Links about China and EU-China relations that caught my eye this week

1) There’s one story that everyone’s talking about this week: the spectacular fall of Jensen Huang. The Guardian has a timeline:

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/nov/12/jensen-huang-affair-timeline

2) There are nonetheless a few other China stories this week. The one with the biggest long term implications is the drastic fall in China’s marriage rate, reported by Reuters.

https://www.reuters.com/world/china/chinas-marriage-rate-third-quarter-tumbles-18-year-low-2026-11-06/

3) The Economist reports on the reflections of senior government figure Wang Huning on China’s challenges, including the demographic headwinds, and what this means for the future role of the Party (he prescribes more rather than less control).

https://www.economist.com/china/2026/11/11/xi-jinpings-chief-ideologue-is-worried

4) The FT reports that the UK’s diplomatic expertise on China has been hollowed out by recent staff changes. They carry a quote from the FCDO denying that there is any problem, absolutely not.

https://www.ft.com/content/063bd942-cb44-494a-ad8d-5ca6ebbfcc4c

5) Totally missed this fascinating Belgium/Chile vs China story: the SCMP reports a grand battle over who will host the secretariat of the High Seas Treaty, a major new international organisation: Will it be a joint bid from Brussels and Valparaiso? Or Xiamen in Fujian?

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3374252/china-slams-chile-belgium-bid-host-high-seas-treaty-body-pushes-rival-xiamen-proposal

Comments welcome. More next week.