China

Japan

South Korea

Politics

New Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi met with South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Oct. 30 and 31, respectively, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, South Korea, Bloomberg reported. 

Japan: Takaichi Meets With South Korea's Lee and China's Xi on the Sidelines of APEC 

Europe

Economics

The European Union is discussing an "in kind" tariff requiring Chinese exporters to supply critical raw materials to EU strategic stockpiles if the two do not reach a diplomatic solution to Chinese export controls on certain critical raw materials, Bloomberg reported on Oct. 31. 

EU, China: Bloc Considers Retaliatory Options as Critical Raw Material Talks With China Fail

United States

Russia

Military & Security

In an Oct. 29 post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump said he had directed the Pentagon to "start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis" with Russia and China.

U.S.: Trump Calls for Resumption of Nuclear Weapons Testing

Taiwan

The new leader of Taiwan's main opposition Kuomintang, or KMT, Cheng Li-wun, reiterated her objections to the government's plan to raise defense spending to 5% of Taiwan's gross domestic product by 2030, citing financial concerns, Focus Taiwan reported on Oct. 29.

Taiwan, U.S.: New Opposition Head Rejects Defense Hike, Risking U.S. Ire

Chinese President Xi Jinping published an explanation of China's 15th five-year plan for economic development from 2026-30, noting that amid foreign uncertainty, consumption and stable growth were key, Xinhua reported on Oct. 28.

China: President Xi Explains Five-Year Plan for 2026-30

Brunei Darussalam

Cambodia

Timor-Leste

Indonesia

Laos

Malaysia

Myanmar

Philippines

Singapore

Thailand

Vietnam

China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations signed the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area (CAFTA) 3.0 upgrade at the ASEAN leaders' summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Channel News Asia reported on Oct. 28. 

China, ASEAN: Trade Pact Upgrade To Expand Bloc's Market Access

U.S.-China Relations

The U.S. and Chinese trade teams met Oct. 25-27 in Malaysia, with both sides suggesting they had agreed on a number of terms that could be turned into a formal deal when U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping meet Oct. 30 in South Korea, The New York Times reported.

U.S., China: Envoys Agree on Trade Terms Ahead of Xi-Trump Meeting

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said during a business conference in Berlin that Brussels is "focusing on finding solutions with our Chinese counterparts" but remains prepared to "use all instruments in our toolbox to respond if needed" to Beijing's restrictions on rare earth exports, Politico reported on Oct. 25.

EU, China: EU May Use Anti-Coercion Tool, Announces Long-Term Diversification Strategy

Snapshots

U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and China's President Xi Jinping leave after their talks at the Gimhae Air Base, in Busan, South Korea, on Oct. 30, 2025. 

Global Trade

The framework deal favors China by boosting its export competitiveness, but future escalations with the U.S. are likely over the coming year due to differing interpretations of the new measures and ongoing trade tensions.

China Secures Favorable U.S. Trade Deal, New Escalations Still Likely

Assessments

U.S. President Donald Trump (center) poses for a group photo with the leaders of (L-R) Singapore, East Timor, Vietnam, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia and Laos during the ASEAN leaders summit on Oct. 26, 2025. 

The summit highlighted the Southeast Asian bloc's attempts to boost internal unity and economic integration amid the U.S.-China rivalry, but it also exposed structural divides and external pressures that hinder unified action and leave ASEAN states vulnerable to coercion.

The Takeaways From the 2025 ASEAN Summit

Columns

On Geopolitics

Germany

Slovakia

Hungary

Ukraine

European Council President Antonio Costa and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrive for a meeting of the European Council on Oct. 23. The EU pursuit of geopolitical independence is being severely tested by Russia's direct security aggression, China's control over critical raw materials and competing economic pressures from the United States.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The EU pursuit of geopolitical independence is being severely tested by Russia's direct security aggression, China's control over critical raw materials and competing economic pressures from the United States.

Europe's Dual Challenge From China and Russia

Cameroon

Cote d'Ivoire

Tanzania

Argentina

Netherlands

Supporters of Argentine President Javier Milei's Liberty Advances (LLA) party wave flags during a campaign rally in Rosario, Argentina, on Oct. 23, 2025.

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

The Weekly Rundown: Argentina Holds Midterm Elections, Trump Travels to Asia

Australia

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

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.

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

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.

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.

Kazakhstan

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

<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

Japan: Takaichi Meets With South Korea's Lee and China's Xi on the Sidelines of APEC

EU, China: Bloc Considers Retaliatory Options as Critical Raw Material Talks With China Fail

U.S.: Trump Calls for Resumption of Nuclear Weapons Testing

Taiwan, U.S.: New Opposition Head Rejects Defense Hike, Risking U.S. Ire

China: President Xi Explains Five-Year Plan for 2026-30

China, ASEAN: Trade Pact Upgrade To Expand Bloc's Market Access

U.S., China: Envoys Agree on Trade Terms Ahead of Xi-Trump Meeting

EU, China: EU May Use Anti-Coercion Tool, Announces Long-Term Diversification Strategy

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