By Gordon G. Chang They're communist cousins, existing side-by-side, but they couldn't appear more different. One of them looks vibrant and dynamic--the other dark and desperate. Are we living in "China's Century," as some commentators tell us? And is North Korea, by contrast, on the... MORE

By Baopu Liu The deadly SARS virus in China is far more than just an epidemic and a threat to public health. Because of the outbreak, there has been much discussion about China's notorious control of national media and the flow of information. Of greatest... MORE

By Willy Lam Although he is generally deemed a moderate--if not liberal--cadre on political matters, President Hu Jintao issued a remarkably tough message on defense and armaments at a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Politburo meeting in late May. During this special Politburo "study session" on... MORE

By Richard D. Fisher, Jr. A long awaited report assessing the real extent, plus the potential for danger to the United States from China's ongoing military modernization has been released by the New York-based Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). While this report makes useful contributions... MORE

By Harvey Stockwin The spread of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome--the SARS virus--throughout China is a phenomenon that had previously been denied by authorities and had gone unreported. But the penetration of the disease is now being admitted publicly, and efforts to combat it have begun.... MORE

By Willy Lam The standing of the People's Liberation Army (PLA)--and its commander-in-chief, Jiang Zemin--has taken a drubbing in the wake of China's raging pneumonia epidemic and a recent submarine accident off the Bohai Sea. Apart from the leaders of Guangdong Province, where Severe Acute... MORE

By Li Thian-hok Taiwan once enjoyed a growing and prosperous economy. Taiwan's GDP was US$314 billion in 2000, which ranked nineteenth globally. Per capita GDP was US$14,180 that year, and the economy's annual growth rate was 5.9 percent. Taiwan's trade volume was US$288 billion, making... MORE

by William R. Hawkins In March of 1917 the British Empire captured Baghdad from the Ottoman Empire. That military campaign was part of the larger conflict of World War I, from which Great Britain emerged victorious. Indeed, London has not lost a major war in... MORE

Could Taiwan's voters elect a pro-unification candidate in 2004? Can the challenger, Kuomintang chairman Lien Chan, put together an electoral consensus of ethnic mainlanders, Hakkas and ethnic Taiwanese investors in China that will begin the process of moving Taiwan into the embrace of the People's... MORE

By Willy Lam In addition to shaving perhaps 0.5 percent from China's GDP growth this year, the outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) will have a lasting socio-political impact on the country. The authority of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been shaken to... MORE