As trade tensions with the US escalate, Beijing retaliates with Hollywood bans and a high-stakes Southeast Asia tour.
Author: Lorenzo Lamperti
Lorenzo Lamperti is the editorial director of China Files, an online platform that also edits a monthly magazine focused on China and Asia. He’s a contributor to La Stampa, RSI, Il Manifesto and other Italian media.
China continues to rack up diplomatic points for its largely hands-off approach to the war in Ukraine, but the “grotesque” spectacle of Trump publicly abandoning a U.S. ally in need is the ideal symbol for Beijing’s message for the rest of the world about America’s would-be leadership.
The country’s Constitutional Court ruled on Sept. 20 in favor of maintaining the death penalty, in line with the position expressed by an overwhelming majority of the population. Yet, capital punishment remains controversial for a country that sees itself as East Asia’s model democracy.