Analysis
Diverse voices, unique insights on key issues shaping China’s engagement throughout the Global South.
analysis
The Strait Test: How the Hormuz Crisis Reframed China’s Energy Offer for SE Asia
The Two Sessions, China’s most important annual political gathering, where leaders unveil economic targets and policy priorities, closed in Beijing earlier this month just as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran was intensifying. The timing was not coincidental. The 15th Five-Year ...
analysis
Experts Say China Is Studying U.S. Power in Iran War and Its Limits
There's been a lot of speculation in U.S. and European policy analysis circles over what lessons China is taking away from the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran. The debate largely divides along two broad categories. On one side, popular in Washington, D.C., ...
Tonga’s Debt to China Hinders Rebuild Four Years on From Eruption
By Ben Strang More than four years on from one of the most powerful volcanic eruptions in history, Tonga is struggling to improve its infrastructure as it pays off a massive Chinese loan. When Hunga ...
China Is Helping Build Africa’s Cities, but Its Approach Sidelines Local Urban Planners and Residents
By Ding Fei As African cities experience some of the fastest urban growth rates in the world, China has become a major bilateral financier for urban infrastructure. From Nairobi’s elevated expressways to Lagos’s airport upgrades and Addis Ababa’s ...
China’s Zero-Tariff Promise to Africa Masks a Deepening Trade Imbalance
In a message to African heads of state gathered in Addis Ababa for the African Union's 39th summit last February, Xi Jinping announced that beginning May 1st, China would implement a “zero tariff” policy for the 53 African countries with which it has diplomatic relations. The message ...
Cargo ships in the Gulf, near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from northern Ras al-Khaimah, near the border with Oman’s Musandam governance, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in United Arab Emirates, March 11, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
The Two Sessions, China’s most important annual political gathering, where leaders unveil economic targets and policy priorities, closed in Beijing earlier this month just as the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran was intensifying. The timing was not coincidental. The 15th Five-Year Plan had been in ...
Myth and Misperception: Does Vietnam Need a U.S. Security Guarantee to Deter China?
In this edition of M&M, I want to examine one of the most common claims not only in Vietnam’s foreign policy circle but also in that of the United States. The United States is a Pacific power with an extensive network of alliances and bases across the ...
A China-Backed Dam in Indonesia Tests the Limits of Compliance
A Chinese-backed hydropower project in Indonesia is emerging as an example of a growing challenge in Beijing’s overseas investments. Compliance with host-country regulations may no longer be enough to shield projects from disruption, scrutiny, or reputational risk. The Batang Toru hydropower ...
China E-Mobility Weekly Digest: China’s Africa EV Push Shifts to Ecosystems as Oil Disruptions Expose Import Risks
This is a free preview of the upcoming Africa EVs Weekly Digest, part of the new CGSP Intelligence service. Chinese firms are expanding their share of Africa’s electric mobility future, moving beyond car sales into the systems that power ...
Through Allegory, China Uses AI to Shape Its Narrative of the Iran Conflict
China’s official position on the U.S-Israeli war against Iran has been clear to international audiences from the statements of its highest officials. But what about domestic audiences? Last week, CCTV released an AI-animated video that presents a window into how the ...
From Belt and Road to Belt Tightening: China’s Neighbours Get Cold Shoulder on Energy
By Joe Cash As energy stress spreads across Southeast Asia, governments across the region are asking China to deliver on its pledges of closer energy security cooperation by freeing up now-banned exports of fertilizer and fuel.
Energy Crisis Gives China Leverage as Tensions Rise With Philippines in South China Sea
The energy crisis in Southeast Asia brought on by the war in Iran is giving China a new opening to pressure the Philippines over longstanding territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Over the past week, Chinese naval, coast guard, and ...
Vietnam and China Lay the Tracks for Deeper Trade Connectivity
By Duan Haosheng On 19 December 2025, Vietnam’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Bui Thanh Son pressed the ceremonial start button to launch the Lao Cai–Hanoi–Hai Phong railway. The 390-kilometre railway, backed by
The End of the Oil Order Is Here and China Is Already Winning
The Iran war has been a real education in how global orders change. The system built on the immutable logic of oil and gas trade seemed as solid as a continent. Now it looks as wobbly as a Jenga tower. While ...
China’s Foreign Policy Faces a Dual Test as It Challenges U.S. Power and Manages Turbulence at Home
By Lukas Fiala Earlier this week, I was asked to reflect on the main drivers of Chinese foreign policy in the coming months and into next year, in the context of the ongoing Russian war in Ukraine.
Seeking More Value at Home, Zimbabwe Disrupts China’s Lithium Flow
By Enos Denhere A month after banning raw lithium exports, Zimbabwe is tightening its regulations and ramping up its crackdown on mineral smuggling in a major shake-up that is winning local praise even as it stirs concerns.
Mideast War Fuels Disinformation About Taiwan’s Gas Supply
By Joy Chiang Taiwan has been targeted by a wave of online disinformation claiming the self-ruled island's gas supplies will soon be completely depleted due to disruptions from the Middle East war -- a narrative officials say could cause panic and ...
Regime Survival and International Implications: China’s Perspective on the Iran Crisis
By Andrea Ghiselli This edition of the ChinaMed Observer returns to the Chinese official narrative and expert debate on the ongoing war in Iran. In a previous issue, we examined initial Chinese reactions: restrained, framed in international law, and calling for dialogue and ...