In The News

Russia Needs Options to Deal with China

Thomas Graham May 3, 2016
Russia and China, fans of national sovereignty and obstacles for US influence, pivot to each other during times of troubles of their own making, whether the 2014 annexation of Crimea or the brutal crackdown of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. “Today, closer relations also help anchor Russia in the world’s most dynamic economic theater, East Asia,” explains Thomas Graham, a senior fellow at the...

China's Steel Industry Is Dominating the Global Market

Peter Pham May 2, 2016
China is the world’s biggest steelmaker, explains Peter Pham for Forbes. The country manufactures nearly half the world’s steel, essential for modern economies and infrastructure. Other Asian nations make 19 percent of the world’s steel; the EU, 10 percent; and NAFTA, 7 percent. As Chinese leaders try to transform the economy toward more services and reduce manufacturing, investment in Chinese...

South China Sea: The Fight China Will Take to the Brink of War

Peter Hartcher April 28, 2016
China and the United States are competing for military dominance of the western Pacific Ocean and war could flare over the South China Sea, reports Peter Hartcher for the Sydney Morning Herald. Beijing has said it won’t comply with a ruling from the International Court of Justice in the Hague that upholds claims from the Philippines. The United States and Australia are not taking sides in the...

The Need to Face Facts in Asia

Hugh White April 22, 2016
Neither the current US administration nor the presidential candidates vying to replace Barack Obama in January 2017, offer specific strategies for handling China’s challenge to the US-led order in Asia. Hugh White, a professor in the Strategic and Defence Studies Centre at The Australian National University, outlines what is known about US strategy for East Asia Forum: “to take advantage of China...

A Tale of Two Countries

Nayan Chanda April 19, 2016
China and India each have their own methods for developing their industries, and Nayan Chanda reminds that a nation’s foreign direct investment, inward or outward, can achieve more than economic goals. The founding editor of YaleGlobal Online outlines differences between the approaches employed by China and India: “The main difference between the two is that one aims to grab cutting-edge...

Obama's Cautious and Calibrated Approach to an Assertive China

Robert Sutter April 19, 2016
The world’s two largest economies are rivals that fare best when cooperating on their many shared interests, whether stemming climate change or nuclear proliferation. A key area of contention between the two powers is the South China Sea, and under Xi Jinping, China has been more aggressive in pursuing its broad claims. Robert Sutter, author and international affairs professor, describes the...

China Expresses Anger at G7 Statement on East, South China Seas

April 12, 2016
G7 foreign ministers issued a joint statement calling on countries to avoid “intimidating, coercive or provocative unilateral actions" in the South China Sea and the East China Sea. The statement also asks countries to refrain from land reclamation activities. The statement did not mention China by name, but the country has engaged in heavy construction to expand islands and patrols areas...