Takeaways from Xi’s Congress

Originally published at The Indian Express, 24 October 2022. p.14. Published online as ‘Xi Jinping’s Congress: What are the implications for China, the world, and India?’ What are the main takeaways  from the CPC Congress?  The CPC’s 20th Congress underlined General Secretary Xi Jinping’s role not just as the core of the Central Committee but also …

എല്ലാം നയിക്കുന്ന പാർട്ടി

Co-authored with Anand Parappadi Krishnan and originally published as ‘എല്ലാം നയിക്കുന്ന പാർട്ടി; ചൈനീസ് പാർട്ടി കോൺഗ്രസിന് കൊടിയേറുമ്പോൾ’, 24 News, 15 October 2022. ചൈനീസ് കമ്മ്യുണിസ്റ്റ് പാർട്ടിയുടെ (സി.സി.പി) ഇരുപതാം ദേശീയ കോൺഗ്രസ് ഒക്ടോബർ 16-ന് ആരംഭിക്കും. ചൈനയുടെ സാമ്പത്തിക-രാഷ്ട്രീയ കരുത്ത് വർധിച്ചതോടെ, ഓരോ അഞ്ച് വർഷത്തെ ഇടവേളയിലും നടക്കുന്ന ഈ സമ്മേളനത്തിന്റെ പ്രാധാന്യവും ഉയർന്നിട്ടുണ്ട്. ഈ സമ്മേളനങ്ങളും അതിൽ ഓരോന്നിലും ജനറൽ സെക്രട്ടറിമാർ അവതരിപ്പിക്കുന്ന രാഷ്ട്രീയ റിപ്പോർട്ടും പുറം ലോകത്തിന് …

Why factional politics might no longer matter in China

Originally published at 9DashLine, 6 October 2022. It is axiomatic that authoritarian states will be more vulnerable to sudden leadership changes or to regime collapse than open, democratic systems. Therefore, it is natural for China’s leaders to worry, and not entirely surprising that the Chinese Party-state has spent more on internal security than it has …

A Significant Non-Meeting: Modi and Xi at Samarkand

Originally published as ‘Samarkand SCO: Significance of the Modi-Xi non-meeting’, Moneycontrol, 19 September 2022. Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not meet one-on-one with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Uzbekistan on the sidelines of the 22nd meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation’s (SCO) Council of Heads of State. At least there is no publicly shared evidence of the meeting …

100 Years of the Communist Party of China, Special Issue 2

China Report Vol. 58, No. 3, August 2022100 Years of the Communist Party of China, Special Issue 2Guest Editors: Jabin T. Jacob & Bhim B. Subbahttps://journals.sagepub.com/toc/chra/58/3 CONTENTS 1. Introduction – ‘Carrying Forward the Great Founding Spirit’: Governance in the Communist Party of China Today Jabin T. Jacob & Bhim B. Subba https://doi.org/10.1177/00094455221108226 2. The Relationship …

Two Years After Border Clashes, India Still Lacks a Coherent China Policy

Originally published at World Politics Review, 13 July 2022. It has been over two years since Chinese incursions in the summer of 2020 along the disputed India-China boundary in eastern Ladakh led to a series of skirmishes that left dozens of soldiers dead on both sides. Yet unlike a February 2019 confrontation with Pakistan, which …

100 Years of the Communist Party of China, Special Issue 1

China Report Vol. 58, No. 1, February 2022 100 Years of the Communist Party of China, Special Issue 1 Guest Editors: Jabin T. Jacob & Bhim B. Subba https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/chra/58/1 CONTENTSIntroduction: Towards Exceptionalism: The Communist Party of China and its Uses of History Jabin T. Jacob & Bhim B. Subba https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00094455221074169 ‘Yelling at the Masses’: Making Propaganda Audible …

Politics in Command in the Chinese Economy

Why has the Communist Party of China actively targeted successful enterprises and sectors by imposing restrictions on their activity?

Xi Jinping Visits the Tibet Autonomous Region

Constant references to the ‘new’ to describe the Party-State’s views of developments on the Tibetan plateau underline Xi’s attempts to leave his personal stamp on Tibet policy.