The recent landing of a Y-8X maritime surveillance aircraft on Fiery Cross Reef (永暑礁) in the South China Sea in response to an emergency is further evidence that China has made its presence in this contentious region routine (People’s Daily Online, April 17). Earlier in... MORE

Since 2007, two of Moscow’s priority foreign policy initiatives have been its pivot to Asia and efforts to secure recognition of its Arctic claims while opening the Russian High North up to large-scale development. In both cases—in the Arctic or the Russian Far East—Moscow can... MORE

In January 2016, the Russian media reported that Russia’s gas giant, Gazprom, had discontinued all purchases of natural gas from Turkmenistan and was not planning to resume imports any time soon. This information was later confirmed in a company statement released in mid-March, containing some... MORE

Many observers of the Russo-Chinese relationship continue to believe that it is merely a marriage or axis of convenience, which will only last as long as it does not damage its two players’ other rational interests. This attitude clearly embodies the distinctive belief, particularly prevalent... MORE

On March 14, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadiarov signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) granting it the status of a dialogue partner in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). The SCO’s Secretary General Rashid Alimov told journalists, “Azerbaijan’s SCO dialogue partner status will allow it, by... MORE

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is in the midst of the biggest reorganization and reform effort since the 1980s. Among the major changes announced, the country’s primary nuclear deterrent, the Second Artillery Corps, was upgraded to a separate service branch called the PLA Rocket... MORE

On March 19, Chinese and Indonesian media reported that a confrontation had taken place between Chinese fishing boats and an Indonesian Fisheries Ministry ship near the Natuna Islands, in the South China Sea (Guancha, March 21; Konpas [Indonesia], March 21). Indonesian media reported that the... MORE

When China is at peace, foreigners will submit willingly. Therefore, if one wants to repel external threats, he must first bring internal peace. —Zhao Pu (922–992), Prime Minister of the Northern Song Dynasty China’s People’s Armed Police, or PAP, is the world’s largest internal security... MORE

Cai Dongjia, party secretary for Boshe village in Lufeng, Guangdong province, and a man otherwise known as “the Godfather of Meth,” was sentenced to death last week (Guangdong Courts, March 7). Cai was arrested in 2014 when 3,000 police raided his village, confiscating three metric... MORE

The Russo-Chinese partnership, if not alliance, has frequently encountered challenges and obstacles in the past. Two years ago, Russian Defense Minister Segei Shoigu and his deputy, Anatoly Antonov, openly called for a military alliance against terrorism and color revolutions, although for now, China has remained... MORE