China's new charity law went into force last month, regulating Chinese charities on a national scale for the first time. Beijing hopes the law will boost charitable giving by reducing restrictions on domestic charities and making them more transparent. But critics say the law is a pretext for China to exert greater control over domestic and foreign nonprofit groups. What is the reality? VOA's Michael Lipin speaks to the University of Alberta’s Reza Hasmath and the Committee of 100’s Holly Chang.

China's efforts to become a global maritime power have been drawing more attention in the United States. In recent months, American analysts who study Chinese maritime capabilities have offered fresh perspectives on Beijing's motivations and how Washington should react to them. In this week's podcast, Michael Lipin brings you analysis from retired U.S. Rear Admiral Michael McDevitt, a senior fellow at CNA Corporation, and U.S. Congressional testimony from The Heritage Foundation’s Dean Cheng.

China is preparing to launch a new system for issuing work permits to foreigners, ranking them as 'A', 'B' or 'C' workers depending on their professions, Mandarin skills and other factors. Beijing says it wants to recruit top talent to the country and make visa applications simpler. But some critics see the plan as damaging to the prospects of foreign workers in China. For insight, Michael Lipin speaks to Douglas Spelman, senior adviser to the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States.

China's disabled athletes once again blew past their rivals to top the gold medal standings at the Rio Paralympics, achieving the feat for a 4th consecutive time. Team USA settled for a distant fourth, in sharp contrast to their 1st place finish in the Rio Olympics. How does China manage to keep beating the United States, a global sporting power, in the Paralympics? Michael Lipin asks Candace Cable, 12-time U.S. Paralympic medalist and vice chair of the 2024 Los Angeles Olympics bid committee.

China took a major step forward in its space program on September 15, sending its second space lab, Tiangong-2, into orbit. Next month, Beijing plans to send two Chinese astronauts to the lab as part of a broader objective: reaching the same space milestones that the U.S. and Russia achieved in past decades, and potentially overtaking them. What is behind China's growing space ambitions and progress? VOA's Michael Lipin asks Mars Institute director Pascal Lee and gbtimes journalist Andrew Jones.

U.S. officials have provided VOA with exclusive reactions to Hong Kong's September 4th Legislative Council election, which drew a record turnout to fill the city's 70-seat legislature. It also resulted in the election of half a dozen 'localists' who demand a right to self-determination. In this podcast, Michael Lipin brings you comments from the Obama administration, Congressman Chris Smith, and Washington-based researchers Robert Daly of the Kissinger Institute and Richard Bush of Brookings.