The Divide

The deployment of the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) missile defense system in South Korea in 2016 triggered a series of sanctions from China. Since then, Seoul has been cautiously avoiding a repeat of such incidents, even going so far as to arrest its own citizens on the charge of threatening national security.

In this episode, Bethany Allen, author of 'Beijing Rules: How China Weaponized Its Economy to Confront the World,' continues to discuss China's use of economic coercion and its impact on liberal democracies. 

When China imposed sanctions on Australian wine, meat, and lobster following Australia's inquiry into the origins of the coronavirus in 2020, countries worldwide realized in horror that they had been held hostage by Beijing's use of economic coercion, a term popularized by China’s strategic application of economic measures to achieve its political goals.

This week, journalist and author Bethany Allen discusses her book "Beijing Rules: How China Weaponized Its Economy to Confront the World." She delves into her research on how the Chinese Communist Party manipulates global trade to force companies and governments to comply with its terms.

When scholars, security experts, politicians, and activists all warn that "democracy is under threat," it's clear this is no longer merely a hyperbolic slogan. The situations such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine, conflict in Gaza, and coercion threats in the Taiwan Strait illustrate the challenges states face in managing security risks and deterring hostile adversaries. Today, weapons of mass destruction still represent the ultimate form of deterrence.

In this episode, Dr. Mariana Budjeryn, a researcher at the Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center Project on Managing the Atom, discusses Ukraine's decision to relinquish its nuclear arsenal under the Budapest Memorandum, the effectiveness of nuclear deterrence, and the ongoing risks associated with nuclear armament.

As of July 2024, Russia's invasion of Ukraine has resulted in over 11,100 civilian deaths and at least 21,860 injuries. In a stark warning, Russian President Vladimir Putin has not ruled out the use of nuclear weapons against Ukraine, a state without its own nuclear arsenal.

But did you know Ukraine once held the world's third-largest nuclear arsenal? In this episode, Harvard Kennedy School Belfer Center's Dr. Mariana Budjeryn discusses Ukraine's commitment to the global nuclear non-proliferation regime, the treaty that was meant to safeguard the country from military conflicts, and the uncanny resemblance of Ukraine and Taiwan's disarmament history.  

As athletes from around the world prepare for the 2024 Paris Olympics with their nations' backing, Taiwan's athletes face challenges in competing and qualifying for the national team due to opaque selection processes managed by their sports associations.

In this episode of "The Divide," retired swimmer Mitzi Ting and host Iris explore the Chinese Taipei Swimming Association's alleged manipulation of rankings and interference in the Olympic selection process. They discuss how the lack of transparency and fairness has harmed the careers of Taiwan's athletes for decades and examine the difficulties and risks athletes face when speaking up.

American voters are becoming less enthusiastic about their choices after the first US presidential debate ended with President Joe Biden facing growing pressure to drop out of the race, while former President Trump is being criticized for false claims he made during the debate. Meanwhile, people in Taiwan are closely monitoring the race, anxiously waiting to see if the future US president will bring changes to US-Taiwan relations.

In this episode, American journalist Chris Horton explores the potential policies of future US administration and the significance of Taiwan in American national security and foreign policy.

As AI continues to weave itself into the fabric of technological advancement, it brings with it a host of opportunities and challenges. Taiwan, home to the world's largest semiconductor manufacturer TSMC, is also navigating the delicate balance between fostering innovation and implementing regulations to ensure safety and public trust. 

In this episode, Gareth Tan of the Coalition for Digital Prosperity for Asia talks about why small- and medium-sized businesses are easily marginalized in the AI and digital markets around the world, and what his organization is doing to change that. 

More than half of the world's population, 4.2 billion people, live in countries where freedom of expression is in crisis.

Each year, Article 19, a British international human rights organization that works to defend and promote freedom of expression and freedom of information worldwide, publishes the "Global Expression Report" to track the changes in the right to free expression and information worldwide. This year, the organization found that freedom of expression is stagnant at a global level.

In this episode of The Divide, Article 19's Senior Director of Programmes David Diaz-Jogeix talks about the findings from this year's Global Expression Report and highlights some concerning trends, including internet shutdowns, harassment of journalists, and hate speech that are contributing to the decline.

Go to https://www.globalexpressionreport.org/ to find out how your country has performed when it comes to freedom of expression.

On June 4 each year, Hong Kongers mourn the the victims of the Tiananmen Massacre who died on that day in 1989 together at the city's Victoria Park. But this year, the heavy police presence and subsequent arrests signaled a message to the citizens: "If you try to commemorate, you are breaking the law, and we will arrest you."

Sophie Richardson, who served as the China Director at Human Rights Watch from 2006-2023 and is currently a visiting scholar at the Center for Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law at the Freeman Spogli Institute at Stanford University, speaks to Rti about Beijing's control over Hong Kong, collective punishment on the families of activists and dissidents, and whether the world is doing enough to hold Beijing accountable for their human rights violations.

On June 4, India concluded its 6-week election with a surprising outcome that leaves Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) with no choice but to form a coalition government. This week, Indian journalist and representative of the Committee to Protect Journalists Kunal Majumder comes back to The Divide to talk about the implications of the election results, and why he feels hopeful about India's political and economic future.