International Organisations

BRICS is built on economic grievance, not geopolitics

The wrong question to ask about BRICS is its geopolitical coherence. Instead, the right one is how far it has pursued its reform agenda and utilised its own tools, says Indian researcher Anushka Saxena.

Anushka Saxena

14 Sep 2026

Xi Jinping’s tech diplomacy meets harsh realities of BRICS

BRICS is gaining cohesion, but internal divisions remain. As it seeks a bigger global role, China is using AI cooperation to expand its network of partners, promote its standards and gain an edge over the US. Lianhe Zaobao China news correspondent Edwin Ong reports.

Edwin Ong

14 Sep 2026

‘Eastern NATO’? China’s real SCO strategy

With growing influence over Russia and Iran, China has greater geopolitical leverage and room to steer the SCO into a bloc that presents an alternative to the Western-dominated order, says academic Alessandro Arduino.

Alessandro Arduino

03 Sep 2026

How China’s role in the global order has changed

Former Chinese Premier Zhu Rongji’s passing and the commemoration of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin’s centenary calls to mind how China has evolved from the era of integrating with the global economy to shaping the world, notes Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei.

Sim Tze Wei

20 Aug 2026

From rule-taker to rule-maker: China’s AI challenge to US dominance

The China-US AI rivalry is no longer just about building the most powerful models. It is a contest to shape AI ecosystems, define global rules and gain influence over how the technology develops worldwide. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei reports.

Sim Tze Wei

20 Jul 2026

Who governs food security now? Why Beijing’s answer matters most

Global food governance is increasingly dispersed across overlapping institutions and frameworks. Few countries are better positioned than China to bridge them, but whether Beijing chooses to do so remains the defining question, says researcher Genevieve Donnellon-May.

Genevieve Donnellon-May

10 Jul 2026

‘We’re not that wealthy’: Beijing’s answer to China Shock 2.0

As trade tensions flare, China’s leadership is fiercely defending Chinese enterprises and rejecting the Western narrative of China as a threat. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong takes a look at the key takeaways of Chinese Premier Li Qiang’s speech during the Summer Davos forum.

Han Yong Hong

26 Jun 2026

Can ASEAN find its own voice between great powers?

As great power rivalries intensify, Southeast Asia is moving beyond mere geopolitical balancing and pursuing “epistemic autonomy”. The region is rejecting imported Western narratives to build its own knowledge, trust local institutions, and dictate its own future on its own terms, say Chinese academics Li You and Zhai Kun.

Li You, Zhai Kun

21 May 2026

Why China must reject Trump’s ‘G2’ narrative

China’s embrace of multilateralism and rejection of a US-led “G2” order reflects Beijing’s belief that only broader global cooperation can counterbalance American pressure and reshape an increasingly fractured world order. Academic Gu Bin gives his take.

Gu Bin

20 May 2026

Xi meets Putin after Trump summit to balance China-US-Russia triangle

Four days after a historic meeting between Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin has arrived in Beijing. Amid signs of easing China-US tensions, the Russian president’s visit serves as a powerful reminder that China-Russia relations remain strong. Lianhe Zaobao correspondent Lim Zhan Ting speaks with academics to find out more.

Lim Zhan Ting

20 May 2026

Xi raises stakes over Taiwan, warns US of ‘clash or even conflict’

Chinese President Xi Jinping warned visiting US President Donald Trump that mishandling the Taiwan issue could trigger a “clash or even conflict”, as Beijing raised the stakes in US-China ties. Analysts said the wording signals heightened urgency in Beijing’s Taiwan stance. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Miao Zong-Han reports.

Miao Zong-Han

14 May 2026

The West’s industrial policy double standard

For decades, industrial policy was discouraged in developing economies, even as China’s state-led model reshaped global supply chains. Now, with the US and Europe embracing massive interventions, the old orthodoxy looks less like principle than self-interest. Academic Guanie Lim examines how the discourse on industrial policy has shifted.

Guanie Lim

27 Apr 2026