Category: Politics
India Upset With SCO Over Statement Denouncing Israel
India publicly refuted what was purportedly a joint statement by the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a China-initiated bloc that India is a founding member of, that denounced Israel's missile attacks on Iran. Friday's SCO statement denounced Israel's attack as a "gross ...
Macron Urges Asia, Europe to Unite to Resist ‘Spheres of Coercion’
By Damon Wake and Francesco Fontemaggi French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday urged Europe and Asia to build a new alliance to hold off big powers seeking to build "spheres of coercion", in a swipe at China and Russia.
China’s National Security Whitepaper: Old Wine in New and Important Bottles
By Lukas Fiala As I wrote a couple of weeks ago, China’s recently published national security whitepaper rightly deserves our attention at a crucial moment in global politics. Instructive both in terms of timing and implications, the paper cements Beijing’s ...
Türkiye’s Political Turmoil: Shifting Chinese Narratives Between 2023 and 2025
By Miriam Verzellino and Andrea Ghiselli On March 18, 2025, Istanbul University announced the annulment of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu’s degree, citing “clear errors.” This decision disqualifies İmamoğlu, a leading figure in the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), from contesting the 2028 Turkish ...
Marcos Coalition Weakens in Philippine Midterm Election as China Policy Divides Campaign
The Philippines’ 2025 midterm elections are reshaping the Senate balance and will likely deepen the country’s political divisions, including over foreign policy, amid rising tensions in the South China Sea. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s ruling coalition secured just six of ...
China’s Xi Aims to Beef up ‘No Limits’ Putin Partnership
Chinese President Xi Jinping headed to Moscow on Wednesday for a key three-day visit including a grand Victory Day parade and a show of support for Vladimir Putin. Moscow and Beijing declared a "no limits partnership" weeks before Putin ordered Russia's ...
Sri Lanka Vows Closer Ties With China and India’s Left
Sri Lanka's government pledged closer ties on Thursday with Communist parties in China and India, two regional powers competing for influence in the small but strategically important nation. The leftist government of President Anura Kumara Dissanayake held its first May Day ...
Xi Wraps Up Southeast Asia Tour with Calls for Solidarity in Cambodia
Chinese President Xi Jinping has arrived in Cambodia, the final leg of his Southeast Asia tour. Xi urged Cambodia to oppose “hegemonism, power politics and camp-based confrontation” in an article published in the Cambodian media on Thursday, further emphasizing a theme that has run through all ...
Malaysia Says to Host China’s Xi From April 15
Malaysia's government announced Wednesday it will host Chinese President Xi Jinping for a three-day visit next week, as the two countries grapple with tariffs imposed by the United States. The state visit will go from April 15 to 17, Communications Minister ...
NATO Chief Says China Military Expansion ‘Staggering’
China's expansion of its armed forces is "staggering," NATO's chief said on a visit to Japan beginning Tuesday aimed at "projecting" the alliance's power in the Asia-Pacific region. "Let us not be naive about China," secretary general Mark Rutte told the ...
China Increasing Pressure on Panama Ports Deal
The Chinese authorities are reportedly telling state-owned enterprises to pause new business with companies linked to Li Ka-Shing and his family, the latest signal that Beijing is unhappy with the decision by Li’s CK Hutchison Holdings to sell two strategic ports in Panama to a U.S. consortium—part of ...
Toy Trouble: Vietnam Pulls Dolls Over South China Sea Map
By Lam Nguyen Seething international tensions over the South China Sea have struck an unlikely victim in Vietnam: popular children's dolls pulled from shops over a facial mark supposedly resembling Beijing's claims in the flashpoint waterway.