China’s Korea Policy ‘in Tatters’ as Both North and South Defy Sanctions

Washington Post
On Monday, South Korea announced that it would press ahead with the “swift deployment” of a U.S. missile defense system, despite vociferous Chinese opposition.

China and Russia Send Intelligence-Gathering Vessels to ‘Chase’ Trump’s ‘Armada’ to North Korean Waters

Daily Mail
China and Russia have sent intelligence-gathering vessels to ‘chase’ Donald Trump’s armada to North Korean waters, it has been claimed.

China and Russia Send Intelligence-Gathering Vessels to ‘Chase’ Trump’s ‘Armada’ to North Korean Waters

Daily Mail
China and Russia have sent intelligence-gathering vessels to ‘chase’ Donald Trump’s armada to North Korean waters, it has been claimed.

Senior Chinese, U.S. Officials Exchange Views on Korean Peninsula Situation

China Central Television (CCTV)
Chinese State Councilor Yang Jiechi and U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson exchanged views on the situation on the Korean Peninsula via phone on April 16.

Changing Trump Views toward Russia, China Worry Some Allie

ABC
Once soft on Russia and hard on China, President Donald Trump rapidly reversed course in the last weeks, concluding there’s more business to be done with Beijing than with Moscow.

What Happened at Mar-a-Lago?

Paul Haenle & Zha Daojiong 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...

How a U.S.-China War Could Begin

Week
President Donald Trump and China’s Xi Jinping sat down for their first superpower summit in Florida earlier this month, and by all accounts, things went well. Still, it is time to consider the sheer magnitude of problems dividing America and China.

Trump Dumps Russia, Woos China Instead

CNN
This month, during which Trump administration has stepped up US military action in Syria and Afghanistan as he looks to reassert US power, Trump said that “we’re not getting along with Russia at all, we may be at an all-time low.” He and Chinese...

China Warns of ‘Storm Clouds Gathering’ in U.S.-North Korea Standoff

New York Times
China warned on Friday that tensions on the Korean Peninsula could spin out of control, as North Korea said it could test a nuclear weapon at any time and an American naval group neared the peninsula in a show of resolve.

Will China Stand Aside if North Korea Wants to Talk to Trump?

South China Morning Post
The science of using artificial intelligence to gauge the destructiveness of each bomb, however, is not something North Korea seems interested in, even though Pyongyang has access to super computers. Why?

Trump Thought China Could Get North Korea to Comply. It’s Not That Easy.

Amanda Erickson
Washington Post
Beijing’s nightmare scenario is a collapse of the Kim regime, which could also open the door to reunification with South Korea, another nightmare for Beijing.

China Says Its Trade with North Korea Has Increased

Jane Perlez and Yufan Huang
New York Times
Amid sharply rising tensions over North Korea’s nuclear arms program, China said on Thursday that its trade with the country had expanded, even though it had complied with United Nations sanctions and stopped buying North Korean coal

Kim Jong Un’s Rockets Are Getting an Important Boost—from China

Joby Warrick
Washington Post
Despite China’s public efforts to rein in North Korea’s provocative behavior, Chinese companies continue to act as enablers, supplying the isolated communist regime with technology and hardware that allow its missiles to take flight

China’s Xi Tells Trump He Wants Peaceful Solution to North Korea

Ryan Gaydos
Fox News
Xi told Trump that China insists on peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of the deployment of the USS Carl Vinson to the area and the conducting of the biggest-ever U.S.-South Korea military drills.

North Korea Push Will Send U.S. Allies to China: Ex-CIA analyst

Joe Hildebrand
News.com.au
Donald Trump’s move against North Korea is set to send American allies like Japan and South Korea into China’s hands, giving the Asian giant a “once in a generation” opportunity in its push to become the world’s number one superpower, a former top...

China and South Korea Said to Promise Tougher Sanctions if North Conducts Tests

Choe Sang-Hun
New York Times
China and South Korea agreed on Monday to impose tougher sanctions on North Korea if it carries out nuclear or intercontinental ballistic missile tests

U.S. Reroutes Warships toward Korean Peninsula in Show of Force

Eric Schmitt
New York Times
The commander of American forces in the Pacific has ordered an aircraft carrier and several other warships toward the Korean Peninsula in a show of force by the Trump administration

After Xi Leaves U.S., Chinese Media Assail Strike on Syria

Jane Perlez
New York Times
With President Xi Jinping safely out of the United States and no longer President Trump’s guest, China’s state-run media on Saturday was free to denounce the missile strike on Syria.

China Urges ‘Restraint’ after U.S. Airstrike on Syrian Airfield

Los Angeles Times
China on Friday warned against “the escalation of tension” in Syria after President Trump launched an airstrike on a Syrian government air base, adding a surprise twist to his two-day summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Viewpoint

04.06.17

Is It Time to Give up on Engagement?

Orville Schell & Anders Corr
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...

Viewpoint

04.06.17

What Do Trump and Xi Share? A Dislike of Muslims

Nury Turkel
During the 1980s, as an idealistic, ambitious Uighur growing up under repressive Chinese conditions in the city of Kashgar, there was one nation to which I pinned my hopes for freedom and democracy. To me, the United States was a symbol of my...

How Trump Can Solve His Chinese Puzzle

Gideon Rachman
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.

Trump’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.

South China Sea: Duterte Orders Philippines Military to Occupy Islands

James Griffiths and Chieu Luu
CNN
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte said Thursday he has ordered military personnel to occupy all Philippines-claimed islands in the disputed South China Sea.

Viewpoint

04.05.17

Xi Is Ready for the Summit. Trump Can’t Possibly Be. So What Should He Do?

Robert Daly
At the summit in Mar-a-Lago, U.S. President Donald Trump hopes to alter deeply-rooted Chinese policies despite having no China strategy. China’s Communist Party Secretary Xi Jinping hopes that by making deals on secondary matters important to Trump...

North Korea Is Increasingly a Focus of U.S.-China Meeting

ABC
The White House is talking in more urgent terms about North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons, as President Donald Trump’s talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping approach.

Viewpoint

04.05.17

No Winners or Losers, Please

Paul Gewirtz
Who will be the winner of the upcoming Trump-Xi summit? My answer: That’s a dangerous—and wrongheaded—question to focus on. Yes, we want the U.S. to win, but the U.S.-China relationship must be played and judged as a long game.The present situation...

Conversation

04.04.17

What Should We Expect When Trump and Xi Meet in Florida?

David Dollar, Jeremy Goldkorn & more
On April 6-7, U.S. President Donald Trump will host Xi Jinping in their first face-to-face meeting when China’s President arrives at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort. The meeting comes early in Trump’s presidency, after a campaign in which he frequently...

Trump’s First Test in Asia, Part II

Paul Haenle & Michael Green 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’...

South China Sea Controversy Heats up as Man-Made Islands Are Almost Complete

Kirrily Schwarz
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’s Secret Plan to Crush SpaceX and the US Space Program

Clay Dillow
CNBC
China’s breakneck economic expansion may be flagging, but the country's ambitions in space show no signs of slowing down.

A Bigger Catch: China’s Fishing Fleet Hunts New Ocean Targets

Lucy Hornby
Financial Times
Seagulls wheel and cry around the Caleta Portales fishing pier in the Chilean port of Valparaíso while sea lions loiter in the waves.

Trump’s First Test in Asia

Paul Haenle & Michael Green 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’...

Malaysia 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.

China, South Korea Meet in World Cup Qualifier Amid Tensions

NBC News
The soccer match whipped up Chinese nationalist sentiment at a time of high political tension over the rollout of a U.S.-made missile defense system in Asia.

As China’s Li Visits Down Under, Trump on Australian PM Turnbull’s Mind

Nyshka Chandran
CNBC
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull is expected to keep his relationship with the U.S. in close focus as China’s Li Keqiang becomes the first Premier in eleven years to visit Down Under.

China and America Need a One-Korea Policy

Michael D. Swaine
Foreign Policy
The only way to stop North Korea is by guaranteeing the peninsula will eventually be united—and non-aligned.

Taiwan ‘Targeted by Mainland China’s Top Medium-Range Missiles’

Nectar Gan
South China Morning Post
Deployment of DF-16 missiles part of the increased military intimidation of Taiwan by Beijing, according to island’s defense minister

Next Stop Beijing: Tillerson Seeks to Press China on North Korea

Nick Wadhams
Bloomberg
The U.S. is hoping the urgency of North Korea’s advancing ballistic-missile technology will compel China to crack down on banks and other businesses that provide an economic lifeline to Kim Jong Un’s regime despite United Nations sanctions.

Amb. Haley: China Must Prove to Us It Wants to Stop North Korean Aggression

Fox News
United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley said this morning that the Trump administration is taking a new, tougher approach toward China in an effort to deter North Korean aggression.

Rex Tillerson: Military Action against North Korea Is ‘On the Table’

Alexander Smith
CNBC
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson warned Friday that military action against North Korea was “on the table” if the country continued to develop its weapons program.

Taiwan Plans Military Spending Surge to Counter Rising China

Adela Lin and Ting Shi
Bloomberg
Taiwan plans to raise military spending by about 50 percent next year as President Tsai Ing-wen attempts to offset China’s growing might and support the local defense industry.

Conversation

03.15.17

How Does China’s Imperial Past Shape Its Foreign Policy Today?

Pamela Kyle Crossley, Jeremiah Jenne & more
Throughout most of history China dominated Asia, up until what many Chinese refer to as the “century of humiliation”—when Japan and Western powers invaded or otherwise interfered between 1839 and 1949. Now, with China on the rise again, are Beijing’...

Tillerson to Press China on North Korea in Tough First Asia Trip

David Brunnstrom and Yeganeh Torbati
Reuters
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson faces a tough first trip to Asia this week when he will seek to reassure nervous allies facing North Korea’s growing nuclear and missile threat and press China to do more

Chinese Premier Calls for Return to Talks on North Korean Nukes

NBC News
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang called Wednesday for all parties to return to talks amid rising tensions over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile programs.

Books

03.13.17

The End of the Asian Century

Michael Auslin
Since Marco Polo, the West has waited for the “Asian Century.” Today, the world believes that Century has arrived. Yet from China’s slumping economy to war clouds over the South China Sea and from environmental devastation to demographic crisis, Asia’s future is increasingly uncertain. Historian and geopolitical expert Michael Auslin argues that far from being a cohesive powerhouse, Asia is a fractured region threatened by stagnation and instability. Here, he provides a comprehensive account of the economic, military, political, and demographic risks that bedevil half of our world, arguing that Asia, working with the United States, has a unique opportunity to avert catastrophe—but only if it acts boldly. Bringing together firsthand observations and decades of research, Auslin’s provocative reassessment of Asia’s future will be a must-read for industry and investors, as well as politicians and scholars, for years to come. —Yale University Press{chop}

China Fans Anger Over Seoul's Missile Move

BBC
The only perspective that gets an airing is that the Thaad battery allows the Americans to see deep into China, that this is a threat to China. 

Japan 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.

China Tried to Get the U.S. to Negotiate with North Korea—the U.S. Declined

Emily Rauhala
Washington Post
The United States rebuffed a proposal from China to “apply the brakes” to an escalating standoff with North Korea, saying “positive action” was required before either country would engage with “irresponsible” leader Kim Jong Un.

Conversation

03.09.17

Is THAAD the Start of a U.S.-China Arms Race?

Isaac Stone Fish, Graham Webster & more
In late February, U.S. President Donald Trump called for adding $54 billion to the U.S. military budget—an increase of roughly 10 percent. And in early March, despite outcry from Beijing, the United States began deploying the Terminal High-Altitude...

China Wants to Avert ‘Head-on Collision’ in the Koreas, but Will Trump Sign on?

Emily Rauhala
Washington Post
China’s foreign minister has a plan to ease tensions in East Asia: North Korea should stop testing missiles, and the United States and South Korea should stop joint military exercises, he said Wednesday.

Trump in the China Shop

Gideon Rachman
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.

China Warns U.S., Korea of ‘Consequences’ for Missile System

CNBC
China has said it will take unspecified measures against a U.S. missile system being deployed in S. Korea, and warned that Washington and Seoul will bear the consequences.

North Korea Tests Four More Missiles—and China’s Patience

Emily Rauhala
Washington Post
At 7:36 a.m. Monday, local time, North Korea launched four missiles that flew about 600 miles over land before splashing into the Sea of Japan.

China’s Modest Military Spending Hike Masks Bigger Goals

Yvonne Chiu
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.

China Drills Again Near Taiwan as Island Warns of Threat

Ben Blanchard and J.R. Wu
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.

How Trump Could Find Common Ground with China, Thanks to the Islamic State

Adam Taylor
Washington Post
Since the election of Donald Trump, the relationship between Washington and Beijing has appeared strained. Despite diplomatic efforts to bridge the gap, China and the United States are at loggerheads over a variety of issues, including trade and...

ISIL Video Threatens China with ‘Rivers of Bloodshed’

Al Jazeera
ISIL fighters from China’s Uighur ethnic minority have vowed to return home and “shed blood like rivers” in what security experts said marked the first such threat against Chinese targets.

The Army Gets Back in the Ship-Killing Business

Jeremy Hsu
Wired
Since1996, the Chinese military has steadily expanded its umbrella of land-based missiles, strike aircraft, and submarines designed to overwhelm both U.S. air bases and carrier strike groups.

Russia, China Block U.N. Sanctions on Syria over Gas Attacks

Michelle Nichols
Reuters
Russia on Tuesday cast its seventh veto to protect the Syrian government from United Nations Security Council action, blocking a bid by Western powers to impose sanctions over accusations of chemical weapons attacks during the six-year Syrian...