Category: Thinking About China

TikTok Lawfare Against America

Commentary As is well known, TikTok is a national security threat because communist China has laws that give it access to the data of its almost 1.7 billion global users. Yet naive teenagers around the world download the app on their smartphones, thirsty for the latest kid craze trend. TikTok’s algorithm then channels these users more…


Has the West Already Lost Control of Its Most Vital Sea Route?

Commentary U.S. and Western influence over the critical Red Sea/Suez Canal sea lines of communication (SLOC) is now estimated to be at its lowest ebb in more than a century, even when the USSR had a period of presence during the Cold War. Russia and China, although suffering from their own strategic constraints, have made…


China’s PLA Needs Time, Money to Surpass US Military

Commentary The United States is the world’s No. 1 military power, while China is No. 3. To catch up with the United States, China will need to maintain a certain level of economic growth. However, given the slowing economy and the demographic challenge, the Carnegie Foundation expects China’s long-term GDP growth not to exceed 2–3 percent….


Incrementalism Will Neither Defeat Russia nor Deter China

Commentary On May 22–23, the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Free Russia Legion crossed from Ukraine into Belgorod Oblast, Russia (with a second incursion on June 5). These two groups allegedly comprise Russian citizens aligned with the Armed Forces of Ukraine. These groups reportedly used American Humvees and M1224 MaxxPro MRAPs in their operation. This…


China’s Saboteurs Are Coming to America

Originally published by Gatestone Institute Commentary There is now a Chinese invasion of the U.S. homeland. “The jungle is filled with Chinese marching to America,” said war correspondent Michael Yon to Gatestone. Chinese migrants are entering the United States on foot at the southern border. Almost all are desperate, seeking a better life for themselves…


Politicians Risk AI Dependency

Commentary Generative artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming more common, including in politics. Images of Donald Trump getting violently arrested in New York or of the Pope wearing a puffy white coat are deepfakes that many believed, or wanted to believe, when they went viral. On June 26, former Alphabet CEO Eric Schmidt warned of AI’s…


China’s Reach for More Economic Stimulus Amounts to a Confession of Failure

Commentary Beijing has admitted failure, even if it refuses to use the word. This is actually the second such confession in the past six months. The first one came earlier this year when Beijing rescinded the lockdowns and quarantines that were the signal parts of its “zero-COVID” campaign. Party leadership had hoped that freeing people…


An Opportunity From Russia: The Wagner Rebellion

Commentary The Wagner Group, an international Russian paramilitary organization led by Yevgeny Prigozhin, mutinied on June 23–24. Wagner fighters reportedly occupied two military bases, including in the southern Russian city of Rostov, where Moscow has its main military headquarters for the south. The Rostov headquarters also serves as a key node for Russia’s occupation of…


Growing China-Middle East Economic Ties Cannot be Ignored

Commentary The fireworks were flying during the recent China and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit in Riyadh. Several high profile business deals were announced between the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in Beijing and the GCC—traditionally and until recently a strong ally of the United States—that could help shape the landscape of international investments in the…


The Rise of India

Commentary Despite a number of structural disadvantages, India will likely rival China in terms of global power. This year, India hosted the G-20 conference, which Indian leaders see as recognition that the nation has come of age and is ready to overtake China. India has already surpassed China in population and is hoping to eclipse…