The End of Chinese Growth

This article is one of 10 essays in the Summer 2026 print issue, The End of the World as We Know It. The magazine cover features a large hourglass with a black and white logo with the text "SUMMER 2026" and a stacked list of terms.

The False Promise of U.S.-China Stability

Juan A. CZIN is Michael H. Armacost Chair in Foreign Policy Studies at Brookings Institution’s China Center and co-host of the podcast The Beijing Brief. He was Director for China at the National Security Council from 2021 to 2023 and a member of the Senior Analytic Service at the Central Intelligence Agency.

Miss Hong Kong stirs Cantonese debate, China cuts degrees in AI push: 5 weekend reads you missed

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Xi Jinping’s Secret War: How China Is Bankrolling Russia’s Assault on Ukraine

Xi Jinping hosted US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Beijing within the same week in May. Trump's visit produced trade optics, Putin's visited produced strategic coordination on Ukraine. The real business in Beijing was Russia. Xi and Putin have met more than 40 times, with formal talks on at least 25 occasions. China has been supplying Russia’s war machine.

Fear of Being Left Behind: Taiwanese Concerns After the Trump–Xi Summit

In May 2026, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a highly anticipated summit in Beijing. Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR) conducted a nationwide telephone survey between May 28 and May 31, 2026. The survey interviewed 1,127 adults aged 18 and above across Taiwan, including both landline and mobile phone samples.

Shi Ping and Miles Yu Meet in Tokyo, Call Each Other ‘Comrades-in-Arms’

Shi Ping is a member of Japan’s House of Councillors. Recently, he met with Miles Yu, director of the China Center at the Hudson Institute. Both men are natives of Sichuan Province and have been sanctioned by the Chinese Communist Party. Shi is known for his anti-CCP stance and has repeatedly criticized Beijing over issues involving Taiwan, the Nanjing Massacre, Xinjiang, and Hong Kong.

China’s Official Communist Youth League Account: Degree or No Degree, You’ll End Up Delivering Food

The Communist Youth League posted a graphic about graduate unemployment. Chinese users said it finally told the truth. For roughly three decades, Chinese society operated on an implicit social contract: academic performance would be rewarded with employment and social mobility. By 2025 and 2026, the system had reached what he called “education bankruptcy”

Taiwan launches website to collect intelligence on China

Taiwan's National Security Bureau has launched a website for Chinese citizens to leak intelligence. It invites those who share the same values of democracy to collaborate on reporting on Beijing. China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to take it. Taipei accuses Beijing of using espionage and infiltration to weaken its defences.

$14 Billion Taiwan Weapons Package Faces Uncertainty Amid US–China Tensions

The proposed US$14 billion arms sale package to Taiwan remains unresolved. China is the most serious threat facing the United States. Xi Jinping has taken a hardline stance toward Taiwan. The 1979 Taiwan Relations Act requires the U.S. to provide Taiwan with “defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capability”

Industrial expansion

President Lai Ching-te and C.C. Wei attended the groundbreaking ceremony of Pingtung Science Park’s semiconductor supply chain zone June 12 in the southern Taiwan county. He pledged to continue promoting high-tech industries to drive local and national development.

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