The CSS Blog Network

26 September 2018 International Relations, Economy

The US-Chinese Trade War Begins

By Börje Ljunggren

Image courtesy of The White House/Flickr.

This article was originally published by YaleGlobal Online on 19 September 2018.

In his book Fear, journalist Bob Woodward suggests that Donald Trump’s protectionist instincts may be stronger than previously thought, preventing him from making commercial peace with traditional allies or trade partners. Recent actions against China leave no doubt. Yet, this is not simply the Trump administration directing “protectionist firepower” against China, to quote James Politi of the Financial Times. A geopolitical fight is also emerging about global technological leadership and US ambitions to contain China on this crucial frontier.

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19 September 2018 Security, Development

Are We Being Played in the Pacific?

By Fergus Hanson

Image courtesy of Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade/Dan Pilhorn/Flickr. (CC BY 2.0)

This article was originally published by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s (ASPI) The Strategist on 10 September 2018.

If you were trying to design a low-cost strategy to constrict the operational horizon of an important US ally in the region, China’s ploys in the Pacific wouldn’t be a bad model to examine.

China has been talking a big game in the Pacific. It’s been reported as looking to fund a major regional military base in Fiji and scoping Vanuatu for a military base of its own. And it apparently has plans to refurbish four ports in Papua New Guinea, including the strategically significant Manus Island. Over the decade 2006–2016, it has committed US$1.8 billion in aid, and Chinese telco Huawei has sought to build undersea internet cables in the region.

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10 September 2018 International Relations

China and Russia in Global Governance: Long-Term Obstacles to Cooperation

By Marcin Kaczmarski

Image courtesy of Kremlin.ru. (CC BY 4.0)

This article was originally published by the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) on 22 August 2018.

  • Russia and China play dissimilar roles in global governance and define their interests in this sphere in divergent ways. While the two states agree on certain international principles and norms, their engagement with global governance differs significantly. These differences pose the most serious long-term obstacle to closer cooperation between Moscow and Beijing.
  • China’s growing participation in global governance is tightly linked to the increasing scope of its interests. China supports economic globalization and market openness and is interested in political and economic stability on a global scale. Beijing also aspires to have a greater say in international institutions.
  • In comparison to China, Russia’s participation in global governance is significantly lower due to narrower interests on a global scale, fewer financial resources, and less advanced integration into the global economy. As a result, global political and economic stability is not crucially important for the current Russian leadership. On the contrary, uncertainty and volatility help Moscow broaden its influence.

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30 August 2018 International Relations

SCO Members, Observers and Dialogue Partners

By the Center for Security Studies

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This graphic provides an overview of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) members, observers and dialogue partners. For more on the SCO, including how Europe and Switzerland could engage with the organization, see Linda Maduz’s new comprehensive study Flexibility by Design. For more CSS charts, maps and graphics, click here. Click image to enlarge.

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29 August 2018 Economy

Can China Free Africa from Dependency on the Mighty Dollar?

By Peter Fabricius

Image courtesy of Vladimir Solomyani/Unsplash

This article was originally published by the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) on 13 August 2018.

By extending the influence of the yuan, China could become the new champion of globalisation.

Is China, aided and abetted by the other BRICS member countries – Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa – making a bid to dislodge the dollar from its global pedestal and replace it with the yuan? And if so, will it help African countries, in particular, to escape from the iron and often onerous grip of the greenback?

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