China Digest #85

“The system worked incredibly well yesterday. And I think that is it's so important, because it gives us faith in the result. And it gives us faith in the strength and the endurance of Mexican democracy looking forward.”

Duncan Wood Quote 1

In this episode of International History Declassified, Pieter and Kian sit down with author Alan McPherson to discuss his book, Ghosts of Sheridan Circle, which tells the chilling story of the assassination of Chilean dissident, Orlando Letelier.

The Ghosts of Sheridan Circle with Alan McPherson

Benjamin Gedan and Bill Schuette analyze the recent arrest of former "Super Minister" Julio De Vido. What does this mean for Argentina's corruption fighting efforts?

De Vido Goes Down

There's a pretty important wedding coming up in the United Kingdom, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are about to tie the knot.  Jamie Shenk joins the podcast to chat about Argentina's awkward place in the relationship.

Mate at Kensington Palace

Episode 10: Predictions on All Key Aug. 7 Primary Races for State Offices & an Interview

The Argentina Project Podcast is back for Season 2. Subscribe, listen to past podcasts and refresh the browser in anticipation for new episodes at https://soundcloud.com/the-wilson-center/sets/argentina-project

June 13, 2019

38 – Argentina Project Podcast Season 2 Promo

Kian and Pieter sit down with Bilkent University professor Onur Isci to talk about the Center for Russian Studies and his work in the Turkish Archives. While Turkey and Russia seem to be natural enemies, the documents show that has not always been the case.

Russia and the Cold War in the Turkish Archives with Onur Isci

Speaker: James A. Millward, Professor of Inter-societal History, Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University

Event Slides: CCP Policies towards Uyghurs and other Xinjiang Indigenous People

James A. Millward is Professor of Inter-societal History at the Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University, teaching Chinese, Central Asian and world history. He also teaches as invited professor in the Máster Oficial en Estudios de Asia Oriental at the University of Granada, Spain. His specialties include Qing empire; the silk road; Eurasian lutes and music in history; and historical and contemporary Xinjiang. He follows and comments on current issues regarding the Uyghurs and PRC ethnicity policy.  Millward has served on the boards of the Association for Asian Studies (China and Inner Asia Council) and the Central Eurasian Studies Society, and was president of the Central Eurasian Studies Society in 2010. He edits the ”Silk Roads” series for University of Chicago Press. His publications include The Silk Road: A Very Short Introduction (2013), Eurasian Crossroads: a History of Xinjiang (2007), New Qing Imperial History: the Making of Inner Asian Empire at Qing Chengde (2004), and Beyond the Pass: Economy, Ethnicity and Empire in Qing Central Asia (1998). His most recent album, recorded with the band By & By, is Songs for this Old Heart. His articles and op-eds on contemporary China appear in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, The Global Times, The Los Angeles Review of Books, The New York Review of Books and other media.

History of the Crisis in the Uyghur Autonomous Region, with James A. Millward

In Episode 79 of Tech Buzz China, Rui and Ying talk about a company that aspires to be “China’s L’Oréal” for the digital age: Yatsen Group, owner of smash hit cosmetics app Perfect Diary (完美日记) among other brands. Though we at Tech Buzz have never directly covered the company, we have mentioned it, including in Episode 70 with Lauren Hallanan; as well during last week’s Q3 Market Trends call (link available through Dec. 9) with BigOne Lab’s Mengyao Ren. Yatsen recently listed on the NYSE, and it’s got a nearly $12 billion market cap. 

Listen and follow along with us as we explore Yatsen’s founding story, their evolving strategy,  reasons for their success, and the role of clever marketing. We’ll also talk about how the company’s various tactics speak to the evolution of China’s content ecommerce ecosystem. Finally, listeners will hear from Mark Tanner, the founder and Managing Director of Shanghai-based marketing and research firm China Skinny. 

Yup, Rui is still researching and writing on ByteDance for her ebook. You can get updates on it and to our other work by subscribing to her newsletter, at techbuzzchina.com. Be sure to also check out the Tech Buzz China YouTube channel, which has some video-only content. Our transcripts are available on our website, as well as at pandaily.com and supchina.com. 

If you enjoy our work, please do let us know by leaving us an iTunes review (drop us a note saying you did, and we’ll send you an Extra Buzz newsletter subscription), and by tweeting at us at @techbuzzchina. We also read your emails, at rui@techbuzzchina.com and ying@techbuzzchina.com. 

Thank you to our teams at SupChina and Pandaily, and especially Caiwei Chen, Kaiser Kuo, and Jason MacRonald.

Tech Buzz China by Pandaily

Ep. 79: Yatsen Group: Cosmetics ecommerce superstar and China’s L’Oreal for the digital age?

In China’s Fintech Explosion, Sara Hsu and Jianjun Li explore the transformative potential of China’s fintech industry, describing the risks and rewards for participants as well as the impact on consumers. They cover many subsectors of the industry: digital payment systems, peer-to-peer lending and crowdfunding, credit card issuance, internet banks, blockchain finance and virtual currencies, and online insurance. Offering analysis of market potential, risks, and competition, the authors describe major companies including Alipay and Tencent, and other leading fintech firms.

About the speaker: ncuscr.org/event/china-fintech-explosion

China’s Fintech Explosion: Disruption, Innovation, and Survival | Sara Hsu

In October 2020, Kyrgyzstan’s capital was rocked by protests following an allegedly rigged parliamentary election, ultimately resulting in the resignation of Kyrgyz president Sooronbay Jeenbekov. In this episode of KennanX, Jill Dougherty explores the political geography and changing societal dynamics in Kyrgyzstan and Central Asia with Edward Lemon, President of the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs and Research Assistant Professor at The Bush School of Government and Public Service, Texas A&M University, Washington D.C. Campus, and Bradley Jardine, Schwarzman Scholar at the Wilson Center’s Kissinger Institute on China and the United States and Research Consultant with the Oxus Society for Central Asian Affairs.

Protests on the Silk Road: Analyzing Central Asia with the Oxus Society

It's going to be much more difficult for countries in Africa and other developing regions to borrow money from China. New research from Boston University's Global Development Policy Center reveals a sharp drop in overseas lending by the country's two largest policy banks, from $75 billion in 2016 to just $4 billion last year.

After years of sometimes profligate lending, Chinese creditors are showing newfound discipline on what they finance.

Dr. Yan Wang, a senior visiting fellow at the Institute of New Structural Economics at Peking University, is among the world's leading experts in Chinese overseas development finance. She joins Eric & Cobus to discuss her latest research on the issue and why she thinks Beijing is now pulling back the reins on lending.

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Why China's Cutting Back on Overseas Lending

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Protests on the Silk Road: Analyzing Central Asia with the Oxus Society

The Wilson Center

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