International Relations/Diplomacy
China
China is Raising Tensions in the Taiwan Strait

Tension across the Taiwan Strait has increased since Taiwan's pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won the Presidential elections for the third consecutive time in January 2024. The victory of the DPP's Lai Ching-te clearly signalled t

Xi Jinping Reinforces Security Apparatus Amidst Growing Popular Discontent

The slowing economy and increasing joblessness have contributed to the growing popular discontent in China. This has affected China’s entrepreneurs and there are indications that discontent has spread also to the ‘princelings’ and cadres in the

Chinese President Xi Jinping Beset by Growing Popular Discontent

Faced with increasing popular discontent, Chinese President Xi Jinping and the Chinese leadership have since the 19th Party Congress in 2017 been focussed on trying to assert the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s pre-eminence in all sectors and ensur

China and France in the New World Order

This year, 2024, marks six decades of the diplomatic relationship between China and France. Chinese President Xi Jingping announced breaking new grounds to further strengthen their bilateral ties. He stated that this was an opportunity to uphold fund

Indication of Disarray in PLA and Imminent ‘Rectification’ Campaign

The senior echelons of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) appear to be in disarray. The unexplained long absences of Central Military Commission (CMC) Vice Chairman General Zhang Youxia and sudden removal of Defence Minister Li Shangfu, both

China’s Poaching Style of Conducting Diplomacy

Beijing seems to be determined to strangulate Taiwan as barely 48 hours after the presidential elections in which the pro-sovereignty leaning returned the Democratic Progressive Party candidate William Lai Ching-te, whose stance has irked Beijing. Th

Assessing Ten Years of Belt and Road Initiative

With China's economy growing at a significantly slower pace than it was a decade ago, Beijing's willingness and ability to continue pouring money into the BRI has been a matter of speculation. But Xi seems to have doubled down on his signature progra

Fortifying State Secrets: China's Authoritarian Revamp of the State Secrets Law

China's State Secrets Law, a cornerstone in the nation's authoritarian stranglehold on information, is undergoing a radical overhaul with the recent submission of a draft amendment. To fully grasp the implications of this legislative overhaul, it is

Tibet: The Fulcrum of China’s Strategic Policy in the Himalayas

China is positioning Tibet as the fulcrum for its strategic policy in the sensitive Himalayan region thus directly and adversely impacting India. Beijing appears to have assessed that it has sufficiently calmed the Tibet Autonomous Region (TAR) to fe

China’s Central Finance and Economic Affairs Work Conference Reveals Emphasis on Security and Development

China’s long awaited Central Financial Work Conference was held in Beijing on October 30-31, 2023, and was the first held since the establishment of the Central Financial Commission and the Central Financial Working Committee. With the decline in C

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