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China’s Fishing Fleet Is Vacuuming the Oceans

“China’s leaders see distant water fleets as a way to project presence around the world. The aim is to be present all over the world’s oceans so that they can direct the outcomes of international agreements that cover maritime resources.” — Tabitha Mallory, CEO of China Ocean Institute and affiliate …

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China’s Record First Quarter Fuels Strong Expansion In 2021 – Analysis

China’s first quarter record performance will accelerate momentum in China and support recovery in the US and global economic prospects – as long as unwarranted geopolitical tensions remain in check. A year ago, China’s first quarter plunge was -6.8 percent, due to the pandemic effect. In the West, it was …

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Biden Must Make Hard Choices Quickly on Afghanistan

Afghanistan may not rank in the top tier of U.S. President Joe Biden’s policy priorities, given the host of pressing crises in the United States. But Afghanistan’s fate hinges in large part on how the Biden team decides to approach the country’s conflict and its tenuous, still-nascent peace process. Biden …

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Fears of an Imminent Chinese Invasion of Taiwan Are Overblown

The top U.S. military commander for the Asia-Pacific region, Adm. Philip Davidson, raised eyebrows at a recent Senate hearing when he suggested China could invade Taiwan within the next six years. The nominee to replace Davidson at the head of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Adm. John Aquilino, then went a step …

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Why China’s ‘Wolf Warriors’ Won’t Back Down

China’s “wolf warrior” diplomacy may have backfired in Australia, Canada and most recently France, but in a sign of its hardening attitude toward the West, Beijing is not backing down from its aggressive posture. Defying diplomatic norms, a growing number of Chinese envoys are adopting a belligerent tone in their …

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No End in Sight to U.S.-China Tensions Over Taiwan

On Monday, China’s People Liberation Army flew 25 aircraft, including fighter jets and bombers, through Taiwan’s air defense identification zone, marking the largest such incursion since the self-ruled democracy began making its data on them public last September. Taiwan has continued to monitor the movements of the Chinese aircraft, transmit …

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Will Biden Seize the Opportunity for an Alliance With India?

President Joe Biden faces a slew of important foreign policy challenges. But with India, he has a historic opportunity to forge a strategic alliance to help build a stable balance of power in Asia and the wider Indo-Pacific region. India has been a bright spot in U.S. foreign policy over …

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India and Pakistan Pursue a Thaw in Kashmir—Again

In late February, India and Pakistan announced a cease-fire along their de facto border in the contested region of Kashmir. In a joint statement, the two countries’ military authorities said that there will be a “strict observance of all agreements, understandings and cease firing,” while also claiming they will seek …

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Serbia’s Ex-President Tadic Still Dreams of Final Comeback

Boris Tadic lost his presidential post in 2012 and has been demonized by his successors ever since – but despite growing irrelevancy, he’s still eyeing another starring role. “We will see each other in some new movie,” Boris Tadic said in May 2012 after losing the presidential race to Tomislav …

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Continuity or Change: Albania’s Political Duo Wrestle for Top Job

For years on, Socialist chief Edi Rama and Democratic Party boss Lulzim Basha face each other again in a parliamentary election – and not much has changed in the meantime, except the slogans. As Albania heads towards parliamentary elections on April 25, Socialist Party chief and Prime Minister Edi Rama …

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