Taiwan is conducting its first-ever mobile network throttling exercise this week to test how the public responds to wartime communications disruptions, a new civil defence measure that has sparked criticism over the government’s preparedness. The exercise, held in central Taiwan on Monday and planned for northern Taiwan on Thursday, will simulate severe mobile network congestion by reducing 4G and 5G bandwidth for 30 minutes. About 17 million people, or 73 per cent of the island’s population,...

A China Southern Airlines flight was forced to abandon its departure and return to the gate at Shenzhen airport over the weekend after the Airbus A321 aircraft was struck by lightning while taxiing. Flight CZ3209, bound for the city of Wuxi in China’s eastern Jiangsu province, was waiting on the ground during a heavy thunderstorm on Saturday afternoon when the incident occurred, according to a report by The First Scene, a news portal under Shenzhen Media Group. The incident came to light on...

Scheduled drone performances at tourist attractions and events across China have been grounded as the country steps up scrutiny of low-altitude aviation, although in many cases no clear reason was given for the cancellation. Tourist attractions and event organisers in 11 provinces and regions – including Inner Mongolia, Gansu, Shandong, Guangdong and Hainan – took the unusual step last week of announcing that drone shows scheduled from Friday onwards were cancelled. By Monday, none had announced...

China’s central government has invited dozens of scientific, technological and academic experts to its annual summer retreat, highlighting how the country is focusing on innovation and breaking through “chokepoints” amid fierce competition with the US. According to state news agency Xinhua, the Communist Party’s Central Committee and the State Council, China’s cabinet, invited 60 experts to the seaside resort of Beidaihe from August 1 to 7. The list of invitees – who represented fields including...

Residents in Beijing have been warned not to go outside unless it is absolutely necessary as the capital and multiple other cities are on high alert for the arrival of Typhoon Dolphin, which is travelling north. In Beijing, a red rainstorm alert – the second highest – was issued on Monday for a number of districts, with rain expected to continue over the next three days. According to the city’s forecaster, the rain will get increasingly stronger with the most concentrated period expected to be...

Professor Wang Gungwu is regarded internationally as an authority on Chinese history. The 95-year-old is best known for his explorations of Chinese history in the long view, and for his writings on the Chinese diaspora. He has been a professor at the National University of Singapore since 2007 and emeritus professor at the Australian National University since 1988. He was vice-chancellor of the University of Hong Kong from 1986 to 1995. This interview first appeared in SCMP Plus. For other...