Rebecca Davis

Editing Resident @nytimes

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

+ Sign up for our press list here so you know about our future big events before they sell out: https://t.co/BNq57lhMKT

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

This convo between TSMC founder Morris Chang & Alibaba co-founder @joetsai1999 at @AsiaSocietyNY on Thurs is set to be a real show-stopper. It's already sold out, but if you're a reporter who wants to cover this in-person, let me know and we'll get you in https://t.co/az1XzL9OhI

[Lyle Morris @LyleJMorris]

Today, the @AsiaPolicy Center for China Analysis unveils a new program: Brothers Forever: Unpacking the Conundrum of China-Russia Relations. This program illuminates a consequential issue in geopolitics - the China-Russia relationship - and seeks to answer the big questions in modern China-Russia relations, such as:

What explains the current close partnership between the two, and what drives them apart?

How has the Ukraine War changed bilateral relations?

What can we expect from the Putin-Xi relationship going forward?

https://t.co/bBUI9tXTg7

[Kate Logan @Kate_K_Logan]

Tomorrow @antonioguterres will host a #ClimateAmbitionSummit as part of #UNGA78. He has invited “first movers and doers” to share what they are doing to accelerate climate action.

@AsiaPolicy’s new report looks at how #Asia stacks up.

https://t.co/vIDkRNAyKz

🧵⬇️

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

@dannyrrussel @batesgill1 If you’re a reporter interested in receiving @AsiaPolicy breaking news analysis direct to your inbox, sign up for our press mailing list here: https://t.co/B8dMHhSWYf

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

.@LyleJMorris is the source you want right now for parsing the tea leaves of what might be up re: Li Shangfu. Highly recommend checking out his in-depth Oct. 2022 paper on China's Central Military Commission for some key background/context: https://t.co/3M8uTKxNPi

[Lyle Morris @LyleJMorris]

Long 🧵on implications of PRC MinDef Li Shangfu being under investigation for corruption.

I haven’t commented on this until recently because it was so speculative and unsubstantiated. But given confirmation in multiple media outlets and by
U.S. officials with knowledge of the matter, it indeed appears Li is under investigation. Some initial thoughts on this.

It’s a big deal for several reasons:
1) Xi hand-picked Li to be the next PRC MinDef 6 months ago. As such, Xi put a degree of political stock in Li. There has to be a level of embarrassment for Xi so soon after appointing him.
2) This would be the second high-profile minister taken down (other being Qin Gang) whose job is to interface with foreign country counterparts. IOW, he’s not some obscure official that can be swept under the rug with and no one noticing.
3) This follows the abrupt purge last month of two generals leading the country’s Rocket Force, also unprecedented.
4) The CMC Equipment Development Department (EDD) (formerly the General Armaments Department) has long been rumored a hotbed of corruption, but with surprisingly few top EED leaders having been detained or removed. In July, the CCP re-upped an investigation into the EDD and PLA procurement process dating back to October 2017. Li ran the EDD from 2017 to October 2022.
5) Agree with @jwuthnow that the retention of CMC Vice Chair Zhang You Xia, who ran the EDD before Li, suggests his status with Xi and within the PLA is sanctimonious. He’s one of only a few senior PLA leaders with combat experience and has close ties to Xi. If he emerges unscathed, suggests he is a “tiger too big to hunt.”
6) Suggests Xi’s anti-corruption campaign in the PLA nowhere near done.
7) It’s impossible to completely root out corruption in the PLA. They are a singular power structure within a monopolistic governance structure (CCP). Like the Corleone family, you can selectively remove actors whose corrupt practices become too large to ignore to 杀鸡给猴看 and hope the message gets through. But the organized crime system stays intact.
8) It will not greatly influence the trajectory of PLA modernization or combat effectiveness. The MinDef is a symbolic position with no operational influence over the PLA.

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

"Even under Xi's ruthless anti-corruption campaign, a purge of a State Councilor is unusual. And after 10+ in power, there's no one for Xi to blame for a misjudgment of this magnitude." Additional insightful analysis from @dannyrrussel, @batesgill1 here: https://t.co/m93IDbbL92

[Bates Gill @batesgill1]

1/6 On cue, just ahead of this year's UN General Assembly (UNGA) opening, PRC issues a remarkably comprehensive new statement on "Reform and Development of Global Governance."

https://t.co/t8qWr0h4Ty

This is an important statement. Several key points in this thread ....

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

.@wendyscutler and @CleteWillems are two of the sharpest thinkers on how the US can move forward on generating new trade and economic engagement with Asia, despite our political gridlock. Worth reading their new recommendations on how to improve on the ongoing IPEF negotiations.

[Wendy Cutler @wendyscutler]

Excited to share a new @AsiaPolicy paper w/ @CleteWillems on alternative ways the United States can step up its economic engagement in the Indo-Pacific region. https://t.co/ZUIZDkWbRb

[Rorry Daniels @rorrydaniels]

ASPI hosted Wang Yi for a public speech last year ahead of the 20th PC. Watch here for his thinking then on the major challenges and opportunities facing China and US-China relations. END https://t.co/pXnEe3Nnqd

[Rorry Daniels @rorrydaniels]

Qin Gang out as China’s Foreign Minister and Wang Yi back in. Short ���on what we know, what we still don’t know, and what to look for.

[Edward Wong @ewong]

This is important insight for our era. Anyone who has lived or worked in an authoritarian state knows this.

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

If you’re a reporter interested in receiving our breaking news commentary direct to your inbox, sign up for our press mailing list here: https://t.co/B8dMHhSp8H

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

Xi Jinping just had his first call with Zelenskyy since the start of Russia’s invasion. Why now? What did Beijing hope to achieve with this? How does this fit into the broader picture of Xi’s recent engagement with EU leaders? A thread of thoughts from experts @AsiaPolicy

[Rebecca Davis @rebeccaludavis]

You can read the full quotes from our experts here: https://t.co/afOSRW7xGi