Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 291

Pacific nations walk geopolitical tightrope over Ukraine war, as nuclear legacy looms

Some Pacific island nations have been left walking a geopolitical tightrope in their response to the war in Ukraine, as they try to balance regional alliances with both the west and China and Russia. Comments by Russian president Vladimir Putin, which many have interpreted as thinly veiled threats about the potential use of nuclear weapons have also touched a nerve in a region long affected by

Yeshe Dorje: For Tibetans, Putin’s Invasion of Ukraine Sparks Bitter Memories

I know what it means when Russian President Vladimir Putin says he is “liberating” Ukraine – China’s Chairman Mao Zedong used the same slogan when he sent his troops to Tibet in 1949-50. Likewise, Putin’s allegation of rampant “neo-Nazis” in a country headed by a Jewish man echoes Mao’s accusation of “foreign powers” ruling in Tibet, a country that did everything possible to keep foreigners out

Shanghai Lockdown Diary: The Quest for Food Brings an Apartment Complex Together

Xujiahui, Shanghai, April 26: We knew almost no one in this high-rise of 31 stories, 90 units, and more than 200 people, until March 29, the first day of our building’s lockdown. (We got a head start on the rest of the city because they found a case in our building – lucky us.) Until then, few neighbors said more than to each other than the occasional “ni hao” exchanged in the lifts or the

Shanghai lockdown: The hard life of a homeless deliveryman

Weeks into a strict lockdown, most of Shanghai's 25 million population continue to rely on delivery riders to bring them food and supplies. But this largely invisible workforce of 20,000 faces a lack of shelter and safety. Two delivery riders tell the BBC their stories.I've been so busy. So many people need supplies. I make deliveries all day long, then when it's approaching midnight, I look for

Can the US Deter a Taiwan Invasion?

As the world comes to grips with Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the questions surrounding why Western deterrence has seemingly failed to prevent such a situation will be hotly debated. But beyond the implications for the United States and Europe, perhaps the most common analysis being made, rightly or not, compares Russia President Vladimir Putin’s designs on Ukraine with Chinese leader Xi

How does Japan’s post-war constitution hold up in an era of increasing great power competition?

2022 marks the 75th anniversary of Japan’s remarkable constitution. It is Japan’s second, preceded by the Meiji Constitution of 1889 that heralded a similar overhaul of Japan’s social and political institutions. Both documents reflected a conscious effort to transform Japan to keep pace with global dynamics. The Meiji Constitution signaled an embrace of modernity by Japanese elites as the

China’s Inadvertent Empire: Welcome to Sinostan

In “Sinostan: China’s Inadvertent Empire,” Raffaello Pantucci and Alexandros Petersen take readers into the heart of Eurasia for insight into Beijing’s rise. Over a decade of travel, research, and writing went into the book, which charts the growth of Chinese power and presence in Central Asia. It was in Kazakhstan where, in 2013, newly minted Chinese President Xi Jinping first laid out the

China Suggests Attack on Taiwan Can't Be Called 'Invasion'

Beijing has given the strongest hint yet that it would reject attempts to categorize a future attack on Taiwan as an "invasion," after a government official suggested the term wouldn't apply to another "part of China." The Chinese government in Beijing, established after the Chinese Civil War in 1949, has never governed Taiwan, whose president, Tsai Ing-wen, describes the island democracy as a "

Why Is No One Talking About Elon Musk's Ties to China?

Ever since Elon Musk offered to buy Twitter for $44 billion, a debate about free speech and social media has been roiling the internet. The Right sees in Musk a savior from Twitter's liberal bias, while the Left sees in Musk someone who would eliminate content moderation, allowing all manner of views and speech on the social media platform. Both sides are missing an equally important other side

Rural Chinese Cycle Between Mechanization and Migration

Since the beginning of the reform period in the 1980s, millions of rural Chinese have left the countryside for opportunities in the city. According to the 2020 national census, China’s “floating population” — defined as people who have been away from their registered place of residence for more than six months — has risen to more than 375 million, or over one quarter of the total population. This