On May 20, Ma Ying-jeou was sworn in as the president of Taiwan (Republic of China), in an election that marks the first successive transfer of power in Taiwan’s fledgling democracy since the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) won the 2000 presidential election. President Ma’s much... MORE

Nearly a month after the devastating 8.0-magnitude earthquake on May 12 left Sichuan in ruins—with massive relief operations still on-going—Beijing is beginning to grapple with the arduous task of post-quake reconstruction and assessing its costs to the Chinese economy. The State Wenchuan Earthquake Reconstruction Planning... MORE

On April 21, commercial satellite images on DigitalGlobe confirmed reports that China is building a major underground nuclear submarine base near Sanya, the southernmost city of Hainan Island, which is located on China’s southeastern coast (DigitalGlobe). Digital images taken of the base in December 2007... MORE

In a two-day operation completed on April 30, local police in Dongguan municipality, Guangdong Province, executed a high profile rescue operation that police reports claim rescued 167 children trafficked from the poverty-stricken Liangshan region in Sichuan, the Southern Metropolitan Daily reported (China Times, May 1).... MORE

An altercation between police and villagers in Saixi—protesting against insufficient compensation for the appropriation of land in the village for mining—resulted in bloodshed that left two reported dead, more than 20 injured and five critically wounded, according to a report by Hong Kong newspaper Ming... MORE

Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie met with Viktor Zavarzin, the visiting chairman of the State Duma's Defense Committee, on April 7 at the Chinese Pentagon (Bayi Dalou). During their meeting, Liang stated that growing Sino-Russian defense relations "reflects the level of political trust and strategic... MORE

In an article published in Taiwan-based newspaper China Times, a staff news reporter in Shanghai asked the views of China's Generation Y—those born between 1981 and 1995—in China's bustling metropolis, following Taiwan's presidential election on March 22, about their views toward Taiwan and Tibet. The... MORE

The 11th National People’s Congress (NPC) stamped in the new leadership of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Membership of the state organ’s CMC and the 17th CMC of the Communist Party of China (CPC) are identical, in that... MORE

Liu Guchang, the Chinese ambassador to Russia, announced that the demarcation of borders for the Heixiazi Island (Bol’shoi Ussuriiskiy Island) is complete and the island will be officially returned to the People's Republic of China's (PRC) jurisdiction by the end of 2008 (China Times, March... MORE

Taiwan's Ministry of Defense announced on March 11 that China's real defense budget is most likely to be two to three times more than the reported amount from the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (China Times, March 11). Last week... MORE