David Cohen
David Cohen was the editor of China Brief in 2013–2014. Before coming to the Jamestown Foundation, he worked as a freelancer in Beijing and the United States, covering Chinese politics, society, and business issues regularly for the Diplomat Magazine. He has also published stories in Foreign Affairs Online, the Lowy Interpreter and the National Interest, among other outlets. He grew up in Los Angeles and speaks Mandarin.
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Articles by David Cohen
A Mass Line for the Digital Age
At an April 19 conference on “internet work,” Chinese President Xi Jinping instructed cadres to listen to “constructive criticism” from the public online, calling for changes to the way the...
A Mandate, Not a Putsch: The Secret of Xi’s Success
When U.S. President Barack Obama said that Chinese President Xi Jinping “has consolidated power faster and more comprehensively than probably anybody since Deng Xiaoping,” he was voicing a view held...
Anti-Privilege Campaign Hits the Chinese Middle Class
On September 4, China’s State Council announced a series of ambitious and wide-reaching reforms of the Chinese college admissions system, designed to increase fairness and reduce pressure on China’s high...
Reclaiming Deng’s Legacy from Liberals
Celebrating reform-era leader Deng Xiaoping’s 110th birthday two days early on August 20, China’s leaders sought to harness his legacy for today’s politics by claiming him as a socialist and...
Zhou’s Fall About Institutions, Not Personalities
On Tuesday, Chinese official media confirmed the long-anticipated arrest of Zhou Yongkang (Xinhua, July 29). Zhou, a former member of the Politboro Standing Committee and head of China’s state security...
Xi Woos Modi With ‘Peace Through Development’ Approach
On July 14, Chinese President Xi Jinping became the second national leader to meet newly elected Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (who has paid a state visit to Bhutan), beating...
On Party’s Birthday, Promises of a Continued Purge
On the 93rd anniversary of the founding of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), General Secretary Xi Jinping highlighted his campaign to fight corruption and improve cadres’ “work style,” making it...
Legal Reform and the Mass Line: The ‘Socialist Rule of Law’ With A Human Face?
On Monday, June 16, Chinese state media announced plans to launch pilot judicial reform programs in six provinces, experimenting with changes that will centralize control of the judiciary at the...
‘A Clash of Security Concepts’: China’s Effort to Redefine Security
If there was any doubt, last week’s Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore made it clear that China is unhappy with the behavior of the United States in Asia. Following speeches by...
‘Development is the Key to Peace’: Chinese Leaders Discuss Future of Asia
While tensions in the South China Sea have gone from bad to worse, with riots in Vietnam targeting Chinese businesses and a range of ASEAN states exploring ways to counter...
‘A Peaceful, Friendly and Civilized Lion’: Xi Explains China’s Rise in Europe
During an 11-day tour of Europe, Chinese President Xi Jinping stuck to familiar themes. In a series of speeches and op-eds published in European newspapers, he delivered a message of...
Newest Small Leading Group to ‘Deepen Reform of National Defense and the Military’
The formation of a new committee for military reform at the top echelons of China’s Communist Party suggests that the Chinese leadership is beginning a concerted push to restructure the...
China Brief Editor David Cohen Writes Op-Ed for Nikkei Asian Review
China Brief editor wrote an op-ed for the Nikkei Asian Review, discussing the sudden rise of online investment funds as a high-interest alternative to state-owned bank accounts. He argued that reformers in...
With Allies Like These, Who Needs Rivals?: China Maintains Studied Ambiguity on Ukraine as Russia Claims ‘Concordance of Views’
In a statement that has been widely interpreted as signifying Chinese support for the Russian position on the ongoing crisis in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced on March 3...
Arrests in Guangdong Spearhead Effort to Clean up Innovation System—But Reveal Commitment to State-led Research
The firing and arrest of more than 50 officials “from the number one down to the grassroots” in the Provincial Science and Technology Department of Guangdong has been hailed in...
China Examines Military Strategy
During the start of 2014, China’s official media have, by their own account, been undertaking a reexamination of Chinese military strategy, in response to a call issued by Chinese President...
Mixed Messaging Surrounds Latest South China Sea Moves
On January 1, new fishing regulations for the South China Sea, issued by the province of Hainan, went into effect, prompting objections from China’s territorial rivals in Southeast Asia, as...
Xi Evokes “New Left” Vision of China’s Future
Chinese President Xi Jinping honored the 120th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s birth on December 26, using the occasion to speak at length about the significance of the founder of the...
East China Sea Air Defense Moves: What for and Why Now?
China’s declaration of an Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) covering the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands—as well as the greater part of the East China Sea, including sections of Taiwan’s and South...
Taiwan Trade Agreements with Singapore, Japan, Should Calm Fears of PRC Economic Domination
For Taiwan, November has been marked by a burst of activity on the regional trade front. On November 7, Taiwan signed a free trade agreement with Singapore, a day after...
Chinese Party Meeting Calls for Establishing ‘National Security Council’
The leaders of the Chinese Communist Party have resolved to establish a national security council (guojia anquan weiyuanhui) in order to “perfect the national security system and strategy, and guarantee...
How to Watch the Third Plenum: Political Issues
On Saturday, November 9, China will begin a major meeting on economic policy, expected to produce major statements of intent for reform. The outcomes of this meeting will be mainly...
Chinese Trade-Charm Push Reaches UK and India
China’s trade-backed charm offensive has reached India and the United Kingdom, as Chinese leaders signed a raft of trade deals with the United Kingdom and a border pact with India...
China Pushes “Silk Road” Regional Trade on Two Fronts
China’s top two leaders went to Southeast Asia last week with a message of regional economic integration, promising to build a “maritime silk road” (haishang sichou zhi lu) across the...
Bo’s Arrest was About Politics—But His Verdict May Have Been About Corruption
Fallen Chinese leader Bo Xilai was sentenced to life in prison on Sunday, September 22 on charges of corruption, abuse of power and bribery (Jinan Intermediate People’s Court, September 22)....
China criticizes American action on Syria, but shows little interest in the result
In the telling of China’s official media, the proposed U.S. strike on Syria is a war in search of a pretext, yet another instance in a line of American aggression...
Discipline Through Paranoia: The Uses of a Crackdown
Writing in the last two issues of China Brief, Andrew Chubb raised an important analytical question about reading Chinese official sources: how much sense can we make of them without...
What to Ask at the Third Plenum: Is Xi’s Party Building Sufficient for Reform?
On July 30, Xi Jinping oversaw a meeting of the Politburo to discuss economic reform, ahead of the widely-anticipated discussions at Beidaihe leading up to the release of a new...