The United Kingdom’s (UK) decision to ban Huawei from its 5G networks has dealt a painful blow to China. Until recently, China was still counting on the UK to stick to its earlier decision to allow the Chinese telecom giant to supply non-core equipment for the country’s 5G networks.But two recent developments made such a decision untenable. The first was the United States’ (US) escalation of its war on Huawei.

Some of the Chinese government’s recent policies seem to make little practical sense, with its decision to impose a national-security law on Hong Kong being a prime example.

China promised Thursday to take "strong countermeasures" if the US presses ahead with tough new sanctions that target banks over infringements on Hong Kong's autonomy, after Beijing imposed a sweeping security law on the restless financial hub.Beijing has faced a groundswell of criticism from primarily Western nations over its decision to impose a law outlawing acts of subversion, secession, terrorism and colluding with foreign forces in Hong Kong.That includes from Britain, wh

From remote Himalayan valleys to small tropical islands and tense Western capitals, an increasingly assertive China is taking on conflicts around the world like never before as the United States (US) retreats.China's imposition this week of a controversial security law in Hong Kong, defying a barrage of criticism from the West, offered another example of its rising confidence as a global superpower.The confrontations are seen as part of President Xi Jinping's nationalist drive to re

Hong Kong police arrested about 370 people Wednesday - including 10 under China's new national security law - as thousands defied a ban on protests on the anniversary of the city's handover to China.Police used water cannon, pepper spray and tear gas in a series of confrontations with protesters, one day after China drew global criticism for imposing the controversial legislation on the financial hub. Beijing said the law would restore stability after nearly a year of unres

China imposed a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong Tuesday, dramatically tightening its grip on the semi-autonomous city in a historic move decried by Western nations as a threat to the financial hub's freedoms.Described by Beijing as a "sword" hanging over the heads of those endangering national security, the law took effect hours after it was signed by President Xi Jinping and just six weeks since it was first unveiled.Fed up with pro-democracy protests that rocked t

China will set up a "national security agency" in Hong Kong to oversee a forthcoming new law aimed at cracking down on dissent in the city, state media said on Saturday.The new law also would override any existing Hong Kong laws that may conflict with it once it is implemented, Xinhua news agency said in a report detailing the draft legislation.The report followed the conclusion of a meeting in Beijing of China's top law-making committee that reviewed draft provisions aimed at

Hong Kong is on a knife’s edge. Once one of Asia’s freest and most open cities, it now faces the spectre of a new China-imposed security law that would curtail its people’s liberties and create a climate of fear. The law is in flagrant breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration, which is registered at the United Nations (UN), and would open the way for widespread human-rights violations.

In retrospect, the decision by the Communist Party of China (CPC) to impose a new security law on Hong Kong seems to have been preordained. Historically, rising powers always try to expand their spheres of geopolitical influence once they pass a certain stage of economic development.