A look at U.S. Democratic Vice Presidential nominee Tim Walz and his relationship with China.

Welcome to VOA Asia Weekly. I'm Chris Casquejo in Washington. That story is just ahead, but first, making headlines:

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Wednesday that he will not seek re-election as the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s leader. Kishida, who has faced low approval ratings and economic challenges, cited a need for party renewal.

In Thailand, a court on Wednesday removed Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin from office over an ethical violation. It’s the second shakeup in Thai politics after the same court ordered the main opposition Move Forward party to dissolve a week ago.

The U.S. military conducted live-fire drills in South Korea on Wednesday to test deployment readiness on the Korean Peninsula. The drills took place fewer than 30 kilometers from the heavily fortified border with North Korea.

Seven of Hong Kong's most prominent pro-democracy activists, including Jimmy Lai, founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, lost their final bid to overturn their convictions. The city's top court on Monday ruled against their appeals of convictions for their roles in one of the biggest anti-government protests in 2019.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo held his first cabinet meeting in his planned new capital of Nusantara on Monday. The outgoing leader wants to reassure investors his $32 billion mega-project remains on track before he steps down this October.

U.S. Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz’s ties to China will likely inform his work if elected. But where does he stand on key issues? And how does Beijing see him? VOA’s Anita Powell reports.

Tim Walz spent a year teaching in China in 1989 and later organized student trips, and says he visited the country more than 30 times over the years.

Republicans say Walz’s long ties to China mean Beijing will welcome him joining the Harris ticket and predict he will loosen hard-line U.S. economic and trade policies.

“She selected Tim Walz, a guy who wants to ship more manufacturing jobs to China.”

Vance appeared to be referring to Walz’s several-years-old support for trade with China as Minnesota’s governor.

Walz made no mention of China at his debut campaign appearance, but here is the then-congressman in 2016 about how he viewed the country’s relations with the United States:

“I don't fall into the category that China necessarily needs to be an adversarial relationship. I totally disagree, and I think we need to stand firm on what they're doing in the South China Sea.”

And with VOA in 2014, he described what it was like to live there for a year following the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests.

“And it was very powerful, and I'm certainly honored to have been there and to see the spirit of the Chinese people about trying to be very proud of their country.”

In China, in the hours after his debut on the campaign trail, Harris' vice-presidential pick quickly became a trending topic. This user said, “I think he might be friendly to China.”

Other Chinese internet users thought he would take a harder line. While in Congress, Walz co-sponsored a number of resolutions critical of China’s human rights record. One nationalist military historian said the Democrats want to “destroy China.”

Others commented on what Walz called his “life-changing lunch,” with the Dalai Lama, Tibet’s exiled leader.

Keen China watchers say that, so far, Beijing has not publicly reacted. But here’s what they see in Walz:

“He's been very forthright in his criticisms of China's human rights record, and I think he's done that from a position that is maybe more credible because of his conspicuous earnestness and his sincerity.”

Other China analysts agreed that the Harris-Walz administration is expected to largely continue the toughened China policies of the Biden and Trump administrations.

“I think this should be seen around the world, in China, in Asia, as continuity in the complex, decades-long U.S., policy of recognizing the need to deal with China as a major power in the world, not that part of the world — but also the differences in values, especially when it comes to democratization.”

So, as this duo — both born in 1964 under the same lunar zodiac sign — barnstorms America, Beijing can only wonder: What would the future hold with a pair of wood dragons in the White House?

Anita Powell, VOA News, Washington.

Visit voanews.com for the most up-to-date stories.

I’m Chris Casquejo.

Finally, a hero’s welcome for the two-time gold medal winning Filipino men’s gymnast.

Hundreds of supporters gathered along Manila's main avenue on Wednesday to cheer for Carlos Yulo.

Yulo’s twin gold medals in gymnastics have earned him various cash incentives from the government worth at least $357,000, plus corporate sponsorships and free flights among other perks.

Thanks for watching VOA Asia Weekly.