Soviet Union

US President Joe Biden and China's President Xi Jinping meet on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Nusa Dua on the Indonesian resort island of Bali on 14 November 2022. (Saul Loeb/AFP)

Can Biden and Xi seize the day and create breakthroughs in international relations?

Former journalist Goh Choon Kang looks at the global situation, from central Asia and the Caucasus to China-US relations, and how tensions might be de-escalated and countries can work together rather than against one another.
People at a shopping mall in Beijing's central business district, China, on 7 September 2023. (Tingshu Wang/Reuters)

Is China’s development losing steam?

The world is concerned that the Chinese people are beginning to lose confidence in China’s future, dampening the prospects for sustainable development. Researcher Wei Da believes that there is little connection between this crisis of confidence and the cyclical boom and bust of the economy, but China’s severe economic problems are ultimately political problems.
A child sitting on a man's shoulder takes a picture as she visits the Bund waterfront area in Shanghai, China, on 5 July 2023. (Wang Zhao/AFP)

Is China’s good fortune reversing?

Whether China can prove naysayers wrong and keep up its good national fortunes depends on solving old problems associated with restarting the mechanisms of the Soviet Union model, and tackling new problems arising from successful development.
People walk past a monument to Soviet state founder Vladimir Lenin and a coat of arms of the Soviet Union in a park in Moscow, Russia, 8 August 2023. (Maxim Shemetov/Reuters)

What US and China can learn from the Sino-Soviet Cold War

The most common analogy for the US-China rivalry is the Cold War between the US and the Soviet Union, but Malaysian academic Ngeow Chow Bing thinks that the Sino-Soviet rivalry in the 1960s could also offer a lesson or two for the US and China, especially in staying ideologically flexible and maintaining communication between competing nations.
Baiterek, a monument and observation tower, in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. (Photo provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan)

[Big read] Kazakhstan’s economic emergence amid US-China-Russia power struggle

Kazakhstan’s development since gaining independence in 1991 has led it to become a leader in the Central Asia region. With much potential still waiting to be explored in this resource-rich country, Kazakhstan is walking a tightrope to balance its relations with the US, China and Russia. Lianhe Zaobao associate editor Han Yong Hong shares findings from her visit.
A screen grab from a video featuring Lu Shaye (left) engaging with Darius Rochebin (right) on French television. (Internet)

Are Chinese diplomats lacking in media sparring skills?

Chinese ambassador to France and wolf warrior diplomat Lu Shaye recently sparked a furor with his claim that post-Soviet countries have no effective status as sovereign nations, putting both French President Emmanuel Macron as well as Beijing in difficult positions. How can China repair the damage?
China fans celebrate their team's first goal in the stands during the friendly football match between New Zealand and China at Sky Stadium in Wellington, New Zealand, on 26 March 2023. (Marty Melville/AFP)

Scandal-plagued China soccer: China's 'whole nation' system failed again?

China’s soccer industry development has been disappointing, made worse by the recent corruption probes into the league’s senior officials. Political commentator Jin Jian Guo notes that the introduction of the "whole nation" system to boost the country’s soccer profile has left it wanting, to no surprise given the system’s abysmal history.
Delegates attend the handover ceremony during the G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia, on 16 November 2022. (Willy Kurniawan/Pool/AFP)

Chinese balloon saga jeopardises 'Asian peace'

For years after the Cold War, given its military dominance, the US saw itself as instrumental to maintaining an “Asian peace”. With that mindset, the more it perceives China as a threat to its Asian primacy, the more it will be on the defensive. In truth, Asian peace was achieved through various efforts, and Asia-Pacific countries all have a stake in seeing it maintained.
The suspected Chinese spy balloon drifts to the ocean after being shot down off the coast in Surfside Beach, South Carolina, US, 4 February 2023. (Randall Hill/Reuters)

A Chinese balloon derails US-China rapprochement

Commentator William He analyses reactions to a Chinese balloon being detected in US airspace, and US-China relations being hit by another cold snap. Are we going back to Cold War times?