China

Military & Security

Politics

At China's fourth plenum from Oct. 20-23, Beijing appointed Central Military Commission (CMC) member Zhang Shengmin as the new CMC vice chair, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 23.

China: Party Frames Purged Military Generals as Challengers of Top Leaders

Economics

A communique summarizing the proceedings of China's Oct. 20-23 fourth plenum pledged to "seek progress while maintaining stability," expand domestic demand, stabilize employment and uphold manufacturing as the foundational "real economy."

China: Plenum Charts Steady Economic Plan, Trade Deterrence, Internal Security

United States

Kazakhstan

The U.S. Trump administration is supporting Cove Kaz Capital Group's bid to develop two of Kazakhstan's largest tungsten deposits, facilitating negotiations with the sovereign wealth fund Samruk-Kazyna and exploring financing through the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and Export-Import Bank, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 21. 

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

Europe

Russia

China and Russia on Oct. 18 signed an agreement to cooperate on expanding shipping in the Northern Sea Route that runs along Russia's northern shore, bne IntelliNews reported on Oct. 20.

China, Russia: Deal Reached To Expand Arctic Shipping Route

Taiwan

On Oct. 18, Taiwan's main opposition party, Kuomintang (KMT), elected 55-year-old Cheng Li-wun as its new party leader, the Taipei Times reported on Oct. 20.

Taiwan: Opposition KMT Elects Pro-China Firebrand as New Leader

Australia

A Chinese Su-35 fighter jet engaged an Australian P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft over the Paracel Islands of the disputed South China Sea, releasing flares in close proximity and issuing a warning to the Australian aircraft in what China described as an intrusion of its airspace, the South China Morning Post reported on Oct. 20. 

China, Australia: Mid-Air Flare Incident Over South China Sea Highlights Mutual Distrust

A defense ministry spokesperson announced that the Chinese Communist Party was expelling nine individuals from the Party and the military, including vice chair of the Central Military Commission and Politburo member He Weidong and CMC member Miao Hua, Reuters reported on Oct. 17.

China: Top Military Cadres Purged, Efforts Increasingly Counterproductive

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

European chip maker Nexperia notified European automobile manufacturers and their suppliers on Oct. 10 that it could not guarantee delivery of the chips they need for their automotive supply chains, the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, or ACEA, revealed in an Oct. 16 statement.

Europe, U.S.: Nexperia Tells Automakers It Cannot Guarantee Supply of Chips

Assessments

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese (left) and U.S. President Donald Trump speak to reporters during a bilateral meeting in the Cabinet Room of the White House on Oct. 20, 2025, in Washington, D.C. 

Trump and Albanese agreed to tighten defense and supply chain integration as a way to reduce their countries' reliance on China, but industrial bottlenecks mean implementation will be slow.

U.S.-Australia Leadership Summit Yields Critical Minerals Pact, AUKUS Reaffirmation

Snapshots

Japan

South Korea

Japan's new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks during a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Oct. 21, 2025.

Sanae Takaichi's appointment as prime minister will reduce short-term political instability in Japan and strengthen U.S. ties, but her conservative government will struggle to recover domestic support and could alienate neighboring countries.

New Premier Takaichi a Quick Fix for Japan's Long-Term Political Problems

Chinese President Xi Jinping, center, and other senior government members and deputies attend the second plenary session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People on March 8, 2025, in Beijing, China.

Global Trade

The key political meeting will fill vacant Party seats and update economic and security goals, offering insights into China's policy priorities and the trajectory of Xi's political purges for the next five years. 

What To Watch for During China's Fourth Plenum

Sanae Takaichi, the newly elected LDP leader, on Oct. 4 in Tokyo.

Takaichi will lean into populism, spurring near-term growth but exacerbating long-term economic challenges, while her nationalism will bolster Japan's military and boost U.S. ties even as it strains those with Japan's neighbors.

Japan's Conservative Takaichi Set To Become Next Prime Minister

Iran

The U.N. Security Council holds a meeting on Iran at the U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, on Sept. 19, 2025. 

Energy

U.S.-Iran Relations

The increased isolation will make Iran more reliant on China and Russia, while the added economic strain could fuel domestic protests and empower Iranian hard-liners calling for more aggressive action against the West.

U.N. Sanctions Snapback: What's Next for Iran?

Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng arrives for trade talks with US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent at the foreign ministry in Madrid on Sept. 14, 2025.

U.S.-China Relations

A Trump-Xi phone call and a fourth round of U.S.-China trade talks have yielded few concrete results, showing that negotiations on trade and TikTok will remain slow-going.

Despite Trump-Xi Phone Call, U.S.-China Trade Talks Struggle To Gain Traction

Flag of China on a red-painted printed circuit board.

Cyber

Advancements in China's semiconductor sector are reducing Chinese companies' reliance on foreign technology, enabling them to push back more firmly against Western hegemony.

China's Chip Advances Increase Beijing's Leverage in Talks With the U.S.

In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev waits to greet foreign leaders during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states leaders' summit in Astana on July 4, 2024.

Despite President Tokayev's reform proposals, Kazakhstan's succession process will remain vulnerable to destabilizing forces, including elite rivalries and foreign influence.

How Kazakhstan's Proposed Reforms Will Impact the Question of Succession

India

Participants of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit 2025 pose for photos in Tianjin, China, on Sept. 1, 2025.

U.S. trade uncertainty will help China deepen trade ties with its Central Asian neighbors and infrastructure ties with Russia, but its relations with India will remain inhibited by border disputes and differing defense priorities.

China Positions Itself as Growth Catalyst for Central Asia at SCO Summit

Ecuador

Mexico

North Korea

Ukraine

Helicopters fly in the sky during a rehearsal for a military parade Aug. 24 in Beijing.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: An SCO Summit, Rubio Closes Security Deals With Mexico and Ecuador

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a meeting on May 14, 2015, in Xian, China. 

While Trump-era tariff pressures offer a new economic incentive for cooperation, Beijing and New Delhi are unlikely to fully normalize ties due to enduring strategic and security concerns.

Despite Modest Improvement, India-China Relations Face Enduring Challenges

Bolivia

Israel

Palestinian Territories

An aerial view shows a campaign poster of Bolivian presidential candidate Samuel Doria Medina and his supporters marching during a rally in La Paz, Bolivia, on Aug. 12, 2025.

The Weekly Rundown: Bolivian Elections, a Controversial Israeli Settlement Plan 

<p>China is situated on the eastern third of the Eurasian landmass, between Russia, mainland Southeast Asia, the Indian subcontinent and Central Asia. Its more than 9,000 mile-long coastline abuts the Yellow, East and South China Seas. China is a country of deep geographic divisions. Most fundamental is the split between its fertile eastern lowlands and the arid, sparsely populated highlands that enclose the lowlands like a shell. More than a billion people live in the ethnic Han Chinese core, making it one of the most densely populated places on Earth. Traditionally, threats to China&#39;s Han core originated in the borderlands. To guard against overland invasion, successive Chinese rulers have sought to push the Core&#39;s borders outward &mdash;integrating these highlands as strategic &quot;buffer&quot; zones. These zones form a shield, protecting and containing the core. To be secure, China must control the buffer regions. But maintaining control of the regions, in turn, requires a strong and united core. And that means overcoming immense internal divisions &mdash; not only between northern and southern regions orbiting the Yellow and Yangtze rivers, but also between smaller regional units, each with their own geography, history, dialect and interests. Chinese history is defined by cycles of unity and fragmentation, from periods when a strong Han core captures and holds the surrounding buffers to those when a weak core breaks into its constituent parts, loses internal coherence and cedes control of the borderlands. This pattern, rooted in China&#39;s geography, has played out with remarkable consistency. By comparison, China&#39;s maritime interests have remained mostly limited to coastal waters. Today, however, growing international trade and rising Chinese reliance on overseas resources threaten to alter the pattern, adding a new maritime dimension to the struggle for buffer space &mdash; and potentially upending the long-standing dynamics of China&#39;s geographic challenge.</p>

SITUATION REPORTS

China: Party Frames Purged Military Generals as Challengers of Top Leaders

China: Plenum Charts Steady Economic Plan, Trade Deterrence, Internal Security

Kazakhstan, U.S.: Trump Team's Tungsten Push Invites U.S. Investment, Risks Chinese Ire

China, Russia: Deal Reached To Expand Arctic Shipping Route

Taiwan: Opposition KMT Elects Pro-China Firebrand as New Leader

China, Australia: Mid-Air Flare Incident Over South China Sea Highlights Mutual Distrust

China: Top Military Cadres Purged, Efforts Increasingly Counterproductive

Europe, U.S.: Nexperia Tells Automakers It Cannot Guarantee Supply of Chips

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