Category: Geopolitics
New Development Bank Moves Forward With Local Currency Bonds in Bid to Reduce Dependence on the U.S. Dollar
The Shanghai-based New Development Bank, aka the BRICS Bank, said it is proceeding with plans to issue bonds and lend more money in local currencies as part of a larger effort to reduce reliance on the dollar. “We expect to lend ...
Possible Xi-Modi Meeting in Johannesburg?
One of the closest-watched interactions at the summit will be between India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and China’s President Xi Jinping. Tensions between the two Asian superpowers have been rising due to an ongoing border dispute and larger geopolitical wranglings. There are
Chinese Scholars: BRICS Is All About Confronting the West
Many Chinese scholars have weighed in on this week’s BRICS summit, and the framing of the discussion on Chinese-language platforms is revealing. Commentators tend to see the bloc's importance as mostly lying in how it directly confronts Western global primacy. This ...
Europe Needs a Reality Check to Remain Relevant in a Multipolar World
By Lukas Fiala The recent military coup in Niger was widely interpreted as the latest blow in a series of setbacks for Europe in Africa. After French disengagement yielded space to Russian mercenaries across the Sahel, it’s hard not to see the ...
WEEK IN REVIEW: Chinese Contractors Won Nearly a Third of Construction Projects in Africa in 2022, Four Times More Than Western Firms
Chinese contractors won nearly a third of all construction projects in Africa last year, four times more than Western firms, according to a new study by the Hinrich Foundation. These findings mark a sharp reversal from the 1990s when U.S. and European firms won 85% of infrastructure contracts.
South Asian Leaders Gather in Kunming for China-South Asia Expo
Leaders from South Asian countries gathered in the southwest Chinese city of Kunming for the seventh China-South Asia Expo. It was an occasion for Chinese leaders to emphasize both trade and political ties. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the guests that ...
Graph of the Day: Comparing U.S. and China’s Investment Clout in Southeast Asia
A recent article in Nikkei Asia provided a fascinating deep dive comparing China and the United States' influence in key Southeast Asian economies. It shows that while the U.S. has leaned into expanding its diplomatic engagement, Chinese economic ties in the region present a significant counterweight.
No Breakthroughs But Lots of Good Vibes After Two Days of Chinese, Indian Border Talks
Chinese and Indian military commanders both pledged to resolve their long-running border dispute "in an expeditious manner" following two days of talks aimed at defusing tensions along their 2,100km contested boundary in the Himalayas. Although no major breakthroughs were ...
Currencies, Old and New, Set to Top Agenda at Next Week’s BRICS Summit in Johannesburg
The idea of creating a brand new currency under the auspices of the BRICS countries is "ridiculous," according to the former Goldman Sachs economist who coined the acronym for the five countries. Jim O'Neil echoed the sentiments of a number of ...
India-China Border Talks Resume, Raising Hopes of a Xi-Modi Meeting
China and India held joint talks about their contested border a week before President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will both attend the BRICS summit in Johannesburg. Xi will also travel to New Delhi for G20 meetings next month. Observers see the meetings as a signal of a ...
As Tensions Between China and the Philippines Surge, Wang Yi Calls on a Few Old Friends in Southeast Asia
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a quick sprint through Southeast Asia over the weekend as part of a three-nation tour of Malaysia, Singapore, and Cambodia. Wang met with the prime ministers in the three countries in what appeared to be ...
China and the Philippines Warn Each Other Not to Push South China Sea Confrontation Too Far… Or Else
Tensions between China and the Philippines steadily worsened over the weekend as both sides attacked the other for instigating the latest confrontation in their disputed waters in the South China Sea. In Manila, Armed Forces chief General Romeo Brawner said the China ...