https://www.scmp.com/rss/524471/feed The latest news and updates on Zhu Fenglian, a Chinese diplomat serving as Deputy Director and Spokeswoman for the Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) of the State Council. Born in 1977, she joined the TAO in 2003, rising to her current influential role in 2019. Educated in foreign languages and public administration, she is fluent in several Chinese dialects, aiding her communication on cross-strait relations. Her responsibilities include articulating mainland China’s policies on Taiwan, often issuing... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Lawrence Chung Lawrence Chung Taiwan has pushed back against a growing number of foreign governments that label it part of China in their internal systems. But questions are mounting over whether Taipei’s retaliatory moves can deliver results. The dispute has widened in recent weeks after South Korea, Denmark and Cameroon were found to have changed how they designate the island in official systems, such as those that handle visa documents, residence permits and international conference credentials. Taipei has responded with... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3348438/names-and-games-taipei-hits-back-over-china-label-will-it-pay?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3348438/names-and-games-taipei-hits-back-over-china-label-will-it-pay?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 31 Mar 2026 01:00:12 +0000 Lawrence Chung Lawrence Chung Taiwanese Premier Cho Jung-tai has come under fire over what he said was a private visit to Japan to support the island’s team at the World Baseball Classic last week – a trip that drew a sharp rebuke from Beijing. Cho travelled to Tokyo on March 7, watching Taiwan defeat the Czech Republic 14-0 at the Tokyo Dome in the tournament’s Pool C round. He returned to Taipei the same day. It was the first visit to Japan by a sitting Taiwanese premier since Tokyo ended official ties with Taipei in 1972... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3346546/swing-and-miss-taiwans-premier-under-fire-over-baseball-trip-tokyo?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3346546/swing-and-miss-taiwans-premier-under-fire-over-baseball-trip-tokyo?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 14 Mar 2026 04:00:15 +0000 Lawrence Chung Lawrence Chung Taiwan has secured a US deal slashing export tariffs to 15 per cent after more than nine months of talks, with Taipei hailing the result as a “home run” that will put the island on an equal footing with Japan and South Korea. But observers and opposition parties have raised sharp concerns over Taiwan’s commitment to invest up to US$500 billion in the United States in exchange for the tariff cut. The arrangement could hollow out Taiwan’s industrial base – particularly its prized semiconductor... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3340216/taipei-hails-us-15-tariffs-home-run-despite-fears-over-us500-billion-cost?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3340216/taipei-hails-us-15-tariffs-home-run-despite-fears-over-us500-billion-cost?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 16 Jan 2026 13:23:48 +0000 Yuanyue Dang Yuanyue Dang Taiwan has appointed a senior Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) politician and former liaison officer to Japan to head the semi-official group that manages cross-strait ties – a move Beijing has met with scepticism. Su Jia-chyuan, former head of the Taiwan-Japan Relations Association under Taipei’s foreign ministry, will chair the Straits Exchange Foundation (SEF), according to Karen Kuo, spokeswoman for the office of Taiwanese leader William Lai Ching-te, on Tuesday. The SEF is managed by... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3339888/taiwan-names-senior-dpp-politician-new-cross-strait-chief-amid-beijings-scepticism?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3339888/taiwan-names-senior-dpp-politician-new-cross-strait-chief-amid-beijings-scepticism?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 14 Jan 2026 10:15:48 +0000 Alcott Wei Alcott Wei In an escalation of Beijing’s campaign against perceived pro-independence agitators, mainland Chinese authorities have issued arrest warrants and offered hefty rewards for two Taiwanese social media influencers accused of “inciting secession”. The public security bureau in Quanzhou, Fujian province announced on November 13 a bounty of 50,000 to 250,000 yuan (US$7,040 to US$35,200) for tips leading to the capture of 25-year-old Chen Po-yuan, known online as “Minnan Wolf”, and his collaborator,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3334717/why-former-pro-beijing-rapper-wanted-inciting-taiwan-secession?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3334717/why-former-pro-beijing-rapper-wanted-inciting-taiwan-secession?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 01 Dec 2025 04:03:44 +0000 Alcott Wei Alcott Wei Beijing is inviting guests from Taiwan to a key commemoration of Japan’s surrender of sovereignty over the island 80 years ago, despite warnings from Taipei against attendance. The Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) in Beijing announced on Wednesday that guests from the island would be invited to attend the “Commemoration of the 80th Anniversary of the Restoration of Taiwan”, which falls on Saturday. But the actual commemoration may not take place on that exact date, according to past practice. Visits... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3329973/beijing-will-invite-taiwan-guests-mark-80th-anniversary-japans-surrender-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3329973/beijing-will-invite-taiwan-guests-mark-80th-anniversary-japans-surrender-island?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 22 Oct 2025 12:49:53 +0000 Lawrence Chung Lawrence Chung On October 10, 1925, the Forbidden City in Beijing became the Palace Museum. The massive complex of ancient imperial palaces that was home to the royalty of the Ming and Qing dynasties for centuries became a museum for the people. Today, there are four Palace Museums: the original in Beijing, the National Palace Museum in Taipei, with a Southern branch in Chiayi which opened in 2015, and the Hong Kong Palace Museum which opened in 2022. In this series, we explore the stories behind the centenary... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3328348/how-national-palace-museums-anniversary-became-battleground-over-taiwans-identity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3328348/how-national-palace-museums-anniversary-became-battleground-over-taiwans-identity?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Oct 2025 22:00:09 +0000 Fan Chen Fan Chen On the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has urged Tokyo to face up to its history and “make the right choice” regarding Taiwan. “A series of international documents … clearly defined Japan’s war responsibilities and required Japan to return the territories it had stolen from China, including Taiwan,” Wang said on Friday on the sidelines of the Lancang-Mekong Cooperation Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Anning, in southwest China’s Yunnan... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3321991/beijing-says-tokyo-must-make-right-choice-taiwan-japan-remembers-cost-wwii?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3321991/beijing-says-tokyo-must-make-right-choice-taiwan-japan-remembers-cost-wwii?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Aug 2025 08:08:01 +0000 Vanessa Cai Vanessa Cai As tensions between Beijing and Taipei rise, academia and the education sector reveal how each side is changing to adapt to – or shape – the new environment. In the first of a two-part series, we survey the vast research by mainland academics studying potential paths and models for governing the island. For decades, Beijing has talked about peaceful reunification with Taiwan and possibly governing it under the arrangement of “one country, two systems”, a term that means the island could have a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3318338/taiwan-papers-academics-suggest-how-mainland-china-might-rule-island?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3318338/taiwan-papers-academics-suggest-how-mainland-china-might-rule-island?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 15 Jul 2025 22:00:11 +0000 Xinlu Liang Xinlu Liang Over the past month, one of the biggest hit streaming shows globally has been a fictional drama about a young man who plots revenge after his family is murdered. The made-in-China historical fantasy is the latest major production to showcase the growing international influence of one of the country’s fastest growing cultural exports – storytelling. In the week after its May 18 debut, Legend of Zang Hai topped multiple overseas rankings in 15 regions, including the No 1 spot on Disney+ in Taiwan... https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/3316205/palace-intrigue-conquers-global-screens-are-c-dramas-chinas-new-soft-power?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/culture/article/3316205/palace-intrigue-conquers-global-screens-are-c-dramas-chinas-new-soft-power?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 28 Jun 2025 22:00:14 +0000