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Latest China Brief Articles
THE CHINESE THREAT: AN INDIAN PERSPECTIVE
India's defense minister, George Fernandes, has identified an implicit Chinese threat in the shared border between the two countries. In his words, "[t]o underplay the situation across the Himalayas is not in the national interest; it can in fact create a lot of problems for... MORE
PRC FOREIGN POLICY OUTLOOK
By Willy Wo-Lap Lam PRC Vice President Hu Jintao's relatively high-profile trip to five European countries has raised two basic questions about Chinese foreign policy.
ON TAIWAN, BEIJING KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT IT IS DOING
China's stated policy towards Taiwan is that there is one China, and Taiwan is part of that China. Given this, how will China act upon this policy to make it a reality? China sees three paths for action: negotiation with Taiwan, political victory for pro-unification... MORE
CHINA’S STAKE IN A SECURE TAIWAN
The Bush administration in May 2001 approved an arms package to Taiwan that, though falling short of the Taiwan government's "wish list" of state-of-the-art weaponry, goes far to beef up the defenses of the island republic. Maintaining such balanced support for Taiwan is the right... MORE
WHAT IF CHANG IS RIGHT?
By June Teufel Dreyer [For this issue China Brief is pleased to offer a debate on Gordon Chang's recent book "The Coming Collapse of China" (Random House, 2001). In his book Chang offers alarming analysis of China's economic and social weakness and the inability of... MORE
THE CHINESE REGIME WILL ENDURE
By Robert Sutter [For this issue China Brief is pleased to offer a debate on Gordon Chang's recent book "The Coming Collapse of China" (Random House, 2001). In his book Chang offers alarming analysis of China's economic and social weakness and the inability of the... MORE
CHANG’S REPLY: CHINA’S CRITICAL MOMENT
By Gordon G. Chang [For this issue China Brief is pleased to offer a debate on Gordon Chang's recent book "The Coming Collapse of China" (Random House, 2001). In his book Chang offers alarming analysis of China's economic and social weakness and the inability of... MORE
WIDENING THE DEFINITION OF TERRORISM
By Willy Wo-Lap Lam The United States and its allies are opposed to terrorism. The Chinese, however, are opposed to "all forms of terrorism." Or, as Chinese President Jiang Zemin put it in Beijing on returning from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Shanghai:... MORE
SINO-AMERICAN RELATIONS: A MATTER OF DEBATE
By Willy Wo-Lap Lam Was September 11 good for Sino-American relations? It's still a matter of hot debate among Chinese cadres and intellectuals. The so-called Mainstream Faction in Beijing thinks that the terrorist attacks on the United States and the global antiterrorist campaign could spell... MORE
NO TIME TO TAKE OUR EYES OFF TAIWAN STRAIT
While combat in Afghanistan could be the first phase in a protracted war in that region, America should not ignore other potential conflicts that could engage U.S. forces. One such conflict could be between Communist China and democratic Taiwan. Thus, as we train our sights... MORE