https://www.scmp.com/rss/328809/feed Brian Wong is an assistant professor in philosophy at the University of Hong Kong, and a Rhodes Scholar and adviser on strategy for the Oxford Global Society. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong With the war in the Middle East entering its third month, questions have surfaced over its geopolitical ramifications in the region and beyond. An entity that has drawn particular scrutiny is Brics. The 10-member grouping is defined less by a clear set of common values and more by contingently overlapping interests. It does not and cannot speak with one voice on the conflict. Two Brics members, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are at loggerheads: Tehran has launched missile and drone... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352951/brics-doesnt-need-unified-voice-iran-war-have-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352951/brics-doesnt-need-unified-voice-iran-war-have-future?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 21:30:06 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong There is a tendency to portray the global artificial intelligence (AI) landscape as consisting of two bitter rivals – China and the United States. The remaining 80 per cent of the world’s population, by virtue of their supposed dearth of scale, research and other critical overheads, are purportedly followers with no agency. The reality is more complex. The emerging global AI order is neither unipolar nor strictly bipolar. Instead, it is characterised by a swathe of middle powers hedging their... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350129/hong-kong-can-advance-ai-beyond-confines-geopolitical-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3350129/hong-kong-can-advance-ai-beyond-confines-geopolitical-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 21 Apr 2026 01:30:09 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong By the second half of the 21st century, the Sino-Indian relationship will become the world’s most significant geopolitical relationship, dislodging even the complex China-US cooperative rivalry. By 2050, the world’s three largest economies are likely to comprise some combination of China, India and the United States. PricewaterhouseCoopers predicts this exact order – with the US having the highest per capita income but the smallest population. Both Asian powerhouses enjoy significant theoretical... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3346270/boosting-china-india-ties-should-be-pillar-hong-kongs-five-year-plan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3346270/boosting-china-india-ties-should-be-pillar-hong-kongs-five-year-plan?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 01:30:07 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong British Prime Minister Keir Starmer recently concluded his four-day visit to China, during which he met President Xi Jinping. He was accompanied by a sizeable delegation of prominent British business leaders across finance, pharmaceuticals, clean energy and aviation. Starmer met Chery chairman Yin Tongyue, who announced his intention to open the carmaker’s European headquarters in Liverpool. Separately, AstraZeneca also announced a US$15 billion investment in China over the next five years. The... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342664/how-hong-kong-can-bring-china-and-britain-closer-its-not-just-finance?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3342664/how-hong-kong-can-bring-china-and-britain-closer-its-not-just-finance?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Feb 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong For all his bombast, few could have imagined the sound and fury with which Donald Trump has taken to foreign policymaking in his second presidential term. Over the past 12 months, the US president has laid bare American ambitions to lay claim to territories within its near periphery deemed to be of strategic significance. From Greenland – a mineral-rich autonomous territory of Denmark – to Panama, a critical maritime trade choke point, the White House has made its geopolitical appetite... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340443/trumps-blunt-interventions-risk-undermining-us-interests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3340443/trumps-blunt-interventions-risk-undermining-us-interests?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 20 Jan 2026 12:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong Given the breakneck speed of technological and commercial developments across the world, China is perhaps one of only a few sovereign states with a comprehensive strategy on both artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics. The Chinese state philosophy in AI development is anchored in diffusion, as opposed to maximising the cutting-edge performance of select generative or reasoning models. While American and European investors are lured by the prospects of superintelligent and humanoid robots,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3336289/protection-vulnerable-workers-must-be-part-chinas-ai-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3336289/protection-vulnerable-workers-must-be-part-chinas-ai-strategy?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 21:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong At last month’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit, China and the bloc upgraded their free trade pact in the areas of environmental protection, product quality and support for small businesses. Premier Li Qiang contextualised the agreement in light of “greater development challenges” facing Asean nations, as they are “unfairly subjected to steep tariffs”, an indirect criticism of the erratic measures unleashed across the region by US President Donald Trump. Another noteworthy... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3331415/how-china-and-asean-can-ensure-their-upgraded-pact-truly-win-win?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3331415/how-china-and-asean-can-ensure-their-upgraded-pact-truly-win-win?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Nov 2025 21:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong Donald Trump may have a point in highlighting the UN’s ability to address global challenges. However, the antidote to stunted multilateralism isn’t abandoning the concept altogether, but inclusive reforms that empower countries that lack representation. Besides its New York headquarters, the UN has three large secretariat hubs in Nairobi, Vienna and Geneva, but few offices located in Asia, a continent with around 60 per cent of the world’s population. Bangkok does serve as a de facto... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3327144/hong-kong-should-be-chinas-gateway-united-nations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3327144/hong-kong-should-be-chinas-gateway-united-nations?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 30 Sep 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong In 1966, French president Charles de Gaulle withdrew France from the integrated military command of Nato, on the grounds that the United States’ dominance of the transatlantic security alliance undermined not only French sovereignty but that of other European members. He later signed a cooperation agreement with the Soviet Union, showing by example what autonomous foreign policies could look like for a Europe of sovereign states. With the fall of the Berlin Wall, many European states opted for a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3325120/security-economy-and-autonomy-europe-crossroads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3325120/security-economy-and-autonomy-europe-crossroads?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Sep 2025 12:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong Growing up, being Chinese was always optional. Don’t get me wrong – I am ethnic Chinese through and through, having been born and raised in a middle-class family in Hong Kong. “Chinese” was what I might fill in on a dental appointment form or a rare visa application if I was travelling to an exotic locale. But by and large, I never labelled myself as “Chinese” – it was an unfamiliar familiarity at the back of my mind, as nondescript as the train arriving on time at Tsim Sha Tsui. I went to an... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3322746/half-world-away-hong-kong-i-had-chinese-epiphany?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3322746/half-world-away-hong-kong-i-had-chinese-epiphany?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Aug 2025 01:30:08 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong “I shall consider myself fortunate if, through this visit, China comes nearer to India and India to China – for no political or commercial purpose, but for disinterested human love and for nothing else.” These words were uttered by Rabindranath Tagore, one of India’s most legendary poets, on his 1924 visit to China. A century later, the Sino-Indian relationship stands at an inflection point. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to visit China for the first time in seven years, to attend... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3321577/china-and-india-may-be-same-page-can-they-start-new-chapter?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3321577/china-and-india-may-be-same-page-can-they-start-new-chapter?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 Aug 2025 12:30:37 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong In September 2023, Hong Kong’s Court of Final Appeal ruled that the government must establish a legal framework to recognise same-sex relationships within two years – affirming the rights of same-sex couples to apply for public housing and inherit property. The ruling also explicitly stated that such recognition does not entail the legalisation of same-sex marriage. Two years later, the Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Bureau has proposed a registration system to grant legal recognition to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3317230/same-sex-recognition-attests-hong-kongs-rule-law-and-vitality?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3317230/same-sex-recognition-attests-hong-kongs-rule-law-and-vitality?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 14 Jul 2025 21:30:07 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong What is the fundamental contradiction shaping our world today? Some might say it’s the dichotomy between democracy and autocracy – a staple of former US president Joe Biden’s world view. However, that perspective seems outdated. Biden’s successor, Donald Trump, is well known for being transactional. Last month he said Washington would lift sanctions on Syria, although the country’s new government hasn’t put it on the path to democracy. Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has pitched a slew of... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313603/why-democracy-vs-autocracy-isnt-definitive-contest-shaping-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3313603/why-democracy-vs-autocracy-isnt-definitive-contest-shaping-world?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 09 Jun 2025 21:30:07 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong In the era of heightened geopolitical competition in nascent technologies, it is tempting to view the artificial intelligence (AI) race as centred around two key players – the United States and China. At the Politburo’s April 25 economic-analysis meeting, Chinese President Xi called upon the nation to “achieve self-reliance and strength”, according to a Xinhua readout, and “secure a competitive edge in AI” – stopping short of naming the US. Reciprocally, the US views China’s growing... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3309581/beware-hubris-ai-narrative-centred-us-and-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3309581/beware-hubris-ai-narrative-centred-us-and-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 11 May 2025 21:30:08 +0000 In the wake of the triple whammy of sociopolitical unrest, the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical upheaval, the past few years have not been easy on Hong Kong. Some have suggested the city is struggling to find its way amid heightened Sino-US rivalry, stiff competition from regional rivals and critics pouring cold water on its international reputation. They might be right in their observations about the present situation, yet premature in their conclusions about the future. There is no reason to... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3304229/how-education-can-lead-way-hong-kongs-economic-revival?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3304229/how-education-can-lead-way-hong-kongs-economic-revival?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 01 Apr 2025 01:30:11 +0000 With the Ukraine war now in its fourth year, US President Donald Trump has taken a decidedly different approach. After the explosive words between Trump, US Vice-President J.D. Vance and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, Washington has paused military aid to Ukraine. Trump has also said he did not see a full recovery of lost territory by Ukraine as feasible. To his supporters, Trump is an unconventional peacemaker, pulling the rug out from under the transatlantic Nato... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3301566/eu-and-britain-must-step-and-lead-coalition-peace-ukraine?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3301566/eu-and-britain-must-step-and-lead-coalition-peace-ukraine?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 10 Mar 2025 12:30:09 +0000 On January 1, people who don’t closely follow innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) would not have heard of DeepSeek. However, by late January, it became a widely celebrated sensation. US tech corporations such as Meta and OpenAI were shocked by the apparent breakthroughs accomplished by this hitherto obscure Chinese start-up. In a comprehensive and publicly available post, the Chinese “David” revealed that it had managed to develop a R1 model with performance comparable to OpenAI’s o1, at... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3297183/deepseek-success-shouldnt-be-seen-win-china-or-loss-us?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3297183/deepseek-success-shouldnt-be-seen-win-china-or-loss-us?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 04 Feb 2025 12:30:08 +0000 On January 6, Indonesia was admitted as a full member to Brics, a multinational bloc now comprising 10 key developing economies spanning Europe, Latin America, Asia and Africa. With the incorporation of the world’s fourth most populous nation, this burgeoning and loosely coordinated grouping features six out of the world’s 10 largest countries by population. The weaponisation of the US dollar after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has injected renewed momentum into the bloc’s expansion. Last year,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3294760/joining-brics-indonesia-not-suddenly-anti-us-or-pro-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3294760/joining-brics-indonesia-not-suddenly-anti-us-or-pro-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Jan 2025 01:30:08 +0000 With the impending return of the “America first” president Donald Trump to the White House, some advocate that Beijing and Brussels rebuild trade ties and shield themselves against the precipitous protectionist measures from Washington. However, with Chinese and European Union negotiators knee-deep in protracted discussions over tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), and a flare-up in Sino-Lithuanian relations signalling more tension, there are headwinds preventing drastic improvements in... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3289463/china-could-adopt-strategic-empathy-mend-ties-europe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3289463/china-could-adopt-strategic-empathy-mend-ties-europe?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Dec 2024 12:30:08 +0000 I can still vividly recall when Donald Trump was first elected US president in 2016. It was a gloomy winter morning in Oxford, and the frigid temperatures mirrored how many among my peers felt about his unbelievable ascent. Eight years later, more than 73 million Americans voted for his return. A second Trump term is likely to mean substantial volatility. We should expect more protectionism in the form of tariffs, possible restrictions on outbound investment, sanctions and retaliatory measures... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3285745/china-can-build-bridges-trumps-america-builds-walls?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3285745/china-can-build-bridges-trumps-america-builds-walls?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 Nov 2024 21:30:07 +0000 Reform featured prominently in Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu’s recent policy address. Amid the challenging economic headwinds and intensifying geopolitical competition between China and the West, the acknowledgement that Hong Kong must change its strategy is very welcome. Bold transformation requires an understanding of our city’s unique strengths and weaknesses. To paraphrase Lee, we can always learn from others’ experiences but a wholesale replication would be ineffective, even... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3282994/hong-kong-strategises-success-it-should-celebrate-its-uniqueness?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3282994/hong-kong-strategises-success-it-should-celebrate-its-uniqueness?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Oct 2024 01:30:08 +0000 Recent years have seen Hong Kong looking beyond conventional partners, in light of harsh geopolitical realities, but also because of the increasing eminence of the Global South. Indeed, the warming ties between Hong Kong and Asean are welcome, given the latter’s growing economic and strategic heft and integration into the sprawling supply chains linked to China. Yet what is often overlooked in conversations on relations between Hong Kong and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations is the... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3281403/be-better-connector-hong-kong-needs-know-asean-better?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3281403/be-better-connector-hong-kong-needs-know-asean-better?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 09 Oct 2024 21:30:08 +0000 “Useless efforts lead to melancholy” – Spanish philosopher Jose Ortega y Gasset’s words from decades ago aptly reflect the current Spanish government’s abrupt attempt to take a more proactive role in shaping the European Union’s China policy. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez’s recent visit to Beijing was filled with dulcet overtones. The intent was supposedly straightforward: secure a more robust economic partnership while assuaging Chinese concerns over Spain’s stance on escalating European... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3279039/why-spains-efforts-stop-tariffs-chinese-evs-will-fall-short?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3279039/why-spains-efforts-stop-tariffs-chinese-evs-will-fall-short?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 20 Sep 2024 12:30:07 +0000 Hong Kong’s Executive Council recently approved a proposal from the West Kowloon Cultural District to sell residential property rights. The objective was to cover the district’s operational deficit and capital expenses for the next decade. Calls for heightened accountability, improved transparency and greater sensitivity and responsiveness to economic sustainability are most welcome. There nevertheless exists a fine line between minimising deadweight loss and positioning the district as a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3277171/hong-kong-should-give-its-art-hub-funds-it-needs-succeed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3277171/hong-kong-should-give-its-art-hub-funds-it-needs-succeed?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 08 Sep 2024 01:30:09 +0000 As a major beneficiary of deepening Sino-American trade relations during the two decades after the Cold War, Hong Kong has borne the brunt of the recent decade of deterioration in relations between China and the United States. From the trade war to the aftermath of the 2019 protests that led to international portrayals of Hong Kong and the Chinese mainland as indistinguishably one and the same, the city has been battered by daunting geopolitical headwinds in the eight years since Donald Trump’s... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3272794/hong-kong-can-not-only-survive-thrive-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3272794/hong-kong-can-not-only-survive-thrive-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 04 Aug 2024 01:30:11 +0000 At the third plenum of the 11th Central Committee in 1978, Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping called on Communist Party cadres to “emancipate our minds, use our heads, seek truth from facts”. He would soon take charge of a country that had freshly emerged from the disastrous upheaval induced by ideological extremism and unbridled mass mobilisation. Few in the world then could have foreseen the seismic transformations that China would undergo. In strategically privatising segments of the national... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3270510/how-chinas-continued-opening-sets-country-path-better-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3270510/how-chinas-continued-opening-sets-country-path-better-future?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 17 Jul 2024 01:30:08 +0000 At the third plenum of the 11th Central Committee in 1978, Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping called on Communist Party cadres to “emancipate our minds, use our heads, seek truth from facts”. He would soon take charge of a country that had freshly emerged from the disastrous upheaval induced by ideological extremism and unbridled mass mobilisation. Few in the world then could have foreseen the seismic transformations that China would undergo. In strategically privatising segments of the national... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3270520/three-ways-china-can-benefit-keeping-its-doors-open-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3270520/three-ways-china-can-benefit-keeping-its-doors-open-world?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Jul 2024 10:15:39 +0000 Last month, China and the US held a high-level intergovernmental dialogue in Geneva on managing artificial intelligence (AI) risks, the first of its kind. The Chinese delegation was led by Yang Tao, director general of the foreign ministry’s North American and Oceanian affairs department, while the American side was helmed by Tarun Chhabra, the point man on technology at the National Security Council, and Seth Center, the acting special envoy for critical and emerging technology at the State... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3266199/3-low-hanging-fruit-us-china-cooperation-ai?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3266199/3-low-hanging-fruit-us-china-cooperation-ai?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 13 Jun 2024 21:30:09 +0000 At a time when global challenges ranging from climate change to pandemics require sincere and thoughtful cooperation, Sino-American youth exchanges play an outsize role in dispelling misconceptions and fostering much-needed interpersonal ties and trust. The status quo is undoubtedly worrying. Only 211 Americans studied in mainland China between 2021 and 2022, with a slight rebound to 700 in 2023 – a downturn from around 11,000 before Covid-19. In 2023, for the first time in 15 years, China was... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3262514/sino-us-youth-exchanges-are-vital-and-hong-kong-has-role-play?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3262514/sino-us-youth-exchanges-are-vital-and-hong-kong-has-role-play?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 15 May 2024 01:30:15 +0000 It is often said that Hong Kong must help tell China’s story to the world. However, Hong Kong must also tell the world’s story to Beijing. This means providing Beijing with a more accurate and complete picture of the international community’s reception of the country – both the good and the bad. It also means pushing back against staid nationalistic narratives and oversimplifications overstating China’s strengths and brushing over its weaknesses. With an increasingly tense international... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3258762/why-hong-kong-telling-worlds-story-china-just-important?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/hong-kong-opinion/article/3258762/why-hong-kong-telling-worlds-story-china-just-important?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Apr 2024 01:30:24 +0000 The novel Red Sorghum is a personal favourite. A paean to the defiant spirits of the Chinese people, it was penned by Guan Moye – also known as Mo Yan – the first Chinese citizen to win the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2012. Narrating both the triumphs and tribulations of ordinary Chinese people, it tells a captivating story in magical realist tones. Through the lenses of a Shandong family, the reader comes to appreciate five decades of history – from the Sino-Japanese War in the 1930s and the... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3255807/how-ultranationalists-undercut-chinas-efforts-win-worlds-love?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3255807/how-ultranationalists-undercut-chinas-efforts-win-worlds-love?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 20 Mar 2024 01:30:16 +0000 The precipitous deterioration of Sino-US relations over the past decade has many structural causes – American elites’ angst over a rival economic power, widening US socioeconomic inequalities and hyper nationalism across both sides of the pond. A key catalyst was Donald Trump. With his truculent, erratic and self-serving personality, the former US president initiated the Sino-US trade war, peddled Covid-19 theories to excoriate China, and was twice impeached, notably over the Capitol... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/united-states/article/3251592/how-china-can-best-prepare-trumps-return?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/united-states/article/3251592/how-china-can-best-prepare-trumps-return?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 13 Feb 2024 21:30:12 +0000 On December 30, one day before Indonesia’s Asean chairmanship lapsed, the region’s foreign ministers issued a statement articulating their “concern” over “recent developments in the South China Sea that may undermine peace, security, and stability in the region”. This statement from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations came after months of escalating tensions between Chinese and Filipino vessels, amid growing concern that the region would be dragged into US-China strategic competition. It... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3248660/us-china-tensions-asean-playbook-shows-how-small-states-can-navigate-big-power-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3248660/us-china-tensions-asean-playbook-shows-how-small-states-can-navigate-big-power-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Jan 2024 01:30:10 +0000 In his speech addressing an exclusive banquet in the US, President Xi Jinping affirmed that “the world needs China and the United States to work together for a better future”. He called on both parties to avoid seeing “the other side as a primary competitor”. His conciliatory remarks appear to put to rest the notion that the highest echelons of China’s leadership no longer value their long-standing partnership with the West as the Global South continues to rise. While Southeast Asia and the Gulf... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3243533/three-steps-china-must-take-remain-attractive-investors?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3243533/three-steps-china-must-take-remain-attractive-investors?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Dec 2023 21:30:12 +0000 The past few weeks have seen a flurry of high-level diplomatic activity in Hong Kong. California Governor Gavin Newsom was greeted by a packed room for a fireside chat with University of Hong Kong Vice-President Peng Gong. This was followed by the visit of a delegation of six US mayors to the university, where they spoke to prominent sustainability experts in the city. A day later, former US consul general Kurt Tong addressed an audience at Asia Society Hong Kong, a jewel of people-to-people,... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3240598/three-ways-hong-kong-can-help-thaw-china-us-relations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3240598/three-ways-hong-kong-can-help-thaw-china-us-relations?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 08 Nov 2023 21:30:20 +0000 “De-risking” has come to dominate European discourse on China and Russia. To its advocates, it reflects a calibrated compromise between European desires for strategic autonomy, the enduring alignment between Washington and Brussels, and the growing convergence in economic interests between Europe and China. The term is best defined as the recalibrating and diversifying of trade relationships to minimise the downsides of disproportionate dependencies. Brussels has announced four priority areas in... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3237732/focusing-china-europe-risks-missing-true-de-risking-dangers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3237732/focusing-china-europe-risks-missing-true-de-risking-dangers?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 15 Oct 2023 21:30:15 +0000 As a linchpin of China’s economic presence in Southeast Asia, Malaysia enjoys long-standing trade ties with the world’s second-largest economy, with trade volumes nearly doubling from US$106 billion in 2013 to US$203.6 billion last year. Malaysia is China’s second-largest trading partner in a region that is increasingly important in Beijing’s foreign policy vision and initiatives, including the Belt and Road Initiative and Global Development Initiative. Yet challenges remain, and both Beijing... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3236301/how-malaysia-and-china-can-deepen-ties-amid-south-china-sea-disputes-and-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3236301/how-malaysia-and-china-can-deepen-ties-amid-south-china-sea-disputes-and-us-china-rivalry?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Oct 2023 05:28:41 +0000 Asean is one of the world’s fastest-growing economic blocs, expanding by an estimated 5.5 per cent last year despite global headwinds, and has a young and dynamic population of over 660 million. To stay relevant and competitive, Hong Kong must not only look towards Southeast Asia but embrace it. To succeed, we must seek to add value to the 10 (soon 11) members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, position ourselves as a gateway for their capital and companies in accessing Northeast... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3234411/hong-kong-needs-roll-out-welcome-mat-asean-talent-heres-how?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3234411/hong-kong-needs-roll-out-welcome-mat-asean-talent-heres-how?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 16 Sep 2023 02:00:18 +0000 As a city synthesising Chinese cultural heritage, British historical influences and ties with the Chinese diaspora in Southeast Asia, characterised by a fundamental openness to international friends and travellers from near and far, Hong Kong is home to 7.5 million people speaking in a thousand voices. As we seek to embark on a new direction following the past few difficult years, arts and culture have a crucial role to play in establishing the tenor of this relaunch and we have a great deal of... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3231250/hong-kong-relaunch-must-create-space-youth-art-and-culture?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3231250/hong-kong-relaunch-must-create-space-youth-art-and-culture?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 19 Aug 2023 00:15:11 +0000 July 1 marked the 48th anniversary of the formalisation of Sino-Thai relations. Today, China is Thailand’s largest trading partner with US$135 billion of trade last year, about 18 per cent of Thailand’s total. Thai exports to China have also jumped, from just US$1.82 billion in 1995 to US$37.7 billion in 2021, a testament to China’s burgeoning middle class and Thailand’s growing competitiveness as a manufacturing and agricultural powerhouse. With their cultural and interpersonal ties, a clear... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3229780/how-thailand-can-draw-closer-china-despite-us-rivalry-and-geopolitical-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3229780/how-thailand-can-draw-closer-china-despite-us-rivalry-and-geopolitical-tensions?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 04 Aug 2023 19:30:09 +0000 At a recent meeting with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, Chinese President Xi Jinping told his “old friend” his hopes lie with “the American people” as the stabilising force in the volatile Sino-American relationship. Gates’ trip was among several high-profile visits to China in recent months by business leaders, including the CEOs of Tesla, JP Morgan and Starbucks. As the Chinese economy struggles to recover from the pandemic, Beijing has indicated a clear desire for foreign direct investment... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3226133/how-hong-kong-can-boost-return-international-investor-confidence-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3226133/how-hong-kong-can-boost-return-international-investor-confidence-china?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Jul 2023 19:30:08 +0000 Two concepts have increasingly taken centre stage in geopolitical discussions around the European Union. The first is “strategic autonomy”, the second, “de-risking”. There was much fanfare around the first, following French President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to China in April. It centred on the notion that Europe would rise above the fray of US-China tensions and embrace Macron’s calls for an EU that puts European interests first and takes the side of neither the United States nor China. Such... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3223335/eu-too-important-diplomatically-and-economically-china-neglect-relations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3223335/eu-too-important-diplomatically-and-economically-china-neglect-relations?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 09 Jun 2023 19:30:10 +0000 The Gay Games is set to take place in Hong Kong in November, the first time an Asian city has acted as co-host in the event’s four-decade history. The Gay Games reflects the best of Hong Kong because of its inclusiveness. This event is open to all people regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity or even training level. Co-hosting the Games alongside Guadalajara, Mexico, empowers us to position ourselves as an iconic and welcoming gateway for visitors from Latin America, a... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3220162/gay-games-time-hong-kong-show-world-its-tolerant-welcoming-side?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3220162/gay-games-time-hong-kong-show-world-its-tolerant-welcoming-side?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 May 2023 08:30:08 +0000 The Asian century is here. Containing roughly 60 per cent of the world’s population and contributing more than 42 per cent in purchasing power parity terms to global gross domestic product, Asia is well positioned to lead the 21st century as the focal point of economic and technological growth. As author Parag Khanna noted, the future is Asian. Yet the differences among Asian nations and cultures mean Asia’s rise will not herald the dominance of a single ideology or power. Malaysian Prime... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3216944/three-changes-hong-kong-must-make-reap-rewards-asian-century?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3216944/three-changes-hong-kong-must-make-reap-rewards-asian-century?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Apr 2023 00:15:10 +0000 There is more to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine than just Russia, Ukraine, the European Union, Nato and China. This statement might seem somewhat controversial – after all, these five actors, especially the first two, are capable of wielding the greatest leverage over the unfolding events. Yet by focusing the discussion on their preferences and policies, the risk is that large parts of the world are ignored. Not only does the Global South – which includes developing countries across Asia, Africa,... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3213594/ukraine-war-time-take-global-south-and-its-diverse-views-seriously?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3213594/ukraine-war-time-take-global-south-and-its-diverse-views-seriously?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Mar 2023 19:30:12 +0000 Sino-American relations briefly thawed after President Xi Jinping’s meeting with US President Joe Biden in Bali, Indonesia, last November. Much of that goodwill turned out to be more transient than expected. The Republican-majority House of Representatives has established a select committee to brace the United States for its “strategic competition” with China’s ruling party, with bipartisan support for greater financial and technological decoupling. Elsewhere, legislators in Texas and other... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3210050/three-ways-rebuild-us-china-trust-after-spy-balloon-row?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3210050/three-ways-rebuild-us-china-trust-after-spy-balloon-row?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 14 Feb 2023 17:00:21 +0000 The only way forward for Hong Kong is internationalisation – restoring and deepening financial, economic and sociocultural ties with countries, regions and cities across the world. This is instrumental to the city’s revitalisation, as it seeks to emerge from three years of turmoil, lockdowns and palpable angst over its future. To achieve this, we must re-engage our long-standing friends across finance, commerce and innovation; broker new partnerships with emerging regions; and, aspire to... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3207063/hong-kong-its-best-when-it-open-world?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/hong-kong/article/3207063/hong-kong-its-best-when-it-open-world?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 18 Jan 2023 00:15:12 +0000 Much ink has been spilled on Hong Kong’s role as an international cultural hub. Talk of doubling down on more infrastructure, facilities and venues is welcome – after all, there can be no systematic cultural outreach and development without the hardware. Yet as we see it, Hong Kong has a long way to go to become a truly world-class cultural hub. What is missing is “soul”, a vision to steer and support the cultivation of Hong Kong’s software and human capital for international exchange. Culture... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3202400/be-truly-world-class-cultural-hub-hong-kong-needs-much-more-just-hardware?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3202400/be-truly-world-class-cultural-hub-hong-kong-needs-much-more-just-hardware?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 10 Dec 2022 00:15:11 +0000 There has been a lot of talk over how Hong Kong can reboot itself after the past few difficult years. There are many issues to fix – and repairing Hong Kong’s reputation and standing in the eyes of the international community takes action and time. An area relatively overlooked, where meaningful change can come from the top down, is the rights of gender and sexual minorities. There exist many reasons for which we should care for genuine gender and sexuality equality: reasons to do with... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3200237/hong-kong-stands-lgbtq-rights-would-be-more-attractive-global-talent?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3200237/hong-kong-stands-lgbtq-rights-would-be-more-attractive-global-talent?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 22 Nov 2022 00:30:21 +0000 When Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu took office earlier this year, he was faced with a Hong Kong in dire need of repair and restoration. Two years of stringent quarantine restrictions, a pandemic-battered economy and escalating geopolitical tensions meant Lee’s administration could not simply rest on existing virtues. The city that had always benefited from being China’s gateway to the world – and the world’s entry point into the 1.4-billion-people economy – faced challenges that were not... https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3196594/hong-kong-leaders-policy-address-promising-start-city-needs-transformative-vision?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3196594/hong-kong-leaders-policy-address-promising-start-city-needs-transformative-vision?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 21 Oct 2022 01:15:08 +0000