A Senior Xi Adviser Visits Indonesia, Bringing Beijing’s Long Game Into Focus

One of China’s highest-ranking political figures, and among President Xi Jinping’s closest ideological advisers, visited Jakarta last week, in a move that underscored Beijing’s deepening interest in its relationship with Indonesia. Wang Huning, one of China’s most influential political ...

Myth and Misperception: Does Shared Communism Tie Vietnam to China?

In this edition of Myth and Misperception, I want to take a deep dive into one of the most contentious debates on Vietnam’s foreign policy: what role does ideology play in the country’s foreign policy? As a communist party-state, Vietnam officially adheres to Marxism-Leninism in every ...

Chinese Leaders to Hash out Strategic Blueprint at Key Meeting

By Peter Catterall China's ruling Communist Party will on Monday kick off four days of key closed-door discussions, formulating core economic strategy for coming years as growth flags and trade headwinds mount. The gathering of ...

Senior Chinese Diplomat Liu Jianchao Taken in for Questioning: WSJ

A senior Chinese diplomat considered a contender for future foreign minister has been detained by authorities for questioning, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. Liu Jianchao, head of a department under the ruling Communist Party that oversees relations with foreign ...

China’s Africa Security Strategy: Training, Arms, and Political Influence

Over the past 25 years, China’s military engagement with Africa has grown dramatically. In 2000, fewer than 5% of African weapons came from China. Today, Chinese-made armored vehicles are used by 70% of African militaries, and China has become the continent’s ...

Analysis from Cobus van Staden

2026: Africa-China Relations in a World Shaped by North-South Geopolitics

When talking about Africa–China relations, one is always moving along a sliding scale. There are myriad interactions with Chinese entities that concern only individual African countries, segueing into trends affecting the whole continent and sliding further into global dynamics shaping the developing world, of which Africa is the heart.

The Africa-China relationship is its own thing, but Africa’s fate can’t easily be separated from factors affecting the wider Global South, ...

China Deploys Army of Fake NGOs at UN to Intimidate Critics: Media Probe

By Nina Larson China is deploying a growing army of organisations masquerading as NGOs to monitor and intimidate rights activists at the UN, a new investigation by the ICIJ media consortium said on Monday. Dubbed ...

China Deploys Army of Fake NGOs at UN to Intimidate Critics: Media Probe

By Nina Larson China is deploying a growing army of organisations masquerading as NGOs to monitor and intimidate rights activists at the UN, a new investigation by the ICIJ media consortium said on Monday. Dubbed ...

China’s Two Sessions: Takeaways for the Global South

China’s annual Two Sessions political gathering outlined new measures to signal that the CPC is targeting economic hurdles at home and new challenges from the Trump administration. China stuck to a relatively optimistic 5% GDP growth target and announced a 7.2% increase in its defense budget. This comes as ...

What to Watch for in Foreign Policy and Defense at China’s Two Sessions Gathering in Beijing

One of China's largest and most important political events started in Beijing on Monday, where thousands of delegates from across the country meet for the annual parliamentary gathering. The event, known as the Two Sessions, brings together lawmakers from China's top ...

The Man Who Would Be China’s Next Foreign Minister

Speculation is circling that Liu Jianchao might be China’s next foreign minister. Some expect he could be officially named in the position as early as this week during the National People’s Congress legislative session. Liu’s appointment would likely not herald radical changes ...

Meet the Chinese VP Who is Fast Becoming a Major Player in Beijing’s Diplomacy

The role of a Chinese vice president, like their U.S. counterpart, has largely been ceremonial, particularly in the diplomatic sphere where the Director of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee Foreign Affairs Commission and the Foreign Minister (now a combined role) have traditionally been the most prominent envoys. ...

Analyst Handicaps Who’s in Contention to Become China’s Next Foreign Minister

The "House of Cards"-style drama that's unfolded in the Chinese Foreign Ministry over the past month is prompting intense speculation from China watchers in Washington, D.C., and elsewhere over who will ultimately become foreign minister following Qin Gang's unexpected exit last week.
Page 1 of 212