China’s Xi Set for Star Turn at Davos Gathering
President aims to show he is one of the few responsible adults left on the global stage
China Overseas Investment Spree Set to Run Out of Steam
A government think tank predicts China’s direct investment overseas, after years of robust gains, is likely to decline in 2017
Ambassador to China Shares Lessons Learned with the Next Administration
Democrat Max Baucus, the U.S. ambassador to China since 2014, is preparing to hand over the post to his successor. He discusses the future of the U.S.-China relationship.
South China Sea: China Media Warn US over ‘Confrontation’
Blocking China from islands it has built in contested waters would lead to “devastating confrontation,” Chinese state media have warned.
The NYRB China Archive
01.13.17
China’s Hidden Massacres: An Interview with Tan Hecheng
from New York Review of BooksTan Hecheng might seem an unlikely person to expose one of the most shocking crimes of the Chinese Communist Party. A congenial 67-year-old who spent most of his life in southern Hunan province away from the seats of power, Tan is...
Tillerson Channels Reagan on South China Sea
Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson said that perhaps the United States should deny China access to its artificial islands in the South China Sea.
Trump Nominee’s Proposal to Block China From Islands Sets Off Alarms
If carried out, Tillerson’s proposal to bar Beijing from some South China Sea islands would likely trigger military battle, experts say
China Launches New Electronic Intelligence Naval Ship
China’s Navy has launched a new electronic reconnaissance ship as Beijing’s new assertiveness to territorial claims in the South China Sea fuels tensions.
Japan And China Are Competing To Win Over The Philippines
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte is pushing away the United States in favor of its geopolitical rival China. But the man in office still likes Japan.
Obama Takes Parting Shot at China with WTO Aluminium Case
U.S. is challenging Beijing’s financing of its industries with low-cost loans
China Banks Extend Record 12.65 Trillion Yuan in Loans in 2016 as Debt Worries Mount
China’s banks extended a record 12.56 trillion yuan ($1.82 trillion) of loans in 2016 as the government encouraged more credit-fueled stimulus to meet its economic growth target
Hong Kong Human Rights Situation ‘Worst Since Handover to China’
Amnesty International report says rule of law, freedom of speech, and trust in government all deteriorated in 2016
China Wants to Be a Climate Change Watchdog, but Can It Lead by Example?
Like some other nations, China, the world’s biggest polluter, has refused to accept international monitoring of its emissions and says it will provide data to outside observers.
Books
01.11.17
Taiwan’s China Dilemma
China and Taiwan share one of the world’s most complex international relationships. Although similar cultures and economic interests have promoted an explosion of economic ties between them since the late 1980s, these ties have not led to an improved political relationship, let alone progress toward the unification that both governments once claimed to seek. In addition, Taiwan’s recent Sunflower Movement succeeded in obstructing deeper economic ties with China. Why has Taiwan’s policy toward China been so inconsistent?
Taiwan Scrambles Jets, Navy as China Aircraft Carrier Enters Taiwan Strait
Taiwan scrambled jets and navy ships on Wednesday as a group of Chinese warships, led by its sole aircraft carrier, sailed through the Taiwan Strait
China Delegation Reportedly Open to Meeting Trump’s Team at Davos
China’s President Xi Jinping’s delegation to the World Economic Forum to be held in Davos next week is open to a meeting with President-elect Donald Trump’s team
China, Fanning Patriotism, Adds Six Years to War with Japan in History Books
For generations, the “Eight-Year War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression” has been ingrained in the minds of Chinese schoolchildren. Now the war is getting a new name, and an extended time frame.
China’s Money, China’s Blue Helmets for Africa
It’s not just about raw materials anymore. China’s expanding influence in Africa poses risks to European interests, but it offers opportunities as well.
Against China’s Objections, Ted Cruz and Texas Governor Meet with Taiwanese President
Against the objections of Chinese officials, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Tex.) and Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) met with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen in Texas on Sunday during her much-scrutinized overseas trip.
China Battles to Control Growing Online Nationalism
When Taiwan last year elected a president eager to reduce the island’s reliance on China, tens of thousands of Chinese netizens attacked Taiwanese websites in a co-ordinated action that was as much a surprise to Beijing as it was to its targets...
China’s New Silk Road Is Getting Muddy
With the future of U.S.-China relations an open question for the incoming Donald Trump administration, many have focused on whether the president-elect’s promise to withdraw from negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) will enhance...
Viewpoint
01.06.17
No, Hong Kong’s Democracy Movement Is Not Anti-Mainland
In a November 29 essay, “The Anti-Mainland Bigotry of Hong Kong’s Democracy Movement,” published in Foreign Policy, Taisu Zhang tries to make the case that Beijing’s hardline attitude toward Hong Kong is traceable to what he calls the “bigotry of...
Cambodia Wants China as Its Neighborhood Bully
In the closing months of 2016, all of Southeast Asia seemed to be pivoting toward China. Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak was hailed as a “visionary leader” by fellow Malaysian politicians for “tilting to China.”
Taiwan Tries to Keep Central American Allies Away from China
Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen heads to four Central American countries this weekend in an effort to stop more of the self-governing island’s remaining diplomatic allies defecting to China.
China in the World Podcast
01.06.17
The Unpredictability of U.S.-China Relations Under Trump
from Carnegie ChinaAs U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches, uncertainty looms over the future of U.S.-China policy. In part one of this two-part podcast, Paul Haenle speaks with Chen Dingding, an International Relations...
China, Seeking to Stop Weakening of Currency, Issues Restrictions
China’s financial regulators appear to have grown increasingly concerned in recent weeks about the pace of the renminbi’s depreciation
Apple Removes New York Times App in China
Company says it will not offer news site in app store because it has been told by Beijing it is in ‘violation of local regulations’
History Shows Beijing Won’t Budge an Inch on Taiwan
Trump might want to use the island as a bargaining chip—but for China, it’s a matter of principle
How Chinese Entrepreneurs Can Help Trump ‘Make America Great Again’
Edward Tse says Chinese investment and job creation are just what the US economy needs to sharpen its edge, not isolationism and trade wars
State Media Criticism of Trump’s ‘Addiction to Twitter Diplomacy’ Signals China’s Frustration
China’s state media has lambasted Donald Trump for conducting foreign policy through Twitter, in a commentary reflecting Beijing’s frustration with the US president-elect’s unorthodox style of diplomacy after his tweets broached sensitive issues...
China Inc.’s Large Dollar Debts Fuel Beijing’s Efforts to Curb Yuan Plunge
The large pile of foreign debt owed by Chinese companies, from state-owned banks to airlines, is giving added impetus to Beijing’s efforts to keep the yuan from falling too steeply against the rallying dollar.
Obama Got Tough on China. It Cost U.S. Jobs and Raised Prices
Protect American jobs by getting tough on China. That's the underlying idea behind President-elect Donald Trump's threat of a 45% tariff against China as a ploy to bring jobs back to America. Before pursuing that strategy, however, Trump might...
Uncertainty Over New Chinese Law Rattles Foreign Nonprofits
The hotline rings, but nobody answers. China’s Ministry of Public Security opened the line last month to answer questions about the new law regulating foreign nonprofit organizations, which takes effect on Sunday. But this week and last, calls...
As Trump and North Korea’s Kim Spar, China Poses as the Responsible Actor
President-elect Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un have been trading threats this week, while China poses as the mature, reasonable kid on the block.
A Human Rights Activist, A Secret Prison and A Tale from Xi Jinping’s New China
Peter Dahlin spent 23 days in a ‘black prison’ in Beijing, where he says he was deprived of sleep and questioned with a ‘communication enhancement’ machine.
First China-U.K. Freight Train Departs as Xi Seeks to Lift Trade
China initiated a rail-freight service to Britain as part of President Xi Jinping’s efforts to strengthen trade ties with Europe.
Chinese Access to U.S. Semiconductor Industry May Be Curbed
The Obama administration is finalizing a study that could lead to restrictions on Chinese investment in the U.S. semiconductor sector.
China's Homegrown Populism to Test Xi Jinping
Britain voted to leave Europe, and the United States voted to elect Donald Trump. Now, could China be facing a populist backlash of its own? Some China watchers say a growing populist movement will test the nation's leadership ahead of the 19th...
Record Flows and Growing Imbalances
Mercator Institute for China Studies
Foreign direct investment (FDI) has become an increasingly important part of the E.U.-China economic relationship. European companies have invested hundreds of billions of euros into the Chinese economy since the 1980s, and have made big bets on...
Conversation
12.30.16
Rex Tillerson at State: What Will He Mean for U.S.-China Relations?
On December 13, President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team announced the selection of ExxonMobil Chief Executive Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. We asked ChinaFile contributors to respond to the choice with a specific focus on how...
A Good Year for Xi Jinping— But Trouble is Heading His Way
After domestic victories in 2016, China’s president must deal with a worsening economy and Trump in the White House
While the Rest of the World Retreats, China Expands Investments in Arab World
As chaos consumes large portions of the region, Beijing is sending in cash
Uncertainty Over New Chinese Law Rattles Foreign Nonprofits
A new law in China is raising concern among thousands of nongovernmental organizations about their ability to continue their work in the new year
Taiwan Announces U.S. Itinerary for President, Upsetting China
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen will transit through Houston and San Francisco during her January visit to allies in Latin America
Xinjiang Attack: Four 'Terrorists' and One Bystander Killed, Says China
Assailants shot dead after driving up to regional Communist party headquarters and setting off bomb, according to official media, in flare-up in Uighur region
Migrant-School Students Face Difficulty Getting Into College, Study Finds
Less than 6% of students in Beijing schools for migrant children entered college. In local public schools, 60% did
China Warmly Welcomes a Giant Rooster With Trumpian Characteristics
Trump's golden quiff has appeared on a 23-foot tall rooster statue outside a shopping mall in the northern Chinese city of Taiyuan
Postcard from Dandong: Politics and Pity on the Border of China and North Korea
The border between the two countries shows how drastically they have grown apart
China’s Defense Ministry Confirms Probe of Leading General Wang Jianping
Ministry announcement verifies August report that Wang had been arrested on the suspicion of taking bribes
Chinese Middle Class in Uproar Over Alleged Police Brutality
Thousands are signing online petitions to protest the dropping of a police brutality case, representing a rare display of white-collar outrage with Beijing
Power Plays Across the First Island Chain: China’s Lone Carrier Group Has a Busy December
For the first time, China’s lone carrier entered the Western Pacific. What does the Chinese Navy have in mind?
Chinese Warships Enter South China Sea Near Taiwan in Show of Force
Beijing’s only aircraft carrier cruises past Taiwan’s Pratas Islands in an exercise state media said showed the country’s improving combat capabilities
Xi’s Power Play Foreshadows Historic Transformation of How China is Ruled
Party insiders say president wants to remain in office after his second term, breaking succession conventions
How George Michael’s Wham! Baffled Communist China and Inspired its Youth
It was a culture shock to rival the best of them: the coiffured hair and exuberant dancing of British pop stars, and the Communist Party’s dour uniformity
China Replaces Anti-Pollution Charges with Beefed Up ‘Green’ Tax
China will start collecting environment protection taxes in 2018 to strengthen enforcement that authorities said local governments had interfered with
As China Pivots, Trump Risks Fighting an Old War
Incoming U.S. administration highlights trade retaliation as Beijing shifts to a form of high-tech protectionism