View Full Version : The CHN/ China thread
Skybird
05-02-23, 11:10 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LFa3GeG76Y
Quite confused.
He referred to the past when Taiwan was no issue and the US-China relation was strong.
Well, China simply lacked the military strength to make Taiwan a hot topic. Like China also played nicier in the South Chinese Sea, and then form some point on no longer did. Because it got strogn enpiugh to no longe rneeding to.
Stop living with your head stuck in the past. He sounds a bit like many Europeans sounded regarding Russia, not to provoke it and respecting its red lines. See where it got us.
The big question here is.
Would China put everything at stake and invade Taiwan..?
I doubt it to be honest. They have manage to become the second biggest power
Put all this at risc for taking Taiwan.
Well then I'm not the Chinese leader, so I don't know what makes him go(understanding their mentality)
My former post about the problem being a Gordian knot
Shall be seen in as the factor to satisfy both part in this infected issue.
Markus
Jimbuna
05-02-23, 11:25 AM
China will eventually decide if it is worth risking trade with the west.
Skybird
05-02-23, 11:37 AM
I dont bet a dime anymore on that trade with the West still is China's priority. It was so, in the past. That is over. I think they have moved away from that position. Taiwan. Recently Xi has clearly indicated that he is accpeting economic turmoils with the West if that is the price to go after Taiwan.
Taiwan ist the priority for Xi. Taiwan, and then Taiwan again.
Jimbuna
05-02-23, 11:39 AM
Fair enough, that's tor viewpoint but only time will tell.
Catfish
05-02-23, 12:18 PM
The Daimler-Benz boss has just announced that the company will not severe ties with China since the business connections are too much interwoven by now.
If, on the other hand, the trade numbers with "the west" fall below a certain margin, China may decide that invading The Republic of China (Taiwan) is more worth than the trade with foreigners.
Jimbuna
05-02-23, 12:27 PM
^ Yep, pretty much what I'm thinking :yep:
Quite confused.
Don't be. :)
You're just watching a vid from a pro-PRC troll.
The PRC have been building up their military for the last 20 years because....reasons?? :timeout:
Check out a map of Taiwan and you'll see a bunch of islands fairly close to the shore of the PRC. Guess who owns them? Here's a hint, they aren't owned by China or the PRC. :yep:
Back in the 1940's, Chang kia-skek ran the Chinese Army while Mao was busy being a communist insurgent while keeping his head down.
Chang was a tyrant, but Chang wasn't a dummy. Mao allied with Chang's forces to defeat their common enemy. Once the Japanese Army was gone, Mao quickly turned on Chang and drove him and his loyal forces to Formosa/Taiwan. There, Chang and his loyalists built Taiwan into what it is today.
Meanwhile, Mao had "people power" but not much else. While Chang stayed as a loyal ally of the US, Mao became a strong ally of the Soviet Union- until he wasn't. In the 1960's, Mao denounced the Soviets as "not being as communist as us". To put this in perspective, write a note that says you own all of the land in your town and deliver it to the clerk in your town hall. The odds are good you'll get tossed out by the county sheriff and your ### will land on a street, which is basically what happened. This was why their aircraft and military hardware still look like throwbacks to 1950's. As it turned out, "people power" could copy and build a LOT of stuff- they just couldn't design it.
Please pay attention to that last paragraph. It carries over to today. :yep:
Speaking of Today, what the heck is going on? :doh:
Well, the PRC were the bastion of communism and socialism- until they weren't. Kind of. Its complicated. :03:
In the 1970's the US and President Nixon wanted to cool things down with the PRC. The PRC kept turning up in other wars, and always on the opposite lines. Maybe if the US could sweeten the pot, the PRC might chill out?
Again, the PRC still had "people power" and US companies wanted stuff manufactured for cheap. No strikes, no cost of living wage hikes, just build stuff and we'll buy it (cheap). By the 1990's, the PRC had a policy towards the US and Europe of "Tell us how big you want the factory to be and we'll have it built by next month". It was an offer too good to refuse.
By the 2000's, this arrangement began to sour and by 2010 things went down like this- China would build that new factory and the day shift would build and ship stuff to the US and Europe. While the other two shifts would build the same thing with different labels for the local population and the Asian market as a whole. Except, the company who green lit the factory in the first place would make nada on the stuff that wasn't shipped to them.
"Hey, that's OUR factory!!"
"Not really, its on OUR land and WE built it."
"But those are OUR plans and copyrights!"
"Yes, good luck with that".
These firms started to grumble, so the PRC would quickly round up all of the Execs and foreign trainers/workers and bus them off to the airport for deportation. If the company wanted to sue, fine. Bring a case in your country and we'll get around to it, someday. :O: Or maybe not, you wanted it cheap- you GOT it cheap. :arrgh!:
So, why does the PRC insist on biting the hands that feed it? I have no frikken clue.
:k_confused:
Skybird
05-02-23, 02:18 PM
I meant the guy in that video was confused. He trains a lot to successfully run from reality.
So, why does the PRC insist on biting the hands that feed it? I have no frikken clue.
Why is Putin so obsessed with Crimea and Ukraine?
Does it even matter?
Taiwan means chips. Taiwan produces even in continental China. Destroying that means getting strong oneself by weakening the rest of the world eocnomically. Controlling Taiwain means to sell chips atr Chiense conditions and put a knife at the world's throat. Its also about unrestriocted, undetected access of China'sa navy to the blue water pacific. The chain of islanmds held by its opponents, curently prevents such undeteced passages. Nexct, ther eis the Chinese self-perpceiton of being the best of the human race, the cradle of human civilization, the centre of the Earth, and the navel of th universe. And finally there is Xi's belief that it is his role to be the new god-emperor thatr brigns the Chinese era to the globe and makes all others, including the US, kneeling at China's feet. The past centuries of Wester cultural dominance were just a historic mishap, an accident, and that is now over, so China reasons. Reestablishing Chinese allmight and centralist role is just the reestablishing of the natural, nature-wanted order.
China does not tick by the rules of Western reason. Heck, not even Western politics tick by Western reason most of the time. :)
Like I said, he's a pro-PRC troll.
The idea isn't to re-imagine a new reality. Just stir up as much doubts and questions as he can.
Meanwhile, I think we're missing the ball on Taiwan.
If you want to understand what the PRC wants, look at Hong Kong, or what's left of it. :yep:
This is another case of roasting the goose who laid the golden eggs.
Will China and the PRC learn anything from Hong Kong? I doubt it.
BTW, keep in mind that China and the PRC have some big problems of their own. :yep:
Back in the 1960's, Mao proclaimed that there were too many people to feed. Nevermind that he also proclaimed that the Swallows were eating all the grain (and also a bunch of destructive insects that caused blights) which resulted in a serious blight issue when the insects no longer had any predators.
To fix this, Mao came up with the "single child" policy to curb the population. Which sounded great until you realize that it was better to have male children, who could serve in the Army and work more than females.
In the PRC, its always "all or nothing" so the population accepted only having one child- and most of them were male.
Give it another generation, and OOPS. :oops: It turns out that you need females to bear children. :timeout: As a complicating matter, China is also fairly tribal when it comes to things like foreigners and family blood lines, so importing potential mothers is a non-starter. They might produce more children, but they wouldn't be the right kind of children. :O:
So, China has painted itself into a nasty corner and while they have a large population, its rapidly getting older on average.
They also have some issues at sea. While the Pacific is much larger than many people realize, China is (effectively) almost land-locked due to choke points and poor (shallow) ocean conditions near its shores.
This is why when you read that China has opened a new Navy base, its never in China. :yeah: They have to, in effect, rent their power projection and basing. :doh:
This is a very good discussion, but its a little long-winded. So, kick back and make a nice cup of tea. :up:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KDLTUMIR4jg
Aktungbby
05-03-23, 10:08 PM
They have to, in effect, rent their power projection and basing. ...not to mention the first order of business will be the immediate destruction of their 3 carriers for which they don't have a particularly good carrier plane anyway. The 'loss of face' cannot be calculated.
Jimbuna
05-04-23, 06:18 AM
Taiwan's chief trade representative says his country's semiconductor makers will expand production in the U.S. as much as they can afford to do so, but he insists Taiwan remains an ideal place for that production and other U.S. trade, business and investment, despite tensions with China.
John Chen-Chung Deng spoke to The Associated Press on a visit this week to Washington, where he is leading a Taiwanese trade delegation and meeting with U.S. trade officials.
Deng's visit comes at a time of intensifying efforts to harden the U.S. and Taiwanese militaries and economies against any threat from rival China. As part of this, President Joe Biden and Congress are moving to boost semiconductor production on U.S. soil in the event of any conflict disrupting exports from Asia, especially from Taiwan.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/taiwan-trade-chief-warns-against-unnecessary-fear-of-china/ar-AA1aInka?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=db29233053d14c0e912daabe2f0e482a&ei=13
Jimbuna
05-04-23, 12:59 PM
China's "aggressive and irresponsible" actions over the South China Sea and Taiwan, mean it is "only a matter of time" before a major incident erupts, sparking panic across the globe.
That's according to Dr Bec Strating, director of La Trobe Asia and an associate professor of Politics and International Relations at La Trobe University, Melbourne.
Beijing has watched on as Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos Jr and US counterpart Joe Biden have drawn their nations closer together in the face of what it sees as aggression and harassment from China.
Washington has long been an ally of Manila and the two leaders met in the Oval Office this week as part of Mr Marcos Jr's four-day trip to the US.
Such is the rejuvenation in Manila-Washington ties the US said any attack on the Philippines' security forces or public vessels would "invoke its mutual defence commitments".
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/ww3-fears-as-irresponsible-china-to-spark-panic-across-the-globe/ar-AA1aJHWe?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=34a363c34d964c9e8626a50d40a19a60&ei=15
Jimbuna
05-07-23, 06:56 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MEnE_wPNqZY
Aktungbby
05-07-23, 12:45 PM
in my humble opinion, we should evacuate every living soul(and the coveted computer-chip industry:timeout:) from Taiwan and then 'nuke it till it glows' and let the neo-commie bastards have it back under their slightly Scorched so-called One China Policy...1945's Hiroshima/Nagasaki blitz with China and Russia as our "allies of the moment" kept everything reasonably Cold War contained for 78 years...:hmmm: It's time to reup the lesson with Japan and VietNam, two croaking frogs around the South China 'pond', now our "allies of the moment"...and VietNam has successfully repelled a Chinese land invasion to boot. It's the cheapest way to deal with 1.4 billion Chinese. They can keep Tibet. Additionally we should copy the Chinese South China Sea illegal sovereignty claim and seal off the Bering Strait to their shipping and unceasing global mineral searching in the Artic seabed; not unlike cutting off Japan's oil access prior to WWII. Russia('eternal friendship' notwithstanding) and Canada would not object vehemently! We already kept China out of Greenland aquisitions; and the North Atlantic by alerting Denmark. And they scream about "encirclement and containment" so!:shucks:
Jimbuna
05-08-23, 12:17 PM
China opposes any measures that use China-Russia relations as a pretext for the damage of trade cooperation, China's foreign ministry said on Monday.
In response to the European Union's proposed sanctions on Chinese companies over accusations of them aiding Russia's war machine, ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said if these sanctions come into force, China will take firm action to safeguard its interests.
Skybird
05-08-23, 02:09 PM
in my humble opinion, we should evacuate every living soul(and the coveted computer-chip industry:timeout:) from Taiwan and then 'nuke it till it glows' and let the neo-commie bastards have it back under their slightly Scorched so-called One China Policy...1945's Hiroshima/Nagasaki blitz with China and Russia as our "allies of the moment" kept everything reasonably Cold War contained for 78 years...:hmmm: It's time to reup the lesson with Japan and VietNam, two croaking frogs around the South China 'pond', now our "allies of the moment"...and VietNam has successfully repelled a Chinese land invasion to boot. It's the cheapest way to deal with 1.4 billion Chinese. They can keep Tibet. Additionally we should copy the Chinese South China Sea illegal sovereignty claim and seal off the Bering Strait to their shipping and unceasing global mineral searching in the Artic seabed; not unlike cutting off Japan's oil access prior to WWII. Russia('eternal friendship' notwithstanding) and Canada would not object vehemently! We already kept China out of Greenland aquisitions; and the North Atlantic by alerting Denmark. And they scream about "encirclement and containment" so!:shucks:
Two extra bonus points for creative thinking! :D
Aktungbby
05-08-23, 03:51 PM
Two extra bonus points for creative thinking! :D...should be 3 points!::hmph: 1. using nukes up front; 2. shutting off the Bering Strait to their mineral resourcing; 3. allowing them to retain Tibet. Russia should also retain Crimea imho. Nikita Khruschev should never have given to Ukraine in the first place; with the negotiated 'peace' proviso that all pro-russian elements in the other contested currently attached areas be removed to the Crimea.
Skybird
05-08-23, 04:16 PM
After the past 15 months Ukriane will never be safe again as long as Crimea is Russia'S fixed aircraft carrier and radar and missile platform shadowing into the Black Sea, and cutting off Asov Sea, and all navel traffic foirma nd to Odessa. Ukraine cannot afford to leave it to Russia if they want to survive not just the next 5 years, but 50 years and longer.
Its not a question of "if" but only "when" until russia will strike again at Ukraine to swallow it all up. Ukraine cannot afford to leave the Russians in the game.
Kaliningrad, anyone? This big PITA of NATO?
We should take Kaliningrad. Now that thought is my bonus point to get!
Right after Soviet had invaded Afghanistan- The US President Reagan came up with the proposal that they should invade Murmansk. The idea was that US would demand Soviet withdraw from Afghanistan in order to get Murmansk back.
His staff talked him from it said it was a very bad idea.
(This was written in Swedish morning paper Arbetet(The working)as a little notice) some years after he was not the President.
Markus
in my humble opinion, we should evacuate every living soul(and the coveted computer-chip industry:timeout:) from Taiwan and then 'nuke it till it glows'
Think about it, you could also say the same thing about California. :doh:
:03:
After the past 15 months Ukriane will never be safe again as long as Crimea is Russia'S fixed aircraft carrier and radar and missile platform shadowing into the Black Sea, and cutting off Asov Sea, and all navel traffic foirma nd to Odessa. Ukraine cannot afford to leave it to Russia if they want to survive not just the next 5 years, but 50 years and longer.
Its not a question of "if" but only "when" until russia will strike again at Ukraine to swallow it all up. Ukraine cannot afford to leave the Russians in the game.
Kaliningrad, anyone? This big PITA of NATO?
We should take Kaliningrad. Now that thought is my bonus point to get!
As soon as things start to quiet down, set up a shotgun wedding and get Ukraine into NATO. :yep:
That territory becomes a LOT more expensive from Russia's point of view.
Skybird
05-08-23, 04:56 PM
As soon as things start to quiet down, set up a shotgun wedding and get Ukraine into NATO. :yep:
You must not convince me. But who tells Macronman and Babble-Olaf the news?
This may also be a good time to ponder the 800 pound gorilla in the bunker (as it were).
We can even do this without chest thumping and propaganda. :yeah:
Think about the history of the USN from, well- pick one, 1800 or 1940 to the present day.
Now, apply the same idea to the PLAN. :yep:
The USN has a record of defeating near-peer powers.
The PLAN has roughed-up fishing boats and pirates.
Having new hardware doesn't mean that you know how to use it. :03:
Jimbuna
05-09-23, 05:51 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSuWcqUCG7Q
Skybird
05-15-23, 04:12 PM
https://www-fr-de.translate.goog/politik/china-taiwan-konflikt-krieg-invasion-xi-jinping-militaer-usa-news-geschichte-92280490.html?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Q: Next year, the U.S. will also elect a new president ...
A: Exactly. And that is the decisive factor. The change of power in the U.S., should there be one, will take place in early 2025. We've seen time and again in recent years that the U.S. is often barely able to act for months in such an event. Many top people leave months before the handover, top administration posts and ambassadorships remain vacant for long periods. The U.S. may be very weakened by early 2025, and Xi Jinping will take advantage of that.
Q: How, exactly?
A: If China does decide to attack Taiwan militarily, January offers an appropriate window for invasion, and not just because of the aftermath of the U.S. election. The Taiwan Strait is best crossed during the winter months because the sea is calmer then. Also, Chinese New Year 2025 takes place in January. Hundreds of millions of people travel throughout the country then, so large troop deployments would be hard to see from satellite. All China needs then is a full moon night and good weather.
Jimbuna
05-16-23, 12:47 PM
Reports suggest the US is preparing to accelerate the sale of weapons and other military assistance to the self-governing island democracy, a move that will undoubtedly anger China
https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/us-news/china-ready-resolutely-smash-taiwan-29996074
Skybird
05-16-23, 02:14 PM
They must build more reserves in advance. Supplies will get caught up in the traffic jam once the party has started and turned hot.
Different to the Ukrainians, the Taiwanese will not already have the experience of several years of war fighting under their belt. China'S first blow also will be far more crushing than Russia'S was, Bejing has watched the ukriane war like we have, and it will take the lessons form it. Therefore, Taiwan will possibly suffer far higher losses in supplies and stored ammunitions and weapons in the first wave of attacks.
Collect nuts, little squirrel, collect nuts. Winter's coming.
Jimbuna
05-17-23, 08:07 AM
Even though I agree with her I wish she would stop meddling in other countries affairs.
Britain's former prime minister Liz Truss has been strongly criticised by Beijing as she used a speech in Taiwan on Wednesday to warn of the threat China poses to both the island and to the West.
Speaking as part of a five-day visit to the island that has rattled the government in Beijing, Ms Truss told reporters: “It’s absolutely clear that President Xi [Jinping of China] has the ambition to take Taiwan.”
She continued: “Now, we don’t know exactly when that could take place, we also don’t know how, and it’s my view that the preference of President Xi and the Chinese Communist Party would be to do it in a way that doesn’t involve using force, but I certainly think they would be prepared to use force if necessary.
“All we can do, those of us who believe in freedom and democracy, is make sure that Taiwan is as protected as possible and the Chinese government would understand there are severe consequences if they tried to take Taiwan by force.”
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/uknews/china-accuses-truss-of-dangerous-stunt-as-she-uses-taiwan-visit-to-issue-ominous-warning/ar-AA1bixYC
Otto Harkaman
05-17-23, 05:52 PM
China: Growing and Going to Sea
By Captain James E. Fanell, U.S. Navy (Retired)
https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/2023/may/china-growing-and-going-sea
https://www.usni.org/sites/default/files/styles/hero_image_2400/public/Fanell-PRO-5-23%201%20Hero.jpg?itok=xkq60_QF
Warships from the Chinese and Russian navies are pictured after the Joint Sea 2022 exercise in the East China Sea on 27 December 2022, just days after Russian ships transited the Tsushima Strait.
https://youtu.be/LaYixdkY4IQ
Jimbuna
05-18-23, 07:23 AM
WASHINGTON/PARIS (Reuters) -The longest shadows at the Group of Seven (G7) leaders' summit this week will be cast by two countries that weren't even invited to the Hiroshima gathering: China and Russia.
As the heads of the world's advanced democracies meet for three days from Friday in the western Japanese city, they will need to overcome some differences of their own, officials say, as they aim to project unity against challenges from Beijing and Moscow.
Divisions within the G7 appear to be the most notable over China, multiple officials told Reuters, with countries grappling on how to warn against what they see as China's threat to global supply chains and economic security without completely alienating a powerful and important trade partner.
The G7 countries -- the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Canada and Italy -- are all closely tied economically to China, the world's second-largest economy and a key global manufacturing base and market.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/at-japans-g7-summit-the-big-elephants-are-china-and-russia/ar-AA1blQ8K
Rockstar
05-19-23, 08:48 PM
ASIA CHINA
‘In a lot of the world, the clock has hit midnight’: China is calling in loans to dozens of countries from Pakistan to Kenya
Keeping schools open, the lights on and even food on the table is being threatened by debt payments from the $1 trillion Belt and Road program.
BY BERNARD CONDON AND THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
May 18, 2023 7:11 PM EDT
https://fortune.com/2023/05/18/china-belt-road-loans-pakistan-sri-lanka-africa-collapse-economic-instability/amp/
A dozen poor countries are facing economic instability and even collapse under the weight of hundreds of billions of dollars in foreign loans, much of them from the world’s biggest and most unforgiving government lender, China.
An Associated Press analysis of a dozen countries most indebted to China — including Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia, Laos and Mongolia — found paying back that debt is consuming an ever-greater amount of the tax revenue needed to keep schools open, provide electricity and pay for food and fuel. And it’s draining foreign currency reserves these countries use to pay interest on those loans, leaving some with just months before that money is gone.
Behind the scenes is China’s reluctance to forgive debt and its extreme secrecy about how much money it has loaned and on what terms, which has kept other major lenders from stepping in to help. On top of that is the recent discovery that borrowers have been required to put cash in hidden escrow accounts that push China to the front of the line of creditors to be paid.
Countries in AP’s analysis had as much as 50% of their foreign loans from China and most were devoting more than a third of government revenue to paying off foreign debt. Two of them, Zambia and Sri Lanka, have already gone into default, unable to make even interest payments on loans financing the construction of ports, mines and power plants.
In Pakistan, millions of textile workers have been laid off because the country has too much foreign debt and can’t afford to keep the electricity on and machines running.
In Kenya, the government has held back paychecks to thousands of civil service workers to save cash to pay foreign loans. The president’s chief economic adviser tweeted last month, “Salaries or default? Take your pick.”
Since Sri Lanka defaulted a year ago, a half-million industrial jobs have vanished, inflation has pierced 50% and more than half the population in many parts of the country has fallen into poverty.
Experts predict that unless China begins to soften its stance on its loans to poor countries, there could be a wave of more defaults and political upheavals.
“In a lot of the world, the clock has hit midnight,” said Harvard economist Ken Rogoff. “ China has moved in and left this geopolitical instability that could have long-lasting effects.”
How it’s playing out
A case study of how it has played out is in Zambia, a landlocked country of 20 million people in southern Africa that over the past two decades has borrowed billions of dollars from Chinese state-owned banks to build dams, railways and roads.
The loans boosted Zambia’s economy but also raised foreign interest payments so high there was little left for the government, forcing it to cut spending on healthcare, social services and subsidies to farmers for seed and fertilizer.
In the past under such circumstances, big government lenders such as the U.S., Japan and France would work out deals to forgive some debt, with each lender disclosing clearly what they were owed and on what terms so no one would feel cheated.
But China didn’t play by those rules. It refused at first to even join in multinational talks, negotiating separately with Zambia and insisting on confidentiality that barred the country from telling non-Chinese lenders the terms of the loans and whether China had devised a way of muscling to the front of the repayment line.
Amid this confusion in 2020, a group of non-Chinese lenders refused desperate pleas from Zambia to suspend interest payments, even for a few months. That refusal added to the drain on Zambia’s foreign cash reserves, the stash of mostly U.S. dollars that it used to pay interest on loans and to buy major commodities like oil. By November 2020, with little reserves left, Zambia stopped paying the interest and defaulted, locking it out of future borrowing and setting off a vicious cycle of spending cuts and deepening poverty.
Inflation in Zambia has since soared 50%, unemployment has hit a 17-year high and the nation’s currency, the kwacha, has lost 30% of its value in just seven months. A United Nations estimate of Zambians not getting enough food has nearly tripled so far this year, to 3.5 million.
“I just sit in the house thinking what I will eat because I have no money to buy food,” said Marvis Kunda, a blind 70-year-old widow in Zambia’s Luapula province whose welfare payments were recently slashed. “Sometimes I eat once a day and if no one remembers to help me with food from the neighborhood, then I just starve.”
A few months after Zambia defaulted, researchers found that it owed $6.6 billion to Chinese state-owned banks, double what many thought at the time and about a third of the country’s total debt.
“We’re flying blind,” said Brad Parks, executive director of AidData, a research lab at William & Mary that has uncovered thousands of secret Chinese loans and assisted the AP in its analysis. “When you look under the cushions of the couch, suddenly you realize, ‘Oh, there’s a lot of stuff we missed. And actually things are much worse.’”
Debt and upheaval
China’s unwillingness to take big losses on the hundreds of billions of dollars it is owed, as the International Monetary Fund and World Bank have urged, has left many countries on a treadmill of paying back interest, which stifles the economic growth that would help them pay off the debt.
Foreign cash reserves have dropped in 10 of the dozen countries in AP’s analysis, down an average 25% in just a year. They have plunged more than 50% in Pakistan and the Republic of Congo. Without a bailout, several countries have only months left of foreign cash to pay for food, fuel and other essential imports. Mongolia has eight months left. Pakistan and Ethiopia about two.
“As soon as the financing taps are turned off, the adjustment takes place right away,” said Patrick Curran, senior economist at researcher Tellimer. “The economy contracts, inflation spikes up, food and fuel become unaffordable.”
Mohammad Tahir, who was laid off six months ago from his job at a textile factory in the Pakistani city of Multan, says he has contemplated suicide because he can no longer bear to see his family of four go to bed night after night without dinner.
“I’ve been facing the worst kind of poverty,” said Tahir, who was recently told Pakistan’s foreign cash reserves have depleted so much that it was now unable to import raw materials for his factory. “I have no idea when we would get our jobs back.”
Poor countries have been hit with foreign currency shortages, high inflation, spikes in unemployment and widespread hunger before, but rarely like in the past year.
Along with the usual mix of government mismanagement and corruption are two unexpected and devastating events: the war in Ukraine, which has sent prices of grain and oil soaring, and the U.S. Federal Reserve’s decision to raise interest rates 10 times in a row, the latest this month. That has made variable rate loans to countries suddenly much more expensive.
All of it is roiling domestic politics and upending strategic alliances.
In March, heavily indebted Honduras cited “financial pressures” in its decision to establish formal diplomatic ties to China and sever those with Taiwan.
Last month, Pakistan was so desperate to prevent more blackouts that it struck a deal to buy discounted oil from Russia, breaking ranks with the U.S.-led effort to shut off Vladimir Putin’s funds.
In Sri Lanka, rioters poured into the streets last July, setting homes of government ministers aflame and storming the presidential palace, sending the leader tied to onerous deals with China fleeing the country.
China’s response
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a statement to the AP, disputed the notion that China is an unforgiving lender and echoed previous statements putting the blame on the Federal Reserve. It said that if it is to accede to IMF and World Bank demands to forgive a portion of its loans, so should those multilateral lenders, which it views as U.S. proxies.
“We call on these institutions to actively participate in relevant actions in accordance with the principle of ‘joint action, fair burden’ and make greater contributions to help developing countries tide over the difficulties,” the ministry statement said.
China argues it has offered relief in the form of extended loan maturities and emergency loans, and as the biggest contributor to a program to temporarily suspend interest payments during the coronavirus pandemic. It also says it has forgiven 23 no-interest loans to African countries, though AidData’s Parks said such loans are mostly from two decades ago and amount to less than 5% of the total it has lent.
In high-level talks in Washington last month, China was considering dropping its demand that the IMF and World Bank forgive loans if the two lenders would make commitments to offer grants and other help to troubled countries, according to various news reports. But in the weeks since there has been no announcement and both lenders have expressed frustration with Beijing.
“My view is that we have to drag them — maybe that’s an impolite word — we need to walk together,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said earlier this month. “Because if we don’t, there will be catastrophe for many, many countries.”
The IMF and World Bank say taking losses on their loans would rip up the traditional playbook of dealing with sovereign crises that accords them special treatment because, unlike Chinese banks, they already finance at low rates to help distressed countries get back on their feet. The Chinese foreign ministry noted, however, that the two multilateral lenders have made an exception to the rules in the past, forgiving loans to many countries in the mid-1990s to save them from collapse.
As time runs out, some officials are urging concessions.
Ashfaq Hassan, a former debt official at Pakistan’s Ministry of Finance, said his country’s debt burden is too heavy and time too short for the IMF and World Bank to hold out. He also called for concessions from private investment funds that lent to his country by purchasing bonds.
“Every stakeholder will have to take a haircut,” Hassan said.
China has also pushed back on the idea, popularized in the Trump administration, that it has engaged in “debt trap diplomacy,” leaving countries saddled with loans they cannot afford so that it can seize ports, mines and other strategic assets.
On this point, experts who have studied the issue in detail have sided with Beijing. Chinese lending has come from dozens of banks on the mainland and is far too haphazard and sloppy to be coordinated from the top. If anything, they say, Chinese banks are not taking losses because the timing is awful as they face big hits from reckless real estate lending in their own country and a dramatically slowing economy.
But the experts are quick to point out that a less sinister Chinese role is not a less scary one.
“There is no single person in charge,” said Teal Emery, a former sovereign loan analyst who now runs consulting group Teal Insights.
Adds AidData’s Parks about Beijing, “They’re kind of making it up as they go along. There is no master plan.”
Loan sleuth
Much of the credit for dragging China’s hidden debt into the light goes to Parks, who over the past decade has had to contend with all manner of roadblocks, obfuscations and falsehoods from the authoritarian government.
The hunt began in 2011 when a top World Bank economist asked Parks to take over the job of looking into Chinese loans. Within months, using online data-mining techniques, Parks and a few researchers began uncovering hundreds of loans the World Bank had not known about.
China at the time was ramping up lending that would soon become part of its $1 trillion “Belt and Road Initiative” to secure supplies of key minerals, win allies abroad and make more money off its U.S. dollar holdings. Many developing countries were eager for U.S. dollars to build power plants, roads and ports and expand mining operations.
But after a few years of straightforward Chinese government loans, those countries found themselves heavily indebted, and the optics were awful. They feared that piling more loans atop old ones would make them seem reckless to credit rating agencies and make it more expensive to borrow in the future.
So China started setting up shell companies for some infrastructure projects and lent to them instead, which allowed heavily indebted countries to avoid putting that new debt on their books. Even if the loans were backed by the government, no one would be the wiser.
In Zambia, for example, a $1.5 billion loan from two Chinese banks to a shell company to build a giant hydroelectric dam didn’t appear on the country’s books for years.
In Indonesia, Chinese loans of $4 billion to help build a railway also never appeared on public government accounts. That all changed years later when, overbudget by $1.5 billion, the Indonesian government was forced to bail out the railroad twice.
“When these projects go bad, what was advertised as a private debt becomes a public debt,” Parks said. “There are projects all over the globe like this.”
In 2021, a decade after Parks and his team began their hunt, they had gathered enough information for a blockbuster finding: At least $385 billion of hidden and underreported Chinese debt in 88 countries, and many of those countries were in far worse shape than anyone knew.
Among the disclosures was that China issued a $3.5 billion loan to build a railway system in Laos, which would take nearly a quarter of the country’s annual output to pay off.
Another AidData report around the same time suggested that many Chinese loans go to projects in areas of countries favored by powerful politicians and frequently right before key elections. Some of the things built made little economic sense and were riddled with problems.
In Sri Lanka, a Chinese-funded airport built in the president’s hometown away from most of the country’s population is so barely used that elephants have been spotted wandering on its tarmac.
Cracks are appearing in hydroelectric plants in Uganda and Ecuador, where in March the government got judicial approval for corruption charges tied to the project against a former president now in exile.
In Pakistan, a power plant had to be shut down for fear it could collapse. In Kenya, the last key miles of a railway were never built due to poor planning and a lack of funds.
Jumping to the front of the line
As Parks dug into the details of the loans, he found something alarming: Clauses mandating that borrowing countries deposit U.S. dollars or other foreign currency in secret escrow accounts that Beijing could raid if those countries stopped paying interest on their loans.
In effect, China had jumped to the front of the line to get paid without other lenders knowing.
In Uganda, Parks revealed a loan to expand the main airport included an escrow account that could hold more than $15 million. A legislative probe blasted the finance minister for agreeing to such terms, with the lead investigator saying he should be prosecuted and jailed.
Parks is not sure how many such accounts have been set up, but governments insisting on any kind of collateral, much less collateral in the form of hard cash, is rare in sovereign lending. And their very existence has rattled non-Chinese banks, bond investors and other lenders and made them unwilling to accept less than they’re owed.
“The other creditors are saying, ‘We’re not going to offer anything if China is, in effect, at the head of the repayment line,’” Parks said. “It leads to paralysis. Everyone is sizing each other up and saying, ‘Am I going to be a chump here?’”
Loans as ‘currency exchanges’
Meanwhile, Beijing has taken on a new kind of hidden lending that has added to the confusion and distrust. Parks and others found that China’s central bank has effectively been lending tens of billions of dollars through what appear as ordinary foreign currency exchanges.
Foreign currency exchanges, called swaps, allow countries to essentially borrow more widely used currencies like the U.S. dollar to plug temporary shortages in foreign reserves. They are intended for liquidity purposes, not to build things, and last for only a few months.
But China’s swaps mimic loans by lasting years and charging higher-than-normal interest rates. And importantly, they don’t show up on the books as loans that would add to a country’s debt total.
Mongolia has taken out $1.8 billion annually in such swaps for years, an amount equivalent to 14% of its annual economic output. Pakistan has taken out nearly $3.6 billion annually for years and Laos $300 million .
The swaps can help stave off default by replenishing currency reserves, but they pile more loans on top of old ones and can make a collapse much worse, akin to what happened in the runup to 2009 financial crisis when U.S. banks kept offering ever-bigger mortgages to homeowners who couldn’t afford the first one.
Some poor countries struggling to repay China now find themselves stuck in a kind of loan limbo: China won’t budge in taking losses, and the IMF won’t offer low-interest loans if the money is just going to pay interest on Chinese debt.
For Chad and Ethiopia, it’s been more than a year since IMF rescue packages were approved in so-called staff-level agreements, but nearly all the money has been withheld as negotiations among its creditors drag on.
“You’ve got a growing number of countries that are in dire financial straits,” said Parks, attributing it largely to China’s stunning rise in just a generation from being a net recipient of foreign aid to the world’s largest creditor.
“Somehow they’ve managed to do all of this out of public view,” he said. “So unless people understand how China lends, how its lending practices work, we’re never going to solve these crises.”
___
Condon reported from New York and Washington. AP writers Munir Ahmed in Islamabad and Noel Sichalwe in Lusaka, Zambia, contributed to this report.
Skybird
05-20-23, 11:13 AM
Here - or in the economy thread? Well, here.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/05/16/investing/berkshire-hathaway-taiwan-tsmc-stock-exit-hnk-intl/index.html
Warren Buffets praises TSMC - and sold all shares "due to certain other developments".
Don't try to read too much into what Warren does. :03:
Here's one of his holdings in my town:
https://locations.jimmyjohns.com/ia/indianola/sandwiches-1091.html
Walking into a JJ's can be a bit of an experience. Try to pick out who is the Manager. :hmmm: Everyone's dressed in short sleeve business shirts and ties, mostly because ALL of the employees are managers- kind of. Their sandwiches are fine for the price but slightly underwhelming, almost like the sandwiches are not the point of what the sandwich shop does. :doh:
Which is where it gets weird. The over-all vibe feels like you walked into a store that's run by a cult. At one time (possibly still) this was because all of the employees were entry-level acolytes for Warren's Business and Investing School. :yeah:
Jimbuna
05-22-23, 06:22 AM
US President Joe Biden said Sunday that ties between Washington and Beijing should thaw "very shortly", after the United States shot down a suspected Chinese spy balloon this year.
Biden said relations had deteriorated in the months following his talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping at the G20 summit on the Indonesian island of Bali in November.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/biden-says-expects-relations-thaw-with-china-very-shortly/ar-AA1btzN6?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=593a8a5c7f0c44509bd08ddfffebb2c2&ei=14
Jimbuna
05-22-23, 12:14 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37DZX5jAV-U
Exocet25fr
05-27-23, 07:18 AM
Chinese aircraft carrier passes through Taiwan Strait
https://www.france24.com/en/live-news/20230527-chinese-aircraft-carrier-passes-through-taiwan-strait
Jimbuna
05-29-23, 10:33 AM
Speculations over the possibility of Taiwan joining the U.S. nuclear umbrella in the Indo-Pacific region have sounded alarm that the cross-strait tensions with China could lead to a nuclear conflict.
On May 22, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu confirmed the island conducted talks on whether the U.S. would include Taiwan under its nuclear umbrella. While the minister did not reveal further details and denied wanting to join the nuclear umbrella, analysts believe it would create a strong deterrent for Taiwan against Chinese attacks.
Skybird
05-29-23, 11:02 AM
Speculations over the possibility of Taiwan joining the U.S. nuclear umbrella in the Indo-Pacific region have sounded alarm that the cross-strait tensions with China could lead to a nuclear conflict.
On May 22, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu confirmed the island conducted talks on whether the U.S. would include Taiwan under its nuclear umbrella. While the minister did not reveal further details and denied wanting to join the nuclear umbrella, analysts believe it would create a strong deterrent for Taiwan against Chinese attacks.
It would deter China only to not attack with nukes.
If one believes the US would risk the nuclearization of one or several of its metropoles and cities.
That is a very big "If". Already against China. Against a sub-developed nation like North Korea, the formula "an eye for an eye" does not work at all, since the destruction of Pyongyang does not compare to the destruction of L.A. or N.Y. He who is the wealthier and more developed, has far more to loose. Pulverizing the Korean industry, is one thing, and the globe hardly would note it. Pulverizing the American economy is a competely different ballgame. The risk lies with the US, not North Korea. The US would have everything to loose, North Korea practically nothing.
It would deter China only to not attack with nukes.
If one believes the US would risk the nuclearization of one or several of its metropoles and cities.
That is a very big "If". Already against China. Against a sub-developed nation like North Korea, the formula "an eye for an eye" does not work at all, since the destruction of Pyongyang does not compare to the destruction of L.A. or N.Y. He who is the wealthier and more developed, has far more to loose. Pulverizing the Korean industry, is one thing, and the globe hardly would note it. Pulverizing the American economy is a competely different ballgame. The risk lies with the US, not North Korea. The US would have everything to loose, North Korea practically nothing.
Miss read his comment...Sorry
Markus
Skybird
06-02-23, 06:23 AM
Some months ago it was reported that british ex RAF pilots seem to train the Chinese air force. Well, the German are in it as well:
(...)
According to research by SPIEGEL and ZDF, a handful of former German fighter pilots are said to be employed as trainers in China. And this is probably at salaries that are otherwise only paid in professional sports or in management positions in corporations.
Security authorities in Germany believe it is highly likely that the pilots betrayed military expertise, passed on secret operational tactics and even practiced attack scenarios with their clients, such as an attack on Taiwan. All of this comes at a time when the tones between China and the West are growing harsher. (...)
The Bundestag's parliamentary control committee recently held several meetings to deal with the "gainful employment of members of the civil service after the end of active service." The secret service controllers fear that knowledge could fall into the wrong hands. They also discussed ex-Federal Army airmen in China. The Green Party chairman of the committee, Konstantin von Notz, speaks in this context of an "outrageous, outrageous and problematic event" that poses "an enormous security risk" if it is confirmed.
(...)
[Spiegel]
Should I be surprise? Yes, I rate this as treason. Of course I do, its nothing else than this: treason. But just few days ago I red about a Bundeswehr barrack where there are just two toilets for 160 soldiers and recruit, men and women. And one toilet only functioning. With all the bad stories being told about the Bundeswehr, its lacks and deficits, its bad leadership policy, its underfunded status - no, I am not surprised at all.
Damn, Führung (leadership) once was the quality that set the german armed forces apart from any other in the world and made the difference in WW2.
Meanwhile..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2M0sUxgRApI
:hmmm:
Jimbuna
06-04-23, 04:42 AM
Only a matter of time before a spark ignites the powder keg.
Onkel Neal
06-05-23, 09:50 AM
I don't understand why the US has to be over there messing around with China, is it absolutely necessary to have an adversary all the time?
Li said if the US and other foreign powers did not want confrontation, they should not send their military assets near China.
“Mind your own business,” Li said, adding, “Why did all these incidents happen in areas near China, not in areas near other countries?”
Yeah, imagine if China was running huge naval operations 50 miles outside of San Francisco Bay?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-65803311
Skybird
06-05-23, 10:33 AM
Yeah, imagine if China was running huge naval operations 50 miles outside of San Francisco Bay...
... because the US is threatening to bomb and retake China Town...?"
Nations and political regimes compete, there is no way around recognizing that. And the Chinese system is a very brutal and inhumane one.
Taiwan.
Naval merchant traffic.
South Chinese Sea.
China raised to take it all. They will not hold back if you give them for now what they want. They will come back and demand more.
The USN is there to keep the oceans open for trade.
They aren't sinking fishing boats or bombing non-aligned countries. :O:
I've brought it up before, but China really doesn't know how to use their Navy.
I would be looking out for China to attack another non-peer Navy just so they can get some experience before they aim for Taiwan. :yep:
Aktungbby
06-05-23, 11:43 AM
I don't understand why the US has to be over there messing around with China, is it absolutely necessary to have an adversary all the time?
Yeah, imagine if China was running huge naval operations 50 miles outside of San Francisco Bay?
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-65803311 I agree. What with satellites and listening devices on our rusty but trusty LST Santa Maria, permanently aground in the South China Sea :arrgh!: we should ensure and let S.Korea, Phillipines, Japan, and VietNam deal with it (with our 'proxy-style assistance')...with complete understanding that the narrow Bering Strait and the chinkadero concept of "right of innocent passge" is now equally cut off to Sino-intrusion in the Artic Ocean, the demense of US, Canada and Russia. The chinese are of course at liberty to approach by Hudson's Bay!:shucks: I doubt Bejing will like a page from their own hegemony-playbook being used in return; thus exposing their double standard. I would bet that their 'eternal friendship' Russian partner would not object to one less competitor in its Artic 'backyard'.
Skybird
06-08-23, 06:01 AM
Germany fears ex-pilots share secrets with China
https://www.dw.com/en/germany-fears-ex-pilots-share-secrets-with-china/a-65850899
Jimbuna
06-08-23, 07:14 AM
If the Chinese persist with these provocations I fear something bad will happen.
TAIPEI, June 8 (Reuters) - Taiwan activated its defence systems on Thursday after reporting 37 Chinese military aircraft flying into the island's air defence zone, some of which then flew into the western Pacific, in Beijing's latest mass air incursion.
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/dozens-chinese-military-aircraft-enter-taiwan-air-defence-zone-taiwan-defence-2023-06-08/
Onkel Neal
06-08-23, 12:00 PM
... because the US is threatening to bomb and retake China Town...?"
Nations and political regimes compete, there is no way around recognizing that. And the Chinese system is a very brutal and inhumane one.
Taiwan.
Naval merchant traffic.
South Chinese Sea.
China raised to take it all. They will not hold back if you give them for now what they want. They will come back and demand more.
Here get the tit for the tat
https://archive.ph/8SOHm
Cuba to Host Secret Chinese Spy Base Focusing on U.S.
Beijing will pay Havana several billion dollars for eavesdropping facility
The revelation about the planned site has sparked alarm within the Biden administration because of Cuba’s proximity to the U.S. mainland. Washington regards Beijing as its most significant economic and military rival. A Chinese base with advanced military and intelligence capabilities in the U.S.’s backyard could be an unprecedented new threat.
Ah, Biden administration is alarmed? The poor earpiece guy is gonna have a nervous breakdown. :arrgh!:
https://youtu.be/Bjpo_g8uIMg
Skybird
06-08-23, 03:31 PM
^ :D
:har::har: That was so funny!! :up:
Jimbuna
06-09-23, 06:39 AM
Looks to me like the Chinese are desperate to spread their sphere of influence as far and wide as possible.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will make a state visit to China next week after Beijing expressed readiness to help facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
“At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, president of the state of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas will pay a state visit to China from June 13 to 16,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Friday.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/palestinian-president-abbas-to-visit-china-after-mediation-offer/ar-AA1ckvyW
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas will make a state visit to China next week after Beijing expressed readiness to help facilitate Israeli-Palestinian peace talks.
“At the invitation of President Xi Jinping, president of the state of Palestine Mahmoud Abbas will pay a state visit to China from June 13 to 16,” China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said on Friday.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other...er/ar-AA1ckvyW (https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/other/palestinian-president-abbas-to-visit-china-after-mediation-offer/ar-AA1ckvyW)
Looks to me like the Chinese are desperate to spread their sphere of influence as far and wide as possible.
Aren't they just so wonderful Jim? Such humanitarians!! :doh:
Jimbuna
06-09-23, 09:13 AM
You'd better believe it :)
Jimbuna
06-10-23, 04:28 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B0Qyp14sX_Y
Skybird
06-13-23, 06:10 AM
China's quantum leap made in Germany.
https://www.dw.com/en/chinas-quantum-leap-made-in-germany/a-65890662
blank page for me!! :hmmm:
Jimbuna
06-13-23, 07:18 AM
blank page for me!! :hmmm:
Lucky you :)
Skybird
06-13-23, 07:41 AM
blank page for me!! :hmmm:
Too deep down under, maybe? :)
Its the international page of Deutsche Welle, it should show up, and should be in English by source.
You could try to send the German webpage of DW through a translator.
GERMAN:
https://www.dw.com/de/wie-forschung-aus-heidelberg-der-chinesischen-r%C3%BCstungsindustrie-hilft/a-65887595
Still blank so I give up on that, not to worry!! :yep:
Jimbuna
06-14-23, 04:54 AM
Still blank so I give up on that, not to worry!! :yep:
I'd be feeling ecstatic :)
Jimbuna
06-16-23, 05:18 AM
Now this doesn't surprise me at all.
China 'creating backup plan' for Putin's successor in preparation for his death
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-creating-backup-plan-for-putin-s-successor-in-preparation-for-his-death/ar-AA1cCA0V?ocid=mailsignout&pc=U591&cvid=5c49e24582044462911173ab361b4558&ei=37
Jimbuna
06-19-23, 10:59 AM
China and the United States agreed on Monday (19 June) to try and stabilise their intense rivalry to avoid veering into conflict, but did not announce any major breakthroughs during a rare visit to Beijing by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
Chinese President Xi Jinping hailed “progress” after shaking hands with Blinken at the Great Hall of the People, a grand venue usually reserved for greeting heads of state.
Blinken, the first holder of his post to meet the Chinese leader since 2018, told reporters he had raised contentious issues such as Taiwan, the democratic island Beijing claims as its own.
And while he said the two sides had not moved forward on establishing regular military-to-military communications – a major concern for the wider world – he expected more senior US officials would visit China in coming weeks.
It had been hoped their roughly 30-minute meeting could help facilitate a summit between Xi and US President Joe Biden later in the year.
Biden and Xi last met on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali, Indonesia in November, pledging more frequent communication, although ties since then have deteriorated over Taiwan, espionage accusations and other concerns.
“The two sides have also made progress and reached the agreement on some specific issues. This is very good,” Xi told Blinken across a long table bedecked with pink lotus flowers.
Blinken responded by saying the two countries “have an obligation and responsibility” to manage their relationship and that the United States was “committed to doing that”.
His meetings in Beijing, including talks with China’s top diplomat Wang Yi and foreign minister Qin Gang, had been “candid and constructive,” he added.
https://www.euractiv.com/section/china/news/xi-blinken-agree-to-stabilise-us-china-relations-in-rare-beijing-talks/
em2nought
06-19-23, 11:35 AM
China and the United States agreed on Monday (19 June) to try and stabilise their intense rivalry to avoid veering into conflict
Poor Taiwan! At least when it ceases to exist there won't be people confusing it with Thailand anymore.
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Blood_chit_leather_version.jpg
Jimbuna
06-19-23, 11:41 AM
Taiwan is probably the most frustrating stumbling block.
Jimbuna
06-21-23, 03:57 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLZQKhO5IZ8
Jimbuna
06-22-23, 01:28 PM
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - China's ambassador to Washington has protested remarks President Joe Biden made about Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Wednesday, and its embassy said the United States should act immediately to undo the negative impact or bear all the consequences.
China was enraged after Biden referred to Xi Jinping as a "dictator" at a fundraising event on Tuesday, an unexpected flare-up just a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken completed a visit to Beijing aimed at stabilizing relations between the superpowers.
Analysts have said that despite the controversy, both countries have little interest in allowing Biden's remark to derail efforts to improve ties. There was no coverage of the issue in official Chinese media on Thursday.
A statement from China's embassy early on Thursday said the Chinese ambassador, Xie Feng, "made serious representations and strong protests" to senior officials at the White House and the U.S. State Department on Wednesday.
Jimbuna
06-23-23, 06:47 AM
China has been ranked as the worst country in the world for safety from the state and the right to assembly, in a human rights report that tracks social, economic and political freedoms.
The Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI), a New Zealand-based project, has been monitoring various countries’ human rights performance since 2017.
In 2022, HRMI started tracking freedom of religion and belief for the first time. China also scored worst on this indicator, although the pilot study only covered nine countries.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/21/china-is-state-most-dangerous-to-its-own-citizens-civil-rights-report-finds
Jimbuna
07-08-23, 05:14 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u7l-JyTjN4E
Jimbuna
07-13-23, 01:18 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQXQhU0dL-E
Jimbuna
07-14-23, 06:11 AM
China's military has been flexing its muscles this week around Taiwan practicing joint force operations far out at sea, ahead of Taipei holding its annual war games at the end of the month when Taiwan will simulate breaking a Chinese blockade.
Jimbuna
07-16-23, 02:04 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUcX7j2vZFI
Jimbuna
07-19-23, 01:47 PM
The Chinese are at it yet again.
China is preparing to join Russia in joint naval drills, showing continued support for Moscow amid its invasion of Ukraine.
Today, Beijing announced it dispatched navy ships in preparation for joint exercises, which involves more than 10 ships and 30-plus aircraft.
China has insisted it is neutral on the Ukraine war, but has accused the US and its Western allies of provoking Russia.
Meanwhile, the head of MI6 has said Beijing is "complicit" in Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in a damning indictment from the UK.
In a press release, China's Defense Ministry said that its ships had linked up with their Russian counterparts at noon.
Warships sent include the guided missile destroyers Qiqihar and Guiyang, the guided missile frigates Zaozhuang and Rizhao and the supply ship Taihu.
Russian participants included the frigates Gromkiy and Otlichnyy, which have been hosting visitors for a week in the financial hub of Shanghai, China's largest city and biggest port.
The joint drills focus on ship-to-ship communications, maneuvering in formation and maritime search and rescue, according to Chinese reports.
Meanwhile, Richard Moore, the chief of MI6, said Beijing and Xi Jinping are "absolutely complicit" in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
He told Politico: "When Putin invaded Ukraine, the Chinese very clearly supported the Russians.
"They have completely supported the Russians diplomatically, they've abstained in key votes at the United Nations, they've absolutely cynically repeated all the Russian tropes, particularly in places like Africa and Latin America - blaming NATO and all of this stuff."
Moore also claimed that MI6 now devotes more resources to tackling China than any other country.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-sparks-fear-with-joint-russian-naval-drills-as-intel-chief-says-beijing-complicit/ar-AA1e50qx?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=93fc851229fc40489d1b0b5a61769041&ei=18
Jimbuna
07-20-23, 08:31 AM
Next on Big Brothers agenda.
BEIJING (Reuters) -It is China's "priority" to stop Taiwan's vice president and presidential frontrunner William Lai from visiting the United States next month, the country's ambassador in Washington said on Wednesday, as Beijing steps up its warnings against the trip.
China, which views Taiwan as its own territory, has stepped up military and political pressure over the past three years to try and force the island to accept Beijing's sovereignty claims, which the government in Taipei strongly rejects.
Taiwan will hold presidential and parliamentary elections in January, with Lai, the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's (DPP) presidential candidate, the frontrunner in most opinion polls.
Lai is making what are officially stop overs in the United States on his way to and from Paraguay for the Aug. 15 inauguration of its new president, drawing anger from Beijing which slammed Lai as a separatist.
Chinese ambassador Xie Feng told the Aspen Security Forum that "Taiwan is China's Taiwan" and that the country wanted a peaceful "reunification", but Taiwanese "separatists" were advancing their agenda, seeking U.S. support.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-says-its-priority-is-to-stop-taiwan-vp-visiting-us-next-month/ar-AA1e6tWk?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=9660089c4b5043e4a50263f6f40f780c&ei=17
Jimbuna
07-20-23, 08:42 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qwdht3h4xjg
Skybird
07-20-23, 02:42 PM
Interesting.
Jimbuna
07-21-23, 05:30 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zAIHnJ9eBeA
Jimbuna
07-22-23, 12:01 PM
Is Qin Gang’s a victim of the Putin syndrome or is he simply guilty of having an affair? :hmmm:
China’s foreign minister has not been seen in nearly a month, leading to speculation over his whereabouts in a country where the private lives of senior officials are shrouded in secrecy.
Qin Gang’s last public appearance was a meeting with visiting Russian, Sri Lankan and Vietnamese officials on June 25.
Since then, he has missed a series of high-profile diplomatic meetings at home and abroad, including a gathering of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) foreign ministers in Jakarta earlier this month. He will likely miss a Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa) summit in Johannesburg next week.
He was conspicuously absent from a meeting of high-level foreign delegates in Beijing this week, including Henry Kissinger, and a rare visit by Ukraine’s deputy economy minister.
Other engagements also appear to have stalled. A trip to China by James Cleverly, the Foreign Secretary, originally slated for early this month has yet to be confirmed. Another by Josep Borrell, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, was cancelled by Beijing.
Officially, the Chinese government has said Mr Qin is away for unspecified “health reasons”, and that Wang Yi, the country’s top diplomat, would fill in at the Asean meeting.
One rumour going around is that he had an affair with Fu Xiaotian, a Chinese television presenter.
The presenter, who has also disappeared from public view recently, was accused of flirting with Mr Qin in an interview in March last year, potentially violating the Chinese Ministry of State Security’s regulations.
A protege of leader Xi Jinping and regarded as a loyalist, Mr Qin was seen as a rising star.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/mystery-as-china-s-foreign-minister-goes-missing/ar-AA1eddef?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=0ecd4aa012f94f9894b016b8ffed54d1&ei=8
Jimbuna
07-23-23, 12:55 PM
China sent dozens of warplanes, including fighter jets and bombers, toward Taiwan marking a forceful display days before the democracy plans to hold military exercises aimed at defending itself against a possible invasion.
Taiwan is due to hold its annual Han Kuang exercise next week, during which its military will hold combat readiness drills for preventing an invasion.
It will also conduct the annual Wan'an exercises aimed at preparing civilians for natural disasters and practising evacuations in case of an air raid.
The Chinese People's Liberation Army sent 37 aircraft and seven navy vessels around Taiwan between 6 am Friday and 6 am Saturday, the ministry said in a statement.
Jimbuna
07-29-23, 04:42 AM
The US on Friday unveiled a Taiwan weapons aid package worth up to $345 million (roughly €310 million), in a move likely to anger China.
The Biden administration did not detail what equipment would be included.
A statement from the White House spoke of a package of "defense articles and services of the Department of Defense, and military education and training, to provide assistance to Taiwan."
US officials speaking on condition of anonymity when the deal was being prepared had said that Taiwan was keen to acquire US espionage drones among the new equipment, but said that questions about whether they could be adapted appropriately for export in time meant it wasn't clear if they would be included.
The announcement came on the same week as a major annual military exercise in Taiwan, simulating the defence in case of a Chinese invasion.
Skybird
08-03-23, 06:34 PM
Looks suspicously like a Chinese military/secret service operation to me, to be made use of in case of war with the US. Soft intrusion, like with those ballons. Just that a pandemic does not collect data, but causes chaos and kills. Right what in case of war is wanted.
https://nypost.com/2023/08/01/illegal-medic-lab-with-infectious-agents-and-dead-mice-found-in-california-warehouse/
Jimbuna
08-04-23, 06:42 AM
The United States on Wednesday raised concerns over a Chinese call to encourage its citizens to join counter-espionage work and said it has been closely monitoring the implementation of Beijing's expanded anti-spying law.
China's Ministry of State Security on Tuesday said China should encourage its citizens to join counter-espionage work, including creating channels for individuals to report suspicious activity and rewarding them for doing do.
China's declaration that it is under threat from spies comes as Western nations, most prominently the United States, accuse China of espionage and cyberattacks,
https://www.reuters.com/world/us-says-concerned-over-chinas-call-popularise-counter-espionage-among-masses-2023-08-02/
Jimbuna
08-04-23, 07:08 AM
Life is so cheap in China.
A South Korean prisoner accused of committing drugs offences has been executed in China.
The death sentence was carried out on August 4 in Guangzhou, located in the coastal Guangdong province bordering Hong Kong and Macau.
Beijing was deaf to Seoul's repeated calls for clemency, a South Korean foreign ministry official said upon sharing the news.
Ahead of the sentence, China had notified the prisoner's country of origin through diplomatic channels, the official said.
He also said in a statement widely reported by South Korean media: "The government regrets, from a humanitarian perspective, that the execution took place on one of our nationals."
The Korean government had asked multiple times Beijing to reconsider or delay the execution, the official also said.
The man executed on Friday had been arrested in China in 2014 on charges of drug trafficking.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-executes-south-korean-prisoner-for-first-time-since-2014-despite-seoul-s-pleas/ar-AA1eMDkW?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=3ce5acaecc39469ea75ce5a4f17ae94c&ei=16
Skybird
08-04-23, 07:25 AM
The United States on Wednesday raised concerns over a Chinese call to encourage its citizens to join counter-espionage work and said it has been closely monitoring the implementation of Beijing's expanded anti-spying law.
China's Ministry of State Security on Tuesday said China should encourage its citizens to join counter-espionage work, including creating channels for individuals to report suspicious activity and rewarding them for doing do.
China's declaration that it is under threat from spies comes as Western nations, most prominently the United States, accuse China of espionage and cyberattacks,
https://www.reuters.com/world/us-says-concerned-over-chinas-call-popularise-counter-espionage-among-masses-2023-08-02/
Just days ago it was reported that the US navy arrested - once again - two sailors with Chinese migration background who gave secret information to China, they both had clearances for secret stuff on their ship.
Jimbuna
08-05-23, 05:37 AM
Just days ago it was reported that the US navy arrested - once again - two sailors with Chinese migration background who gave secret information to China, they both had clearances for secret stuff on their ship.
Yeah, China plats a clever game of chess me thinks.
Jimbuna
08-05-23, 06:32 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-9g0prBF84Y
Jimbuna
08-06-23, 10:43 AM
China and Russia launched an unprecedented joint naval drill near US waters earlier this week, sparking a major response from the US Navy, officials have said.
Eleven Russian and Chinese ships steamed close to the Aleutian Islands in Alaska in a 'highly provocative' move amid escalating tensions with the US.
It is believed to be the largest such flotilla to have approached American shores.
Four US destroyers and a P-8 Poseidon aircraft were deployed in response to divert the ships away from American territory to avert a serious international incident, officials said.
Sen. Dan Sullivan of Alaska, a Republican member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, told The Wall Street Journal the patrol was a reminder that the US has entered 'a new era of authoritarian aggression,' but praised the strong naval response.
He compared it to a similar but smaller incident last September, in which the US sent a single Coast Guard cutter to chaperone a Chinese guided missile cruiser alongside two other Chinese ships and four Russian ships about 90 miles north of the Aleutian Islands.
The size of the latest joint China-Russia operation is 'an historical first,' according to Brent Sadler, a senior researcher.
A spokesman for the US Northern Command confirmed Russia and China had carried out a combined naval patrol near Alaska, but didn't specify the number of ships or their precise location.
'Air and maritime assets under our commands conducted operations to assure the defense of the United States and Canada. The patrol remained in international waters and was not considered a threat,' the command told the WSJ.
The USS John S. McCain, the USS Benfold, the USS John Finn and the USS Chung-Hoon were deployed in response, a US defense official said.
The drills come amid an emerging power battle in the Arctic, as the Russian and Chinese navies seek to counter US alliances with Japan, South Korea and other regional partners.
Russian warships and Chinese research vessels have been spotted in Arctic waters before, but joint patrols are a new development.
Admiral John Aquilino, who leads the US Indo-Pacific Command, said last month that joint Russian and Chinese exercises have increased.
'I only see the cooperation getting stronger, and boy that's concerning. That's a dangerous world,' he told the Aspen Security Forum.
A spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Washington said the patrol earlier this week wasn't aimed at Washington.
'According to the annual cooperation plan between the Chinese and Russian militaries, naval vessels of the two countries have recently conducted joint maritime patrols in relevant waters in the western and northern Pacific Ocean.
'This action is not targeted at any third party and has nothing to do with the current international and regional situation,' the Chinese Embassy spokesman, Liu Pengyu, said.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/chinese-and-russian-warships-conduct-highly-provocative-drills-near-alaska-s-coast-sparking-us-navy-to-mobilize-destroyers-to-lead-rivals-from-american-waters/ar-AA1eRDoN?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=f3fd2ea3dc434be0ad42c27597fcfb7a&ei=12
Yea what was the purpose behind this lab
If it were not for an errant hose sticking out of the back of the warehouse last spring, city officials would not have known that a shady biotech company with links to China had set up shop there, filling it with industrial freezers, hundreds of vials of viruses, and about 1,000 dead and dying lab mice.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-12357073/Unassuming-warehouse-California-turns-illegal-Chinese-run-virus-laboratory-genetically-engineering-mice-experimenting-HIV-herpes-malaria.html
Markus
Jimbuna
08-08-23, 05:09 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2fPNKiZnMk
Jimbuna
08-09-23, 01:29 PM
Further to the above...
MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines has never promised China it would remove a grounded warship serving as a military outpost in the South China Sea, a senior security official said on Wednesday, deriding the claim by Beijing as a "figment of its imagination".
The Philippines maintains a handful of troops aboard the World War Two-era Sierra Madre at the Second Thomas Shoal, known by Manila as Ayungin shoal, which is located inside its 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ).
China on Monday accused the Philippines of reneging on a promise made "explicitly" to remove the ship, which Manila grounded in 1999 to bolster its territorial claims in one of the world's most contested areas.
"The Philippine government will never enter into an agreement where we will abandon our sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the Ayungin shoal," Jonathan Malaya, National Security Council assistant director general, told a press conference.
"For all intents and purposes, it is a figment of their imagination," Malaya said, challenging China to produce evidence of the promise.
China's embassy in Manila said it had no comment.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/philippines-says-promise-to-remove-grounded-warship-a-figment-of-china-s-imagination/ar-AA1f0gv0?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=52e4723cbf25499e983ebecd247c7588&ei=14
Jimbuna
08-10-23, 05:39 AM
Cracks have started to show in the partnership between China and Russia, and the war in Ukraine appears to be the leading point of contention.
China alliance with Russia at breaking point as Beijing frustrated over Ukraine war
While Beijing has maintained what it claimed to be a neutral position since the start of the invasion, refusing to condemn Moscow and claiming NATO expansion had contributed to igniting the war, the People's Republic has also called for an end to the conflict.
This week Chinese representatives attended an international summit in Saudi Arabia led by Kyiv to establish a framework for peace, and praised Ukraine for its effort.
And the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) highlighted further reasons to believe the alliance could be hitting a rocky spot after reviewing the different responses of China and Russia to a call between two of its top diplomats.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Communist Party Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Wang Yi spoke on the phone in the aftermath of the Jeddah meeting.
The ISW noted that the Chinese and Russian ministries had "portrayed the conversation between Lavrov and Wang differently," suggesting that Beijing "is increasingly diverging with Russia on proposed settlements to end the war."
The report noted that China's insistence on claiming impartiality has frustrated Russia, as have the PRC's overtures to peace.
Beijing and Moscow struck what Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping referred to as a "no-limits" partnership deal shortly before the start of the invasion in February 2022.
Xi appeared to reaffirm his country's commitment to the agreement with a visit to Moscow earlier this year. But in April it emerged he had phoned Volodymyr Zelensky to express his country's dedication to facilitate peace.
The ISW noted a stark contrast in the way the two foreign ministries portrayed the call between Lavrov and Wang in a read-out after their conversation.
While the Russians claimed several hot regional topics, including the war, had been discussed, China reported the two sides had exchanged views about the conflict alone.
The report added that "the Chinese Foreign Ministry's description of the talks may suggest that the Kremlin is becoming dissatisfied with China's continued efforts to promote its peace plan in international fora."
It added that China's behaviour is "consistent with ISW's previous assessments that China is not interested in a 'no-limits partnership' with Russia as the Kremlin desires."
The assessment comes days after the United States urged China to refrain from supporting Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-alliance-with-russia-at-breaking-point-as-beijing-frustrated-over-ukraine-war/ar-AA1f4G4i?ocid=mailsignout&pc=U591&cvid=329527c7812c42c2bfd4128b8cb89e9a&ei=16
Jimbuna
08-11-23, 09:32 AM
China has uncovered a Chinese national suspected of spying for the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), its state security ministry said on Friday, highlighting what it said were the risks and dangers of Chinese citizens being recruited abroad.
The Chinese national surnamed Zeng, who had worked for a military industrial group, was recruited by a CIA agent based in Italy, the ministry said in a statement posted on its WeChat channel.
Zeng was sent to Italy by the military industrial group for further studies and became acquainted with the CIA agent.
Through dinner parties, outings and trips to the opera, the two developed a "close" relationship, with Zeng gradually becoming "psychologically dependent" on the CIA agent, the ministry said.
After succeeding in "shaking" Zeng's political stance, the CIA agent sought sensitive information about the Chinese military from Zeng, according to the statement. It did not say when the events took place.
The statement did not specify Zeng's gender but said the person was born in 1971 and the alleged CIA agent was named "Seth".
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-uncovers-alleged-chinese-spy-for-cia-security-ministry/ar-AA1f7Pya
Jimbuna
08-13-23, 09:53 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HKvN9NHynaU
Skybird
08-15-23, 09:56 AM
https://www-achgut-com.translate.goog/artikel/wie_china_japans_militaer_ausspaeht?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
I remember a time when the Japanese military was considered among the most technologically advanced in the world, especially the navy. Small but beautiful. It seems they got the German disease.
Jimbuna
08-15-23, 12:48 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVIpAh7VyRY
Jimbuna
08-15-23, 01:23 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NARE4PdYXIY
Jimbuna
08-16-23, 12:40 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JyBrghhQyIk
Skybird
08-17-23, 06:27 PM
Evergrande files for bankruptcy.
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/17/business/evergrande-files-for-bankruptcy/index.html
Jimbuna
08-18-23, 07:37 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5wQDKUSxhQ
Jimbuna
08-19-23, 06:48 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9O1-ecsDzHE
Jimbuna
08-19-23, 12:09 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zB3bR3gv-1w
Jimbuna
08-20-23, 12:06 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FytCfqUtERU&t=25s
Aktungbby
08-20-23, 02:29 PM
I agree. What with satellites and listening devices on our rusty but trusty LST Santa Maria, permanently aground in the South China Sea :arrgh!: we should ensure and let S.Korea, Phillipines, Japan, and VietNam deal with it (with our 'proxy-style assistance')...with complete understanding that the narrow Bering Strait and the chinkadero concept of "right of innocent passge" is now equally cut off to Sino-intrusion in the Artic Ocean, the demense of US, Canada and Russia. The chinese are of course at liberty to approach by Hudson's Bay!:shucks: I doubt Bejing will like a page from their own hegemony-playbook being used in return; thus exposing their double standard. I would bet that their 'eternal friendship' Russian partner would not object to one less competitor in its Artic 'backyard'. I spoke too soon::k_confused:https://images.wsj.net/im-837178/?width=1278&size=1 A World War II-era ship rusting atop a tiny, teardrop-shaped reef in the South China Sea has become the center of a new round of tensions between the Philippines, a U.S. ally, and China.
The Philippines ran the ship aground 2½ decades ago to assert its claim to the reef, known as Second Thomas Shoal. It keeps a small detachment of marines garrisoned aboard.
China also claims the reef—along with much of the highly contested South China Sea—and considers the grounding illegal. In recent years, its coast guard and fishing militia have built up a strong presence around the reef, shadowing and disrupting vessels supplying the dilapidated ship, called BRP Sierra Madre.
Now the dispute is flaring up. On Aug. 5, a Chinese coast-guard ship blasted a water cannon at a resupply convoy, forcing one of two supply boats to turn around and abandon its mission. Manila says the convoy was carrying food, water, fuel and other supplies for the nine marines currently aboard, and has pledged to try again soon.
Any accident or skirmish could escalate into conflict, with the potential to involve the U.S. After the Aug. 5 incident, the U.S. State Department reaffirmed that an “armed attack” on Philippine vessels would invoke its commitments under the two countries’ mutual-defense treaty.
Beijing says the Philippines is repairing and reinforcing the Sierra Madre to permanently occupy the reef, and objects to any such activities. Philippine officials say they have a right to maintain and repair the ship, which is still a commissioned navy vessel that they say serves as a permanent station for a constant rotation of active troops.
“Whatever we do with it is within our rights and jurisdiction,” said Col. Medel Aguilar, a spokesman for the Philippines armed forces, adding that China doesn’t have the right to tell the Philippines what it can take to the Sierra Madre.
When China’s foreign ministry claimed last week that Manila had promised in the past to remove the Sierra Madre from the reef, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said he wasn’t aware of it.
“And let me go further,” he said. “If there does exist such an agreement, I rescind that agreement as of now.”
The fate of Second Thomas Shoal, which the Philippines calls Ayungin and China calls Ren’ai, has implications for the rest of the South China Sea, where Beijing’s claims overlap with those of half a dozen other governments. In 2016, a landmark ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague dismissed China’s claims as baseless. Beijing rejected the ruling.
China has rapidly expanded its presence across the waterway, through which trillions of dollars in trade transits each year. In the Spratly Islands, site of Second Thomas Shoal, it has built outposts and militarized them with missiles, radar systems and runways. In 2012, China seized a feature called Scarborough Shoal from the Philippines.
Manila grounded the Sierra Madre in 1999—responding to China’s 1995 occupation of nearby Mischief Reef, where Beijing had begun building small structures—and has kept a dozen or so people stationed aboard at any given time.
Since then, China has vastly grown its power in the South China Sea. Mischief Reef is now a military base.
Chinese boats are ever-present around Second Thomas Shoal, routinely intimidating and harassing resupply missions, said Commodore Jay Tarriela, a spokesman for the Philippine coast guard. Sometimes Chinese boats sail dangerously close, or blast warnings through loudspeakers, he said. Occasionally, Chinese interference is more aggressive, forcing the Filipinos to turn back.
“The Chinese coast guard are not really fond of keeping to themselves,” Tarriela said. “They have to make us feel their presence, every single time.”
To avoid escalating tensions, the Philippines makes the supply deliveries—typically monthly—with civilian craft it calls “indigenous boats,” which are made of wood and look like fishing vessels. Chartered and manned by the Philippine navy and escorted by two coast-guard vessels, they are too small to carry large cargo or equipment.
The most recent incident was a David-versus-Goliath face-off.
A video clip shot by a crew member aboard one of the supply boats and shared with The Wall Street Journal by the Philippine armed forces shows a Chinese coast-guard vessel blasting a stream of water toward the convoy. The water hits the boat with a loud thud, causing it to rock.
Another clip, released by the Philippine coast guard, shows a Philippine supply boat bobbing along, dwarfed by a Chinese vessel several times its length tailing closely behind. The camera pans across the horizon to reveal at least four other vessels—two belonging to the Chinese coast guard and two that the Philippine coast guard said belonged to Chinese maritime militia.
Resupply missions have been sporadically disrupted since at least 2014. This year, it has happened twice already. In February, China used what the Philippines said was a military-grade laser that temporarily blinded crew.
A video clip shot by a crew member aboard one of the supply boats and shared with The Wall Street Journal by the Philippine armed forces shows a Chinese coast-guard vessel blasting a stream of water toward the convoy. The water hits the boat with a loud thud, causing it to rock.
Another clip, released by the Philippine coast guard, shows a Philippine supply boat bobbing along, dwarfed by a Chinese vessel several times its length tailing closely behind. The camera pans across the horizon to reveal at least four other vessels—two belonging to the Chinese coast guard and two that the Philippine coast guard said belonged to Chinese maritime militia.
Resupply missions have been sporadically disrupted since at least 2014. This year, it has happened twice already. In February, China used what the Philippines said was a military-grade laser that temporarily blinded crew.
Since taking office last year, Marcos has steered the country decisively toward the U.S., a sharp departure from the pro-China policies of his predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte.
While Duterte threatened to rescind Manila-Washington military pacts, such as a visiting-forces agreement that allows American troops and equipment to rotate through the archipelago, Marcos has doubled down on the alliance. In February, the two countries unveiled a major expansion of an Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement, effectively extending U.S. access to nine Philippine military bases, from a previous five.
“Of course China notices the change in tone and policy orientation of the new administration,” said Aries Arugay, professor and chair of the department of political science at the University of the Philippines Diliman. “They’re testing Marcos.” https://images.wsj.net/im-837181?width=1260&size=1.5023474178403755<The Philippines grounded BRP Sierra Madre on Second Thomas Shoal in 1999.
Bottom Line China simply ''wants it all'' and has a double-standard worthy of any tyrannical dictatorship: It would not tolerate the US sealing off the Bering Straight route to the mineral rich Arctic Ocean it craves; no doubt citing Western "containment of China" that, after the recent deployment of a combined Russian/Chinese flotilla performing tactics off the Aleutian Islands. https://www.newsweek.com/aleutian-islands-standoff-us-russian-chinese-navy-alaska-1817900 Russian state-owned news agency Tass reported on July 28 that "the warships of Russia and China" were involved in joint patrol in the Pacific Ocean aimed at "strengthening the naval cooperation between Russia and China, maintaining peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, monitoring of offshore zones and guarding Russia and China's objects of maritime economic activities."
Tass reported that the Chinese Defense Ministry also confirmed the joint operation, saying it was not "directed against third parties and have nothing to do with the current international and regional situation.":roll::nope::x
Skybird
08-20-23, 05:47 PM
Six facts show that the “China crash” is wishful thinking. The swan song for the Chinese economy is definitely premature:
1. China is growing twice as fast as the US
2. Falling imports are a sign of strength
3. China's innovative power is increasing
4. China's footprint in Europe is growing
5. China is sitting on a mountain of raw materials
6. China's currency reserves are like an ammunition depot
https://www-focus-de.translate.goog/finanzen/news/gastbeitrag-von-gabor-steingart-diw-experte-abgesang-auf-chinesische-wirtschaft-kommt-definitiv-zu-frueh_id_202141161.html?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp (https://www-focus-de.translate.goog/finanzen/news/gastbeitrag-von-gabor-steingart-diw-experte-abgesang-auf-chinesische-wirtschaft-kommt-definitiv-zu-frueh_id_202141161.html?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp)
Jimbuna
08-21-23, 06:41 AM
Drastically worsening youth unemployment numbers in China have caused the government to temporarily — or perhaps permanently — stop their publication.
Aktungbby
08-21-23, 11:35 AM
Front page of today's WSJ: China's 40-Year Boom Is Over, Rising Fears of Extended Slump The conomic model that took counyry from poverty to great power status is broken. The country is drowning in debt and running out of things to build. Parts of China are saddled with under-used bridges and airports. Millionsof aparfments are unoccupied. Returns on investment have sharply declined...All that, and the Russian unmanned moon rocket, Luna -25 crashed into the moon's South Pole...in a race with India??:timeout::hmm2::woot::rock:...it's a good Monday!:shucks:
Skybird
08-21-23, 01:05 PM
Dont be too early.
From the above link:
1. China grows twice as fast as the U.S.
The IMF forecasts real GDP growth of 5.2 percent in 2023 and 4.5 percent in 2024, making China's GDP equivalent to nearly eight percent of the global economy. Even if China grew by only three percent in 2023, that would be more than half a trillion dollars.
2 Falling imports are a sign of strength
In July 2023, Chinese imports fell 12.4 percent year-on-year, but falling imports are not necessarily bad news for China. According to Jürgen Matthes, "China's government is deliberately going for more and more self-sufficiency to reduce its dependence on the West."
Take the auto industry, for example: the CP Politburo has launched its own electric car offensive. In the Middle Kingdom, people drive a BYD and not a Volkswagen. In the first five months, the Chinese market leader sold three times as many electric cars in its home country as all Western car brands combined. This is reflected in falling import figures.
3 China's innovative strength on the rise
The inventiveness of the Chinese is increasing, as shown by the number of patent applications at the European Patent Office. In 2022, 19,041 Chinese patents were registered there - an increase of 15 percent compared to the previous year and fourth place in a global country comparison.
4. China's footprint in Europe is growing stronger
In a recent study, the Institute of German Business concludes that Chinese goods are becoming increasingly important for the EU market. While in 2000 the share of EU imports from China was still 2.6 percent, the share grew to 8.8 percent last year.
Europeans mainly buy computers and other electrical and optical equipment from Chinese production. Here, the share grew from 4.5 percent (2000) to 27.4 percent (2022) in the same period.
5 China sits on a mountain of raw materials
The so-called rare earths play a crucial role in the manufacture of all kinds of electronic products. With a market share of nearly 70 percent, China is the leading producer of these raw materials. Of all rare earths on the world market, 34 percent come directly from imports from China.
6 China's currency reserves resemble an ammunition depot
The Chinese currency, the yuan, has depreciated six percent against the U.S. dollar since the beginning of the year. According to media reports, Chinese authorities have now instructed state-owned banks to intervene more in the foreign exchange market this week to prevent a rise in the yuan's volatility.
China can afford such interventions. Its currency reserves are an expression of strength - and they are significantly higher than those of the other industrialized nations. Beijing has $3.3 trillion stashed away for times of crisis. Japan, in second place, has only 1.3 trillion US dollars. At the end of 2022, Germany was hoarding just under 300 billion US dollars.
Jimbuna
08-22-23, 12:17 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFAt2g6G9-I
Jimbuna
08-23-23, 05:29 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aau02EoTIRE
Jimbuna
08-25-23, 05:54 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tudWTn5uBmk
em2nought
08-25-23, 06:10 AM
Maybe related to that missing submarine? :hmmm:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_XOrmkQhZSs
Jimbuna
08-25-23, 06:15 AM
Prigozhin’s fate shows Russian mafia state and Brics despots are not what the world needs
Unsurprisingly, some fantasise about American power being taken down a peg or two.
But be careful what you wish for. Russia’s degeneration into a mafia state – underlined by the violent demise of Yevgeny Prigozhin – shows there are far, far worse countries that could rule the world.
The Brics group, with China and Russia at the helm, says it is ready to lead the planet into a better, Washington-free future.
Brics is already home to 40 per cent of the world’s population and a quarter of global GDP.
On Thursday, we learnt that existing Brics members – Russia, China, India, South Africa and Brazil – are going to admit Saudi Arabia, Iran, Ethiopia, Egypt, Argentina and the United Arab Emirates, thus cementing the organisation’s status as a confederation of the oppressive and the bankrupt.
Iranian President, Ebrahim Raisi, immediately hailed the group’s effort to move away from dependence on the US dollar, a financial state of affairs that allows Washington to apply punishing sanctions on the barbarous regime in Tehran.
Political extremists everywhere are cock-a-hoop. The end of not just American power, but Western influence, is what they dream of.
“The rise of the Global South and multipolarism accelerates, as the obsolete regime of Western hegemony dwindles into irrelevance,” posted “independent journalist” Richard Medhurst on Twitter, in the stilted, sixth-form language of the far left.
How lovely. Just think what awaits. Saudi Arabia’s suspected psychopath Mohammed bin Salman and Egyptian despot Abdel Fattah al-Sisi could put their global stamp on social policies and human rights. The sadistic mullahs in Tehran could advise them on female dress codes. The war mongers in UAE could counsel Putin on the best way of wiping out as many Ukrainian civilians as possible, using the extensive experience the nasty Gulf state has acquired in its destruction of Yemen.
China will be the real power in the group, so none of the Muslim additions are likely to say much about Xi Jinping’s Ughyur Muslim concentration camps.
And of course, in the bright, Brics future, snarling sociopath Vladimir Putin will be in prime position to continue preaching the law of the jungle. Georgia and Moldova will be next to be brutalised and consumed by his post-Soviet sense of entitlement and warped reading of history.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/prigozhin-s-fate-shows-russian-mafia-state-and-brics-despots-are-not-what-the-world-needs/ar-AA1fKNId?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=95825dce03bd4336a421f74676414bac&ei=10
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BudiRNUFF08
Just a hunch, but I don't think I put this in the wrong thread. :hmmm:
No, I'd be worried, hopefully the authorities look into it! :hmmm:
Jimbuna
08-26-23, 01:21 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P8GSY4WNM-0
There is a saying
"people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones"
Scientists have pointed out that China’s own nuclear power plants release wastewater with higher levels of tritium than that found in Fukushima’s discharge, and that the levels are all within boundaries not considered to be harmful to human health.
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/aug/25/fukushima-daiichi-nuclear-power-plant-china-wastewater-release
Markus
Jimbuna
08-28-23, 11:40 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TdySxfD1qc
Jimbuna
08-30-23, 06:47 AM
Not everything is rosy in the house of BRICS apparently.
India has lodged a “strong” diplomatic protest with China after the latter released an official map that shows Indian territories in the Himalayas as its own.
The formal objection has led to doubts over Xi Jinping’s expected visit to Delhi for the G20 summit set to begin next week and comes in the backdrop of a historic border dispute between the nuclear neighbours that has only strained diplomatic relations between them.
On Monday, China’s Ministry of Natural Resources released a map showing the Indian territories of north eastern Arunachal Pradesh and the disputed Aksai Chin area on the western border as Chinese territory.
The map also included Taiwan and the entire South China Sea as Chinese areas.
Indian foreign ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in a statement that India rejected claims of China’s so-called “standard map”.
“We have today lodged a strong protest through diplomatic channels with the Chinese side on the so called 2023 map of China that lays claim to India’s territory,” he said.
“We reject these claims as they have no basis. Such steps by the Chinese side only complicate the resolution of the boundary question,” he said.
China is yet to comment on the incident.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/india-lodges-strong-protest-over-new-chinese-map-ahead-of-xi-jinping-s-expected-visit-for-g20-summit/ar-AA1fYSUK?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=e510f264b41d40698f18158507eaab4e&ei=17
Jimbuna
08-31-23, 07:41 AM
The more the merrier I suppose.
Amap showcasing China’s territorial sovereignty in the South China Sea has been roundly rejected by Malaysia, the Philippines and Taiwan.
The three nations categorically shot down the legitimacy of the assertions on the map even as Beijing claimed on Thursday that it should be viewed “rationally and objectively”.
The countries have joined China’s regional rival India in objecting to the map that was released on Monday by China’s Ministry of Natural Resources.
The Indian government had earlier on Wednesday lodged a “strong protest” against the map as it showed the Indian territories of northeastern Arunachal Pradesh and the disputed Aksai Chin area on the western border as Chinese territory.
The map also includes Taiwan and the entire South China Sea as Chinese areas.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/malaysia-taiwan-and-philippines-join-india-in-rejecting-new-chinese-map/ar-AA1g2tkX?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=080bc4c553cd457fbb5fbba844ab0e86&ei=10
Jimbuna
09-02-23, 07:13 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meJItedDm2Y
Jimbuna
09-04-23, 11:39 AM
Why should I or anyone else be in the least surprised?
Chinese banks have been providing major support to Russia leaving the Western world braced for a strong reaction.
Chinese lenders provided this help when Western financial institutions reduced their activities in Russia during the first year of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
The efforts of four of China's top banks are part of Beijing's larger strategy to promote the renminbi as a global currency alternative to the US dollar.
According to the most recent official data analysed by the Kyiv School of Economics for the Financial Times, China's exposure to Russia's banking industry increased fourfold in the 14 months leading up to the end of March this year.
Due to the harsh economic environment caused by international sanctions, Chinese banks effectively filled the hole left by Western banks, who faced tremendous pressure from regulatory and political authorities in their respective countries to exit from Russia.
According to Russian central bank data, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Bank of China, China Construction Bank, and Agricultural Bank of China increased their combined investment in Russia from $2.2 billion to $9.7 billion in the 14 months leading up to March.
Notably, ICBC and Bank of China held $8.8 billion of these assets.
Simultaneously, Austria's Raiffeisen Bank, which has the most foreign exposure to Russia, had its assets expand by more than 40 per cent during the same period, rising from $20.5 billion to $29.2 billion.
Raiffeisen, on the other hand, has stated its intention to investigate departure plans from Russia and has cut its assets to $25.5 billion since March.
Russia's ruble has dropped significantly in recent months, leading the country's central bank to intervene to stabilise its value. Until now, the government has used the declining ruble to its advantage.
However, a falling currency raises the possibility of higher prices for regular Russians, prompting the government to take steps to stop the depreciation.
The decline in the value of the ruble can be linked to Russia's decreasing exports, specifically declining revenue from oil and natural gas, along with a rise in imports.
Individuals and businesses that import items into Russia must convert rubles for other currencies such as dollars or euros, putting downward pressure on the ruble's exchange rate.
Russia's trade surplus, which indicates that it sells more items than it purchases, has shrunk.
Russia used to run a significant trade surplus, owing to high oil prices and restricted imports following its invasion of Ukraine.
However, oil prices have fallen this year, and Russia is having difficulty exporting its oil due to Western sanctions, which include price caps on crude oil and allied goods such as diesel.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/money/other/west-set-for-furious-response-as-xi-s-banks-revealed-to-be-propping-up-russia/ar-AA1gd4nX?ocid=mailsignout&pc=U591&cvid=5205b64264ea4e68a6c66ebf86385011&ei=18
Skybird
09-04-23, 05:52 PM
:k_confused: How comes the West lets this happen?
https://www.ft.com/content/a940f22f-a79d-4165-9ca2-f15ec218c3b5
https://www.ft.com/content/792fae47-8e2f-4363-99e9-176b33ccc09a
https://www.ft.com/content/09edaeb9-9a6b-48df-aabc-29eaa654e4d5
Jimbuna
09-05-23, 06:44 AM
locked! :hmmm::doh:
Yep, requires a subscription.
Aktungbby
09-05-23, 11:36 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BudiRNUFF08
Just a hunch, but I don't think I put this in the wrong thread. :hmmm:
No, I'd be worried, hopefully the authorities look into it! :hmmm:...that at least has been resolved. Its not subterfugious chinkadero buyers seeking land around Travis AFB, but an investment company, FLANNERY ASSOCIATES, planning a revitalization of a decades-old plan for another new Bay Area city : "Suisun City". Napa Congressman Thompson is looking into the matter. The last thing we need in Solano County is another goddam major city....particularly as the entire county gets its water from next-county Napa's Lake Berryessa-set aside in WWII by the Feds to provide water for WWII related industry to critical 1940"s Suisun Bay industries. The artificial reservoir inundated prime grape-growng Napa farmland incl thd community of Berryessa. Napa gets no water from the reservoir...and WWII's been over for 78 year??!:hmmm: With CA droughts prevailing, conditions have generally reduced the levels of reservoirs throughout the state. Water is for farming; not new cities! Silicon Valley billionaires behind a secretive $800 million land-buying spree in Northern California have finally released some details about their plans for a new green city, but they still must win over skeptical voters and local leaders.
After years of ducking scrutiny, Jan Sramek, the former Goldman Sachs trader spearheading the effort, launched a website Thursday about "California Forever." The site billed the project as "a chance for a new community, good paying local jobs, solar farms, and open space" in Solano, a rural county between San Francisco and Sacramento that is now home to 450,000 people.
He also began meeting with key politicians representing the area who have been trying unsuccessfully for years to find out who was behind the mysterious Flannery Associates LLC as it bought up huge swaths of land, making it the largest single landholder in the county.
An all-star roster of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs and venture capitalists are backing the project, including philanthropist Laurene Powell Jobs, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman, and venture capitalist Marc Andreessen. The New York Times first reported on the group's investors and plans.
California Forever, the parent company of Flannery, has purchased more than 78 square miles (202 square kilometers) of farmland in Solano County since 2018, largely in the southeastern portion of the county, with parcels stretching from Fairfield to Rio Vista. According to the website, Sramek fell in love with the area over fishing trips and he and his wife recently purchased a home in the county for their growing family. he project issued a poll to residents last month to gauge support for "a new city with tens of thousands of new homes," solar energy farm and new parks funded entirely by the private sector.
But to build anything resembling a city on what is now farmland, the group must first convince Solano County voters to approve a ballot initiative to allow for urban uses on that land, a protection that has been in place since 1984. Local and federal officials still have questions about the group's intentions.
Two area congressmen who sought for years to find out whether foreign adversaries or investors were behind the buying spree around a U.S. Air Force base vital to national security and the local economy are furious that Flannery kept its identity hidden for so long. The website say 97% of its funding is from U.S. investors and the rest are from the United Kingdom and Ireland.
"The FBI, the Department of Treasury, everyone has been doing work trying to figure out who these people are," U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson, who represents much of the county, said this week after meeting with Sramek. "Their secrecy has caused a lot of problems, a lot of time, and a lot of expense." The investment group said secrecy was required until enough land was purchased, in order to avoid short-term speculation, but that it is now ready to hear from Solano households via a mailed survey and creation of a community advisory board. Past surveys showed parents were most concerned about their children's future, the website said.
"Instead of watching our kids leave, we have the opportunity to build a new community that attracts new employers, creates good paying local jobs, builds homes in walkable neighborhoods, leads in environment stewardship, and fuels a growing tax base to serve the county at large," it said.
California is in dire need of more housing, especially affordable homes for teachers, firefighters, service and hospitality workers. But cities and counties can't figure out where to build as established neighborhoods argue against new homes that they say would congest their roads and spoil their quiet way of life.
In many ways, Solano County is ideal for development. It is 60 miles (96 kilometers) northeast of San Francisco and 35 miles (56 kilometers) southwest of California's capital city of Sacramento. Solano County homes are among the most affordable in the San Francisco Bay Area, with a median sales price of $600,000 last month.
But Princess Washington, mayor pro tempore of Suisun City, said residents deliberately decided to protect open space and keep the area around Travis Air Force Base free of encroachment given its significance.
She's suspicious that the group's real purpose is "to create a city for the elite" under the guise of more housing.
"Economic blight is everywhere. So why do you need to spend upwards of a billion dollars to create a brand new city when you have all these other things that can be achieved throughout the Bay Area?" she said. "Flannery Associates is using secrecy, bully and mobster tactics to force generational farm families to sell," said Rep. John Garamendi (D-Walnut Grove) during an informal hearing Tuesday.
After meeting with the company's founder this week, Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) released a statement Wednesday echoing community concerns.
“After the meeting, it is clear that they don’t have a plan; they have a vision," Thompson said. "The secrecy under which they operated caused consternation and concern from residents, local elected officials, and federal agencies, and while they explained their rationale, I do not believe the secrecy was necessary. Honesty is the best policy, and they need to begin to work with our community and local leaders if they want to advance their ideas."
According to The New York Times, in order for the project to ever come to fruition, it would likely require Solano County voters to get the last word at the ballot box. BOTTOM LINE: Silicon Valley investors, having totally ruined the South Bay (Santa Clara County) now seek to do the same to the tranquil rural North Bay which my wife and I fled to some 30 years ago from overgrown, over trafficed San Jose....Let's hope this loses at the ballot box!https://i.abcnewsfe.com/a/d4fc4fb3-a693-47be-add8-d17584644ca3/wirestory_35f91416dd7d84ecb03ed08199d87dd5_16x9.jp g?w=992 https://napavalleyregister.com/news/nation-world/business/billionaires-plan-new-city-in-rural-california/article_5f422381-dad3-5caf-bc30-6098cdcb3a5c.html But to build anything resembling a city on what is now farmland, the group must convince Solano County voters to approve a ballot initiative to allow for urban uses on that land, protected since 1984. Local and federal officials still have questions about the group's intentions.
Two area congressmen who sought for years to find out whether foreign adversaries or investors were behind the buying spree around a U.S. Air Force base vital to national security and the local economy are furious that Flannery kept its identity hidden for so long. The website says 97% of its funding is from U.S. investors and the rest are from the United Kingdom and Ireland. https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory/billionaires-build-new-city-rural-california-convince-voters-102866927 Thompson, the congressman, was unimpressed after meeting with Sramek, saying that the developer was vague on details and failed to display an understanding or appreciation of the county or its values.
Asked how he would help residents finance new homes, Thompson said Sramek told him he planned to use “all of his knowledge as a finance guy” to generate savings. Development in California is convoluted, but Thompson said Sramek told him they're hoping for expedited permitting "because their project is so good and their intentions are so great.”
“He doesn’t have a plan, he’s not there yet,” Thompson said. Flannery Associates has been quietly buying up farmland worth $800 million in Solano County, where Fairfield is located, court documents obtained by Insider show. A website for the plans shows its parent company, California Forever, wants to build a "walkable community".
City of Fairfield Mayor Moy told Bloomberg that "this is no way to go about any kind of development," adding: "We're going to do everything we can to stop this."
The company is being backed by billionaire investors including venture capitalist Marc Andreessen, LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman and Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs' widow, The New York Times first reported.
The Silicon Valley elites have purchased about 52,000 acres of land around Travis Air Force Base since 2018, leaving "no part that isn't touched by Flannery," Moy told ABC 7 News.
Speaking to CNBC about the Flannery plan, Moy said the Air Force base "can't function" with a settlement encroaching on it.
"Here's my suggestion: these billionaires take their billions of dollars and go back down to Silicon Valley and build high-rise apartments there that are low income so that their employees can work and live in the same area," Moy said.:yeah:
She claimed a local law would stop Flannery from going ahead with its plans to build the new city near San Francisco and expected the company would try to overturn it. However, that would require the support of local politicians, whom Moy said were "not very happy with them."
Rockstar
09-05-23, 08:11 PM
Analysis: Xi reprimanded by elders at Beidaihe over direction of nation
G20 absence hints at turmoil in Chinese domestic politics
https://asia.nikkei.com/Editor-s-Picks/China-up-close/Analysis-Xi-reprimanded-by-elders-at-Beidaihe-over-direction-of-nation
KATSUJI NAKAZAWA, Nikkei senior staff writer
SEPTEMBER 5, 2023 20:42 JST
Katsuji Nakazawa is a Tokyo-based senior staff and editorial writer at Nikkei. He spent seven years in China as a correspondent and later as China bureau chief. He was the 2014 recipient of the Vaughn-Ueda International Journalist prize.
There are signs of turmoil in Chinese domestic politics.
On Monday, it was announced that President Xi Jinping will not attend an upcoming summit of the Group of 20 major economies in India. Premier Li Qiang will take his place.
This will be the first time that Xi has skipped a G20 summit, to which he has consistently attached importance as China's top leader.
A precursor seems to have been this summer's Beidaihe meeting, the annual get-together of incumbent and retired leaders of the Chinese Communist Party at the seaside resort of Beidaihe, Hebei Province.
The informal discussions are never officially disclosed, but details of this year's closed-door talks have begun to emerge. In short, the conclave had a significantly different feel from the previous 10 Beidaihe meetings that have taken place since Xi became general secretary of the party in 2012.
Sources said that at this year's gathering, a group of retired party elders reprimanded the top leader in ways they had not until now. Xi later expressed his frustration to his closest aides, according to the information gathered.
This Beidaihe meeting was held without the presence of the most prominent of party elders. Former President Jiang Zemin died at the age of 96 last November, and Xi's immediate predecessor, Hu Jintao, now 80, has seldom been seen since being unceremoniously escorted out of the Great Hall of the People at the party's national congress last October.
These absences might have helped create a desirable situation for Xi. But the matter was not that simple.
China today is not in the best shape. Its economy is receding in ways unseen since "reform and opening-up" began in the late 1970s. The real estate sector is in shambles, symbolized by the struggles of major developer Evergrande Group. The youth unemployment rate deteriorated to such an extent that Chinese authorities this summer stopped releasing figures.
The military is mired in commotion in the wake of two top Rocket Force generals being purged, the firings coming to light in July.
Foreign Minister Qin Gang has been removed from that post for unknown reasons, with suspicions continuing to ripple through the ministry.
The turmoil has worried many of the elders who ran the party during China's economic ascent.
Sources said that ahead of Beidaihe, party elders convened their own meeting to summarize their opinions before conveying them to the current leaders. The meeting was likely held in the suburbs of Beijing.
Afterward, only several of these elders traveled to Beidaihe to convey their consensus to the current leaders. The face-to-face meeting with the current leaders, including Xi, took place on a single day, the sources said.
The gist of the message was that if the political, economic and social turmoil continues without any effective countermeasures being taken, the party could lose public support, posing a threat to its rule.
We cannot have more turmoil, the elders pointed out.
The central figure of the elders was Zeng Qinghong, a former vice president and one of the closest aides to the late former President Jiang.
Zeng played the most important role in paving the way for Xi, once a little-known figure, to quickly take the helm of the party.
Now 84, Zeng remains influential within the party and enjoys a wide network of personal connections. Some say that in the wake of Jiang's death, Zeng has a bigger role to play.
Thus Xi's rough summer began. After receiving the unexpectedly harsh criticism from the elders, Xi huddled with close aides he has promoted to key posts. According to information that has begun to trickle out, Xi vented his frustration, pointing fingers at his three predecessors -- Deng Xiaoping, Jiang and Hu.
"All the issues that were left by the previous three leaders are on my shoulders" he is believed to have said. "I've spent the last decade tackling them but they remain unresolved. Am I to blame?"
He also is believed to have told his aides that it was now their job to resolve these leftover issues.
The venting left his aides shaken, especially Premier Li, No. 2 in the party hierarchy.
Li is in charge of an economy that is facing significant headwinds.
One of those headwinds is the country's deteriorating relations with much of the outside world. Trade is sluggish, and foreign investment in the country is declining sharply.
Xi's decision to forgo the upcoming G20 summit in India is likely an attempt to avoid losing face.
There is a possibility that China's economy, and how it weighs on the global economy, might be discussed. Premier Li, who is in charge of China's economy, should travel to India to address these concerns, the inner circle has likely concluded.
But the skipping of the G20 follows another no-show. In late August, shortly after the Beidaihe meeting ended, Xi failed to appear at a business forum held on the sidelines of the BRICS summit involving Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, held in South Africa. His speech was read out by Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao.
One take is that Xi did not attend the forum because there were concerns that he might be asked direct questions about the poor performance of the Chinese economy.
Another major factor behind Xi's G20 absence is that no breakthrough in stalled relations with the U.S. appears on the horizon. While there is hope in Washington that the visit to China by U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo late last month served as one step toward a more stable relationship, this is not how the Chinese side sees it.
From Beijing's standpoint, Raimondo came bearing no gifts.
With neither the U.S. nor China able to make major concessions on important economic issues, it is difficult for Xi to justify a friendly meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden. Under the current circumstances, it is unclear whether Xi will be able to travel to the U.S. in November for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in San Francisco. His absence from that gathering would raise even more red flags.
The butterfly effect of Chinese politics never ceases to amaze. On Thursday, days after the Beidaihe meeting is thought to have closed, former Premier Li Keqiang made his first public appearance since being forced to retire in March.
The former No. 2 was smiling broadly when he appeared at the World Heritage Mogao Caves, also known as the Caves of the Thousand Buddhas, along the ancient Silk Road in Gansu province.
He was greeted by fans who chanted "Ni hao [hello], premier! Ni hao!"
Li Qiang has since taken over as premier and will be heading to the G20 summit in India in Xi's stead. But for the people at the caves, Li Keqiang was still very much their premier.
The video of Li Keqiang's appearance was widely dispersed on Chinese social media before being deleted by authorities.
It was a symbolic event. Li Keqiang is still a popular politician, and the cheers for him at the World Heritage site were not fake.
Now retired, Li Keqiang certainly was at the gathering of elders before the Beidaihe meeting.
Xi, the man who pushed Li into retirement, was absent from public view for many days this summer, busy having to address the harsh reprimand from the elders.
Jimbuna
09-06-23, 07:01 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QmH3ptjEayQ
Jimbuna
09-06-23, 01:04 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XBiVhqkp2hc
Skybird
09-06-23, 03:39 PM
Niall Fergusoin ion the new cold war. Interesting view. I feel I am forced to rethink one or two assumptions of mine.
https://www.nzz.ch/wirtschaft/niall-ferguson-wichtiger-als-der-sieg-des-westens-ist-die-niederlage-chinas-ld.1754697?_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_sl=auto
Skybird
09-21-23, 03:13 PM
https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/21/economy/china-chip-material-exports-drop-intl-hnk/index.html
China’s exports of two rare minerals essential for manufacturing semiconductors fell to zero in August, a month after Beijing imposed curbs (https://www.cnn.com/2023/07/03/business/germanium-gallium-china-export-restrictions/index.html#:~:text=Gallium%20and%20germanium%20wil l%20be,the%20country%2C%20the%20statement%20said.) on sales overseas, citing national security.
China produces about 80% of the world’s gallium and about 60% of germanium, according to the Critical Raw Materials Alliance, but it didn’t sell any of the elements on international markets last month, Chinese customs data released on Wednesday showed. In July, the country exported 5.15 metric tons of forged gallium products and 8.1 metric tons of forged germanium products.
When asked about the lack of exports last month,He Yadong, a spokesperson from China’s commerce ministry told a press briefing Thursday that the department had received applications from companies to export the two materials. Some applications had been approved, he said, without elaborating.
The curbs are indicative of China’s apparent willingness to retaliate against US export controls, despite concerns about economic growth, as a tech war simmers.
The remaining 40% of Germanium are supplied by Canada, Finland, Russia and the United States. The remaining 20% of Gallium are from Europe, Japan, and in traces: Canada, it is not just an ore, but result of a processing process, the needed purity can be acchieved by only a few companies. [says the internet].
Jimbuna
09-24-23, 10:18 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ciMzh96x1uo
Jimbuna
09-27-23, 06:41 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpW08VjakoM
Jimbuna
10-03-23, 01:20 PM
Fifty-five Chinese sailors are feared dead after their nuclear submarine apparently got caught in a trap intended to ensnare British sub-surface vessels in the Yellow Sea.
According to a secret UK report the seamen died following a catastrophic failure of the submarine's oxygen systems which poisoned the crew.
The captain of the Chinese PLA Navy submarine '093-417' is understood to be among the deceased, as were 21 other officers.
Officially, China has denied the incident took place. It also appears Beijing refused to request international assistance for its stricken submarine.
The UK report into the fatal mission reads: 'Intelligence reports that on 21st of August there was an onboard accident whilst carrying out a mission in the Yellow Sea.
'Incident happened at 08.12 local resulting in the death of 55 crew members: 22 officers, 7 officer cadets, 9 petty officers, 17 sailors. Dead include the captain Colonel Xue Yong-Peng.
'Our understanding is death caused by hypoxia due to a system fault on the submarine. The submarine hit a chain and anchor obstacle used by the Chinese Navy to trap US and allied submarines.
em2nought
10-05-23, 09:57 AM
Fifty-five Chinese sailors are feared dead after their nuclear submarine apparently got caught in a trap intended to ensnare British sub-surface vessels in the Yellow Sea.
I wonder if the Chinese believe in karma?
Took a month & a half for them to fess up to losing that sub. Having killed it themselves must be pretty embarrassing for Chyna. :hmmm:
Jimbuna
10-05-23, 01:29 PM
I wonder if the Chinese believe in karma?
Took a month & a half for them to fess up to losing that sub. Having killed it themselves must be pretty embarrassing for Chyna. :hmmm:
'Embarrassing' I doubt they know the meaning of the word.
em2nought
10-05-23, 03:00 PM
'Embarrassing' I doubt they know the meaning of the word.
Most Asians seem big on not losing face so I'm thinking they know the meaning better than we do. Ask a Thai girl where she wants to eat and her reply will be "Up to you." she doesn't want to recommend someplace just because she'll feel she lost face if you don't like it.
Catfish
10-06-23, 03:17 PM
https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/55-chinese-sailors-dead-after-vessel-stuck-in-its-own-trap-report-101696410869532.html
Jimbuna
10-07-23, 09:26 AM
Couldn't bring myself to read it after seeing the source :)
Catfish
10-07-23, 03:41 PM
Couldn't bring myself to read it after seeing the source :)
:haha: :up:
Butbutbut ..
"Exciting news! Hindustan Times is now on WhatsApp Channels
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Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news! Click here!
Get Latest World News along with Latest News from India at Hindustan Times.
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:03:
Jimbuna
10-08-23, 01:45 PM
Just disabled my 'clicker' :)
Jimbuna
10-19-23, 01:15 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8u0exuoqOyE
em2nought
10-19-23, 01:50 PM
Taiwan detects 13 Chinese air force planes
Jeez :arrgh!:
Jimbuna
10-20-23, 07:31 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kI8sFrp2dk
em2nought
10-20-23, 08:46 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kI8sFrp2dk
Good, the dollar has a little time yet.
"We're not trying to suggest a very large departure from where they [China] looked to be headed... but we are suggesting that they're on track to exceed those previous projections," a senior Pentagon official told reporters on Thursday, adding that the issue raised "a lot of concerns" for the US.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67163903
Markus
Rockstar
10-22-23, 07:01 PM
There’s nothing like distracting people with war when global economies crumble.
Jimbuna
10-23-23, 12:59 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YT-FCyHlHEw
China stealing technology secrets -- from AI to computing and biology, "Five Eyes" intelligence leaders warn
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-stealing-technology-secrets-five-eyes-intelligence-leaders-warn-60-minutes-transcript/
Markus
em2nought
10-23-23, 11:09 PM
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/china-stealing-technology-secrets-five-eyes-intelligence-leaders-warn-60-minutes-transcript/
Markus
I think North Korea one ups Chyna here by actually getting the salaries of their spies funneled to their ballistic missile program. :har: https://www.businessinsider.com/north-korea-workers-remote-work-jobs-us-ballistic-missle-fbi-2023-10?op=1&r=US&IR=T
Jimbuna
10-24-23, 09:53 AM
Cutting out the middle man.
Jimbuna
10-30-23, 08:03 AM
China's No.2 military leader vows to develop military ties with US at forum.
BEIJING (Reuters) -China's second-ranked military official, speaking at a military forum on Monday, vowed to develop military ties with the United States while accusing "some countries" of "creating turbulence" and trying to undermine Communist Party rule.
The Beijing Xiangshan Forum, China's biggest annual show of military diplomacy, began Sunday without the country's defence minister, who typically hosts the event.
"We will deepen strategic cooperation and coordination with Russia, and on the basis of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, develop military ties with the U.S.," Zhang Youxia, vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, said during a keynote address at the forum. China's defence minister has delivered that speech in previous years.
China and the U.S. have had no direct military-to-military communications since the Washington-sanctioned former Chinese defence minister, Li Shangfu, was appointed in March.
Li was sacked last week without explanation, and China did not name a replacement. Reuters reported last month that Li, who has been missing for two months, was being investigated over corruption.
"Some countries deliberately create turbulence and interfere in other countries' internal affairs, and instigate colour revolutions," Zhang said, in a veiled attack at Western countries including the United States, which is increasingly coordinating with allies to curtail Beijing's military ambitions.
A colour revolution is a term the Chinese government uses to describe attempts to overthrow Communist Party rule.
Zhang also accused "some countries" of holding on to a zero-sum game mentality and engaging in clique politics.
"Countries should not deliberately provoke other countries on major and sensitive issues such as Taiwan," he said, adding that Taiwan is China’s core interests, in comments directed at the United States.
The U.S. defence department has sent a delegation led by Cynthia Xanthi Carras, China country director in the Office of the Undersecretary of Defense.
Many Western countries have either shunned the forum or are only sending small and low-level delegations, preferring instead to discuss international security issues at the Shangri-La Dialogue held annually in Singapore.
(Reporting by Yew Lun Tian; Writing by Laurie Chen; Editing by Tom Hogue)
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-s-no-2-military-leader-vows-to-develop-military-ties-with-us-at-forum/ar-AA1j3Tw3?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=d8d724c168014345b9df5142844b1ac4&ei=27
Skybird
11-06-23, 05:28 PM
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-67282107
I am anything but certain they still have those ten years the text mentions.
Rockstar
11-06-23, 05:52 PM
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-67282107
I am anything but certain they still have those ten years the text mentions.
Haha I like how they wrote Biden just recently signed off on this 80 million. He did back in August. From what understand the money doesn’t go to directly to Taiwan. Rather the 80 million is used by the U.S. to purchase weapons for Taiwan.
IMO Biden is just subsidizing the military industrial complex, it is yet to be seen if any those weapons out of that 80 million will actually get to Taiwan. We’ll probably never know either, just as most everyone in this country likely didn’t even know 80 million of their tax payer monies went towards it in August. Too busy talking about orange hair and religion.
How big is the chance that China would attack Taiwan within the next couple of month and thereby stretch the US military help to another allied.
Got this feeling in which some countries in cooperation is trying to undermine US possibility to help with military stuff and humanitarian aid.
First it was Ukraine
Then came Israel into the equation
So the next must be Taiwan.
Of course I hope my feelings are wrong.
Markus
Rockstar
11-06-23, 07:11 PM
Taiwan has over the years purchased 14 BILLION dollars worth of military hardware equipment from us. Not exactly sure what this additional 80 million dollars of U.S. tax payer money will do that Taiwans 14 billion of tax payer monies can’t.
I think the only achievable plan we have is to make any chance of a Chinese military invasion impossible by selling arms to them. Because I also seriously doubt we would become directly involved if they did try. I think the only real chance China has of winning over Taiwan is time, infiltration of its government, learning institutions, society, ideology, culture and economy, kinda like what they’re already doing in Mongolia. But Taiwan would be much more of a long hard up hill climb for China to accomplish any of it on account the vast majority of Taiwanese prefer independence.
Skybird
11-07-23, 04:43 AM
Taiwan has over the years purchased 14 BILLION dollars worth of military hardware equipment from us. Not exactly sure what this additional 80 million dollars of U.S. tax payer money will do that Taiwans 14 billion of tax payer monies can’t.
The ttext explains the relevance. Its a changed modality indicating a massive change in US stance on TaiwN. That why China was so angry about it.
Rockstar
11-07-23, 07:23 AM
The ttext explains the relevance. Its a changed modality indicating a massive change in US stance on TaiwN. That why China was so angry about it.
I don’t see this as anything new. China has had their panties in a bunch for decades over our stance of supplying military aid to Taiwan. We keep pushing China’s button, and they just keep getting angry, wash rinse repeat. And I don’t think we would keep pushing the envelope if we didn’t think we could get away with it.
Only thing I question is where the 80 million is actually going because it doesn’t seem to be going directly to Taiwan but someone else’s pockets.
Jimbuna
11-07-23, 09:17 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iQBjinPsr-0
Skybird
11-07-23, 09:37 AM
I don’t see this as anything new. China has had their panties in a bunch for decades over our stance of supplying military aid to Taiwan. We keep pushing China’s button, and they just keep getting angry, wash rinse repeat. And I don’t think we would keep pushing the envelope if we didn’t think we could get away with it.
Only thing I question is where the 80 million is actually going because it doesn’t seem to be going directly to Taiwan but someone else’s pockets.
Again, the financial modality was fundamentally changed, from "Taiwan pays for it" to "the US pays for it". This signals a greater commitment of the US, and a sense of growing urgency. Washington obviously sees the need to accelerate the armament of Taiwan, beyond what t Taiwan could afford by itself.
Those 80 millions are just a start. And, as the text says, they translate into Javelins and Stinger, mean quite a punch to Chinese aggression. Not enough yet to stop them, but enough to really raise the losses for China.
Jimbuna
11-13-23, 07:27 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlNDjizSME8
Jimbuna
11-15-23, 06:57 AM
Not sure I trust China but would be happy to be proven wrong.
China's state media take a new tone toward the US ahead of meeting between their leaders
Ahead of the highly anticipated meeting on Wednesday between U.S. President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Chinese state media have taken a new tone toward the U.S. with less negative coverage, calls for a return to warmer ties and stories of Americans with positive connections to the country.
The messaging follows several years of unprecedented tensions between the two countries over issues including trade and technology, the status of Taiwan and Hong Kong and the origins of COVID-19.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-s-state-media-take-a-new-tone-toward-the-us-ahead-of-meeting-between-their-leaders/ar-AA1jXwj7?ocid=mailsignout&pc=U591&cvid=9b193928a344442da482934c04fb15da&ei=28
Jimbuna
11-16-23, 08:39 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4yvVoPunac
Catfish
11-17-23, 05:00 PM
^ Well Trump sure thought that anything happening now would never happen due to HIS presidency, forethought, and having control of the world
:Kaleun_Party:
Rockstar
11-17-23, 05:58 PM
^ Well Trump sure thought that anything happening now would never happen due to HIS presidency, forethought, and having control of the world
:Kaleun_Party:
Here’s the Trump administration unclassified and lightly redacted policy towards China and what they thought could happen. It’s been out for awhile now. Let me know you think about it. Just be warned there’s no snarky comments, youtube know-it-alls, catchy slogans, memes, click bait headlines and soap opera drama. Just one presidents administration official U.S. policy . Informative but kinda boring read.
https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/IPS-Final-Declass.pdf
-SECRET/NOFORN
(U) U.S. STRATEGIC FRAMEWORK FOR THE INDO-PACIFIC
(U) National Security Challenges
• (S//NF How to maintain U.S. strategic primacy in the Indo-Pacific region and promote a liberal economic order while preventing China from establishing new, i l l i b e r a l spheres of influence, and cultivating areas of cooperation to promote regional peace and prosperity?
(ST7N1) How to ensure North Korea does not threaten the United States and its allies, accounting for both the acute present danger and the potential for future changes in the level and type of the threat posed by North Korea?
• (ST/NF) How to advance U.S. global economic leadership while promoting fair and reciprocal trade?
(0) Enduring Vital Interests of the United States: • (0) Protect the homeland;
• (U) Advance American prosperity;
• (0) P r e s e r v e p e a c e t h r o u g h s t r e n g t h ; and • (U) Advance American influence.
(U) Top Interests of the United States in the Indo-Pacific:
• (377N1) Defend the homeland and American c i t i z e n s abroad; prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and the means to deliver them;
• 1 5 7 7 1 Preserve U.S. economic, diplomatic, and military
a c c e s s to the most populous region of the world and more than one-third of the global economy;
• (S//NE) Enhance the credibility and effectiveness of our alliances; and
• ts//NT) Maintain U.S. primacy in the region while protecting American core values and liberties at home.
• (U//F000) U.S. security and prosperity depend on free and open access to the Indo-Pacific region, which will remain an engine of U.S., regional, and global economic growth.
(U//F000) North Korea's nuclear
missiles and its stated intention of subjugating South Korea pose a grave threat to
the U.S. homeland and our allies.
Classified By: MPottinger, DAP and Senior Director for Asia, NSC
Derived From: NSC SCG
NSC declassification review
Declassify On: 20421231 Declassified in Part
by Assistant ot the President for National Security Affairs SuentRobert C. O'Brien 1/5/2021
000174
-SECRET//NOFORN 2
• (U//F000) Shifting regional power balances will continue to drive security competition across the Indo-Pacific, leading to increased defense investment by many countries in the region, including India and Japan.
• (U//FOU0) Proliferation, maritime security, terrorism, and unresolved territorial disputes will remain the primary security concerns and sources of conflict.
• (0//F000) Loss of U.S. preeminence in the Indo-Pacific would weaken our ability to achieve U.S. interests globally.
• (U//F000) Strong U.S. alliances are key to deterring conflict and advancing our vital interests.
• (U//1000) Strategic competition between the United States and China will persist, owing to the divergent nature and goals of our political and economic systems. China will circumvent international rules and norms to gain an advantage.
• (U//FOUO) China aims to dissolve U.S. alliances and partnerships in the region. China will exploit vacuums and opportunities created by these diminished bonds.
• (U//FOUe) A strong. India, in cooperation with like-minded countries, would act as a counterbalance to China.
• (U//TOUO) Chinese economic, diplomatic, and military influence will continue to increase in the near-term and challenge the U.S. ability to achieve its national interests in the Indo- Pacific region.
•
(U//FOU) China seeks to dominate cutting-edge technologies, including artificial intelligence and bio-genetics, and
harness them in the service of authoritarianism. Chinese dominance in these technologies would pose profound challenges to free societies.
(U//T000) China's proliferation of its digital surveillance, information controls, and influence operations will damage
U.S. efforts to promote our values and national interests in the Indo-Pacific region and, increasingly, in the Western hemisphere and a t home.
• (U//F000) China will take increasingly assertive steps to compel unification with Taiwan.
• (U//FOU) Russia will remain a marginal player in the Indo- Pacific region relative to the United States, China, and India.
SECRET / /NOFORN
SECRET//NUFURI 3
(U) Desired End States:
• (St/NN) North Korea no longer poses a threat ot the U.S. homeland or our allies; the Korean Peninsula is free of
nuclear, chemical, cyber, and biological weapons.
• (8//NF) The United States maintains diplomatic, economic, and military preeminence ni the fastest-growing region of the
world; most nations in the Indo-Pacific view the United States as their preferred partner; U.S. economic strength and
influence increase throughout the region.
• (577NF) Regional countries uphold the principles that have enabled U.S. and regional prosperity and stability, including sovereignty, freedom of navigation and overflight, standards
o f trade and investment, respect for individual rights and
rule of law, and transparency in military activities.
• (S//NF) Free markets are the mainstream of Asia, and the U.S. economy generates jobs and growth as a consequence of its interaction with the Indo-Pacific region.
• (St/NT) Regional disputes are resolved lawfully and without coercion.
• +SAANH
Southeast Asia is bound more t i g h t l y together in business, security, and civil society - including through a strengthened Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) - and works closely with the United States and our allies and
key partners to uphold the principles identified above.
• IS//N) Southeast Asia is capable of managing terrorist
threats with minimal assistance from non-ASEAN states.
• IS//N› India's preferred partner on security issues is the United States. The two cooperate to preserve maritime security and counter Chinese influence in South and Southeast Asia and other regions of mutual concern. India maintains the capacity to counter border provocations by China.
(S//NF) India remains preeminent in South Asia and takes the leading role in maintaining Indian Ocean security,
increases engagement with Southeast Asia, and expands i t s economic, defense, and diplomatic cooperation with other U.S. allies and partners in the region.
•
S 7 7 N 7 The United States and i t s partners on every continent are resistant to Chinese activities aimed at undermining their sovereignty, including through covert ro coercive influence.
(U) Lines of Effort:
(U) Alliances & Partnerships
• (6//NI) Objective: Emphasize our commitment to the region, highlighting a shared vision for a "free and open Indo- Pacific."
SECRBT// NOPORK
•
( S tNF) Objective: Reinvigorate alliances with the Philippines and Thailand, to strengthen their role in upholding a rules-based regional order.
SECRET/ /NOTORN 4
•
A c t i o n s : Invigorate U.S. technical assistance to friendly governments to promoter u l e of law and civil institutions while communicating the strings attached to China's "Belt and Road Initiative." (See: "J.S. Strategic Framework for Countering China's Economic Aggression.") Develop a robust public diplomacy c a p a b i l i t y, which can compete with China's information campaigns; puncture the narrative that Chinese regional domination is inevitable.
( S H N ) Objective: Strengthen the capabilities and will of Japan, t h e Republic of Korea, and Australia to contribute to theendstateso fthisstrategy.
• Align our Indo-Pacific strategy with those of Australia, India, and Japan.
• Ami to create a quadrilateral security framework with India, Japan, Australia, and the United States as the principal hubs.
• Deepen t r i l a t e r a l cooperation with Japan and Australia.
• Encourage South Korea to play a larger role in regional security issues beyond the Korean peninsula.
• Empower Japan to become a regionally integrated, technologically advanced pillar of the Indo-Pacific security architecture.
• Assist in the modernization of Japan's Self
Defense Forces.
• Actions: Preserve and where possible expand foreign development assistance and defense engagement, including access, exercises and training, and interoperability.
• (S//N) Objective: Advance U.S. security leadership in the region through expanded engagement with Indo-Pacific countries on non-traditional security challenges.
• Actions: Expand collaboration with Indo-Pacific countries on peacekeeping, humanitarian assistance/disaster response, and global health.
• Share the burdens and fruits of
research and development with allies and like-minded partners to retain our military edge.
• Encourage like-minded countries to play a greater role in addressing these challenges and in increasing burden- sharing. Share the benefits of our research and development with allies and like-minded parterns to retain our collective military edge.
SECRET/NOPORN
SECRET//NOFONN 5
• 1317N1) Objective: Enable Taiwan to develop an effective asymmetric defense strategy and capabilities that will help ensure i t s s e c u r i t y, freedom from coercion, resilience, and ability to engage China on its own terms.
(U) India and South Asia
• (37/NP) Objective: Accelerate India's rise and capacity to serve a s a n e t provider of security and Major Defense Partner; solidify an enduring strategic partnership with India underpinned by a strong Indian military able to effectively collaborate with the United States and our partners in the region to address shared interests.
• Actions: Build a stronger foundation for defense cooperation and interoperability; expand our defense trade and a b i l i t y to transfer defense technology to enhance India's status as a Major Defense Partner; increase our cooperation on shared regional security concerns and encourage I n d i a ' s engagement beyond the Indian Ocean
Region; support India's membership in the Nuclear
Supplier's Group;
and work with India toward domestic economic reform and an
increased leadership
role in the
East Asia Summit (EAS)
a n d ADMM+. O f f e r s u p p o r t t o I n d i a - through diplomatic, military, and intelligence channels - to help address continental challenges such as the border dispute with China and access to water, including the Brahmaputra andotherriversfacingdiversionb yChina.
policy and its aspiration to b support India's "Act East"
e a leading global power, highlighting its compatibility with the U.S., Japanese, and Australian vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Build regional support for U.S.-India Common Principles in the Indian Ocean, including unimpeded commerce, transparent infrastructure-debt practices, and peaceful resolution of territorial disputes.
• PromoteU.S.-India energy cooperation across all sources and technologies to diversify India's energy sources and supplies.
• Partnerwith India on cyber andspace security and maritime domain awareness. ExpandU.S.-Indiaintelligencesharing
a n da n a l y t i c exchanges
creating a more robust intelligence partnership.
SBERET //NOTORI
SECRET/ /NOFORN
• Work with India and Japan to help finance projects that enhance regional connectivity between India and countries of the region.
• f i N n Objective: Strengthen the capacity of emerging partners i n South A s i a , including the Maldives, Bangladesh,
a n d S r i L a n k a , t o c o n t r i b u t e t o a f r e e and o p e n o r d e r .
• Actions: Establish a new initiative with South Asian partners modeled on the Maritime Security Initiative in Southeast Asia to
improve maritime domain awareness, interoperability,anddata-sharingwiththeUnitedStates.
• Support creation of a maritime information "fusion center" in the Indian Ocean.
• Establish a regional forum to promote common principles and standards.
• Establish and gain broad consensus on a statement of principles on acceptable maritime behavior, to include a commitment to regional cooperation in line with shared security objectives.
(U) China
• (8//NP) Objective: Prevent China's industrial policies and unfair trading practices from distorting global markets and harming U.S. competitiveness.
• Actions: Counter Chinese predatory economic practices that freeze out foreign competition, undermine U.S. economic competitiveness, and abet the Chinese Communist Party's aspiration to dominate the 21st century economy. (See: "U.S. Strategic Framework for Countering China's Economic Aggression.")
(&4/NF) Build an international consensus that China's industrial policies and unfair trading practices are damaging the global trading system.
• Actions: (See: "U.S. Strategic Framework for Countering China's Economic Aggression.")
• (8//NF) Objective: Maintain American industry's innovation edge vis-à-vis China.
• Actions: Work closely with a l l i e s and like-minded
countries to prevent Chinese acquisition of military and strategic capabilities; broaden the scope of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to cover venture capital and other forms of investment by China; and adopt domestic policies that promote growth in key technologies.
SECRET//NUFURN
BT/ / NOFORN 7
(See: "U.S. Strategic Framework for Countering China's Economic Aggression.")
(91/NE) Objective: Promote U.S. values throughout the region to maintain influence and counterbalance Chinese models of government.
• Actions: Develop public and private messaging and promote initiatives that show the benefits of democracy and liberty t o a l l countries, including economic, technologic, and societal benefits.
• Coordinate efforts to protect and promote internationally recognized rights and freedoms with likeminded partners.
• Engage South Korea, Taiwan, Mongolia, Japan, and other regional democratic partners to demonstrate their own successes and the b e n e f i t s they have accrued.
• Support a c t i v i s t s and reformers throughout the region.
• Offer development, technical, and legal assistance to those countries who seek to reform.
• ( S N I ) Objective: Deter China from using military force against the United States and U.S. allies or partners, and develop the capabilities and concepts ot defeat Chinese actions across the spectrum of conflict.
• Actions: Enhance combat-credible U.S. military presence
and posture in the Indo-Pacific region to uphold U.s. interests and security commitments.
Devise and implement a defense strategy capable of, but not limited to: (1) denying China sustained a i r and sea dominance inside the "first island chain" in a conflict;
(2) defending the first-island-chain nations, including Taiwan; and (3)dominatinga l ldomainsoutsidet h ef i r s t island-chain.
• Help our allies and partners improve their security posture, including military capabilities and interoperability, to ensure strategic independence and freedom from Chinese coercion. Expand partnerships and capabilities that limit China's ability to coerce allies and partners.
• (St/NF) Objective: Enhance U.S. engagement in the region while also educating governments, businesses, universities,
about China's coercive behavior and influence operations around the globe.
• Actions: Establish a mechanism that provides publicly available information that explains Chinese activities and
SBERET//NOFORN
SECRET / /NOPORN 8
the problems they pose t ot h einterests,libertyand sovereigntyo fnations.
Invest in capabilities
t h a t promote uncensored communication between Chinese people.
• (3//NP) Objective: Cooperate with China when beneficial to U.S. interests.
• A c t i o n s : In our diplomacy with China, emphasize high- level, substantive interaction to realize the President's vast a pomacy nat utin ben utta ane etd relationship. suits China's interests.
• (S//NF) Objective: Maintain an intelligence advantage over China, and inoculate the United States, its allies, and partners against Chinese intelligence activities.
• Actions: Equip U.S. allies and partners to cooperate with the United States in operating against China and countering China's clandestine activities in
their countries.
• Expand and prioritize U.S. intelligence and law enforcement activities that counter Chinese influence operations. Get like-minded countries to do the same.
Strengthen defensive and offensive counter-intelligence functions across the public and private sectors to neutralize China's growing intelligence advantages; expand intelligence diplomacy and law enforcement cooperation with other governments to bolster understanding of Chinese intentions and capabilities.
Help a l l i e s and partners develop high standards in counterintelligence, counter proliferation, cyber security, industrial security, and management of classified information.
•
(U) Korean Peninsula
• (8//NF) Objective: Convince the Kim regime that the only path to its survival i s to relinquish its nuclear weapons.
• Actions: Maximize pressure on Pyongyang using economic, diplomatic, military, law enforcement, intelligence, and information tools to cripple North Korea's weapons of mass destruction programs, choke off currency flows, weaken the regime, and set the conditions for negotiations aimed at reversing its nuclear and missile programs, ultimately achieving the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of the Peninsula. Consider negotiations
if North Korea takes steps to reverse i t s nuclear and missile programs.
"The President's North Korea Strategy," Cabinet Memo, 28 March 2017.)
JT/ / NOFOR T
SECRET / /NOTORI
Do this by: (1) helping South Korea and Japan acquire advanced, conventional military capabilities; (2) drawing South Korea and Japan closer t o one another;
(U) Southeast Asia & the Pacific Islands
• 1s//NE) Objective: Promote and reinforce Southeast Asia and ASEANs' centralrole in the region's security architecture, and encourage it to speak with one voice on key issues.
• (5//NT) Actions: Deepen our relationships with Singapore, Malaysia,Vietnam,a n dIndonesia
• (31/NI) Highlight ASEAN centrality as a core component of t h e f r e e and open Indo-Pacific strategy.
• (5//NF) Reinforce Japan's proactive leadership to amplify U.S.strategicgoalsi nSoutheastAsia.
(S//NF) Objective: Prevent the spread of terrorism in Southeast Asia.
• (5//NF) Actions: Expand the involvement of Southeast Asian nations in the Defeat-ISIS coalition; foster better law- enforcement, military, and intelligence cooperation among Indo-Pacific states; and providedirectU.S. assistance to counter-terrorefforts.
• (57711) Objective: Promote and support Burma's transition to democracy•
• (S//NI) Objective: Ensure the Pacific Islands (e.g., the U.S. hte Polynes, at states! Aemanaetd statest he laned snated. • Actions: Solidify our diplomatic, military, intelligence, economic, development assistance, and informational advantagesacrosst h ePacificIslands.
•
1S/7N) Objective: Pursue economic t i e s and increase connectivity with countries willing to adopt market-based reforms. Pursue trade agreements that contain trade and SECRET//NUFURN
SECR
10
investment standards set by the United States and that reduce the region's economic reliance on China.
• (U) Assign strategic purpose to the combined financial
•
resources and economic power of the United States; promote an integrated economic development model in the Indo- Pacific that provides a credible alternative to One Belt One Road; create a task force on how best to use public- private partnerships.
(SP/NF) Promote the U.S., a l l y, and partner-led development of energy, telecommunications, and logistics standards and infrastructure.
• (S//NP) Expand the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation's work in promoting regional economic integration and support the formation of the ASEAN Economic Community through trade facilitation, customs modernization, and standards harmonization.
• (517NT) Incentivize the U.S. private sector to reignite an expeditionary spirit so that it expands two-way trade and investment in the Indo-Pacific.
XI will survive this he survived Mao (XI father was sent to the correctional camps and XI to the farmers to be made a real Maoist till Mao's dead) a couple of years ago he made himself a Mao XI is the first that has that status after Mao's dead. The CCP after that never allowed a leader for live meaning he owns the CCP, he is the CCP.
Jimbuna
11-18-23, 08:35 AM
^ Well Trump sure thought that anything happening now would never happen due to HIS presidency, forethought, and having control of the world
:Kaleun_Party:
I'm not sure what's the worst, Trump thinking he can do no wrong or the US electorate that support him thinking he can do no wrong.
Jimbuna
11-24-23, 06:46 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-pzaDWlebY
Jimbuna
11-25-23, 01:50 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYFj5vlGJDI
em2nought
11-25-23, 08:43 PM
I'm not sure what's the worst, Trump thinking he can do no wrong or the US electorate that support him thinking he can do no wrong.
We mostly just think President Trump doesn't "hate" America or your typical American. "The big guy" we're not so sure about. :D
Jimbuna
11-26-23, 05:52 AM
We mostly just think President Trump doesn't "hate" America or your typical American. "The big guy" we're not so sure about. :D
When you say "The big guy" I'm not sure who you are referring to.
Jimbuna
11-26-23, 06:02 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GjnkOsDAAfo
Jimbuna
11-26-23, 10:07 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OAp2_elRlMw
em2nought
11-26-23, 06:02 PM
When you say "The big guy" I'm not sure who you are referring to.
"The Big Guy" is how his brother, Frank, referred to him. aka Joe Biden, aka sleepy joe, aka Brandon.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/hunter-s-business-partner-confirms-joe-biden-is-the-big-guy/ar-AA1eEhWC
Jimbuna
11-27-23, 06:13 AM
"The Big Guy" is how his brother, Frank, referred to him. aka Joe Biden, aka sleepy joe, aka Brandon.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/hunter-s-business-partner-confirms-joe-biden-is-the-big-guy/ar-AA1eEhWC
Ah right :yep:
Rockstar
11-27-23, 02:49 PM
Looks like the other global power is taking advantage of Russia’s weakness and kicking Putin hard when he’s down. This goes hand in hand with the idea western powers are not interested in a quick victory in Ukraine. But weaken Russia and use Ukraine as a springboard into Central Asia while China takes advantage and squeezes Russia in the far east. That’s my take on it, I could be wrong.:yep:
ExclusiveChina wielding ‘bargaining power’ with Russia over Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline
Construction of the Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline is likely to be slower than expected despite the ‘no limit’ strategic partnership between Beijing and Moscow
Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised to export at least 98 billion cubic metres per year of gas from Russia to China
https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3242612/china-wielding-bargaining-power-russia-over-power-siberia-2-natural-gas-pipeline
Construction of one of Russia’s key natural gas projects to ensure a financial lifeline overseas is likely to be slower than expected as China seeks to leverage its “bargaining stance”, according to a Russian source and Chinese analysts.
The discussions with Beijing over the construction of the Power of Siberia 2 natural gas pipeline, a long touted signal of bilateral cooperation, have progressed slowly.
The pipeline, if completed, would divert 50 billion cubic metres (1.8 trillion cubic feet) of natural gas per year that previously supplied Europe to north China, offering a significant boost to Beijing’s energy security.
To export at least 98 billion cubic metres per year of gas from Russia to China as promised by Russian President Vladimir Putin, figures from Spanish multinational financial services firm BBVA showed that the new pipeline is needed because the Power of Siberia 1 is limited to 67 billion cubic metres per year.
A source with knowledge of the issue in Russia said China is showcasing a “bargaining stance”.
“[Beijing] understands really well their bargaining power and the country is in a much stronger position,” the source said.
“It’s a specific presidential-level of pressure. It’s about cheaper payment. They can demand deep discounts.”
The source also noted that Putin is under “enormous pressure” to build the pipeline or otherwise “a huge amount of gas” will be wasted and Russia will lose money.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is welcomed by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the Belt and Road Forum in Beijing, China, October 17, 2023. Photo: Reuters
“In terms of construction, [Beijing] wants to make sure that they have no risks and no costs. Russia is the side that foots the entire bill,” added the source, who was unwilling to disclose their name due to the sensitivity of the issue.
The project would be a new test to the “no limit” strategic partnership between Beijing and Moscow, especially after Russia was hit with unprecedented sanctions from Western countries in response to the invasion of Ukraine, which blocked Russian natural gas supplies to Europe.
Li Lifan, a Russia and Central Asia specialist at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, said the proposed pipeline would be favourable for Russia as it is shorter and construction costs would be lower.
However, Li said that China once insisted on building the pipeline through the Altay prefecture in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region as it would not pass through Mongolia.
China has shown a prudent attitude towards the project, with the Power of Siberia 2 seldom mentioned in government documents or state media.
There were talks that a deal could be made during the belt and road forum held in Beijing in mid-October, but Putin eventually returned empty-handed.
During her visit to the Mongolian capital of Ulaanbaatar in October, Russian deputy prime minister Viktoria Abramchenko mentioned that feasibility research had been completed and design work would finish this year.
She estimated that the construction of the Power of Siberia 2 could start after the design work is approved in the first quarter of 2024.
It is estimated that it will take six years to complete. The deal for Power of Siberia 1 was signed in 2014 and it started operations in 2019.
Munkhnaran Bayarlkhagva, a former official at the National Security Council of Mongolia, said that Ulaanbaatar may delay the process as it is not a necessity.
“We haven’t even talked about the pricing, tariffs, taxes, et cetera,” he said. “So [it is] safe to say nothing will happen in the 2024 construction season.”
Bayarlkhagva added that Putin met Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh on the sidelines of the belt and road forum in Beijing in October, with the Russian leader saying that “everyone agrees on the project” to obtain a confirmation from Mongolia, but no positive response was given.
The Office of the President of Mongolia declined a request to comment.
“Now the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline is the cooperation of three parties – China, Russia and Mongolia – abundant negotiation is needed by following the general market standard,” said Zhao Long, assistant director of the Institute for Global Governance Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies.
The project has a medium to long-term value that “[Beijing] has to make decisions based on the country’s actual demands, gas import layout, as well as the international and regional situations”, he added.
Despite the slow progress, geopolitics have reinforced Beijing’s strategy for diversification of imports, said Ma Bin, an associate professor at Fudan University’s Centre for Russian and Central Asian Studies.
With the snowy winter creeping into northern China, its annual natural gas consumption is estimated to increase by 5.5 to 7 per cent in 2023, year on year, to 390 billion cubic metres, according to a report by the National Energy Administration. This would reverse a 1.2 per cent decline in 2022.
“In order to ensure a stable and reliable supply of energy, China imports gas from Australia, Qatar, Central Asia and Russia,” added Ma.
Jimbuna
11-28-23, 07:24 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JuCx5FCVyQ
Jimbuna
11-28-23, 12:45 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZKBaRsP1gY
Jimbuna
11-30-23, 09:23 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq9velFgLYk
Skybird
12-06-23, 07:14 AM
Of gold and war.
https://www-theeuropean-de.translate.goog/politik/china-kauft-heimlich-gold-fuer-einen-krieg?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Jimbuna
12-06-23, 12:15 PM
China issues terrifying retaliation warning as UK slammed over new Ukraine sanctions
China has vowed to retaliate against the West after the UK imposed more sanctions on "individuals and groups supporting and funding Putin's war machine".
China's embassy has accused the UK of violating international law over the new round of sanctions, and issued a terrifying warning that any action harming China's interests "would be met with a firm response".
In a statement the sabre-rattling Chinese authorites said Britain should "correct its mistakes and withdraw sanctions on Chinese firms" after the government here announced 46 new sanctions with targets including businesses in China, Belarus, Serbia, Turkey, the UAE and Uzbekistan.
As well as businesses, 31 people and entities are also on the new sanctions list released today which the government said were linked to the design and manufacture of drones and missile parts and the import of electronic components.
In a statement from the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office the department said: "Foreign military suppliers exporting equipment and parts to Russia are among dozens of individuals and groups sanctioned today to target those helping Putin's war machine.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-issues-terrifying-retaliation-warning-as-uk-slammed-over-new-ukraine-sanctions/ar-AA1l61cs?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=e4f97e3b9f214cea88abbab7ed13af76&ei=12
Skybird
12-06-23, 05:44 PM
https://www.nzz.ch/meinung/xi-jinping-ist-bereit-fuer-die-annexion-taiwans-einen-hohen-preis-zu-zahlen-ld.1765409?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
(...) Presidential and parliamentary elections will take place in Taiwan in January 2024. An election victory for the current vice president of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, Lai Ching-te, is considered likely. Xi will then be over seventy years old. It is unlikely that the dictator-for-life will accept that a potential President Lai will continue to consolidate Taiwan's democracy over the next four years. Xi is not getting any younger and he will soon lack the strength for an aggressive war.
(...)
A war in the Taiwan Strait would cripple global supply chains, trigger a flight of investors into gold and US bonds and lead to a sharp rise in energy prices. A study by the Rhodium Group estimates the economic damage from such a conflict at over two trillion dollars. What can be done to hopefully ensure this scenario never occurs?
Even if Europe does not have its own security policy role in East Asia, the Europeans should keep the USA's back free. This means that much more must be done by the European side to ensure that Ukraine wins the war. A defeat for Putin would show Xi that imperial wars of aggression are not worthwhile. The US needs this division of labor with Europe so that it has enough capacity to maintain the status quo in the Taiwan Strait through military deterrence. This time we shouldn't wait until it's too late again.
em2nought
12-07-23, 12:02 AM
Of gold and war.
https://www-theeuropean-de.translate.goog/politik/china-kauft-heimlich-gold-fuer-einen-krieg?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
Chyna is too smart for us. :timeout:
Jimbuna
12-07-23, 07:03 AM
Chyna is too smart for us. :timeout:
That is my fear as well :yep:
Jimbuna
12-08-23, 12:33 PM
South China sea tensions explode as Xi Jinping launches major military operation on Taiwan
Taipei raised alarm bells as it said to have detected multiple Chinese military vehicles crossing the median line in the Taiwan Strait - considered to be the de-facto border between Taiwan and China.
The Taiwanese Defence Ministry said to have spotted in the 24 hours before December 8 at 6am, local time, 26 Chinese military aircraft and 10 Chinese Navy ships.
Of the aeroplanes, a total of 15 crossed the median line, Taiwan claimed. Some, the ministry added, even entered Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ).
Finally, Taiwan also reported to have spotted a Chinese balloon some 101 nautical miles southwest of Keelung, a port city near Taipei, which travelled eastward for about an hour before disappearing.
Taiwanese Defence Minister Chiu Kuo-cheng said it was his government's "initial understanding" the flying object was a "weather balloon", but decided to flag its presence anyway after, earlier this year, global concerns erupted China may be using balloons to spy on other countries.
China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, has been increasingly stepping up military pressure on Taipei in recent months.
China's military aircraft incursions have become a regular occurrence. Notably, in September Taiwan detected 103 Chinese fighter jets flying near its territory over a 24-hour period, 40 of which entered the island's ADIZ.
These incursions, alongside extremely tense relations between the US and China, have raised fears Beijing may be nearing an invasion of Taiwan.
Beijing's likely goals are to wear down Taiwan's defence, test its own capabilities such as the co-ordination and surveillance of the Chinese force and publicly show its strength and threat.
The latest incursion came almost a month before Taiwan is to hold its presidential election, with Beijing's Taiwan Affairs Office being accused by Taiwan of "blatant" interference.
He said: "They are doing all sorts of things to interfere in our election and we can expect more leading up to our polling date."
Taiwan's Vice President Lai Ching-te and his running mate, Hsiao Bi-khim, both members of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, are currently leading in the polls.
China perceives these politicians as separatists and has already rejected Mr Lai's calls to initiate talks.
The main political opponents running against Mr Lai and Mr Hsiao support closer ties with China.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/south-china-sea-tensions-explode-as-xi-jinping-launches-major-military-operation-on-taiwan/ar-AA1ld193?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=04be4ff5ea5f419d8e06e8222705b4af&ei=13
Jimbuna
12-10-23, 06:10 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C68kfLLqbg4
Jimbuna
12-12-23, 12:47 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eG4jAXXjac
Jimbuna
12-14-23, 06:24 AM
South Korea scrambles fighter jets after six Chinese and Russian aircraft enter its air defence zone
South Korea scrambled fighter jets on Thursday after at least six Chinese and Russian warplanes were seen enterering its air defence zone, the country’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said.
Two Chinese and four Russian jets entered South Korea’s Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) off its east coast on Thursday afternoon, beginning at 11.53am (2.53am GMT) and exiting by 12.10pm, the military said.
The JCS said the planes were detected before they entered the KADIZ and it mobilised the air force’s fighter jets in response, according to the Yonhap news agency.
The planes did not violate South Korea’s territorial airspace, the military said.
It is not the first time that Russian and Chinese planes have jointly entered South Korea’s air defence zone. Similar flights in 2019 led to a significant escalation of tensions with South Korean jets firing hundreds of warning shots towards the Russian and Chinese jets conducting joint exercises.
According to the International Civil Aviation Organisation, an ADIZ is typically an area where countries can unilaterally require foreign aircraft to take specific measures to identify themselves.
There are no international laws that gover these air defence zones, unlike a country’s official airspace, which is the space above its territory and extends 12 nautical miles away from its coastline.
Russia does not recognise Korea’s air defence zone, while China says all countries should enjoy freedom of movement there given it is not territorial airspace.
In June this year, South Korea said four Russian and four Chinese planes entered its air defence zone without any notice and it “deployed air force fighters to conduct tactical steps in preparation against potential accidental situations”.
China and Russia have previously stated that their military aircraft were engaged in routine joint exercises.
On 30 November 2022, two Chinese H-6 bombers and six Russian warplanes, including TU-95 bombers and SU-35 fighter jets, repeatedly entered South Korea’s air defence zone, following similar manoeuvres in May 2022 and August 2022.
In 2019, the situation escalated when South Korean warplanes fired hundreds of warning shots towards Russian jets after they entered the KADIZ during a joint patrol with China.
Russia’s government at the time accused two South Korean F-16 fighter planes of carrying out “unprofessional manoeuvres” by crossing the path of Russian bombers.
“It was not for the first time that South Korean pilots tried unsuccessfully to prevent Russian aircraft from flying over the neutral waters of the Sea of Japan,” the ministry said.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/south-korea-scrambles-fighter-jets-after-six-chinese-and-russian-aircraft-enter-its-air-defence-zone/ar-AA1lu4eP?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=bddfaa3acfad4758928e174336512b99&ei=13
em2nought
12-14-23, 07:31 AM
After all these years, and Chyna doesn't know every single detail about a Chinook? :hmmm:
After all these years, and Chyna doesn't know every single detail about a Chinook? :hmmm:
They seem to be on a "buying spree". :yep:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WvP6rOSj8YA
Meaning, they want to copy a bunch of stuff. :arrgh!:
Jimbuna
12-14-23, 01:38 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOTvlv76pxo
Jimbuna
12-15-23, 06:45 AM
WW3 fears as country with weaker army than China issues three-word warning to Xi Jinping
The dangerous row between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea is sparking fresh fears for an escalation of hostilities which could result in WW3 - after Manila announced it is contingency planning to be ready to face aggressions from Beijing.
Alberto Carlos, chief of the Philippines' Western Command told CNN Philippines, warned: "Expect more coercive actions from China, short of armed attack. Next after the water cannon is probably ramming and also they will attempt to board our vessel, which is something that we will not allow them to do."
Mr Carlos added this scenario had been included in the war games exercises and academic discussions happening in Manila. He said: "We're brainstorming this, we are wargaming this and we are prepared for any contingency that will happen."
The relations between China and the Philippines have seriously deteriorated this year, as Beijing ramped up its aggressions and sovereignty claims in the South China Sea.
While Manila lays claims on a number of features of the sea, including the Second Thomas Shoal, Beijing claims that almost the entire South China Sea is part of its territory, despite it overlapping with the waters of the Philippines, Indonesia, Brunei, Malaysia, and Vietnam.
After developing closer defence ties with the US military, Manila has taken a harder line with China, denouncing and responding to some of the dangerous provocations launched at sea.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/ww3-fears-as-country-with-weaker-army-than-china-issues-three-word-warning-to-xi-jinping/ar-AA1lxpDk?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=9d6c0381894b4d04a4656209e304f08c&ei=18
Skybird
12-17-23, 07:38 AM
China is accumulating massive amounts of gold. Elections in Taiwan. Xi wants another turn 2027. 100 years jubilee of the PA. A coordinated effort to spread chaos and unrest in all regions of central interest for the West.
Al reasons why the war is about to come soon - within the next 4 years. I have my doubt that Taiwan is sufficiently prepared. Or the US public. Or the global, namely the European and US economy. It all sounds like the deliberate brewing of the perfect storm that intentionally will conjure up and complement war.
https://www-focus-de.translate.goog/politik/der-china-versteher/analyse-vom-china-versteher-xi-kauft-massenhaft-gold-warum-das-ein-alarmzeichen-ist_id_259505323.html?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=de&_x_tr_pto=wapp
I in general think that with the splitting up of the West's power and influence, the whole world is entering an era of war.
Jimbuna
12-17-23, 09:53 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=itZQPnWyUBM
Jimbuna
12-18-23, 02:00 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rtPGSHNLlkE
Jimbuna
12-19-23, 12:57 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v48QDtzp4aY
Jimbuna
12-20-23, 10:38 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2GQZZEVEOE
Jimbuna
12-21-23, 09:21 AM
Xi Jinping warns Biden of China's intent to reunite with Taiwan, NBC reports
The head of China, Xi Jinping, directly told US President Joe Biden that he would seek to reunify Taiwan with mainland China, reports NBC.
"Xi told Biden in a group meeting attended by a dozen American and Chinese officials that China’s preference is to take Taiwan peacefully, not by force," the material states.
Additionally, China's leader referred to public predictions by US military leaders stating that Xi Jinping planned to seize Taiwan in 2025 or 2027. He informed Biden that they were wrong because he did not set any specific timelines.
"Chinese officials also asked in advance of the summit that Biden make a public statement after the meeting saying that the United States supports China’s goal of peaceful unification with Taiwan and does not support Taiwanese independence, they said. The White House rejected the Chinese request," NBC reports.
Xi Jinping, who aims to double the size of the Chinese economy by 2035, also stated that "we must continue to pursue economic development as our central task."
Some experts doubt that China will attack Taiwan if it does not declare independence, as a military conflict would likely hinder Beijing from achieving its economic goals.
According to American officials, during the San Francisco summit, Xi Jinping expressed concern about the candidates running for president of Taiwan in the upcoming elections next month. They said Xi also emphasized the influence that the US exerted on Taiwan.
When Biden asked China to respect the electoral process in Taiwan, Xi responded that peace was good, but China ultimately needed to move toward resolution.
NBC writes that after the summit, Biden reaffirmed the longstanding US policy.
"We maintain an agreement that there is a 'One China' policy," Biden said.
Chinese official Hua Chunying, who was present at the meeting, later wrote that Xi told Biden and other American officials that the "Taiwan question remains the most important and most sensitive issue in China-U.S. relations."
One of the main causes of conflict between China and the US is the future of Taiwan. Beijing regards it as a separatist province and seeks to regain full control. However, Taiwan sees itself as an independent country with a separate economy and democratically elected leaders.
The United States provides military assistance to Taiwan, intensifying the conflict between Washington and Beijing.
In November, Chinese leader Xi Jinping assured US President Joe Biden that China would not attack Taiwan in the coming years.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/xi-jinping-warns-biden-of-china-s-intent-to-reunite-with-taiwan-nbc-reports/ar-AA1lNZnq?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=1ce693f95a0d4cd3ba14896d63dff341&ei=25
Skybird
12-21-23, 10:39 AM
In November, Chinese leader Xi Jinping assured US President Joe Biden that China would not attack Taiwan in the coming years.
On 22nd and 23rd of February 2022, Russian leader Vladimir Putin assured German chancellor Olaf Scholz and French president Manuel Macron that Russia would not attack Ukraine ever.
Jimbuna
12-21-23, 02:28 PM
Birds of a feather flock together :03:
Jimbuna
12-22-23, 12:37 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RY6Gu3U-jjk
Jimbuna
12-23-23, 02:16 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1sajSaqa0B0
Jimbuna
12-24-23, 08:54 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RhAbu-G1Nc
Jimbuna
12-26-23, 06:52 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DdcYIhL-WKI
Are we in a perfect geopolitical storm ?
Is the time right for China to invade Taiwan ?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RY6Gu3U-jjk&ab_channel=Binkov%27sBattlegrounds
I say the invasion will first come in late 2025.
Markus
Skybird
12-31-23, 06:14 AM
[Focus] When Taiwan votes on 13 January, many observers see it as a fateful election. Depending on the outcome of the election, the Chinese dictatorship could decide to invade the democratic island.
China's autocrat Xi Jinping claims that Taiwan is part of the People's Republic. But this is not true - the island has never belonged to communist China.
Since Xi has been in office, he has threatened the Taiwanese with annexation, which he euphemistically calls "reunification". However, the Taiwanese have become increasingly self-confident over the years.
Today, more than 75 per cent of the country's inhabitants say that they see themselves as Taiwanese and not Chinese. Just as many have announced that they will take up arms if Xi makes good on his threat of colonisation.
Incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), for example, cannot run again after two terms in office. Her party's top candidate is Vice President Lai Ching-te.
The politician is leading in all polls. Beijing claims that the DPP is striving for Taiwan's "independence". However, according to the government, Taiwan, whose full name is the "Republic of China", has been an independent state since it was founded in 1911.
Since Tsai was elected in 2016, Beijing has stepped up its military actions against the democratic country. Warships and fighter jets cross the median line between free Taiwan and unfree China almost every day.
The conservative opposition, the Kuomintang Party and the Taiwan People's Party hope that Beijing's attrition tactics will drive voters into their arms. They are counting on a détente with Beijing.
However, there are no concrete plans as to how this is to take place. There are no signs to date that Xi could give in after an opposition election victory.
It is more likely that China's ruler will use another victory for the Democratic Progressive Party in the presidential elections as an opportunity to attack the island.
This is because Xi is under enormous pressure domestically. Youth unemployment is higher than ever, the economy is struggling to get going, and a banking and property crisis has destroyed the wealth of the middle class.
In a situation like this, dictators start wars to keep themselves in office. An election victory for Lai Ching-te could therefore lead to an invasion of the island. Or at least to tougher measures aimed at damaging the country's economy, especially the world's leading semiconductor technology.
One thing is clear: Xi's army has rehearsed the blockade of the island several times. Chinese ships destroyed internet cables to rehearse how the country could be cut off from the rest of the world.
The Taiwanese are proud of their democracy. They will use their right to vote, a privilege that the Chinese Communist Party has denied the people of the country for decades.
It is this successful democracy that Xi has on his back. Because, the dictator fears, it could inspire the mainland Chinese to follow suit if their dissatisfaction with his rule continues.
https://www.focus.de/politik/der-china-versteher/analyse-vom-china-versteher-xi-steht-unter-druck-und-koennte-wahl-in-taiwan-fuer-drastischen-schritt-nutzen_id_259537864.html
Could be wrong in my thinking
If China decide to attack/invade Taiwan they will sooner or later fight a three front war. Which will be against Taiwan, USA(and it's allied in the area) and Russia(They are going to take the chance to gain some land from China)
USA will fight a three front war too.
Against China, Iran and Russia(By proxy)
Markus
As I mentioned in another thread Markus "Happy new year" :doh:
Jimbuna
01-03-24, 02:20 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mQ-uHaVQtrc
Could be wrong in my thinking
If China decide to attack/invade Taiwan they will sooner or later fight a three front war. Which will be against Taiwan, USA(and it's allied in the area) and Russia(They are going to take the chance to gain some land from China)
USA will fight a three front war too.
Against China, Iran and Russia(By proxy)
MarkusThe USA will not fight on his own in case this scenario is to be used world trade security will be in danger, so the whole West will react to secure
I do not know if China is so stupid to start WWIII yes we are depended on his products, but this works both ways seeing they still not got their economy in order do not think this year we will see an invasion of Taiwan. And who is to say it will be military. Do not forget the triads they got rid of the last empire and on the moment 75% different triads work for china, the triads can do more than a Chinese army. The triads already do an opium (Fentanyl) war on the West with the CCP as their master.
em2nought
01-03-24, 09:33 PM
So could you purposely get into a war with your creditors in order to "not" pay them? :hmmm: Wouldn't hurt if you could suspend an election you can't possibly win too! :hmmm:
Jimbuna
01-04-24, 01:26 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CPmdrNCEVeg
Jimbuna
01-05-24, 08:35 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-32s0tuszM
Jimbuna
01-06-24, 02:11 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2ECu0gdN38
Jimbuna
01-06-24, 02:21 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jits95ZjVFI
Jimbuna
01-07-24, 01:26 PM
Xi Jinping humiliated as overseas attack exposes 'painful' military weakness
President Xi Jinping's army is not fit for purpose warns one insider after a tragic setback a few years back sparked a massive audit.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) lacks crucial combat experience, especially in contemporary warfare, casting doubt over their ability to win any future wars, they claim.
The PLA insider admitted: "The painful lesson in South Sudan exposed one of our greatest vulnerabilities - an almost complete lack of combat experience," referring to an incident in which Chinese troops were killed while seeking refuge on a UN peacekeeping mission in 2016.
China's official narrative painted the incident as a testament to its emergence as a global power, ready to bear substantial responsibilities. However, within the PLA's high command, the episode unfolded as a glaring disaster, laying bare the dearth of combat experience plaguing the military.
"Our ability to fight a modern war and our officers' ability to command are both lacking," confessed Lieutenant-General He Lei, a seasoned PLA commander, echoing the insider's critique of President Xi's army.
Xi, recognising the urgency of addressing this critical issue, initiated the most comprehensive overhaul of the PLA in over six decades. "We can't go to war to increase our combat experience, right?" questioned General He Lei, highlighting the dilemma faced by the PLA in honing its military prowess.
The Chinese leader, unyielding in his critique, identified the PLA's weaknesses with "Two Inabilities" and "Five Incapables", pointing out the military's ineptitude in modern warfare and the commanders' deficiencies in decision-making.
"I've been a soldier for more than 50 years, and I've never been to war," said General He Lei, emphasising the urgent need for a shift in the PLA's approach to combat readiness.
However, recent developments have cast shadows on Xi's vision. Drawing inspiration from Russia's battalion tactical groups (BTGs), the PLA faced setbacks when flaws in Russia's BTGs were exposed.
PLA Daily, the army's news website, agreed that Russia's military strategy needed to be reconsidered. It wrote: "Deficiencies of Russia's battalion tactical groups have been exposed one after another, such as poor self-sufficiency in combat and inadequate logistical support."
The lack of effective combat training and doubts regarding the realism of recent exercises persist, challenging the PLA's ability to adapt swiftly to modern warfare. However, PLA Daily argued: "As we focus on real combat, exercises have become more realistic, pitting PLA troops against others simulating American or NATO tactics."
Xi Jinping and the PLA are now racing against time to transform into a force ready to face the challenges of 21st-century warfare, so they are not caught short again.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/xi-jinping-humiliated-as-overseas-attack-exposes-painful-military-weakness/ar-AA1mACXA?ocid=msedgntp&pc=EDGEDSE&cvid=2d9f44072ebc4a889c56f5a052218115&ei=14
em2nought
01-07-24, 01:49 PM
Xi Jinping humiliated as overseas attack exposes 'painful' military weakness
Luckily for them their likely opponents only major concerns are wokeness and diversity hiring with a bit of transgenderism thrown in for good measure. :D
Jimbuna
01-08-24, 01:44 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svMSxgNwNUk
em2nought
01-08-24, 11:31 PM
Chyna just missed their golden opportunity to "rain" :har: those missiles down with our Secretary of Defense being AWOL in the hospital four days without anybody in the chain of command even knowing about it. :har: Maybe Dr. Jill knew? :hmmm:
Jimbuna
01-09-24, 01:51 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k25XWevCG4I
Jimbuna
01-11-24, 02:04 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ikUJSwWwe54
Jimbuna
01-12-24, 01:07 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKiM2rVZMYg
Skybird
01-12-24, 06:11 PM
If sober rationality forms the Chinese government's (=Xi's) thinking, this ^ might have a chance to get true. One would need to trust them that they do nto crack down on Taiwan as they did with Hongkong. Is there something indicating that they wouldn't? No. But assume for a moment they would nto use the Hongkong method on Taiwan.
Then one would still need to assume that Xi's is not an old man driven by basic stubborness to enforce his nationalistic irrational history-drunk dream for merely principle reasons. He as well as the whole state of China shows an outstanding desinterest and disrespect for human dignity and human rights, and I mean general human rights and not just some Western set of values. Just look at how they deal with dissent internally in their society, how cold and inhumae and draconic the regime treats its own citizens.
I think I cannot make myself believe in the goodness of the Chinese regime that is preconditions for the Yeo-model to have a chance to become true without later disgusting consequences. Or in brief: I just cannot make myself trusting China.
My idea would be to give Taiwan nuclear weapons. And THEN try the Yeo model.
The outlook on how the bomb is ticking and the US wont be able to wage war against China in a few years I share. I warned of the balance shifting against the US since years, didn't I.
Maybe Yeo believes in Xi's reasonability like the West trusted in Putin's.
If Taiwan would not have that chip industry, I would say we should not get overly engaged. Its all just about that damn chip industry. If it falls to China, then Bejing has the West finally completely by its balls. And it would give China's further technological boost and military capacity a turbo boost.
Skybird
01-13-24, 07:04 AM
Counting is under way in Taiwan. Lai from the DPP leads with 40%. That would be a blow to China who tried to prevent him with aggressive campaigning since he is a representative of the political camp propagating strong independence for Taiwan.
Bejing will be angry, that much is certain.
Interesting, and frustrating. International press and media report on this, in parts on page one. In Germany: almost no word on it, all media are focussed on endless German "Nabelschau" (navel gazing?). And this while the Taiwan issue is at least as relevant for all of us as the Ukraine war.
Jimbuna
01-13-24, 07:19 AM
Voting has ended and counting is under way in Taiwan's presidential election, in a vote which will determine the territory's future ties with China.
Counting so far shows the candidate from the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), which is seeking a third term, leading the main opposition Kuomintang, or KMT
DPP candidate William Lai has been labelled a troublemaker by China, who warned people against voting for him, while KMT is promising better ties with Beijing and peace in the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan is a democratic island that governs itself - but it is claimed by mainland China and has no international recognition as a country.
A third party, the Taiwan People's Party, is on the ballot but opinion polls which ended two weeks ago showed a tight race between the DPP and KMT
A total of 113 legislative seats are also being contested today.
Taiwanese voters, however, are more concerned about the economy than they are about China.
Jimbuna
01-13-24, 08:02 AM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylM8cJVZnlQ
Skybird
01-13-24, 08:34 AM
Ah, now the press wakes up a bit. Maybe I was just too early.
Taiwanese voters, however, are more concerned about the economy than they are about China.
So were most Ukrainians before February 24th 2022. Eyes wide shut, heads erected deep into the sand.
The Taiwanese politician Lai Ching-te has for years been reviled by China’s Communist Party as a dangerous foe who, by its account, could drag the two sides into a war by pressing for full independence for his island democracy. Right up to Saturday, when millions of Taiwanese voted for their next president, an official Beijing news outlet warned that Mr. Lai could take Taiwan “on a path of no return.”
Yet, despite China’s months of menacing warnings of a “war or peace” choice for Taiwan’s voters, Mr. Lai was elected president.
Mr. Lai, currently Taiwan’s vice president, secured 40 percent of the votes in the election, giving his Democratic Progressive Party, or D.P.P., a third term in a row in the presidential office. No party has achieved more than two successive terms since Taiwan began holding direct, democratic elections for its president in 1996... https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/13/world/asia/taiwan-election-china-us.html?unlocked_article_code=1.NU0.N1RS.juACFO6h-cMH&smid=tw-share
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nE61S9BpDek
:hmmm:
This will take a while, but its worth it for the war gamers out there. :yeah:
Some things I'm wondering about (you really want to watch the full vid, first):
-I like the idea that they ran the game something like 25 times but it doesn't sound like they varied it much. In other words BOTH sides kept repeating the same mistakes. :O:
- There were a couple of times when I thought "OK, that was just BS" but the more I thought about it, the more I would concede the point. Don't be in a hurry to make rash decisions.
I suggest reading the full report https://csis-website-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/publication/230109_Cancian_FirstBattle_NextWar.pdf?VersionId=W dEUwJYWIySMPIr3ivhFolxC_gZQuSOQ
That it will cost dearly on both sides is common with an amphibious invasion, war gaming like planning an invasion are not always the outcome it takes several plans that all can go wrong in real time.
Jimbuna
01-14-24, 02:11 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oupSYGUL0dE
Buddahaid
01-14-24, 09:03 PM
Biden and the one China policy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF6vsRF3b7c
Jimbuna
01-15-24, 02:19 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q_0gNCZhPuc
Jimbuna
01-17-24, 01:42 PM
China 'concerned' as North Korea sends millions of rounds of ammo to Russia
China has reason to be concerned as North Korea and Russia build stronger military and political ties, according to an expert.
North Korea has been supplying ammunition for Russian forces to bolster dwindling supplies used up fighting a war in Ukraine.
Pyongyang's Supreme Leader, Kim Jong-un, even met with Vladimir Putin in September 2023 to discuss an arms deal.
It was reported that, in return, North Korea could benefit from Russia's technologies, capabilities for satellites, and its nuclear program among other benefits.
A month later, the US tracked more than 1,000 containers of equipment and ammo sent from North Korea and Russia.
South Korea later claimed that there had been 10 such arms transfers since August, meaning Russia may have received over a million shells from North Korea.
Business Insider reported on Tuesday that "the US isn't the only one concerned about Kim and Putin's apparent cosiness."
The outlet's defence reporter, Chris Panella, added: "China, too, has reason to keep an eye on the relationship, particularly if Russia can exercise, to some extent, the kind of influence over Kim that Beijing has long enjoyed - and kept guarded."
He also highlighted that China and North Korea have previously clashed over Kim's nuclear weapons programme, with tests causing concern for Beijing who would rather see stability in the region.
Victor Cha, the senior vice president for Asia and the Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), told Business Insider that North Korea is now "sitting pretty" while the US has been "sidelined."
He said: "North Korea is sitting pretty right now. They started out with a spectacular failure in Hanoi with the Trump summits, then they went into COVID lockdown for three years.
"Now they've come out and they're in a fantastic position with the Russians courting them, with the Chinese courting them, and with the US on the sidelines."
Kim has this week shocked many by declaring that reunification between North and South Korea is now impossible.
He also called for a change to the constitution to identify South Korea as the "number one hostile state."
Kim added: "We don't want war, but we have no intention of avoiding it."
A decision adopted by the Supreme People's Assembly said: "The two most hostile states, which are at war, are now in acute confrontation on the Korean peninsula. The reunification of Korea can never be achieved with the Republic of Korea."
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world/china-concerned-as-north-korea-sends-millions-of-rounds-of-ammo-to-russia/ar-AA1n72Lq?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=b07fef3b415941d4bff14b65cf6e4f27&ei=46
Jimbuna
01-18-24, 02:47 PM
China says Lai’s win in Taiwan will not change landscape of cross-strait relations
As Taiwan’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) pulled off a historic win with voters shrugging off China’s concern about presidential candidate Lai Chinge-te, Beijing attempted to downplay his influence.
Taiwan’s current vice president, Mr Lai, issued a defiant message to China as he declared victory on Saturday evening.
“This is a night that belongs to Taiwan. We managed to keep Taiwan on the map of the world,” he said at a rally after the declaration of results. “The election has shown the world the commitment of the Taiwanese people to democracy, which I hope China can understand,” he added.
Mr Lai’s DPP has consistently rejected China’s territorial claims over Taiwan, while he has been denounced by Beijing.
The Chinese government responded to his win by calling Taiwan “China’s Taiwan” and adding that their commitment to “reunification” remained “as firm as rock”.
Following his win, China’s Taiwan Affairs Office issued a statement saying Mr Lai’s win would not change the basic landscape of cross-strait relations.
In a statement carried on China’s state Xinhua news agency, Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the office, said the results showed the Democratic Progressive Party cannot represent mainstream public opinion on the island.
The electorates were mainly choosing between the governing DPP, which champions Taiwan‘s separate identity and rejects China’s territorial claims, and the opposition Nationalist Party, Kuomintang, which wants to expand trade ties with China.
The result showed that Mr Lai won more than 40 per cent of the vote, while the KMT candidate, Hou Yu-ih garnered 33.49 per cent, indicating support for DPP’s view on Taiwan’s claim for sovereignty, leaving Beijing visibility uncomfortable.
https://www.independent.co.uk/asia/china/lai-chingete-taiwan-election-china-b2478346.html
Jimbuna
01-19-24, 02:03 PM
China vows to work with North Korea to protect regional stability as tensions with Seoul escalate
China said it will work with North Korea on regional stability amid escalating tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang.
The Chinese Communist Party’s diplomatic chief Liu Jianchao told North Korean envoy Ri Ryong-nam in Beijing on Friday that China would increase strategic communications and jointly safeguard regional peace with North Korea.
“China is willing to work with [North Korea] … to carry forward our traditional friendship, deepen strategic communication, promote mutually beneficial cooperation, advance bilateral ties and to safeguard regional peace and stability,” Liu said, according to a statement from the International Liaison Department, the Communist Party’s diplomatic arm.
Ri, also quoted in the statement, said North Korea firmly supported China’s defence of its “core interests” on Taiwan, Hong Kong, human rights and other issues. He added that Pyongyang would use the opportunity of the 75th anniversary of its bilateral ties with Beijing this year to implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries.
Ri and Liu also agreed to strengthen inter-party coordination to boost bilateral ties.
Liu’s meeting with Ri came after North Korea announced on Friday that it tested its Haeil-5-23 nuclear-capable underwater attack drones in the East Sea, also known as the Sea of Japan, in response to the biggest-ever trilateral drill between the US, South Korea and Japan this week.
Tensions are heightening between North Korea and US allies in the region as the nuclear-capable country ramps up weapons tests and its defiant rhetoric.
On Monday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un officially declared South Korea an “invariable principal enemy” of his country, which will drop its long-standing goal to achieve peaceful unification with South Korea. Earlier this month, he also threatened to use nuclear weapons to “annihilate” the US and South Korea if provoked.
On Thursday, nuclear envoys of the US, South Korea and Japan met in Seoul, agreeing to jointly tackle challenges brought by North Korea.
North Korea has stepped up exchanges with Russia amid speculation that the two countries are providing military support to each other as tensions flare in Ukraine and on the Korean peninsula.
North Korea Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui visited Moscow earlier this week and was received by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin said the two sides agreed to develop relations in “all areas”, including “sensitive” ones, but did not give details.
China has been relatively low-key about Pyongyang’s latest military developments as well as the recent exchanges between North Korea and Russia. Beijing’s close ties with the two internationally isolated nations have been closely scrutinised.
The Chinese foreign ministry on Monday called for dialogue and consultations to promote a political settlement process for Korean peninsula issues after North Korea tested an intermediate-range ballistic missile over the weekend. The missile was equipped with a hypersonic warhead believed to be able to hit US bases in Guam.
https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3249145/china-vows-work-north-korea-protect-regional-stability-tensions-seoul-escalate?campaign=3249145&module=perpetual_scroll_0&pgtype=article
Jimbuna
01-20-24, 02:14 PM
China defies sanctions to make Russia its biggest oil supplier in 2023
Russia leapfrogged Saudi Arabia to become China's top crude oil supplier in 2023, data showed on Saturday, as the world's biggest crude importer defied Western sanctions to purchase vast quantities of discounted oil for its processing plants.
Russia shipped a record 107.02 million metric tons of crude oil to China last year, equivalent to 2.14 million barrels per day (bpd), the Chinese customs data showed, far more than other major oil exporters such as Saudi Arabia and Iraq.
https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/china-defies-sanctions-make-russia-its-biggest-oil-supplier-2023-2024-01-20/
Jimbuna
01-21-24, 02:39 PM
China’s “Query System for Islamic, Catholic, and Christian Clergy,” Another Tool for Repression
Earlier this year, Bitter Winter reported that the “Buddhist and Taoist Clerical Personnel Information Query System” (佛教道教教职人员信息查询系统) had been launched in Beijing. It was presented as a tool to “unmask” false and fraudulent Taoist priests and Buddhist monks. Where frauds are not unknown, the main reason for the creation of the data base was to identify, expose as illegitimate, and persecute Buddhist and Taoist clergy not subservient to the CCP nor part of the government-controlled China Buddhist Association and China Taoist Association.
Not surprisingly, it came out that the project was not limited to Buddhism and Taoism. Religion is controlled in China through the five authorized religions, whose leaders and cadres are selected by the CCP and whose aim is to transmit to religious believers the orders and the ideology of the Party. These are, in addition to the China Buddhist Association and the China Taoist Association, the Patriotic Catholic Church, the China Islamic Association, and the Three-Self Church, to which all legal Christian churches should belong (“Christian” being used in China as a synonym of “Protestant” and excluding Catholics, for whom there is a separate organization). Most Chinese believers do not belong to these organizations, but to independent groups such as the Protestant house churches, the Catholic communities of conscientious objectors rejecting the Vatican-China deal of 2018, and the independent mosques and temples.
Theoretically, all religious communities operating outside the five authorized religions are “illegal,” although Deng Xiaoping in 1982 granted them a limited tolerance. Subsequent CCP leaders restricted this tolerance, until Xi Jinping came and made no mystery of his plan to compel all independent communities to join the five authorized religions. Those stubbornly refusing may be classified as “xie jiao,” the label used for “heterodox teachings” that are completely prohibited, regarded as criminal organizations, and severely persecuted, such as Falun Gong or The Church of Almighty God.
The data bases of clergy are part of this strategy. Only the “legal” clergy of the authorized religions is included there. Citizens are encouraged to look for the name of the clergy they come in contact with in the data bases. If the names are not there, a “false” monk or priest (who in most cases is not “false,” just does not belong to a government-controlled organization) is identified and can be put under surveillance or arrested.
https://bitterwinter.org/chinas-query-system-for-islamic-catholic-and-christian-clergy-another-tool-for-repression/
Jimbuna
01-22-24, 01:44 PM
Two key military appointments from China’s naval ranks reflects Xi’s territorial ambitions, analysts say
When Xi Jinping named Adm. Dong Jun as China’s defense minister last week, it marked the first time a naval officer has been elevated to that position, and analysts say it gives a clear indication of the Chinese leader’s priorities – Taiwan tops among them.
Dong’s experience, both as head of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) as well as operational assignments in the Chinese military’s Eastern and Southern theater commands, gives him an “unprecedented background” in the defense minister position, according to a report from the China Maritime Studies Institute (CMSI) at the US Naval War College in Rhode Island.
His resumé “reflects serious joint and naval focus under Xi with growing potential applications to disputed sovereignty claims in the East and South China Seas — none more important than Taiwan,” CMSI analysts Andrew Erickson and Christopher Sharman wrote in their report.
Carl Schuster, a former director of operations at the US Pacific Command’s Joint Intelligence Center, said Dong “has international, joint and extensive naval experience in the two theaters that have been in the forefront of leader Xi Jinping’s most aggressive assertions of Chinese territorial claims.”
Xi, who has made taking control of Taiwan a cornerstone of his broader goal to “rejuvenate” China to a place of power and stature globally, said last month that the “reunification” of Taiwan with China is “inevitable.”
China’s Communist Party claims Taiwan as its own territory, despite never having controlled it. Chinese officials say they aim for peaceful “reunification” but have not ruled out using force to take control of the island.
China’s military has ramped up diplomatic, economic and military pressure on Taiwan under Xi.
Chinese jets now frequently cross into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone as well as over the unofficial, but until recently largely adhered to, “median line” that runs down the Taiwan Strait.
Crossings of the median line by Chinese warships have also become much more frequent.
Beijing is engaged in other sovereignty disputes, too, with Japan over the Senkuku Islands – which China calls the Diaoyus – in the East China Sea and with a handful of governments over contested reefs, shoals and islands in the South China Sea, almost all of which Beijing claims as its territory.
Though the defense minister position in China is a largely ceremonial role, serving as the public face of military diplomacy with other countries, Erickson and Sharman said Dong, with his experience, will make “a potent interlocutor with foreign counterparts.”
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/03/china/china-admirals-defense-minister-analysis-intl-hnk-mil/index.html
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vhI_tTEE2ZQ
Jimbuna
01-23-24, 01:49 PM
^ Already covered a fortnight ago.
https://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showpost.php?p=2898590&postcount=722
Jimbuna
01-23-24, 01:51 PM
China’s human rights record criticised at UN as it faces rare scrutiny of policies
The UK, the US and several other countries criticised China’s human rights record on Tuesday as the country was subjected to rare scrutiny of its policies at the United Nations.
The UK called on China to “cease the persecution and arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and Tibetans and allow genuine freedom of religion or belief and cultural expression without fear of surveillance, torture, forced labour or sexual violence”, while the US said China should “release all arbitrarily detained individuals” and cease the operation of “forcible assimilation policies including boarding schools in Tibet and Xinjiang”.
The UK also recommended that the national security law in Hong Kong be repealed and specifically called for the prosecution of the pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai to be dropped.
The recommendations were made as part of the UN Human Rights Council’s universal periodic review, a mechanism by which the 193 UN member states review each others’ human rights records every five years.
Each country at the UN headquarters in Geneva was given 45 seconds to make recommendations based on China’s human rights records since 2018. In that period, huge protests against the tightening grip of the Chinese Communist party (CCP) in Hong Kong prompted the imposition of a national security law that critics say criminalises dissent, and there has been increased international scrutiny of the human rights situation in Xinjiang, as well as growing concern about transnational repression as activists in the US, the UK and other countries have been targeted by Chinese authorities or agents.
Responding to the recommendations, China’s UN ambassador, Chen Xu, said concerns were caused by “misunderstanding or misinformation”.
Chen said: “A few countries groundlessly accuse and smear China, based not on facts but on ideological bias and unfounded rumours and lies.”
Tuesday’s meeting was the first time China has been through the review process since the UN’s report on Xinjiang was published in August 2022. The long-delayed report, which was written by the outgoing human rights commissioner Michelle Bachelet, found China was committing “serious human rights violations” against Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Beijing described it as “disinformation”.
Several countries brought up China’s policies in Xinjiang during Tuesday’s meeting. The region, along with Tibet, has become a byword for Beijing’s repressive human rights policies, particularly towards religious and ethnic minorities.
Human rights activists said that the fact that several countries mentioned Tibet in this year’s review bucked a recent trend of the region not being spoken about on the international stage.
Many smaller countries, or countries that are economically dependent on China, praised China’s rights record, in particular its success at lifting tens of millions of people out of poverty since 2018.
Ethiopia said it “applauds China for improving the criminal litigation system”, while Iran said: “We appreciate the economic programmes implemented by the government of China with the aim of promoting social, cultural and economic rights.”
Bhutan, a small, landlocked country between India and China that has recently been warming its relationship with Beijing, said: “We commend the significant progress in poverty alleviation and the achievement of the poverty reduction target of the 2030 agenda ahead of schedule.”
Speaking after the UN session, Sophie Richardson, a former China director for Human Rights Watch, said: “We increasingly hear Chinese government rhetoric in the recommendations made by governments, I think indicating a level of control over the process or influence over the process, and that’s problematic.”
Zumretay Arkin, the spokesperson for the World Uyghur Conference, criticised central Asian countries for failing to speak out against the abuse of Uyghurs, Kazakhs and other minorities in Xinjiang and said: “Muslim-majority countries have failed the Uyghurs.”
China’s foreign ministry has been approached for comment.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/jan/23/china-human-rights-record-criticised-un-faces-rare-scrutiny-of-policies
Jimbuna
01-24-24, 01:49 PM
China's critics and allies have 45 seconds each to speak in latest U.N. review of its human rights
China faces international scrutiny Tuesday over domestic polices in places like Hong Kong, Tibet and the western Xinjiang region as the global power receives its latest U.N.-backed review of its human rights record.
An extraordinarily high number of more than 160 countries — some critics of Beijing, some allies — have registered to take part in a discussion around China's rights record. That means each will have no longer than 45 seconds to speak.
China, whose delegation will be led by its top ambassador in Geneva, Chen Xu, can field a delegation that has up to 70 minutes to make its case.
The “universal periodic review” involves all U.N. member states coming up for scrutiny — at times a sharp one — by other countries roughly every five years. The hours-long discussion aims to offer constructive criticism that underpins a written a report that will offer recommendations, not criticism.
“These are all opportunities for countries to offer congratulations, criticisms and recommendations. Only recommendations expressly formulated as such ... are taken into account in the review report,” said Pascal Sim, the top spokesperson for the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council, which helps organize the reviews.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/china-ap-hong-kong-human-rights-council-xinjiang-b2483054.html
Jimbuna
01-25-24, 01:02 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQ3QtDvtKyM
Jimbuna
01-26-24, 12:54 PM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GyIxC2acXKg
Jimbuna
01-28-24, 02:00 PM
China allows Philippines to supply troops at disputed reef
BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Jan 28 (Reuters) - The Chinese coastguard said it had made "temporary special arrangements" to allow the Philippines to deliver supplies to troops at a grounded World War Two-era vessel at a disputed reef.
The Chinese coastguard has previously deployed vessels to block missions by the Philippines to supply troops on the transport ship, which has become a military outpost at the Second Thomas Shoal, 190 km (118 miles) off the Philippine island of Palawan.
https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/china-allows-philippines-supply-troops-disputed-reef-2024-01-28/
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