Politics

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare, left, and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attend a signing ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China on Oct. 9, 2019. (File photo by Reuters) 
International relations

Taiwan joins chorus against China's pact with Solomon Islands

Taipei urges Pacific nation not to be 'China's military bargaining chip'

22 April 2022
Container vessels are seen docked at the Pasir Panjang terminal port in Singapore on January 17. Singapore is one of several Asian countries that has seen a fall in exports to Russia. (Source photos by Reuters and AFP/Jiji)
Ukraine war

Asia's exports to Russia plunge amid Ukraine war

But some countries see rise in imports from Russia on higher energy prices

20 April 2022
The Fangchenggang Nuclear Power Plant in China, which leads Asia on nuclear power, will begin operation this year. Sanctions on Russian fossil fuel and looming decarbonization deadlines are causing many Asian governments to reconsider their stances on nuclear energy. 
The Big Story

Asia's nuclear power dilemma: Ukraine war drives energy turnarounds

From Japan to Singapore, Russia sanctions and carbon-zero targets push states to reconsider nuclear energy

20 April 2022
Members of the Chinese People's Liberation Army stand guard aboard the missile destroyer Xining. The width and currents in the Taiwan Strait are expected to pose a challenge in a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan.
Ukraine war

Russia's woes make China search for Plan B on Taiwan

Bolstering nuclear deterrence or targeting remote islands among Beijing's options

20 April 2022
Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Experts say Beijing is evaluating Moscow's performance in Ukraine. (Source photos by Kremlin/Reuters and AP)
Comment

What the Ukraine war has taught China about designs on Taiwan

Russia's struggle both feeds and blunts Xi's ambitions for the island

16 April 2022
Bob Menendez, chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, greets Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu as he and other members of a U.S. delegation arrive at Taipei Songshan airport, Taiwan on April 14.
15 April 2022
Containers are stacked at the Chinese port of Qingdao. Chinese imports from Russia grew 26% in March. (Xinhua via Kyodo)
Trade

China, South Korea lift Russian energy imports, eroding sanctions

Even countries opposing Moscow take advantage of discounts

14 April 2022
Taiwanese authorities have forced Beijing-backed Hong Kong broadcaster Phoenix TV to close its office on the island. (Source photos by Reuters and screenshot from Phoenix TV's website) 
Politics

Taiwan's ouster of Phoenix TV shows shift of view on Hong Kong

Authorities forced Beijing-backed broadcaster to leave island over ownership rules

13 April 2022
After seven Russian banks were banned from SWIFT following the invasion of Ukraine, China is hoping its own Cross-border Interbank Payment System, CIPS, will be enough to weather potential future sanctions from the West. 
The Big Story

China scrambles for cover from West's financial weapons

Spooked by sanctions on Russia, Beijing looks to build on its own international payments system

13 April 2022
People's Liberation Army Navy soldiers take part in a drill at a naval base in Hong Kong. 
Ukraine war

Russia's war struggles will delay any China move on Taiwan: expert

Beijing weighs cost of war, global outcry and limits of international sanctions

11 April 2022
Royal Air Force F-35B at RAF Marham, U.K.: The air forces of the Netherlands, Italy and the United Kingdom could deploy F-35 fighters to U.S. bases in Japan.
Opinion

How Europe could help Taiwan in a war with China

Ukraine crisis should prompt renewed focus on other possible conflict scenarios

10 April 2022
Taiwan Air Force fighter jet pilots walk on a runway during drills in Hsinchu, Taiwan, in January 2019: Military deterrence alone is unlikely to be decisive.
Opinion

A three pillar strategy to prevent war in East Asia

China, U.S. and Taiwan need to learn from the war in Ukraine

4 April 2022
A 50-page study published last week by the German Marshall Fund of the U.S. warned that Beijing is using its influence at the U.N. to compel NGOs to rewrite references to Taiwan and revise historical documents. (Nikkei montage/Reuters/AP)
International relations

China's U.N. sway forces NGOs to rewrite Taiwan references: study

Excluding Taiwan from international system carries risks, report warns

30 March 2022
How would the financial hub of Shanghai fare in a Taiwan crisis? Big capital outflows from China have been observed since the start of the Ukraine war.
Indo-Pacific

China exit? Russia crisis has businesses thinking the unthinkable

Capital flight may have already begun as investors fear Taiwan contingency

22 March 2022
Soldiers of PLA Navy patrol at Woody Island, which is claimed by Vietnam, in the Paracel Archipelago in January 2016: Beijing has continued to exercise military options against Vietnam.
Opinion

Ukraine conflict echoes loudest in Vietnam, not Taiwan

A South China Sea incident could easily escalate

21 March 2022
Bera says India can play a constructive role in ending the crisis because it has open lines of communication with Moscow.
Interview

U.S. lawmaker urges India to speak out against Ukraine invasion

House Asia subcommittee chair Bera hopes sanctions deter China in Indo-Pacific

9 March 2022
Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo gives a speech in Taipei, Taiwan, March 4, 2022.
International relations

Pompeo urges Washington to recognize Taiwan as sovereign nation

Former top U.S. diplomat says the island is already independent

4 March 2022
An area of central Kharkiv lies in ruins after what authorities said was a missile attack on March 1. Russian experts say the violence risks turning any remaining pro-Moscow Ukrainians against them.
Ukraine war

One week into Ukraine invasion, Russian analysts weigh the costs

Unexpected Japan and Taiwan sanctions seen biting into industry

3 March 2022
Documentary by director Kiwi Chow, right, now in self-exile from Hong Kong, hit theaters across Taiwan last Friday.
Arts

Hong Kong protest film strikes a chord in Taiwan

Documentary, and Ukraine conflict, spur debate on island's readiness for war

3 March 2022
Mike Mullen, former chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff greets Taiwan Foreign Minister Joseph Wu as he and other members of the U.S. delegation arrive at Taipei Songshan airport in Taipei on Tuesday.
International relations

Biden delegation backs Taiwan amid China threat, Ukraine war

Former Secretary of State Pompeo also due to arrive in Taipei later Wednesday

2 March 2022
"The Taiwanese people can rest assured that we are working to ensure our nation's security," President Tsai Ing-wen said of Russia's war on Ukraine. (Source photos by AFP/Jiji and Reuters) 
Ukraine war

Taipei plays down fears of 'Ukraine today, Taiwan tomorrow'

Island rattled by Putin's war, but steels resolve against possible China attack

1 March 2022
Demonstrators hold placards as they take part in a rally against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Taipei, Taiwan.
International relations

Biden sends former top defense officials to Taiwan

U.S. shows 'robust support' for Taipei amid Russian invasion of Ukraine

1 March 2022
A nuclear-powered Type 094A Jin-class ballistic missile submarine of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy during an April 2018 military display in the South China Sea.
Politics

Ukraine conflict: 77% in Japan fear Taiwan spillover

61% want Tokyo to keep in step with West on Russia sanctions, Nikkei poll shows

28 February 2022
Japanese former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says the U.S. should abandon its ambiguous stance on how it would react to an attack on Taiwan.
Politics

U.S. should abandon ambiguity on Taiwan defense: Japan's Abe

Former prime minister floats possibility of hosting American nuclear weapons

27 February 2022
French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian speaks in Paris on Jan. 28.
Interview

France slams China's attempts to 'break the status quo' on Taiwan

Foreign minister Le Drian keen to deepen trade ties with Taipei

20 February 2022