22 Apr 2021
China drops the mask on its global ambition
Xi Jinping’s Boao Forum speech this week revealed a surprisingly status quo orientation to the international order.
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21 Apr 2021
China’s Twitter trolls make bid for vacant Trump property
“Own the libs” obnoxiousness failed, but China’s social media diplomats haven’t all got the memo. -
19 Apr 2021
America and China: Imagining the worst
A little well-crafted speculation can shake off complacency and allow people to focus on the true challenge. -
16 Apr 2021
Russia’s Asia diplomacy
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s visits to Beijing, New Delhi and Islamabad showed Moscow still has clout in the region. -
15 Apr 2021
Will the Five Eyes stare down China’s economic coercion?
Trade figures suggest promises to “have Australia’s back” are yet to be matched by economic solidarity. -
15 Apr 2021
Has China given up on state-owned enterprise reform?
Rather than allowing the private sector more space, Beijing wants a tool for the implementation of government policy. -
14 Apr 2021
Serbia’s vaccine diplomacy: Balancing China and the West
The politics of Covid have tangled up countries across the world – but that’s not always a drawback. -
12 Apr 2021
The Quad (finally) delivers: Can it be sustained?
The future of the grouping might well be determined by China’s behaviour. -
9 Apr 2021
Economic diplomacy: Global tax, education exports and Team Australia
Levelling the field with a global minimum tax, rethinking student fee revenue, and getting APEC back in the room. -
8 Apr 2021
The big bark but small bite of China’s trade coercion
Targeted sanctions on Australian exports have affected billions in trade, but the real damage has been limited. -
2 Apr 2021
With Xinjiang cotton, Beijing is taking on the world
The latest “us-versus-them” drama shows China sees little chance of mending ties with the West, for now at least. -
1 Apr 2021
Closer Taiwan-US ties are stabilising the region, not the opposite
Displays of solidarity for Taiwan won’t contain Beijing’s ambition, but US support must factor in its thinking. -
31 Mar 2021
Washington risks an unsustainable climate policy
Tense talks between the US and China in Alaska Summit showed that collaboration on global challenges is fraught. -
15 Mar 2021
A new “concert” to govern the Indo-Pacific
For Quad leaders emphasising an “inclusive” region, there may be a ready-made example for involving China. -
12 Mar 2021
The Belt and Road, and the pandemic detour
An important book illustrates the different hopes and dreams of partners to Beijing’s big infrastructure drive. -
11 Mar 2021
Economic diplomacy: The business of coups and China’s Quad response
Companies are finding themselves torn between conscience and keeping the lights on when it comes to Myanmar. -
9 Mar 2021
Endorsing “self-reliance”, Beijing raises the geopolitical stakes
The “dual circulation” strategy announced at the National People’s Congress could shift global economics and politics. -
3 Mar 2021
The politics of being Chinese in Australia
A new Lowy Institute survey reveals a wide range of experiences and views around the Australia-China relationship. -
1 Mar 2021
Erasing memory in China’s Tibet
The Chinese Communist Party is employing familiar tactics to assert its rule. When co-opting fails, coerce or silence. -
24 Feb 2021
What are China’s leaders saying about the South China Sea?
The rhetoric weaves between cooperative and competitive, leaving the question of what – and who – to believe. -
17 Feb 2021
How China is bending the rules in the South China Sea
Beijing’s misapplication of international law in the disputed waters is more complex than it seems on the surface. -
12 Feb 2021
CCP governance comes to the South China Sea
Focusing exclusively on China’s use of coercion across the region obscures the true extent of Beijing’s ambitions. -
9 Feb 2021
India should prioritise a denial strategy in the Indian Ocean
The stand-off with China in the Himalayas has raised a broader debate about India’s strategic outlook. -
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5 Feb 2021
What does America think the rules-based order is for?
The US is in a defensive crouch rather than in an expansionary mood. But bring on debate. -
29 Jan 2021
China and the Australian far right
The Covid pandemic and anti-CCP fervour have brought together some unlikely allies. -
28 Jan 2021
How to China, from your friends in New Zealand
A trade minister goes on record going way off script. -
22 Jan 2021
Beijing’s “Wolf Warriors” score own goals
A confounding kimchi kerfuffle shows the CCP has made people at home hungry for news of China’s dominance. -
20 Jan 2021
Where in the world is Jack Ma?
Explaining the “disappearance” of China’s most charismatic businessman takes an appreciation of Xi Jinping Thought. -
19 Jan 2021
Wrong place, wrong citizenship: The tribulations of the “Two Michaels”
China’s coercion in a broader geopolitical struggle continues to hold very personal consequences. -
18 Jan 2021
Boys’ love brings edgy drama to China, and a backlash
As a genre, gay fiction has leapt from words to the screen with enormous popularity, but not beyond the censor’s reach. -
29 Dec 2020
The China challenge: Highlights of The Interpreter in 2020
From Covid cover-ups to high altitude stand-offs, Beijing was never far from the centre of controversy. -
18 Dec 2020
Washington’s warped Asia policy debate
Whoever Joe Biden puts into key positions, best they make quick studies on regional dynamics. -
17 Dec 2020
When China lashed out
Lessons of the past are too readily overlooked. But Australia has walked a tightrope between clashing giants before. -
16 Dec 2020
Russia and China team up on the Indian Ocean
The US and its allies may have military dominance in the region, but it’s no guarantee of influence. -
10 Dec 2020
Indonesia-China cooperation: Standby for take-off
For all the obstacles in the relationship, ties between Jakarta and Beijing look set to only continue to grow. -
8 Dec 2020
China’s online meddling goes beyond the Great Firewall
Human rights movements still suffer from falsehoods and misinformation even on social media platforms banned by Beijing. -
3 Dec 2020
As a national champion departs the scene, a China food fight looms
Picking winners? In this case, one sort of export interest seems to have suffered due to support for another. -
1 Dec 2020
We’ve been trolled – expect more of it, because it worked
Here’s how Scott Morrison might have responded to China’s online provocation. -
1 Dec 2020
China: Explaining that tweet
Four possible reasons behind a Chinese official’s social media missive. -
27 Nov 2020
Fareed Zakaria on Australia’s “opportunity” between the US and China
Inspiration from a tiny giant in Southeast Asia might help Australia find a way through multiple diplomatic obstacles. -
27 Nov 2020
Port Adelaide to Shanghai: Sports diplomacy and the long road ahead
When a sports club thinks strategically, governments can benefit too. -
27 Nov 2020
Beijing’s line on the South China Sea: “Nothing to see here”
China’s official denials of growing military capability in the region look a lot like gaslighting. -
19 Nov 2020
Beijing’s bad books: Australia can learn from Norway and South Korea
China’s coercive diplomacy is not new. Other countries have managed to repair ties after a perceived slight. -
18 Nov 2020
Gauge-changing train is no game changer for China
The recently launched high-speed rail adaptable to different track widths is unlikely to jump the hurdles of the BRI. -
13 Nov 2020
Biden’s clean energy plan versus China’s green tech dominance
The US might be able to construct a clean-energy supply chain without relying on China, but it won’t be easy. -
12 Nov 2020
China: World’s biggest polluter ... and climate activist?
Its greenhouse gas emissions are more than the US and EU combined, but China has big ambitions for carbon neutrality. -
11 Nov 2020
Leading by example: Two different responses to China’s rise
South Korea and Australia share many traits but differ in one important respect – their responses to a rising China. -
6 Nov 2020
China’s problematic lending comes home to roost
Pressure is mounting for China to join international debt-management initiatives. -
5 Nov 2020
A Trump legacy?
Trump or Biden, it’s clear there are far bigger foreign policy contests still to be settled.