China wants to impose its own rules on maritime trade. And Gilberto Teodoro Jr., Manila’s Defence Secretary, responds as follows

Government bond yields are rising in advanced economies, driven by inflation and growing public debt. China is an exception and is keeping rates low thanks to its control over the banking system, albeit at the cost of weaker consumption and growth.

A Hong Kong court has upheld the conviction of Cardinal Joseph Zen and four other pro-democracy activists, fining them four thousand dollars each for failing to correctly register their fund (the 612 Humanitarian Relief Fund, which no longer exists) as an association under the city’s Societies Ordinance.

Does the Democratic Party’s absence from the mission to Taiwan risk creating a one-sided narrative within the opposition? According to the senator, dialogue with Beijing ‘does not preclude’ dialogue with Taipei

The formaldehyde-treated cabbage scandal has revived long-standing concerns over food safety in China and put consumer confidence to the test. Meanwhile, Beijing is carefully controlling the flow of information about the disaster in Tibet

An Italian parliamentary delegation, led by Centinaio (Lega), has arrived in Taiwan to engage in diplomacy and business (tech). The only party absent is Elly Schlein’s party. But how can the main opposition party hope to understand China if it only talks to Beijing? 

The technology sector has a theory to explain the bipartisan sentiment of antipathy (if not outright hatred) towards these infrastructures: it is said to be a psychological operation (‘psy-op’) in which the number one suspect is the Chinese government. Meanwhile, the anti-data centre movement is gaining ground

At the SCO summit, the Chinese leader meets Putin and non-aligned countries to build a strategic counterweight to the West. Meanwhile, the United States, tied up in Iran and the Middle East, is diverting weapons and ships away from the Indo-Pacific, leaving Taiwan, South Korea and Japan in limbo