Today
What China is really up to in the Arctic
China wants to create a “polar Silk Road” through the Arctic by developing its shipping routes and tapping its resources.
Jimmy Lai and the future of freedom
Human rights issues typified by cases such as the media mogul’s are not distractions from more important business. They are the important business.
Yesterday
Chinese grit their teeth as millionaire Olympic star Eileen Gu shines
Eileen Gu’s campaign at the Winter Olympics has sparked a backlash in China over whether the hugely financially successful skier should get state funding.
This Month
Everyone in Asia wants a stronger Japan – except China
A more confident Tokyo complicates Beijing’s preferred regional order. For many of Asia’s middle powers, that makes Japan an appealing counterweight.
Jimmy Lai’s 20-year sentence should trigger an investor reckoning
You may be tempted to see Lai’s persecution strictly as a human rights issue, with little relevance to Hong Kong’s business environment. That would be a mistake.
Jimmy Lai’s 20-year sentence follows Beijing’s playbook on dissent
The sentence for the media mogul, along with long prison terms for his editors, shows how Hong Kong enforces Xi Jinping’s red lines with a new severity.
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison
The treatment of the Apple Daily founder and Chinese Communist Party critic shows the decline of press freedom and Beijing’s tightening grip on the region.
Japanese PM’s plan to rearm has implications for Australia
A landslide election win has opened the door for Japan to move beyond postwar defence restraint, reshaping its security alongside partners like Australia.
Royal-backed Thai prime minister wins election in blow to reformists
The result is a significant setback for the pro-democracy movement that had sought to curtail the powers of the monarchy.
Japan’s ‘Iron Lady’ prime minister wins landslide election
Sanae Takaichi’s party gained a super majority in a stunning win, with plans to boost the nation’s spending and defence capabilities amid tensions with China.
Japan is ‘full of old men’. Its Iron Lady PM has a special power
She’s popular, disciplined and not especially feminist. Japan’s female prime minister plans to cement power at elections on Sunday using gender in her own way.
Japan’s heavy metal rock star PM could wreck Labor’s China strategy
Takaichi’s election victory means her brand of unapologetic China hawkishness could collide with Labor’s plans to stabilise relations with our largest trading partner.
Japan’s pop-idol prime minister eyes election landslide
Sanae Takaichi is almost certain to cement her grip on power at Sunday’s election, driven by personal popularity and a tough security stance.
Second Australian dies in Japan skiing accident
A man in his 20s has died while skiing the back-country slopes near a Japanese resort, days after a Queensland woman was killed in a ski-lift accident.
Why this trending toy best captures China’s gloom
A red plush horse designed to beam optimism was released with its mouth mistakenly sewn upside down. The accidental frown better reflects the public mood.
January
Why Xi’s military purge should unsettle Australia
For US allies in the Asia-Pacific, the danger is not that Beijing is suddenly more eager for war, but that it has become more prone to miscalculation.
Starmer, Xi agree to deeper ties amid Trump upheaval
The UK prime minister has made improving relations with the world’s second-largest economy a priority, despite misgivings about espionage and human rights.
Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption purge will be his undoing
With childhood friends and top leaders no longer safe, China’s system is frozen with fear as bureaucrats shift instinctively to risk avoidance.
Purging the generals confirms Xi’s absolute power
The question for countries like Australia and its allies is how the generational upheaval at the top of the Chinese military affects its ambitions and capabilities.
A decade after the one-child policy, dating in China is not for the fainthearted
Young women are rejecting men and traditional romance – and becoming hooked on AI soulmates instead.
Malaysia’s palm oil giants swap soap for servers
In the race to become the region’s data centre hub, Australia is facing competition from Malaysia as it converts vast estates into server farms.
Why Xi’s purge of top generals may be good news for Taiwan (for now)
The purge has plunged China’s military into turmoil, giving Taiwan some breathing space, but also may make Beijing less predictable.
China’s top general ‘leaked nuclear secrets to US’
Xi Jinping purged the military official, who is reportedly accused of leaking information about the country’s nuclear weapons program.
American climbs Taipei 101 skyscraper without ropes live on Netflix
Watch videos of Alex Honnold scaling the building, amid concerns over the ethical implications of attempting such a high-risk endeavour on live broadcast.
Xi takes sole control of Chinese army after military purge
The president has just completed the biggest purge of the military in China’s history, according to analysts, amid concerns about graft and disloyalty.
