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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics In The News

Trump’s Trade War Comes Full Circle — China Strikes Back

China is now wielding a U.S.-style extraterritorial law on rare-earth trade. It has tilted the balance of power in its favor, but rattled global markets and left the rest of the world caught in the crossfire.

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In The News

No New World Order: Xi’s Alliance Of Autocrats Can’t Rival The West

Xi Jinping’s military show in Beijing and his alliance of autocrats may look like the dawn of a new world order, yet the economic, scientific, and military balance still tilts toward the democracies of the West.

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Geopolitics In The News

Xi Jinping Weaponizes History To Send A Warning To Trump

Beijing is using the anniversary of the end of World War II to project its new power in opposition to the United States. Donald Trump has accused Xi Jinping of downplaying American support for China in defeating Japan and of “plotting” against America.

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Geopolitics

For Xi Jinping, The Trump-Zelensky Debacle Was The Perfect New Year’s Gift

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.

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Economy Geopolitics

Lockdown To Rebound: Wuhan’s Rebirth, Five Years After COVID-19

Life has resumed its course in the large industrial city in central China, where the virus first appeared at the end of 2019. Five years after confinement, the 14 million people of Wuhan are drowning in economic difficulties. Meanwhile, China has erased this period from its history.

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Geopolitics Ideas

Asma Al-Assad In Exile? Searching For The Real Story Of Syria’s Former First Lady

Despite her pleasant air and sense of fashion, the now former Syrian First Lady Asma al-Assad was bound to be tied to her husband’s fate. Born and raised in the UK, she was respected by some for openly battling cancer and later adored in China for her glamour. Still, she was largely despised at home for having helped cover her husband’s long list of alleged war crimes.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics special series

For Beijing, Trump May Be The Lesser Of Two Evils

Republicans and Democrats agree on just one thing: being tough with China. That’s why Chinese leaders are not expressing a preference in the U.S. presidential election. Yet some in Beijing are leaning toward Donald Trump and what they see as his penchant for “pragmatism” and “deals” between China and the United States.

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Geopolitics

Facing China’s “Appetite,” A Quiet Taiwanese Mission To Sway A Reluctant Europe

She is no longer President of Taiwan, which allows her to travel to countries that recognize Beijing, not Taipei. France Inter met Tsai Ing-wen in Paris , where she defended Taiwan’s democracy, in the face of China’s appetite for power and territory.

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Geopolitics

Tiananmen Square: A Foreign Journey To The Forbidden Heart Of China

As the People’s Republic of China turns 75, journalist Jens Mühling attempts to visit Tiananmen Square, where the country’s great dramas have always taken place.

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Geopolitics

Can Xi Jinping Crown Himself King Of The Global South?

A spectacular summit is being held in Beijing, with almost all African leaders paying heed to President Xi Jinping, who has pledged another $50 billion to the Continent. The investment in Africa is a boost in Xi’s global influence and an insurance policy in China’s new Cold War with the U.S.

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

U.S.-China Relations: The Stealth Mega Issue Of November’s Election

U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has assured Xi Jinping that, if elected, Kamala Harris would handle ties between their countries “responsibly.” U.S.-China relations are the major issue of this century, as tensions rise over Taiwan, technology and the South China Sea. A Trump victory would make that prospect scary.

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This Happened

This Happened — August 16: Usain Bolt World Record

Updated August 16, 2024 at 11:30 a.m. Usain Bolt set a new world record of 9.58 seconds for the 100-meter dash on this day in 2009. Who is Usain Bolt? Usain Bolt is a Jamaican former sprinter and widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters in the history of athletics. He specialized in the […]

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Future Society

How China’s Mass Surveillance Fuses High Tech And Citizen Snitching

Twenty-five years in the making, China has developed a mass surveillance state, from Beijing alleyways to rural villages. And citizens don’t object because they’ve been co-opted into it.

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This Happened

This Happened — June 5: Tiananmen Square’s Iconic “Tank Man”

Updated June 5, 2024 at 12:30 p.m. The famous tank man photo is an iconic image captured during the Tiananmen Square protests in Beijing, China, on this day in 1989. The photo depicts an unidentified Chinese man standing in front of a column of tanks, blocking their path. Who took the tank man photo? The […]

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Geopolitics

Putin In Beijing: Why The China-Russia Alliance Is Stronger Than You Think

The Russian president is in Beijing on Thursday and Friday, his first foreign trip since his re-election. Beijing and Moscow have their differences, but share the same long-term objective of changing the international order.

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Economy Geopolitics

Power, Wealth, Ambivalence — How China’s Contradictions Weigh On The World

Just because war appears more likely to spread to Europe or the Middle East than Asia, we should not forget China’s enormous weight. But does Beijing want to do with it?

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Future Geopolitics

When Hackers Are Hacked, A Chinese Spy Story

A document leak from a major hacking company opens the door to the Chinese system of digital espionage and influence, which is part of worldwide system that is changing the nature of geopolitics.

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Geopolitics

What Indonesia’s Election Means For Democracy — And The U.S.-China Duel

Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto is expected to win Indonesia’s presidential election, on Feb. 14. Yet concerns about democracy are on the rise, as the nation carefully balances ties with Beijing and Washington.

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In The News

Worldcrunch Magazine #70 — The Specter Of Famine

February 12 – February 18, 2024

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In The News

Worldcrunch Magazine #69 — China’s Road To Nowhere?

February 5 – February 11, 2024

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Economy Geopolitics

China’s “Belt And Road” 10 Years On: Grandiose Plans, Pure Nationalism, Vague Future

Ambition and ambiguity are the unspoken rules utilized by the participating parties in China’s much touted Belt and Road Initiative, launched 10 years ago, to expand its economic power across the world. But what has actually come of it is not so clear.

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Geopolitics

Taiwan Elections: A Victory Of The Frontrunner Will Trigger Beijing

Saturday’s election is bound to create tensions, if the favorite, William Lai, candidate of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), wins. Xi Jinping has warned against voting for him. But is it just posturing?

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Geopolitics

The Stakes In Taiwan’s Election Couldn’t Be Higher

It’s the first big election of 2024, and it may well prove one of the most contested — and significant ones. As these vote on Saturday, Taiwanese citizens will be picking the fate of their identity and democracy.

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Economy Food / Travel Society

Tea Be Damned! Inside The Massive Starbucks Bet On China’s Shift To Coffee

A gigantic and multi-faceted new location near Shanghai epitomizes the American giant’s ambition to quench China’s growing but still-nascent thirst for coffee.

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Economy

How A Xi Jinping Dinner In San Francisco May Have Sealed Mastercard’s Arrival In China

The credit giant becomes only the second player after American Express to be allowed to set up a bank card-clearing RMB operation in mainland China.

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Geopolitics Israel-Palestine War

Gaza And BRICS: Arab Leaders’ Visit To China Is Only The Beginning

Frustrated by the United States’ unwavering support for Israel’s war on Gaza, Arab governments have looked at other options to help establish a ceasefire before it becomes too late. First stop: Beijing. Moscow’s role may be more obscure, but no less essential, in building a global coalition that counters the West’s stance.

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Geopolitics

Will David Cameron’s Ties With China Compromise His Return As Foreign Secretary?

David Cameron’s reentry into British politics as the UK’s new foreign minister is being lauded by Chinese state media as a significant boost for Sino-UK relations. There is a good reason that Beijing is happy to see the former Prime Minister.

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Geopolitics

Tibet Or Xizang? Why China May Be Ready To Rename The Contested Land

The use of “Xizang” instead of “Tibet” by Chinese officials is supported by some nationalists, but viewed by Tibetans, including those affiliated with the Dalai Lama, as veritable erasure of identity.

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Economy Society

Big Tobacco, Tax Windfalls: The Inside Story Of What Really Feeds China’s Smoking Habit

No country in the world has as big a cigarette industry as China. This is the story of how a giant state-backed monopoly created the industry, which provides more tax revenue than any other, and ultimately sabotaged the country’s anti-smoking efforts in the process.

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Geopolitics Ideas

Make No Mistake, The Hawks Are Running China

China released a new map where it borrows strips of lands from its neighbors. Although this is far from being the first time the country is involved in territorial disputes, Beijing’s growing military shows it has the power (and will?) to try to make it a reality.

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Society Women Worldwide

Imperfect Victim: What A Chinese Series About Sexual Assault Can And Can’t Say

A new melodrama broadcast in China about sexual assault in the workplace is a sign that some difficult questions are being addressed, but that serious taboos remain in Chinese society and public life.

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In The News

China’s Removal Of Missing Foreign Minister Qin Gang Is The Latest In A Long List Of “Disappeared”

A movie star, a tennis player, a tech billionaire — and now the Foreign Minister: the Chinese Party’s parallel justice system does not discriminate when it comes to hushing down figures deemed “subversive.”

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

For China, Putin’s Russia Has Become A Lesson In How Not To Exercise Power

There are many lessons to be taken from Yevgeny Prigozhin’s aborted uprising in the halls of power China. Going forward, Beijing will see Russia as a model on what to avoid in maintaining stability autocratic rule.

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In The News

Gùsto! How, What, Where Locals Eat (& Drink) In Beijing

Hiked the Great Wall? Walked the hundreds of stairs up the Temple of Heaven? Looks like you need a drink.

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Geopolitics

Soft Power, Hard Ball: Why The U.S. Wants Back In UNESCO

The U.S. is set to rejoin UNESCO, after Donald Trump pulled the country out in 2017, accusing it of being biased against Israel. The reasons for the return include artificial intelligence and pure geopolitics.

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Geopolitics Society

Pillar Of Shame, Symbol Of Freedom: Tiananmen To Hong Kong To Berlin

The “Pillar of Shame” in Hong Kong, a memorial to the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre, was a symbol of freedom and democracy. Beijing has taken it down, but a replica is being built in Berlin. Activist Samuel Chu explains why that means so much to him.

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Geopolitics

China Is Recruiting Former NATO Pilots — Is That OK?

A Parliamentary committee that oversees German intelligence services is questioning Beijing increasing recruitment activities of those who know Western weaponry best. This raises a fundamental strategic question as China-West tensions grow .

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Geopolitics Russia-Ukraine War

A Key New Ally For Russia That Makes The West Cringe: Tunisia

Tunis and Moscow have been increasingly close — at the cost of relations with the West, which had once looked to Tunisia as a model of democracy. The two countries are brought together by Kremlin’s efforts to woo African countries, but also a natural alliance of its strongman Presidents Putin and Saïed.

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Geopolitics

How The U.S.-China Cold War Will Be Different — And Why Little Can Stop It

The just completed G7 in Hiroshima has locked both sides in the simmering Cold War in Asia into what appears an inevitable confrontation that recalls the U.S.-Soviet showdown. But there are key caveats that make both the limits and risks harder to anticipate.

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Geopolitics Ideas

Ya Ya, Between A Broken Heart And Big Chill In Giant Panda Diplomacy

This is the story of Ya Ya, a female panda whose fate captures for the degrading relationship and eroding trust between China and the U.S.

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