South East Asia

A Geopolitical Perspective On China’s Financial Sector Opening-Up – Analysis

In recent years, the dual factors of anti-globalization movement and intensifying geopolitical frictions have presented China’s economy a very different external environment compares with that in the past. In response to such change, China has begun to adjust its development priorities and strategies, with the “internal circulation” being the result …

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How Rising Great Power Tensions Will Affect Central Asia – Analysis

The recent escalation in diplomatic tensions between the U.S., EU, China, and Russia is an unwelcome development for Central Asia. With the recent complicated visit to Moscow by the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell marred by aggressive bilateral rhetoric, the White …

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Chinese Drones Fly Near Taiwan-held Island in South China Sea

Taiwan said Wednesday that it is willing to shoot down Chinese drones that have been flying near Taiwan-occupied Pratas Island in the South China Sea, a response to what analysts view as the latest pressure tactic from Beijing. Ocean Affairs Council Chair Lee Chung-wei told Taiwan’s legislature that the Taiwanese …

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China Uses Money, Diplomacy to Push Back Against US in Southeast Asia

The Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi has wrapped up his second series of meetings so far this year with Southeast Asia leaders to discuss vaccine distribution, help with post-pandemic recovery and other offers that experts say could sway countries in the pivotal subregion toward China and away from growing U.S. …

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Afghan Army Retakes Key Southern District From Taliban

fghan security forces have recaptured a key district from the Taliban in the southern Kandahar Province in an operation that killed and wounded dozens of militants, the Ministry of Defense said on April 5. Local officials also confirmed that the Arghandab district in the outskirts of the provincial capital, Kandahar …

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Nasrallah: US’ top priority is preventing a China-Russia-Iran alliance

In a recent televised speech, Hezbollah Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah claimed that the Biden administration’s top priority today was to prevent the formation of a major alliance or axis between China, Russia, and Iran. Nasrallah also claimed that the United States and Israel were today in a state of …

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Clashing With Two Great Powers At Once Is Bad Policy – OpEd

Right out of the gate, the Biden administration seems to be at loggerheads with both China and Russia. Richard Nixon would be disappointed. Despite his reputation as an anticommunist, Nixon managed to get China and the Soviet Union in a competition to better relations with the United States. His diplomatic …

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China resents US presence in Afghanistan

This is second in the series on the flux in the global scene by the seasoned diplomat, an expert on Middle East, Eurasia, Central Asia, South Asia and the Asia-Pacific…Third on Myanmar will follow. The “hidden agenda” of the war on terror in Afghanistan has been an open secret. The …

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China’s Threat to Free Speech in Europe

The current standoff is, in essence, about the future of free speech in Europe. If notoriously feckless European officials fail to stand firm in the face of mounting Chinese pressure, Europeans who dare publicly to criticize the CCP in the future can expect to pay an increasingly high personal cost …

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Chinese Business In Central Asia: How Crony Capitalism Is Eroding Justice

China’s economic influence in Central Asia has gained a new character after President Xi Jinping came to power. In almost all economic activities there is a growing Chinese presence, and these actors range from large multinational firms to small businesses. In a region with weak states and institutions, these players …

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