
Latest China Brief Articles

China’s Military Biotech Frontier: CRISPR, Military-Civil Fusion, and the New Revolution in Military Affairs
Introduction China’s national strategy of military-civil fusion (军民融合, junmin ronghe) has highlighted biology as a priority. [1] It is hardly surprising that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is looking to leverage synergies among defense, scientific, and commercial developments in biological interdisciplinary (生物交叉, shengwu jiaocha)... MORE

Xi Signals a New Round of “Struggle” Against Foes in the Party
A Renewed Call for “Struggle” Within the CCP Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping has called for a season of renewed douzheng (斗争), or “struggle,” to tackle the country’s international and domestic problems. To further consolidate his position as the “eternal core” of... MORE

Confucius Institutes and the Corporate Sector: An Emerging Avenue for Chinese Communist Party Foreign Influence?
September 27 will mark 15 years since the opening of the first Confucius Institute in South Korea in 2004. Today, over 500 of these Chinese government-funded centers operate in more than 150 countries worldwide. Many of them plan to celebrate the occasion as part of... MORE

Not Really Probing the East: Romania’s Position on Chinese Investments
Bucharest’s Road to Beijing Goes through Washington As with many other Eastern and Central European nations, Romania has consistently considered its relationship with the United States to be a privileged one: a strategic partnership meant to mitigate the risks of a neighboring assertive Russia. Nonetheless,... MORE

The United Front Work Department Assumes a Diplomatic Role
In the first week of September, a “United Front Organizations Special Symposium” (统一战线组织专题研讨会, Tongyi Zhanxian Zuzhi Zhuanti Yantaohui) was held in Beijing. Under the official slogan of “Forging Synergy and Promoting Consensus” (凝心聚力, 增进共识 / Ning Xin Juli, Zengjin Gongshi), this meeting brought together representatives... MORE

The Belt and Road Initiative Adds More Partners, But Beijing Has Fewer Dollars to Spend
In October 2013, President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) unveiled the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), an ambitious plan to build infrastructure and improve transport connectivity in more than 60 countries across Asia and beyond. Since that time, the BRI has... MORE

Chinese Covert Social Media Propaganda and Disinformation Related to Hong Kong
Introduction: “Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior” Related to the Protest Movement in Hong Kong On August 19, the microblogging platform Twitter announced the suspension of 936 accounts originating in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), which the company identified as part of an “information operation focused on... MORE

Taiwan Public Opinion Polling Regarding Forced Unification with China
Introduction: China’s Historic Stance on Unification with Taiwan The position taken by the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) regarding Taiwan’s status is clear, and enshrined in the preamble of the country’s constitution: “Taiwan is part of the sacred territory of the People’s... MORE

“Key Individuals Management” and the Roots of China’s Anti-Muslim Surveillance System
Introduction The repression of Xinjiang's Uighur population by the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) continues to horrify world opinion. Along with interning an estimated one million people in a network of re-education camps, the Chinese state has built extensive systems of daily... MORE

Looking Beyond Commodities Exports: China Increases its Engagement with Brazil
Introduction In June 2019, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) scored a victory in its relationship with Brazil when it gained the latter country’s support for the PRC’s candidate to lead the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), over candidates put forward by France... MORE