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Mark Parker Young

@markparkeryoung.bsky.social
818 followers 168 following 82 posts

Principal analyst at Google's Threat Intelligence Group. Former Deputy National Intelligence Officer for East Asia and senior nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council. Views my own. markparkeryoung.net

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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 25/01/2026
Until I'm able to write about the latest PLA purges, I've updated this chart showing the CMC's span of control during Xi's tenure. His reorganizations stretched the CMC and then his purges broke it. It was a fundamentally different organization even before the latest purge, and now the future
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
I posted a machine translation of recently-released footage of the trial of Xu Qinxian, the 38th Group Army Commander who balked at orders to use force in 1989. The footage provides new insight into a crucial episode in the history of China and the CCP. markparkeryoung.substack.com/p/the-trial-...
markparkeryoung.substack.com
The Trial of Major General Xu Qinxian: Machine Translation
A 6-hour video from the trial of PLA Major General Xu Qinxian (徐勤先), Commander of the 38th Group Army during the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, was publicized by the group Human Rights in China in...
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
Xi's military purges and reorganizations have reinforced his control over the PLA at the expense of its operational capabilities. I wrote about the new Central Military Commission and what it indicates about Xi's priorities and willingness to use force: markparkeryoung.substack.com/p/a-central-...
markparkeryoung.substack.com
A Central Military Commission Built For War - Against The PLA
Political control at the expense of operational capabilities
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Holly Snape @hollysnapewang.bsky.social · 03/10/2025
Delighted that Joseph Torigian (@josephtorigian.bsky.social) will be joining us in Glasgow for our Scottish Centre for China Research seminar series. Join us! Wed 8 Oct 4pm UK time To join online register via link at: www.gla.ac.uk/research/az/...
gla.ac.uk
The Party's Interests Come First: The Life of Xi Zhongxun, Father of Xi Jinping
Seminar by Dr Joseph Torigian, American University in Washington & University of Michigan, 8 October 2025
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 23/09/2025
It's a testament to the intensity of recent PLA purges that another wave came and went with little attention from English-langauge media, but the latest moves show the depth of disarray engulfing the high command. My take on what the latest moves mean: markparkeryoung.net/posts/fresh-...
markparkeryoung.net
⭐️ Another Round of Purges Exposes Political Upheaval in PLA
The damage spreads
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Dake Kang @dakekang.bsky.social · 19/09/2025
Hello everyone, I am now also on Substack. Bit of an experiment for me, but I suspect people who follow me might like that format better: substack.com/@dakekang
substack.com
Dake Kang | Substack
Investigative journalist in Beijing
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 01/09/2025
@jonathonpsine.bsky.social has written an absolutely phenomenal review of Dan Wang's "Breakneck." This is one of my favorite single essays about China today. www.cogitations.co/p/litigation...
cogitations.co
Litigation Nation, Engineering Empire
A review of Dan Wang's new book Breakneck
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John Culver @johnculver689.bsky.social · 18/08/2025
Fun to work with Jon Czin on this for Foreign Affairs: "The moves demonstrate his continued dissatisfaction with the PLA’s high command and can be seen as part of an ongoing process of achieving his larger goals of bending the military to his will." x.com/BrookingsFP/...
x.com
Brookings Foreign Policy on X: ""Xi is obsessed with ensuring that the PLA’s men would resist if need be—but he is still not confident they would." In @ForeignAffairs, Brookings experts @jonczin & @JohnCulver689 examine Xi's approach to the PLA and his continued grip on the military: https://t.co/YAilFOn169" / X
"Xi is obsessed with ensuring that the PLA’s men would resist if need be—but he is still not confident they would." In @ForeignAffairs, Brookings experts @jonczin & @JohnCulver689 examine Xi's approach to the PLA and his continued grip on the military: https://t.co/YAilFOn169
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 26/07/2025
This two part interview about Xi Zhongxun is a fantastic vantage point on elite politics in China. One point by Joseph that is as true today as ever: "...how far a purge goes, who’s included in the purge, [and] how the purge is characterized, is an art form that is shaped by a myriad of different
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 20/07/2025
Facing U.S. tariffs, China’s exports to the U.S. are down—while exports to Southeast Asia are up. Is that trade diversion and potential transshipment? My estimate: at most 34% of the increased PRC exports to SE Asia in Q2 could reflect trade diverted from the United States.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 06/07/2025
I was going to write something about why certain types of "Xi Jinping is facing pushback" rumors are fundamentally flawed, but it's basically covered in the "faulty factionalism" section of this essay from a couple years ago: asiasociety.org/policy-insti...
asiasociety.org
2022, Xi Jinping’s Annus Horribilis: Or is it?
ASPI's Center for China Analysis Senior Fellow Christopher Johnson writes about Xi Jinping's challenges in 2022 and how he is still predicted to continue as China's top leader after the 20th Party Con...
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 18/04/2025
China's military high command is in the midst of extraordinary upheaval, and Xi Jinping has purged half the uniformed members of the Central Military Commission little more than two years after choosing them. My deep dive on why it's happening and what it means: markparkeryoung.net/posts/turmoi...
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 12/04/2025
I would interpret the US tariff exemptions primarily as an attempt to mitigate the impact on electronics and consumers more than as a signal of a US-China deal. The exempted categories cover about 22% of US imports from China. content.govdelivery.com/bulletins/gd...
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 11/04/2025
This is an interesting account of how Volt Typhoon came up in a bilateral cyber dialog. I would be wary of assuming that Wang's comments here reflected a high level decision in Beijing to signal Washington. I'm a bit skeptical because Beijing probably did not view www.wsj.com/politics/nat...
wsj.com
Exclusive | In Secret Meeting, China Acknowledged Role in U.S. Infrastructure Hacks
A senior Chinese official linked intrusions to escalating U.S. support for Taiwan.
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Rhodes Cartography @thinkinginspace.bsky.social · 05/04/2025
Was getting a spike in traffic on the other site for this simple tool, so reposting here. In case you have a need for maps like these... www.mapspam.net/MetOrtho.html
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 05/04/2025
Excellent indictment of science reporting at South China Morning Post by @zichen.bsky.social. My approach is to read SCMP reporting on Chinese politics, even given the severe constraints on it, but disregard all science reports, including on cybersecurity. www.pekingnology.com/p/some-troub...
pekingnology.com
Some Troubled Science Reporting at South China Morning Post
A review of the SCMP's recent cable-cutting blockbuster and 8 other science stories in the past year.
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 30/03/2025
Which US industries are most exposed to the China market? Looking at US majority-owned foreign affiliates, the answer is wholesale trade, computers & electronics, chemicals & pharma, autos, and semiconductors. This could matter for US-China talks and potential PRC retaliation to US tariffs.
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 26/03/2025
Taiwan is nervous. With good reason. Jude Blanchette and I discuss in our new RAND Commentary. www.rand.org/pubs/comment...
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Jonathon P Sine @jonathonpsine.bsky.social · 25/03/2025
Han Dynasty and Roman Empire. We like to say "all roads lead to Rome" but it is much more accurate to say "all roads lead to Chang'an." Han Dynasty road network was radial, whereas the Roman road network was mesh-like.
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China Media Project @chinamediaproject.bsky.social · 24/03/2025
Hundreds of gigabytes of data from an unsecured server expose how China is using artificial intelligence to automate the surveillance of online discourse, with a sophisticated classification system prioritizing military, social, and political content. chinamediaproject.org/2025/03/24/c...
chinamediaproject.org
China’s AI Content Dragnet - China Media Project
Hundreds of gigabytes of data from an unsecured server expose how China is using artificial intelligence to automate the surveillance of online discourse, with a sophisticated classification system pr...
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 19/03/2025
Outstanding interview with a young censor.
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Oleg Shakirov @shakirov2036.bsky.social · 17/03/2025
Big day for Chinese threat intel MSS outs 4 alleged members of Taiwan's Information, Communications & Electronic Force Command, links them to cyber attacks QiAnXin & Antiy release 2 separate reports on Taiwan-linked APT-Q-20/APT-C-01/GreenSpot/PoisonVine 🧵w/ links & details
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Rhodes Cartography @thinkinginspace.bsky.social · 15/03/2025
Thinking about maritime security? Needs more maps... www.state.gov/g7-foreign-m...
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Kim Zetter @kimzetter.bsky.social · 14/03/2025
I'll be teaching a 6-week graduate-level night course at Georgetown University in May-June called Cyber Operations. We'll look at ways that nations project power in cyberspace - their motives, methods, and impact. Looking forward to meeting students in the School of Foreign Service master's program
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 10/03/2025
Predictions that AI could undermine the Chinese government's societal monitoring and control remind me of predictions in the 90s that the internet would do the same thing. I think it'll very likely be the opposite.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
One of the best discussions of the uneven impact of AI on the future of warfare that I've heard/read.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 05/03/2025
Fascinating article. The CCP will have to grapple with how to manage the increasingly strong emotional attachments people will form with AI systems, as is the case for every government and society. I think there are both risks and opportunities from Beijing's point of view.
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 04/03/2025
China's retaliation to the new 20% US tariffs: - 10-15% tariffs on US ag imports - 10 US firms on Unreliable Entities List - 15 US firms on export control list (Illumina maybe most affected) - No product-specific export controls Less than proportional response.
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Dakota @dakotaindc.bsky.social · 03/03/2025
The number of companies providing vulnerabilities to China’s MSS has ballooned to 324, up from 151 in 2023! Most new companies are currently Tier 3. China’s ecosystem of vuln suppliers is frothy.
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Matthew Green @matthewdgreen.bsky.social · 01/03/2025
One of the things I’ve come to appreciate being with privacy folks this week is how unique Signal is at this moment. I know it’s maybe a cliche at this point, but it needs to be said.
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Sheena Chestnut Greitens @sheenagreitens.bsky.social · 28/02/2025
Sharing a new piece out today in China Leadership Monitor on the changing role of China's Ministry of State Security: www.prcleader.org/post/counter...
prcleader.org
Counter-Espionage and State Security: The Changing Role of China’s Ministry of State Security | China Leadership Monitor
In recent years, China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) has become more visible and more prominent, reflecting an apparent increase in political influence under Xi Jinping. The tasks that MSS carrie...
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 26/02/2025
Researchers analyzed a memory disclosure vulnerability in the Great Firewall for two years. I'm always impressed at the technical ingenuity of researchers who probe the architecture of this system. gfw.report/publications...
gfw.report
Wallbleed: A Memory Disclosure Vulnerability in the Great Firewall of China
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
Great analysis of the downfall of Miao Hua, who has been seen as one of Xi's top allies in the PLA. Written by Jon Czin www.brookings.edu/articles/tho...
brookings.edu
Thoughts on the political demise of Miao Hua
Xi Jinping’s decision to topple Miao Hua sheds light on the opaque inner workings of Chinese Communist Party politics.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
For China econ/tech/ideology watchers: Emily Jin (@emilyjin.bsky.social) has joined bluesky
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 25/02/2025
For China watchers: @jonathonpsine.bsky.social has joined bluesky
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Dakota @dakotaindc.bsky.social · 21/02/2025
Leaked TopSec tooling. A corruption scandal at the Shanghai State-owned Asset Supervision and Administration Commission. What more could you want from our latest @sentinelone.com blogpost? 👇 1/
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Gerard DiPippo @gdp1985.bsky.social · 20/02/2025
Two narratives about China's economy: - Macro weakness - Technological and industrial strength They're both true! How? The "new economy" is a small share of the overall economy. I discuss in a new RAND Commentary. www.rand.org/pubs/comment...
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Dan Black @danwblack.bsky.social · 19/02/2025
Today, Google Threat Intelligence is alerting the community to increasing efforts from several Russia state-aligned threat actors (GRU, FSB, etc.) to compromise Signal Messenger accounts. cloud.google.com/blog/topics/...
cloud.google.com
Signals of Trouble: Multiple Russia-Aligned Threat Actors Actively Targeting Signal Messenger | Google Cloud Blog
Russia state-aligned threat actors target Signal Messenger accounts used by individuals of interest to Russia's intelligence services.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 16/02/2025
PSA: the Internet Archive's Chrome extension helps users find archived copies of websites that have been taken down or modified chrome.google.com/webstore/det...
chrome.google.com
Wayback Machine - Chrome Web Store
The Official Wayback Machine Extension - by the Internet Archive.
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Kim Zetter @kimzetter.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
If you're going to write about a court case 🙏 please embed the court documents in your story. As a freelancer, I pay to download documents from Pacer out of my own pocket and include them in stories so readers (including other journos) can easily have them. Why don't large media companies do this?
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Kim Zetter @kimzetter.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
New court documents shed light on what a 25-year-old DOGE worker named Marko Elez did inside Treasury payment systems, including which systems he accessed, security measures Treasury IT staff took to limit his access/activity, and whether he had ability to change source code on production systems.
zetter-zeroday.com
Court Documents Shed New Light on DOGE Access and Activity at Treasury Department
New court documents shed light on what a 25-year-old DOGE employee named Marko Elez did inside Treasury Department payment systems. They also provide extensive new details about which systems Elez acc...
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John Culver @johnculver689.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
The PLA will complete much of capacity to conduct major combat operations over the next 2-3 years. Combined with our domestic situation, it has the ingredients for supreme danger and stupidity. www.lowyinstitute.org/the-interpre...
lowyinstitute.org
China, Taiwan, and the PLA’s 2027 milestones
Be prepared to be surprised.
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Ben Read @benread.bsky.social · 12/02/2025
Sharing the project I've been working on for the last month. Here's GTIG's paper on the severe threat to national security posed by cyber crime.
cloud.google.com
Cybercrime: A Multifaceted National Security Threat | Google Cloud Blog
Google Threat Intelligence Group discusses the current state of cybercrime, and why it must be considered a national security threat.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 11/02/2025
Great Andrew Batson review of what sounds like a great book: andrewbatson.com/2025/02/10/r...
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James Graham Wilson @jamesgrahamwilson.bsky.social · 02/02/2025
Our website has been a bit wonky the past few days. Just a reminder that all of the resources (including #FRUS) are available on GitHub:
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 01/02/2025
For good context on Chinese espionage targeting the Fed, including the utility and limits of this type of information, @gdp1985.bsky.social interview in 2022 is useful: www.mercatus.org/macro-musing...
mercatus.org
BONUS: Gerard DiPippo on China’s Attempts to Infiltrate the Fed
Gerard DiPippo is a senior fellow with the economics program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
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Bonnie Glaser @bglaser.bsky.social · 11/01/2025
JOB OPENING: I'm seeking to hire a deputy director, program administrator to work with my fantastic team in GMF's Indo-Pacific program. This is primarily a managerial and admin/budget position in either Berlin or DC. Apply here: www.gmfus.org/about/careers
gmfus.org
Careers
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Tom Hancock @tomhancock.bsky.social · 09/01/2025
Would make for an interesting case study on fragmented authoritarianism and limits to state capacity in China. The NDRC called on provinces to phase out bitcoin mining in 2021, but that doesn't seem to have happened cointelegraph.com/news/chinese...
cointelegraph.com
China still controls 55% of Bitcoin hashrate despite crypto ban
China still controls 55% of the Bitcoin network's hashrate, despite imposing a blanket ban on cryptocurrencies back in 2021.
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Mark Parker Young @markparkeryoung.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Insightful and clear-eyed recommendations about how to handle US-China relations: www.brookings.edu/articles/abe...
brookings.edu
Abetting competition, restraining Beijing: Recommendations for diplomacy toward China
The challenge in the opening phases of diplomacy with China is to keep Beijing uncertain—neither reassuring it nor driving it to despair.
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MERICS @merics.bsky.social · 08/01/2025
Alexander Davey looked at online discussions about the pros and cons of pursuing a military career in China. Read his comment for @chinaspektrum.bsky.social, our project with the China Institute at Universität Trier, funded by Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom. merics.org/en/comment/a...
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