https://www.scmp.com/rss/522863/feed The latest news and top stories on Mike Pompeo. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency before becoming the 70th US Secretary of State. A West Point and Harvard Law graduate, he was previously a US Congressman and an entrepreneur in aerospace and oilfield industries. As Secretary of State, he shaped US foreign policy, notably with the Abraham Accords, strengthened alliances and challenged the Chinese Communist Party. His work at the CIA focused on confronting threats and... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Brian Wong,Connor Mycroft,Jess Ma Brian Wong,Connor Mycroft,Jess Ma Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has returned to West Kowloon Court alongside eight co-defendants, as three judges hear mitigation arguments from defence lawyers in his high-profile national security case on Monday. The 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily is the most prominent figure yet to be convicted under the national security law imposed by Beijing in June 2020. Last month, he was found guilty of two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and a... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3339524/jimmy-lai-trial-hong-kong-judges-hear-mitigation-arguments-defence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3339524/jimmy-lai-trial-hong-kong-judges-hear-mitigation-arguments-defence?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 12 Jan 2026 01:32:21 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong Hong Kong’s High Court found former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying guilty on all charges in his national security trial on Monday, ruling that he had used his tabloid newspaper and international connections to push for foreign intervention and sanctions against the local and central governments. In open proceedings watched by a packed gallery of spectators including representatives of foreign governments at West Kowloon Court, a panel of three judges convicted the businessman turned opposition... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336541/court-finds-hong-kongs-jimmy-lai-guilty-after-landmark-national-security-trial?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336541/court-finds-hong-kongs-jimmy-lai-guilty-after-landmark-national-security-trial?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Dec 2025 16:11:46 +0000 Emily Hung Emily Hung Former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s “rabid hatred” of the Communist Party of China has led him down a “thorny path”, according to the judges who found him guilty on three counts of national security offences. The 855-page full judgment released on Monday started with the “rags-to-riches” success story of Lai, but was overshadowed by criticism, particularly regarding the credibility of his evidence. Born in Guangzhou in 1947, Lai smuggled himself into Hong Kong at the age of 12,... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336529/jimmy-lais-rabid-hatred-party-led-him-down-thorny-path-hong-kong-court?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336529/jimmy-lais-rabid-hatred-party-led-him-down-thorny-path-hong-kong-court?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Dec 2025 14:19:37 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong A landmark ruling of Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s marathon trial has revealed how the former media boss used his personal ties with foreign political figures to solicit intervention before and after the national security law took effect five years ago. In an 855-page judgment handed down on Monday, three High Court judges ruled that Lai intended to tap his vast political network to trigger sanctions against Beijing and the Hong Kong government, knowing that his requests would be heeded. The 78-year-old... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336521/hong-kongs-jimmy-lai-used-personal-ties-seek-foreign-sanctions-court-ruling?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3336521/hong-kongs-jimmy-lai-used-personal-ties-seek-foreign-sanctions-court-ruling?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Dec 2025 13:10:30 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong North Korea is expected to remain largely impervious to Western diplomatic overtures for the foreseeable future as it rails against its rivals’ “hostile” policies. On Tuesday, North Korean state media denounced last month’s summit between US President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung as proof of the “confrontational will” of its adversaries to “remain hostile … to the end”. The North was taken aback by the outcomes of the Trump-Lee summit, according to Professor Cho Han-bum... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3333349/trump-took-pyongyang-surprise-nuclear-subs-south-korea-sinking-talk-hopes?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3333349/trump-took-pyongyang-surprise-nuclear-subs-south-korea-sinking-talk-hopes?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Nov 2025 04:27:47 +0000 Lanxin Xiang Lanxin Xiang Convergence theory has long been a Western fantasy in conquering the world with liberal democratic values. It proposes that societies, especially as they industrialise, tend to become more alike in various aspects of social organisation, including work, class structure, family patterns and culture. However, convergence theory oversimplifies the complexities of social change and ignores the unique cultural and historical contexts of different societies. It does not adequately account for power... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3326764/trump-era-could-herald-end-ideology-us-china-relations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3326764/trump-era-could-herald-end-ideology-us-china-relations?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Sep 2025 01:30:09 +0000 Coco Feng Coco Feng Beijing-based ByteDance launched the international version of its short video app in 2017. TikTok soon became a global hit thanks to its advanced algorithm. This success, however, drew the attention of the US government and others, which raised concerns about data privacy and national security. After a rocky few years, TikTok seems ready to secure a permanent foothold in the US market via a deal that would see American investors control the US operations. The following timeline plots TikTok’s... https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3327039/tiktoks-tumultuous-journey-global-sensation-geopolitical-bargaining-chip?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/business/article/3327039/tiktoks-tumultuous-journey-global-sensation-geopolitical-bargaining-chip?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Sep 2025 12:00:15 +0000 Khushboo Razdan Khushboo Razdan Former South Korean foreign minister Kang Kyung-wha could soon be named South Korea’s ambassador to Washington, reflecting Seoul’s urgent need for seasoned diplomacy in light of an increasingly unpredictable US foreign policy, sources familiar with the matter said. If confirmed, Kang, now the president of Asia Society, a New York-based think tank focused on promoting US-Asian cooperation, would be the first woman to hold the post, which has been vacant since July. An experienced diplomat with... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3322896/kang-kyung-wha-seen-likely-choice-south-koreas-next-envoy-washington?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3322896/kang-kyung-wha-seen-likely-choice-south-koreas-next-envoy-washington?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 22 Aug 2025 21:20:22 +0000 Brian Wong Brian Wong Lawyers for former Hong Kong media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying have argued that his “armchair punditry” did not support prosecutors’ contention that he masterminded a conspiracy to instigate Western sanctions, prompting a judge to note that his comments could be interpreted as “disguised requests”. Lai’s lawyers and the three presiding judges hearing his national security trial found themselves entangled in a recurring debate on the interpretation of allegedly incriminating remarks made by the... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3322699/hong-kong-judges-jimmy-lais-lawyers-lock-horns-over-armchair-punditry?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3322699/hong-kong-judges-jimmy-lais-lawyers-lock-horns-over-armchair-punditry?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 21 Aug 2025 12:47:04 +0000 Rob York Rob York Based on his recent statements, it appears that US President Donald Trump’s position on Ukraine has evolved to match that of his predecessor. He now says shipments of weapons will continue and that Ukraine must be able to defend itself. He has expressed unhappiness with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and on Monday threatened 100 per cent tariffs on Russia and countries doing business with it if a Russia-Ukraine deal isn’t reached in 50 days. This may surprise some observers, especially... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3318020/trumps-team-waking-reality-rivalry-russia?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3318020/trumps-team-waking-reality-rivalry-russia?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 12:30:08 +0000