Jon Huntsman to China

This is the smartest piece so far that I've read on Obama's pick for ambassador to China.

Posted by John Pomfret on May 18, 2009 3:47 PM

Will China's Miracle Train Derail?

Is China really as stable as we've been led to believe? Recent events make it seem likely that Beijing is going to get kicked in the teeth by the worldwide financial crisis. And the strikes and protests now occurring throughout the country suggest that China's authoritarian political system is in for a real challenge.

For years we've heard the narrative in the United States that China was going to have a smooth ride to superpower status. A report from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace earlier this year predicted that China would overtake the US economy by 2035. A few weeks ago, the New York Times suggested in an editorial that China's economy might be the one engine that could drag the world out of its current rut. The LA Times, noting that China possesses a world-high $2 trillion in foreign exchange, predicted that at last weekend's economic summit, China would wield "a big stick."

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Posted by John Pomfret on November 18, 2008 5:41 PM

Reader Asks: Can't We All Just Get Along?

This is from a New Zealander living in Wuhan reacting to the comments below. He has a point.

"I follow Pomfret's China and very much like it BUTwould it be possible to put recommendations at the top of the comments section ... such as to keep the discussion topical - i.e. pertinent to the actual post that comments are being logged under? There could be some really good informed discussion. At the moment it's the same bland pro/anti China stuff over and over. And it's quite intense. Another great recommendation would be: please keep comments mature."

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Posted by John Pomfret on September 24, 2008 3:10 PM