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Apr 11, 2022
The Russia Ukraine war has pushed a wedge between China and Europe because of its support for Russia. And there wasn't much "guanxi" to begin with after China let Covid spread to the rest of the world while trying to contain it domestically. In this episode of China Unscripted, we look at how the Russia Ukraine war has shattered China's grip on Europe, how dependent Europe's economies are on China, and why China doesn't understand Europe the way it understands the US. Joining us in this episode is Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow in the Asia Program of The German Marshall Fund and co-author of the book Hidden Hand: Exposing How the Chinese Communist Party Is Reshaping the World.
Apr 4, 2022
China is trying to create a new world order, and it's not a world most people want to live in. In this episode of China Unscripted, we talk about how the CCP is working toward that goal, how President Joe Biden gave Chinese companies an unfair advantage, and how Americans can stop funding China's military. Joining us in this episode is Frank Gaffney, the founder and president for the Center for Security Policy, as well as vice chairman for the Committee on Present Danger: China. He's also the host of the show Securing America.
Mar 29, 2022
India and China have long been at odds with one another over territory they both claim on their shared border. Russia and China are close allies, and Russia's invasion of Ukraine has shown that India is leaning toward Russia and away from the West. In this episode of China Unscripted, we talk about how the India-China power struggle could determine Russia's future, what China might try to do in an invasion of Taiwan, and how Ukraine and Taiwan and similar and different. Joining us in this episode is Cleo Paskal, a non-resident senior fellow for the Indo-Pacific at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. She's also a member of the Global Counter Terrorism Council.
Mar 21, 2022
Benedict Rogers, the chief executive and co-founder of Hong Kong Watch, was barred from entering Hong Kong in 2017. Now he's been threatened with life in prison if he doesn't take down the organization's website. He joins us in this episode of discuss the deterioration of the rule of law in Hong Kong, how China is reacting to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, China's influence in the international policing organization Interpol, and much more.
Mar 14, 2022
The US Navy needs a maritime strategy if it's going to beat China in a real war. That's because the sea is the single largest determinant of geopolitical power, according to Paul Giarra, a retired Navy Commander who managed the US-Japan alliance for the office of the Secretary of Defense. He helped create the global strategy for the US Navy at the end of the Cold War and joins us in this episode of China Unscripted.
Feb 28, 2022
As the world watches in shock at Russia's invasion of Ukraine, it can be hard not to see parallels between Ukraine's situation and that of Tawain. Both are targets of their much larger and powerful neighbors, both have been shunned by international organizations (NATO in Ukraine's case, the UN in Taiwan's case), and both face uncertain futures as their very sovereignty is up in the air. In this episode of China Unscripted, we talk about what western democracies need to do to support Taiwan so it doesn't meet the same fate as Ukraine, what would be next after China invades Taiwan, and what China is likely to learn from Russia's invasion tactics. Joining us in this episode is Guermantes Lailari, a retired U.S. Air Force Foreign Area Officer who specialized in counterterrorism, the Middle East, and Europe, and now is conducting research at the National Chengchi University in Taipei as a Taiwan fellow.
Feb 21, 2022
China's military has been growing steadily over the past 25 years and has expanded in both size and capability. But whether China's military becomes more powerful than the US military will depend on if we let it. Joining us in this episode is Jim Fanell, the Former Director of Intelligence and Information Operations for the U.S. Pacific Fleet.
Feb 14, 2022
Controversy surrounds the 2022 Beijing Olympics from the creepy panda mascot to the handling of covid cases to the changing nationalities of Chinese athletes. In this Just US episode, we talk about Eileen Gu, Zhu Yi, Nathan Chen, Bing Dwen Dwen, the US-China trade war, and much, much more.
Feb 7, 2022
There are many ways China controls the narrative on China. Through its economic influence, united front work and propaganda efforts, a lot of what you hear about China has been influenced by China. Joining us in this episode is J Michael Waller, a senior analyst for strategy at the Center for Security Policy.
Jan 31, 2022
The Olympics is not only a coup for the Chinese Communist Party in terms of showing its influence on the international stage, but has practically become the coronation ceremony for Chinese leader Xi Jinping. At a Party meeting in November, Xi's next term will officially be decided, but how well the Olympics goes may herald his rise or demise. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss China's economy, China's planned invasion of Taiwan, and the US-China economic relationship. Joining us in this episode is Jack Posobiec, a former Naval intelligence officer who lived in China, and the host of the podcast Human Events Daily.
Jan 24, 2022
There was a brief time during which China's economy came out of the doldrums and its growth was the envy of the world. That all changed, however, with the arrival of Xi Jinping. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss China's cannibal capitalism, the fate of Alibaba and WeChat, foreign investment in China, and much, much more. Joining us in this episode is James Gorrie, a writer and political economist who authored "The China Crisis: How China's Economic Collapse Will Lead to a Global Depression".
Jan 17, 2022
The US and Taiwan have a lot in common—both are democracies, both have rule of law, and both share a common enemy: China. Despite their similarities though, the US and Taiwan have had a fraught relationship. In this episode of China Unscripted, we take a deep look at the US-Taiwan relationship, explore the possibilities were the two countries to become closer, and reminisce about Taiwanese beef hotpot. Joining us in this episode is Ian Easton, the senior director at the Project 2049 Institute and author of The Chinese Invasion Threat: Taiwan's Defense and American Strategy in Asia.
Jan 11, 2022
China has been telling the world that its brutal lockdowns in service of reaching zero covid cases have largely been effective. But China is also changing the definition of the "zero" in zero covid to better align with the uncomfortable reality that covid-19 cannot be arrested or suppressed into extinction. In this Just Us episode, we also discuss Elon Musk's relationship with China, a new Xinhua propaganda spoof making fun of the US and UK, Wall Street waking up to China investment risks, Chinese backing of the movie "Dune" and other topics.
Dec 27, 2021
There is no politician too small for China to try to co-opt, which is why leaders all around the US have been solicited by China. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss China's web of influence operations in the US, whether the media should boycott the Beijing Olympics and China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) right here in the US. Joining us in this episode is Emily de la Bruyére, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the co-author of the new monograph All Over the Map: The Chinese Communist Party’s Subnational Interests in the United States.
Dec 20, 2021
Under its Belt and Road Initiative, China has been going all over the signing business deals with countries to build their infrastructure. The United States has been standing on the sidelines, watching China gain increasing influence with and leverage over these countries without doing much to stop it. In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss how the US should be doing something similar with green energy to tackle climate change, China setting standards for 5G, the effectiveness of blacklisting Chinese Companies, and as well as other topics. Joining us in this episode is Christopher Balding, a fellow at the Henry Jackson Society and an associate professor at the Fulbright University Vietnam. He was formerly an associate professor at Peking University HSBC School of Business in Shenzhen, China.
Dec 13, 2021
China has been trying to build a parallel world order alongside that of the US-led western system, and it would like nothing more than to be the world's only superpower. It has long been laying plans to do just that. Is China's rise to becoming a global hegemon more powerful than the US inevitable? We discuss that and more in this episode of China Unscripted. Joining us in this episode is Anders Corr, the publisher of the journal of Political Risk and principal at Corr Analytics. He’s also the author of the new book The Concentration of Power: Institutionalization, Hierarchy, and Hegemony.
Nov 29, 2021
Tennis star Peng Shuai hasn't been in the public eye much since she accused former top communist party official Zhang Gaoli of sexually assaulting her. The only glimpses the public has had into her life have been tightly choreographed videos and photos put out by state-run media and the International Olympic Committee, which has been working closely with China to host the 2022 winter Olympics in Beijing. In this Just Us episode of China Unscripted, we discuss Peng Shuai, China’s bullying in the South China Sea, the CCP’s attempt to erase the memory of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the US standing up for Taiwan, and China’s horrific family planning policies.
Nov 22, 2021
In December of 2018, Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig were arrested in China, allegedly on spying charges. This happened days after Canada's detention of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou at the request of the US. Meng was accused of lying to British bank HSBC about Huawei's affiliate Skycom and its connections to Iran, which put the bank afoul of US sanctions. Meng fought the US's extradition request, and in September 2021, the Biden administration worked out a deferred prosecution agreement with Meng in return for her admission that she misled HSBC about Huawei's relationship with Skycom. In this episode of China Unscripted, we are joined by Fen Hampson, the chancellor’s professor at Carleton University and president of the World Refugee & Migration Council, and Mike Blanchfield, the international affairs writer for The Canadian Press. They are the authors of the book: The Two Michaels: Innocent Canadian Captives and High Stakes Espionage in the US-China Cyber War.
Nov 15, 2021
In this "Just Us" episode of China Unscripted, we discuss how US companies are funding China's tech dominance, our trips to Hong Kong, how to buy not made in China and Quantum Leap, among other things.
Nov 8, 2021
The way the US has treated China for decades has not led to the outcomes it hoped for. Now the US is meeting China where it is, not where the US wants it to be. The big question now is can the US disentangle itself from China in a way that doesn't hurt Americans, and does it have what it takes to stand up to China in all the arenas that China is challenging it in. Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is David Stilwell, the former Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs during the Trump administration and the director of the China Strategic Focus Group at U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
Nov 1, 2021
China has been threatening war over Taiwan and has grown increasingly aggressive towards its neighbors and adversaries around the world. There has been a lot of speculation about how an authoritarian state like China would fare against a Western democracy like the United States. We discuss that plus India's relationship with Taiwan, the US-India alliance, and the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific region. Joining us in this episode is Professor M.D. Nalapat, the director of the department of geopolitics and international relations at India’s Manipal University.
Oct 25, 2021
Japan is facing an existential crisis over Taiwan and with its elections in the lower house later this month, how Japan faces the Taiwan issue could change dramatically. Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Dr. Robert D. Eldridge, an expert on Japan’s security and diplomacy and a senior researcher at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies.
Oct 18, 2021
Got a dictator? Looking to overthrow him/her? In this episode, we talk with a man who’s been training activists to do just that. From his start as young activist raging against the machine of Slobodan Milošević in Serbia, he's become an internationally recognized organizer. He steps us through the essentials of a successful movement, shares inspiring and humorous stories from his background, and gives his opinion on what went right and what went wrong in Hong Kong. His name is Srdja Popovic, and he's the cofounder of the Centre for Applied Nonviolent Action and Strategies (CANVAS), as well as the author of Blueprint for Revolution.
Sep 27, 2021
The Chinese Communist Party has for years been suppressing its ethnic Uyghur minority, many of whom are Muslim. It has put over a million of them in internment camps, forced Uyghur women to get abortions and undergo sterilization, and killed them for their organs, among other atrocities. A people's tribunal in the UK is probing whether what China is doing to the Uyghur people is genocide. On this episode of China Unscripted, we look at what this tribunal could accomplish, how power politics affect human rights in China, and why the secret ingredient in your lipstick might be genocide. Joining us in this episode is Ethan Gutmann, an investigative journalist and author of “The Slaughter: Mass Killings, Organ Harvesting, and China's Secret Solution to Its Dissident Problem” and “Losing the New China: A Story of American Commerce, Desire, and Betrayal”.
Oct 11, 2021
The US, UK, and Australia are teaming up against China in a new alliance called AUKUS. Of course, the leaders of these countries won't outright say that's the reason, but that's the reason. In this episode of China Unscripted, we talk about the US leading the world on China messaging, what could happen if China takes Taiwan, and former Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott's trip to Taiwan, among other things. Joining us in this episode is Lincoln Parker, the chair of Australia's Liberal Party defence policy branch.
Sep 20, 2021
Desmond Shum, who was raised in Hong Kong, said he didn't understand how to play China's business game until he met his wife, Whitney Duan. They made a fortune together, and as a result she became China's wealthiest female entrepreneur. But when Xi Jinping came to power, Shum saw the writing on the wall for business in China. He and Duan divorced and Shum moved to the UK. In 2017, Duan disappeared. After she went missing, Shum wanted to leave their son his account of what had happened, which led to his tell-all book about doing business in China called "Red Roulette: An Insider's Story of Wealth, Power, Corruption, and Vengeance in Today's China".
Sep 13, 2021
When China joined the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2001, the U.S. thought China's membership in the international organization would encourage it to liberalize. Thought leaders and US policymakers believed, or wanted to believe, that it would not only help decrease the trade deficit the US had with China, but would encourage China to become a responsible global citizen. However that didn’t happen, and in fact, the opposite happened. What went wrong and why were the policymakers in Washington so naive? Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Clyde Prestowitz, the author of “The World Turned Upside Down: America, China, and the Struggle for Global Leadership”. He was also a leader of the first U.S. trade mission to China in 1982 and is a veteran U.S. trade negotiator and presidential advisor.
September 15th, 2021
China has 5 bases in the Antarctic, but no one except China really knows what takes place on them. The U.S. and other countries that are supposed to be monitoring the bases have been lax about checking, and there is evidence to suggest China's doing more than just scientific research down there. Joining us on this episode of China Unscripted is Alex Gray, a senior fellow in national security affairs at the American Foreign Policy Council. He served on the U.S. National Security Council staff from 2018 to 2021, including as director for Oceania and Indo-Pacific Security.
August 23rd, 2021
China has been closely watching the U.S. pullout of Afghanistan and is using it to make the case to Taiwan that the U.S. won’t come to its aid when ( not “if”) China invades it. It's also looking at what it can do to replace the U.S. in the region. Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Jim Fanell, a retired U.S. Naval Intelligence officer who specialized in Indo-Asia Pacific security affairs, with an emphasis on the Chinese navy and its operations.
August 16th, 2021
China has made it no secret that it wants to control the world. It's been using political warfare to achieve that goal, and it's seen some success. What is political warfare and what can we do to stop China from becoming a global hegemon? We discuss that and more in this episode of China Unscripted. Joining us is Professor Kerry Gershaneck, the author of the book "Political Warfare: Strategies for Combating China’s Plan to 'Win Without Fighting.'"
August 9th, 2021
Chinese money has not brought good things to Bolivia. Whether it's the illegal wildfires around the Amazon that have destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres, the dams that are projected to displace indigenous people and destroy the environment, or illegal gold mining, Chinese deals have not been good for the South American Country. Joining us in this episode is Jhanisse Vaca Daza, the co-founder of Standing Rivers, a non-violent citizen movement focused on human and environmental rights in Bolivia.
August 2nd, 2021
China has been going around the world signing development deals with countries in an initiative it calls Belt and Road, formerly One Belt One Road. It’s a massive infrastructure project that was started in 2013 and goes from East Asia to Europe. The goal of the program seems benign—invest in other countries’ infrastructure using Chinese engineering and manufacturing. But like most things the Chinese Communist Party touches, it has come with corruption, subversion, and deceit. Are we seeing the expansion of Chinese communist colonialism? Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Dr. Rachel Winston, a professor and author of several books about China, including “Belts and Roads Under Beijing's Thumb.”
July 26th, 2021
Check out CuriosityStream: https://curiositystream.com/ChinaUnscripted How the U.S. and its allies respond to China in the Indo-Pacific could have major repercussions for decades to come. That's because China is trying to get a foothold in the area, and if the U.S. and its allies don't increase their presence there, China will—with very real consequences for geopolitics, national security and trade. Joining us in this episode of China Unscripted is Cleo Paskal, an associate fellow in the Energy, Environment and Resources Program and Asia-Pacific Program at Chatham House. She's also the research lead on Chatham House’s project on perceptions of strategic shifts in the Indo-Pacific from the points of view of the United States, the United Kingdom, India, Japan, Oceania and France. Follow her on Twitter @CleoPaskal
July 19th, 2021
For years, the U.S. medical mask market has been flooded by cheap Chinese masks that, thanks to Chinese government subsidies, have made it impossible for U.S. businesses to compete. Joining us in this episode is Mike Bowen, the co-owner of U.S. mask company Prestige Ameritch. He says he has been warning anyone who will listen that allowing China to dominate the mask market is a national security threat to the U.S. After a continuous PPE shortage in the U.S., why aren't we listening to him yet?
July 12th, 2021
On this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss the cult-like behaviors of the Chinese Communist Party, how China has the "best" human rights record on the planet, how China wants to decouple from the U.S., what China's space ambitions mean for the rest of the world, and what we would do if we could go back in time and change history.
July 5th, 2021
In this episode of China Unscripted, we discuss the origins of the coronavirus, or the CCP virus as we call it, secret research going on in the Wuhan Institute of Virology, what concerned Americans can do about China's rise, the Chinese Communist Party's 100 years of lies, and why the U.S. 1% likes the Chinese Communist Party. Joining us for this podcast is Jack Posobiec, the editor of the digital news site Human Events.
June 28th, 2021
Freedoms in Hong Kong have been significantly eroded since the national security law was passed one year ago. The law allows extradition to mainland China, which means that people who anger Beijing are no longer safe in the city. We sat down with Hong Kong Watch Co-founder and Chief Executive Benedict Rogers to talk about the effect this law has had over the past year.
June 21st, 2021
North Korean Defector Yeonmi Park joins us today to talk about her experiences fleeing North Korea, and discovering Communism and Marxism in America during her time at Columbia University. Is "woke culture" making the United States even crazier than North Korea?
June 7th, 2021
China is waging a drug war against the West, using triads, the criminal underground, and corrupt Canadian officials in Vancouver for money laundering and human trafficking. The "Vancouver Model" connects fentanyl dealing to Hong Kong and Macau, fueling an opioid crisis in around the world. Joining us today is Sam Cooper. He’s an award winning Canadian investigative journalist and author of the new book Willful Blindness: How a network of narcos, tycoons and CCP agents Infiltrated the West.
May 31st, 2021
Did you know the US can't make its own penicillin? Or aspirin? China has dominated the global supply chain for medicine. And that came back to bite when the coronavirus pandemic struck. We were dependent on medical supplies of PPE's from China. And the Chinese Communist Party used that against us. Joining us today is Rosemary Gibson, co- author of China Rx: Exposing the Risks of America's Dependence on China for Medicine.
May 24th, 2021
China has already begun the war for Taiwan. Will the rest of the world respond in time? Joining us once again is Ian Easton, senior director of the Project 2049 Institute and author of “The Chinese Invasion Threat: Taiwan’s Defense and American Strategy in Asia.”
May 17th, 2021
China's crackdown on Hong Kong intensifies as the National Security Law gives Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam and Hong Kong police powers to go after freedom of the press. And when that doesn't work, the CCP uses thugs to attacks journalists. Epoch Times reporter Sarah Liang joins us to talk about the man who assaulted her with a bat in broad daylight.
May 10th, 2021
China is building a New World Order, and the Belt and Road Initiative is the key. Joining us today on China Unscripted is Toufic Sarieddine, a Lebanese graduate scholar enrolled in the Graduate School of International Development at Nagoya University, Japan.
May 4th, 2021
The Chinese Communist Party has fooled Western Companies and businesses, like Elon Musk and Tesla, into coming into China to make their fortune. But it always comes back to bite them. Why is the US China relationship defined by so much ignorance? On this episode of China Unscripted, the team takes a look at what the West gets consistently wrong about China.
April 26th, 2021
How did a peaceful qigong and meditation practice practice based on Buddhist principles become the biggest threat to the Chinese Communist Party? Joining us today on China Unscripted is Levi Browde. He’s the Executive Director of the Falun Dafa Information Center. It’s an organization dedicated to ending the human rights abuses against Falun Gong in China.
April 19th, 2021
The Chinese Communist Party is forging ahead with a plan for world domination. But can the Quad, an alliance of the US, Japan, Australia, and India, save the Indo Pacific and the rest of the world from an authoritarian nightmare? Joining us on this China Unscripted is Cleo Paskal from Chatham House & Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
April 12th, 2021
The Chinese Communist Party has annihilated Hong Kong freedom and democracy, but that was only just the beginning. On this China Unscripted, we're joined by Max Mok, a Hong Kong activist based in Australia and member of the activist group Hongkonger Protection Against Chinese Expansion.
April 5th, 2021
Chinese Communist Party aggression is creating a rift between China and the West. US China relations have had the tone set at the US China meeting in Anchorage, Alaska, as American allies sanction China for genocide against the Uyghur Muslims in China. And as the CCP demolishes Hong Kong freedoms and threatens an invasion of Taiwan, is a new Cold War brewing?
March 22nd, 2021
Socialism turns failure into an institution. But what is Socialism? What is Communism? What is Democratic Socialism? On this episode of China Unscripted, we take a deep dive into Karl Marx and the Communist Manifesto. Joining us is Joshua Philipp, host of Crossroads. Check out his channel! https://www.youtube.com/CrossroadswithJOSHUAPHILIPP
March 22nd, 2021
The world debates whether what the Chinese Communist Party is doing to Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, China is genocide. The US China relationship is strong thanks to decades of elite capture in Wall Street and Capitol Hill. Will the Biden Administration stand up for the Uyghurs? On this episode of China Unscripted, joining us is writer, linguist, Uyghur activist, and President of the President of the Uyghur Help Organization, Abduweli Ayup.
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