American policymakers would do well to keep a close eye on the latest developments in the South China Sea involving China and the Philippines, a formal U.S. security treaty ally. It could have major implications for the U.S. Since early April, Chinese and Philippine government ships have been confronting each …
The Chinese leadership situation just became even more convoluted, as the official responsible for internal security, Zhou Yongkang, has been forced to relinquish his responsibilities. While it is impossible to be sure, one possibility is that a formal removal from office may be in the offing. Zhou, responsible for China’s …
The Chinese minister of defense, General Liang Guanglie, is currently visiting the United States, and as usual, he is getting the red carpet rolled out for him. He is meeting Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta and visiting a number of U.S. military installations, including Southern Command and Fort Benning. General …
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (a bureaucratic second-line player in the Chinese system) has now promised to treat any request by Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng to leave China just like any other citizen, even as the U.S. State Department promises that there are fellowships waiting for him in the …
This week, the Chinese and Russian militaries began the first joint naval exercises the two sides have ever conducted. The exercise, occurring near Qingdao on the Yellow Sea, will involve 16 Chinese surface combatants and two submarines, including five missile destroyers, five missile frigates, and four missile boats, as well …
As the situation in Syria continues to deteriorate, the regime of Bashar al-Assad has found two steadfast allies: Russia and the People’s Republic of China (PRC). While Russian interest in Syria may be rooted in the longstanding ties between Moscow and Damascus (and the substantial amount of arms that Syria …
Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping’s visit to the United States was extremely short on substance. It was really just a public relations exercise for both sides aimed at audiences back home. And as for building rapport between leaders, by nature, the visit was bound to come up short. President Obama …
According to the recent news, the United States will not be signing the European Union Code of Conduct for Outer Space Activities. This is good news, but it ignores other Administration statements that indicate that the Administration is ignoring congressional calls for avoiding measures that would limit U.S. space operations. …
With the election of Ma Ying-jeou, Taiwan has once again demonstrated the maturity of its political processes. The successful conduct of Taiwan’s democratic elections reminds us that Taiwan is part of the growing group of states capable of undertaking peaceful elections as the means of effecting political transition and change. …
