Day: October 20, 2025

China’s economic and technological advances are being unfairly dismissed in the United States and other parts of the West as a result of hierarchical thinking, according to a theory dubbed “winology” that is taking hold among some online commentators. Advertisement The term winology was coined by Chinese academics and refers to ways in which countries can both become a global leader in certain areas and be recognised as such. However, the theory argues that the West relegates China to the lowest tier of a global hierarchy – likened to the…

Advertisement Three patrol ships left a Chinese base on Mischief Reef in the Spratly Islands on Thursday and circled around a series of land features – some of which Vietnam has built facilities on – before returning to the reef on Saturday, according to Automatic Identification System data. The purpose of the patrol by the coastguard vessels – identified by the hull numbers 4301, 5009 and 21559 – was not clear. New collision of Chinese-Philippine ships in South China Sea New collision of Chinese-Philippine ships in South China Sea It…

When Beijing expanded its rare earth export controls earlier this month, it appeared to mark a fresh escalation in the US-China trade war. But for many observers, the dispute actually began over a week earlier – and its trigger was not a Chinese action, but an American one. Advertisement Though it drew little fanfare at the time, the decision by the US Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) to widen its trade blacklists in late September has had far-reaching effects. It not only pushed Beijing to take retaliatory action; it…

A senior Panamanian official said on Monday that Panama will remain flexible and potentially reach an agreement with CK Hutchison as the Latin American country navigates the geopolitical rivalry between the United States and China. Advertisement “We are working on a plan in case that [Panama’s Supreme Court] ruling goes against the extension of the contract” for CK Hutchison, said Jose Ramon Icaza, Panama’s minister of canal affairs. “In that case, we have to step in as the Panama Maritime Authority to take control of that concession, without generating a…

When the Chinese government launched the “AI+” initiative in August, it was widely perceived as a new economic stimulus. However, observers may have underestimated Beijing’s true ambition. Advertisement On October 10, senior officials and experts published a series of analyses in the official journal E-Government, offering the public its first comprehensive look at the initiative’s deeper strategic intent. Far from being merely an economic policy, “AI+” is a decade-long national blueprint designed to propel China into a new phase of development – one that scholars describe as the age of…

In the shadow of escalating tensions between the United States and China, Graham Allison’s concept of the Thucydides Trap has become a staple of geopolitical discourse. Coined by the Harvard scholar, the term evokes the ancient Greek historian Thucydides’ observation that “it was the rise of Athens and the fear that this instilled in Sparta that made war inevitable”. Advertisement Allison’s study of 16 historical cases, where a rising power challenged a ruling one, found war in 12 instances. He warns that China’s ascent threatens American hegemony, potentially dooming both…