Russia & Caucasus

The receiving station for the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline near Lubmin, Germany, pictured on Feb. 2: the EU needs to implement a watertight plan for the continent's energy security.
Opinion

Ukraine crisis exposes West's abysmal understanding of energy markets

Time to put an end to the weaponization of global energy supplies

10 February 2022
Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Xi Jinping in Beijing on Feb. 4: China and Russia care about different things. (Handout photo from Kremlin)
Opinion

Putin and Xi manifesto signals start of a new era

Moscow and Beijing's unity stems from mutual distrust of the U.S.

9 February 2022
An aerial view shows Kunashiri, one of the Russian-control islands known as the Northern Territories in Japan.
International relations

Ukraine crisis roils waters for Japan's bid to reclaim islands from Russia

Kishida vows to continue talks, while new U.S. envoy calls Moscow 'aggressor'

8 February 2022
China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin: A joint statement released after their recent summit says the countries' relationship "has no limits -- there are no 'forbidden' areas."
Asia Insight

China and Russia's 'no limits' ties test West as Ukraine shivers

Olympic summit with Xi caps Putin's evolution from leader once lauded by Biden

8 February 2022
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin meet in Moscow in June 2019. China now has shown support for Russia over the Ukraine issue, but experts say an invasion would bring little benefit to Beijing.
Comment

China will gain little from backing Moscow on Ukraine

Russian invasion unlikely to help Beijing grab Taiwan

7 February 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday.
Beijing Winter Olympics

Putin and Xi blame U.S. and allies for heightening arms race

Leaders 'oppose further expansion of NATO' at Olympics summit

5 February 2022
An advertisement of Bitcoin in Hong Kong, pictured in November 2021: cryptocurrencies exist in a largely unregulated environment.
Opinion

Cryptocurrencies remain a gamble best avoided

Better regulation needed to protect investors and deter criminal abuse

5 February 2022
Vladimir Putin, pictured in Saint Petersburg on Jan. 27: the Russian president will likely use the supportive atmosphere in Beijing to bolster his rhetoric. (Handout photo from Kremlin)
Opinion

Putin and Xi prepare to synchronize their watches

U.S. efforts to drive a wedge between Russia and China have failed

4 February 2022
Rahm Emanuel says a statement by his Russian counterpart "lacks self-awareness."
International relations

Rahm Emanuel blasts Russian envoy on Japan territorial dispute

Newly arrived U.S. ambassador says 'rules and respect count'

3 February 2022
A person wearing personal protective equipment walks inside Beijing Capital International Airport on Jan. 31: this time, Beijing is welcoming very few outsiders at all.
Opinion

Beijing Winter Olympics reveal a very different China

Timidity ahead of 2008 Summer Games now all but forgotten

3 February 2022
U.S. President Joe Biden meets with his national security advisers in the White House Situation Room. Biden has promised enormous economic sanctions on Russia if it invades Ukraine. (Photo courtesy of the White House) 
Indo-Pacific

5 keys for U.S. deterrence to work in Ukraine -- and Taiwan

Xi will be watching Putin's actions carefully, analysts say

2 February 2022
The U.N. Security Council addresses the situation between Russia and Ukraine on Jan. 31 in New York.
Ukraine war

China backs Russia on Ukraine conflict with eye on Taiwan

U.S. response monitored by Beijing for clues about cross-strait implications

2 February 2022
Berlin heaped insult on injury by proudly presenting the sale of 5,000 steel helmets as a gesture of solidarity.
1 February 2022
A Chinese People's Liberation Army Air Force H-6 bomber is seen flying near Taiwan's air defense identification zone on Sept. 18, 2020.
Comment

China-Russia drills near Japan hint at burgeoning military ties

Recent maneuvers threaten to shake up East Asian security order

29 January 2022
Myanmar military officials attend a commissioning ceremony of a submarine gifted by China in December. (Photo courtesy of Myanmar's Ministry of Information)
Myanmar Crisis

Myanmar's isolation from West opens door for China and Russia

Beijing brokers peace talks and gifts a submarine while Moscow supplies arms

28 January 2022
Akio Miyajima, Ambassador of Japan to Poland, said support for the introduction of renewable energy would be a godsend for Poland. He said that Japan should hurry to provide infrastructure support to help Poland’s decarbonization efforts.
Interview

Japan should strengthen ties with Poland to keep China in check

Central, Eastern European countries changing stance toward Beijing, envoy says

24 January 2022
U.S. and Russian diplomats made no major breakthrough at talks on Friday, and Moscow has been massing troops on the border with its neighbor.
International relations

U.S. orders departure of Ukraine embassy staff family members

U.K. accuses the Kremlin of seeking to install a pro-Russian leader in Kyiv

24 January 2022
A damaged portrait of former Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev is seen at the city hall in Almaty on Jan. 10, after the country's largest city was rocked by protests.
Politics

Kazakhstan drive to close book on Nazarbayev era gathers pace

President Tokayev sidelines predecessor but true reform remains elusive

23 January 2022
Russian S-400 missile air defense systems, pictured in Kaliningrad region, Russia, in August 2020: Delhi's arms deals with Moscow risk attracting sanctions of its ally in Washington.
Opinion

Buying more Russian weapons will not lift India's economy

Young people need high quality jobs, not increases in defense spending

23 January 2022
A port in the Kaliningrad region of Russia in October: China accounts for a significantly larger portion of Russia's trade than vice versa.
International relations

Ukraine crisis looms large as China-Russia trade tops record $140bn

Moscow relies more heavily on Beijing as it girds for new Western sanctions

22 January 2022
U.S. President Joe Biden holds a virtual summit with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
Indo-Pacific

Biden and Kishida plan Quad summit in Japan in late spring

Leaders agree to launch 'economic 2-plus-2' at 1st full meeting

22 January 2022
Vladimir Putin attempts to shake hands with Xi Jinping during a meeting in Moscow in June 2019: autocracy's self-styled emperors are formalizing their lifelong reigns.
Opinion

Autocracy's bad boys are here to stay

Liberal world order is in desperate need of new champions

21 January 2022
President Joe Biden listens to a question during a news conference in the East Room of the White House on Jan. 19.
Politics

Biden says he thinks Putin will 'move in' on Ukraine

China has not yet fulfilled 'phase one' commitments, president notes

20 January 2022
As Eastern Europe edges closer to war, the U.S. and Russia are squaring off as China watches the outcome.
The Big Story

Ukraine crisis highlights superpowers' quarrel over spheres of influence

As Russia and the U.S. focus on Eastern Europe, China is taking notes for Taiwan

19 January 2022
"The universe is an awfully big place," author Kurt Vonnegut wrote. "There is room enough for an awful lot of people to be right about things and still not agree."
Asia Insight

Space powers take aim at moon in quest for resources and glory

U.S. and China jostle for lead as Japan, South Korea and others carve niches

18 January 2022