HSBC has become the first foreign bank with investment business in mainland China to set up a Chinese Communist Party (CCP) committee as part of its operations, according to a July 21 Financial Times report. HSBC Qianhai is a securities joint venture between HSBC and Qianhai Financial Holdings. After HSBC’s stake in the joint venture increased from…

Chinese leader Xi Jinping reportedly intends to have a confidant he’s known for decades become the country’s next vice premier, while Xi himself expects to enter his third tenure during the 20th national congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) that occurs later this year. On March 11, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang revealed at a…

Lithuania’s strong stance against economic pressuring from China is drawing international support. I speak with Lithuanian MP Matas Maldeikis on this matter. He explains why Lithuania is choosing to fight the battle against authoritarianism.  A video game pokes fun at China’s pandemic failures. Meanwhile, rising cases in China force more inhumane lockdowns. Japan makes moves to…

News Analysis The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is “civilizing” the internet at home and proposing similar crackdowns globally, in what should be a wake-up call to anyone who values their online freedom. China’s cyberspace regulator plans to establish a “civilized” internet that reshapes online discourse for more thorough dissemination of CCP propaganda into the daily…

News Analysis Xi Jinping’s investigation of financial institutions in China, and their alleged chumminess with the largest private firms, will increase his political power, but harm the country’s economic growth. After targeting the media, education, gaming, and technology sectors in China, and wiping out billions of dollars in the process, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)…

Commentary The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the Taliban, Afghanistan’s new rulers, have formed increasingly strong bonds. The CCP has its eyes on Afghanistan’s mineral deposits, which are worth somewhere in the region of $1 trillion. The United States occupied Afghanistan for 20 years, yet failed to capitalize on the most lucrative of opportunities. Home to…

Commentary As readers of this column ought to know, China’s economy has a lot going against it these days. Prominent among its growth impediments are COVID-19, aging demographics, and a shift in the West to source in other economies. Now evidence has begun to pile up that Beijing’s “Made in China 2025” plan, with its…

Commentary In August, Shanghai’s education authorities forbade its elementary schools to give English language final exams. That shocked many Chinese nationals, who see English, and the international access it provides, as critical for the country’s economic development. Many others may see English as their passport out of the country. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has…

Commentary Sing Tao, Beijing’s most influential propaganda outlet in the overseas Chinese communities, has been required by the U.S. Department of Justice to register its U.S. subsidiary as a “foreign agent.” This is the first Hong Kong-based news outlet to be thus labeled. Sing Tao’s parent company is Sing Tao News Corporation Limited (STNC). According to…

Commentary Under Xi Jinping, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is increasing its control of the economy by establishing the Party units in state-owned enterprises, private companies, joint ventures, and foreign companies, both at home and abroad. Through the cybersecurity law, the Party is able to gain access to all data, even data held by foreign…