#143 Chinese Tennis Star Peng Shuai Is Not OK

China has been warning for years that it will take control of Taiwan, an independent, democratically-ruled island off of China's eastern coast. China has been using a number of grayzone warfare tactics to try to get it to surrender voluntarily, but so far it hasn't worked. A recent incident in Taiwan's waters has made the possibility of a war very real, and China has been stepping up its encroachment into Taiwan's territory ever since. In this just us episode of China Unscripted, we discuss China's latest provocative moves, McDonald's plans to expand in China, and how Chinese-made shipping cranes might be spying on us.

India is the only country to have shed blood in a skirmish with Chinese soldiers in recent history, and they're ready to shed more blood to defend their country, according to Professor M.D. Nalalapat, the director of the department of geopolitics and international relations at India’s Manipal University. He joins us in this episode to discuss Taiwan's election, how the Ukraine war is affecting Taiwan, and India's relations with Russia.

The Chinese Communist Party may not seem all that good at propaganda, but that doesn't mean it's stupid when it comes to pushing the West's buttons. In this episode of China Unscripted, we look at China's information warfare, what it's doing in space and why the South China Sea matters when it comes to understanding China's ambitions. 

China's rocket-fueled economic rise has not only slowed significantly in the past few years, but if you strip away all the government propaganda that makes the economy look better than it is, China's economy could even be shrinking. This has investors short-selling or bailing faster than the passengers on the Titanic. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss the effect that the Hong Kong national security law had on Hong Kong, how that's affecting the economy, and what the Hong Kong security law 2.0 might look like. Joining us in this episode is Benjamin Qiu, an attorney at Elliott Kwok Levine & Jaroslaw, a New York based law firm that, among other things, advises corporations on how to handle the risks of investing in Hong Kong and Mainland China.

Besides calling Taiwan a country, there are fewer easier ways to anger China than to watch a Chinese cultural dance performance based in the US. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss the Chinese Communist Party's ongoing attacks on Shen Yun, why it's such a target and the insidious ways China's propaganda is getting into the media and college campuses.

China framed Taiwan's 2024 presidential election as a decision between war and peace. And according to China, Taiwan voted for war. That's because DPP candidate William Lai, who won in a landslide, has been very open about his opposition to moving closer to China. Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Colonel Grant Newsham, a former Marine intelligence officer who has lived in Taiwan as part of a Taiwan Ministry of Foreign Affairs fellowship. He’s also the author of the book When China Attacks: A Warning to America.

China trying to meddle in US elections may not be front page news anymore because it's been going on for so many years. But that doesn't mean it's no longer a threat. In fact, China's attempts to interfere in US democracy are more alarming than ever, and China's doing it in more ways than you might think. In this episode of China Unscripted, we talk about how China is trying to meddle in American democracy, what the US should do about China's militarized islands in the South China Sea, and why the US response to conflicts in the Middle East and Europe have an effect on China's plan to invade Taiwan. Joining us in this episode is John Teichert, a retired US Air Force brigadier general who wrote “Boom!: Leadership that Breaks Barriers, Challenges Convention, and Ignites Innovation.” He’s currently running for the US Senate representing Maryland.

China is one of Israel's biggest trading partners, and a big investor in Israel's tech industry. However, after Oct. 7, it turned out that that relationship was only skin deep. China never condemned Hamas's attack on innocent Israeli civilians and has shown support for Hamas in other not-so-subtle ways. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss the China-Hamas relationship, Israel's relationship with China, and how China is perceived in the Middle East. Joining us in this episode is Jonathan Cristol, a professor of international affairs at Yeshiva University in New York City and author of "The United States and the Taliban before and after 9/11".

Europeans are gradually wising up to the threat of the Chinese Communist Party. So why is the EU so completely inept at China policy? Joining us on this podcast for the second time is Theresa Fallon. She’s the founder and director of the Centre for Russia Europe Asia Studies, based in Brussels. She’s also a member of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific.

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In this episode of China Unscripted, we look at China in 2023 and make predictions for 2024. We discuss China's economy, US-China relations, the fentanyl crisis, Temu and much, much more.