Lillian Yang

China is imposing sweeping restrictions on AI companions because officials fear that emotional dependence on chatbots could worsen loneliness and discourage young people from pursuing relationships, marriage and parenthood. The rules ban AI companions for minors and restrict adult services, prompting ByteDance to remove Doubao’s companion feature and leaving users such as Zhao Wei distressed. Yet the government continues promoting AI in areas such as education and healthcare to address labor shortages and demographic pressures. The resulting policy tension allows some educational and non-continuous services to continue, while users and experts debate whether AI should supplement or replace human care and intimacy.

An undercover investigation finds that shops and purported cultural centres in Laos are concealing a large illegal wildlife trade aimed at Chinese tourists. Pangolin scales, whole pangolins, bear bile, tiger bones, rhino horn, ivory and other animal products are sold through networks allegedly linked to low-cost tour groups, with payments routed through WeChat Pay and Alipay. The Laos-China railway and increased Chinese tourism have expanded access to these markets, while guides reportedly pressure tourists and falsely claim the products are legal. Conservationists say the trade is driving pangolins toward extinction and increasingly bringing trafficked animals into Vientiane, where rescue groups are treating animals seized from restaurants and shops.

Female stand-up comedians in China are using jokes about marriage, motherhood, workplace expectations and everyday sexism to give women a rare outlet for discussing frustrations that are increasingly difficult to address openly. Fang Shaoli, whose working-class background and candid material have earned her a large following, is emblematic of the trend. The rapid growth of Chinese stand-up comedy has created new opportunities for female perspectives, but performers avoid direct criticism of the state and increasingly navigate restrictions on content deemed to promote gender antagonism. Cases involving comedians Paziliyaer Paerhati and Yang Li demonstrate the risks of censorship and commercial backlash, while comedians say that personal, granular observations can subtly expand the boundaries of public discussion.

Female activists in China are working anonymously and case by case to identify and support women with disabilities and others forced into marriage, trafficking or abuse. The 2022 case of Xiao Huamei, who was found chained and had borne eight children, galvanized public anger and helped bring trafficking into mainstream feminist discussion. Although the government says it has prioritised anti-trafficking efforts and reports a sharp decline in related crimes, activists and researchers cite opaque data, unreported cases, weak legal protections for forced marriage and suppression of independent investigations. New cases in Shanxi and Guangxi suggest the problem persists, while groups such as Free Nora continue to document shortcomings despite censorship and official pressure.

China’s one-child policy subjected many women to forced abortions, sterilisation, fines and other coercive measures, with particularly severe enforcement reported in parts of Shandong during the 1991 “childless 100 days” campaign. Although the policy ended in 2016, its trauma and its effect on family expectations persist. China now faces a record-low birth rate and is urging women to have more children, but younger women are increasingly resisting, citing financial insecurity, the high cost and competitiveness of child-rearing, and a stronger sense of bodily autonomy.

Economic slowdown, declining female labor-force participation, reduced childcare provision and official promotion of traditional family roles are making life more difficult for women in China. In Chengdu, however, feminist bookstores, women-only bars and the GiCD social network are creating spaces for solidarity, safety and empowerment. Their organizers avoid overt political confrontation and emphasize practical benefits to reduce scrutiny from authorities, reflecting a strategic adaptation to China’s increasingly restrictive environment rather than an abandonment of feminist aims.

Suifenhe, a depressed Chinese border city, has benefited from the expansion of China-Russia trade since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Chinese dealerships are exporting large numbers of domestic and foreign-branded vehicles to Russia, while Russian visitors are sustaining shops, restaurants and beauty clinics under a new visa-free regime. The relationship has helped fill gaps left by Western companies and provided China with export demand, but it is economically asymmetric: Russia relies far more heavily on China than China relies on Russia. The trade boom coexists with weak Chinese domestic consumption, structural economic problems and growing Western criticism that Beijing is supporting Moscow’s wartime economy. Despite the benefits to border businesses, local signs of economic distress remain, and residents acknowledge China’s increasingly dominant position in the bilateral relationship.

A Beijing restaurant has been fully booked since Keir Starmer and his entourage ate there during his January visit to China. Its specially printed menu, reproducing dishes including beef with mint, asparagus with porcini and pork ribs in plum sauce, has attracted Chinese diners who learned about the visit on social media. The restaurant's popularity illustrates the continuing appeal of British soft power in China, even as Starmer faces criticism at home over his effort to reset UK-China relations and uncertainty over whether domestic political problems will undermine that strategy.

Chinese President Xi Jinping told Kuomintang chair Cheng Li-wun during a rare Beijing meeting that people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait are Chinese and want peace. Cheng called for closer cross-Strait ties, said Taiwan should become a symbol of jointly safeguarded peace, and indicated she would invite Xi to Taiwan if the KMT wins the 2028 election. Her visit has drawn criticism in Taiwan, where public opinion increasingly favors a primarily Taiwanese identity. The meeting comes amid intensified Chinese military activity around Taiwan, disputes over President Lai Ching-te’s proposed $40bn defense budget, and KMT support for a smaller $12bn package focused on US-approved weapons. Analysts said Beijing is using Cheng to challenge Lai’s self-defense approach, strengthen pro-China voices in Taiwan and potentially influence US President Donald Trump’s position on arms sales.

China is positioned as an early diplomatic winner if the US-Iran ceasefire holds, with Beijing receiving credit for helping bring Tehran to negotiations and reinforcing its image as a Middle East mediator. Analysts caution that Iran accepted terms reflecting its existing demands, making Chinese influence less decisive than claimed. China is unlikely to guarantee the agreement because it lacks the capacity to verify compliance or impose meaningful penalties, but it has strong economic incentives to prevent escalation, lower oil prices and avoid damage to its export-dependent economy.

China is reviving core ideas from Mao Zedong’s Third Front, a Cold War-era program that moved defence factories and strategic industries into remote inland regions to protect them from attack. As relations with Washington deteriorate, Beijing is developing these areas as a strategic hinterland, expanding domestic defence capacity and increasing its nuclear arsenal. The revival reflects Xi Jinping’s emphasis on self-reliance and resilience amid military competition, trade tensions and efforts by both countries to reduce supply-chain dependence. The original program mobilised 15 million people and attracted more than 200bn yuan in investment, but many facilities were later abandoned or converted to civilian use because they were economically impractical.

Shandong’s independent “teapot” refineries account for roughly a quarter of China’s refining capacity and are crucial suppliers of petrol, diesel and industrial materials. They have benefited from access to discounted Iranian crude, which state-owned Chinese refiners largely avoid because of concerns about the US financial system and sanctions. However, the Iran conflict and soaring global oil prices have sharply narrowed the discount on Iranian crude, squeezed refinery margins and reduced demand from customers. Workers at Luqing Petrochemical report falling earnings and pressure to accept lower-paid or less desirable jobs. Although China has intervened to limit retail fuel-price increases and consumers have so far been relatively insulated, continued price rises could force some refineries out of business. Local operators also identify the longer-term shift toward electric vehicles as a major threat.