Showdown in the Pacific: Military tensions high on eve of key ruling
Major stakeholders in the South China Sea are rapidly deploying strategic assets to the region to prepare for a major military confrontation following a key ruling by a UN (more…)
Xi gets pushback from elite intellectuals demanding Internet freedom
By Dr. Willy Lam Academics, journalists and other free-thinking intellectuals have taken the bold step of calling for more freedom of expression and less police oversight over the internet (more…)
Largest-ever paramilitary games tied to unemployment, crackdown
By Dr. Willy Lam President and Commander-in-Chief Xi Jinping launched the largest-ever war game involving the nation’s People’s Armed Police late last month. Official news agencies said more than (more…)
Off the record on China’s bottom line: Growth rate is non-negotiable
Who is in charge of China’s macro-level financial and economic policy? Most observers will say President Xi Jinping, who is head of the two highest-level decision-making bodies: the Central (more…)
Pentagon report warns China is reorganizing its military for war
China continues its buildup on artificial islands in the South China Sea as it restructures its military to fight “short-duration, high-intensity regional conflicts,” the Pentagon said. (FULL STORY) (more…)
Xi consolidates power, elevates 6th Generation Zhejiang protégés
By Dr. Willy Lam Despite reports about challenges to his power, President and Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping has quietly — and relentlessly — built up his personal (more…)
What’s stalling Xi Jinping’s grandiose imperial dream? No money
By Dr. Willy Lam Remember the “One Belt One Road” (OBOR), a multi-trillion-dollar intercontinental project that underpins President Xi Jinping’s ambition to catapult China to super-power status? (FULL STORY) (more…)
Signs of a schism: Xi’s ruthless power grab challenged at NPC
By Dr. Willy Lam The apparent leitmotif of this year’s meeting of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the top advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), (more…)
Xi may engineer a crisis with Taiwan to distract his restive Chinese
By Dr. Willy Lam It is a standard policy of authoritarian regimes to divert the attention of its disgruntled citizens by engineering a foreign crisis. Beijing considers Taiwan issues (more…)