Cristina Garafola
Cristina Garafola is a Research Assistant-China Specialist at the RAND Corporation. She holds an M.A. from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a certificate from the Hopkins-Nanjing Center for Chinese and American Studies. Cristina has previously worked at the Department of State, the Department of Treasury, and the Freeman Chair in China Studies at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. She is fluent in Mandarin.
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Articles by Cristina Garafola
China’s Search for a “Strategic Air Force”
Note: This piece is based on a longer article published in The Journal of Strategic Studies that is available for download here and will appear in the print version of
“Serve in a Company” and “Switch Posts”: Mix of Old and New in Recent PLA Personnel Policies
On January 11, 2015, Xinhua reported that a directive issued by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) General Political Department (GPD) and endorsed by Central Military Commission chairman Xi Jinping ordered
UPDATED: Lunar Rover Marks Another Advance in China’s Space Programs
UPDATE (1/31/14): According to state media, the Yutu lunar rover suffered a “mechanical control abnormality" and failed to complete preparations for its second lunar night, which began January 25th (Xinhua, January
Counting Z’s: The Gradual Expansion of China’s Helicopter Force
While much attention has been given to Chinese development of fixed-wing aircraft like the J-20 and J-31, relatively little has been devoted to China's helicopter development. On March 16, 2013,
PLA Succession: Trends and Surprises
On November 26, Air Force General Xu Qiliang gave his first major speech as vice chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC). In front of a military audience, Xu urged
Jamestown’s China Brief Cited by Taipei Times
An article by Cristina Garafola from Jamestown's China Brief was cited in an article titled "DPP must address overseas relations to win votes: group." In the article, Garafola describes Taiwan’s presidential election in
Four More Years: The DPP Assesses its 2012 Loss and Looks Ahead to 2016
Taiwan’s presidential election in January 2012 marked a fresh wave of defeat for the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) and has forced the party to grapple with its future vis-à-vis the