Japan needs China’s market for its technology. It also needs low-priced daily necessities made in China.
New Japanese Prime Minister Must Quell China’s Fears About His Nationalism
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China
Is China Heading for Collapse?
An implicit social contract underlies the Chinese people’s relationship with its government. The people accept the autocratic Communist Party of China regime with its corruption and minimal public participation, and the regime delivers a continuous and rapid improvement in the economic standard of living. But that social contract is now at risk, as China is on an unsustainable path that will result in economic stagnation or decline in the coming decades.
The South China Sea Conundrum
Recent months have witnessed renewed tensions over disputed territories in the South China Sea. In response to China’s encroaching military maneuvers and the country’s designation of the whole area as part of its indisputable sovereignty, several South East Asian countries have found themselves dangerously vulnerable. A murky legal regime has led to the emergence of a series of overlapping territorial claims in the area, but at the center of tensions are five key-actors: China, the Philippines, Vietnam, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and increasingly the United States.
China Forced to Temper Its Mercenary Approach to International Trade
It’s about time China started factoring into its decisions the impact of its international trade policies on the world.
Review: China, the United States, and Global Order
In their new book China, the United States, and Global Order, British scholars Rosemary Foot and Andrew Walter put U.S.-Chinese relations into a global context. Rejecting the realist assumption that norms do not matter, Foot and Walter try to identify the factors that shape Chinese and U.S. behavioral consistency (or lack thereof) with global norms. They provide an in-depth analysis of five key global normative frameworks: the non-use of force except in self defense and the responsibility to protect (R2P); international macroeconomic surveillance regarding exchange rates; nuclear non-proliferation; climate change; and financial regulatory norms.
Con Game
I’m sitting in Starbucks the other day eavesdropping on the conversation at the next table. A man in a suit is trying to sell something to a couple. I’m having a difficult time determining the product. But the pitch is familiar enough. By buying a large number of these items and selling them to their friends, neighbors, and colleagues, the couple will unleash their inner entrepreneur. They’ll make a modest investment and, in no time, score a lot of money. The man in the suit produces a lot of shiny, colorful pamphlets from his briefcase. He tells the couple about how much money he’s made. He tells stories of other lucky couples. He exudes confidence.
Microbloggers Push the Envelope of Free Expression in China
In the past, the state was able to promptly eradicate almost any politically sensitive content on the Internet, but now the Chinese microblog users have found a counter-measure to voice their opinions.
Review: America’s Challenge
The relationship between the United States and China is probably the most important current bilateral tie in the world. In his new book America’s Challenge – Engaging a Rising China in the Twenty First Century, Michael Swaine at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace interviews over 50 current and former U.S. officials in an effort to identify current problems and challenges in U.S.-China relations, evaluate policies adopted by the U.S. government, and propose ways to improve the relationship.
China Eclipsing U.S. in Global Reach, Poll Finds
And the United States is seen more favourably by the global publics than China, according to the survey. Despite declines in the U.S. image in many countries over the past year, the median percentage that offered an overall favourable assessment of the U.S. was 60 percent, eight points higher than China’s percentage rating.
Is China’s String of Pearls Real?
China’s “string of pearls” consists of port and airfield construction projects, diplomatic ties, and force modernization. These “pearls” range from the coast of mainland China to the recently upgraded military facilities on Hainan Island, China’s southernmost territory. They extend through the South China Sea to the Strait of Malacca, over to the Indian Ocean and along the coast of the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf. They include an airstrip on Woody Island in the Paracel archipelago east of Vietnam. A container shipping facility in Chittagong, Bangladesh, a deep-water port in Sittwe, Myanmar, and a potential naval base in Gwadar, Pakistan are also “pearls,” all of them representing Chinese geopolitical influence or military presence.