With U.S.-South Africa ties in the deep freeze, it was notable to see the sheer size of the U.S. delegation sent to this week’s Mining Indaba in Cape Town – one of the most prominent industry gatherings and one of the few where the Global South gets a prominent voice.
The Trump administration’s famous Afrophobia seems (momentarily at least) tempered by its greed for minerals. It is reportedly walking ...
Category: Politics
Bolivia Wants Closer U.S. Ties, Without Alienating China: Minister
By José Arturo Cárdenas Bolivia's new government plans to restore full diplomatic ties with Washington "as soon as possible," after a nearly two-decade rupture, Foreign Minister Fernando Aramayo told AFP. Relations between Washington and the ...
China’s Global Power Looks Different When Its Partners Are in Crisis
By Felix Brender 王哲謙 On January 3, 2026, U.S. forces executed a dramatic operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, abruptly removing the central figure of a regime that had been one of Beijing’s most emblematic strategic partners in Latin ...
Xi, Putin Hail Ties in Video Call as Ukraine War Nears Anniversary
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed their ties during a video call on Wednesday held in the run-up to the fourth anniversary of Moscow's war in Ukraine. In a Russian state TV broadcast of the ...
What to Watch After China’s Strategic Setback at the Panama Canal
On Thursday last week, Panama’s Supreme Court delivered a ruling that was felt in some of the highest offices in both Beijing and Washington. The court declared that the concession granting control of the Balboa and Cristobal ports to Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based ...
China’s Xi Calls for ‘Equal, Multipolar World’ as He Meets Uruguay Leader
China and Uruguay should work together to advance an "equal and orderly multipolar world", President Xi Jinping told his counterpart Yamandu Orsi on Tuesday, as their nations signed up to cooperate in areas from trade to the environment. Orsi's visit is the ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
U.S. Defense Strategy Signals a Harder Line on China in Latin America
In January, the Trump Administration published its 2026 National Defense Strategy (NDS). The document, which was released without fanfare, confirms that a strategic shift is well underway in the Western Hemisphere, and Latin American and Caribbean states are on the receiving end of that shift.
China Tells Russia’s Shoigu Relations Could ‘Break New Ground’
China's top diplomat told Russia's security chief that bilateral relations could "break new ground" this year as the two officials met in Beijing on Sunday, according to an official government statement. Beijing and Moscow have ramped up economic cooperation and diplomatic ...
Tokyo Hopes Voters Will Hand PM Takaichi New Clout to Counter China
By John Geddie, Tamiyuki Kihara, Tim Kelly and Antoni Slodkowski China may rethink its escalating pressure campaign on Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi if she delivers a resounding victory in a February 8 snap election, say current and former Japanese officials and ...
Fall of Top Chinese General Stirs U.S. Uncertainty About China’s Military
With the downfall of China's top general, the United States has lost an important contact on Beijing's top military body and now faces a People's Liberation Army that increasingly lacks steady, experienced commanders, former U.S. officials and analysts said. China's defense ...
U.S. Intelligence Questions Whether Venezuela’s Interim Leader Will Cut Ties With China, Iran and Russia
By Erin Banco, Jonathan Landay and Matt Spetalnick U.S. intelligence reports have raised doubts about whether interim Venezuelan President Delcy Rodriguez will cooperate with the Trump administration by formally cutting ties with U.S. adversaries, four people familiar with the reports said ...
Xi Says China Seeks to Uphold UN-Based World Order
President Xi Jinping said Tuesday that China seeks to uphold the UN-based world order, in remarks as he met Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo in Beijing. His comments come after Donald Trump unveiled plans for his new "Board of Peace" this ...
China’s Xi Urges Greater Cooperation With Vietnam
Chinese President Xi Jinping sought to strengthen ties with Vietnam in a call to its newly re-appointed leader, according to Chinese state media on Monday, saying the two nations should enhance cooperation in regional and international affairs. The call was the first between the two ...