ThinkChina

ThinkChina

ThinkChina, 思想中国

ThinkChina is an English language e-magazine with a China focus and powered by Singapore Press Holdings‘ flagship Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao. We publish original reporting, opinion pieces and columns across a wide spectrum of topics, covering political, economic, socio-cultural and technological developments in China and the Greater China region.

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke to CCTV on 24 March. This photo shows PM Lee at the PN-UPI Linkage Virtual Launch, 21 February 2023. (Ministry of Communications and Information, Singapore)

Lee Hsien Loong: The world cannot afford a conflict between China and the US

In an interview on CCTV-13’s “Leaders Talk”《高端访谈》programme first broadcast on 24 March, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong spoke about trust and mutual understanding in longstanding Singapore-China bilateral relations, and expressed the hope that both countries would take this forward in areas such as the Belt and Road Initiative, China-ASEAN relations, China's rise and US-China relations. The following are edited excerpts of the full transcript of the interview issued by Singapore's Prime Minister’s Office.
A woman rests on a tour bus outside the Forbidden City in Beijing, China, on 23 January 2023. (Wang Zhao/AFP)

[Photo story] A cold start to the Year of the Rabbit

Since China entered winter late last year, temperatures have plunged to record lows in various Chinese cities entering the Year of the Rabbit. ThinkChina brings you on a pictorial journey into these snowclad places in China, and how the Chinese people are spending the festivities.
In this file photo taken on 7 November 2020, a woman waves a Joe Biden flag as people celebrate on Black Lives Matter Plaza across from the White House in Washington, DC, after Biden was declared the winner of the 2020 presidential election. (Alex Edelman/AFP)

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong: The world will not split into two, but neither can it return to the past

Bloomberg News editor-in-chief John Micklethwait interviewed Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong ahead of the Bloomberg 2020 New Economy Forum on 17 November. Among the topics they discussed, PM Lee spoke at length about China, the US, global trade, the internet, and most of all, the China-US relationship. This is an excerpt of the interview transcript.
A man wearing a protective mask walks by the waterfront as a barge sails past with a message celebrating the passage of the new national security law in Hong Kong, China, 1 July 2020. (Roy Liu/Bloomberg)

[Photo story] Hong Kong national security law: A different birthday for Hong Kong

Hong Kong returned to China 23 years ago today. Little would it have known then that as it marks this milestone today, a contentious national security law that punishes crimes of terrorism, secession, subversion and collusion with foreign forces with sentences as long as life imprisonment has just been passed. With the law in effect, the city has already made its first arrests. ThinkChina brings you on a photo journey through a Hong Kong that will never quite be the same again.
A pedestrian walks past a government-sponsored advertisement promoting a new national security law in Hong Kong, 29 June 2020. (Paul Yeung/Bloomberg)

National security law for Hong Kong: Will America's ‘smart sanctions’ work against China?

Following China’s passing of the new national security law for Hong Kong, the US has removed Hong Kong’s special privileges. However, previous evidence shows that economic sanctions seldom work. Zaobao correspondent Tai Hing Shing asks if this time will be any different.
Renowned historian Professor Wang Gungwu has been awarded the 2020 Tang Prize in Sinology. (Tang Prize website)

Wang Gungwu: Sinology belongs to the world

On receiving the 2020 Tang Prize in Sinology, Professor Wang Gungwu said that while the foundation of sinology lies in China’s long history and great tradition, many from around the world have contributed immensely to its study and advancement, and the research in sinology has been greatly enriched by Japanese, Koreans, as well as Western scholars. A broad concept of sinology will help modernise its studies, as well as improve its value and relevance to the interconnected world today.
Bridgewater Associates Chairman Ray Dalio attends the China Development Forum in Beijing, China, on 23 March 2019. (Thomas Peter/File Photo/Reuters)

Ray Dalio at the China Development Forum: What can history tell us about the rise of China?

Ray Dalio, founder, co-chief investment officer and co-chairman of Bridgewater Associates, spoke with Lu Mai, vice chairman of the China Development Research Foundation and secretary general of the China Development Forum (CDF), on 8 June 2020. Drawing from patterns and cycles that he observed from history, his talk focused on global economic trends and how the pandemic would shape the world. He also gave his opinions on China-US cooperation and competition, and gave suggestions as to how the two great powers can work together for the greater good of the world.
People with face masks are seen at a square near residential buildings under construction in Xianning, Hubei, China, on 25 March 2020. (Aly Song/Reuters)

Property now a liability for China’s middle class

With salary cuts, housing loans on their backs and little means of generating cash flow, middle-class workers across China’s cities are walking the tightrope of trying to maintain their living standards while keeping up with their mortgage payments. The recently-announced stimulus plan may not solve their housing woes either.
A woman walks past a portrait of Chinese President Xi Jinping on a street in Shanghai, 12 March 2020. (Aly Song/REUTERS)

Trump threatens terminating phase one trade deal but can China fulfil pre-pandemic promise?

Under the phase one China-US trade deal signed in January, China has committed to purchasing an additional US$200 billion worth of US products and services. But in the current circumstances, will it be able to meet those commitments? And will US President Donald Trump terminate the deal, or negotiate an interim agreement? Will a new trade war escalate matters into a hot war?