Passing through Indonesia back in 2019, I asked a longtime friend why Southeast Asians were so quiet when it came to supporting pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. Once an anti-Suharto activist, now a businessman, he rolled his eyes at my naivete. “Hong Kong has had it too good for too long,” he said. “The rest of […]
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Global rules against cyberattacks must be updated
The cyberattack that shut down an American East Coast pipeline underlines a global security challenge that needs urgent attention. When ransom-seeking hackers breached the pipeline operator Colonial Pipeline last Friday, they claimed they were only after money. But their success and ease of operation exposed, yet again, the fragility of civilian infrastructure to hostile forces. […]
Read MoreAcclaimed Chinese-born writer tackles feminism and sex
I first met the Chinese writer Hong Ying many years ago in a fashionable bookstore in London’s upmarket Chelsea district. She was surrounded by literary stars and critics, looking a little tense, yet somehow pensive, elegant, patient. A blend of curiosity and bewilderment creased her face while, just beneath, there was an expression best described […]
Read MoreAsia could give UK the post-Brexit win it needs
The United Kingdom’s full separation from the European Union, due to begin on Jan. 1, is bound to be bumpy. But by shining a spotlight on Asia, London could address accusations that its foreign policy is adrift while underpinning its interests in a region where it has a chance of early success. With care, the […]
Read MoreEurope must abandon muddled thinking about China
With its unusually blunt warning to China, accusing it of exploiting COVID-19 to undermine European democracy, the EU has shown a long overdue change of mindset after years of jumbled, divisive and largely reactive policies in dealing with Beijing. The European Commission said that China, together with Russia, was responsible for an unprecedented wave of […]
Read MoreTaiwan holds lessons for ‘good’ and ‘bad’ dictatorships
In 1979, not long after America’s Jan 1. recognition of Beijing’s Communist regime as the legitimate government of China, former U.S. President Richard Nixon returned to China and was feted as a hero for his groundbreaking visit to the Chinese capital in 1972. […]
Read MoreTaiwan’s New Southbound Policy is decreasing its reliance on China
Long menaced by its larger neighbor, Taiwan’s efforts to shift away from its reliance on China by increasing trade instead with other regional partners are beginning to pay both economic and political dividends. Known as the New Southbound Policy, the government of President Tsai Ing-wen is encouraging and subsidizing Taiwanese companies to move out of […]
Read MoreIn New York’s Chinatown, don’t mention politics
The streets in New York’s Chinatown are narrow. Packed with humanity, loud conversations and small businesses — noodle restaurants, laundries and foot massage bars — they spill out the sounds and smells of East Asia. Some 100,000 people live in this part of Manhattan Island, which lies between fashionable Tribeca and the Lower East Side, […]
Read MoreHow small nations can stand up to China
Beijing and Moscow haven’t always seen eye to eye. But, assisted by U.S. President Donald Trump’s belligerence, they are putting aside old suspicions and finding new opportunities for cooperation. The vast expanse of the Arctic Ocean is a case in point. Among the most significant practical achievements of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Russia […]
Read MoreA US-led Indo-Pacific alliance against China is an outdated idea
The scheduled visit by the U.S. secretaries of defense and state to India on Sept. 6 highlights Washington’s latest attempt to create a strategic Asian alliance strong enough to counter the growing influence of China. But is the unformulated plan for a “free and open Indo-Pacific” — promoted by officials from President Donald Trump down […]
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