After the exchange of words between Manila and Beijing on the unfortunate incident in the South China Sea (SCS) involving the Philippines and China on 16 November 2021 where three Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) vessels had fired water cannons on two Philippine supply boats have subsided, the area of Ayungin Shoal (Second Thomas Shoal or Rén'ài Jiāo) is now quiet, and the supply run is back to normal. Thanks to the quiet diplomacy and negotiations through bilateral diplomatic channels

A new US$6 billion Chinese-built railway line opens in Lao this week, bringing hopes of an economic boost to the reclusive nation, but experts are questioning the benefits of a project that has seen thousands of farmers evicted from their land.The 414-kilometre route, due to open on 3 December, took five years to construct under China's trillion-dollar Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which funds infrastructure projects aimed at increasing Beijing's clout globally.Struggling strawber

Momentous changes are casting a long shadow on China. The country’s political system will soon undergo a profound reform, pending final approval (a quasi-formality) at next year’s congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC). President Xi Jinping, the Party chairman and the “navigator” of the country, has decided on a new course, abandoning the principle of collective leadership.

The vastness of Eurasia is becoming bracketed by belligerence. On the western front, Russia has deployed a growing number of military units to the regions near its border with Ukraine, inviting a flurry of speculation about its motives.

ByteDance, the parent company of the popular social-media platform TikTok, has a not-so-secret weapon. Its powerful algorithms are able to predict users’ preferences with precision and recommend content they actually want to see, thereby keeping them glued to their screens. But ByteDance may soon have to sheathe that weapon – or, at least, dull its blade.

Ever since then-United States (US) National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger visited China in 1971, engagement with the People’s Republic has been a fundamental feature of US diplomacy. Yet the deterioration of US-China relations in recent years suggests that this policy may have reached its end. Last week’s virtual summit between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping can be interpreted as a last-ditch attempt to save the bilateral relationship.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday condemned the latest flare-up in the disputed South China Sea (SCS) after Chinese coastguard ships fired water cannon at Filipino boats. Duterte made the remarks at an Asian regional summit hosted by Chinese President Xi Jinping, who vowed his country would "never seek hegemony, and certainly not bully the small".China claims almost all of the waterway, through which trillions of dollars in trade passes annually, with competin

China's #MeToo movement has stumbled in the face of swift internet censors, a patriarchal society and a legal system that places a heavy burden on the claimant.Explosive claims this month by tennis star Peng Shuai that a former top Communist Party politician had sexually assaulted her marked the first time allegations have hit the top layer of government.But her accusations were swiftly scrubbed from the Chinese internet, and she has not been seen publicly since.Others have faced the sam

The South China Sea (SCS), one of the most in-demand waterways in the world, is the object of contention of several claimant states with overlapping territorial and maritime sovereignty and sovereign rights claims over the disputed waters. The dispute is still unresolved today and can be dated back to the 1950s.The six-primary claimant states of the contested waters of the SCS are China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, and Taiwan.

United States (US) President Joe Biden has been basking in the glow of his US$1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, which he signed into law on 15 November.