After Tiananmen Square crackdown, China relied on economic growth to maintain political stability and state legitimacy. Economic growth and global capital became tied to this system, so calls for political reform and worker rights were pushed further to the margins. In 2018, nearly three decades later, workers at Jasic Technology in Shenzhen tried to form a trade union in accordance with Chinese law. Students from more than 10 universities traveled to Shenzhen to support them.

The Shangri-La Dialogue is a gathering of defence officials and analysts held annually at a hotel in Singapore to lay out their Asia strategy. Pete Hegseth, the current secretary of defence, spoke at the event last year when he was four months into his tenure. On May 30th brass from dozens of countries crowded into a ballroom just north of the equator to discuss America's approach to Asia.

The Quad Critical Minerals Initiative Framework is a strategic push to curb global reliance on Beijing for rare earth elements. Member states are pooling up to US$20 billion for the mechanism. The bloc was formed nearly two decades ago to counter China’s rising prominence in the Indo-Pacific.

For years, political leaders in both parties let American industry hollow itself out. Manufacturing capacity was offshored to China and strategic industries followed the cheap labor honey trap. In 2025, U.S. goods imports from China dropped to $308 billion, down nearly 30 percent from 2024. China controls approximately 90 percent of the world’s rare earth processing capacity. Most iPhones sold in the United States will soon come from India.

Chinese academics specialising in Tibet need to find creative ways to shape the global conversation about the region while remaining aligned with the Communist Party's ideology. The international situation is volatile and Tibet and Tibetan-speaking areas in other provinces are at a critical stage in their development. Tibetology Research Centre is China's biggest institution for Tibetan studies.

TEDxHongKong will launch on June 20th. The theme for this year’s event is “Adjust Focus: Look Again” and speakers include Lawrence Kan Kwan-chun, who co-wrote and directed the critically acclaimed film In Broad Daylight (2023), and Dr Choi Pui-wah, founder of femtech – technology tailored towards women's health – WomenX Biotech.

For over two decades, China's rise in Latin America has been viewed as one of the most significant geopolitical developments in the western hemisphere. Beijing became a leading trading partner for much of the region, financed major projects, expanded its diplomatic footprint and persuaded several countries to sever relations with Taiwan. Recent developments raise the question: can economic power alone generate durable political influence?

GMA Network, TV5, Bilyonaryo News Channel and Golden Nation Network from the Philippines visited Taiwan on May 24-30. They met with Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung, Vice Minister Ger Bau-shuan, Mainland Affairs Council, Ministry of Agriculture and Institute for National Defense and Security Research. They also visited several key organizations to better understand Taiwan's democratic governance, social resilience, technological innovation, disaster prevention and response and maritime law enforcement.