Mortal Giants

This episode looks at the how the Communist Party of China has changed over the past century and how today’s party is very much the party of its President, Xi Jinping.  From a period where its remarkable growth was an economic miracle for the country, and there seemed to be more freedom for its citizens, to the beginning of the 2000s when the party got tougher again and Xi Jinping became President in 2012 and began consolidating his power over the party.  He is also close to Russian President Vladimir Putin.  What does this mean for China’s relationship with the world today and in the future? Mortal Giants is hosted by Sandy Garossino and Vina Najibullah.  Sandy is a former crown prosecutor and has been the public affairs columnist for Canada’s National Observer responsible for some groundbreaking investigations.  Vina is the vice-president of Research and Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She is a frequent media commentator on geopolitics, Canadian foreign policy, and Canada- Asia relations. 

The island of Taiwan and its strait the Taiwan Strait are the gateway to the South China Sea which stretches from Taiwan to Malaysia. One third of the world’s shipping traffic sail through these waters every year. And because of this Taiwan is one of the most dangerous flashpoints in global politics today. China believes Taiwan is part of China and that includes the Taiwan Strait.  Many countries support Taiwan as an independent country and the Strait as international waters.   One school of thought is that China’s Xi Jinping is moving closer to invading Taiwan and the U.S. has vowed to defend it.  Oh, and there’s another thing, remember from Episode 2, Taiwan produces over 60 per cent of all semiconductors and 93 per cent of the most advanced chips.Mortal Giants is hosted by Sandy Garossino and Vina Najibullah.  Sandy is a former crown prosecutor and has been the public affairs columnist for Canada’s National Observer responsible for some groundbreaking investigations.  Vina is the vice-president of Research and Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She is a frequent media commentator on geopolitics, Canadian foreign policy, and Canada- Asia relations. 

In this episode of Mortal Giants we're going to look at the new race for power – literally. The United States is challenging Asia for dominance in production of the tiny semiconductor chips that help reduce reliance on fossil fuels and will expand and advance artificial intelligence. And technological power will be the key to national power in this century. And to the competition between the U.S. and China.Mortal Giants is hosted by Sandy Garossino and Vina Najibullah.  Sandy is a former crown prosecutor and has been the public affairs columnist for Canada’s National Observer responsible for some groundbreaking investigations.  Vina is the vice-president of Research and Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She is a frequent media commentator on geopolitics, Canadian foreign policy, and Canada- Asia relations. 

Mortal Giants, a podcast about the fragility of power in the 21st century.  After almost a century of post -war prosperity and unrivalled American power, we've entered a new era of growing uncertainty and realignment as many of the world's nations now seek to challenge that dominance.  For better or worse, one man, Xi Jinping,President of the People's Republic of China will be a transformative force on the issues facing the world. Mortal Giants is hosted by Sandy Garossino and Vina Najibullah.  Sandy is a former crown prosecutor and has been the public affairs columnist for Canada’s National Observer responsible for some groundbreaking investigations. Vina is the vice-president of Research and Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada. She is a frequent media commentator on geopolitics, Canadian foreign policy, and Canada- Asia relations. 

Do you have questions about the rush to produce the tiny semiconductor chips that are essential to the transition away from fossil fuels?   Do you want to understand why China is a threat to Taiwan?  Or why the most sophisticated chips are almost exclusively produced by Taiwan?  Or if the new gold rush to be the leader in production is putting the world at risk for conflict?   You can get answers with Mortal Giants.  A conversation between former prosecutor and columnist for Canada’s National Observer, Sandy Garossino and Via Najibullah, Vice-President of Research & Strategy at the Asia Pacific Foundation of Canada.