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Xi Jinping to Address BRICS Online Summit on Tackling U.S. Tariffs

China confirmed President Xi Jinping will attend today’s BRICS leaders’ online summit, hosted by Brazil, and deliver a speech. The meeting reportedly will focus on U.S. tariff actions and the future of multilateral trade rules. Russia’s Vladimir Putin will ...

China Builds Global South Media Network to Counter U.S., West

China has set up a new Global South media-and-think-tank network, presenting it as a way to balance what it calls Western control over news and global narratives. Beijing says it will give the Global South a stronger voice in world ...

China’s Overseas Bullet Train: Malaysians Still Top Foreign Riders

China’s first overseas high-speed rail in Indonesia, the Whoosh bullet train, is carrying a steady flow of foreign passengers, and Malaysians continue to account for the largest share, the operator said. In less than two years since its inauguration in ...

Malaysia Opens First EV Plant with Backing from China’s Geely

Malaysia’s Proton launched its first electric vehicle assembly plant on Thursday with backing from China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. The country aims to position itself as a regional hub for EV production. The facility is located in the Automotive High-Tech ...

China Backs Malaysia’s BRICS Bid, Laos Reiterates Interest

China has pledged full support for Malaysia’s full membership into BRICS, while Laos has reaffirmed its interest in joining. The moves underline Southeast Asia’s growing engagement with the bloc, which has expanded its membership in recent years. ...

Analysis from Cobus van Staden

Revealing Reactions to China’s Festival of Optics

In terms of geopolitical optics, this week was nothing short of a banquet. It served up at least two sets of images that seem to crystallize our historical moment and that will live on in the Wikipedia of history as shorthand for where the world was in 2025.
One is the waves of uncannily synchronized soldiers and a bewildering array of high-tech weaponry gliding down Beijing’s Chang’an Avenue. The ...

Q&A: China’s EV in Southeast Asia: Growth or Dependency Trap?

A few weeks ago at the Indonesian auto show, I stood near a cluster of visitors crowding around new electric cars EVs. I noticed three questions that came up repeatedly as people leaned in to quiz the sales reps: How far can it go? Will it last? ...

Indonesia Trade Surplus Masks a Persistent China Deficit Problem

China has tightened its hold on Indonesia’s economy, emerging as the largest buyer of non-oil exports (22.64%) and the largest source of non-oil imports (40.35%) of Indonesia's trade from January to July 2025. China is Indonesia’s top buyer of non-oil ...

Southeast Asia Attends SCO Summit as Xi Proposes New Bank

Five Southeast Asian leaders attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin on Monday. China used the event to push for a bigger economic role for the bloc, proposing new tools such as a development bank and more lending for members.

China Offers Malaysia Rare Earths Processing Under Conditions

China has opened the door for Malaysia to host what would be its first overseas rare earths processing venture. This was revealed after President Xi Jinping signalled Beijing’s readiness to provide technical assistance, only if run through government-linked companies. The ...

Beijing Accuses Manila of Trouble, Warns of Firm Countermeasures

China has accused the Philippines of “causing trouble” in the South China Sea and warned of firm countermeasures. Beijing's accusation sharpens its claim that the United States and allied partners are driving instability as Manila deepens defense cooperation with Australia ...

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 ...

Indonesia Mulls Joint Patrol with Vietnam in South China Sea

Indonesia said it is weighing the possibility of carrying out coordinated coast-guard patrols with Vietnam in parts of the South China Sea also claimed by China, signaling closer maritime cooperation between the two Southeast Asian neighbors while risking friction with Beijing. ...
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