I was in Berlin this week for a conference on the EU’s relationship with Africa in the context of the continent’s growing ties with external actors, many of whom Europe finds acutely worrying.
The conference eerily landed on the two-year anniversary of the October 7 attack in Israel. I was in Berlin two years ago as well. In the weeks after the attack, one could see how Western powers’ ...
Category: View From China
Chinese Youth Fear India Will Seize Job Opportunities Under New K Visa
A recent commentary from College Daily, the largest media platform for Chinese students overseas, examines how China’s newly launched K visa, set to take effect on October 1, is already drawing unusual attention abroad—particularly in India. Major Indian outlets are referring to it as “China’s H-1B,” ...
From U.S. Tariffs to Chinese Tables: How Brazil’s Beef Sector Adapted to China’s Changing Appetite
An article on China Meat Food Network 中国肉类食品网 examines how U.S. tariff policies have disrupted Brazil’s beef exports and how China’s growing appetite for high-quality, affordable beef has helped Brazil weather the storm. After the United States imposed a 50% ...
Inside China’s African Rail Projects: A Translator’s Unexpected Video Diary
A young Chinese man working as a bilingual English–French translator on Guinean infrastructure projects has found an unusual way to connect with Chinese youth. On the video platform Bilibili, he opened an account to document life on construction sites. To his audience’s surprise, his videos reveal rare, ...
$80 Billion Zambian Lawsuit Triggers Outrage on Chinese Social Media
China’s social media has been buzzing after Zambian farmers filed an $80 billion lawsuit against Sino-Metals, a Chinese-owned copper mining company, accusing it of causing an environmental disaster following the collapse of a mining waste dam earlier this year. Beyond the ...
Chinese Commentary Says New Saudi-Pakistan Pact Could Lead to an “Islamic NATO”
After Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed their joint defense pact, global attention surged, largely due to Pakistan being the sole nuclear-armed Muslim nation. A detailed commentary published on the popular nationalist news site Guancha analyzes the recent Saudi-Pakistan mutual ...
Analysis from Cobus van Staden
Argentina’s “Foreign Exchange Bet” Could Shake Up the Global Soybean Trade, Chinese Commentator Says
Argentina recently dropped an agriculture bombshell: a temporary, full tax exemption on exports of key grains and oilseeds, including soybeans, wheat, and corn, effective until October 31st. The policy has a built-in “stop-loss” mechanism: it will be terminated immediately if the exports generate $7 billion in ...
Why Venezuela Has Become China’s Frontline Partner Against U.S. Pressure
A Chinese military blogger on the video platform Bilibili recently analyzed the rising military tensions between the U.S. and Venezuela, framing Venezuela’s importance to China in both strategic and practical terms. His argument goes beyond oil, even though Venezuela holds ...
Mexico’s Tariff Move Risks Binding Itself to U.S. Protectionism, Chinese Scholar Warns
Phoenix News published a commentary by Liu Ying, a researcher at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University, on Mexico’s surprise proposal to raise tariffs on imports from countries without free trade agreements. Announced on September 10 by ...
For Chinese Viewers, a Serbian Blogger Replaces a Simple Story with a Complex Reality
In recent weeks, Serbia has once again found itself at the crossroads of global power politics. On Chinese social media, military enthusiasts have been celebrating the prominent role of Chinese-made equipment in Serbia’s preparations for its September 20 military parade — including the debut of two ...
From Shops to Factories, Chinese Merchants in South Africa Face Sudden Regulatory Chill
A Johannesburg court recently sentenced seven Chinese nationals to 20 years in prison each for trafficking 91 Malawian workers and forcing them into labor at a textile factory. The high-profile ruling has not only drawn headlines, but also triggered a new wave of enforcement pressure on ...
China Recasts Nepal’s Gen Z Uprising as an Economic Crisis, Sidestepped Free Speech
A protest that began with young Nepalis defending their online voices was recast in Chinese coverage as a story of jobs, remittances, and corruption. The tone appeared strikingly neutral, yet it was telling in what it left unsaid. The immediate trigger ...
Why Sahel States Are Turning to Chinese Military Gear
In early September, Guinea’s port of Conakry turned into a military stage as convoys of CS/VP-14 mine-resistant vehicles, VN-22 6×6 infantry carriers, command and recovery vehicles, and even an SR-5 rocket artillery system rolled off Chinese cargo ships and headed toward Mali’s capital. ...