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Maria Siow

Maria Siow

South China Morning Post

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North Korea strengthens ties with Russia over China in New Year’s diplomatic shift

North Korea strengthens ties with Russia over China in New Year’s diplomatic shift

Kim Jong-un’s outreach to Moscow and the absence of greetings for Xi Jinping suggest Pyongyang is exploiting Russia’s need for support while...

03.01.2025 30

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Japan should reach out to North Korea and not just focus on abduction issue

Japan should reach out to North Korea and not just focus on abduction issue

Tokyo has demanded the return of its citizens abducted by North Korea over the decades but any breakthrough on the issue is unlikely.

06.12.2024 40

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

‘Heroic nation’: how North Korea’s troop deployment to Russia is changing attitudes in China

The Chinese public who once derided North Korea as a ‘neighbourhood hooligan’ is now hailing its decision to help Russia in the Ukraine war.

08.11.2024 60

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Japan’s PM Ishiba set to focus on security ties with South Korea to counter Pyongyang

Shigeru Ishiba’s ‘progressive’ views on thorny historical issues have raised hopes that ties between Japan and South Korea could improve.

11.10.2024 40

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

South Korea’s global baby adoption programme leaves ‘gaping hole’ in adoptee’s heart

China has banned overseas adoptions of locally-born children but South Korea’s international adoption programme is still going on.

13.09.2024 40

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Olympic gaffes over Chinese names, South Korea show more effort needed in diversity push

Mispronounced Chinese names at the Paris Olympics have become a source of amusement for viewers around the globe.

16.08.2024 30

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

China should look back in history when it comes to chastising Japan, others about aggression

Beijing’s support for communist insurgencies across Southeast Asia was also a major source of aggression.

19.07.2024 50

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

How should diplomats respond to random racist insults of their countries?

By getting involved, Chinese diplomats give the impression that no slight, no matter how minor, should go unnoticed.

21.06.2024 20

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Why Chinese think tanks’ South China Sea reports targeting Vietnam, Indonesia will only escalate tensions

Singling out Vietnam and Indonesia is simply an attempt to divert attention from maritime confrontations in the disputed waterway.

31.05.2024 70

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

What does China really mean when it calls on other countries to be ‘rational’?

Such requests rarely seem sincere when they are essentially asking other nations to act against their own strategic goals

03.05.2024 100

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Southeast Asians are warming to the Quad – but they need to see more tangible benefits

A new survey shows rising regional acceptance of the US-Japan-Australia-India grouping that’s been derided by Beijing as an anti-China ‘tool’....

05.04.2024 60

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

In China, fake news about Singapore reflects hopes for better civic behaviour

Chinese social media is rife with claims that visitors to Singapore could face penalties for singing in public, not flushing the toilet or feeding...

08.03.2024 80

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

South China Sea: Vietnam and Philippines aren’t a ‘clique’ out to ‘sabotage’ Beijing

China recently accused Vietnam and the Philippines of forming a ‘clique’ over their South China Sea cooperation deal. It’s a term used by...

02.02.2024 40

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

Why Asia largely backs Japan’s defence boost despite its ‘history of aggression’

Many of Japan’s neighbours have not publicly opposed its surge in defence spending – except China.

05.01.2024 30

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

How China’s assertive diplomacy has reached ‘another level of disrespect’ and become the new normal

Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Huang Xilian and his counterparts have come under scrutiny more than once for their controversial comments.

15.12.2023 70

South China Morning Post

Maria Siow

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