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Taiwan to the polls: elections take centre stage in China-US international diplomacy

Taiwan heads to the polls. On Saturday 13 January, the de facto independent island, which China wants to ‘reunify’, will elect a new president and parliament. An estimated 19.3 million voters have been called to the polls. The election, which is being closely watched by the international community, could reshape relations between Taipei and Beijing, […]

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North Korea bombards tension and helps Russia

The extended Russian fighting in Ukraine is causing global geopolitical tremors across Eurasia. Seventy years ago, the war in Korea heightened tensions and the threat of war in Europe; now, the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza are heightening worries and risks in Asia. On Friday, North Korea fired over 200 rounds of artillery that fell […]

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Xi Jinping’s military and foreign politics shifts

A substantial shift in China’s foreign approach may be underway, although it is still unclear where it will lead. Within a few hours, President Xi Jinping promoted a new Minister of Defense, Dong Jun, sacked nine senior generals, and set a new path for foreign politics. Xi vowed to “seize strategic opportunities and further enhance […]

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The bodies of difference and America’s cotton thread

Looking at it from the outside, it is like a contest of bodies and minds. Donald Trump is big, has dyed, fake hair, and his statements are often prejudiced according to some present sensitivities and always glib. He seems to want to cheat age and reality, trying to look young and cocksure. He harks back […]

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China, and Gaza, and Ukraine

The conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, even if they end soon, have set in motion dynamics from which there is no turning back. The EU and US must prepare for struggles extended in time and space. Beijing’s choices in the coming months will be crucial. A view from China is important because the tensions around […]

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Short or long term, states or universal order

There is undoubtedly a personal element to this, so it is only fair to start here: I do not believe that international political issues between states can be reduced to a zero-sum game in which, as realists say, only national interests are eternal. All the rest is subject to the convenience of the moment. For […]

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US: Common Ground Lost

United States’ fabric is reaching a point of no return that resembles what happened less than 200 years ago with the Civil War. The reason for contention has changed, but its structure didn’t. The other side of the Nation is no longer a partner with whom political understandings may be negotiated but an enemy to […]