48 h. ago Exiled crown prince’s plan for Iran is mostly aimed at Trump, researchers say

No pursuit of nuclear weapons. Confronting drug trafficking. An immediate recognition of the state of Israel. Exporting copious amounts of oil and gas. Exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi laid out his aspirations on Thursday for Iran if its theocracy is toppled – and experts say they sound exactly like what US President Donald Trump wants to hear. That plan is probably aimed at trying to secure support to lead Iran if the nationwide protests succeed in ousting the Islamic Republic. Activists...

Politics

48 h. ago Exiled crown prince’s plan for Iran seen as mostly aimed at Trump

No pursuit of nuclear weapons. Confronting drug trafficking. An immediate recognition of the state of Israel. Exporting copious amounts of oil and gas. Exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi laid out his aspirations on Thursday for Iran if its theocracy is toppled – and experts say they sound exactly like what US President Donald Trump wants to hear. That plan is probably aimed at trying to secure support to lead Iran if the nationwide protests succeed in ousting the Islamic Republic. Activists...

Politics

4 d. ago J.P. Morgan Notebook: China Rises While US Biomedical Research Under Pressure

J.P. Morgan Notebook: China Rises While US Biomedical Research Under Pressure  Citeline News & Insights

Events

5 d. ago Wang Yi cites ‘severe risks’ after Somalia dropped from Africa itinerary at last minute

Authorities in Mogadishu had cleared the roads for a historic visit, yet on Friday Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi travelled to Tanzania instead of his planned visit to Somalia. It would have been the first high-level Chinese mission to Mogadishu in four decades. The last-minute decision not to include the capital on Wang’s itinerary came as Somalia seeks shows of diplomatic support after Israel recognised the breakaway region of Somaliland last month. A source at the presidential palace told...

Events

5 d. ago China’s Wang Yi cites ‘severe risks’ after Somalia dropped from Africa itinerary

China’s Wang Yi cites ‘severe risks’ after Somalia dropped from Africa itinerary  South China Morning Post

Events

8 d. ago China cites Biden’s message to Xi that Japan could build nuclear weapons ‘overnight’

China released an official report on Thursday stating that Japan “may already have produced weapons-grade plutonium in secret” and “has the technological and economic capabilities to achieve nuclear armament in a short period of time”. The report assessing Japan’s nuclear threat cited former US president Joe Biden’s direct message to Chinese President Xi Jinping that Japan had the capacity to have nuclear weapons “virtually overnight”. Biden first disclosed the information in an interview with...

Events

8 d. ago China cites Biden’s message to Xi that Japan could build nukes ‘overnight’

China cites Biden’s message to Xi that Japan could build nukes ‘overnight’  South China Morning Post

Politics

9 d. ago Maduro’s fate in Venezuela hardens North Korea’s nuclear resolve

The US removal of Venezuela’s Nicolas Maduro from power has reverberated far beyond Latin America. In Pyongyang, where regime survival is the paramount concern and every US action is scrutinised for hostile intent, the deposing of a sitting head of state sends an unmistakable message: dialogue with Washington is a dangerous gamble, and only nuclear weapons guarantee survival. The Venezuela operation may have killed the prospects for meaningful US-North Korea diplomacy in 2026 before they even...

Events

1 week ago Korean peninsula arms race is heating up. How will China react in 2026?

As the new year unfolds, China finds itself grappling with strategic pressures fuelled by two US treaty allies at its doorstep – Japan and South Korea. In the second of a two-part series, Seong Hyeon Choi looks at how competing pressures in the Korean peninsula may complicate China’s security calculus. Read the first part here. In 2025, there was a major shift in China’s security environment relating to the Korean peninsula, as the North grew more open in its push for nuclear weapons and the...

Politics

2 w. ago Why talk of a Japanese nuclear option is resurfacing – and why it alarms critics

An editorial in the Sankei Shimbun has reopened a long-taboo debate in Japan over whether the country should even discuss acquiring nuclear weapons, after off-the-record remarks by a senior security official arguing the country should have them sparked domestic and regional backlash. The conservative daily argued that growing threats from Japan’s neighbours mean no option for protecting the public should be beyond discussion, a stance that has drawn praise from some on the right and alarm from...

Events

2 w. ago SpaceX will move more than 4,400 satellites to a lower orbit after China cited safety risk

SpaceX has announced it will reconfigure its Starlink internet satellite constellation by lowering the orbit of more than 4,400 satellites throughout 2026, shortly after Beijing said the project posed “safety and security challenges”. The move aims to relocate the satellites to orbital regions less crowded by space debris and other planned satellite constellations, reducing the risk of collisions and allowing satellites to deorbit faster. It comes after an unnamed representative from Beijing...

Events

2 w. ago SpaceX will move 4,400 satellites to a lower orbit after China cited safety risk

SpaceX will move 4,400 satellites to a lower orbit after China cited safety risk  South China Morning Post

Events

2 w. ago As history makes clear, a powerful China is not expansionist

Beneath the “China threat” thesis, often heard in Western policy circles, is the assumption that China will become expansionist as it grows more powerful. But history gives us little reason to treat that as inevitable. At moments of peak strength, China has not consistently converted power into the kind of overseas colonialism, expansionism or conquest that marked the ascent of Western great powers. There are three often-cited reasons to suggest China’s rise might lead to expansionism. First,...

Politics

2 w. ago The Pentagon's New China Report: 'Conventional' ICBMs, More Nuclear Weapons and New Aircraft Carriers on the Horizon

The Pentagon's New China Report: 'Conventional' ICBMs, More Nuclear Weapons and New Aircraft Carriers on the Horizon  19FortyFive

Events

2 w. ago Japan as a nuclear power, China’s first female C919 captain: 5 weekend reads you missed

We have put together stories from our coverage last weekend to help you stay informed about news across Asia and beyond. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Chinese nuclear experts believe Japan could build nukes in less than 3 years The late US statesman Henry Kissinger’s dire warning about Tokyo aiming to become a nuclear power by 2028 is being re-examined by Beijing. 2. A year after near total blackout, China builds world’s largest smart...

Events

3 w. ago Chinese nuclear experts believe Japan could build nuclear weapons in less than 3 years

One of Henry Kissinger’s final and most sobering predictions before his death was that Japan would eventually pursue nuclear weapons. In a 2023 interview with The Economist, Kissinger warned that Japan was “heading towards becoming a nuclear power in five years”. Chinese nuclear experts estimate that Japan has the political motivation but also the technical capacity to develop nuclear weapons in less than three years, echoing Kissinger’s warning that Japan harbours ambitions to revive its...

Events

3 w. ago NASA’s new administrator cites China’s space oven as an ‘upgrade,’ points to need to reassess agency’s past rigidity

NASA’s new administrator cites China’s space oven as an ‘upgrade,’ points to need to reassess agency’s past rigidity  Global Times

Technology

3 w. ago China condemns Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi's nuclear weapons remark

China condemns Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi's nuclear weapons remark  news.cgtn.com

Politics

3 w. ago Beijing: Japanese official's nuclear weapons remarks 'not isolated'

Beijing: Japanese official's nuclear weapons remarks 'not isolated'  news.cgtn.com

Events

3 w. ago China's Foreign Ministry: Japanese official's nuclear weapons remarks 'not isolated'

China's Foreign Ministry: Japanese official's nuclear weapons remarks 'not isolated'  news.cgtn.com

Events