China Watch

China has been encroaching on the distant coasts of Alaska, and the U.S. Coast Guard has been loud about it during the summer.Join Terri Wu as she analyzes what is happening in the far North, as nations jostle for both economic and military control of the Arctic Circle. Receding ice from longer seasons is making the frozen ocean viable for more consistent access, and China wants a piece.Listen to how the United States is responding, and why this frozen wasteland, or what lies beneath it, is so valuable.Included below is the link to the polar shipping routes promised in the episode: https://transportgeography.org/contents/chapter1/transportation-and-space/polar-shipping-routes/ The names of the five most significant ports along Russia’s Arctic coastline are Murmansk, Sabetta, Arkhangelsk, Tiksi, and Uzhden.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Chinese money laundering networks (CMLN) put about $2 trillion of illicit money back into the global financial system each year, according to John Cassara, a former Treasury special agent and the author of “China-Specified Unlawful Activities: CCP Inc., Transnational Crime and Money Laundering.”That’s on par with Russia’s GDP, which is the 11th largest in the world.Think of how much underlying crime $2 trillion of money laundering can support annually.Join Terri to explore the brief history of CMLNs, their potential threat to U.S. national security, and hear experts’ recommendations on the next steps.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

It’s one thing when massive debt is public for the world to see and know. But what happens when mountains of debt are secretly issued and traded under the table?That’s what Terri is looking at this week: how China’s secret local-government finance industry is keeping the entire economy bound together, in terms of both keeping it afloat and holding it back.Where does it come from? What does it do? And what does it mean for the rest of the people in China, and even the world looking in from the outside?The video post mentioned in the show: https://x.com/whyyoutouzhele/status/1960869950333083801Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

The COVID pandemic lockdowns may feel like a long-gone memory at this point. But for today’s guest, it was a major event that triggered her decision to leave her motherland, perhaps for good.Join Terri as she talks with Elena Yan, a former government worker in China. Her work mandated her to join the legions of the white-clad men and women who forced daily COVID tests on her fellow citizens. That, and more, drove Elena’s decision to leave. Terri learns just how common Elena’s experience is among the greater populace under the regime’s control.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

While the most talked-about topic from the Chinese Communist Party’s military parade this month was the infamous “hot mic” moment, its meaning is much more subtle than it appears on the surface.This week, Terri talks about how the hot mic conversation between Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin on organ transplantation may have been completely intentional.Why would the regime allow such a seemingly unprofessional gaffe to happen, and about such an uncommon topic as longevity?Terri answers all that and more in this episode of China Watch.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

There was much stir about the Trump administration taking a stake in Intel. But was it for the right reasons? While many people were caught up arguing over “state capitalism,” the real issue may be how this confronts China.The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) may be looking to monopolize the global chip-manufacturing supply chain. Capturing Taiwan, for example, the world’s breadbasket for state-of-the-art chips, has been on its agenda.Terri describes how the United States’ stake in Intel may be its way of hedging its bets against the CCP taking control of that vulnerable supply chain. Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

For those who haven’t heard the term “lying flat,” it’s how Chinese people describe a passive mindset of giving up on life. Some call it a lifestyle. Now, it’s evolving into something bigger: a way to take advantage of China’s debt system.Join Terri as she shares the story of a typical young Chinese family, whose life she has tracked over the past two years, and connects their lot in life to macroeconomics.Hear from today’s interviewee, “Randy,” as he describes how he’s fighting the Chinese Communist Party the only way he knows how under the rule of the regime.But Randy is not alone. It’s a new trend catching on in China.Randy’s identity has been kept anonymous for this episode due to the high risk of retaliation he could face at home.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

While Beijing sees America as an adversary and the “Make America Great Again” movement as a threat, it is unwittingly helping the United States achieve some of its America-first policies.Join Terri Wu as she discusses how the actions of China’s ruling communist party, under leader Xi Jinping, are goading the American economy back in a direction of manufacturing and self-reliance.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

China’s export economy relies on the United States, and they’ll do anything to keep that, including getting around tariffs.That’s what Terri is talking about today: trans-shipments. It’s a system of getting around tariffs.But one American business is doing everything it can to lead the charge in ending such unfair trade practices. Unfortunately, it’s hardly that easy.Hear how Chinese shippers are taking advantage of America’s current system, and what’s being done to fix the situation.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain

The Chinese Communist Party is met with adulation by some and fear by many. But the regime, and those who use the theory of communism in its many warped forms, have their own fears as well.Join Terri as she looks at some of the major fears of the Chinese Communist Party and how these impact the country as a whole, as well as the man leading it.See if you, by the end, come to the same conclusion as Terri as to what the greatest fear of the Chinese regime is.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Two Chinese Americans visiting China are stuck there due to exit bans that the regime imposed on them, according to recent news reports.Exit bans are just one physical manifestation of the omnipresent controls that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) imposes on society.The term “exit ban” in Chinese has many layers of meaning.Join Terri for an analysis of what these are and how Chinese people are fighting back against the CCP’s invisible prison.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

From a cultural perspective, Americans are quite different from the people of China, whether it’s in daily habits or how they interact with others. But in a very special way, there's one group of Americans that is similar to mainland Chinese: the New Yorkers. It has to do with how they understand business.And because Chinese mainlanders and New Yorkers intuitively know what it takes to strike deals, one particular man from New York seems to be piercing through the Chinese Communist Party’s trade tactics—simply by being himself.Join Terri for an analysis of why President Donald Trump has a unique perspective in handling the Chinese regime, and why the new stablecoins law pulls the rug from under the CCP and puts it on the defensive.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Tariffs have yet to be finalized, but the U.S.-China trade war has moved on from them.And perhaps very different from what you hear from the legacy media, the Trump administration’s tariffs haven’t been a failure—they have set a whole new precedent.Behind the hustle and bustle of tit-for-tat tariffs, the global trade order has undergone a fundamental shift. Meanwhile, a new battlefield for financial dominance in the world is opening up right before our eyes.Join Terri as she analyzes what’s next and how both countries are making their moves.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Rare earths have become a strategic weapon in China's trade arsenal.That situation is by design, as the Chinese regime uses its supply-chain monopoly to influence worldwide trade. How did we arrive at this point with such a heavy reliance on China? What were some of the past struggles to break free from China's control over rare earths?Now, the United States is moving once again to build a domestic rare-earth supply chain. Will it succeed?And what makes it different this time? How do we know we will prevail this time?Join Terri for a deep dive into the ever-changing supply-chain standoff. Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

The U.S. bunker-busters that ended the 12-day war in Iran sent metaphorical shockwaves all the way to the Far East.The Chinese regime’s rhetoric has long been that of a “rising East” and “declining West.” But these strikes have flipped that narrative on its head.The sudden and decisive action of the United States may have taken the wind out of the Chinese Communist Party’s sails.The Chinese have one word—勢 (Shì)—for momentum or posture. But the character also carries further meaning: it’s the mystical luck that one needs to command the world.Join Terri as she analyzes how the complex moving pieces in this short conflict have shifted the geopolitical landscape for both the United States and China, as their complicated relationship continues to go through abrupt but meaningful changes.Related Report:The Secret 15-Year Plan Behind US Strikes on Iran (Read)How Iran War Exposed Limits of Chinese Influence in Region (Read)Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Everyone knows that history often repeats itself. Today, we’ll look at a case where people are actively seeking to repeat history. Nearly 3,000 years ago, a famous chancellor in China successfully used trade to expand the power and territory of his state.Today, the Chinese communist regime has borrowed strategy from the same playbook.How China has used its rare earths trump card may reveal the regime’s major weakness.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Back in May, I spoke with Professor Li Shaomin, a painter who created propaganda for the Chinese communist regime, including portraits of former leader Mao Zedong. I hoped he would help me resolve my emotional dilemma mentioned several episodes ago in “U.S.-China Breakup: It’s Getting Personal.”When the Trump administration began revoking Chinese student visas earlier this month, my identity as a Chinese-American was shaken to the core. So I asked Professor Li to help me understand why I was having this reaction.Well, he’s back on the show. And what he told me was beyond my expectations.He demystified CCP propaganda for me by speaking of his own experience, and helped me identify its residual effects still within me, and granted me more inner freedom.He also has advice for Americans who want to help their Chinese friends navigate this new era of U.S.–China conflict.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

Welcome to an extra episode of China Watch.In this interview with AI expert Ethan Tu, we talked about the natural divergence between the AI supply chains led by the United States and China.How much of our impression of China’s AI leadership is shaped by Chinese propaganda? How has China redefined the game to look like it’s ahead of U.S.?And what are the hidden ideological and technical risks in China’s AI products?Here’s how that conversation went.Read the full transcript here.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

The AI race is the defining aspect of the U.S.–China competition, similar to the previous Space Race between the United States and the former Soviet Union.Rather than a competition in space, the AI race is happening around us in our daily lives more than many of us realize.Join Terri as she unpacks the high stakes of the U.S.–China contest and the key drivers that will determine the winner.This episode also shares viewpoints from leading experts in the field whom she spoke to during the recent AI+ Expo in Washington.Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.

The new visa policy for Chinese international students marks another major shift in the U.S.-China decoupling. It’s getting personal.The potential impact is way bigger than tariffs.It’s also personal for host Terri Wu because she came to America as a Chinese student.There’s a lot to unpack: national security concerns, personal concerns, and emotional reactions.The count of Chinese students in the United States began with 52 in 1978. Five years after that, it increased to 100,000. Today it's about 277,000.Allowing Chinese students to study in the U.S. was part of the “People’s War” strategy deployed by Deng Xiaoping.One expert, John Lenczowski, a former senior official in President Ronald Reagan’s National Security Council, said there are 25,000 Chinese intelligence collectors in Silicon Valley alone.Join Terri as she explores the historical—and the emotional—aspects of the complex relationship between the United States and China, and by extension, the people of the two countries.Related report:Targeting Military Installations, IP Theft: A Look at Criminal Cases Involving Chinese Students (Read)Views expressed in this episode are opinions of the host and guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.—Terri Wu is a Washington-based freelance reporter for The Epoch Times covering education and China-related issues. Send tips to terri.wu@epochtimes.com.Enjoyed this podcast? Follow China Watch for a peek behind the red curtain.