Latest Articles about China and the Asia-Pacific
Chinese State-Owned Military Firm Reports Major Increase in Sales
Recent reports within the Chinese press revealed that sales of a Chinese state-owned military conglomerate that produces equipments and arms for both civilian and military applications have rose substantially in the first quarter of 2009. A case in point is the Beijing-based China South Industries... MORE
Russia and Japan Agree to Nuclear Fuel Deal
Despite optimistic official pronouncements, Russia appears to be struggling to secure any significant economic commitments from Tokyo to develop energy projects including the East Siberia-Pacific Ocean (ESPO) oil pipeline. Meanwhile, both sides remain divided over their long-standing territorial dispute.As Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited Tokyo... MORE
The Shanxi Coal Mine Blast and the Failure of Safety Governance in China
A methane blast at the Tunlan coal mine in Shanxi on February 22 killed 78 miners and the last body was not recovered until five days later (Nanfang Daily, February 27). China’s numerous collieries, most of them being township and village enterprises (TVEs), have long... MORE
The Panda Hugs the Tucano: China’s Relations with Brazil
Brazil is the largest developing country in the Western Hemisphere, and China is the largest developing country in the world. According to some Western estimates, the combined economies of the BRIC (i.e. Brazil, Russia, India and China) countries would surpass the combined economies of the... MORE
Moscow Strengthening its Energy Ties with China
On April 21, Beijing and Moscow finalized an intergovernmental deal under which Russia will supply China with oil for 20 years in exchange for a $25 billion loan to Russia's state-run energy companies. Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said the construction of a branch from... MORE
Sino-Russian Military Exercises Conceived as a Show of Unity
On April 29 the Shanghai Cooperation Organization's (SCO) Council of Defense Ministers met in Moscow to discuss enhancing military and security cooperation to counter terrorism, separatism and extremism. The meeting served as an important preparation for the SCO Summit in Yekaterinburg on June 15-16. The... MORE
Maritime Confrontation Highlights Troubled State of China-U.S. Defense Diplomacy
The recriminations that flared between the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and the United States over the latest Sino-American maritime confrontation makes evident how little progress has been made in Sino-U.S. defense dialogue during the past two decades. Clashes between U.S. and Chinese military units... MORE
Impeccable Affair and Renewed Rivalry in the South China Sea
Developments in the South China Sea during the first quarter of 2009 reinforced several trends that have been apparent over the past two years. First, the Spratly Islands dispute has once again come to dominate Sino-Philippine relations, despite attempts by Beijing and Manila to move... MORE
Beijing and Havana: Political Fraternity and Economic Patronage
"History has proved that we [China and Cuba] are worthy of the name of fast friends, good comrades and intimate brothers,” commented Chinese President Hu Jintao on the state of Sino-Cuban bilateral relations during a visit with Cuban President Raul Castro in Havana on November... MORE
Changxing Shipbuilding Base: Home for China’s Future Indigenous Aircraft Carrier?
Recent reports circulating in the Chinese press indicate that Jiangnan Shipyard (Group) Company Limited—one of China’s oldest state-owned shipbuilding company regarded as the “cradle of China’s national [shipbuilding] industry”—could be slated by Beijing to carry out the Chinese military’s long-standing mission to build an indigenous... MORE