Asia

Given that Chinese counterfeiting has benefits as well as costs, and considering China’s historical resistance to Western pressure, trying to push China to change its approach to intellectual property law is not worth the political and diplomatic capital the United States is spending on it.

Drones are not helping to defeat al Qaeda and may be creating sworn enemies out of a sea of local insurgents. Embracing them as the centerpiece of U.S. counterterrorism would be a mistake.

In the West, it is easy to dismiss Chinese attempts to build up its soft power as tone deaf. But China's efforts are not necessarily aimed at Western audiences. And in other parts of the world, its charm offensive has worked quite well.

Beijing can start to solve its environmental and economic troubles by ending one of the most stubborn legacies of the planned economy: highly regulated energy prices. If recent reports are any indication, that is exactly what it plans to do.