Earlier this month, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order to close the de minimis loophole (under which shipments valued at or below $800 avoid tariffs and taxes) for imports from China and Hong Kong. The change will officially take effect in early May. Not long after, in response toContinue Reading
Since February of this year, the activities of China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) around Taiwan appear to have intensified. First, from February 1 to March 31, the PLA conducted up to eight “joint combat readiness patrols.” On April 1 and 2, the PLA conducted military exercises around Taiwan for twoContinue Reading
Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump signaled a shift in his approach to tariffs, pausing his “reciprocal” tariffs for a 90-day period to seek a negotiated path to rebalance trade while doubling down on tariffs on China and maintaining a 10 percent universal tariff on all other trading partners. ThisContinue Reading
The ongoing trade conflict between China and the United States is not merely a matter of intergovernmental policy confrontation or macroeconomic adjustment; it has also served as a catalyst for internal transformation within Chinese enterprises. Under the pressure of U.S. tariffs since 2018, Chinese firms have been forced to chooseContinue Reading
A survey from last November found that 34.7 percent of Taiwanese believed that being pro-United States would provoke China to invade Taiwan. Although the number decreased by 6.5 points from 2023, these figures are alarming. They show that many Taiwanese people are misreading the conditions under which China would launchContinue Reading
Chinese researchers have unveiled a new deep-sea tool capable of cutting through the world’s most secure subsea cables − and it has many in the West feeling a little jittery. The development, first revealed in February 2025 in the Chinese-language journal Mechanical Engineering, was touted as a tool for civilianContinue Reading
The Diplomat author Mercy Kuo regularly engages subject-matter experts, policy practitioners, and strategic thinkers across the globe for their diverse insights into U.S. Asia policy. This conversation with Dr. Julie Yu-wen Chen – professor of Chinese Studies at the University of Helsinki in Finland and a participant in the EUContinue Reading
Reporting on April 9 suggested that the Trump administration in the United States had reversed course on restricting the export to China of H20 chips – Nvidia’s most advanced offering to remain outside U.S. export controls. Reportedly, the White House’s change of heart followed President Donald Trump’s dinner with NvidiaContinue Reading
In the wake of the Constitutional Court’s removal of Yoon Suk-yeol from the presidency on April 4, South Korea’s political parties have swiftly moved to elect their candidates for the snap presidential election scheduled on June 3. Lee Jae-myung, the former leader of the main opposition Democratic Party who wasContinue Reading
As Mongolian consumption increases, the capital, and its municipalities need a working mechanism to manage the growing amount of waste. Mongolia’s waste sector is in dire need of not only policy reform but also a new way of looking at waste and its connections to public and environmental health. InContinue Reading
