Trump crisis in Beijing: Five ‘knowns and unknowns’ have Xi Jinping in the panic mode

By on    BB Inside China, China, Exclusives, Guest Columnists, Intel Brief, NE Asia, Stateside, Taiwan, Top Story, U.S. Intelligence, U.S. Military, Washington, Willy Lam  

Trump crisis in Beijing: Five ‘knowns and unknowns’ have Xi Jinping in the panic mode

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, ‘Inside China’, Geostrategy-Direct.com “As we know, there are known knowns; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns — the ones we don’t […]

All is not well in China, but CCP media unleash glowing info-offensive

By on    BB Inside China, China, Intel Brief, NE Asia, Top Stories, Willy Lam  

All is not well in China, but CCP media unleash glowing info-offensive

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, ‘Inside China’, Geostrategy-Direct.com Propaganda specialists surrounding President Xi Jinping are working overtime to burnish his reputation as a close-to-the-people savior who can best acquit himself of Chairman Mao’s “serve the people” credo. Xinhua News Agency over the weekend released a long dispatch on “the basic reform orientations” of Xi […]

Off the record in Beijing: China’s growth rate is non-negotiable

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Off the record in Beijing: China’s growth rate is non-negotiable

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, EastAsiaIntel.com Who is in charge of China’s macro-level financial and economic policy? Most observers will say President Xi Jinping, who is head of the two highest-level decision-making bodies: the Central Leading Group on Finance and Economics (CLGFE) and the newly set up Central Leading Group on Comprehensively Deepening Reforms […]

Xi consolidates power, elevates 6th Generation Zhejiang protégés

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Xi consolidates power, elevates 6th Generation Zhejiang protégés

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, EastAsiaIntel.com Despite reports about challenges to his power, President and Communist Party General Secretary Xi Jinping has quietly — and relentlessly — built up his personal faction centered upon cadres associated with the prosperous coastal province of Zhejiang. Members of the so-called Zhejiang Clique are tipped for large-scale promotions […]

What’s stalling Xi Jinping’s grandiose imperial dream? No money

By on    BB Inside China, BB NE Asia, China, Exclusives, Intel Brief, NE Asia  

What’s stalling Xi Jinping’s grandiose imperial dream? No money

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, EastAsiaIntel.com Remember the “One Belt One Road” (OBOR), a multi-trillion-dollar intercontinental project that underpins President Xi Jinping’s ambition to catapult China to super-power status? The “Silk Road Economic Belt” links China with Central Asia, Turkey and all the way to Eastern Europe through a series of high-speed railways, highways […]

Signs of a schism: Xi’s ruthless power grab challenged at National People’s Congress

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Signs of a schism: Xi’s ruthless power grab challenged at National People’s Congress

Special to WorldTribune.com By Willy Lam, EastAsiaIntel.com The apparent leitmotif of this year’s meeting of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the top advisory body, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), consists of ways and means to resuscitate the Chinese economy. However, political issues – particularly differences among members of the Politburo Standing Committee […]