Author: Nectar Gan

Would a Trump presidency change China’s calculations on Taiwan?
30Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
China, World

Would a Trump presidency change China’s calculations on Taiwan?

WASHINGTON/TOKYO/TAIPEI -- As former President Donald Trump gains momentum in his bid for a return to the White House, observers are examining how a potential Trump presidency affects Taiwan policy and whether it changes Beijing's calculations, including the time line for China's publicly stated desire for unification. "During the majority of the Trump administration, one of the worst kept secrets in Washington was that Trump didn't care about Taiwan," Evan Medeiros, former National Security Council senior director for Asia under President Barack Obama, told Nikkei Asia. "There were some rumors that, in fact, he even said that during meetings with Chinese officials." Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton wrote in his 2020 memoir, "The Room Where It Happened," that one...
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110,000 Communist Party officials in China, according to the anti-corruption body, were disciplined last year.
30Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
China, World

110,000 Communist Party officials in China, according to the anti-corruption body, were disciplined last year.

The 2023 disciplinary drive targeted tens of thousands of officials who did not perform their duties properly as well as those who received money and giftsThe Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the party’s enforcement agency, warned officials to stick to the rules in the run-up to Lunar New Year About 110,000 Chinese Communist Party officials faced disciplinary action last year as part of the ongoing drive to clean up the party’s act, according to the country’s top anti-corruption body.The figures published by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) on Sunday represent a 13 per cent increase in the number of cases compared with the previous year.There is little sign of Beijing easing up on its latest crackdown more than a year after the party’s national congr
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Taiwan is the largest danger to Sino-US relations, according to China’s Wang.
27Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
China, World

Taiwan is the largest danger to Sino-US relations, according to China’s Wang.

China's struggling economy may also dampen Beijing's appetite for what had been more combative ties with Washington amid improving Chinese relations with Russia. Wang and Sullivan agreed to properly handle important and sensitive issues in U.S.-China relations, China's foreign ministry said, and for Xi and Biden to "maintain regular contact to provide strategic guidance for bilateral relations … Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan held candid talks in Bangkok aimed at keeping in contact, both sides said, with Wang stressing that "Taiwan independence" posed the biggest risk to Sino-U.S. ties. The meeting came just over two months after U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic
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China’s 2023 political upheaval
24Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
China, World

China’s 2023 political upheaval

In 2023, China emerged from COVID-19 related troubles utilising large-scale vaccination but faced economic struggles, high youth unemployment and ongoing debt issues within the housing market. On the political front, the year was marked by changes in key leadership roles, alleged corruption scandals within the nuclear weapons programme and shifting international relations — particularly involving Russia's war against Ukraine and tensions with the United States, despite attempts to restore dialogue. China entered 2023 emerging from one sea of troubles, only to find itself embroiled in another. The lifting of COVID-19-related restrictions in November 2022 as a result of widespread protests saw the country largely return to normal by January 2023. Against the expectations of many, the
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India-Maldives dispute: “We can’t guarantee every country will support us; politics is politics,” says Jaishankar
15Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
Politics, World

India-Maldives dispute: “We can’t guarantee every country will support us; politics is politics,” says Jaishankar

Amid the ongoing diplomatic row with the Maldives, Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar recently said that “politics is politics” and that “it can’t be guaranteed that every country will support or agree with India every time” even as he highlighted India’s continuous efforts to build global connections. “But, seriously, as a solution, what we have been trying to do in the last 10 years, with a lot of success, is to build a very strong connect, so that, though the politics may go up and down, the people of the country, the society, generally have good feelings towards India and understand the importance of having good relations with India,” the minister said. Jaishankar was speaking at a conference in Nagpur on Saturday, a day before the Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu set
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Strengthening Diplomatic Resilience: Charting The Evolving Trajectory Of India-saudi Arabia Relations Amid Global Dynamics
2Jan By Nectar GanNo Comments
Asia, Politics

Strengthening Diplomatic Resilience: Charting The Evolving Trajectory Of India-saudi Arabia Relations Amid Global Dynamics

Amid escalated tensions in the Red Sea and a drone strike targeting Saudi oil en route to India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi engaged in a crucial telephonic dialogue with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud. Their recent exchange reviewed bilateral strides, focusing on geopolitical complexities post the Crown Prince's September 2023 visit and G20 Summit participation. The dialogue emphasized regional stability, maritime security, and shared concerns about terrorism and violence. This diplomatic discourse also celebrated collaborative efforts, including an energy MoU and the Global Biofuel Alliance. The narrative highlights the nations' historical journey, major milestones, and key collaborations, underscoring their burgeoning strategic partnership and collective vision for sustainab...
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According to PM Modi, India would be a developed nation by the year 2047.
30Dec By Nectar GanNo Comments
Asia, World

According to PM Modi, India would be a developed nation by the year 2047.

Despite heavy odds and global crises, India showed remarkable resilience to keep inflation under control, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, exuding confidence that the BJP was a "natural choice” for the people and will form a majority government for a third time in a row in 2024.In an interview with newsmagazine India Today, released on Friday, Modi said the country was on the road to fulfilling the target of becoming a $ 5 trillion economy and a developed country by 2047. Noting that his government is investing in skill development, he said the New Education Policy will help small and medium enterprises grow into larger enterprises and restructure financial markets. Hitting out at the Opposition, he said the country was aware of the pitfalls of the coalition governments."We have
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India’s hard vote in Bangladesh: Joy Bangla over Jamaat, Hasina over China
30Dec By Nectar GanNo Comments
Asia, World

India’s hard vote in Bangladesh: Joy Bangla over Jamaat, Hasina over China

In the coming Bangladesh elections, India does not have the luxury of NOTA (none of the above), even if it secretly wishes it did. In statecraft, decisions dwell beyond love or loathing. That Sheikh Hasina remains India’s best bet in Bangladesh shows, at one level, the failure of diplomatic imagination or intent on its part. Along her current 15-year stint, she has become increasingly unpopular in her nation for random imprisonment and forced disappearances of her opponents and critics, allegedly hijacking elections, nepotism, corruption of those close to her and police and cadre violence which did not even spare children. The January general elections in Bangladesh will be fought without the main opponent, BNP, which has boycotted it calling the process rigged and farcical. In h
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Once more, Biden administration circumvents Congress to sell Israel military hardware.
29Dec By Nectar GanNo Comments
World

Once more, Biden administration circumvents Congress to sell Israel military hardware.

The Biden administration for the second time this month has bypassed Congress to approve the transfer of nearly $150 million in military equipment to Israel amid the country’s war against Hamas. Secretary of State Antony Blinken informed Congress that he has made an emergency determination to immediately approve the transfer of “155mm ancillary items including fuzes, charges, and primers that make 155mm shells functional,” a State Department spokesperson said Friday. “Given the urgency of Israel’s defensive needs, the secretary notified Congress that he had exercised his delegated authority to determine an emergency existed necessitating the immediate approval of the transfer,” the spokesperson said. The spokesperson said the additional items were added to previous sales, which “
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An activist from Hong Kong leaves the nation and seeks political asylum in Britain.
29Dec By Nectar GanNo Comments
World

An activist from Hong Kong leaves the nation and seeks political asylum in Britain.

An activist who advocated for Hong Kong independence and was imprisoned under a sweeping national security law has fled to Britain to seek political asylum, according to his social media posts on Friday. Tony Chung was among the first people convicted under the Beijing-imposed law introduced after the 2019 pro-democracy protests. He was found guilty of secession and money laundering in 2020 and sentenced to 43 months in prison. The intimidation faced by Hong Kong dissidents like Chung reflects the drastic erosion of the freedoms promised to the former British colony when it returned to China in 1997. But both Beijing and Hong Kong have hailed the security law as bringing stability to the city. Chung detailed in two Instagram posts how he was under a supervision order after his re...
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