Nov 8, 2018

Sino-India Internal Security Cooperation: Can the Two Nations Walk Hand-In-Hand?

On October 22, 2018, China and India signed a comprehensive internal security cooperation agreement. This scenario was inconceivable only a year ago when troops from both sides were locked at the India-Bhutan-China border tri-junction in a stand-off for more than two months. However, both nations realized the importance of cordial relations and thus many steps have been taken since to defuse the tense situation, and to improve relations as part of confidence-building measures. There has been a strong willingness to go beyond defense exchange and cooperation, and to take a step further to include other transnational counter-crimes in the agreement. To achieve this objective, the October 22 agreement was signed by the Union Home Minister of India Rajnath Singh and China’s State Councilor and Minister of Public Security Zhao Kezhi. This cooperation includes areas such as counter-terrorism, organized crime, human trafficking, drug control and the exchange of security-related information. Notably, New Delhi and Beijing signed a Memorandum of Understanding back in 2005 to broaden and deepen defense exchanges between the two countries. The current internal security cooperation agreement is said to be the revised version of the previous MoU, which was valid only until 2015. It is expected that the consummation of this security cooperation may lead to a future Sino-India agreement on the exchange of sentenced persons. Currently, the […]

China and ASEAN Conduct Joint Military Exercises to Safeguard Peace in the South China Sea

On October 22-28, 2018, more than 1,200 China and Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) military personnel held joint maritime exercises in Zhanjiang, Guangdong, China — the headquarters of China’s South China Sea Fleet. These exercises marked the first time that ASEAN has conducted a joint military drill with a single country and also the first time that China has held maritime exercises with ASEAN. Δ Observers of participating countries and participating officers attend the opening ceremony of the China-ASEAN “Maritime Exercises 2018” which was held in Zhanjiang’s military harbor on the morning of October 22. China and ASEAN decided to establish a strategic partnership heading for peace and prosperity as early as 15 years ago, and they have made practical progress. China has been ASEAN’s largest trading partner for nine consecutive years, and was the first to establish a free trade area with ASEAN. However, the China-ASEAN relationship in areas of military and security is not as good as the relationship that exists in trade and economy. More Frequent Military Communication As early as in 2015, China officially proposed joint military drills with the 10 members of ASEAN, but ASEAN responded ambiguously at first. With improvements in China-Philippines relations and the alleviation of the South China Sea issue, in particular in regards to the substantial progress of the Code of […]

China and Japan Promote Third-Party Market Cooperation

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made an official visit to China from October 25-27,as China and Japan jointly announced on October 12. China and Japan have expressed their joint intention to vigorously promote cooperation in third-party markets. Why? What is the meaning and role of this cooperation? Δ President Xi Jinping meets with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Beijing on Oct. 26th. Li Tao / Xinhua Firstly, both China and Japan are countries with relative excess in endowment of production factors such as capital and production capacity. After the domestic economy develops to a certain stage, it is no longer able to rely on continuous large-scale domestic investment to obtain endogenous development, as is seen in periods of rapid economic growth. Motivation must rely on improving management and technology, especially through the core technologies of major industrial sectors to gain new development momentum, relying on technological innovation as a new impetus for economic development. Secondly, most of the countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative are developing countries, and some are emerging industrial countries in the process of catching up. They are emerging from poverty, with their economies just preparing to take off or just beginning to take off. In this stage, there is an urgent need for capital and technology. In particular, it is more necessary to build […]

Hong Kong and the Big Deal That is the Greater Bay Area

From the onset of major market reform in China under Deng Xiaoping, Hong Kong has acted as a guiding light and entrepôt for the rest of mainland China. Now, the financial centre finds itself at a critical juncture as the rest of the nation begins to converge with the city in respect to trade, commerce and overall economic development. With that said, how does Hong Kong manage integration with the rest of China while still upholding the principle of ‘One Country, Two Systems’? A system which has helped it to continue to thrive as an economic centre for Asia for all these years. How Hong Kong deals with this could serve as a case study for all of China on economic transition, as, upon closer inspection, the issues that threaten to compromise the city’s development, are not actually all that different from the Mainland. Hong Kong: A City of Extremes The picture of Hong Kong is very much not unlike that of China, or most of the developed world for that matter. An aging population (with a median age of 44.4 years, Hong Kong currently plays host to the ninth oldest population in the world) is contributing to a shortage of labour and innovation, while sky high house prices and staggering levels of income inequality hold the potential to unravel […]