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Palmer-James-foreign-policy-staff-portraits-202226

James Palmer

Deputy Editor [email protected]

James Palmer is a deputy editor at Foreign Policy and writes FP’s weekly China Brief newsletter. Palmer is the author of The Bloody White Baron: The Extraordinary Story of the Russian Nobleman Who Became the Last Khan of Mongolia and The Death of Mao: The Tangshan Earthquake and the Birth of the New China. He won the Shiva Naipaul prize for travel writing in 2003.

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Articles by James Palmer
Chinese police patrol outside the Australian embassy in Beijing on January 25, 2019.
Chinese police patrol outside the Australian embassy in Beijing on January 25, 2019.

Why Has China Detained a CGTN Journalist?

China Brief
James Palmer
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon greets the fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui before introducing him at a news conference in New York on Nov. 20, 2018.
Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon greets the fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui before introducing him at a news conference in New York on Nov. 20, 2018.

Who Is Guo Wengui, the Chinese Emigre With Links to Steve Bannon?

China Brief
James Palmer
Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to vote during the third plenary session of the first session of the 13th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11, 2018.
Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to vote during the third plenary session of the first session of the 13th National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 11, 2018.

Xi’s Latest Purge Reflects Climate of Fear

China Brief
James Palmer
Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai pushes through a media pack after being released on bail in Hong Kong on Aug. 12.
Hong Kong pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai pushes through a media pack after being released on bail in Hong Kong on Aug. 12.

Why China Arrested Hong Kong Tycoon Jimmy Lai

China Brief
James Palmer
In this photo illustration, the WeChat privacy policy is displayed on an iPhone in Washington on Aug. 7.
In this photo illustration, the WeChat privacy policy is displayed on an iPhone in Washington on Aug. 7.

Why Is the United States Effectively Banning WeChat and TikTok?

Explainer
James Palmer
An employee walks outside the headquarters of ByteDance, the firm that owns the video-sharing app TikTok, in Beijing on Aug. 5.
An employee walks outside the headquarters of ByteDance, the firm that owns the video-sharing app TikTok, in Beijing on Aug. 5.

What’s Next for TikTok?

China Brief
James Palmer
U.S. President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping
U.S. President Donald Trump and China's President Xi Jinping

U.S. Slaps Sanctions on Xinjiang’s Vast Paramilitary Settler Corps

Report
James Palmer, Robbie Gramer
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivers a speech on Communist China and the future of the free world at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library on July 23, 2020 in Yorba Linda, California.
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo delivers a speech on Communist China and the future of the free world at the Richard Nixon Presidential Library on July 23, 2020 in Yorba Linda, California.

Why China Isn’t Taking Pompeo’s Bait

China Brief
James Palmer
Reenactors dressed as Greek hoplites attack Persians during an event to commemorate the 2,500-year anniversary of the Battle of Marathon in Marathon, Greece, on Sept. 10, 2011.
Reenactors dressed as Greek hoplites attack Persians during an event to commemorate the 2,500-year anniversary of the Battle of Marathon in Marathon, Greece, on Sept. 10, 2011.

Oh God, Not the Peloponnesian War Again

Argument
James Palmer
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo

Pompeo’s Strategy Depends on Beijing’s Own Paranoia

Argument
James Palmer
People attempt to speak to someone at the Chinese consulate in Houston on July 22.
People attempt to speak to someone at the Chinese consulate in Houston on July 22.

Why Did Trump Shut Down China’s Houston Consulate?

China Brief
James Palmer
Delegates applaud as China's President Xi Jinping walks past during the closing session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 20, 2018.
Delegates applaud as China's President Xi Jinping walks past during the closing session of the National People's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 20, 2018.

In Xi’s Little Red Article, the Monotony Is the Point

Argument
James Palmer
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the Rose Garden at the White House on July 14 in Washington.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks to the media in the Rose Garden at the White House on July 14 in Washington.

Trump’s China Speech Wasn’t About China

China Brief
James Palmer
Protesters chant slogans and gesture during a rally against China's new national security law in Hong Kong on July 1, 2020.
Protesters chant slogans and gesture during a rally against China's new national security law in Hong Kong on July 1, 2020.

Is This the Beginning of the End for Western Tech in China?

China Brief
James Palmer
Riot police secure an area in front of a road block during a demonstration against the new national security law on July 1 in Hong Kong.
Riot police secure an area in front of a road block during a demonstration against the new national security law on July 1 in Hong Kong.

Beijing’s New Security Law Is a Warning Sign

China Brief
James Palmer
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