
Latest Articles about China and the Asia-Pacific

Taiwan Bounty: PRC Cross-Agency Operations Target Taiwanese Military Personnel
Executive Summary: For the first time, public security authorities in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) are targeting Taiwanese military personnel and so-called “Taiwan independence” (台独) forces through a law enforcement framework. Akin to techniques previously used in Hong Kong, the the Guangzhou Public Security... MORE

Smart Device Empire: Beijing’s Expansion Through Everyday Digital Infrastructure
Executive Summary: The PRC is exporting an integrated system of smart devices, data infrastructure, and governance standards. Through industrial policy, state-backed overproduction, and strategic data asymmetry, Beijing is building a global IoT architecture designed to embed PRC standards, influence, and governance into the connected environments... MORE

PLA Navy Shifts Training Focus from Near-Shore to Blue-Water Operations
Executive Summary: In June 2025, the Liaoning and Shandong carrier strike groups conducted operations in the Western Pacific, achieving three major milestones with significant strategic implications for the U.S. military and Indo-Pacific regional states. The three key milestones include the first simultaneous deployment of two... MORE

Beijing Learning Lessons From Russian Response to Financial War
Executive Summary: Beijing has tracked Russia’s response to what it perceives as financial warfare from the United States and its allies and has begun mitigating its vulnerabilities and building an offensive toolkit in response. Chinese experts take confidence from Moscow’s resilience in face of more... MORE

Recent Developments Underscore Beijing’s Global Security Ambitions
Executive Summary: Beijing is looking to increase its security presence in Asia and further afield, according to two recent high-level statements of intent—a white paper on “national security in the new era” and a new “model of security for Asia.” Beijing senses opportunities amid policy... MORE

Indonesia’s Deradicalization Program Through the Lens of Umar Patek: From Bomb-Maker to Entrepreneur
Executive Summary: Indonesia has enjoyed some success with deradicalizing high-level militants, including Umar Patek, a key bomb-maker involved with the deadly 2002 Bali bombings. This approach has involved the use of mentorship and entrepreneurial incentives to integrate former Islamists back into society. Indonesia’s program to... MORE

Geopolitical and Strategic Implications of the Arakan Army’s Ascension in Myanmar’s Rakhine State
Executive Summary: The Arakan Army (AA), an ethno-nationalist rebel group active in Myanmar, has managed to seize some 90 percent of Rakhine State, with several major cities under siege and the entirety of the border with Bangladesh under their control. The group is receiving increasing... MORE

PLA Military Aerospace Force: On the Frontier of Innovation and Competition
Executive Summary: The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Aerospace Force (ASF) is structured to rapidly integrate space-based surveillance, targeting, and offensive capabilities into any conflict involving the PLA, signaling Beijing’s strategic anticipation of conflicts over Taiwan or the South China Sea. By consolidating the People’s Republic... MORE

Inside Taiwan’s Opposition: How the KMT’s Future Could Shape Cross-Strait Stability
Executive Summary: The Kuomintang (KMT) is undergoing a complex transformation, seeking to redefine itself by moving away from its perception as a “pro-China” party to one grounded in support for the Republic of China’s (ROC) democratic institutions. Internal factions—ranging from pro-unification traditionalists to sovereignty-leaning localists—reflect... MORE

Kazakhstan Reinforces Multivector Foreign Policy
Executive Summary: Kazakhstan has awarded Rosatom the contract to build its first nuclear power plant, signaling continued collaboration with Russia while simultaneously exploring future partnerships with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and France for additional plants. Astana, under President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, is shifting from... MORE