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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
A section of the Yarlung Tsangpo River is seen from above in Medog County, Nyingchi, Tibet Autonomous Region of China, on May 13, 2023.
A section of the Yarlung Tsangpo River is seen from above in Medog County, Nyingchi, Tibet Autonomous Region of China, on May 13, 2023.

China Starts Construction on World’s Largest Hydropower Dam

China Brief
James Palmer
A woman waves from behind the Chinese flag in Hong Kong.
A woman waves from behind the Chinese flag in Hong Kong.

How China Got Its Name

China Brief
James Palmer
Chinese tourists take a photo with a China Aid plaque at the Patuxai victory monument in Vientiane, Laos.
Chinese tourists take a photo with a China Aid plaque at the Patuxai victory monument in Vientiane, Laos.

China Isn’t Ready to Replace USAID

Analysis
Henry Tugendhat, James Palmer
Rare-earth minerals are loaded for export to Japan at a port in Lianyungang, in China's Jiangsu province, on Sept. 5, 2010.
Rare-earth minerals are loaded for export to Japan at a port in Lianyungang, in China's Jiangsu province, on Sept. 5, 2010.

China’s Rare-Earth Leverage Is Paying Off

China Brief
James Palmer
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun gestures to the press.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun gestures to the press.

A Distracted Washington Is a Win for Beijing

China Brief
James Palmer
China’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Fu Cong, addresses delegates during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York.
China’s permanent representative to the United Nations, Fu Cong, addresses delegates during a meeting of the United Nations Security Council in New York.

China Backs Iran in Fight Against Israel

China Brief
James Palmer
An aerial photo shows students drawing images commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in Qingzhou, in China's eastern Shandong province, on June 24, 2021.
An aerial photo shows students drawing images commemorating the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party in Qingzhou, in China's eastern Shandong province, on June 24, 2021.

What Washington Doesn’t Understand About CCP Membership

China Brief
James Palmer
Chinese President Xi Jinping is seen during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Informal Dialogue With Guests in San Francisco, California.
Chinese President Xi Jinping is seen during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Leaders’ Informal Dialogue With Guests in San Francisco, California.

Why Do Americans Mispronounce ‘Xi Jinping’?

China Brief
James Palmer
A student walks past a building on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 24.
A student walks past a building on the Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on May 24.

Trump’s Attacks on Harvard Cause Alarm in China

China Brief
James Palmer
Employees work at a factory that produces car parts for export in Lianyungang, in eastern China's Jiangsu province.
Employees work at a factory that produces car parts for export in Lianyungang, in eastern China's Jiangsu province.

China Tries to Revive Economy Amid Tariff Pause

China Brief
James Palmer
A man in sunglasses in the foreground is seen out-of-focus as he speaks into a cellphone. Other people in suits are seen in the background as they walk away down a paved pathway between lush green trees on either side.
A man in sunglasses in the foreground is seen out-of-focus as he speaks into a cellphone. Other people in suits are seen in the background as they walk away down a paved pathway between lush green trees on either side.

U.S.-China Trade Deal Defies Expectations

China Brief
James Palmer
A man watches a news program about Chinese military drills surrounding Taiwan, on a giant screen outside a shopping mall in Beijing on Oct. 14, 2024.
A man watches a news program about Chinese military drills surrounding Taiwan, on a giant screen outside a shopping mall in Beijing on Oct. 14, 2024.

The Pentagon Fixates on War Over Taiwan

China Brief
James Palmer
Children play next to the Bund Bull sculpture in Shanghai.
Children play next to the Bund Bull sculpture in Shanghai.

No Talk, but Some Action on U.S.-China Tariffs

China Brief
James Palmer
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives in Hanoi.
Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he arrives in Hanoi.

Countries Face Pressure to Pick Sides in U.S.-China Trade War

China Brief
James Palmer
Syril Karn, played by actor Kyle Soller, in a still from Season 2 of "Andor."
Syril Karn, played by actor Kyle Soller, in a still from Season 2 of "Andor."

‘Andor’ Is a Chilling Vision of Fascism and Resistance in a Galaxy Far, Far Away

Review
James Palmer
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