Venus Upadhayaya
Venus Upadhayaya is a senior journalist and a 2025 MOFA Taiwan Fellow.
Argentina’s $10 Billion Paraná Waterway Bid Draws Scrutiny Over Chinese, US Influence
The Argentine government on June 4 issued a preliminary award for a major river dredging contract to a Belgian company and its local partner, which has previously worked with a Chinese state-owned dredging firm. The...
Exclusive: Nepali Expert on How Mount Everest Has Become a New Front in US–China Geopolitical Competition
Nestled between India and China, Nepal has increasingly emerged as a strategically significant player in regional and global geopolitics. Over the past decade, intensifying competition among major powers, combined with Nepal's unique location in the...
US Targets Chinese Tech Giants, Adding BYD, Alibaba, Baidu to Pentagon List
The U.S. Department of Defense has added major Chinese companies including electric vehicle maker BYD, technology firm Baidu, and e-commerce giant Alibaba to its latest list of companies allegedly linked to China's military. The DOD,...
India and Australia Deepen Maritime Security Cooperation Under Evolving Joint Security Roadmap
India and Australia agreed to strengthen defense and security cooperation during their second bilateral defense ministers' dialogue on June 1. Among a range of security initiatives, the two countries committed to expanding cooperation on maritime...
Media Battle Erupts Over Alleged Israeli Espionage Threat to US Amid Iran Talks
Amid the U.S.-Iran conflict, several media outlets have reported an increase in alleged Israeli espionage activities in the United States aimed at gathering intelligence on ongoing negotiations related to the war. Countering those reports, Israeli...
Exclusive: Analyst Says Taiwan Must Confront Limits of US Support as $14 Billion Arms Package Remains in Limbo
Just a week after the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing, the United States paused a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan to secure sufficiency of its weapons stockpiles for the Iran war, acting Navy Secretary Hung...
Taiwan’s Opposition Leader Cheng Li-wun Says She Would Welcome Talks With Trump
Taiwanese opposition leader and Kuomintang (KMT) chairwoman Cheng Li-wun is currently on a two-week visit to the United States. Before departing Taiwan on June 1, Cheng said she was “very willing” to meet President Donald...
EU Fears China’s Growing EV Sector Infrastructure in Morocco Could Circumvent Trade Restrictions
Europe, which has imposed tariffs of up to 45 percent on Chinese electric vehicles, fears Beijing is rapidly shifting parts of its EV manufacturing supply chain to nearby Morocco in an effort to bypass those...
Deep Beneath the Pacific, Japan Hunts for a New Source of Rare Earth Metals
Japan has begun exploring how best to mine deep-sea rare earth metals from the waters around its remote territory of Minamitorishima, after the Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) successfully extracted mud rich in...
Taiwan Stock Market Overtakes India as AI Draws Capital, Wars Hurt Import-Dependent Economies: Experts
The Iran war and the AI boom are affecting global economies in different ways, creating new market trends and helping explain why Taiwan overtook India in stock market valuation last week, experts say. Driven by...
Quad Signals Renewed Momentum at New Delhi Meeting Amid Growing Competition With China
The recent Quad foreign ministers' meeting in New Delhi on May 26 (Tuesday) produced a series of initiatives covering strategic infrastructure, maritime and energy security, critical minerals supply chains, and emerging technologies. The “Quad,” or...
US Delay of $14 Billion Taiwan Arms Package Raises Questions Over America’s Defense Capacity and China Strategy
JuJust a week after the Trump-Xi summit in Beijing, the U.S. paused a $14 billion arms sale to Taiwan to ensure it had sufficient weapons stockpiles for the Iran war, acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao...