International Relations

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

China’s 582-tonne fusion magnet is not a weapon — yet

China’s 582-tonne superconducting magnet is not a weapon; it is a marker of integrated technological power. The real strategic weight lies in how its dual-use foundations could reshape energy, security and supply-chain leverage for generations to come, argues researcher Tahir Mahmood Azad.

Tahir Mahmood Azad

08 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

Can the West force China into a new Plaza Accord?

Calls are growing in the West for a stronger renminbi as China’s vast trade surplus fuels tensions with the US and Europe. But today’s economic realities make a repeat of the landmark 1985 Plaza Accord far more difficult, says Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei.

Sim Tze Wei

03 Sep 2026

Why Xi is looking far beyond Washington

Xi Jinping’s diplomatic sprint ahead of his next meeting with Donald Trump sends a clear message: managing ties with Washington matters, but China’s world extends far beyond the US. Lianhe Zaobao China news editor Yang Danxu finds out.

Yang Danxu

02 Sep 2026

Fudan targeted as universities become casualties of the tech war

Fudan University and Shanghai Jiao Tong University have been placed on a US national security list, while China has targeted a European university. The moves signal a new era in which academic research is increasingly treated as a security risk. Lianhe Zaobao associate China news editor Sim Tze Wei reports.

Sim Tze Wei

18 Aug 2026

Zhu Rongji: A legacy of transforming China’s economy and forging relations with ASEAN

A key standard-bearer of 1990s economic reform, former Premier Zhu Rongji, who passed away on 12 August, leaves a lasting imprint on China’s taxation, state-owned enterprises, accession to the World Trade Organization, and even on ASEAN. Lianhe Zaobao’s Sim Tze Wei and Tan Ke-Yang take a look at his legacy.

Sim Tze Wei, Tan Ke-Yang

13 Aug 2026

[Big read] China’s multidimensional squeeze: ‘Governing’ Taiwan before reunification

Beijing is widening its Taiwan strategy, using diplomacy, law, maritime pressure and integration to gradually create conditions for reunification. Lianhe Zaobao journalist Miao Zong-Han speaks with experts to find out.

Miao Zong-Han

12 Aug 2026

Japan and Taiwan’s strategic convergence in the Indo-Pacific

Japan’s updated Free and Open Indo-Pacific strategy and Taiwan’s expanding diplomatic vision are helping to foster an increasingly aligned approach while avoiding unnecessary confrontation with China. Japanese academic Madoka Fukuda tells us more.

Madoka Fukuda

04 Aug 2026

Quietly, not silently: How Vietnam deals with China on the South China Sea

Vietnam did not sign the joint statement on the Tribunal Award invalidating China’s claims on the South China Sea. Hanoi’s consistent “speak less, do more” approach combines public restraint with a range of quieter policy tools, observes ISEAS academic Huynh Trung Dung.

Huynh Trung Dung

04 Aug 2026

Why China’s land routes may fail in a Taiwan crisis

China has built overland routes to reduce its reliance on vulnerable sea lanes. But lessons from Ukraine and Iran suggest cheap drones and long-range strikes could leave those lifelines exposed in a Taiwan crisis, says Italian commentator Emanuele Scimia.

Emanuele Scimia

31 Jul 2026