Politics

Actors perform a play that teaches the history of the Chinese Communist Party at a theme park in Shaanxi Province operated by the Dalian Wanda Group. (Photo by Shin Watanabe)
The age of 'Great China'

Dealing with the dilemma of the Chinese market

Move close and get burned at home, move away and lose traction with 1.4bn people

24 February 2022
Taliban forces ride in a car in Kabul in November 2021: the extremist government will struggle to stop the local Islamic State affiliate from drawing in militants to settle in ungoverned expanses of the country.
Opinion

Expect the world's ungoverned places to export instability

Outside actors prove increasingly reluctant to intervene

22 February 2022
Europe's 6 billion-euro ($6.8 billion) satellite communications plan will cover Africa.
Belt and Road

EU spurs African telecom development to win back clout from China

Brussels seeks to mix economic aid with democracy and free speech

21 February 2022
 If the omicron wave in Japan is similar to that in other areas like New York, shown above, cases are not expected to decline until early February. (Source photo by UPI/Kyodo)
Datawatch

Japan COVID surge unlikely to ease until early February

Global data shows omicron waves take on average 27 days to peak

26 January 2022
Chinese naval troops see off a replenishment ship bound for the waters off Somalia.
Indo-Pacific

China has multiple military basing options in Africa, analysts say

But Beijing expected to choose cautiously to avoid political risks

22 December 2021
Wamkele Mene, secretary-general of the African Continental Free Trade Area, left, and Turkish Trade Minister Mehmet Mus signed a memorandum of understanding regarding cooperation toward accelerating trade and investment on the sidelines of the third Turkey-Africa Partnership Summit in Istanbul.
Indo-Pacific

Leader of African trade bloc issues call for Asian investors

Mene moves to boost Turkish investment in Africa during Istanbul summit

20 December 2021
Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the Communist Party of China and World Political Parties Summit via video link on July 6: Xi is taking Party-based outreach seriously.
Opinion

China is already exporting authoritarianism to the developing world

Beijing's Party-state model offers quick path to growth and stability

5 December 2021
Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation via video link on Nov. 29: Xi elaborated nine programs of intended cooperation.
Opinion

Xi Jinping echoes Jack Ma as he plots future China-Africa ties

This year's Forum on China-Africa Cooperation marks a turning point

2 December 2021
Women sew skirts in a studio owned by Cherie Coco in Adjohoun, Benin. (Photo courtesy of Cherie Coco)
Coronavirus

Japanese social entrepreneurs defy the pandemic

Many enterprises have changed their business models to keep going

3 November 2021
Baykar showcases its armed drone Bayraktar TB2 during TEKNOFEST in Istanbul in September.
Politics

Turkey unleashes hard power wave in Africa with drone sales

Requests flow in for game-changing devices after Azerbaijan victory

3 November 2021
Mount Kilimanjaro, pictured in January 2015: scientists now fear the ice cap could disappear entirely.
Opinion

Asia must help Africa escape worst impacts of climate change

Second-largest continent is warming twice as fast as the rest of the world

1 November 2021
A crowd gathers as smoke and fire are seen on the streets of Kartoum, Sudan, amid reports of a coup on Oct. 25. (Photo by RASD Sudan Network via Reuters) 
Politics

Ministers, party leaders detained in apparent coup in Sudan

'Joint military forces' have arrested government members: Information ministry

25 October 2021
People wait in line outside a COVID-19 vaccination center at Sydney Olympic Park. Vaccines from the U.K. that had been at risk of expiring have been put to use in Australia.
COVID vaccines

From Australia to Thailand, vaccine swap deals help ease shortages

Nearly expired doses shipped to nations with slow rollouts

1 October 2021
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is welcomed in Dakar, Senegal, on Jan. 28, 2020. (Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Indo-Pacific

Turkey's push into Africa has China looking over its shoulder

Powered by direct flights and 43 embassies, Ankara expands its sphere of influence

15 September 2021
Motorists ride past the Nigerian Embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia on Aug. 12. Indonesia's Foreign Ministry apologized Thursday for the manhandling of a Nigerian diplomat and announced it had launched a formal investigation of the incident. 
International relations

Indonesia apologizes over manhandling of Nigerian diplomat

Video showing immigration officials pinning man down spreads widely on social media

14 August 2021
Cape Town, South Africa, at night. The African continent is projected to account for 40% of the world's population by 2100. 
International relations

In Africa, Biden finds a free trade zone he can embrace

From Netflix to infrastructure, US hopes to counter Chinese gains on the continent

11 August 2021
Lightning strikes across the sky during a thunderstorm in Guangzhou. China preparing for changing weather patterns.
Science

Artificial rain eases Asia's droughts but heats up tensions

China advances drone tech, while India calls weather modification a threat

27 July 2021
Who will be the next Olympic legend? (Nikkei montage/Reuters/USA Today)
Tokyo 2020 Olympics

Star athletes to watch at Tokyo Olympics

The lowdown on the players to keep an eye on at this year's Games

24 July 2021
A F-35B Lightning Jet is seen between night sorties on the HMS Queen Elizabeth in the Mediterranean Sea on June 21. (Photo courtesy of the Royal Navy)
Indo-Pacific

Japan to hold first drills with UK aircraft carrier off Africa

Counter-piracy exercise in Gulf of Aden likely next week

10 July 2021
A cargo ship is moored outside Dar es Salaam Port in Tanzania. (Photo courtesy of Trafigura Images) 
Indo-Pacific

China looks to East Africa for second Indian Ocean foothold

A Tanzanian naval base would ease Beijing's 'Malacca Dilemma,' analyst says

30 June 2021
Workers unload cargo from a ship in the harbor of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. (Photo courtesy of the International Labour Organization)
Indo-Pacific

Tanzania to revive $10bn Indian Ocean port project with China

Bagamoyo has potential to be East Africa's export hub

27 June 2021
China's homegrown Shandong aircraft carrier: The Djibouti base is capable of accommodating both aircraft carriers and the latest amphibious assault ships.
Indo-Pacific

China adds carrier pier to Djibouti base, extending Indian Ocean reach

Beijing looking for other basing opportunities in Africa, US commander says

27 April 2021
The freighter Shinas Max carrying 400,000 tons of iron ore is berthed at Zhoushan Port in China's Zhejiang Province. China currently relies on Australia for more than 60% of its iron ore imports.
Commodities

China determined to build iron ore hub in Africa as Australia goes Quad

World's largest untapped reserve in Guinea could be online by 2025, expert says

31 March 2021
Stream article image
25 February 2021
Port Louis, the Mauritian capital, is getting busier as the free trade agreement with China comes into play, but observers are concerned that the balance of trade is already in Beijing's favor by a factor of over 30. (Photo by Yuji Kuronuma)
International relations

Beijing expands Indian Ocean FTAs westward with Mauritius

Concern among small island nations over huge trade imbalances with China

2 February 2021