China Executive Insights
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US-led moves ‘primary threat’ to peace, China says in fiery statement asserting ‘historic rights’ to contested waters In a strongly worded statement on Sunday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs asserted China’s “historic rights” while condemning “militarising and coercive behaviour” from the US and its allies as the “foremost challenge currently facing the South China Sea”. “It is the continuous military deployments, reckless manoeuvres, and instigations by external powers like the United States that constitute the primary threat to regional stability,” the statement said. “China will take decisive measures to defend its rights and interests in a reasonable, lawful, professional and restrained manner in response to infringements and provocations by relevant countries.” Beijing also traded barbs with Tokyo over the matter in a separate statement, after a Japanese minister criticised its stance on the ruling. Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi released a statement saying China’s refusal to accept the 2016 decision is “against the principle of peaceful settlement of disputes”, prompting Beijing to summon a senior official of the Japanese Embassy to protest.
From August 28, authorities can impose fines of up to 50 times the resale price of a ticket, a sharp rise from the current US$6,600 maximum Previous solutions have failed to rein in the problem, but the government is hoping that the threat of massive fines may finally free ticket seekers from the grips of predatory scalpers. From August 28, amendments to the National Sports Promotion Act and Performance Act will allow authorities to impose penalties of up to 50 times the resale price of a ticket, a sharp escalation from the maximum fine of 10 million won (US$6,600) introduced under laws that took effect in March 2024. Earlier efforts to curb scalping focused largely on “macro” programmes – software tools that can click through ticketing pages and buy seats faster than any human user. But recent cases show the problem has moved beyond simple bot-buying and into more elaborate attempts to game systems that require a verified identity. In March, police arrested 16 members of a scalping ring accused of reselling more than 33,000 tickets for about 190 concerts between October 2022 and the end of 2025, generating 7.1 billion won (US$4.7 million) in illegal profits.
Higher pay drives surprise surge despite demographic decline and questions about combat readiness, but keeping them may be another matter However, lawmakers and military analysts say the growth is driven more by government pay rises than by any apparent shift in young people’s attitudes towards military service. But critics warned that the increase masked deeper structural problems, arguing that boosting recruitment alone would not reverse a long-term decline in combat readiness unless the military could also retain experienced personnel. Taiwan’s volunteer troop numbers rose by “more than 5,000 as of June from a year earlier”, the defence ministry said in a report submitted to the legislature last Wednesday. It credited the increase to the introduction of “higher military pay, improved living conditions, relaxed recruitment standards and more ‘people-oriented’ personnel management”. It said the measures had also helped boost volunteer numbers by more than 3,000 in 2025, raise retention rates by 5.2 percentage points and reduce the number of personnel discharged as unsuitable for service by 1,652.
Tokyo is banking on a massive visitor boom to do what its factories and financiers increasingly cannot: carry the economy forward Last year, 42.7 million foreign visitors arrived in the country, a record that shattered the previous year’s high by nearly 16 per cent. Now Tokyo wants to turn that surge into something more lasting: a permanent pillar of growth to rival, or even outlast, the industries that built modern Japan. To achieve that ambition, the government has set a target of 60 million arrivals a year by 2030, with billions being funnelled into the infrastructure needed to get there. At Narita Airport, the main international gateway serving the Japanese capital, crews are extending the second runway to 2,500 metres (8,200 feet) and building an entirely new 3,500-metre (11,480-foot) third runway, as part of a multi-year expansion that aims to push annual capacity from 340,000 flights to half a million. Rail planners, meanwhile, are working to nearly double train frequency between Narita and central Tokyo by the early 2030s, with new extensions set to link two lines directly to Haneda Airport to the capital’s south, aiming to make domestic transfers easier.
Last month, China Eastern ordered 25 A330neo jets from Airbus, which come at a catalogue price of US$9.35 billion. The airline, which operates the inaugural commercial routes of the C919, China’s home-grown passenger jet, had placed another Airbus order just three months earlier. Why is this major Chinese airline transferring billions to a European company China’s government is trying to supplant? As a widebody jet, the A330neo competes in a segment where the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of...
Court holds trio accountable for leaving intoxicated man at staircase instead of ensuring he safely enters his home A legal ruling in China holding three individuals liable for the death of a friend following overnight drinking and gaming has ignited widespread online discussion. Three men in Urumqi, in northwestern China, were ordered by the court to compensate their friend’s family a total of over 100,000 yuan (US$15,000), after he died partying with them all night. The man, surnamed Gao, played mahjong with his two friends and the mahjong parlour’s owner, from almost 9pm to 3am the next day, in October 2025. They drank together throughout the games, and another friend joined and drank with them until 6am, before Gao and his three friends moved to another place to play billiards. The group played for half an hour and left for home. Gao took a taxi, and his three friends kept him company. The drunk Gao did not realise it when the car drove past his home, so they had to walk back a little. According to public surveillance footage, Gao’s two friends, Zhao and Duan, walked with and supported him, while the third friend, Deng, paid the taxi fare.
Population expert warns of ‘virtual alienation’ trend among youth as cases rise for those aged 10 to 19 in 2025 Youth suicide cases confirmed by Hong Kong Coroner’s Court reached a decade-high last year, despite a 10 per cent overall decline across the population to 1,019. According to the annual coroners’ report published last month, suicide cases confirmed by the court declined across almost all age groups, except for those aged between 10 and 19. Last year, 46 adolescents aged 10 to 19 were reported to have taken their own lives, up from 34 cases in the previous year and reaching a decade high. Most of these deaths involved falls from height. There was also one girl aged below 10 who took her own life. The age group that had the sharpest decline was the 40-to-49 bracket, which recorded 138 cases, down by 26 per cent from 186 in the previous year. The total number of suicide cases, although 10 per cent down from the 10-year peak of 1,138 in 2024, was still well above the triple-digit figures recorded before the pandemic.
The result will give BN momentum before the Negeri Sembilan state election on August 1 and could deepen friction within the ruling coalition BN, which ruled the country for six decades before losing power in 2018 and later joining Anwar’s bloc in 2022, retained its Johor stronghold with 48 seats out of 56 on Saturday night – an improvement from the 40 it won in the 2022 polls. PH managed only eight, ceding ground from its previous 12. Analysts say the result, which came despite Anwar campaigning heavily for PH, will give BN momentum before the Negeri Sembilan state election on August 1 and could deepen friction inside the ruling coalition, where PH and BN govern together in Putrajaya but are increasingly testing each other at the state level. For Anwar, PH’s performance now lies in how hard BN can continue to rally support, bolstering a possible comeback in the federal government. Ahmad Zahid Hamidi, deputy prime minister and BN president, on Saturday night thanked Johoreans for again choosing BN to govern the state, stressing that the party “will not be arrogant in victory” and would strive to fulfil its campaign pledges.
The US attacks came after the IRGC Navy said it had hit an ‘unauthorised’ vessel that was travelling on a non-approved route The US military said it launched another round of strikes on Iran after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps struck a container ship travelling through the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday. A series of attacks between the US and Iran over the past several days led President Donald Trump to declare the end of a ceasefire meant to halt the fighting that the US and Israel began on February 28, though Trump has left the door open to continued negotiations. Iran said it closed the vital Strait of Hormuz after firing a warning shot that struck a vessel travelling on an unapproved route. It warned that any retaliation over the incident would be met with a “severe response”. US Central Command identified the vessel as the M/V GFS Galaxy, a Cyprus-flagged container ship, saying it suffered significant engine-room damage and that a civilian crew member was missing. The war has destabilised the Gulf, while Iran’s effective blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has caused energy prices to surge, fuelling global inflation.
As the United States marks the 250th anniversary of its founding, it confronts a new world order dominated by its relationship with China. In this wide-ranging series, we examine the pressure points and possibilities in those ties, from hard tech to soft power. Here, Khushboo Razdan looks at how books shape public perceptions and inspire lifelong connections between the US and China even as their geopolitical rivalry intensifies. Alexander Boyd was 14 when a book about China altered the course...
Like many people outside the United States, I admire much of what it represents: open debate, strong institutions, energetic politics and the belief that public power should be restrained by rules. That is why watching the US today is so extraordinary. Consider US President Donald Trump’s meme coin. Nearly a million accounts that bought the $TRUMP coin have lost money, according to a report in The New York Times based on analysis of blockchain transactions. Their collective losses have been...