ChinaFile Recommends
04.21.17China Needs Its Friend the Philippines More Than the Philippines Needs China
Forbes
If China can choreograph its own relations with all four Southeast Asian nations that dispute its aggressive, decade-old expansion in the same 3.5 million-square-kilometer sea, it can easily ignore threats from the United States, the world court or...
The NYRB China Archive
04.20.17
Recreating China’s Imagined Empire
from New York Review of Books
China’s influence in the world has become a persistent theme of these early days of the Donald Trump era. During his campaign, Trump portrayed China (not entirely incorrectly) as the leading malefactor in the politics of international trade—holding...
China in the World Podcast
04.17.17
What Happened at Mar-a-Lago?
from Carnegie China
One week before their first in-person meeting, President Trump told the world on Twitter that he expected the dialogue with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to be “a very difficult one” unless China was prepared to make major concessions on issues...
Viewpoint
04.06.17
Is It Time to Give up on Engagement?
In the lead-up to U.S. President Trump’s meeting later this week with China’s Xi Jinping, Orville Schell, ChinaFile’s publisher, wrote an essay in The Wall Street Journal on the history of China’s episodic embrace of democratic principles and why in...
ChinaFile Recommends
04.06.17How Trump Can Solve His Chinese Puzzle
New York Times
Getting tough with China is a central part of Donald Trump’s plan to “make America great again.” During the election campaign, he claimed that China was “raping” American industry.
ChinaFile Recommends
04.06.17Trump’s Team Has No Idea What It’s Doing On China
Foreign Policy
Donald Trump is, by his own admission, not terribly analytical or deliberative.
ChinaFile Recommends
04.04.17Trump’s Gifts to China
New York Times
The United States meets China this week in a position of weakness.
ChinaFile Recommends
04.04.17Trump’s Bad Deal with China
Politico
The early signs suggest Xi Jinping will run the table at Mar-a-Lago.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.29.17South China Sea Controversy Heats up as Man-Made Islands Are Almost Complete
News.com.au
The controversy in the South China Sea is heating up, with a new report from the U.S. warning China has almost completed construction of three mysterious man-made islands.
China in the World Podcast
03.26.17
Trump’s First Test in Asia
from Carnegie China
While President Trump appoints new officials to his administration and reviews policy frameworks, Asia-Pacific leaders are moving ahead. Since taking office, Trump has grappled with consequential developments in the region, ranging from North Korea’...
ChinaFile Recommends
03.24.17Malaysia Buying Chinese Ships to Protect its Waters From China, Other
Voice of America
Officials from the Southeast Asian country, with a coastline stretching from the Sulu Sea westward to the Indian Ocean, said in November they would get four littoral mission ships made in China.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.24.17Australia Shouldn't Pick Between U.S. and China, Premier Li Says
Bloomberg
Australia, which has fought alongside the U.S. in every major conflict since World War I, has been careful not to offend China, which was responsible for 31 percent of its merchandise exports in the 12 months to July last year.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.22.17Philippine Ministers Cry Foul over China’s Island Plans
Financial Times
Fears of a Chinese plan to build a radar station on a disputed ocean outcrop have laid bare tensions in the Philippine government over President Rodrigo Duterte’s campaign to woo Beijing.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.13.17Japan Plans to Send Largest Warship to South China Sea, Sources Say
Reuters
China claims almost all the disputed waters and its growing military presence has fueled concern in Japan and the West, with the United States holding regular air and naval patrols to ensure freedom of navigation.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.08.17Trump in the China Shop
New York Review of Books
The arrival of Donald Trump in the White House threatens a significant acceleration in the rivalry between the U.S. and China.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.06.17China’s Modest Military Spending Hike Masks Bigger Goals
CNN
China’s announcement of the smallest percentage increase to its military budget since 2010—around 7% (to approximately $148 billion)—seems designed in part to project the image of being the sober, peaceful force in the Asia-Pacific sphere.
ChinaFile Recommends
03.02.17China Drills Again Near Taiwan as Island Warns of Threat
Reuters
Chinese jets and warships carried out exercises near Taiwan and into the Western Pacific on Thursday, as the self-ruled island's defense minister warned of a growing threat from its giant neighbor.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.27.17China Is Likely to Ramp up Its Naval Abilities in Response to Trump’s Unpredictability
Time
The PLA Navy is likely to secure significant new funding in China’s upcoming defense budget as Beijing seeks to check U.S. dominance of the high seas and step up its own projection of power around the globe.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.22.17China Finishing South China Sea Buildings that Could House Missiles
Reuters
China has nearly finished building almost two dozen structures on artificial islands in the South China Sea that appear designed to house long-range surface-to-air missiles, two U.S. officials told Reuters.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.22.17South China Sea: U.S. Carrier Group Begins ‘Routine’ Patrols
BBC
U.S. aircraft carrier the USS Carl Vinson has started what it calls “routine operations” in the South China Sea, with a fleet of supporting warships.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.21.17China Opposes U.S. Naval Patrols in South China Sea
Reuters
China said on Tuesday it opposed action by other countries under the pretext of freedom of navigation that undermined its sovereignty, after a U.S. aircraft carrier strike group began patrols in the contested South China Sea
ChinaFile Recommends
02.15.17China Warns U.S. against Fresh Naval Patrols in South China Sea
Reuters
China’s Foreign Ministry on Wednesday warned Washington against challenging its sovereignty, responding to reports the United States was planning fresh naval patrols in the disputed South China Sea.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.15.17EU Preparing Early China Summit in Message to Trump: Sources
Reuters
The European Union is preparing an early summit with China in April or May in Brussels to promote free trade and international cooperation in the face of a more protectionist and inward-looking Washington, three EU officials said.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.10.17U.S., China Military Planes Come Inadvertently Close over South China Sea
CNBC
A U.S. Navy P-3 plane and a Chinese military aircraft came close to each other over the South China Sea in an incident the Navy believes was inadvertent, a U.S. official told Reuters on Thursday.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.06.17China Protests U.S. Sanctions on Iran, but Sees ‘Clouds of War’ Dispersing over South China Sea
Washington Post
China said Monday it had lodged a formal protest with the United States over a decision to impose new sanctions targeting Iran, which affected a handful of Chinese companies and individuals.
ChinaFile Recommends
02.06.17U.S.-China War Would Be a Disaster for the World, Says Communist Party
Guardian
Editorial says two countries should strive to avoid conflict in first statement since Donald Trump’s election win
ChinaFile Recommends
02.02.17Trump, Tillerson and the South China Sea: What’s at Stake
CNN
Rex Tillerson, who was sworn in as U.S. Secretary of State Wednesday, takes responsibility for U.S. policy in one of the world’s biggest flashpoints: the South China Sea.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.30.17U.S.-China War Increasingly a ‘Reality,’ Chinese Army Official Says
CNBC
China is preparing for a potential military clash with the United States, according to an article on the Chinese army’s website.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.25.17If the U.S. Ever Went to War with China, It Would Be a Trump Distraction Technique
Guardian
There is no indication that the U.S. president wants a war. But, if he did get into one, it would be to direct attention away from his incompetence.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.24.17China Commissions 31st Stealth Warship
Hindu
Chinese media have said the U.S. has to wage a war with China if America blocks it from accessing the artificial islands it has built in the contested South China Sea.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.24.17Is Trump Ready for War in the South China Sea, or Is His Team Just Not Being Clear?
Washington Post
Was this a prelude to a major escalation in the South China Sea, or is the Trump administration having trouble articulating its foreign policy?
ChinaFile Recommends
01.24.17Donald Trump Could Be Starting a New Cold War With China. But He Has Little Chance of Winning
Time
The new U.S. administration has been testing Beijing with provocative stances on trade, Taiwan and the South China Sea. But starting up a Cold War with China is a highly risky strategy
China in the World Podcast
01.24.17
U.S.-China Relations Following Trump’s Inauguration, Part II
from Carnegie China
As Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches, uncertainty looms over the future of U.S.-China policy. In Part II of this podcast, Paul Haenle spoke with Chen Dingding, an International Relations professor at Jinan University and founding Director of...
Conversation
01.18.17
U.S.-China Flashpoints in the Age of Trump
Over the past year, Donald Trump has vowed to “utterly destroy” ISIS, considered lifting sanctions on Russia, promised to cancel the Paris climate agreement and “dismantle” the Iran nuclear deal. But many of his most inflammatory statements are...
ChinaFile Recommends
01.13.17Ambassador to China Shares Lessons Learned with the Next Administration
NPR
Democrat Max Baucus, the U.S. ambassador to China since 2014, is preparing to hand over the post to his successor. He discusses the future of the U.S.-China relationship.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.13.17South China Sea: China Media Warn US over ‘Confrontation’
BBC
Blocking China from islands it has built in contested waters would lead to “devastating confrontation,” Chinese state media have warned.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.12.17Tillerson Channels Reagan on South China Sea
Lawfare Blog
Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson said that perhaps the United States should deny China access to its artificial islands in the South China Sea.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.12.17Trump Nominee’s Proposal to Block China From Islands Sets Off Alarms
Wall Street Journal
If carried out, Tillerson’s proposal to bar Beijing from some South China Sea islands would likely trigger military battle, experts say
ChinaFile Recommends
01.12.17China Launches New Electronic Intelligence Naval Ship
CNBC
China’s Navy has launched a new electronic reconnaissance ship as Beijing’s new assertiveness to territorial claims in the South China Sea fuels tensions.
ChinaFile Recommends
01.11.17Taiwan Scrambles Jets, Navy as China Aircraft Carrier Enters Taiwan Strait
Reuters
Taiwan scrambled jets and navy ships on Wednesday as a group of Chinese warships, led by its sole aircraft carrier, sailed through the Taiwan Strait
ChinaFile Recommends
12.28.16Power Plays Across the First Island Chain: China’s Lone Carrier Group Has a Busy December
Diplomat
For the first time, China’s lone carrier entered the Western Pacific. What does the Chinese Navy have in mind?
ChinaFile Recommends
12.20.16Chinese Navy Returns Seized Underwater Drone to U.S.
New York Times
A Chinese vessel returned the submersible drone to a United States Navy ship in international waters off the Philippines, near where it was taken
ChinaFile Recommends
12.20.16U.S. Demands Return of Drone Seized by Chinese Warship
New York Times
The episode threatens to increase tensions in a region already fraught with great-power rivalries
ChinaFile Recommends
12.20.16China to Return Seized U.S. Drone, Says Washington 'Hyping Up' Incident
Reuters
The drone incident has raised fresh concerns about China's increased military presence and aggressive posture in the energy-rich South China Sea
ChinaFile Recommends
12.16.16When China Bullies Its Neighbors, India Gets More Muscular
Quartz
China’s increasingly rough-handed and assertive foreign policy towards its neighbors is raising India’s diplomatic and economic clout in the region
Viewpoint
12.15.16
The Missing Topic in Trump’s Tough Talk on China
President-elect Donald Trump’s rhetoric suggests he will push China on many issues, not just one. Some observers have held on to the hope that his phone call with Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, his burst of anti-China tweets, and his most recent...
ChinaFile Recommends
12.15.16China Puts New Weapons on South China Sea Islands, Report Says
Washington Post
China appears to be adding new anti-aircraft weapons to a string of artificial islands in the middle of the disputed South China Sea
ChinaFile Recommends
12.08.16Risking Beijing’s Ire, Vietnam Begins Dredging on South China Sea Reef
Reuters
Activity visible on Ladd Reef in the Spratly Islands could anger Beijing, which claims sovereignty over the group and most of the resource-rich sea
ChinaFile Recommends
12.05.16How China Could React to Trump’s Taunts: Best Case to Worst Case Scenarios
Quartz
In the wake of #TaiwanFreakout and the latest Twitter-storm, here’s a range of things Beijing could do, from the shrug-worthy to the downright terrifying
ChinaFile Recommends
11.21.16China’s Xi Calls for ’Smooth Transition’ in Relationship With U.S.
Reuters
During a meeting in Peru, Xi Jinping praised outgoing President Obama for strengthening ties between the two nations
ChinaFile Recommends
11.21.16China is No Longer Ruining Their Livelihoods, but These Filipino Fishermen are Not Entirely Grateful
Los Angeles Times
“We cannot forget China’s aggression towards us. They bumped our boats, they fired their water cannons on us"
ChinaFile Recommends
11.17.16Is China Getting Better at Charming Southeast Asia on the South China Sea?
Diplomat
Beijing looks to be getting better at how it uses soft power in the region
Conversation
11.15.16
Should China’s Neighbors Rely on the U.S. for Protection?
President-elect Donald Trump campaigned on a platform of neo-isolationism that could see many traditional U.S. allies in Asia left without Washington’s support in the newly roiled waters of the South- and East China Seas. What will the governments...
Conversation
11.09.16
How Should Trump Deal with China, and How Should China Deal with Trump?
Donald J. Trump, president-elect of the United States, spent much of his antagonistic campaign blaming China for many of America’s economic ills, and repeatedly making thinly veiled threats of a U.S. trade war with Beijing. How should Trump engage...
Viewpoint
11.09.16
Donald Trump’s Peace Through Strength Vision for the Asia-Pacific
from Foreign Policy
In 2011, then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton announced with great fanfare in Foreign Policy that the United States would begin a military “pivot” to the Asia-Pacific. This beating of the American chest was done against the backdrop of China’s...
ChinaFile Recommends
10.28.16Philippines Says China Vessels Have Left Disputed Scarborough Shoal
South China Morning Post
Unimpeded access for first time in four years, Philippine minister says
ChinaFile Recommends
10.27.16China Does Itself No Favors With Its Threats
Nikkei Asian Review
If its economy keeps on growing, China's sheer size, wealth and military reach may make a kind of Pax Sinica in the region inevitable
ChinaFile Recommends
10.21.16Chinese Hackers Targeted U.S. Aircraft Carrier
Financial Times
Cyber security group says attack launched against visitors to vessel in South China Sea
ChinaFile Recommends
10.12.16Why Cambodia is Pinning its Hopes on Chinese President’s Visit
South China Morning Post
A country reeling from falling rice prices and foreign investment has its eyes on emergency aid and a boost in trade
ChinaFile Recommends
10.06.16Indonesia Parades Air-Force Arsenal Over South China Sea
Wall Street Journal
Military exercises are around country’s Natuna Islands, over waters where run-ins with Chinese fishing boats are on the rise