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Latest China Brief Articles
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One Partnership at a Time: Beijing Steadily Creates a New Type of International Relations
Executive Summary: The People’s Republic of China (PRC) has established a framework of authority and values that fosters voluntary compliance from subordinate states, as exemplified by the Solomon Islands’ recent diplomatic alignment with Beijing, abandoning recognition of Taiwan in favor of the PRC. The PRC... MORE
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Kubernetes: A Dilemma in the Geopolitical Tech Race
Executive Summary: US-sanctioned Huawei has significant influence in the Cloud Native Computing Foundation and its open-source platform Kubernetes, which underpins US military platforms, including F-16 fighter jets and nuclear infrastructure. The use of open-source technologies in critical systems raises concerns. Despite US efforts to mitigate... MORE
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Murky Media Network Aligns with Beijing on Sensitive Issues
Editor's Note: Following the publication of this article, the Beijing Times published an editorial with the headline "Beijing Times Clarifies Independence: No Ties to the Chinese Government, Ending Global Political Coverage." In it, the editorial team announced that they had made the decision to "discontinue... MORE
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MBZUAI Partners With US Tech, Collaborates With PLA Scientists
Editor's Note: This article is the second in a two-part series. The first part can be found here. In response to the previous article, The Jamestown Foundation received a letter from Eric Xing, President of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. The letter... MORE
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A ‘Chinese Starlink’ Launches New Era For Domestic Space Industry
Executive Summary: A commercial company has become the first enterprise in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) to launch a batch of internet satellites into low-Earth orbit. PRC media has framed this “Qianfan” constellation as one of the country’s principal competitors to SpaceX’s Starlink. The... MORE
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Survey: How Do Elite Chinese Students Feel About the Risks of AI?
Executive Summary: In April 2024, the authors surveyed 510 students from Tsinghua University and 518 students from Peking University—the PRC’s two preeminent institutions—about their views on the risks of artificial intelligence (AI). The key findings are as follows: Students are more optimistic about the benefits... MORE
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Taiwan’s Energy Policy at Odds With Economic Needs
Executive Summary: Taiwan’s president Lai Ching-te could be open to restarting the island’s nuclear power program, with Premier Cho Jung-tai suggesting the Legislative Yuan could discuss the topic, and pro-nuclear business executive Tung Tzu-hsien being appointed to a newly established National Climate Change Committee. Taiwan’s... MORE
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Government Cracks Down on SOEs but Runs Risks
Executive Summary: The Supreme People’s Court and Central Government Regulators have put State-owned Enterprises (SOEs) on notice for fraudulent accounting practices, releasing five case studies to name and shame bad actors. The Central government made clear SOE fraud carries both economic risk and reputational risk... MORE
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Kursk Incursion Draws Delayed Response From Beijing
Executive Summary: Official media in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has finally begun to comment on the Ukrainian operation in Russia’s Kursk oblast, which began on August 6. It gives Ukraine low odds of success, emphasizes Russia’s strength and successes elsewhere in the conflict,... MORE
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PRC-UAE Collaboration and US Technology Transfer Concerns in Abu Dhabi
Editor’s Note: The Jamestown Foundation received a letter in response to this article from Eric Xing, President of the Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence. Readers can find the letter in full here, or by scrolling to the bottom of this article. We have... MORE