Glasgow's Aye Write book festival is underway & I'm looking forward to speaking Friday evening (14th) about Vampire State, my latest book on China's predatory economy & the turbulent new geopolitics. Tickets still available! #china #TradeWar birlinn.co.uk/event/aye-wr...

Contrary to what Trump says, the rare earth crisis is not over. As I argue in the spectator, it should be seen as an opportunity - a wake up call for sleep-walking western democracies to urgently wean themselves off dangerous dependencies on #China #rareearths www.spectator.co.uk/article/chin...

Trump says his meeting with Xi Jinping today was ‘amazing’ and on a scale of one to 10, it merited a 12. As I report for the Spectator, that means that on a scale for scepticism, it probably deserves a 13 #china #tradewar #trump #APEC www.spectator.co.uk/article/trum...

Here’s my take for this week’s Spectator on the fiasco of the collapsed China spy trial & a govt that appears to have abandoned any notion of national security for single-minded policy of appeasing Beijing #china #spytrial #espionage #chinaspies www.spectator.co.uk/article/did-...

How are we to understand the relatiinship between Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin? Here’s my explainer for Times Radio #china #putin #ukraine #xijinping youtu.be/JLVdK7MX-WA?...

The great Xi Jinping makeover is in full swing. Champion of free trade, friend of foreign investors & tech entrepreneurs in the face of Trump mayhem. But as I argue in @thetimes #china shape-shifting is cynical and barely credible www.thetimes.com/article/c05b...

#China has moved fast to take advantage of Trump alienating much of the world. But as I ask in The Spectator, is anybody really fooled by Xi Jinping’s makeover? www.spectator.co.uk/article/how-...

It's generally agreed that the UK needs more #China expertise - from understanding history & culture to speaking Mandarin. But as I ask in the Spectator, what if institutions charged with improving such capabilities are captured by the Chinese communist party? www.spectator.co.uk/article/can-...

A real pleasure to join @philipingrammbe.bsky.social on Times Radio’s excellent Frontline podcast, talking Russia, China, Ukraine and much more #china #Russia #Ukraine #ukrainewar youtu.be/aegWOaXlSaU?...

I'm delighted that the updated paperback edition of Vampire State is published today. Understanding #china troubled but predatory economy is more important than ever #economy #TradeDeal #Tradewars #Beijing

So #china says economy grew 5.2% in the quarter to June & most commentators took that at face value. Wake up! CCP stats are political, not economic, more so that ever, and as I explain in the Spectator, they need to be treated with a huge does of scepticism www.spectator.co.uk/article/is-c...

A big thank you to everybody who came to the the Foreign Correspondents Club of Thailand Wednesday for my book talk. China is such an important issue right now, and understanding its predatory economy is more important than ever. Good to be back in Thailand and catching up with old friends.

Congratulations to @barbarademick.bsky.social for Daughters of the Bamboo Grove, her powerful new book on #China one-child policy, which inspired my Mail feature on the lasting legacy of one of the cruellest, misguided and costliest policies a govt has ever imposed on its people

How wary should we be of Chinese electric vehicles? We rightly worry about spyware on phones, but EVs are giant pieces of spyware - perfect for espionage, surveillance & sabotage. As I write in the Mail, a good place to start is the classic Michael Caine movie The Italian Job #China #EVs #espionage

Somewhere in the bowels of the Foreign Office, UK govt's much hyped 'audit' of China relations grinds on. AsI argue in The Spectator, it is being rapidly overtaken by events that scream for extreme caution. #china #chinaaudit #tariffs #tradewar www.spectator.co.uk/article/how-...

For Trump, tariff is the ‘most beautiful word’, but as I argue in the Spectator #china has a coercive toolbox built over decades of forcing foreign firms/pliant countries to kowtow as price of doing business or to punish for supposed sleights #tariffs #TradeWar www.spectator.co.uk/article/what...

Here’s my take for the Spectator on Trump’s tariffs on #China, which has accused the US of bullying, coercion and rule breaking. Well … Beijing’s familiar with all that, since it’s precisely what’s powered its economic rise #TradeWar #tariffs www.spectator.co.uk/article/chin...

Many thanks to Australian Strategic Policy Institute for a generous review of my new book, Vampire State - 'a must read for anyone dealing with China’s economy, from public sector trade negotiators to private businesspeople and investors' #china #economy www.aspistrategist.org.au/bookshelf-va...

Looking forward to the Oxford Literary Festival where on 4 April I'll be joining Michael Sheridan and Sophia Yan to talk about the challenge of facing up to #XiJinping and an aggressive #China. Some tickets still available! #oxfordliteraryfestival oxfordliteraryfestival.org/literature-e...

The UK govt & environmentalists want to ‘engage’ #China on #climatechange , but as I write in the spectator there is little evidence a transactional Beijing gives a hoot about the planet and sees such diplomacy as means for furthering its broader interests www.spectator.co.uk/article/chin...

A pleasure to join Louis Sykes on Times Radio’s Trump Report, talking #china #tariffs and much more youtu.be/xcu8bFn7SzU?...

As DonaldTrump imposes more tariffs, Chinese companies are finding multiple ways to avoid them, often by just re-badging 'made in China' as made in elsewhere. As I write in @thetimes it could turn into giant game of whac-a-mole #China #TradeWar #trump www.thetimes.com/business-mon...

Operation kowtow continues. As I write in the Mail on Sunday, Keir Starmer's govt is ignoring local residents & security concerns in what appears to be a murky deal to allow #China to build a monstrous new embassy in East London

The villain of my 2nd novel Zero Days is an unhinged power-hungry tech tycoon who wants to own the ultimate cyber weapon of the title. At the time, I didn't specifically model him on Elon Musk but he's growing into the role #ElonMusk #CYBER #Hacking www.amazon.co.uk/Zero-Days-Th...

Keir Starmer and his ministers appear to be competing to see who can kowtow lowest to China. As I write in the spectator not only is it desperate & morally repugnant, but can only increase dependencies and undermine security #China #reeves www.spectator.co.uk/article/labo...

Timing of Rachel Reeves’s visit to Beijing is awful. As I report in the Spectator, the govt's attempt to construct a coherent #china policy is shameful. If there is one lesson from recent years of policy failure, it is that appeasement doesn't work www.spectator.co.uk/article/what...

Just days away from Lewes Speakers Festival, where I'll be discussing my new book Vampire State: The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Economy - trying to make sense of a faltering & predatory economy. What's the true story of #china 'miracle'? Join us if you can www.ticketsource.co.uk/lewesspeaker...

US Treasury hack caps a frenzied year for #china cyber spies - and as I write in the Spectator Beijing is becoming more Russian - looking to undermine and sabotage and not just steal know-how on an industrial scale #treasuryhack #hacking #cyber www.spectator.co.uk/article/chin...

It has been 7 years since I published Beijing Smog, a tongue-in-cheek thriller about corruption and repression in China. At the time it seemed a little dystopian. Now jt seems more real than ever amzn.eu/d/cdLIMWx

That #china is a threat is blindingly obvious, so why is Keir Starmer so desperate to avoid those words - even in the face of the latest spying scandal? Here’s my take for the spectator #chinaspy #influence #espionage www.spectator.co.uk/article/keir...

A series of aggressive military and economic moves by #china in recent days are designed to send a message to Donald Trump, but as I write in the Spectator, Beijing will be the loser in any intensifying trade war #donaldtrump #tradewar #taiwan www.spectator.co.uk/article/chin...

Excellent Newsweek investigation into China’s ‘United front’ influence operations in the UK in light of prince Andrew spy scandal. More on shocking duplicity of British elite in my book Fire of the Dragon: China’s New Cold War #china #andrew #UFWD www.newsweek.com/kilts-qipaos...

A pleasure to be back on frontline at Times Radio with @jameshansonradio.bsky.social talking China’s Syrian blow, Beijing’s latest military tantrum around Taiwan as it preps for Trump 2 and much more #china #syria #russia #ukraine youtu.be/A8-VVUQ9HIw?...

Iranian and Russian guns sustained Assad's brutal rule, but so did the promise of money from China, who designated the Butcher of Damascus a 'strategic partner' #China #Syria #Assad #Russia #Iran www.spectator.co.uk/article/assa...

#China is spending billions to expand and modernise its military at a pace rarely seen in peace time, but as I write in the Spectator, the most cutting edge features of its top brass remain graft and political intrigue #PLA #corruption #taiwan #xijinping www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-...

If true, this is the 3rd successive defence minister to face corruption charges - the last 2 hand-picked by Xi Jinping. Further evidence of the rot at the heart of the CCP #china #corruption on.ft.com/415W6f1

Academic fraud is rife with #china at the forefront. As I write in the Spectator, journals are waking up to reality of fake science thanks to dogged detective work of @elisabethbik.bsky.social worthy winner of @einsteinberlin.bsky.social award #fraud #science www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-...

Academic fraud is rife with #china at the forefront. As I write in The Spectator, journals are slowly waking up to reality of fake science thanks to dogged detective work of Elisabeth Bik - worthy winner of the Einstein Foundation's top award #science #fraud www.spectator.co.uk/article/the-...

Here’s my @spectator take on the Starmer-Xi meeting at #G20 - badly timed, desperate even, laden with drearily familiar platitudes and showing little understanding of #china use of economic coercion www.spectator.co.uk/article/keir...

As #ElonMusk has grown closer to Trump, #China has stepped up its flattery, seeing him as an important asset. As I report in the Sunday Times Beijing has showered favours on Musk who has a staggering conflict of interest #tesla #chinaeconomy #musk www.thetimes.com/article/e970...

A pleasure to join Jonathan Fink on the excellent Silicon Curtain podcast, talking #china #trump and my new book, Vampire State: The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Economy youtu.be/Be9-wGJFmQY?...

It’s early days and unpredictability is arguably Trump’s main diplomatic asset. But here’s my effort to read his #china policy and the curious role of #elonmusk - who has accepted multiple CCP favours and parroted Beijing talking points www.spectator.co.uk/article/will...

Real pleasure to be back on Frontline at Times Radio talking to James Hanson about China, Russia, their unstable relationship & my new book, 'The Vampire State: The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Economy #china #russia #putin #ukraine #taiwan youtu.be/OU9AIMK_D9g?fe…

#china is looking to control the very building blocks of life. Here's my Daily Mail piece on the chilling implications of Beijing's ambition to build the world's biggest DNA database - much of it harvested from the West #Genomics #DNA www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article...

With Elon Musk playing large part in Trump election - & possibly in new admin - it’s worth reminding ourselves of his close links with #china from whom he’s received mulpiple favours. As I wrote in Spectator his free speech absolutistism stops at China border www.spectator.co.uk/article/xi-s...

#halloween is spooking #China paranoid leaders as they try and crack down on online memes and wordplay poking fun at them. As I write in @spectator, the CCP doesn’t have a sense of humour - which emboldens crafty internet users #internet #memes #censorship www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-...

Delighted to have such a positive review from the FT - a 'timely and important read' it says of 'Vampire State', and 'Williams’s sceptical prognostications about China’s economic future are hard to argue against'. Who am I to disagree with that? on.ft.com/3NJCJ3J

#china latest economic stimulus is underwhelming given the challenges it faces. As I argue in @spectator, 5% growth only obtainable by cooking the books and economy is unreformable while Xi prioritises security and CCP control www.spectator.co.uk/article/whil...

A decade ago, Xi Jinping launched multi-billion $ masterplan to conquer the world of football. As I argue in The Spectator it's been a colossal failure and speaks volumes about plan to build 'innovation economy' by similar means #China #football #Innovation www.spectator.co.uk/article/why-...

What’s the point of Hong Kong’s trade offices - its quasi-embassies - now that #china has destroyed HK autonomy and criminalised dissent? As I explain in the Spectator, calls are growing to strip them of their diplomatic privileges #hongkong www.spectator.co.uk/article/are-...