Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 66

The Dalai Lama’s Succession: Strategic Realities of the Tibet Question

The Post-Dalai Era, according to Chinese analysts, will begin immediately after the 14th Dalai Lama dies. Public statements by Chinese officials are vague about the risks they expect to face at the time of his death: Officials speak in public only in general terms about the overriding importance at that time of “safeguarding the unity of the motherland, strengthening national unity, and carrying

How the Dalai Lama is planning to use his death to thwart China

The Dalai Lama will be 90 on July 6. According to his doctors, he remains in “excellent health”, but following knee replacement surgery last year in the United States, his advancing age and frailty have become more evident. It is a particularly significant age for the man who since 1959 has lived in India, having fled Tibet following the Chinese invasion of his country.He has said that his

Chinese President Xi Jinping's Tough Childhood Revealed in New Book: Excerpt

Chinese President Xi Jinping's father, Xi Zhongxun, was a Communist Party official for more than seven decades—from the Communist Revolution through the Great Leap Forward, the Cultural Revolution, the Tiananmen Square protests and beyond. In the first English biography of Xi Zhongxun, The Party's Interests Come First, Professor Joseph Torigian uncovers the story of his life and of the modern

China Research Ship Spotted on NATO's Doorstep

China continues to expand its military reach around the world as one of its naval ships was seen transiting the Strait of Gibraltar and heading into the Atlantic Ocean over the weekend. The presence of the Chinese navy near NATO member states comes as the United States has dispatched an aircraft carrier-led strike group from the East Coast for a mission in Europe. The Chinese military possesses

Chinese factory activity improves slightly with delay on tariffs, but still lags

Chinese factory activity improved somewhat in June after President Donald Trump agreed to delay imposing higher tariffs on imports from China for 90 days, but overall activity was still contracting, according to a survey released Monday.  The purchasing managers index, which reflects new orders and other measures, rose to 49.7 from 49.5 in May, the National Bureau of Statistics reported.

CHINA-TAIWAN WEEKLY UPDATE, JUNE 27, 2025

The China–Taiwan Weekly Update is a joint product from the Institute for the Study of War and the American Enterprise Institute. The update supports the ISW–AEI Coalition Defense of Taiwan project, which assesses Chinese campaigns against Taiwan, examines alternative strategies for the United States and its allies to deter the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) aggression, and—if necessary—defeat

Maps Show Russian Territory China Could Annex Amid FSB 'Suspicion'

Russia fears China could annex part of its Far East region, including the port city of Vladivostok, and beyond, according to a leaked document from Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB). The eight-page internal FSB document, obtained by The New York Times, reveals that despite Russian President Vladimir Putin's outward projection of warm ties with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, he fears Beijing is

Is Chinese President Xi Jinping on his way out?

Over the past few months, unprecedented developments point to the potential, and potentially imminent, fall of China’s “Chairman of Everything” Xi Jinping. Chinese Communist Party elders — including Hu Jintao, Xi’s immediate predecessor, whom Xi humiliated at the 20th Party Congress in 2022 — are now running things behind the scenes. Xi is in poor health and likely to retire at the CCP Plenary

US, China formalize deal on rare earth shipments in trade breakthrough

China on Friday signaled it would approve the export of rare earth minerals to the US, hours after White House officials said the two sides had reached a deal, in what would be a major breakthrough following weeks of negotiations over US access to the key materials. Rare earths – essential in everything from everyday electronics to fighter jets – had become a key focus of trade frictions between

The ‘Central Contradiction’ That Plagued Xi Jinping’s Father

As China’s top leader, biographical details of Xi Jinping are tightly controlled. Official biographies are scripted and arranged around key messaging approved by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). That historical flattening applies to Xi Zhongxun, Jinping’s father as well. Though less known outside of China than his peers like Deng Xiaoping and Zhou Enlai, Xi Zhongxun too was one of the elder