Politics
A 14-nation statement reaffirming the 2016 South China Sea arbitration ruling has drawn a sharp rebuke from Beijing, underscoring how the decade-old award remains a focal point of strategic rivalry even as a new dispute over the Batanes Islands emerges. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Liu Liu speaks to academics for an analysis.
Liu Liu
13 Jul 2026
Politics
Fukuyama: A superpower at war with itself
Political scientist Francis Fukuyama tells Lianhe Zaobao video producer Audrey Jiajia Li that America on its 250th anniversary is divided and polarised as never before, but there is still hope if it can believe in itself again.
Audrey Jiajia Li
13 Jul 2026
Politics
Aircraft carriers cannot erase Asian civilisational memory
Military superiority can destroy infrastructure, but it cannot erase a people’s past. Historian Wu Guo takes a look at how centuries of collective identity have formed an unbreakable shield against American intervention.
Wu Guo
10 Jul 2026
Politics
What China’s submarine missile test reveals about its nuclear strategy
China’s submarine launch shows that Beijing intends to remove strategic vulnerability before accepting strategic constraint. But showing its ability for a second-strike capability does not guarantee stability in Asia, says academic Hao Nan.
Hao Nan
09 Jul 2026
Politics
Purged generals, flying missiles: China’s military paradox
As sweeping anti-corruption investigations continue to shake the People’s Liberation Army, Beijing has responded not with words but with high-profile missile tests, seeking to demonstrate that its strategic nuclear deterrent remains intact despite the ongoing purge. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei explains.
Sim Tze Wei
09 Jul 2026
Politics
America’s 250-year strategy meets China’s rise
For 250 years, US grand strategy has been built on preventing any rival from dominating Europe or Asia. China’s rise has ended America’s uncontested primacy in East Asia, forcing Washington to rethink how it can preserve its security and influence. US academic Robert S. Ross gives his assessment.
Robert S. Ross
08 Jul 2026
Politics
China’s G2 reality and Hormuz’s new normal
As the world increasingly sees China and the US as a de facto G2, experts debate China’s global role while warning of a new normal in the Strait of Hormuz. Lianhe Zaobao China news correspondent Edwin Ong highlights key takeaways from the eighth Singapore-China Forum.
Edwin Ong
07 Jul 2026
Politics
Law alone won’t save the South China Sea
A decade after the 2016 arbitration, the South China Sea remains contested. In Malaysian academic Ngeow Chow Bing’s view, lasting stability will depend not only on international law, but also on sustained diplomacy, crisis management and practical cooperation.
Ngeow Chow Bing
07 Jul 2026
Politics
Why Japan is fast-tracking its defence overhaul
As Tokyo revises its landmark Three Security Documents, the real story lies beyond nuclear policy. Japan is reshaping its defence strategy to confront China’s rise, shifting US expectations and new forms of warfare. Japanese academic Shin Kawashima gives his analysis.
Shin Kawashima
06 Jul 2026
Politics
The Taiwan trigger that could break Trump’s China truce
Chinese and American experts agree that US-China ties have stabilised under Donald Trump, but warn the calm may prove temporary. Taiwan, economic decoupling and America’s political cycle could determine whether the fragile truce survives beyond Trump’s presidency. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei reports from Beijing.
Sim Tze Wei
06 Jul 2026
Politics
Top tigers fall in Xi’s endless purge
A fresh wave of high-level investigations suggests Beijing’s anti-corruption drive is no longer a periodic campaign but an enduring mechanism for strengthening party discipline and political control. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong analyses China’s efforts.
Han Yong Hong
03 Jul 2026
