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Located in a monsoon domain, East Asia suffers devastating natural hazards induced by anomalous monsoon behaviors. East Asian monsoon (EAM) research has traditionally been a high priority for the Chinese climate community and is particularly challenging in a changing climate where the global mean temperature has been rising. Recent advances in studies of the variabilities and mechanisms of the EAM are reviewed in this paper, focusing on the interannual to interdecadal time scales. Some new results have been achieved in understanding the behaviors of the EAM, such as the evolution of the East Asian summer monsoon (EASM), including both its onset and withdrawal over the South China Sea, the changes in the northern boundary activity of the EASM, or the transitional climate zone in East Asia, and the cycle of the EASM and the East Asian winter monsoon and their linkages. In addition, understanding of the mechanism of the EAM variability has improved in several aspects, including the impacts of different types of ENSO on the EAM, the impacts from the Indian Ocean and Atlantic Ocean, and the roles of mid- to high-latitude processes. Finally, some scientific issues regarding our understanding of the EAM are proposed for future investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]