By Willy Wo-Lap Lam That Jiang Zemin's apparent refusal to retire has wrought havoc on an already rickety political system is clear from the reactions of the two persons deemed closest to the president: Vice President Hu Jintao and Jiang's wife, Wang Yeping. Hu, still... MORE

The end of the Cold War seemingly liberated business from geopolitical constraints. The "global factory" disintegrated industrial complexes from their former national homes and scattered facilities across the planet in the pursuit of low-cost labor and efficient subcontractors. Many small states from the Caribbean to... MORE

The recent release of two U.S. government studies on China--the Pentagon's annual report of Chinese military strength, and the findings of the Congressional U.S.-China Security Review Commission--should come as a wake-up call to those who craft U.S. China policy. Many of those who are engaged... MORE

A new Department of Defense report, issued on July 12, on the growing power of China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) signals a key shift in Washington's willingness to identify China as a future threat to the United States and its security interests. Russia's arms sales... MORE

By Willy Wo-Lap Lam One of the biggest contradictions of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) politics is that while the Jiang Zemin leadership is trying to phase out class struggle, antagonism among different sectors of society is getting more strident by the day. A highlight of... MORE

For technology enthusiasts who believe, or wish to believe, that information technology can help bring about the fall of totalitarianism, China is a serious disenchantment. Its economic boom began in 1992, just in time to be caught up in the crest of the Internet revolution... MORE

By Gordon G. Chang How much are China's pension and other social welfare obligations? Some say they approach a trillion U.S. dollars. Give or take a couple hundred billion dollars and you define the range of what Beijing will have to pay out to its... MORE

By Michael E. Marti China is seeking to become the major power in Asia by 2050. Under the rationale of its so-called New Security Concept (NSC), it is intent on replacing the United States as the preeminent military power in the region and achieving economic... MORE

President Jiang Zemin and his aides have given unmistakable indications that Beijing is taking a harder line on Hong Kong. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leadership, however, has also dangled what could be an economic lifeline for the recession-riddled Special Administrative Region (SAR). Jiang and... MORE

How much do China's unfunded pension and other social security obligations amount to? Nobody knows, not even the technocrats in Beijing. There is, however, one thing that's clear: The nonpayment of pension and other welfare benefits is an explosive social issue. Tens of thousands of... MORE