https://www.scmp.com/rss/321614/feed Jun Mai has covered Chinese politics, diplomacy and general breaking news for over a decade. Before his current posting in Beijing, he was based in Hong Kong. He has also completed a stint in Washington. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Alcott Wei,Jun Mai Alcott Wei,Jun Mai For a book on performance appraisals, it contained some surprising language – especially given its author, President Xi Jinping. The volume, published by the Central Party Literature Press, coincided with the launch of an overhaul of the Communist Party’s promotion system that will continue in the run-up to next year’s leadership transition. Among the raft of speeches and instructions from Xi since November 2012 is a blunt warning to cadres about pursuing debt-laden white elephant... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3345015/inside-xi-jinpings-new-guide-promoting-communist-party-officials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3345015/inside-xi-jinpings-new-guide-promoting-communist-party-officials?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Mar 2026 10:00:27 +0000 Yuanyue Dang,William Zheng,Jun Mai Yuanyue Dang,William Zheng,Jun Mai Beijing’s bold move to remove top generals accused of corruption reflects its strategic assessment that overhauling the armed forces is more urgent, and that the issue of Taiwan can wait, according to military analysts. The investigation into China’s top commanders, Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, has left the Central Military Commission (CMC), the country’s highest military command body, with just two members at present – President Xi Jinping, who is chairman of the CMC, and vice-chairman Zhang... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3342224/what-does-fall-pla-top-brass-zhang-youxia-say-about-beijings-taiwan-plans?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3342224/what-does-fall-pla-top-brass-zhang-youxia-say-about-beijings-taiwan-plans?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Feb 2026 22:00:48 +0000 Amber Wang,Jun Mai Amber Wang,Jun Mai All eyes are on how Beijing’s “Chinese dream” of eventual Taiwan reunification will unfold at a time when the leader of the United States – Taipei’s top international backer – appears less likely to intervene in case of a cross-strait conflict. In the third of a three-part series, Amber Wang looks at how PLA activity may reflect the wider political picture. In the past five years, People’s Liberation Army activity near Taiwan has been seen by many observers as a key indicator of when and whether... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3337616/why-has-beijing-turned-down-heat-taiwan-strait-second-half-2025?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3337616/why-has-beijing-turned-down-heat-taiwan-strait-second-half-2025?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 24 Dec 2025 22:00:11 +0000 Jun Mai,William Zheng Jun Mai,William Zheng Meng Fanli, the Communist Party chief of Shenzhen, has been promoted to party chief of Guangdong’s government, a job that effectively makes him the governor-in-waiting of China’s biggest provincial economy. Meng, 60, was moved to Guangdong in 2022, when he was assigned to be the party chief of Shenzhen, according to the social media account of Nanfang Daily, the province’s official news outlet. The title of party chief of the provincial government doubles with the position of governor, and... https://www.scmp.com/news/article/3327319/meng-fanli-promoted-top-party-job-government-guangdong?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/article/3327319/meng-fanli-promoted-top-party-job-government-guangdong?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 03:32:37 +0000 Jun Mai,William Zheng,Carlos Araujo,Joe Lo Jun Mai,William Zheng,Carlos Araujo,Joe Lo https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/military/article/3322445/visualising-chinas-weapon-systems?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/military/article/3322445/visualising-chinas-weapon-systems?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 25 Aug 2025 02:00:11 +0000 Sylvie Zhuang,Jun Mai Sylvie Zhuang,Jun Mai At the height of China’s rapid economic growth and embrace of globalisation it was unusual for the children of senior officials to follow their parents into the public sector. While government jobs are seen as decent and secure, they are low-paid and demanding, and there are more constraints on personal choices compared to those in the private sector. Instead, the sons and daughters of senior officials have often made headlines in the last two decades as the leaders of lucrative businesses, both... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3309185/why-chinas-iron-rice-bowl-looks-more-appealing-children-senior-officials?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3309185/why-chinas-iron-rice-bowl-looks-more-appealing-children-senior-officials?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 May 2025 06:00:14 +0000 Hu Dehua, son of the former Chinese leader Hu Yaobang, has died at the age of 76. He died on Sunday in Beijing due to a heart attack, sources told the South China Morning Post. Hu was a liberal businessman who repeatedly spoke out for political reform and press freedom in China – rare among the descendants of the Communist Party’s early top officials, a group known as “princelings”. In 2016, he became vice-director of the outspoken magazine Yanhuang Chunqiu. But he was in the role for less than... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3304622/hu-dehua-son-former-liberal-chinese-leader-hu-yaobang-dies-76?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3304622/hu-dehua-son-former-liberal-chinese-leader-hu-yaobang-dies-76?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 31 Mar 2025 13:27:01 +0000 Security has been stepped up in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong after 35 people were killed in a car attack outside a stadium in Zhuhai on Monday. An investigation is under way and authorities are looking for officials to hold accountable for the attack, according to one Guangdong official. They said security had been tightened, especially in crowded areas. China’s biggest air show – where the military’s latest warplanes and drones are on display – is under way in Zhuhai and an event... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3286364/security-tight-after-zhuhai-car-attack-leaders-look-risks-and-dangers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3286364/security-tight-after-zhuhai-car-attack-leaders-look-risks-and-dangers?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 Nov 2024 06:44:48 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping has sent a congratulatory message to Donald Trump, following the former US president’s election as the next occupant of the White House, according to state news agency Xinhua. Xi told Trump that China and the US would “benefit from cooperation and lose from confrontation”, the Xinhua report said. “A stable, healthy and sustainable China-US relationship is in the common interests of the two countries and the expectations of the international community,” he said. “It... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3285526/chinas-xi-congratulates-president-elect-donald-trump-us-election-victory?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3285526/chinas-xi-congratulates-president-elect-donald-trump-us-election-victory?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 Nov 2024 03:30:04 +0000 The People’s Liberation Army announced on Monday evening that it had wrapped up its blockade drills around Taiwan, saying it had “fully tested the integrated joint operation capabilities” of its troops. The Joint Sword-2024B exercises started at around dawn and included the aircraft carrier Liaoning sailing to the strategic east of the island. The manoeuvres, which included land and sea strikes, were conducted to the north, south and east of Taiwan and in the Taiwan Strait, with the goal of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3282219/chinas-pla-launches-blockade-drills-around-taiwan-days-after-speech-islands-leader?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3282219/chinas-pla-launches-blockade-drills-around-taiwan-days-after-speech-islands-leader?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Oct 2024 00:20:53 +0000 Deng Zhiping, a deputy commander of China’s army, has been stripped of his lawmaker status, becoming the latest to fall in Beijing’s anti-corruption drive into its military. Lieutenant General Deng, 60, was known as a war hero during China’s border clashes with Vietnam in the 1970s and 1980s, when he won second-class and third-class honours. Before his promotion to the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) army force headquarters he served in the Western Theatre Command, which oversees the border with... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3278461/deputy-commander-chinas-army-among-five-stripped-lawmaker-status-amid-graft-probe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3278461/deputy-commander-chinas-army-among-five-stripped-lawmaker-status-amid-graft-probe?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 13 Sep 2024 13:00:13 +0000 Shi Yinhong is a professor of international relations at China’s Renmin University who holds academic and research positions at several prestigious institutions, including the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He served as a state councillor from 2011 to 2021 and is an expert in the foreign policies and strategies of China and the US, as well as East Asian security. This interview was first published in SCMP Plus. For other interviews in the Open Questions series, click here. Professor, you... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3277614/more-talk-not-always-best-us-china-relationship-its-results-count?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3277614/more-talk-not-always-best-us-china-relationship-its-results-count?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Sep 2024 22:00:27 +0000 This latest interview in the Open Questions series features Shi Yinhong, a professor of international relations and director of the Center on American Studies at China’s Renmin University. He served as a state councillor from 2011 to 2021 and has held academic and research roles at prestigious institutions including the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. A widely published writer, Shi’s books include Thirty Studies on Strategy: Reflections of China’s External Strategy and History of Modern... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3277259/less-talk-more-results-will-improve-china-us-relations-international-relations-expert-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3277259/less-talk-more-results-will-improve-china-us-relations-international-relations-expert-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Sep 2024 06:00:11 +0000 Beijing’s most senior uniformed military official, Zhang Youxia, described Taiwan as the “the uncrossable first red line” in talks with visiting US national security adviser Jake Sullivan. Zhang and Sullivan met in Beijing before the US official went into talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, the last day of Sullivan’s three-day trip to China. Zhang, vice-chairman of the powerful Central Military Commission, is the most senior military official to meet a representative from the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3276339/jake-sullivan-meets-senior-chinese-military-official-zhang-youxia-beijing?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3276339/jake-sullivan-meets-senior-chinese-military-official-zhang-youxia-beijing?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 29 Aug 2024 03:32:21 +0000 China has announced that it will start screening arrivals from overseas who show signs of mpox, which has been declared a global health emergency. Customs authorities said on Friday that all aircraft and vessels – including cargo and container ships – arriving from countries or regions affected by mpox will need to comply with health processing measures. According to a statement issued by the General Administration of Customs, people who have been in contact with cases of mpox or are showing... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3274679/china-screen-arrivals-showing-mpox-symptoms-cases-spread-outside-africa?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3274679/china-screen-arrivals-showing-mpox-symptoms-cases-spread-outside-africa?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Aug 2024 01:23:19 +0000 China on Wednesday expanded export restrictions on a range of drones and drone parts with potential military applications, further tightening last year’s controls on unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) sales. The list was rolled out by a range of agencies, including the Ministry of Commerce, China Customs and the People’s Liberation Army’s equipment department. The measures will take effect from September 1. The controlled parts include high-precision inertial measuring units, synthetic-aperture radar... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3272636/china-imposes-export-controls-drone-parts-military-and-civilian-use?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3272636/china-imposes-export-controls-drone-parts-military-and-civilian-use?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 31 Jul 2024 08:55:33 +0000 In an unprecedented move, Beijing has announced corruption investigations into two former defence ministers. Wei Fenghe and his successor Li Shangfu have also been expelled from the Communist Party, state news agency Xinhua reported, following a meeting on Thursday of the party’s 24-man Politburo. The announcement comes months after the abrupt dismissal of Li, China’s shortest-serving defence minister. Li was sacked from his job in October, just seven months after he became defence minister. Wei... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3268303/former-chinese-defence-minister-li-shangfu-under-investigation-corruption?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3268303/former-chinese-defence-minister-li-shangfu-under-investigation-corruption?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Jun 2024 10:13:17 +0000 In 2011, Matthew, then a junior official in one of China’s most powerful finance ministries, treated himself and his bride to a two-week honeymoon at the resort destination of Maui, in the Hawaiian islands. Near the end of their stay, he assured his new wife that they would travel to a different country each year to celebrate their special day, a promise he would never be able to keep. Ten years later, Matthew, whose full name is not being disclosed due to the sensitivity of the issue, would... https://www.scmp.com/news/article/3265503/chinas-expanding-travel-curbs-are-cutting-more-state-workers-rest-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/article/3265503/chinas-expanding-travel-curbs-are-cutting-more-state-workers-rest-world?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Jun 2024 22:00:15 +0000 A mainland Chinese man’s solo drone campaign against Taiwan has been praised by online nationalists for “showing the public’s support for unification”. The unnamed man started flying drones over the closest Taiwanese outpost to the mainland dropping fliers that attacked independence a day after the People’s Liberation Army finished two days of drills in protest at the inauguration speech of the island’s new leader William Lai Ching-te. The incident echoes the decades-long propaganda war between... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3265002/mainland-chinese-drone-user-drops-leaflets-taiwanese-outlet-anti-independence-protest?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3265002/mainland-chinese-drone-user-drops-leaflets-taiwanese-outlet-anti-independence-protest?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 01 Jun 2024 08:00:13 +0000 The People’s Liberation Army’s second day of blockade drills around Taiwan featured operations east of the island, with Taipei on watch for live-fire exercises. The Eastern Theatre Command said on Friday that the Sword-2024A drills would continue, with the addition of exercises to occupy “key areas”. The command said the drills included sea assault and land strike exercises east of Taiwan. That area had been regarded as a “shelter” for Taiwan independence forces, mainland tabloid Global Times... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3263891/mainland-chinese-forces-focus-control-and-occupation-day-2-military-drills-around-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3263891/mainland-chinese-forces-focus-control-and-occupation-day-2-military-drills-around-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 24 May 2024 03:21:53 +0000 The People’s Liberation Army has launched a two-day exercise around Taiwan in a practice run for a blockade of the self-ruled island. The drills – which include mainland Chinese army, navy, air force and rocket forces – were announced on Thursday by the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command, three days after William Lai Ching-te was sworn in as Taiwanese leader. The drills are taking place to the north, south and east of Taiwan’s main island and in the Taiwan Strait, as well as near its outlying... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3263719/mainland-chinese-forces-begin-military-exercises-around-taiwan-3-days-after-lai-speech?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3263719/mainland-chinese-forces-begin-military-exercises-around-taiwan-3-days-after-lai-speech?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 May 2024 01:06:31 +0000 The Fujian, China’s third and most advanced aircraft carrier, left Shanghai’s Jiangnan shipyard on Wednesday morning to begin its maiden sea trial, but testing of the vessel’s cutting-edge catapult aircraft launching system is likely to be some way off. The sea trial was announced by state news agency Xinhua on Wednesday morning in a brief report which said the Fujian was unmoored from its dock at about 8am. The Fujian, launched in June 2022, is China’s first aircraft carrier equipped with... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3261006/china-launches-maiden-sea-trial-fujian-countrys-most-advanced-aircraft-carrier?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3261006/china-launches-maiden-sea-trial-fujian-countrys-most-advanced-aircraft-carrier?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 01 May 2024 01:15:19 +0000 Flags across China, including in the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau, will fly at half mast on Thursday, when the body of former premier Li Keqiang will be cremated, according to state media. The requirement for official flags to be flown at half mast applies to all government buildings, as well as to Chinese embassies overseas. The protocol for Li’s mourning puts him on a par with previous premier Li Peng who died in 2019. Li, Keqiang who retired as China’s premier earlier... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3239758/china-honour-late-premier-li-keqiang-who-will-be-cremated-thursday?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3239758/china-honour-late-premier-li-keqiang-who-will-be-cremated-thursday?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Oct 2023 02:21:53 +0000 This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. China’s former premier Li Keqiang, who died at the age of 68 on Friday, has been hailed as an “outstanding leader of party and state” by the Communist Party and was praised for his contributions to China’s economy and his support for President Xi Jinping. An official obituary published by state broadcaster CCTV on Friday night – almost 10 hours after the news... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3239355/li-keqiang-former-premier-china-dead?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3239355/li-keqiang-former-premier-china-dead?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 27 Oct 2023 00:27:15 +0000 A prominent Chinese legal activist has been jailed for fraud and “picking quarrels and provoking trouble”, the Post has learned. Hao Jinsong, a public interest litigator, was given a nine-year sentence by a court in Dingxiang county in Shanxi province on Thursday, according to people familiar with the case. The verdict and details of the accusations have not been made public. Hao’s work to defend citizens’ rights once saw him given favourable coverage in state media and awards for his... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3228373/chinese-citizens-rights-activist-hao-jinsong-jailed-9-years-fraud-and-picking-quarrels-and-provoking?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3228373/chinese-citizens-rights-activist-hao-jinsong-jailed-9-years-fraud-and-picking-quarrels-and-provoking?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Jul 2023 13:00:08 +0000 Yan Mingfu, a former political heavyweight of China’s ruling Communist Party best remembered for mediating between Beijing and student protesters before the bloody crackdown in Tiananmen Square in 1989, has died aged 91. Yan died in Beijing on Monday morning “due to illnesses”, according to an announcement by his family sent to their friends and seen by the South China Morning Post. They said a simple memorial ceremony would be organised to commemorate him in the coming days but did not give... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3226395/yan-mingfu-chinese-communist-party-negotiator-tiananmen-square-protesters-1989-dies-aged-92?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3226395/yan-mingfu-chinese-communist-party-negotiator-tiananmen-square-protesters-1989-dies-aged-92?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Jul 2023 09:24:40 +0000 China’s first ranking vice-premier, Ding Xuexiang, has called for the country to speed up its technological innovation, signalling his new role in Beijing’s hi-tech drive in the face of headwinds from Washington and its allies. “[We must] perfect the system of technology innovation, optimise distribution of resources for innovation, strengthen infrastructure building for science and technology, and enhance the overall efficacy of the country’s innovation system,” he said. Speaking at Thursday’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3221950/ding-xuexiang-sets-fast-pace-chinas-hi-tech-drive-another-sign-new-role?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3221950/ding-xuexiang-sets-fast-pace-chinas-hi-tech-drive-another-sign-new-role?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 May 2023 22:00:19 +0000 China will dispatch a special envoy to Ukraine and “other countries” following the first phone call between President Xi Jinping and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky since the start of the Russian invasion. In the nearly hour-long phone call, Xi told Zelensky that “talks and negotiation” were the “only way out” of the war between Russia and Ukraine, which has already led to direct casualties of more than 350,000 soldiers in all. Xi stressed that China has always stood “on the side of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3218460/chinese-president-xi-jinping-holds-phone-call-ukraines-volodymyr-zelensky?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3218460/chinese-president-xi-jinping-holds-phone-call-ukraines-volodymyr-zelensky?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Apr 2023 11:31:10 +0000 China’s new defence chief will visit Russia next week, a first since the Ukraine war started, as Beijing and Moscow seek to shore up strategic trust in the face of mounting geopolitical pressure from Washington and its allies. Invited by his Russian counterpart Sergei Shoigu, Defence Minister Li Shangfu will kick off the four-day visit on Sunday and hold talks with Russian military leaders. He would also visit Russian military academies, Chinese defence ministry spokesman Tan Kefei, said on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3217133/chinas-new-defence-chief-visit-russia-marking-first-ukraine-invasion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3217133/chinas-new-defence-chief-visit-russia-marking-first-ukraine-invasion?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 14 Apr 2023 13:42:02 +0000 The new chief of staff of Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping is likely to make the office even more powerful, reflecting Xi’s long-held views on the importance of such positions and the centralisation of power at the top of the party, observers said. Cai Qi, director of what is officially known as the General Office of the Communist Party Central Committee – one of the most powerful offices in China – is the highest-ranked official to head the office since the time of Mao Zedong. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3215943/xi-jinpings-inner-circle-getting-even-tighter-powerful-new-chief-staff?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3215943/xi-jinpings-inner-circle-getting-even-tighter-powerful-new-chief-staff?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Apr 2023 15:00:16 +0000 Global Impact is a weekly curated newsletter featuring a news topic originating in China with a significant macro impact for our newsreaders around the world. Sign up now! China’s “two sessions”, which kick off Saturday, will mark the end of a twice-a-decade reshuffle of the country’s most powerful jobs, after President Xi Jinping’s sweeping victory at the 20th party congress in October. The annual sessions of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference – China’s top political... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3212282/global-impact-whats-expected-chinas-two-sessions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3212282/global-impact-whats-expected-chinas-two-sessions?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Mar 2023 22:30:08 +0000 This year’s “two sessions” – the annual meetings of the legislature and political advisory body – begin on March 4 and will complete a twice-a-decade leadership transition, with a reshuffle of top government jobs including the premier, and Xi Jinping set to secure a third term as president. In the first of a six-part series on what to expect from this key event, Jun Mai looks at the general political direction in China. According to China’s political calendar, with its top government positions... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3211686/chinese-leader-xi-jinping-focus-economic-stability-technological-self-reliance-after-two-sessions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3211686/chinese-leader-xi-jinping-focus-economic-stability-technological-self-reliance-after-two-sessions?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Feb 2023 14:30:12 +0000 In two pivotal speeches within a day, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden sought to seize higher ground in the China-US rivalry as tensions between the world’s two most powerful nations rise on various fronts, from ideology to geopolitics. In a rare, explicit display of celebration of the Chinese governance model against Western systems, Xi argued in a speech on Tuesday that China had debunked “the myth that modernisation means Westernisation” and hailed the Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3209539/xi-biden-stake-claims-china-us-rivalry-touting-opposing-political-systems?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3209539/xi-biden-stake-claims-china-us-rivalry-touting-opposing-political-systems?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Feb 2023 14:30:10 +0000 Beijing slammed Washington’s decision to shoot down a Chinese balloon, saying it was an overreaction and China reserved the right to take “further responses that are necessary”. “China strongly disapproves of and protests against the US attack on a civilian unmanned airship by force,” the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Sunday. It added that Beijing had notified the US side “repeatedly” that the airship was only for civilian purposes and had entered the US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3209126/joe-biden-says-us-going-take-care-chinese-balloon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3209126/joe-biden-says-us-going-take-care-chinese-balloon?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Feb 2023 17:31:35 +0000 https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/article/3205322/who-will-take-chinas-biggest-economic-challenges-guide-power-players?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/article/3205322/who-will-take-chinas-biggest-economic-challenges-guide-power-players?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 29 Jan 2023 22:00:14 +0000 A prominent Chinese political scientist is urging students to look to the country’s history during the Mao Zedong era, including the Cultural Revolution, to get a better understanding of what is happening now. “We gave students a question to talk to their parents about at the end of each class,” said Yan Xuetong, dean of the Institute of International Studies at Tsinghua University, in a report made public on January 16 by news outlet ifeng.com. “In several classes we asked them about things the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207585/chinese-academic-tells-students-talk-their-parents-about-mao-era-understand-basic-facts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207585/chinese-academic-tells-students-talk-their-parents-about-mao-era-understand-basic-facts?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 23 Jan 2023 10:00:19 +0000 Vice-Premier Hu Chunhua, once considered a potential successor for China’s top jobs, was named to the country’s largest political advisory body on Wednesday, and is set to take on a ceremonial role. Hu’s appointment to the 14th Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) came after his surprise exit from the ruling 24-strong Politburo during the 20th party congress in October, despite being nine years shy of retirement age for his level. Losing his Politburo seat meant Hu, 59, was... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207189/hu-chunhua-joins-china-top-advisory-body-set-depart-vice-premier?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207189/hu-chunhua-joins-china-top-advisory-body-set-depart-vice-premier?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Jan 2023 02:44:51 +0000 A senior Chinese anti-corruption official has announced that new legislation is planned to restrict the business activities of current and former civil servants. “[We will] push forward national legislation on fighting corruption, and stipulate restrictions on civil servants … [from engaging in] part-time work, business activities, and employment after [they leave the job],” Xiao Pei, deputy director of top anti-graft body the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, wrote in state-run... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207001/china-plans-new-law-restrict-business-activities-civil-servants?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3207001/china-plans-new-law-restrict-business-activities-civil-servants?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 16 Jan 2023 12:00:18 +0000 For Sheng Hong, a prominent economist based in Beijing, in-person academic events and overseas trips were restricted long before the Covid-19 pandemic, and they are likely to outlive the pandemic too. As Sheng tried to host a biweekly panel discussion in the summer of 2018, the small group of scholars were expelled and forced to move twice during the half-day meeting. They ultimately wrapped up their discussion of complexity economics, a cutting-edge branch of economics, on the pavement. Later... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205309/chinas-intellectuals-restrictions-started-long-pandemic-and-will-continue-after-covid-over?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205309/chinas-intellectuals-restrictions-started-long-pandemic-and-will-continue-after-covid-over?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Jan 2023 14:30:10 +0000 Chinese President Xi Jinping’s New Year’s Eve video address revealed some additions to his office bookshelves – including photographs of his predecessor Jiang Zemin, who died in November aged 96. Xi has delivered a video speech on the last day of each year of his presidency, which began in 2013. The occasion is a rare opportunity to take a peek at his office settings in Zhongnanhai, which is also the official residence for China’s top leaders. Among the first photos revealed this year were two... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205295/xi-jinpings-year-photographs-revealed-new-year-broadcast?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205295/xi-jinpings-year-photographs-revealed-new-year-broadcast?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 02 Jan 2023 08:10:15 +0000 China’s new top diplomat Wang Yi pledged in a New Year’s Day message to work on course correction in US-China relations, but also vowed to fight against “all forms of hegemony”. “[We will] implement agreements reached by the top leaders of the US and China, seek to establish guiding principles of Sino-US relations and correct course [in bilateral ties],” Wang wrote in an article published on Sunday in Qiushi, the flagship magazine of China’s ruling Communist Party. The byline cited Wang as... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3205234/china-seeks-course-correction-us-ties-will-fight-all-forms-hegemony-top-diplomat-wang-yi-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3205234/china-seeks-course-correction-us-ties-will-fight-all-forms-hegemony-top-diplomat-wang-yi-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Jan 2023 07:47:52 +0000 The Communist Party’s top security officials have pledged to crack down on people who “used the pandemic” to infiltrate and “make rumours”, as China experiences a spike in Covid-19 infections after a U-turn of its three-year zero-Covid strategy. “[We] must safeguard national security and social stability, and resolutely deal according to the law with behaviours that use the pandemic to infiltrate, sabotage, make rumours to start troubles and disrupt social order,” read a minute from Thursday’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205111/china-pledges-crackdown-disrupters-during-covid-19-infection-surge?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3205111/china-pledges-crackdown-disrupters-during-covid-19-infection-surge?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 30 Dec 2022 13:30:08 +0000 President Xi Jinping called on top leaders of his inner circle to adhere to the Communist Party’s instructions “under all circumstances” during a two-day Politburo session that concluded on Tuesday. “Under all circumstances, we should resolutely toe the party’s line and form a harmony in the symphony conducted by the party,” Xi said, according to state news agency Xinhua. “[We] must never deviate from the notes.” He added that all officials must uphold “absolute loyalty” to the party and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3204776/absolute-loyalty-chinas-xi-jinping-tells-politburo-toe-party-line-under-all-circumstances?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3204776/absolute-loyalty-chinas-xi-jinping-tells-politburo-toe-party-line-under-all-circumstances?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 28 Dec 2022 06:01:07 +0000 As part of SCMP’s commitment to providing comprehensive coverage of former Chinese president Jiang Zemin’s death and legacy, this story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Jiang Zemin, China’s top leader in the 1990s and the early 2000s, has left behind a country with a much higher global standing and an economy far more integrated with the world than Communist rulers before him knew. Jiang, who ruled the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3201571/jiang-zemin-president-who-took-china-tiananmen-pariah-rising-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3201571/jiang-zemin-president-who-took-china-tiananmen-pariah-rising-power?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Nov 2022 12:00:17 +0000 As part of SCMP’s commitment to providing comprehensive coverage of former Chinese president Jiang Zemin’s death and legacy, this story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Former president Jiang Zemin, one of China’s most influential leaders who spearheaded the country’s accelerated opening up and growth into a global powerhouse, died on Wednesday in Shanghai. He was 96. Jiang, who oversaw China’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3199464/jiang-zemin-chinas-former-president-many-firsts-dies-96?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3199464/jiang-zemin-chinas-former-president-many-firsts-dies-96?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 30 Nov 2022 08:41:51 +0000 China is committed to stronger ties with Japan, Premier Li Keqiang told Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in Phnom Penh on Saturday, in the first meeting of a senior Chinese leader with the Japanese prime minister sworn in last year. Both Beijing and Tokyo were committed to strengthening political, trade and economic ties, as well as people-to-people exchanges, Li said, as the two leaders met in the Cambodian capital on the sidelines of an Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit that is... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3199443/china-wants-stronger-ties-japan-premier-li-keqiang-tells-japanese-prime-minister-fumio-kishida?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3199443/china-wants-stronger-ties-japan-premier-li-keqiang-tells-japanese-prime-minister-fumio-kishida?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 13 Nov 2022 05:39:44 +0000 Marcelo Duhalde,Han Huang,William Zheng,Guo Rui,Phoebe Zhang,Salina Li,Xinlu Liang,Jun Mai Marcelo Duhalde,Han Huang,William Zheng,Guo Rui,Phoebe Zhang,Salina Li,Xinlu Liang,Jun Mai https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/society/article/3195959/chinas-communist-party-who-are-new-faces-20th-central-committee?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/infographics/china/society/article/3195959/chinas-communist-party-who-are-new-faces-20th-central-committee?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 08 Nov 2022 02:00:14 +0000 President Xi Jinping on Thursday led his core team to a site in northwestern China highly symbolic of the Communist Party’s revolutionary past, where he pledged to inherit and carry forward the revolutionary tradition and spirit. The visit came just days after Xi secured a norm-breaking third term as party general secretary at a landmark national congress, where he also revealed the line-up for the Politburo Standing Committee, the apex of political power in China. “After the closing of the 20th... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3197510/chinese-president-xi-jinping-takes-core-team-visit-communist-party-revolutionary-base?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3197510/chinese-president-xi-jinping-takes-core-team-visit-communist-party-revolutionary-base?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Oct 2022 15:30:19 +0000 Politburo newcomer and Xi Jinping protégé Li Shulei has been confirmed as the Communist Party’s propaganda chief, with one of his first tasks to present the key message from the recent 20th party congress. The appointment was confirmed on Wednesday when Li, in his new capacity, attended a meeting of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, China’s legislature, according to state broadcaster CCTV. During the meeting, Li reported on the five-yearly conclave that concluded on... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3197419/politburo-newcomer-and-xi-protege-confirmed-chinas-new-propaganda-chief-presenting-summary-20th?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3197419/politburo-newcomer-and-xi-protege-confirmed-chinas-new-propaganda-chief-presenting-summary-20th?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 27 Oct 2022 06:35:28 +0000 Chinese paramount leader Xi Jinping promoted four rising stars – Li Qiang, Li Xi, Ding Xuexiang and Cai Qi – to the country’s highest decision-making body, laying the foundation for his record-breaking third term and beyond. Together with veterans Wang Huning and Zhao Leji, the seven will form the new Politburo Standing Committee. The combination of experienced and fresh faces will support the president and his policies for the next five years, a period Xi described as of “unparalleled... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3196967/chinese-president-xi-jinping-looks-fresh-faces-confront-new-term-unparalleled-complexity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3196967/chinese-president-xi-jinping-looks-fresh-faces-confront-new-term-unparalleled-complexity?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 23 Oct 2022 15:08:00 +0000