US-China bilateral WTO accession agreement reached

Voters elected Taiwan’s president directly for the first time, choosing Lee Teng-hui. The election consolidated democratic legitimacy rooted in Taiwan’s electorate and took place amid military...

China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan signed an agreement on military confidence-building in border areas. This was an early step toward the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and...

The United Kingdom transferred Hong Kong to China under the Joint Declaration and Basic Law framework. The event ended formal British colonial rule and carried symbolic weight in China’s recovery of...

US President Bill Clinton met Chinese President Jiang Zemin during a state visit, addressing Taiwan, trade, human rights, and strategic relations. The meeting reflected efforts to manage an...

NATO aircraft struck the Chinese embassy during the Kosovo war, killing three Chinese journalists and injuring staff. NATO described the bombing as a targeting error; China condemned it as a serious...

Portugal transferred administration of Macau to China under a high-autonomy arrangement. The event completed the transfer of the last major European colonial possession on the Chinese coast, while...

China and African states launched FOCAC as a multilateral platform for political and economic cooperation. The forum institutionalized South-South engagement, while raising questions about African...

A US reconnaissance plane and Chinese interceptor collided over the South China Sea; the Chinese pilot died and the US aircraft made an emergency landing on Hainan. The incident produced a...

The International Olympic Committee selected Beijing to host the 2008 Summer Games. The decision gave China a highly visible platform to present itself as a modern global power after decades of...

APEC leaders meeting in Shanghai adopted the Shanghai Accord, setting a regional agenda for trade facilitation, transparency and digital commerce. Hosting the meeting showed China’s growing role in...