By Mark Simon Concerns for press freedom are justifiably at their height when overt repression and violence are used to silence journalists. But as regimes quickly find, overt pressure on a free media will almost certainly bring international condemnation, possible economic sanctions, and unfriendly attention... MORE

By Vijai K. Nair   Directly and indirectly, America's war on terrorism challenges China's strategy to gain influence in the Central and South Asian region. This strategy was born of the need to adopt a generally more assertive foreign policy following the collapse of the... MORE

Whether at Tsinghua University or at the Central Party School, President George W. Bush will soon be talking to the youth of China, a tremendous opportunity for real communication if compared, say, with a "full and candid" discussion with the top leadership. What should he... MORE

By Willy Wo-Lap Lam Forget about the "constructive strategic partnership." Beijing has officially dropped the goal for Sino-American ties President Jiang Zemin and former President Bill Clinton reached in 1998. Now, on the eve of the Beijing tour of President George W. Bush, the Chinese... MORE

By Danny Gittings The good times are gone in Hong Kong. A city whose population became accustomed to prosperity during the boom days of the early to mid-1990s is now struggling through its second recession in four years. The property market--formerly such a locomotive of... MORE

By Willy Wo-Lap Lam Contrary to expectations, Vice-Premier Qian Qichen's vaunted olive branch for Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) is unlikely to reduce Cross-Strait tension in the foreseeable future. Qian's statement welcoming certain categories of DPP members to visit the mainland, however, has confirmed that... MORE

By Richard D. Fisher, Jr. China's People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) signed the new year in with a January 3 contract for two Russian Project 956EM Sovremenny class destroyers to be delivered by 2006. The purchase highlights the continued growth in the PLA's combat potential,... MORE

By Yihong Chang Specialists within China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) believe that future war in the age of information requires the Ground Forces, or army, to possess a higher mobility and greater firepower. Beginning in 1998 the Ground Forces began a process of reorganization and... MORE

By Gordon G. Chang China has been in the World Trade Organization for just a little over a month. Already the optimists are in retreat. Even in today's fast-paced world, the reversal in perceptions is stunning. The People's Republic was an economic superpower at the... MORE

By Jonathan Mirsky In a month of sad Christmas stories--the Chinese Communist Party's futile ban on Santa Claus newspaper stories providing comic relief--one of the saddest was the death in New York of Wang Ruowang, aged 83. Two events make clear Wang's immense stature: Soon... MORE