries. Many of these debts were taken out in the mid-2010s and are ...
Rubio to Welcome Asian ‘Quad’ Back to Washington
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will welcome counterparts from the "Quad" -- Australia, India, and Japan -- to Washington on Tuesday, in an at least brief refocus on Asia, the State Department announced. Rubio had welcomed Quad foreign ministers on ...
China, Indonesia Sign Broad Cooperation Agreements
Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto signed memoranda of understanding this weekend, which could result in broad-based cooperation. They pledged to work together on boosting tourism, agricultural exports, traditional and contemporary medicine, investment, and media collaboration. This cooperation ...
Southeast Asia Engages China, Middle East in Landmark Summit
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is reaching out to China and the Gulf Cooperation Council (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain) to improve trade ties as it faces ongoing trade tensions with the United States. Leaders met ...
Macron Gives Vietnamese Students a Lesson in ‘Impulsive’ Superpowers
By Francesco Fontemaggi Between jabs at Donald Trump's U.S. trade tariffs and criticism of Beijing's assertiveness in the South China Sea, French President Emmanuel Macron warned Vietnamese students Tuesday that "on the impulse of a superpower, everything can change".
Canadian, Chinese Companies at Odds Over Impact of Seismic Activity on Congo Copper Mine
The Democratic Republic of Congo's Kamoa-Kakula copper mine, co-owned by China's Zijin Mining and Canada's Ivanhoe Mines, is at the center of a dispute following seismic activity that has temporarily halted underground operations. Zijin Mining reported multiple instances of roof falls ...
China’s CMOC Group and Glencore Differ Over DR Congo’s Cobalt Export Ban
The Democratic Republic of Congo, the world’s leading producer of cobalt, has imposed a four-month ban on cobalt exports in an effort to curb market oversupply and stabilize falling prices. But the move has ignited a conflict between two of the country’s largest mining companies: China’s CMOC ...
Japan Says China Conducted Research Near Pacific Atoll
Japan has accused China of conducting unnotified maritime scientific research within its exclusive economic zone around its southernmost island in the Pacific Ocean, Tokyo said Tuesday. The alleged activity took place on Monday near the remote atoll of Okinotori in the ...
SE Asian Leaders Meet China’s Li and Gulf States to Bolster Ties
By Rebecca Bailey and Isabelle Leong Southeast Asian leaders are looking to insulate their trade-dependent economies from geopolitical uncertainty, in particular US tariffs, as they hold talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Gulf state dignitaries in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
Developing Nations Face ‘Tidal Wave’ of China Debt: Report
The world's poorest nations face a "tidal wave of debt" as repayments to China hit record highs in 2025, an Australian think tank warned Tuesday in a new report. China's Belt and Road Initiative lending spree of the 2010s has paid ...
China Seizes Disputed Reef Near Key Philippine Military Outpost: Report
The Chinese coast guard has seized control of a disputed reef near a major Philippine military outpost in the South China Sea, according to Beijing's state media, adding to longstanding territorial tensions with Manila. Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all of ...
China Seizes Disputed Reef Near Key Philippine Military Outpost: Report
The Chinese coast guard has seized control of a disputed reef near a major Philippine military outpost in the South China Sea, according to Beijing's state media, adding to longstanding territorial tensions with Manila. Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all of ...
China Seizes Disputed Reef Near Key Philippine Military Outpost: Report
The Chinese coast guard has seized control of a disputed reef near a major Philippine military outpost in the South China Sea, according to Beijing's state media, adding to longstanding territorial tensions with Manila. Beijing claims sovereignty over almost all of ...
Trend Tracker: China’s AI Outreach to the Global South
The Chinese company DeepSeek’s success in building a world-leading artificial intelligence system on inexpensive chips isn’t only shifting tech conversations. AI is an increasingly common theme in China’s wider outreach to the Global South. This week, a Xinhua op-ed framed AI ...
U.S. Fentanyl Pressure Expands from China to India
A new U.S. intelligence report named both China and India as “state actors” involved in supplying precursor chemicals used to make the illegal drug fentanyl. "China remains the primary source country for illicit fentanyl precursor chemicals and pill pressing equipment, followed ...
China Increasing Pressure on Panama Ports Deal
The Chinese authorities are reportedly telling state-owned enterprises to pause new business with companies linked to Li Ka-Shing and his family, the latest signal that Beijing is unhappy with the decision by Li’s CK Hutchison Holdings to sell two strategic ports in Panama to a U.S. consortium—part of ...
Beijing Resumes Criticism of CK Hutchison Over Panama Ports Deal
Beijing authorities kept up their pressure on CK Hutchison on Wednesday, resuming criticism of the Hong Kong conglomerate's sale of its Panama Canal ports. The business empire built by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing offloaded its global ports business outside China this ...
China Appears to Confirm Uyghur Deportations From Thailand
By Matthew Walsh China appeared to confirm on Thursday that dozens of Uyghurs had been deported from Thailand, despite warnings from human rights groups that they face persecution on their return. Beijing is accused of ...
Thailand Deports Dozens of Uyghurs to China
By Thanaporn Promyamyai with Matthew Walsh in Beijing Thailand deported dozens of Uyghurs to China on Thursday despite warnings from human rights groups that they would face persecution on their return, drawing swift condemnation from the United Nations. ...
South Africa Faces Diplomatic Dilemma Under U.S. Pressure and China Loyalties
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is under growing pressure from Washington to sever ties with Iran, Russia, and China, potentially threatening Pretoria’s role in groups like the BRICS and China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Despite tensions, Ramaphosa downplayed the ...
Indonesia’s Nickel Sector in Turmoil: Acquisition Proposal Amid Chinese Investor Bankruptcy Saga
Trouble seems to be brewing in Indonesia’s nickel sector. One of the nation’s primary nickel smelters, PT Gunbuster Nickel Industry (GNI), is in an unprecedented crisis. Its troubles are deepened by its ties to a faltering Chinese parent company.
Is Europe Facing a “Lost Decade” Across the Global South?
By Lukas Fiala With Europe scrambling to adjust to a world in rapid transition, two key events will shape the continent’s ability to sustain competition with China across the Global South. The first was exemplified by Germany’s election last Sunday, which ...
Q&A: China Is Not Replacing the U.S. in the Middle East, Says Beijing’s Envoy to Israel
In the fall of 2023, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was preparing to travel to Beijing for what was expected to be an upbeat meeting with President Xi Jinping on October 20th. Of course, Netanyahu never made that trip due to the attack by Hamas terrorists ...
AIIB to Finance Construction of Longest Bridge in Central Asia
A Chinese company will help construct a road bridge in Tajikistan set to become Central Asia's longest, an official said Wednesday, as Beijing expands its influence in the ex-Soviet region. The bridge across the Surkhob river in central Tajikistan will be ...
Russia Was China’s Top Oil Supplier in 2024, but That’s Likely Not Going to Be the Case This Year
Russia remained firmly atop the leaderboard of China's top oil supplier in 2024, with Saudi Arabia coming in a distant second, according to new data from the Reuters news agency. Chinese oil buyers snapped up a record amount of Russian crude ...
FT: Ships Carrying Propellant for Iranian Ballistic Missles to Set Sail From China
Iran's beleaguered ballistic missile program will get a boost when a pair of container ships carrying more than 1,000 tonnes of sodium perchlorate, a key ingredient in missile propellant, depart from China in the coming weeks, according to a report in the Financial Times. ...
China Manufacturing Activity Contracts for First Time in Four Months
China's manufacturing activity shrank in January for the first time in four months, official data showed Monday, as Beijing battles to sustain the recovery in the world's second-largest economy. Policymakers have battled to reverse a post-pandemic slump driven by a crisis ...
Philippines, U.S., Vietnam, Indonesia Train for Maritime Law Enforcement Cooperation
Coast guard and fishery officials from the Philippines, United States, Vietnam, and Indonesia practiced vessel boarding and arrest techniques at a joint maritime law enforcement training, the U.S. Embassy in Manila said Monday. The two-week course on the Philippines' southern island ...
Donald Trump’s China Contradiction in Latin America
New U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is breaking with tradition to make Latin America the destination for his first overseas trip later this week. Previous Secretaries of State typically prioritized Europe and Asia for their initial visits. That's probably a ...
A Taliban security personnel operating an anti-aircraft gun keeps watch for Pakistani airstrikes near the Torkham border crossing between Afghanistan and Pakistan in the Nangarhar province on February 27, 2026 following overnight cross-border fighting between the two countries. Photo by AIMAL ZAHIR / AFP
Pakistan’s Defense Minister Khawaja Asif declared "open war" against Afghanistan on Friday amid a surge of fighting between the two South Asian neighbors. Pakistan said it's retaliating against Afghanistan for a series of attacks, including a suicide bombing in early February that killed at least 36 people ...
Trend Tracker: China’s AI Outreach to the Global South
The Chinese company DeepSeek’s success in building a world-leading artificial intelligence system on inexpensive chips isn’t only shifting tech conversations. AI is an increasingly common theme in China’s wider outreach to the Global South. This week, a Xinhua op-ed framed AI ...
U.S. Fentanyl Pressure Expands from China to India
A new U.S. intelligence report named both China and India as “state actors” involved in supplying precursor chemicals used to make the illegal drug fentanyl. "China remains the primary source country for illicit fentanyl precursor chemicals and pill pressing equipment, followed ...
China Increasing Pressure on Panama Ports Deal
The Chinese authorities are reportedly telling state-owned enterprises to pause new business with companies linked to Li Ka-Shing and his family, the latest signal that Beijing is unhappy with the decision by Li’s CK Hutchison Holdings to sell two strategic ports in Panama to a U.S. consortium—part of ...
Beijing Resumes Criticism of CK Hutchison Over Panama Ports Deal
Beijing authorities kept up their pressure on CK Hutchison on Wednesday, resuming criticism of the Hong Kong conglomerate's sale of its Panama Canal ports. The business empire built by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing offloaded its global ports business outside China this ...