When it was announced in 2023 that the African Union would become a full member of the G20, I darkly joked on a podcast that the AU’s entry into the body could very well mark the moment the G20 lost its status as one of the most important global coordination forums. Mark my words, I said, soon The Economist will be like “Uhhh, the G20 is OVER – it’s the ...
Category: Geopolitics
Jane Perlez on the New Era of U.S.-China Competition and Rivalry
The increasingly acrimonious U.S.-China relationship is the defining trend of this era, upending global politics, economics, and security, especially across the Global South. Countries that have worked hard to avoid having to pick sides in this new competition may no longer ...
PM Takaichi Says Japan ‘Always Open’ to Dialogue With China
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Wednesday she is "always open" to dialogue with China despite a diplomatic row between Tokyo and Beijing over comments she made about Taiwan. "China is an important neighbour for Japan, and we need to ...
What Makes China’s Foreign Aid Different
Soon after USAID was closed in February, speculation circulated that China would move quickly to fill the void left by the United States. That did not happen. While the Chinese did step in to provide ...
What the U.S. Strategy Debate Gets Wrong About China
By Lukas Fiala Over the last week, all of us have pored over the latest U.S. National Security Strategy. As many have pointed out, one of the most striking developments is the shift towards recognising the Western Hemisphere as a primary ...
The New Dilemma for Middle Powers Caught Between the U.S. and China
In this episode of the China Global South Podcast, Eric & Cobus unpack a major question facing middle powers everywhere: What happens when the global security architecture you relied on for decades no longer exists? Fresh from ...
China Confronts the Limits of Its Critical Mineral Power
If you want to see where great-power competition is most visible today, look to the fast-growing world of critical minerals. What began as a technical supply-chain issue has become a central arena in which the United States and China are testing their industrial strength, geopolitical leverage, and ...
Presidential Race in Honduras Puts China–Taiwan Diplomacy Back on the Line
Sunday’s presidential election in Honduras could shift the diplomatic balance between China and Taiwan in Latin America. The two frontrunners in the election have pledged to break diplomatic ties with Beijing and reestablish them with Taiwan. This follows the ...
With Washington Absent, China Seizes the Stage at G20 in Johannesburg
Chinese Premier Li Qiang was very busy at this weekend's G20 summit in Johannesburg, where he seemed at ease that Donald Trump and the U.S. delegation stayed home, for the most part. There's no doubt that had Trump been there, the ...
Why the West Gets Vietnam Wrong: The Myth of Pro-U.S. and Pro-China Camps
Welcome to Myth and Misperception! It has never been more urgent to understand China’s relations with the Global South and how they impact the United States. Unfortunately, many observers in the West do not have a firm understanding of these relationships due to an absence of native ...
Chinese Premier Visits Zambia Amid Geopolitical Competition
Chinese Premier Li Qiang is in Zambia, the first high-level Chinese leader to visit the country since 2007. His trip comes as the country emerges from a years-long financial crisis Li’s visit comes as China, Zambia, and Tanzania embark on ...
Poll: China Makes “Startling” Gains as the World’s Preferred “Leading Power”
Favorable views of the United States have fallen sharply over the past year while perceptions of China have improved significantly, according to the findings of a new poll that surveyed 32,000 people in 32 countries. The survey was conducted for The ...
Nigeria and the U.S.-China-Geopolitics of a ‘Guns-a-Blazing’ Threat
The first few days of November delivered a powerful, if chilling, lesson in contemporary geopolitics for Abuja. When the U.S. President, Donald Trump, fresh from re-designating Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” for religious freedom violations, threatened to intervene militarily in the nation “guns-a-blazing” over allegations ...
U.S.-China Tensions Weigh on Lisbon’s Web Summit
By Daxia Rojas and Tom Barfield Global tech leaders packed Lisbon's annual Web Summit Tuesday to talk artificial intelligence, robots and startups -- all under the shadow of global tensions over cutting-edge hardware and software and the resources needed to build ...