Good evening. Before yesterday’s election in Taiwan — in which the Democratic Progressive Party pulled off a historic third victory — some track-two groups relayed to Beijing the steps the U.S. government might take in congratulating the new president, whoever was elected, as a way to assure China. Our cover story this week takes readers behind the scenes of track-two discussions, including the many purposes they serve and the potential meaning behind their recent uptick.
Elsewhere, we have infographics on Chinese spenders and the Trump Organization; an interview with Vanessa Hope on Taiwan, the invisible nation; a reported piece on Beijing’s dangerous game with the markets; and an op-ed from Paul Triolo about the moving goalposts on technology controls. If you’re not already a paid subscriber to The Wire, please sign up here.
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Back on Track?
Could a recent flurry of “track-two” activity be a sign that relations between Beijing and Washington are stabilizing? Informal meetings on critical topics like AI arms control and military-to-military communications have picked up recently, and both U.S. officials and the track-two participants say the impact was obvious at November’s summit between Xi Jinping and Joe Biden. Bob Davis reports.
The Big Picture: Playing the Trump Card
Chinese interests have emerged as by far the biggest spenders at Trump Organization properties during the former president’s term. This week’s infographics by Aaron Mc Nicholas detail which Chinese companies were the highest spenders.
A Q&A with Vanessa Hope
Vanessa Hope is an independent filmmaker whose 2015 documentary All Eyes and Ears told the stories of the U.S. Ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, his adopted Chinese daughter Gracie Mei, and blind legal advocate Chen Guangcheng, to explore the complex links between the U.S. and China. Her most recent work, Invisible Nation, is a documentary featuring unprecedented access to Tsai Ing-Wen, the first woman leader of Taiwan, the self-governed island in East Asia whose 23 million people have called it the Republic of China since 1949. In this week’s Q&A with Jonathan Landreth, she talks about making the film, democracy in Taiwan and Tsai’s legacy.
Vanessa Hope
Illustration by Lauren Crow
Beijing Plays A Dangerous Game With the Markets
Beijing’s ‘crackdown’ on the video game industry spooked investors, wiping out almost $100 billion of the gaming companies’ market value since new draft regulations came out on December 22. But China is now backtracking on its new video gaming regulations, Eliot Chen reports, showing how ‘shock and awe’ regulation has gone out of style.
The Industry View of U.S. Export Controls: Moving the Goalposts
The Trump and Biden administrations’ efforts to restrict China’s access to chips has led to five years of confusion for companies, argues Paul Triolo in this week’s op-ed.
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