Kinaforum

lørdag 30. mai 2026

Penpa Tsering sworn in for a second term to lead Tibet’s government-in-exile

Penpa Tsering was sworn in Wednesday for a second consecutive term as the president of Tibet’s government-in-exile following his reelection earlier this year. Tsering, 58, has led the exile government based in Dharamshala, India, since 2021. He secured another five-year term in elections held in February among Tibetans living in India and overseas. Tsering was first elected to the Tibetan Parliament-in-Exile in 1996 and served as speaker from 2008 until he rose to the top executive post.

Formed in 1959, Tibet’s government-in-exile, now called the Central Tibetan Administration, has executive, judicial and legislative branches.

Tsering said Wednesday that the Central Tibetan Administration “remains firmly committed to the ‘Middle Way Policy’ envisioned by His Holiness the Dalai Lama,” adding that the policy seeks resolution through nonviolence, dialogue and lasting mutual benefit.

US and China trade journalist expulsions in tit-for-tat moves

The Trump administration has revoked the visa of a Chinese national working for the state news agency Xinhua in the United States, in an apparent reciprocal act to Beijing’s decision to expel a New York Times reporter. A person familiar with the matter confirmed the visa had been revoked. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter involves visa privacy. A State Department official confirmed there was a plan to revoke the visa.

The tit-for-tat move by the Trump administration has followed the expulsion by Beijing of Vivian Wang, a China correspondent for The New York Times, apparently over the appearance of the Taiwanese leader in a DealBook event in which Wang had no role. It was a rare occasion of the U.S. government directly retaliating against Beijing’s expulsion of American journalists.

In a California Chinese enclave, a mayor’s guilty plea stokes fears of Beijing’s influence

In 2024, voters in the Southern California city of Arcadia elected the first all-Asian city council in the city’s history. Now, one of those politicians has pleaded guilty to being an illegal agent of the Chinese government. Former Arcadia Mayor Eileen Wang’s plea, entered in federal court Friday,continues a saga that some residents of the area worry could bring unfair scrutiny on the broader Chinese and Asian American community.

Arcadia has gone under rapid demographic change in the last two decades as immigrants from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong flocked to the San Gabriel Valley east of Los Angeles. After Wang’s case was made public May 11, the news made national headlines and filled the unassuming suburban city with anger, disappointment and murmurs of quiet concern. On social media, fears about spies and Chinese Communist Party influence abounded.

Hegseth tones down China warning at defense forum

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth yesterday at a defense conference assured Pacific allies that Washington remained committed to the region, but toned down previous comments calling China a threat.

Speaking to a group of world leaders, diplomats and top security officials at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Hegseth said the region “has profound implications for US security and prosperity,” and that Washington’s priority was to “achieve a lasting and favorable balance of power in the Pacific.” The meeting comes about two weeks after US President Donald Trump visited Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.

The War Trump Can’t End: Washington needs a deal, but Tehran needs an enemy.

For nearly five decades, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been preparing for a war that Donald Trump expected would take days.

As virtually every American president since World War II has learned, a monopoly on focus can outlast a monopoly on power. America under Trump is the attention-deficit superpower, pinballing from isolationism to interventionism in Venezuela, Iran, and Cuba, having hollowed out the State Department. The Islamic Republic is an obsessive-compulsive revolutionary state—a regime with a half-century fixation on resisting America, rather than advancing the welfare of its own people. Fighting America is not the regime’s policy; it’s the regime’s identity.

The deadlock is both ideological and structural. To justify the immense costs of conflict to American taxpayers, Trump must demand far more from Tehran in any deal than he would have before the war began. Conversely, having lost hundreds of billions of dollars and its top leadership, Iran’s theocracy must demand far more—and concede far less—than it ever would have previously.

How do US arms sales to Taiwan work and why are they such a sore point for China?

After US President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping earlier this month, much focus has been put on Washington’s support for Taiwan and US arms sales to its government. On the first day of those talks Xi delivered a stark warning to his US counterpart – that Taiwan, the most important outstanding issue between the US and China, could become a “very dangerous situation” if mishandled.

Trump has delayed signing a $14 billion arms deal for Taiwan that was recently approved by Congress, calling it a “very good negotiating chip” in his dealings with Xi.

Meanwhile, acting US Navy Secretary Hung Cao said the deal was being delayed as the Pentagon made sure it has enough weapons for the war with Iran.

Some of the world’s last Maoist rebels are in India. Their decades-long rebellion is in its death throes

Outgunned, outnumbered and on borrowed time, Papa Rao emerged from the jungle of central India wearing a faded checkered shirt, dusty trousers and scuffed sports shoes. He had a rifle slung over his shoulder and a $26,000 bounty on his head.

Behind him, in single file, trailed a troop of men and women carrying decades-old L1A1 and Lee-Enfield rifles. In sandals, and carrying Puma-branded sports backpacks, this group were some of the world’s last Maoist rebels, heirs to a global revolutionary movement that fought capitalism for control of the 20th century. They were on their way to surrender.

Fired by the teachings of China’s Mao Zedong, they had spent decades battling to overthrow the Indian state, and install in its stead a classless utopia.

China is ‘losing a chance’ by not being at the Shangri-La Dialogue

China is losing a chance at dialogue by not having a ministerial-level delegation at an annual defense forum in Singapore, Germany’s chief of defense General Carsten Breuer said on Saturday. Speaking at a media roundtable on the sidelines of the IISS Shangri-La Dialogue, Breuer said that China is losing this chance at a time when the world is “contested.” This was “dangerous,” he said, warning that, “in my 42 years as a soldier, I’ve never experienced such dangerous times like we are living in the world as today.”

Breuer’s comments came after China’s defense minister Dong Jun skipped the conference for a second straight year, with Beijing sending a lower-level delegation led by Major General Meng Xiangqing from the People’s Liberation Army National Defence University.

Belgrade bets on Beijing as Budapest pivots to Brussels

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic’s state visit to China on May 25, 2026, sent a major geopolitical and geoeconomic signal at a moment when the international system is becoming increasingly fragmented between competing power blocs.

The visit, marked by meetings with Xi Jinping and the signing of more than 20 bilateral agreements covering infrastructure, artificial intelligence, green technology, trade, education and digital connectivity, demonstrated Belgrade’s deepening strategic relationship with Beijing even as it formally pursues membership in the European Union.

Taiwan’s more relaxed than most of us about Trumpian deal-making

The most common worry expressed around the world concerning the summit meeting in Beijing on May 14-15 was the fear that the future of Taiwan and its 23 million residents might be traded off in a deal between the men leading the world’s two true superpowers, Xi Jinping and Donald Trump.

The American president might soften his country’s support for Taiwan in return for Chinese help in ending the war in Iran. He might get such spectacular promises from Xi of Chinese purchases of soybeans or Boeing aircraft that he would agree to reduce US sales of weapons to Taiwan.

Torbjørn Færøvik: China Celebrates Tibet's Defeat 75 Years Ago

Slogans have echoed loudly across Tibet in recent days. “Long live Tibet’s peaceful liberation!” has crackled from loudspeakers and megaphones. “Let us build the Chinese national community!” and “Long live the great, glorious, and correct Chinese Communist Party!”

Seventy-five years have passed since Chinese and Tibetan representatives signed an agreement that paved the way for the People’s Republic of China’s takeover of Tibet. The event took place in Beijing, where the Tibetan delegation was isolated and placed under intense pressure by the hosts. The outcome was inevitable.

In Tibet’s capital, Lhasa, the Chinese authorities have marked the anniversary with singing, dancing, and lengthy speeches. A local leader, Sun Xianzhong, said in his speech that the people of “Xizang” had created a “human miracle” by leaping over several thousand years in just a few decades. In recent years, the Chinese authorities have been eager to replace Tibetan place names with Chinese ones. Xizang is therefore Beijing’s preferred name.

Torbjørn Færøvik: Kina feirer Tibets nederlag for 75 år siden

Slagordene har sittet løst i Tibet de siste dagene. «Lovet være Tibets fredelige frigjøring!» har det spraket fra høyttalere og megafoner. «La oss bygge det kinesiske nasjonale felleskapet!» og «Lenge leve det store, ærerike og korrekte kinesiske kommunistpartiet!»

75 år er gått siden kinesiske og tibetanske representanter signerte en avtale som banet vei for Folkerepublikken Kinas maktovertakelse i Tibet. Hendelsen fant sted i Beijing, hvor den tibetanske delegasjonen ble isolert og satt under kraftig press av vertskapet. Resultatet var uunngåelig.

I Tibets hovedstad Lhasa har de kinesiske makthaverne feiret jubileet med sang, dans og lange taler. En lokal leder, Sun Xianzhong, sa i sin tale at folket i «Xizang» hadde skapt et «menneskelig mirakel» ved å hoppe over flere tusen år på noen tiår. De kinesiske makthaverne har i de senere år hatt det travelt med å erstatte tibetanske stedsnavn med kinesiske. Xizang er derfor Beijings foretrukne navn.

Trump’s $1.5 trillion military splurge destined to backfire

Earlier this month, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stood in front of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees to defend the Trump administration’s record-breaking US$1.5 trillion military budget proposal for FY2027. According to the White House, this 66% year-over-year increase signals a renewed commitment to “defeating any adversary” and will deliver what President Trump has referred to as a “Dream Military.”

This blueprint will not pass Congress unscathed. However, the larger problem is that the Trump administration’s budget request reflects Washington’s aimless and self-defeating grand strategy.

According to its supporters, a massive military buildup will help the US deter and counter “complex [threats] across multiple theaters,” including those posed by a rising China and a resurgent Russia. Washington may also reassure its allies and partners and incentivize them to double down on recently initiated defense budget increases, in part under American impetus.

Chinese human rights cases in limbo after Trump-Xi meeting

During his summit with China's Xi Jinping this month , US President Donald Trump said that he brought up two prisoners — Christian pastor Ezra Jin Mingri and Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai. Mingri is the founder of the Zion Protestant Church, one of China's largest underground churches, who was arrested in 2025.

Lai, meanwhile, was sentenced in February to 20 years for foreign collusion and sedition over his ownership of the now-defunct, pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper. In remarks to reporters on May 15, Trump said Xi had said he would "strongly consider the pastor." But the US president pointed out that his Chinese counterpart had described Lai's case as "a tough one," with Trump admitting he "didn't feel optimistic" about it.

Serbian president deepens ties with China while facing pressure from protests at home

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic deepened ties with China on Monday during a trip to Beijing as he faced pressure at home from anti-government protests in his Balkan country, including a major rally that prompted clashes over the weekend.

After a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the two leaders witnessed the signing of more than 20 cooperation agreements, covering areas such as politics, trade, technology and education, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported. During their talks, Xi told Vucic that their countries should strengthen exchanges and cooperation to push their comprehensive strategic partnership to new heights.

Penpa Tsering begins second term as Sikyong of exile Tibetan administration

Mr Penpa Tsering has taken his oath of office as the Sikyong (executive head) of the Central Tibetan Administration for a second five-year term this morning following his more than 61% electoral victory in February at a ceremony attended by Tibet’s exile spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama, along with Indian and international guests. The venue was the courtyard of the Tsuglakhang, the main Buddhist temple in Dharamshala, India.

Amid warnings from China against India over the event, the ceremony was also attended by parliamentarians and parliamentary Tibet group representatives from several countries, including India, El Salvador, Chile, the United Kingdom, and Scotland. CTA’s Chief Justice Commissioner Yeshi Wangmo administered the oath of office.

How China Got One of the World’s Largest Human Rights Convenings Canceled

On April 29, the shocking news broke that RightsCon 2026, one of the world’s largest human rights-related convenings, would be cancelled. On April 30, Access Now, the organizers of RightsCon, issued a statement saying that RightsCon would not take place either in-person or online. The news came less than a week before opening day and left over 3,000 participants scrambling to cancel their flights and accommodations.

RightsCon is an annual gathering of primarily civil society and human rights advocates, joined by business leaders, policymakers, government representatives, technologists, academics, and journalists, on topics exploring the intersection of human rights and technology. In 2025, it was held in Taipei, Taiwan and before that in Costa Rica, Tunisia, Canada, and Belgium, as well as virtually during the COVID-19 pandemic. The May 5-8 gathering in Lusaka, Zambia was celebrated as a historic event, being the first time RightsCon would be held in Sub-Saharan Africa.

European companies double down on China manufacturing despite EU de-risking push

More European companies are maintaining or expanding their supply chains in mainland China to remain competitive globally, according to a survey released Wednesday by the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China.

Nearly one-third of respondents said they were onshoring further in China, while 37% said they had not changed their supply chain strategy over the last two years, the report said. The survey was based on responses from nearly 300 members collected from January to February who were familiar with their companies’ mainland China supply chain strategies. In total, 68% of respondents said they were either staying or expanding operations in China. By comparison, only 7% said they were moving factory sourcing outside the country or setting up alternative manufacturing bases elsewhere, the report said.