https://www.scmp.com/rss/522725/feed The latest news and top stories on the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations. A prominent Beijing-based research institute and think tank, the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations (CICIR) is dedicated to providing policy recommendations to the Chinese government on international relations and foreign policy. Its main areas of focus include security economics politics and culture with a particular emphasis on US-China relations. Affiliated with China’s... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Alcott Wei Alcott Wei The Chinese military aired footage over the weekend of YJ-20 hypersonic anti-ship missile launches, as joint US-Philippines-Japan drills heighten tensions in the disputed South China Sea. China Military Bugle, a social media account run by the People’s Liberation Army, posted a video on Sunday of the PLA Navy conducting strike tests at sea, including multiple YJ-20 launches. The post did not specify when and where the missiles were fired. However, the footage was released two days after Beijing... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3351593/pla-showcases-yj-20-hypersonic-missiles-balikatan-drills-heat-south-china-sea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3351593/pla-showcases-yj-20-hypersonic-missiles-balikatan-drills-heat-south-china-sea?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 27 Apr 2026 11:13:09 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen As key allies turn away and war costs soar, the US military campaign against Iran is spurring a growing consensus among Chinese observers and state media – that Washington’s unrivalled global dominance is crumbling. Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily issued a sharp critique on Thursday, warning that the United States’ shift from an “international rule-builder” to a “predatory hegemon” would ultimately undermine its prosperity and influence. “In the post-Cold War era, while the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351155/why-iran-war-surest-sign-us-decline?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351155/why-iran-war-surest-sign-us-decline?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 23 Apr 2026 15:00:09 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang China has issued its first map pinpointing seabed chemical elements in the country’s eastern waters as Japan also races to tap undersea rare earth resources and deep-sea minerals. The Chinese Ministry of Natural Resources published the results of marine geological surveys over the past two decades for the seas, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Tuesday. The result was an atlas charting the location, concentration and distribution patterns of dozens of elements in seabed sediments, including... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3350168/next-frontier-china-maps-seabed-resources-japan-races-tap-rare-earths?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3350168/next-frontier-china-maps-seabed-resources-japan-races-tap-rare-earths?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Apr 2026 01:00:10 +0000 He Huifeng He Huifeng While the world remains divided over the unresolved issue of toll collection in the Strait of Hormuz, some Chinese experts have proposed pegging fees to oil prices or using exportable digital tokens from China for settlements. If tolls were to be imposed in this strategic chokepoint for global energy trade, settlement mechanisms could be “innovative”, said Wang Yiwei, director of the Institute of International Affairs at Renmin University. “Tolls and settlements could be tied to oil prices or... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3349545/hormuz-toll-debate-china-experts-propose-innovative-solutions-impasse-persists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3349545/hormuz-toll-debate-china-experts-propose-innovative-solutions-impasse-persists?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Apr 2026 15:00:11 +0000 Xinyi Wu,Ji Siqi Xinyi Wu,Ji Siqi China is still on course to overtake the United States as the world’s largest economy in the next decade, as the global balance of power pivots towards Asia and America pursues a string of “self-defeating” policies, a prominent academic has said. While the Chinese economy is undergoing a structural transition, the current challenges facing the US are more severe, according to Li Cheng, the founding director of the University of Hong Kong’s Centre on Contemporary China and the World. The US is... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347863/china-still-track-supplant-us-worlds-no-1-economy-10-years-academic?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3347863/china-still-track-supplant-us-worlds-no-1-economy-10-years-academic?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 25 Mar 2026 14:00:10 +0000 Alyssa Chen Alyssa Chen China’s international clout and economic stability are rebalancing Beijing’s relations with Europe, putting more focus on cooperation and less on rivalry, according to a former Chinese envoy. “With European leaders coming to China one after another, they are coming with their own considerations: hoping to strengthen bilateral relations in the new context and find ways to benefit from China’s continued development,” said Wu Ken, China’s ambassador to Germany from 2019 to 2024. On the sidelines of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345754/rivals-partners-china-and-europe-are-retooling-ties-adviser-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345754/rivals-partners-china-and-europe-are-retooling-ties-adviser-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 07 Mar 2026 06:00:16 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang Singapore and China share “common interests” in safeguarding international order amid profound changes in the global landscape and uncertainties from trade wars, according to the city state’s top envoy to Beijing. The world has faced increased challenges, with huge pressure on multilateralism, free trade, and openness since the beginning of last year, Peter Tan Hai Chuan, Singapore’s ambassador to China, warned at an event at Renmin University in Beijing on Tuesday. “But Singapore and China have... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345391/singapore-and-china-have-common-interests-safeguarding-global-order-says-ambassador?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3345391/singapore-and-china-have-common-interests-safeguarding-global-order-says-ambassador?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 04 Mar 2026 09:00:08 +0000 Orange Wang Orange Wang Israel’s ambassador to China has hailed the historical connections between the two countries and called for closer socioeconomic ties in a rare column for Chinese state media. Eli Belotserkovsky’s signed Chinese-language article for state news agency Xinhua comes amid global conversation over the Board of Peace, US President Donald Trump’s newly created body to tackle the Palestinian issue. The Jewish and Chinese civilisations had amassed rich historical wisdom and knowledge over millennia,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342002/israels-china-envoy-calls-deepen-historical-ties-rare-state-media-outreach?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3342002/israels-china-envoy-calls-deepen-historical-ties-rare-state-media-outreach?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 01 Feb 2026 11:29:56 +0000 Shi Jiangtao Shi Jiangtao China carried out naval and air patrols around Scarborough Shoal on Saturday – just days after joint US-Philippine drills nearby – underscoring tensions in the disputed South China Sea waters. The PLA Southern Theatre Command issued a statement on the “combat readiness patrols” near the shoal, which China calls Huangyan Island. They were aimed at countering “infringement and provocative actions by individual countries”, it said, in a thinly veiled reference to the United States and rival... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3341949/chinese-military-patrols-scarborough-shoal-5-days-after-us-philippine-drills-area?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3341949/chinese-military-patrols-scarborough-shoal-5-days-after-us-philippine-drills-area?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 31 Jan 2026 11:35:22 +0000 Amber Wang Amber Wang The US operation to abduct Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro serves as a reminder for China to bolster its air defences and counter-intelligence protections, observers say. Analysts in China described Venezuela’s air defences – which rely largely on Russian technology – as “full of flaws and slow to react” amid the modern surveillance, cyber, and electronic warfare displayed by US forces in Saturday’s operation in Caracas. The operation could serve as a further case study for China, which has... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338912/venezuela-attack-seen-reminder-china-boost-air-defence-counter-intelligence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3338912/venezuela-attack-seen-reminder-china-boost-air-defence-counter-intelligence?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 06 Jan 2026 15:00:10 +0000 Cao Jiaxuan Cao Jiaxuan China needs to adapt to a more competitive global environment driven by market power, technological innovation and institutional leverage, according to analysts at a leading Beijing-based think tank. These pillars were more critical than conventional military dominance or strengthening territorial control in the great power rivalry, particularly as Beijing sought to project itself as a stabiliser in an increasingly fractured international order, the analysts added. In an article this week, Fu... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3338443/new-world-order-market-power-trumps-military-might-can-china-compete?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3338443/new-world-order-market-power-trumps-military-might-can-china-compete?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 02 Jan 2026 04:00:13 +0000 Shi Jiangtao Shi Jiangtao The world has not slid into a simple US–China bipolar order but become “two superpowers and many strong powers”, veteran Peking University scholar Wang Jisi has warned, pointing to a relationship plagued by structural confrontation, deep misunderstandings and rising risks of conflict. In a wide-ranging virtual conversation last Friday at the University of Hong Kong’s Centre on Contemporary China and the World (CCCW), Wang voiced concerns about America’s inward turn under US President Donald... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336407/beyond-bipolar-why-china-us-rivalry-defies-cold-war-model?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3336407/beyond-bipolar-why-china-us-rivalry-defies-cold-war-model?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Dec 2025 01:00:22 +0000 Ji Siqi,Sylvia Ma Ji Siqi,Sylvia Ma More than six decades after British historian AJP Taylor termed war the “mother of invention”, economies around the world appear to be ramping up their military spending, at least in part, to reinvigorate industrial production. Taylor was referring to the genesis of the tank, the aeroplane and poison gas in World War I, and that of radar, the jet engine and the atomic bomb in World War II. More modern examples, such as satellite-based navigation systems and the internet, were the products of the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3335612/us-eu-and-japan-boost-defence-spending-stimulus-their-true-intention?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3335612/us-eu-and-japan-boost-defence-spending-stimulus-their-true-intention?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 08 Dec 2025 22:00:16 +0000 Alcott Wei Alcott Wei China’s official military newspaper has accused the United States of “gunboat diplomacy” amid rising tensions with Venezuela. The Pentagon announced on Sunday that a strike group including the US Navy’s largest aircraft carrier, the USS Gerald R. Ford, had been deployed to the Caribbean, carrying thousands of service personnel and dozens of aircraft. US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he had not ruled out sending troops to Venezuela, while also expressing a willingness to engage in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3333282/chinas-military-mouthpiece-hits-out-us-gunboat-diplomacy-venezuela-tensions-rise?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3333282/chinas-military-mouthpiece-hits-out-us-gunboat-diplomacy-venezuela-tensions-rise?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 18 Nov 2025 12:00:28 +0000 Mia Nurmamat Mia Nurmamat Japan risked turning the entire country into a battlefield if it intervened militarily in the Taiwan Strait, an article published by Beijing’s military mouthpiece PLA Daily warned on Sunday, marking the latest escalation in a diplomatic clash sparked by comments from the Japanese leader. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told the Japanese parliament on November 7 that the use of force against Taiwan could be seen as a “survival-threatening situation”, a scenario that would allow Tokyo to deploy its... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3332970/pla-daily-warns-japan-path-no-return-if-its-military-intervenes-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3332970/pla-daily-warns-japan-path-no-return-if-its-military-intervenes-taiwan?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 16 Nov 2025 07:13:39 +0000 Orange Wang,Shi Jiangtao Orange Wang,Shi Jiangtao After a week-long gathering of leaders at the UN General Assembly in New York, its president struck a positive tone on Monday. Annalena Baerbock, the former German foreign minister, said there was a collective will to “choose the right path at the crossroads”. “If high-level week is any indication, this house is fulfilling that purpose – the United Nations is still relevant,” she said. But 23 years after Kofi Annan spoke of the UN’s “fork in the road”, when he was secretary general, the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327827/us-retreat-un-may-create-tremendous-opportunity-nations-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3327827/us-retreat-un-may-create-tremendous-opportunity-nations-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 04 Oct 2025 22:00:09 +0000 Ji Siqi Ji Siqi Chinese scholars warn that Argentina will be the biggest loser if it cuts ties with China to align itself with the United States, as Washington pressures Buenos Aires to dismantle its long-standing currency swap line with Beijing. The US pledged last week to do “what is needed” to aid its ally, including providing a US$20 billion swap line with Argentina’s central bank to stabilise the peso and bolster its reserves. But the offer came with a condition: cancelling Argentina’s arrangement with... https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3327641/trump-targets-china-us20-billion-argentina-bailout-offer-analysts-fear-debt-trap?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3327641/trump-targets-china-us20-billion-argentina-bailout-offer-analysts-fear-debt-trap?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 02 Oct 2025 15:00:10 +0000 Enoch Wong Enoch Wong China will host defence officials from more than 100 countries next week at the Beijing Xiangshan Forum, the country’s largest security conference and widely regarded as Beijing’s answer to the Shangri-La Dialogue. “More than 100 countries, including Vietnam, Singapore, Russia, France, Nigeria and Brazil, have confirmed their attendance, along with representatives of international and regional organisations,” defence ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Jiang Bin said on Wednesday. The broad... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3325209/china-host-defence-themed-xiangshan-forum-next-week-attended-more-100-countries?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3325209/china-host-defence-themed-xiangshan-forum-next-week-attended-more-100-countries?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 11 Sep 2025 11:00:20 +0000 Fan Chen Fan Chen Third parties should not interfere with – and were not a factor in – the relationship between China and South Korea, Beijing said on Wednesday following suggestions that Seoul would not act counter to Washington’s policy. “The China-South Korea relationship is based on mutual interests, is not targeted at a third party, and should not be interfered with,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said. “China’s policy is consistent and stable, and we hope that South Korea will work with... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3323395/china-warns-against-external-interference-ties-south-korea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3323395/china-warns-against-external-interference-ties-south-korea?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 28 Aug 2025 06:00:11 +0000 Connor Mycroft Connor Mycroft Hong Kong needs to develop its “geopolitical instincts” to navigate the US-China rivalry amid the broader global shift in power from the West to the East, a former top diplomat from Singapore has said. Kishore Mahbubani, who previously served as Singapore’s permanent representative to the United Nations and president of the UN Security Council, also called for the West to cede ground to emerging powers in international organisations amid the rise of a multipolar world. Mahbubani was speaking in... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3323382/hong-kong-must-hone-geopolitical-instincts-amid-china-us-rivalry-kishore-mahbubani?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3323382/hong-kong-must-hone-geopolitical-instincts-amid-china-us-rivalry-kishore-mahbubani?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 27 Aug 2025 11:41:38 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven stories from this week’s news across Hong Kong, mainland China, the wider Asia region and beyond that resonated with our readers and shed light on topical issues. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. How the Philippines forced China to adjust historic mission to moon’s far side Chinese space engineers made small but deliberate changes to last year’s historic sample retrieval mission to the far side of the moon to avoid political... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3322738/plane-software-mastermind-leaves-us-china-trump-top-mediator-scmps-7-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/3322738/plane-software-mastermind-leaves-us-china-trump-top-mediator-scmps-7-highlights?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Aug 2025 04:12:08 +0000 Edith Mao Edith Mao US President Donald Trump’s methods for mediating international conflicts may backfire and lead to more confrontation, experts in China have warned. Trump’s mediation tactics revealed a power politics approach and constituted ill-advised interference in the long term, Zhang Luwei, a research associate at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, said in an article published on the institute’s social media account last week. She said Trump was known for taking a high profile... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322166/trump-being-put-forward-nobel-peace-prize-so-he-must-be-top-mediator-right?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3322166/trump-being-put-forward-nobel-peace-prize-so-he-must-be-top-mediator-right?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 18 Aug 2025 14:00:08 +0000