Yew Lun Tian

Senior Correspondent

Lun Tian is dedicated to discovering and writing about what makes China tick. She joined The Straits Times in 2024 after being based in Beijing for eight years for Reuters and Lianhe Zaobao. She has been in journalism since 2001.

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Latest articles

In 2026, Deng Xiaoping’s advice to lie low is making a temporary, tactical return

epa12802850 China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi speaks during a press conference on foreign policy and external relations during the Fourth Session of the 14th National People's Congress in Beijing, China, 08 March 2026. China holds two major annual political meetings, the National People's Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which run alongside each other and are known as the “Two Sessions”. EPA/ANDRES MARTINEZ CASARES

A technocrat wants to uplift China’s slowest-growing province. Can he succeed?

ltliaoning - Liaoning party chief Xu Kunlin (middle) blames cadres for not creating a pro-business environment for companies.
He was speaking at a meeting of Liaoning parliamentarians on March 6 during the Two Sessions in Beijing.
ST PHOTO: YEW LUN TIAN

What now? Cautious response in Asia after US court clips Trump’s emergency tariff powers

Within hours of the Supreme Court ruling, US President Donald Trump invoked another law to impose a blanket 10 per cent tariff on imports from all countries.

She teaches women in China to flirt. What could go wrong?

Ms Zhou Yuan runs “Black-and-White Disruptive Sexual Intelligence Academy”, which offers a buffet of online and offline services aimed at women.

Xi’s top general under probe in China’s deepest military purge yet

Mr Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Chinese Central Military Commission, is the latest military officer to be investigated.

China's fossil fuel addiction exposes a strategic vulnerability

Dramatic developments in Venezuela and Iran, both important oil suppliers for China, have exposed Beijing’s vulnerability in terms of energy security.

Beijing’s clear blue skies come at an uncomfortable cost

ltopinion19 - Ms Liu (right) and her neighbour sunbathe as they walk through wheat fields still dormant in winter on a January afternoon in a village in Baoding, Hebei province, China.
ST PHOTO: YEW LUN TIAN

Maduro’s capture reminds China of its darkest fears

This courtroom sketch shows deposed president of Venezuela Nicolas Maduro (C), attending his arraignment at Daniel Patrick Moynihan United States Courthouse on January 5, 2026 in New York,

Custodians or thieves? When China’s treasures are lost from within

A Ming Dynasty painting, donated to Nanjing Museum that turned up for auction, sparked an investigation into the museum's handling of its artefacts.

10 questions on what 2026 holds for Asia

America’s waning appetite for global leadership is spawning levels of uncertainty and unreliability that many countries are unaccustomed to navigating.

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MDDI (P) 046/10/2025. Published by SPH Media Limited, Co. Regn. No.202120748H. Copyright © 2026 SPH Media Limited. All rights reserved.