Both China and the US needed a successful summit to take place for their own domestic reasons, and the San Francisco meeting achieved that, says EAI senior research fellow Lance Gore. However, the real question is whether the US is actually going for a win-win cooperation with China, or a lose-lose situation hoping that China will lose more?

Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Yu Zeyuan notes that while the recent live-fire drills by China’s Southern Theater Command at the China-Myanmar border is aimed at testing the PLA’s capabilities, it is evidently a form of warning to all sides involved in the war in northern Myanmar. Some are even supporting the idea of Chinese military deployment across the border to tackle the serious, long-term issues of smuggling, drug trafficking and telecommunications fraud in northern Myanmar.

Amid rising tensions in the South China Sea between the Philippines and China, Japan is looking to forge closer security relations with the Philippines. An envisaged reciprocal access agreement between the Philippines and Japan would be an important step towards that end and help to achieve maritime stability in East Asia.

While Japanese PM Kishida’s recent visit to Manila points to the upward momentum of the Japan-Philippines Strategic Partnership, it will also be a litmus test of Japan’s strategic goals in the rest of Southeast Asia.

Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong notes that the so-called Blue-White alliance seems to have broken down, and the DPP has a good chance of winning. With DPP leader William Lai a self-proclaimed advocate for Taiwan independence, that would likely mean strained relations with Beijing, or even armed reunification.

Nepal’s recent ban on TikTok was a result of both societal and political concerns, says Indian academic Rishi Gupta. In the aftermath, will there be ripple effects on Nepal's relations with China?

In Singapore’s early days of independence, it had few diplomatic options. However, then Singapore Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew found an unlikely ally in Taiwan President Chiang Ching-kuo, as the two struck up a friendship that placed them in good stead in more ways than one. Historical photo collector Hsu Chung-mao provides some valuable photographs of the two leaders.

Taiwanese art historian Chiang Hsun muses on his encounters with a Libra who took him on a historical exploration, and a Leo that pushed Taiwan’s film industry into the world stage. Do the rules of attraction truly dictate that Libras and Leos themselves are compatible, even if they despise each other?

The market for Chinese developers’ dollar-denominated bonds has seen a meltdown over the past two years, losing 87% of its value, sparking renewed calls for a fresh approach to stimulating the property market.

Facing the threat of investment flight, China can seek to assuage fears with incentives, but in the long term, it would need to transform itself from a government-directed investment-driven economic growth model to a more balanced growth model from private sector investment and domestic consumption.

Japanese academic Toshiya Tsugami analyses China's recent trade and investment flows amid US-China rivalry, highlighting the EV and semiconductor sectors which have become key battlegrounds in the competition between China and the West. How will development plans for the Chinese market and the global business environment be affected?

Dalian in China’s Liaoning province is not the first place one would think of in relation to the tech industry, but northeast China — despite the gap in its development compared to other parts of China — hopes to ride the wave of tech development, such as in the area of robotics.

As China's Belt and Road Initiative marks its tenth year, Japanese academic Shin Kawashima takes a look at how the BRI has progressed, its overall impact on the countries where it has been implemented, as well as the challenges it faces in the road ahead.

Political analyst Wang Qingmin notes that given the near-total power of the Chinese government over Hong Kong, perhaps Beijing can afford to show more tolerance towards the people and government of Hong Kong. This might actually encourage the moderate pan-democrats who love Hong Kong to contribute, which would also benefit mainland China.

Lianhe Zaobao journalist Tai Hing Shing notes that even as evidence shows that the US does not value Hong Kong as much as pro-democracy Hong Kongers think it does, overly idealistic Hong Kongers still buy into the narrative that the US will step in on Hong Kong’s behalf in dealing with Beijing. It is time for this group to wake up.

Singapore's Health Minister Ong Ye Kung delivered the keynote speech entitled "Youths – Bridge Between East and West, Pivot Between Present and Future" at the Lianhe Zaobao Singapore-China Forum 2023 held in Beijing on 21 November. He spoke about issues affecting the youths of today — whether in China or Singapore — noting that while they have big issues to tackle, they still have much to look forward to in this pivotal moment in history. This is the English version of his keynote address delivered in Mandarin.

It seems that scam operators, not least the “four big families” of northern Myanmar or Kokang, are being put on notice in Northern Myanmar. Skirmishes between the Brotherhood Alliance armed forces and the junta are helping to ferret out these organisations. Given that Kokang borders China, the animosity between the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army and the junta government will test how China strikes a balance between them.