Israeli Sinologist studies China through ancient thoughts

How Israeli Sinologist Yuri Pines got into Chinese studies is the stuff of movies: His initial understanding of China was different, but he developed an interest in Chinese philosophy while in prison near Haifa, Israel. And, his early readings on China were in Russian.

Some 30 years since Pines first started to learn Chinese, he is still delving into ancient Chinese political thoughts, which he thinks are immensely rich and could help the world to become more pluralistic and engaging.

Born in Kiev, Ukraine, in 1964, Pines grew up in the former Soviet Union at a time when ties between China and the Soviet had deteriorated.