When I stared in newspapers it was often said that today’s paper is tomorrow’s fish and chip wrapper. It is a relief to know that some are not so casual about the press. John Menadue and Paul Keating both have long memories, and mark a special anniversary today. It is exactly three years to the day since The Age and SMH ran a series called ‘Red Alert – warning war with China would come within three years, making that deadline today.
Category: China
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Three years on, where is the China war we were warned of?
Three years after dire warnings that Australia must prepare for war with China, no such conflict has eventuated. Instead, the United States has continued its long pattern of military interventions. (more…)
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Herald, Age news abuse shamefully exposed
Three years ago today, the editorial leadership of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age wilfully and dangerously misled the communities of Sydney and Melbourne into believing that at or by today, 7 March 2026, Australia would face the prospect of a direct attack by China and its military on the mainland of Australia.
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Happy Chinese New Year? Fine for Howard, treason for Albanese
Mocking a prime minister for wishing Chinese Australians a happy new year says less about foreign policy than about how national identity is being weaponised in domestic politics. (more…)
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Modi in Israel, Tokyo’s shift on arms, and Duterte at The Hague – Asian Media Report
India and Israel deepen ties, Japan edges towards lethal arms exports, Duterte faces crimes-against-humanity charges, Indonesia weighs its Gaza role, Bangladesh confronts rule-of-law reform, and China’s unofficial K-pop ban shows signs of strain. (more…)
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Shen Yun and Falun Gong – belief, propaganda and division
The evacuation of the Prime Minister over a threat linked to a Shen Yun tour has drawn attention to the Falun Gong movement and its political evolution. (more…)
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How a nuclear test that never happened became news
A US allegation that China conducted a secret nuclear test was widely reported despite clear evidence to the contrary, highlighting how security claims are too often treated as facts before they are proven. (more…)
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Starlink, China and the governance of low Earth orbit
China’s massive satellite filings highlight how low Earth orbit has already been transformed by industrial-scale deployment – and how existing governance is struggling to keep pace.
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Playing deputy sheriff on Taiwan comes with costs Australia will wear
Calls for Australia to take a more forward-leaning stance on Taiwan repeat a familiar pattern – moral symbolism paired with strategic vagueness. Past experience suggests the applause is loud, but the economic consequences are real and largely borne alone. (more…)
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A loneliness crisis is the price China is paying for rapid modernisation
China’s Spring Festival masks a deeper social problem. Beneath the world’s largest annual migration lies a growing crisis of loneliness shaped by migration, inequality and institutional design.
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Confucianism, not coercion – China’s long export of a governance philosophy
Claims that China is exporting authoritarianism rest on a shallow reading of both Chinese political tradition and how governance ideas actually travel. A longer historical view points instead to Confucianism – a philosophy that has shaped governance across East Asia for centuries. (more…)
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Australia unlikely to follow US downgrade on China threat
The US National Defense Strategy signals a softer, more pragmatic approach to China. Australia’s silence on the shift exposes how detached its defence posture has become from both reality and its own national interests. (more…)
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The China AI panic misses what history keeps teaching us
Warnings that China must be cut off from advanced AI chips echo a familiar pattern. History suggests technology bans rarely slow China down – and often do the opposite.
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China pushes ahead in 2026 as Trump plays catch-up
China entered Donald Trump’s second presidency wary but prepared. Experience has taught Beijing to expect volatility, but also negotiation, shaping a strategy of caution, leverage and long-term planning.
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Steadfast state support is key to China winning tech race with US
China’s sustained investment in science, engineering and technology is pulling it ahead globally, while the United States cuts research funding and hollow-outs its scientific workforce.
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Historic trade deal rejects Trump’s chaotic protectionism – Asian Media Report
The mother of all trade deals to America’s new defence strategy, the dismissal of a PLA princeling, Prabowo’s Peace Board support, ASEAN’s rejection of Myanmar junta’s poll victory and the deadly serious business of marriage in China – we present the latest news and views from our region. (more…)
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China’s swift ousting of Zhang Youxia is a sharp warning on party purity from Xi
Seemingly risky move to oust two generals ahead of Communist Party congress and PLA centenary sends a message about anti-corruption drive. (more…)
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Australia’s China student pipeline is facing a credibility problem
Australian universities remain popular with Chinese students, but online chat reveals growing scepticism about academic rigour, employability and value for money. These perceptions raise hard questions about the long-term sustainability of Australia’s education export model.
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China’s ambitions are narrower than Washington thinks
China’s foreign policy priorities are driven more by domestic stability and long-standing sovereignty claims than by ambitions to dominate the global order.
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The US is powerless to push China out of Latin America
Trump’s move on Venezuela signals a wider push to squeeze China out of Latin America. But Beijing’s trade, investment and infrastructure ties may prove hard to unwind.
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Can Washington still strike a grand bargain with Beijing?
A prominent Chinese academic argues the conditions are right for a US–China “grand bargain”. But recent events in Venezuela and the Middle East raise hard questions about what kind of America China is dealing with.
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Best of 2025 – Democracies good, China bad – and history not required
Japan and China both have legitimate security concerns. But an informed debate needs major media outlets to stop systematically erasing the historical context that shapes how the region understands current events. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – After Trump goes home
If anyone had any lingering doubts about the change in the world order, the sight of President Trump pumping his fist into the air at the doorway of Air Force One, before turning his back on Asia to fly home, they should be put to bed now. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – The ABC and News Corp finally agree on something: China panic
Last week, a friend asked if I was worried about Chinese “nuclear threats”. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – Taiwan as an integral part of China: A historical, legal and geopolitical analysis
The status of Taiwan remains one of the most contested topics in modern geopolitics and one of the most misrepresented. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – Lack of China capability can only do harm to society: Our current situation is a disgrace
In March 2023, the Australian Academy of the Humanities sounded the alarm on the decline in our understanding and knowledge of China through a report on “Australia’s China Knowledge Capability”. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – A masterclass in agency: What Singapore can teach Australia about China
Singapore’s new Prime Minister Lawrence Wong sat down with the ABC on 2 October and offered something rare in Australia’s China debate: clarity, confidence, and a middle-power strategy that doesn’t involve shouting or submission. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – If we want to win the Pacific, we must first listen – and stop blaming China for everything
A 9 September editorial in The Sydney Morning Herald, titled China and Australia in a high-speed race to win control of the Pacific, offered a vivid picture of the daily contest for influence in the region. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – Who’s afraid of big, bad China?
Be afraid, be very afraid. But not of China. To the contrary, the proper management of co-operative relations with China is essential to Australia’s future. (more…)
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Best of 2025 – Australia is one trade deal away from backing authoritarians, says Taiwan
In the grand tradition of diplomatic overreach, Taiwan’s deputy foreign minister recently offered some sweet and spicy talking points to our media: semiconductors are tanks, China is akin to WWII Germany, and if Australia doesn’t fast-track Taiwan into the CPTPP, we might all wake up speaking Mandarin under a fascist AI regime, as reported by News Corp and 7 News. (more…)