Concern over Abe's moves

With an already fraught Sino-Japanese relationship, Japan's conservative Liberal Democratic Party's return to power commands concern.

Blueprint for reform

The annual Central Conference on Economic Work is meant for tune- and agenda-setting, rather than for technicalities. Judging by the priorities set for 2013, most policies identified a year ago will be continued, with the new proposal to "actively and steadily" press ahead with urbanization in a "proper" manner.

The ROK needs new thinking

When voters in the Republic of Korea go to the polls to elect their new president on Dec 19, foreign policy will not be the main concern for a majority of them. The economy, jobs and welfare programs have been center stage in the campaign debates. However, foreign policy will be no less important for the ROK over the next five years.

Guns won't be holstered

It would not be hard to convince many of us who live on the West Coast of the United States of the painfully obvious need for severe gun-restriction laws and attendant gun-control enforcement. We're easy to persuade, California is just that way. Call us crazy, but we recently voted to increase our taxes to support our schools.

Innovation strategy can be spot-on

While China's growing innovation capacity has found mention in recent foreign political debates, those debates focused more on vilifying the country for intellectual property rights (IPR) "theft". This portrayal unfortunately provides a skewed outlook on the IPR and innovation system in China.

The year of booming bonds

Booming bond issuance and investment have been the pervasive themes throughout the global financial markets in 2012. The bond market not only met the needs of investors in the midst of the global financial crisis, but also provided strong support to companies and banks, becoming an engine for the world's economic growth.

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Urgent need for self-branded products

Many economists, analysts and commentators in China have dismissed the so-called insourcing by Apple and some other multinational companies as nothing but isolated cases that pose no real and immediate threat to China's industrial might.

Call for reform

The annual Central Economic Work Confe-rence, held in Beijing this weekend, can be seen as a bellwether for the new leadership's economic thinking and priorities.

Improve school security

We feel sad that 22 primary school stu-dents in Central China's Henan province were wounded by a villager with mental health problems wielding a knife on Friday, the same day as 20 children and seven adults in the United States were shot dead by a gunman in Connecticut. While the school shooting in the US brings forth the topic of gun control, the tragedy in China points to the necessity of tightening security in schools, those in rural areas in particular.

China to make good on neighbors

This year could well be called a world election year. The United States has seen the re-election of Barack Obama as president and France has undergone a leadership change. In Northeast Asia, China, Japan, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the Republic of Korea, Russia and Mongolia have already seen or will soon experience leadership transitions.

US, DPRK should stop raising tension

After a failed attempt in April, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea announced the successful launch of its Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite on Dec 12, which was widely believed to mark the first anniversary of Kim Jong-un's administration since Kim Jong-il died on Dec 17 last year. However, the launch invited strong reactions from the international community, especially Western countries. Some countries have even accused the DPRK of using its right to launch satellites to cover its missile development program.