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Chinese President Xi Jinping (right) shakes hands with Kuomintang (KMT) party leader Cheng Li-wun in Beijing on Friday.

Beijing courts Taiwan’s opposition leader ahead of Trump visit

China’s quick embrace of Cheng Li-wun is a sign it sees in her an opportunity to advance Xi Jinping’s reunification agenda.

  • Lisa Visentin

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Anthropic chief executive Dario Amodei.

This superintelligent AI is so powerful, even its creators are afraid of what it’s capable of

If Anthropic’s new AI tool falls into the hands of bad actors, they could hack pretty much every major software system in the world. And so could your kids.

  • Thomas L. Friedman
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said China had been actively working to help bring an end to the Iran war.

‘Twenty-six phone calls’: How China helped bring Tehran to the negotiating table

Beijing is being credited with playing a role in getting Iran to the negotiating table, which analysts say is bolstering its image as a peace-brokering major power while the US appears conflict-driven.

  • Lisa Visentin
Illustration by Dionne Gain

China’s been very quiet during Trump’s Iran war. There’s a good reason for that

The more the US is entangled in Iran, the better for Xi Jinping. While Trump is neglecting the main theatre of global power – the Indo-Pacific – China is focused. While Trump is destroying, China is building.

  • Peter Hartcher
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, right, poses for photos with Pakistani Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammad Ishaq Dar in Beijing.

China wants a seat at the Middle East peace table, but without the work

Donald Trump’s war in Iran has gifted China a chance to pitch itself as the more stable, responsible superpower, but when it comes to being a peacemaker Beijing has a credibility deficit.

  • Lisa Visentin
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters after stepping off Air Force One on Friday.

Trump’s ‘big present’ from Iran could be an even bigger present for China

Donald Trump thinks Iran allowing Pakistani ships passage through the Strait of Hormuz is a “very significant prize”. If US doesn’t win control of Iran’s oil, it may well backfire.

  • Stephen Bartholomeusz
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Two young women in traditional Chinese costumes on an electric scooter in east Beijing’s Dongcheng district.

China poised to reap rewards of global green shift as energy panic grips Asia

The country is not immune from skyrocketing oil prices, but Beijing’s intervention has cushioned the blow at it stands ready to reap the rewards of a potential global surge in the uptake of EVs, batteries and solar.

  • Lisa Visentin
US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea in October 2025.

China has already won Trump’s impulsive war

As Trump blusters and bullies his way through another week, China’s Xi Jinping is watching and smiling.

  • Ambrose Evans-Pritchard
Xi Trump Iran

On Beijing’s streets, ‘erratic’ Trump is playing in China’s favour

While it’s inevitable that Beijing’s narrative will shape public opinion in China, it can also be easy to write off what is a genuine confidence among the public about their country’s place in the world.

  • Lisa Visentin
Alireza Tangsiri pictured in 2024.

Iranian naval commander killed in airstrike, Israel claims

Israel’s defence minister said Commodore Alireza Tangsiri was responsible for bombing operations that have blocked ships from crossing the Strait of Hormuz.

  • Mario Parker and Arsalan Shahla