https://www.scmp.com/rss/323809/feed Zhang Baohui is professor of political science and director of the Centre for Asian Pacific Studies at Lingnan University in Hong Kong. He is the author of China’s Assertive Nuclear Posture: State Security in an Anarchic International Order. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com On Monday, Taiwan experienced nothing short of a political earthquake. Former premier William Lai Ching-te unexpectedly announced he would seek the ruling Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) nomination to run in the presidential election in January 2020. This means he will challenge President Tsai Ing-wen, who has declared her intention to seek re-election.  Lai’s pro-independence and anti-China stance makes this an ominous turn in Taiwanese politics. Shortly after taking office as premier in... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/asia/article/3002472/us-should-rein-taiwans-latest-presidential-contender?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/asia/article/3002472/us-should-rein-taiwans-latest-presidential-contender?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Mar 2019 19:00:18 +0000 After the last round of trade negotiations in Beijing, China and the United States have signalled progress towards an agreement. US President Donald Trump, after hearing reports from US trade negotiators, tweeted on Sunday that “Big progress [is] being made on soooo many different fronts! Our Country has such fantastic potential for future growth and greatness on an even higher level”. Chinese President Xi Jinping, in his meeting with US delegation last Friday, also congratulated negotiators... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/world/article/2186771/us-demand-china-give-its-economic-model-would-doom?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/world/article/2186771/us-demand-china-give-its-economic-model-would-doom?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 19 Feb 2019 19:00:55 +0000 To the relief of the world, the much-anticipated Trump-Xi summit at the G20 meeting in Argentina did result in a temporary agreement between the United States and China to halt their trade war. This achievement, though tentative and fragile, serves the interests of the global community. Indeed, this meeting was closely watched by everyone, given the significance of its outcome, which could either avert or push the two countries towards a new cold war, a scenario that would force other nations to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/2176324/how-trump-and-xi-saved-world-economic-pain-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/united-states/article/2176324/how-trump-and-xi-saved-world-economic-pain-and?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Dec 2018 17:00:00 +0000 Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi went to Pyongyang on May 2 and met North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to discuss the rapidly evolving Korean peninsula security situation. This is the first visit to North Korea by a Chinese foreign minister in 11 years. On May 4, Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged phone calls with his South Korean counterpart, Moon Jae-in. Finally, to everyone’s surprise, Xi met Kim in the Chinese coastal city of Dalian on May 7 and 8.  This flurry of Chinese diplomatic... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2145480/china-must-be-part-korean-peace-negotiations-prevent-further?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2145480/china-must-be-part-korean-peace-negotiations-prevent-further?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 10 May 2018 07:15:30 +0000 President Moon Jae-in’s visit to China will officially end the enmity triggered by South Korea’s deployment of THAAD, the US-built missile ­defence system. That saw China take a number of hidden and open economic measures to retaliate against the infringement of its “core security interests”, reported to have caused substantial hardships to the South Korean economy. Moreover, the measures stirred up nationalism in both countries. However, the Moon administration has restored the bilateral... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2123936/how-trumps-america-helped-china-and-south-korea-become?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2123936/how-trumps-america-helped-china-and-south-korea-become?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Dec 2017 09:15:54 +0000 The world is at a critical juncture after North Korea’s sixth nuclear test. How the international community reacts to the latest provocation from Kim Jong-un will profoundly affect prospects for peace and stability. While US President Donald Trump seems to have toned down his threat of war, he nonetheless rejects a diplomatic resolution. On August 30, he tweeted that “Talking is not the answer”. Instead, the Trump administration has been pushing for harsher sanctions, including a ban on the sale... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2110951/how-chinese-diplomacy-can-shape-us-policy-north-korea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2110951/how-chinese-diplomacy-can-shape-us-policy-north-korea?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Sep 2017 05:42:56 +0000 On August 18, Donald Trump’s chief strategist, Steve Bannon, ­resigned. That came shortly after Bannon’s sensational interview with Robert Kuttner, co-founder and co-editor of the progressive magazine American Prospect, which published it on August 16. In the interview, Bannon claimed: “The economic war with China is everything. And we have to be maniacally focused on that. If we continue to lose it, we’re five years away, I think, 10 years at most, of hitting an inflection point from which... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2108071/why-beijing-should-mourn-not-cheer-exit-steve-bannon-and?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2108071/why-beijing-should-mourn-not-cheer-exit-steve-bannon-and?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 24 Aug 2017 09:00:45 +0000 Donald Trump has managed to rattle Sino-US relations even before he assumes the presidency. His phone call with Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, triggered concerns that he could upset the fundamental rules of the Sino-US relationship. Not only that, he also tweeted criticism of China’s trade practices and island-building in the South China Sea, and appointed Peter Navarro, a known China critic, to head the newly created White House National Trade Council. All of these have stirred legitimate... https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2058723/how-trumps-america-first-approach-can-ease-great-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/insight-opinion/article/2058723/how-trumps-america-first-approach-can-ease-great-power?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 03 Jan 2017 09:05:57 +0000