China

India

Economics

The Indian government decided not to extend its $23 billion production-linked initiative scheme aimed at incentivizing domestic manufacturing and luring companies away from China, limiting the program to its original 14 pilot sectors, Reuters reported on March 21. 

India: $23B Manufacturing Scheme To Lapse Following Shortcomings and Delays

Canada

Politics

China has executed four Canadian dual nationals thus far in 2025, all on unspecified drug-related charges, AP reported on March 19.

China, Canada: Ottawa Reveals Beijing's Executions of Four Dual Nationals This Year

United States

Iran

Energy

The U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical Co., Ltd. (Luqing Petrochemical), a small Chinese "teapot" oil refinery in Shandong that operates independently of the Chinese state, and its CEO over buying and refining "hundreds of millions of dollars" worth of Iranian oil, OFAC said in a March 20 press release. 

China: U.S. Sanctions Chinese 'Teapot' Oil Refiner Over Iran for First Time

Bangladesh

India is refusing Bangladesh's requests to restore the regular issuance of medical visas, citing staffing shortages and strained bilateral relations, Reuters reported on March 19.

India, Bangladesh: India's Restrictions on Bangladeshi Medical Visas Create Opportunity for China

Japan

South Korea

The foreign ministers of China, Japan and South Korea will meet in Tokyo, Japan, on March 22, marking the first such trilateral talks since 2023, Reuters reported on March 18. 

China, Japan, South Korea: Foreign Ministers To Meet for First Time Since 2023

Taiwan

Military & Security

China launched air and sea drills around Taiwan on March 17, deploying 59 warplanes -- with 43 crossing the median line of the Taiwan Strait, an unofficial boundary between Taiwan and China -- nine maritime (both naval and coast guard) vessels, and an unspecified number of advanced drones, the Taipei Times reported the next day.

China, Taiwan: Taipei Responds to Chinese Drills With Novel, Large-Scale Combat Readiness Exercises

Indonesia

Malaysia

Thailand

Europe

The United States imposed visa sanctions on Thai officials for the Feb. 27 forced repatriation of 40 Uyghurs to China, The New York Times reported on March 15.

Thailand, U.S.: Washington Imposes Unprecedented Visa Sanctions for Uyghur Deportations

Taiwanese President William Lai accused China of escalating its infiltration and influence operations against the self-governing island and labeled China a "hostile foreign force" under the criteria established in Taiwan's 2020 Anti-Infiltration Act, Reuters reported on March 13.

Taiwan, China: Taiwanese President Calls China a 'Hostile Foreign Force'

Columns

On Geopolitics

Mexico

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks from the Oval Office on March 7, 2025, after announcing that tariffs could be imposed on Canadian dairy and lumber products within days. 

Global Trade

U.S.-China Relations

The expanding scope of Trump's trade wars, coupled with the whiplash of tariffs being enacted and then suspended, begs the question: what is driving this strategy and what, if anything, will constrain it?

Trump's Emerging Trade Doctrine

Assessments

Americas

Trump's trade and tariff policies will create new challenges for manufacturers seeking to move their operations closer to the U.S., but broader global dynamics will likely prevent a reversal in nearshoring trends. 

The Geopolitics of Trade: Rising Threats to Nearshoring in the Americas

Ukraine

Russia

A digital map illustration of Russia.

Russia-Ukraine Conflict

The White House believes that restoring ties with Moscow will help it negotiate a ceasefire in Ukraine and, more importantly, undermine Russia-China relations in the long run. But numerous potential pitfalls mean this approach is unlikely to pay off.

The Rationale and Risks of Trump's Push to Reengage With Russia

The risk of significant unrest in China persists following the 2022 White Paper protests driven by continuing poor economic prospects.

The Lingering Risk of Protests in China

Snapshots

U.S. policy shifts under Trump and China's ongoing economic malaise will leave highly indebted, low-income countries at greater risk of financial and political distress over the next year.

U.S. and Chinese Economic Uncertainty Worsen the Global Macro Environment

Brunei Darussalam

Cambodia

Timor-Leste

Laos

Myanmar

Philippines

Singapore

Vietnam

The flags of the countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, are seen on display.

Malaysia's chairmanship will be pivotal in navigating security risks as well as those from U.S. trade restrictions, potential Chinese economic coercion, and supply chain realignments that threaten ASEAN's cohesion and strategic autonomy.

Previewing Malaysia's 2025 ASEAN Chairmanship

A map of the United States from 1897. While a revisionist America could lead to a more stable world order, it would be much more likely to lead to greater uncertainty, volatility, and conflict.

While a revisionist America could lead to a more stable world order, it would be much more likely to lead to greater uncertainty, volatility, and conflict.

What a Revisionist U.S. Foreign Policy Could Mean for the World

Israel

Palestinian Territories

A truck drives toward the Canada-U.S. border crossing in Blackpool, Canada, on Feb. 2, 2025.

Israel-Hamas 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 EU Summit on Ukraine, U.S. Tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China

Chinese President Xi Jinping (center) and other senior leaders applaud at the closing session of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, or CPPCC, on March 10, 2024, in Beijing, China. 

The annual legislative conference will reveal more details on how China plans to support its sluggish economy and protect it from Western restrictions, though major stimulus measures remain unlikely.

China's 'Two Sessions' Meeting Will Shed Light on Economic Support, Trade Resilience Plans

Turkey

Armenia

Azerbaijan

Georgia

Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (4th from left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (5th from left) attend a meeting in Moscow on April 22, 2024. 

Russia's influence in the South Caucasus is set to decline in the years ahead as countries adjust their foreign policies to balance global and regional powers, creating opportunities for China, Turkey and the West.

The Coming South Caucasus Realignment

A photo of the U.S. Capitol overlaid with a pixilated blue and red pattern.

Cyber

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

The United States will continue to prioritize AI innovation over regulation, and the European Union is set to partially reconsider its rules amid a broader push to increase competitiveness. 

The Future of AI Regulation Under the West's New Leadership

Portugal

Over the next several months, RANE will explore the shifting patterns of global trade, and how these impact -- and are impacted by -- the changing global order. 

The Geopolitics of Trade: Introduction

<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

India: $23B Manufacturing Scheme To Lapse Following Shortcomings and Delays

China, Canada: Ottawa Reveals Beijing's Executions of Four Dual Nationals This Year

China: U.S. Sanctions Chinese 'Teapot' Oil Refiner Over Iran for First Time

India, Bangladesh: India's Restrictions on Bangladeshi Medical Visas Create Opportunity for China

China, Japan, South Korea: Foreign Ministers To Meet for First Time Since 2023

China, Taiwan: Taipei Responds to Chinese Drills With Novel, Large-Scale Combat Readiness Exercises

Thailand, U.S.: Washington Imposes Unprecedented Visa Sanctions for Uyghur Deportations

Taiwan, China: Taiwanese President Calls China a 'Hostile Foreign Force'

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