In The News

Financial Times: China’s Balancing Act on Debt Is Becoming Trickier

November 17, 2017
Some factories in China are paying workers to stay home, part of a plan to ease the nation’s serious debt levels – which has grown nearly fivefold over the past decade to $29 trillion today. “The debt, equivalent to 260 per cent of gross domestic product, has brought with it dramatic declines in credit efficiency,” explains the Financial Times. “The International Monetary Fund points out that in...

CNET: China's Supercomputers Race Past US to World Dominance

Stephen Shankland November 14, 2017
China dominates the list of the world’s list of the 500 fastest supercomputers. with 202 in all along with total performance. The United States has 144 supercomputers. The list is released twice a year. “The news … marks a notable shift in the international balance of high-end computing power that's closely tied to industrial, academic and military abilities,” writes Stephen Shankland for...

Rappler: ASEAN’s Deafening Silence on Human Rights Violations

Jodesz Gavilan November 13, 2017
The 31st summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations was marked by a failure to address human rights. “This comes at a time when some citizens of most, if not all, of ASEAN member-states are experiencing some form of oppression by their own governments,” writes Jodesz Gavilan for Rappler. “Rising authoritarianism cripples various freedoms that should be universally enjoyed.” ASEAN has 10...

The Diplomat: US Allies in the Age of Trump

Robert Dujarric November 3, 2017
Barack Obama had emphasized a “pivot to Asia," but the Trump administration promotes "America First" policies. US allies in the region will listen closely during Donald Trump’s 12-day trip to Asia for any signals on priorities. His policies, especially termination of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and baiting of Kim Jong Un in North Korea, do not align with the allies’ interests,...

Asia Sentinel: Indonesia for Sale

November 1, 2017
Palm oil is the most widely consumed vegetable oil on the planet, reports the World Wildlife Fund, and the agriculture product is in found in a variety of common packaged foods and household products. Wealthy investors have burned large swaths of rainforest in Indonesia to produce palm oil for export. The Asia Sentinel is running a six-part series investigating the politics, land rights,...

Financial Times: Inside China’s Secret “Magic Weapon” for Worldwide Influence

James Kynge, Lucy Hornby and Jamil Anderlini October 26, 2017
The United States once charmed the world with innovations and a confident culture – but stagnation, insecurity and a lack of civility have weakened what Harvard’s Joseph Nye identified in the 1980s as soft power. China’s Xi Jinping, in consolidating his own power, sees value in presenting a confident and caring face to the world. The headquarters for China’s soft-power strategy is in Beijing and...

The Japan Times: Abe Emerges Stronger With Win; Nation Still Divided Over Constitutional Revision

Reiji Yoshida October 23, 2017
Despite a low turnout by voters who had to contend with a typhoon, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s coalition has won a supermajority in Japan’s Lower House of Parliament after Sunday’s election. Reporters in Japan expect a continued push for constitutional changes that would dispense with severe limits on the country’s self-defense. A national referendum for considering such changes requires two-...