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US President Donald Trump (bottom right) shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping upon arriving at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14. Photo: Reuters
US-China relations

As I see it | Beijing had already won before the Trump-Xi summit even started

There’s a lesson for the US president in Napoleon’s invasion of Russia in the early 19th century.

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Diplomacy

Outside In | Xi-Trump summit aside, 2 meetings in Asia matter for global trade

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Brics

Opinion | Brics is less a structure than a sentiment

2026 Xi-Trump summit

Macroscope | Trump-Xi summit puts US vulnerabilities on display

China weaponising rare earths turned the tables on Trump, showing how unprepared Western governments and firms were for a full trade war.

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Children greet Chinese President Xi Jinping (second right) and US President Donald Trump during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14. Photo: Reuters
Children greet Chinese President Xi Jinping (second right) and US President Donald Trump during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 14. Photo: Reuters
China economy

Opinion | Why the world needs China to save more, not less

The IMF assumes China should save less. China’s saving is key to financing the developing world’s need for green infrastructure.

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US-China relations

As I see it | US’ scientific self-harm will only help China

While Washington slashes funding for the sciences, Beijing is clinching its lead in everything from patent applications to publications.

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US-China relations

Opinion | US maximum pressure tactics unlikely to work with China

As the Trump-Xi summit approaches, China will be going into negotiations with a new diplomatic posture.

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A US Air Force C-17 lands at Beijing Capital Airport on May 11, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump. Photo: AFP
A US Air Force C-17 lands at Beijing Capital Airport on May 11, ahead of a visit by US President Donald Trump. Photo: AFP
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | Trump has few cards to play against Iran and in China

The impasse over the Strait of Hormuz is a long chess game across multiple arenas, not easily solved by a naval blockade or a mere poker bluff.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Just because Brics isn’t a coherent bloc doesn’t mean it’s impotent

The grouping has a future, not as a binding structure demanding policy alignment but as a tool for members to enhance leverage and maximise options.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | Latin America is reassessing the benefits of warm ties with Beijing

From Honduras to Cuba and Venezuela, leaders are taking a more transactional view of what relations with Beijing really bring.

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Honduran President Nasry Asfura, seen during general elections in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, on November 30, has ordered a review of deals with Beijing after Tegucigalpa cut ties with Taipei. Photo: AP
Middle East

Opinion | The problem no one is naming as the UAE dramatically exits Opec

The fighting over oil production quotas was the symptom. Security realignment is the disease.

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Plumes of smoke rise from an oil facility in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 14. Photo: AP
Plumes of smoke rise from an oil facility in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 14. Photo: AP
US-China relations

Opinion | China shouldn’t view a tired US as signifying a Europe ready to pivot

As fractures within the US’ network of alliances deepen, China’s strategic window opens a little wider, with some key caveats.

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China economy

Opinion | Rise of China complicates ‘authoritarian’ vs ‘democratic’ binary

As China’s trajectory exposes the limitations of labels inherited from another era, understanding how governance systems work is more important.

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US-China relations

Opinion | China’s challenges in engaging with the US during the Middle East war

China needs the global system to succeed. So it must not get entangled with Iran nor jeopardise US relations over Taiwan.

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US President Donald Trump greets Chinese President Xi Jinping at Gimhae Air Base on October 30, 2025 in Busan, South Korea. Photo: Getty Images
United States

Opinion | Thanks to Trump, the gloves are off. There may be no new global order

With the UN, IMF and World Bank mired in old power structures, universities could be the platform to shape how the global future unfolds.

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A South Korean protester wears a mask of US President Donald Trump during a protest against Trump’s request to dispatch warships to the Strait of Hormuz, in front of the US embassy in Seoul on March 16. Photo: AFP
A South Korean protester wears a mask of US President Donald Trump during a protest against Trump’s request to dispatch warships to the Strait of Hormuz, in front of the US embassy in Seoul on March 16. Photo: AFP
China-EU relations

Opinion | China unsurprisingly puts its own interests first. Can Europe do the same?

As Beijing seeks to influence Europe, Brussels must shape on its own competitiveness agenda and policy aims for engaging with China.

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China economy

Outside In | Prepare for ‘China shock 3.0’ to the global food economy

Imagine China applying the same industry policy playbook for electric cars, solar panels and AI to agriculture and food self-sufficiency.

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Asean

Opinion | Why China’s warning over military blocs is finding listeners in Asia

For regional governments, strategy is about preserving options. China has read this instinct carefully and given it a diplomatic vocabulary.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
Illustration: Craig Stephens
Banking & finance

Macroscope | Australia’s interest rate rise signals growing hawkish stance in Asia

Reserve Bank of Australia is less an outlier than a harbinger of global monetary trends in the wake of war-induced supply shocks.

The Philippines

Opinion | US allies in Asia are looking to build middle-power coalitions

Faced with the US’ unreliability and China’s ascent, countries such as the Philippines are creating new networks of partnerships.

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Diplomacy

Opinion | As power flows through submarine cables, law of the sea must evolve

The global commons of the seabed is in effect being governed by private actors with the capital and tech to build and maintain cable systems.

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An Estonian naval ship sails in the Baltic Sea on January 9, 2025, as part of stepped-up Nato patrols in the region following suspected sabotage of undersea cables. Photo: AP
Diplomacy

Opinion | How China-Gulf ties can turn energy vulnerability into sustainability

Hormuz tensions are a reminder to start building a better, more sustainable energy order before the next crisis hits; Hong Kong can help.

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A man walks beneath solar panels at the Al Dhafra solar power project south of Abu Dhabi in 2023. Photo: AFP
A man walks beneath solar panels at the Al Dhafra solar power project south of Abu Dhabi in 2023. Photo: AFP
War and conflict

As I see it | Thanks to Trump and Netanyahu, everyone now wants to go nuclear

After waging a war on the pretext of stopping Iran from developing nuclear weapons, the US and Israel have ignited a new arms race.

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US-China relations

Opinion | America builds AI, China uses it. That gap may decide the future

The US still leads in AI development but lags in large-scale deployment behind China, which is rapidly becoming the leader in implementation.

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US-China relations

Opinion | How US tech hegemony is locking out the Global South

The world deserves better than a monopoly that builds walls and hobbles development.

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Illustration: Craig Stephens
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