Latest China Brief Articles

Will China’s Dream turn into America’s Nightmare?

China’s Dream: Major Power Thinking and Strategic Posture in a Post-American Era has attracted considerable attention from both Chinese and Western media [1]. The author, Senior Colonel Liu Mingfu, calls for China to replace the United States as the dominant military power. Liu is a... MORE

Google and China’s Changing Economic Paradigm

Following two months of tussling with the Chinese government—much of it under the glare of intense media coverage—Google Inc. (GOOG) abandoned its core business in the world's most populous nation. Specifically, on March 22, the Mountain View-based company announced it had stopped censoring search results... MORE

China’s Ecological Woes: Drought and Water Wars?

Are there policy and administrative failures behind the unprecedentedly severe drought that is devastating China’s southwestern provinces? The same question is being asked about the unusually ferocious sandstorm that blanketed northern and eastern China last week. The country’s ecological degradation has had dire global consequences.... MORE

China-Taiwan Up Missile Ante

In spite of thawing ties along the Taiwan Strait, Beijing is reportedly deploying more sophisticated missile systems in the coastal province across Taiwan.  The director of Taiwan’s National Security Bureau (NSB)—the island’s principle intelligence agency—confirmed independent reports at a legislative hearing that China has deployed... MORE

Hobson’s Choice: China’s Second Worst Option on Iran

In late February, a high-level Israeli delegation visited China in an attempt to convince Beijing to go along with sanctions against Iran. Headed by Lieutenant General (ret.) Moshe Ya'alon, vice prime minister and minister for strategic affairs and former chief of general staff of Israel's... MORE

Taiwan’s Navy: Still in Command of the Sea?

The Republic of China Navy (ROCN), or Taiwan Navy, has an ambitious vision for its future strategy. According to the “ROC Navy Vision,” which is available on the Navy’s website, “Based on the guidance of ‘Command and control automation, Three-dimensional mobile strike capabilities and Missile-oriented... MORE

Powerful Interests Stifle Reforms at National People’s Congress

A major theme of the just-concluded National People’s Congress (NPC) is social and distributive justice, or the ways and means to help disadvantaged sectors such as peasants and migrant workers in China get a fairer share of the fruits of the “Chinese economic miracle.” Premier... MORE

Strategic Implications of China’s Access to the Rajin Port

At the recently concluded National People's Congress (NPC), Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Deputy Secretary-General of the Yanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture in Jilin Province, Li Longxi, announced that North Korean authorities are currently studying a proposal to grant a 10 year extension to China's lease of... MORE