Senior Analyst (China, Taiwan) at Wikistrat. Former U.S. diplomat. Op-eds: Forbes, National Interest, Newsweek, SCMP. Lived in China 2006-12, Vietnam 2013-18.
Taipei and Tokyo
Joined June 2013
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"Between 1994 and 2023, China made almost US$300 million from its panda-rental program." - writes @Chellaney taipeitimes.com/News/editori…
Gary Sands retweeted
Almost everything in China might threaten “国家安全” (national security). But Chinese govt docs worried about threats to“人类共同” (humankind) is new to me.
China is getting more worried about AI risks and national security.
This was the most striking part of China’s new draft export controls on AI and other technologies:
“Technologies proposed for control in this round, such as AI-driven autonomous malware generation and mutation technologies, could be used to attack sensitive systems, including national critical information infrastructure, national defense and military industries, and core government operations, or to circumvent national security defenses. If acquired by non-state actors or malicious entities, these technologies could pose threats to national security and the collective security of humanity.”
Especially that last line: 可能对国家安全和人类共同安全造成危害
Designed around the affordable mass concept, the Mighty Hornet IV is a jet-engined loitering munition that possesses 90 percent of a crewed fighter jet’s strike capabilities for US$500,000 per unit. taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/…
China's interpretation of Sun Yat-sen "does not stay faithful to historical fact ... It uses these commemorations to promote a narrative of 'opposing Taiwan independence and promoting unification,'" the council said.
reuters.com/world/china/taiw….
Gary Sands retweeted
UPDATE: Japan scrambled fighter jets after China's Liaoning conducted 10 aircraft takeoffs and landings 155 miles south of Ishigaki Island yesterday. Japan's military says the carrier group subsequently entered the Luzon Strait, heading toward the South China Sea.
Gary Sands retweeted
Norwegian soldiers discovered that Chinese-owned Volvo rental cars recorded and stored videos during a major military exercise in Oslo from September 14–18.
The footage captured soldiers entering and leaving vehicles, their movements, locations and even security codes used to access restricted areas.
Despite the discovery, the military continued using the cars due to a lack of alternatives.
Source: DN
My alma mater George Washington University, through generous support from the Ministry of Education of Taiwan, announces its new Taiwan Studies Course Development Award. Applicants must submit completed applications to TERP by November 1st, 2026. terp.elliott.gwu.edu/
Gary Sands retweeted
Since June, ICE has been arresting Hongkongers lawfully present in the US by intercepting airports, holding them for weeks, and pressuring them to sign voluntary departure forms. In every case I’ve handled, courts eventually order them released, but this only happens after weeks or months of illegal detention of innocent people. Even after release, many are forced by ICE to wear ankle monitors and barred from leaving their area.
@phelimkine of @politico investigates these illegal detentions in a new article out today. DHS told him that DED "is not a status." But Hanscom Smith, who served as US consul general in Hong Kong under both Trump and Biden, shared the reality: if you're a Hongkonger here on DED, you're here legally.
Many of these people were part of the 2019 democracy protests. Administration officials have told us the White House will not extend DED past February 5. After that, DHS's position is that it can put them on a plane back to a government that jails people for wearing a "liberate Hong Kong" T-shirt or posting pro-democracy statements on social media.
Senator Merkley and Rep. McGovern's Hong Konger Promise of Refuge Act would let these Hongkongers stay and apply for green cards. It is the clearest fix on the table, and it needs support now. Time is short: Please ask your senators and representative to cosponsor it.
Republicans in particular: this should be your bill too. In 2021 Marco Rubio cosponsored legislation to fast-track Hong Kong exiles for refugee status. These are pro-democracy Hongkongers fleeing the Chinese Communist Party, and every one of them was vetted before arriving. We need Republican cosponsors to get it moving, and I'm glad to talk with any office considering it.
politico.com/news/2026/10/10…
Gary Sands retweeted
Japan is buying drones from a Ukrainian company whose interceptors have been knocking Russian Shahed attack drones out of the sky. Japan’s defense minister says the contract is signed and Tokyo wants them delivered as fast as possible.
defence-blog.com/japan-signs…
"As with Russian President Vladimir Putin before he decided to invade Ukraine in 2022, or with U.S. President Donald Trump before he launched a war with Iran in 2026, an elderly Xi could very well find himself insulated from reality, surrounded by cowed subordinates, and stumbling into catastrophe."
"In 2022, some 138 million urban retirees drew an average pension of $6,080 per year, roughly 18 times more than the meager $345 received by China’s 175 million rural and migrant retirees."
"Mid-twenty-first-century China could end up looking a lot like the sixteenth-century Ming dynasty, a sclerotic political regime rendered increasingly brittle by worsening social, gender, and generational divides." -writes @CarlMinzner foreignaffairs.com/china/chi…
"Mid-twenty-first-century China could end up looking a lot like the sixteenth-century Ming dynasty, a sclerotic political regime rendered increasingly brittle by worsening social, gender, and generational divides." -writes @CarlMinzner foreignaffairs.com/china/chi…
Gary Sands retweeted
China’s campaign to expand its reach in the Pacific has a new target: a chain of tiny Philippines islands critical to any U.S. defense of Taiwan. on.wsj.com/4i90u5b
I would not be surprised if they sold tickets to the execution and made it pay-per-view.
The U.S. military plans to livestream the execution of Nidal Hasan, the ex-Army major who was convicted of the 2009 killing of 13 people at Fort Hood, when he faces a firing squad on Dec. 3, a Pentagon official said.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said earlier Thursday the Pentagon planned to make the execution public.
Hasan's case could mark the military's first execution of an American service member since 1961.
Gary Sands retweeted
Taiwan's KMT shows signs of power struggle tracked by US and China s.nikkei.com/4jNRzHz
Gary Sands retweeted
EXCLUSIVE: China militia boat spotted for first time off Taiwan's east coast, patrol finds reut.rs/4hLGkg3 reut.rs/4hLGkg3
If Taiwan made an official declaration of independence, only 24 percent of Chinese surveyed supported using military force, 59 percent supported a military blockade on commercial shipping and maritime traffic in the Taiwan Strait and 56 percent supported imposing economic sanctions on Taiwan. taipeitimes.com/News/taiwan/…
As a former US diplomat, I had the privilege to visit a similar facility in the early 90s, when suddenly the power went out, causing some concern around the refrigerated viruses.
BREAKING: U.S. Embassy Moscow issues a Health Alert regarding the suspected pneumonic plague in Irkutsk
U.S. Embassy: The U.S. Embassy is aware of press reports from the Irkutsk region of suspected pneumonic plague resulting in the death of an individual and of associated quarantine measures in, and closures of, hospitals in Irkutsk. We continue to track the situation closely. The U.S. government has limited ability to help U.S. citizens in Russia, especially outside of Moscow. U.S. government personnel may face additional restrictions for personal and official travel to specific regions due to health and security concerns.
The State Department’s Level 4 Travel Advisory (Do Not Travel) for Russia remains in place and states U.S. citizens currently in Russia should depart immediately. U.S. citizens planning travel to Russia are again strongly advised not to travel to Russia due to risk of wrongful detention and security concerns.
