Ruth Morris

The World

Ruth Morris is a reporter based in Shanghai.

Ruth Morris is a reporter based in Shanghai.

A boy walks near a Soviet-era apartment building, with a tank in the foreground

Is the US ready for the rising tide of mercenaries?

War is getting sneakier. And mercenaries could be changing war in ways that the US might not be prepared for.

Is the US ready for the rising tide of mercenaries?
Chinese and US flags flutter

Was the US sleeping through China's rise?

Was the US sleeping through China's rise?
A view of a test missile launch with an American flag flying

'World War C': How did national security miss the coronavirus?

'World War C': How did national security miss the coronavirus?
A man holds Iranian and American currency

Things That Go Boom: Are sanctions on Iran spurring economic resilience?

Things That Go Boom: Are sanctions on Iran spurring economic resilience?
Several men in dark suits stand as others sit

Things That Go Boom: Is America's foreign policy for sale?

Things That Go Boom: Is America's foreign policy for sale?
Men and women sit around a negotiating table with flags in the background.

Things That Go Boom: In nuclear negotiations, diplomacy can be a slog

Diplomacy is often awkward, stymied by translators, late nights and unsecured yurt communication (yes, that really happened). But diplomacy can also stop a war, as years of secret and not-so-secret negotiations between the US and Iran proved when the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action was reached in 2015.

Things That Go Boom: In nuclear negotiations, diplomacy can be a slog
A sign reads: "It's 2 minutes to midnight"

'Things That Go Boom:' Nothing good happens after 'nuclear midnight'

It's been a year since the US pulled out of the Iran nuclear deal ad some experts warn that the threat of a worldwide meltdown is the worst its been since the darkest, most dangerous days of the Cold War.

'Things That Go Boom:' Nothing good happens after 'nuclear midnight'
Rana Abdelhamid (C) demonstrates a move to a student during a self-defense workshop designed for Muslim women in Washington, DC, in March.

How to deflect a 'hijab grab' and other lessons from a Muslim black belt

When Rana Abdelhamid was 15, a man tried to rip off her hijab. Now she teaches self-defense classes for Muslim women like her.

How to deflect a 'hijab grab' and other lessons from a Muslim black belt
Three women in hijab wait as a boy swims in the ocean in front of the Casa Nemo Beach Resort and Spa of Pulau Weh island, Indonesia.

Her resort is a refuge from more than just stress

Casa Nemo Beach Resort and Spa sits on the island of Pulau Weh in Aceh, Indonesia. While the rest of Aceh has its own version of Sharia law, restricting the behavior of women and gay men, things are a little freer at Casa Nemo. The resort's owner says she wants it to be a refuge, but she's not sure how long it will be able to survive as one.

Her resort is a refuge from more than just stress
Echa wears the hijab because it's the law for women in Aceh. Echa is transgender, and when she wears the headscarf, she says no one calls her names.

A transgender woman in Aceh, Indonesia gathers strength as new anti-gay sex laws roll out

New anti-gay laws that just took effect in Indonesia's Aceh province mandate 100 strokes from the cane for people engaging in gay sex.

A transgender woman in Aceh, Indonesia gathers strength as new anti-gay sex laws roll out
Taufik (bottom right) is a fisherman who saved the Rohingya and Bangladeshi from sea in May. Even though they aren’t real family, he says, he loves them and he feels a responsibility to take care of them. He visits the Bayeun, East Aceh, Indonesia refugee

Indonesians got help after the tsunami. Now they want to help Myanmar's Rohingya refugees.

People in Aceh, Indonesia, are giving a welcome to Rohingya refugees chased out of Myanmar. But the refugees have their eye on another destination.

Indonesians got help after the tsunami. Now they want to help Myanmar's Rohingya refugees.
Despite history and recent headlines, China is undergoing a spiritual revival, and China now has the largest population of Buddhists in the world- by some estimates more than 200 million. That's in part because of a collaborative relationship between Chin

China's atheist Communist government is embracing a very capitalist form of Buddhism

Officially atheist, the Communist Party these days is more tolerant of religion, though it generally demands that people worship in state-controlled settings. And that state control can manifest in weirdly capitalistic ways.

China's atheist Communist government is embracing a very capitalist form of Buddhism
"Cooperative marriages" offer some gay and lesbian Chinese an option to get married and satisfy their families.

Same-sex unions? Not quite. In China, a gay man and a lesbian woman often get married ... to each other.

The unions, known as cooperative marriages, are seen as a way around intense parental pressure to get hitched and to produce a grandchild. They also seem to be gaining in popularity.

Same-sex unions? Not quite. In China, a gay man and a lesbian woman often get married ... to each other.
Steven Weathers (center) was often hired to play a foreign expert in a lab coat in Chinese commercials, but he says advertisers are using more Chinese actors to play the reassuring roles.

These may be the last days of the white 'expert' in Chinese TV ads

White actors playing "experts" regularly appear in Chinese commercials. But now, as Chinese consumers grow more sophisticated, more and more Chinese actors are taking over the lab coats and boss roles in TV ads.

These may be the last days of the white 'expert' in Chinese TV ads
A participant in the inaugural Shanghai International Debate Open 2014. Motions ranged from whether police should bear arms to whether ransoms should be paid to terrorists for the release of hostages.

Parliamentary-style debates take off in China — even if some topics are off limits

You may not expect to find government versus opposition debates among school kids in a one-party state. But these debate contests are part of a plan to instill independent thinking in young Chinese who will have to compete in a global market.

Parliamentary-style debates take off in China — even if some topics are off limits