Daniel Rechtschaffen

Geopolitical analyst and aspiring 担担面馆老板. Former Shanghailander, now based in Washington, DC. In @Slate, @Forbes, @Diplomat_APAC, @qz, @abcnews

[Arnaud Bertrand @RnaudBertrand]

This is a really funny Xi video, which I've never seen before. I just added subtitles in English to it 👇

He explains the art of giving gifts to foreign leaders. The South Korea anecdote is particularly hilarious: he explains that when China had to find a gift for President Park Geun-hye, they went through her autobiography, where she wrote that if she’d ever had a first love (she was unmarried), he would be Zhao Zilong, a legendary general from the Three Kingdoms. So they had Fan Zeng, one of China’s most famous painters, paint her crush 😂

Xi can’t resist adding that Zhao Zilong happens to come from Zhengding, the county he ran in the 1980s, which makes him "very proud too."

Xi’s actual point is that good diplomacy is personal and that you need to do deep research on the people you’re dealing with: reading their biographies, knowing their taste, their history, etc. It signals respect and, as he puts it, is "a very, very effective way of reaching people’s hearts."

[Damien Ma @damienics]

What I like about the Chinese Air Force One is that they didn't even bother to take off the Star Alliance logo.

So I have to assume my United card still gives me miles if I buy some youtiao on that plane

https://t.co/vkaPjbZ6gk

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

Is the USMCA evolving from a free trade agreement into an instrument of economic statecraft? My latest @WarOnTheRocks article examines how Washington is using the review to advance supply chain resilience, investment screening, and other economic security priorities across NorAm.

[War on the Rocks @WarOnTheRocks]

Washington now has a standing veto it can use every six years, plus a yearly pressure campaign it just switched on. Deficits explain neither of those. https://t.co/XMkkjDFJqE

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

So are you Chinese or Japanese?

[Paul Triolo @pstAsiatech]

China’s Humanoid Robot Playbook Is Becoming a Regulatory State Project
...beneath the headlines, Beijing is constructing something potentially more important than any single company robot model: a comprehensive governance, standards, testing, and lifecycle management framework for embodied intelligence.

[李老师不是你老师 @whyyoutouzhele]

特写镜头：
习近平和川普交谈时，王毅一直背身与助理谈话。一旁的蔡奇多次提醒王毅，但王毅很久后才转身。
蔡奇面露不满小声嘟囔，王毅则像小学生一样低下头。

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

My WOTR piece argues that Trump's visit won't change the negative US-China trajectory. On the contrary, another US-China rupture is likely before the end of Trump’s term and will escalate beyond tariffs to include weaponizing supply chains and other tools of economic statecraft.

[War on the Rocks @WarOnTheRocks]

Big expectations surround a possible Trump trip to China. The reality may be far less transformative. https://t.co/u1toLyAGZL

[Ryan Grim @ryangrim]

Drop Site obtained harrowing footage of the latest killing which appears to be from the perspective of the woman in pink filming from the sidewalk

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

Data shows how US increased its GPU cluster performance following the October 2022 AI semiconductor controls. Was about tied with China in 2022, now at 75% vs China's 14%.
https://t.co/kDRhfNPGab

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

The #Resistance is finally showing signs of life.

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

Couple hundred people protesting union rights outside @USDOL in #WashingtonDC right now. Lots of signs decrying #Musk: "stop the billionaire takeover", "hands off our data", "nobody elected Musk".

[Daniel Rechtschaffen @DRechts]

One positive aspect of Trump's return to office is that I'll finally be able to dust off my favorite headline of all time: "A Trump-Xi-turvy situation" (that's copyrighted FYI)

[Chris Horton 何貴森 @heguisen]

Missed this Vox piece last week - many big errors in just one graf

1. Taiwan's status has not always been ambiguous
2. Taiwan modernized under Japanese colonialism before KMT arrival
3. KMT seized Taiwan in 1945
4. ROC was established in China in 1912
https://t.co/WkSSaHPvOu...

[Mike Forsythe 傅才德 @PekingMike]

Chinese immigrants to the US, increasingly well-educated and affluent, are living their best lives here, free to read what they want, do what they want, and say what they want. They're bringing some of China's avant garde culture here, writes @61LiuYi in this brilliant article.

[Jordan Schneider @jordanschneider]

some really stark findings in here

[Carl Worker @carlworker]

Ideological opponent of China, Javier Milei, President of Argentina, describes to The Economist his delight at discovering that the Chinese are fabulous trade partners for a large agricultural exporter like Argentina: “They are fabulous. I mean, I swear to you, they do not ask for anything. Nothing. They want to trade calmly. And you know what? We have economies that are complementary. Therefore, the well-being of Argentines requires that I deepen commercial ties with China. Why? Because they are complementary economies.”

[Neil Thomas 牛犇 @neilthomas123]

Miao Hua being purged is a much bigger deal than Dong Jun

Miao is on Xi’s Central Military Commission, unlike Dong

Miao also worked in Fujian when Xi was a local leader there, suggesting that Xi is concerned enough about PLA corruption to take down people he may know well

1/4

[Timothy Cama @Timothy_Cama]

I hate Halloween in DC. What do you mean you’re the ghost of Chevron deference?

[Control Risks @Control_Risks]

Hear from Control Risks Senior Analyst @Daniel Rechtschaffen in Washington, DC and subscribe to our US Elections Monitor for more analysis of key developments and their business implications, straight to your inbox: https://t.co/Ghu06PKjq6

[Historic Vids @historyinmemes]

On July 6, 1998, Hong Kong's Kai Tak airport shut its runways, ending an era of aviation history known for one of the world's trickiest landings.