Latest Articles about China and the Asia-Pacific

Foreign Policy Implications of Mongolian Crony Democracy

Though considered a healthy—albeit developing—democracy (https://www.osce.org/odihr/elections/105158; https://www.santmaral.mn/en/publications), Mongolia has in recent years become dominated by the competing interests of its political and business factions, whose collective actions undermine the country’s democratization trends as well as complicate Ulaanbaatar’s foreign policy. For now, Mongolia resides in a... MORE

Russia’s Pacific Fleet Receives New Ships, Missions

Long the most neglected of the Russian Federation’s four fleets, the Pacific Fleet is receiving new equipment and participating in more international exercises as the administration of President Vladimir Putin focuses on building up its eastern Siberian and Far East regions.During his “Presidential Address to... MORE

National Security Trumps Reform at the NPC

Domestic and international security concerns have dominated the on-going session of China’s legislature, the National People’s Congress. This is despite high expectations that Premier Li Keqiang will unveil thorough-going economic reforms in his maiden Government Work Report (hereafter Report), which was delivered at the Great Hall of... MORE

China and the Silk Road: Marching Westward

On November 29, 2013, an international cargo train Chang’an (“Lasting Peace”) departed from Xi’an, the capital city of Shaanxi province in central China, and traveled westward toward Central Asia. On December 9, after a journey of more than 5,000 kilometers, the 49-car train arrived in... MORE