• European solar panel makers ask EU for ‘emergency’ steps to block China’s ‘significant oversupply’
• With China’s economic plenum still unscheduled, observers worry politics remain in command
• Disgruntled Chinese mathematician who killed boss after career flatlined following return from US given suspended death sentence
• China’s Xi Jinping pushes ‘disruptive innovation’ at first Politburo study session of the year
• China’s securities regulator raises suspicion of financial fraud committed by chip developer Beijing Zuojiang Technology
• China’s yuan replaces US dollar, euro as Russia’s ‘primary’ foreign currency for overseas economic activity
• Taiwan’s KMT opposition secures speaker’s chair and strengthens power to check next president William Lai’s policies on mainland China
• Singaporeans slam US senator’s grilling of TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi’s nationality, links to China: ‘pure ignorance’
• China ‘willing to keep in touch’ with South Korea on first phone call between top diplomats Wang Yi, Cho Tae-yul
• Dream come true: China construction worker who found fame playing piano on streets, excited to meet global star Lang Lang
• Singapore sees tourism recovery in 2023 thanks to China, Indonesia, Malaysia visitors
• Chinese investments on hold, residents flee as 3,500 monkeys take over Thai city
• Ultrathin smart fibre created by Singapore, China researchers seen as ‘leap’ forward in wearable tech
• China’s intelligence agency calls case of ‘extreme environmentalism’ a threat to national security
• South China Sea: Philippines’ Marcos approves purchase of submarines to defend sovereignty, amid growing China tensions
• Why doubts over economic data matter more in the US than China
• China-Africa trade hit $282 billion in 2023 but Africa’s trade deficit widens, with commodity prices a key factor
• China sets sights on Taiwan’s three remaining tiny Pacific allies
• Elderly Uyghur women imprisoned in China for decades-old religious ‘crimes’, leaked files reveal
• China baker asked to hide US$2,800 inside cake as surprise at engagement party celebration tricked into dirty money scam
• New Chinese defence minister Dong Jun speaks with Russian counterpart
• Chinese embassy slams British security minister for ‘groundless attack’ on Hong Kong’s coming domestic national security law
• Stop targeting our students and trying to turn them into spies, China tells US
• [World] FBI says Chinese state hacker group targeted US infrastructure
• China hacking threatens US infrastructure, FBI director warns, as Volt Typhoon botnet foiled
• China’s factory activity expands in January as export orders rise, business confidence hits 9-month high
• Chinese brain chip helps paralysed man regain mobility – and it’s less invasive than Elon Musk’s Neuralink
• China-US relations: navy dialogue depends on status of American delegation, say military analysts
• Nato chief praises US for China policy shift under Donald Trump amid ‘dangerous times’
• Viral ‘Pokémon with guns’ game Palworld sparks cloud service race between Alibaba, Tencent in China
• AmCham China survey flags tensions and regulatory climate, with a third reducing investment plans for 2024

European solar panel makers ask EU for ‘emergency’ steps to block China’s ‘significant oversupply’

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3250624/european-solar-panel-makers-ask-eu-emergency-steps-block-chinas-significant-oversupply?utm_source=rss_feed

European solar panel producers are calling for urgent curbs on Chinese access to the EU photovoltaic (PV) market to save their industry.

In a letter sent to the European Commission, a group representing “nearly the entire European PV manufacturing industry” called for “emergency measures” to safeguard the EU supply chain amid “significant oversupply” from China.

It claimed that oversupply of PV modules from China late in 2022 and through 2023 had “triggered a drastic reduction in prices”, forcing European manufacturers to reduce production and leaving stocks “languishing” in warehouses.

“Unfortunately, these stocks remain unsold due to the prevailing market conditions characterised by ultra-low pricing, a situation expected to persist at least throughout 2024,” read the letter from the European Solar Manufacturing Council (ESMC), which represents around 80 companies.

ESMC has demanded an immediate three-pronged response: an European Union buyout of the continent’s solar PV inventories, Brussels-backed project financing for local producers, and speeding up of future regulations to ban panels made using forced labour and reduce over-dependence on single nations.

The latter points are likely to penalise Chinese supplies, but given that Brussels has yet to finalise its forced labour or net-zero industry regulations, individual tenets of the laws would be difficult to bring forward.

Should Brussels not be ready to move on these actions “over the next four to eight weeks”, immediate safeguarding measures must be taken, ESMC demanded.

These would be specific trade defence tools that allow the EU to ban or restrict imports in case of a “sharp” or “unforeseen” uptick that “causes or threatens serious injury to domestic industry”, the group said.

The call comes at a sticky moment for Brussels, as the bloc tries to ramp up solar capacity while trying to reduce its reliance on Chinese supplies.

EU climate policies have also come under attack. Farmers protesting against “costly” and “complex” agricultural and environmental regulations toppled a statue of a steelworker outside the European Parliament in Brussels on Wednesday night.

Johan Lindahl, secretary general of the ESMC, said the group was in talks with several EU member states on lodging a formal complaint with Brussels and triggering safeguard measures.

ESMC is not calling for an anti-dumping or anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese supplies because that could take years to complete, Lindahl said. “The industry could be gone by then,” he told the Post.

EU trade spokesman Olof Gill said that the commission “is aware of the challenges faced by the sector, is closely monitoring the situation and keeps all options on the table”.

However, it is known that the EU, and the PV industry itself, are divided on the use of trade defence measures.

Solar Power Europe, an industry group where Chinese companies account for 12.6 per cent of revenue and hold 14 per cent of total voting rights, opposes trade actions, but backs more state support for the sector.

EU slows China de-risking plans in face of member state resistance

“We are aghast at the rumours that a trade defence investigation could be launched into solar,” Walburga Hemetsberger, CEO of SolarPower Europe, said late last year.

“This is an affront to the clear messages that the solar sector has repeatedly set out. We have better, faster, and more effective solutions for the crisis that European manufacturers face. Europe must not betray its climate and energy security targets.”

Chinese customs data shows that shipments of solar PV cells to the EU’s 27 member states were worth US$19 billion last year, down 16 per cent from US$22.6 billion in value terms in 2022.

The solar spat is one of a number of fronts in a tense EU-China trade dynamic.

The bloc is currently investigating subsidies in the Chinese electric vehicle manufacturing sector, which could lead to import duties being imposed on the products.

It is also expected to soon launch a probe into EU firms’ access to the Chinese medical device sector.

With China’s economic plenum still unscheduled, observers worry politics remain in command

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3250614/chinas-economic-plenum-still-unscheduled-observers-worry-politics-remain-command?utm_source=rss_feed

Beijing’s reluctance to go full throttle in boosting economic growth – combined with an absence of clear directives for reform – could further dampen an already dreary climate, experts and foreign business groups warned.

China’s subdued economic recovery, its restraint in employing strong stimulus measures and mixed policy signals continue to weigh on both domestic and foreign investment as well as consumer confidence, they said.

Despite those concerns, during Wednesday’s meeting of the Communist Party’s Politburo – its first of 2024 – the 24-member decision-making body indicated the balance of attention will be placed on politics, as the People’s Republic prepares to celebrate its 75th anniversary in October.

Top priorities will include party discipline and cohesion, according to a statement issued after the meeting, though “high-quality development” was also emphasised.

National security and upholding unity under the party and central government’s leadership remain the most crucial goals, while other matters such as youth employment and economic rejuvenation seem to rank lower, observers and foreign chambers said.

“Businesses do not know where they stand due to mixed messaging from the Chinese government, which is contributing to a growing sense of uncertainty, further eroding confidence in this important market,” said Adam Dunnett, secretary general of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China.

A lack of coordination between different ministries with different agendas has often led to contradicting actions, he added.

Disparity between words and action has often confused the market. Beijing has frequently pledged support for the private sector as well as foreign businesses, but concrete aid has at times eluded those affected. Regulatory crackdowns, a revamped law on spying and investigations related to national security have also had a chilling effect.

Moreover, Wednesday’s statement made no mention of the already deferred third plenum of the Communist Party’s Central Committee, typically held in October. The regular session is an important part of the five-year political cycle, and is conventionally used to draw the blueprint for economic policy.

“The unexplained delay in holding the much-anticipated third plenum will further undermine already low business and consumer confidence,” said Trivium China, a policy research group, in a report on Wednesday.

“That will make it more difficult for the economy to consolidate its nascent recovery.”

German companies would like to see stimulus and reform to be prioritised to boost the economy, said Jens Hildebrandt, executive director of the German Chamber of Commerce in China.

Hints suggest private-sector confidence high on China’s 2024 agenda

“Any delay in delivering on promises made to the foreign business community will decrease trust among German investors,” he said. “A third plenum that delivers clear signals on how China plans to address its structural economic challenges and shape its future would be greatly appreciated.”

The country is currently attempting to scrape numerous economic barnacles from its hull as it navigates its post-pandemic recovery.

“Despite some reassuring signs … such as the temporary introduction of visa-free entry to China and the extension of some tax policies”, said Dunnett of the EU chamber, “more is needed to address other issues. Chinese policymakers have rhetorically signalled their intent, it is an open question as to how far regulators are willing to go.”

Lip service is paid to the private sector and foreign investment, said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, emeritus professor at Hong Kong Baptist University, but in reality state-owned enterprises remain the major pillars of the economy.

“Social stability is the priority above economic development,” he said, adding “the real estate crisis and the lack of decisive action to relaunch the economy will make [private and foreign investors] wary.”

Rather than the pace of China’s meetings, US companies are more focused on concrete steps the government takes to improve the business climate, said American Chamber of Commerce in China chairman Sean Stein.

“What we’re concerned about is how China is implementing the 24 reforms that were announced last August, and how the central government and local governments are working together to create [a more conducive] environment.”

Additional reporting by Frank Chen

Disgruntled Chinese mathematician who killed boss after career flatlined following return from US given suspended death sentence

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3250600/disgruntled-chinese-mathematician-who-killed-boss-after-career-flatlined-following-return-us-given?utm_source=rss_feed

A mathematician who murdered the head of his university department has been given a suspended death sentence.

Jiang Wenhua, a researcher at Fudan University, was found guilty of murdering Wang Yongzhen, the head of the School of Mathematical Sciences, in June 2021.

“Jiang Wenhua premeditated the crime, employing brutal methods that led to grave consequences. He should be subjected to stringent punishment per the law,” a statement from the Shanghai No 2 Intermediate People’s Court posted on the social media platform Weibo said.

The court said Jiang, then aged 39, attacked Wang, his 49-year-old supervisor who was also the school’s party secretary, because of work-related grievances.

The case sparked debate about the treatment of junior academic staff. In a video that showed him being subdued by police, Jiang told officers: “I have been framed a lot of times and I have received vicious treatment in the department.”

Jiang received a PhD in statistics from Rutgers University in the United States in 2009 and returned to China in 2011 to teach at Soochow University.

He was hired in 2016 as a researcher on Fudan’s tenure-track appointment system, according to the university.

Highly-educated China software engineer’s 16 years of hell on streets of New York

But it said that he had failed an evaluation carried out in June 2019 two months before his contract expired and the maths department decided not to keep him in his role.

Under the tenure-track system, researchers undergo reviews for a tenured professorship. Those who do not pass have their contracts terminated, a process referred to as “up or out” in China.

Jiang was instead given a one-year contract, which was renewed at the end of 2020.

A post on the Shanghai-based news website Guancha published one day after the killing said some Chinese academics who had been abroad had struggled to develop their careers overseas and then had trouble readjusting when they returned to China.

The court ruling said Jiang had bought a knife with the intention of killing Wang and waited for an opportunity to seek revenge.

On the day of the killing, Jiang entered Wang’s office on the Fudan University campus and repeatedly stabbed Wang on his neck and torso. The victim was found dead at the scene of the killing.

After committing the crime, Jiang waited at the scene knowing that the police had been notified and confessed to officers, the court added.

The statement said Jiang had been diagnosed with recurrent depressive disorder and had limited criminal liability in the case.

Chinese victim of unsolved poisoning case dies, prompting sympathy and anger

But it said Jiang’s behaviour constituted the crime of intentional homicide and sentenced him to a two-year suspended death sentence and deprivation of political rights for life.

After two years, the death sentence will be commuted to life in prison.

China’s Xi Jinping pushes ‘disruptive innovation’ at first Politburo study session of the year

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3250612/chinas-xi-jinping-pushes-disruptive-innovation-first-politburo-study-session-year?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese President Xi Jinping called for efforts to boost “disruptive innovation”, integrate technology with industry, and increase supply chain resilience as he presided over this year’s first Politburo study session.

At the meeting of the Communist Party’s top policymaking body on Wednesday, Xi said China must strengthen scientific and technological innovation – especially “original and disruptive” innovations – as well as achieve scientific and tech self-reliance and “fight the battle in core technologies”.

He told Politburo members that innovation should be used to “transform and upgrade traditional industries, cultivate and expand new industries, plan and construct future industries, and improve and modernise the industrial system”, according to state news agency Xinhua.

‘Chinese-style modernisation’: tech innovation in focus as Xi visits Shanghai

He also stressed the importance of improving the “resilience and security” of supply chains and ensuring that the industrial system is “autonomous and controllable, safe and reliable”.

Xi made the remarks as the 24-member Politburo held its first group study session of the year.

Others who spoke at the meeting included Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region party chief Ma Xingrui, Vice-Premier Zhang Guoqing and Chongqing municipality party boss Yuan Jiajun. Ma is a former aerospace expert and Yuan is a former rocket scientist, while Zhang has a defence industry background.

China has repeatedly emphasised tech self-reliance as one of its top policy priorities as the country and its hi-tech ambitions face containment by the US and its allies. Xi has often reiterated the call for technological innovation at high-level meetings.

At the central economic work conference held in December, an annual tone-setting economic meeting also presided over by Xi, the country’s leaders called for industrial innovation using “disruptive and cutting-edge technologies” to give rise to “new industries, new modes and new dynamics”, according to a statement released after the conference.

The Politburo holds regular group study sessions, which usually feature a scholar who leads discussion of a topic. But its first session of the new year is typically an internal discussion among the members.

At last year’s first Politburo study session, Xi called for “accelerating the establishment of a new pattern of development”, saying this could consolidate the country’s economic foundation and “strengthen the security and stability of development”.

“Only by doing so will China be able to better survive, compete, develop and sustain its progress amid all sorts of predictable and unpredictable storms and high winds,” he said.

He also told the study session that the country must accelerate efforts to achieve self-reliance in science and technology “to prevent being strangled by foreign countries”.

Such stern wording was not seen in the statement following Wednesday’s event.

Xi highlights importance of innovation in ‘Chinese-style modernisation’

On Wednesday, Xi emphasised “new productive forces”, which he said were necessary for “promoting high-quality development”.

“It’s necessary to continue to leverage innovation to speed up the development of new productive forces,” he said.

In September, Xi stressed the need for “new productive forces” when chairing a meeting in Harbin, capital of northeast China’s Heilongjiang province, during an inspection tour.

He called for “actively fostering new energy, new materials, advanced manufacturing, electronic information and other strategic emerging industries, and actively cultivating future industries”.

He also called for greater efforts to revitalise China’s northeastern provinces – the country’s former industrial heartland and bread basket – and urged them to “firmly grasp domestic innovation”.

China’s securities regulator raises suspicion of financial fraud committed by chip developer Beijing Zuojiang Technology

https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3250602/chinas-securities-regulator-raises-suspicion-financial-fraud-committed-chip-developer-beijing?utm_source=rss_feed

An investigation by China’s securities regulator has raised a strong suspicion of financial fraud committed by Beijing Zuojiang Technology, a Chinese electronics manufacturer that once claimed to produce semiconductors rivalling those from Nvidia.

The China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) said it found the 2023 financial disclosures of Shenzhen-listed Zuojiang to be “seriously untrue” and “suspected [the company] of significant financial fraud”, according to the agency’s statement on Monday about the results of its preliminary investigation.

The CSRC said its investigation, which was initiated on November 24, was still ongoing and that it aimed to uncover evidence of illegal activities as soon as possible.

Zuojiang said it had yet to receive the results of the CSRC’s investigation, and that it could not provide an estimate of its 2023 financial earnings to investors, according to the company’s filing on Wednesday to the Shenzhen Stock Exchange.

Shares of Zuojiang closed down 19.99 per cent to 33.94 yuan (US$4.77) on Thursday, following the stock’s resumption of trading on Wednesday. Zuojiang halted trading from January 24 after its shares rose more than 110 per cent in six consecutive trading days.

The Shenzhen Stock Exchange last April had issued a warning about delisting Zuojiang after the firm reported losses and revenue of under 100 million yuan for its 2022 financial results. The company’s shares, however, grew more than 800 per cent within 15 months from 2022 to 2023.

Even though the CSRC’s investigation is still ongoing, Zuojiang’s troubles reflect the uneven progress of Beijing’s semiconductor self-reliance ambitions and advanced technology initiatives in the face of Washington’s trade sanctions and the escalating US-China tech war.

In 2022, Zuojiang touted that its self-developed data processing unit (DPU) NE6000 rivalled the performance of Nvidia’s Bluefield-2 DPU.

China’s top fabless chip firms, such as Loongson, estimate big losses in 2023

Zuojiang, however, reported in December that its DPU sales last year failed to meet expectations, according to its stock exchange filing at the time.

The company said that it only signed one contract for DPUs that covered 400 units of its NE6000, which were delivered to a trading company. Those goods were later classified as “not in actual development or sales” because the client enterprise that bought the chips did not use most of them.

As such, the 12.6 million yuan deal for those DPUs could not be verified, according to Zuojiang’s filing.

DPUs – programmable chips that tightly combine a central processing unit (CPU) with network interface hardware – are considered one of the three pillars of computing alongside traditional CPUs and the advanced graphics processing units being rapidly adopted in data centres for developing artificial intelligence systems.

Founded in 2007, Zuojiang was mainly engaged in the design, development, manufacture and sale of hardware platforms and boards related to network information security applications before it pursued DPU development.

China’s yuan replaces US dollar, euro as Russia’s ‘primary’ foreign currency for overseas economic activity

https://www.scmp.com/economy/global-economy/article/3250599/chinas-yuan-replaces-us-dollar-euro-russias-primary-foreign-currency-overseas-economic-activity?utm_source=rss_feed

China’s yuan has become the “primary” foreign currency for Russia’s overseas economic activity, according to Russian central bank governor Elvira Nabiullina, as Western sanctions choke its economy and push Moscow closer to Beijing.

Russia was expelled from the Swift financial messaging system in February 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine, and it has become increasingly dependent on the yuan.

Beijing had already been ramping up efforts to boost the yuan’s global appeal as an alternative to the US dollar for international settlements and as a reserve currency.

But analysts said it still faces a reality check in multilateral deals even amid an expansion of the Brics group of developing economies at the start of the year.

“Until 2022, there was a significant share of dollars and euros in our reserves – it was due to the fact that foreign trade contracts were largely in dollars and euros,” Nabiullina said in an interview with Russian news agency RIA Novosti published on Tuesday.

“Now, foreign economic activity is very actively switching to the use of other currencies, primarily the yuan.”

According to Nabiullina, the yuan’s share in Russia’s exports has increased from 0.4 per cent two years ago to 34.5 per cent, and with its share in imports rising from 4.3 to 36.4 per cent during the same period.

Sink or swim: China watches on as Russia’s economy battles Western sanctions

Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Belousov also said in November that settlements in roubles and the yuan in bilateral trade had reached 95 per cent.

China and Russia also further cemented ties with 55 deals worth 13.6 billion yuan (US$1.9 billion), including financial services, signed in the northern Chinese city of Shenyang this week.

Nabiullina added that Russia, as the chair of the Brics group of developing economies in 2024, would drive cooperation in using the yuan and other currencies, and also interconnecting settlement systems.

“We are going to come out with a busy agenda,” she added when asked about the priorities and goals for central banks within the bloc this year.

Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia joined Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa as members of the Brics group at the start of 2024.

On Tuesday, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said China would support the efforts and was “willing to play its role”, when addressing a question about Russia’s proposal for a new settlement system with other Brics countries.

“Developing countries are optimising settlement methods to facilitate trade and investment between them and contribute to global financial stability,” said Wang.

For China, the expansion represents new opportunities for use of the yuan, and also acts as a hedge against Washington weaponising the US dollar.

But analysts see hurdles as the yuan progresses from bilateral dealings with Russia to being involved in more multilateral transactions.

“Russia is an exception,” said Jean-Pierre Cabestan, emeritus professor at Hong Kong Baptist University’s Department of Government and International Studies.

“Brics countries have accepted the yuan more, but only countries that need to buy a lot from China will do more yuan transactions. Otherwise, what are they going to do with their mass of the yuan, which is not freely convertible.

“Saudi Arabia can see its oil paid by China in the yuan up to a point, but most of it will continue to be paid in US dollars.”

How expanding China-led economic bloc Brics adds to the yuan’s global clout

Last year, India rejected a proposal from Russian suppliers to pay for crude oil imports in yuan.

“The economic strength of Brics is not even, with China dominating. How much responsibility China is willing to assume and how willing other countries, especially India, are to accept China’s influence, are debatable,” said Luk Yim-fai, an economics professor with the University of Hong Kong at a seminar last year.

He added it could be easier to promote the yuan within countries involved in China’s Belt and Road Initiative.

The yuan’s share of international payments has been on the rise, but it contracted by 0.5 percentage points to 4.14 per cent in December as the fourth most-active currency, according to Swift.

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Taiwan’s KMT opposition secures speaker’s chair and strengthens power to check next president William Lai’s policies on mainland China

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3250623/taiwans-kmt-opposition-secures-speakers-chair-and-strengthens-power-check-next-president-william?utm_source=rss_feed

Taiwan’s parliament elected a senior figure from the Kuomintang as the new speaker, increasing the mainland-friendly opposition’s ability to block legislation and check the powers of incoming president William Lai Ching-te.

Han Kuo-yu, the defeated presidential candidate in 2020, was elected speaker of the island’s legislature following two rounds of voting on Thursday.

“Thanks for the support of the KMT legislative caucus and two of our independent colleagues. I was able to win the speakership with 54 votes … I shoulder the responsibility of initiating reforms in parliament and I will devote myself to striving for the interests of the public,” Han said after the election.

Johnny Chiang, a KMT legislator and former party chairman, took the vice-speaker’s post.

Han defeated his opponent You Si-kun of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party in a 54-51 narrow victory, securing the support of two independents to take the speaker’s chair after eight years of DPP control.

The smaller opposition party – the Taiwan People’s Party, which holds the balance of power with eight seats in the legislature – did not back either the KMT or DPP candidate.

Beijing’s changes to cross-strait flight path will ‘squeeze’ Taiwan air defence

You announced his resignation as a DPP at-large legislator shortly after his defeat.

Observers said Han’s win would allow the KMT to act as a check on the Lai administration, which will take office in May.

“Beijing should feel somewhat relieved now that the legislature in Taiwan is led by the KMT instead of the DPP,” Wang Kung-yi, head of Taiwan International Strategic Study Society, a Taipei think tank.

Beijing, which views Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force, if necessary, has described Lai as an “obstinate separatist” and warned he would increase the risk of war.

Although the KMT’s Hou Yu-ih was a distant second to Lai in last month’s presidential election – a race in which the TPP’s leader Ko Wen-je also put in a strong showing – the opposition party was able to capture 52 of the 113 seats in the legislative election held on the same day, one more than the DPP.

The DPP previously had a majority in the legislature, allowing it to pass whatever measures it wanted while it held the presidency. But Wang said a KMT-led parliament could hamper policies that were unfriendly towards the Chinese mainland.

“Although the KMT is not the absolute majority of the legislature, it has the help of two independent legislators who are friendly to the KMT. The KMT can also cooperate with the TPP – which is relatively friendly to Beijing – on certain Lai measures that would fuel a cross-strait impasse,” Wang said.

“The Lai government might need to consult with the KMT in the future on certain measures deemed by the KMT as creating cross-strait tensions, given that it needs the KMT’s support for the annual budgets to fund its operations, including huge payments for US arms deals.”

Why Taiwan’s new pier on South China Sea islet may have put its leader in a spot

The United States, in common with most countries, does not recognise Taiwan as an independent state but is opposed to any attempt to take the self-governed island by force and is committed to supplying it with weapons.

KMT legislator Wang Hung-wei pointed out that the speaker plays a decisive role in whether a motion should be passed in the event of a tie.

“In addition to chairing legislative proceedings, the speaker also needs to mediate between government and opposition parties over certain controversial bills,” she said.

Singaporeans slam US senator’s grilling of TikTok CEO Chew Shou Zi’s nationality, links to China: ‘pure ignorance’

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/people/article/3250610/singaporeans-slam-us-senators-grilling-tiktok-ceo-chew-shou-zis-nationality-links-china-pure?utm_source=rss_feed

Video clips of a United States senator’s persistent grilling of TikTok’s Singaporean boss on his nationality and links to China’s Communist Party have sparked anger from online users in the island republic, with many criticising the politician’s racism and lack of understanding of Singapore.

Analysts who spoke to This Week in Asia said the exchange was likely to heighten the antipathy of Singaporeans towards US policy-makers, since such “anti-Chinese” rhetoric would rile up citizens in the multiracial city state with an ethnic Chinese majority.

TikTok’s CEO Chew Shou Zi, 41, on Wednesday appeared alongside the chief executives of tech firms Discord, Meta, Snap and X to testify before American lawmakers over concerns about the harmful effects of social media on children.

It was Chew’s second appearance before US lawmakers in less than a year. In March 2023, he was questioned about TikTok’s ties to China and its safety precautions for children, but had gone viral on social media and was crowned the newest internet “zaddy” by young social media users. Chew faced similar questions at Wednesday’s hearing.

However, Singaporeans following Wednesday’s hearing online were most incensed by the way Chew was questioned about his nationality and affiliations with the Chinese government.

“You said today, as you often say, that you live in Singapore. Of what nation are you a citizen?” asked Senator Tom Cotton of Arkansas.

Despite Chew stating he was Singaporean, Cotton continued to press him. “Are you a citizen of any other nation?” he asked, and followed up with whether Chew had ever applied for Chinese citizenship and if he held a Singaporean passport.

Chew responded no to both questions, adding that he had fulfilled his national service to his home country by serving in the Singaporean military for 2½ years, which is a requirement for all Singaporean men.

Cotton also asked if Chew was a member of China’s Communist Party, to which a visibly frustrated Chew responded: “Senator, I’m Singaporean, no.”

The Singapore government does not allow citizens to hold dual nationalities.

A Washington Post technology reporter described Cotton’s line of questioning as “McCarthy-esque”, which refers to accusations of subversion or treason, made without proper regard for the facts, similar to those made by US Senator Joseph McCarthy against alleged communists in the 1950s.

Cotton defended his questioning of Chew’s ties with China’s Communist Party, hours after the hearing concluded. “Singapore, unfortunately, is one of the places in the world that has the highest degree of infiltration and influence by the Chinese Communist Party,” Cotton said on Fox News on Wednesday. “So, Mr Chew has a lot to answer for, for what his app is doing in America and why it’s doing it.”

Big ‘zaddy’: how TikTok’s CEO became a star among Singapore’s Gen Z

Clips of the exchange went viral on social media on Thursday, and the hashtag #Singaporean trended internationally on X, formerly known as Twitter.

Singaporean users called out Cotton over his perceived racism and poor understanding of their country, while others created memes poking fun at the exchange.

“Unsurprised that Americans associate Singapore with China or even a city within China,” wrote one user.

“Paranoia at its highest. And low-key racist,” snapped another.

“Senator, do you know where Singapore is?” one netizen questioned. “Pure ignorance to the highest degree. Just because he looks Chinese does not mean he’s from China,” another said.

One popular meme page, Yeolo.sg, which has more than 78,000 followers on Instagram, posted a snippet of the exchange, along with the caption: “When it’s 2024 but people still think Singapore is in China”.

TikTok is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chinese tech firm ByteDance. Western governments have raised concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over TikTok’s data on its estimated 150 million American users.

TikTok has gone to great lengths to allay these concerns, claiming it does not share American user data with the Chinese government and would refuse if asked. It has also since promised to store data on servers operated by an outside contractor, Oracle Corp, as part of Project Texas.

Meta, TikTok and X CEOs grilled on child exploitation by US lawmakers

The view that Singapore and China hold similar political ideologies among US lawmakers and citizens has long persisted and is not anything new, said Leong Chan-Hoong, a senior fellow for social cohesion research at the Nanyang Technological University’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies.

“I’m not surprised that some of them are not aware of the geopolitical differences between Singapore and China,” he said. The fact that the city state had an ethnic Chinese majority, and was ruled by one political party for a long time, may also contribute to the impression that China and Singapore shared the same political ideology, he added.

The perception by Singaporeans of the US has been on the decline, said Bilveer Singh, a political scientist from the National University of Singapore. “The US has blundered at home – with political polarisation, racism, government inefficiency and becoming inward-looking – and abroad in foreign policy,” he said, citing examples such as the withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan.

In a 2022 survey conducted by the Pew Research Centre, some 67 per cent of Singaporeans polled viewed China more favourably than the US, a stark contrast to the other 18 countries polled.

Why do Singapore and Malaysia view China more favourably than the US?

Singh added that Cotton’s line of questioning also offended people in the city state, as it seemed to suggest Singaporeans had communist ties just because the population had an ethnic Chinese majority.

Ethnic Chinese residents make up about three-quarters of Singapore’s population, while Malays and Indians make up about 13 and 9 per cent, respectively, according to official statistics.

Singh said the US’ anti-China policies had also “riled up most Singaporeans”, as many interpreted them as racist.

Leong said the perception towards the US was not “completely negative” among citizens of the city state, but that some certainly found US foreign policy and interventionism “disagreeable”.

China ‘willing to keep in touch’ with South Korea on first phone call between top diplomats Wang Yi, Cho Tae-yul

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3250609/china-willing-keep-touch-south-korea-first-phone-call-between-top-diplomats-wang-yi-cho-tae-yul?utm_source=rss_feed

The top diplomats of China and South Korea have yet to hold their traditional introductory phone call, nearly three weeks since Cho Tae-yul took over as foreign minister in Seoul.

Beijing has said it is “willing to keep in touch” on the matter with South Korea.

“After Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul took office, Foreign Minister Wang Yi sent him a congratulatory message,” the Chinese foreign ministry said upon being asked when a phone call might take place.

“China is willing to keep in touch with the ROK on the plans of future exchanges between the two foreign ministers,” ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said, using South Korea’s official name – the Republic of Korea.

Cho, a former UN ambassador, was sworn in as South Korean foreign minister on January 12, and has already held phone calls with his US, Japanese and Australian counterparts.

Earlier this week, South Korean news agency News 1 cited a diplomatic source to report that Seoul was looking to schedule a Cho-Wang call at a mutually convenient time.

The delayed call with China is seen as somewhat unusual, even though there is no strict time frame for when such first exchanges with foreign counterparts must take place. Cho’s predecessor, Park Jin, had a video call with Wang days after he assumed office in May 2022.

Shortly after he was named as the incoming foreign minister in December, Cho said his priority would be to strengthen ties with China, asserting that Seoul’s relations with Beijing were “no less important” than its alliance with Washington.

However, bilateral relations have been strained in recent months, as South Korea leans closer to the United States under President Yoon Suk-yeol, and his controversial remarks about Taiwan, which Beijing sees as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary.

Most countries, including the US – Taiwan’s informal ally and biggest arms supplier – do not recognise the self-governed island as an independent state but are opposed to any unilateral change to the cross-strait status quo.

The nuclear ambitions of North Korea, a close partner of Beijing, is another source of friction with Seoul.

China and South Korea should ‘meet each other halfway’: Xi Jinping

Yoon compared Taiwan with North Korea as a “global issue” in April, prompting an angry Beijing to summon the South Korean ambassador.

The ambassador was also summoned in a tit-for-tat response in June, after Seoul called in Beijing’s envoy to issue a “stern” warning over his remarks cautioning against favouring the US over China.

South Korea has also stepped up military drills with treaty ally the US and neighbouring Japan to counter North Korea’s nuclear threats. Such moves are often criticised by Beijing as “bloc-confrontations” that destabilise the region.

Yoon and Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged brief greetings during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (Apec) summit in San Francisco in November, but did not hold separate bilateral talks.

A few days later, Wang met Cho’s predecessor Park on the sidelines of a three-way summit with Japan in the Korean city of Busan, where he repeated his call for Seoul to eliminate “external interference” and refocus on “mutually beneficial” cooperation with Beijing.

Dream come true: China construction worker who found fame playing piano on streets, excited to meet global star Lang Lang

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/china-personalities/article/3249567/dream-come-true-china-construction-worker-who-found-fame-playing-piano-streets-excited-meet-global?utm_source=rss_feed

A 58-year-old construction worker and amateur piano player in China said he would love to meet the global superstar Lang Lang, who then responded and made his wish come true.

Yi Jianli, a migrant worker who has lived in Shenzhen, southeastern China for more than 20 years, was invited to play in CCTV’s televised Spring Festival Gala variety show, which will broadcast on Lunar New Year’s Eve.

During rehearsals, Yi said he hoped to meet the world-famous pianist at the event, and two days later, the star wrote him a heartfelt message.

In a viral video, Yi is seen playing piano in the hall of CCTV’s head office, as a crowd gathers round to listen and applaud.

Yi smiles shyly and, when asked what his biggest wish is, confesses it is to meet Lang Lang.

“I’m a construction worker who likes playing piano, and I admire Lang Lang very much,” Yi says in the video, then jokingly asks if there was any possibility he could meet his hero, not really expecting it to happen.

Then, on January 21, the internationally celebrated musician and composer responded to the lucky labourer with a thoughtful message on Weibo.

“I watched your video, and I was inspired by your passion. Thank you for liking my music. I am looking forward to meeting you,” Lang Lang wrote.

Yi gained popularity in April after he captivated people who saw him busking on the streets of Shenzhen while still dressed in his work clothes.

Yi said he was nervous at the time because he thought he would be sneered at for being a construction worker and wearing scruffy work gear.

“But once people around me began to applaud, I started to feel good,” Yi said.

Yi, who learned piano in his teens at his aunt’s home, had not played for 30 years until recently.

He said he hoped everyone could love life regardless of their job.

The story has melted hearts on mainland social media.

“Everybody who has a dream can shine,” one person said.

“It’s so touching,” said another.

“I’m looking forward to seeing their meeting,” said a third, while a fourth person added: “His passion for life is really inspiring.”

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Singapore sees tourism recovery in 2023 thanks to China, Indonesia, Malaysia visitors

https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3250580/singapore-sees-tourism-recovery-2023-thanks-china-indonesia-malaysia-visitors?utm_source=rss_feed

Singapore saw a 115 per cent increase in the number of visitors last year, from 6.3 million in 2022 to 13.6 million in 2023.

The number in 2023 met Singapore Tourism Board’s (STB) forecast of between 12 million and 14 million visitors.

This is about 71 per cent of the number in 2019, before international travel came to a halt in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The increase in visitor arrivals was driven by strong demand from a mix of Singapore’s key markets, led by Indonesia (2.3 million), China (1.4 million) and Malaysia (1.1 million). Other key markets included Australia, South Korea, and the United States.

China, Singapore agree visa-free deal for travel stays of up to 30 days

Singapore’s tourism receipts are expected to register S$24.5 billion (US$18.2 billion) to S$26 billion for 2023, which exceeds STB’s forecast of between S$18 billion to S$21 billion.

This is about 88 to 94 per cent of 2019 levels, according to figures released by STB on Thursday.

Tourism receipts reached S$20.1 billion between January to September 2023. The final figures for tourism receipts will be available in the second quarter of 2024.

“From January to September 2023, tourism receipts across all spend categories have either exceeded or recovered close to pre-pandemic levels, compared with the same period in 2019,” STB said.

For the first nine months of 2023, China, Indonesia, and Australia generated the most tourism receipts, contributing S$2.3 billion, S$2.2 billion, and S$1.5 billion respectively, excluding sightseeing, entertainment, and gaming.

Sightseeing, entertainment, and gaming are excluded in the country analysis of tourism receipts due to commercial sensitivities, said STB.

STB also said visitors spent more time in Singapore compared to before the pandemic. The average length of stay in 2023 was around 3.8 days, an increase compared to 3.4 days for the same period in 2019.

“Singapore’s tourism sector recovered strongly and demonstrated resilience with a solid performance for 2023,” STB said.

STB said it expects the tourism sector’s recovery to continue in 2024, driven by improved global flight connectivity and capacity, as well as the implementation of the mutual 30-day visa-free travel between China and Singapore.

Singapore and China had agreed to a 30-day mutual visa-free entry for their citizens last week.

More Chinese expected to travel abroad for Lunar New Year

Under the agreement, Singaporeans and Chinese citizens holding ordinary passports can enter China or Singapore without a visa for no more than 30 days if they are travelling for business, sightseeing, visiting friends and family, or other private affairs.

The arrangement will formally start on February 9, the eve of Lunar New Year.

“In 2024, international flight capacity is expected to continue to increase, with capacity at or approaching pre-pandemic levels for most our key source markets,” STB said.

International visitor arrivals are expected to reach around 15 to 16 million in 2024, bringing in around S$26.0 billion to S$27.5 billion in tourism receipts.

Geopolitical uncertainty, the state of the global economy and other factors such as the continued restoration of flight connectivity will have bearing on the pace of travel recovery, STB added.

“To sustain our growth in 2024 and beyond, STB will focus on achieving quality tourism, cultivating strategic partnerships, investing in new and refreshed products and experiences, and supporting stakeholders in building capabilities,” said STB chief executive Melissa Ow.

In the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) sector, STB said it secured several significant business events that took place in Singapore for the first time last year.

These include the 25th World Congress of Dermatology 2023, Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT) Global Conference 2023, and the International Trademark Association (INTA) 2023 Annual Meeting Live+.

For leisure events, STB in 2023 hosted the debut of ART SG, Southeast Asia’s largest art fair, in conjunction with the Singapore Art Week.

For hotels, the average room rate and revenue per available room exceeded 2019 levels. Average room rate reached S$282, which is about 128 per cent of the rate in 2019, while revenue per available room reached S$226, which is about 118 per cent of the figure in 2019.

Average Occupancy Rate was 80.1 per cent in 2023, compared to 86.9 per cent in the same period in 2019.

The hotel industry’s performance in 2023 was driven by stronger demand for leisure and business travel, STB said.

China and Singapore agree to let each other’s citizens travel visa-free

For cruises, Singapore reached a record 2 million passenger throughput received from more than 340 ship calls since the opening of the Marina Bay Cruise Centre Singapore.

STB had also announced in 2023 its partnership with Disney Cruise Line to make Singapore the exclusive home port for its new Disney Cruise Line vessel for at least five years from 2025.

STB also introduced new attractions and enhanced experiences in 2023 including Go-Kart at Sentosa, Bird Paradise, and the world’s first surf-snow-skate attraction TRIFECTA.

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Chinese investments on hold, residents flee as 3,500 monkeys take over Thai city

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3250596/chinese-investments-hold-residents-flee-3500-monkeys-take-over-thai-city?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese investments on hold, vanishing shoppers and crumbling businesses: a city in central Thailand is staring down the risk of becoming a ghost town as thousands of menacing long-tailed monkeys strike fear in the local economy.

Several companies and stores have shut their operations and fled Lopburi city, once a thriving trade hub in the province, with some 3,500 simians taking control of the area.

Surachat Chanprasit, a representative from Pingya Shopping Centre, said monkeys frequently swarmed the establishment and harassed the customers who came to shop.

They also damaged store fronts, forcing owners to shell out for repair works and hastening their exit from there.

The mischievous monkeys have deterred people from visiting the local shopping centre and the dwindling retail footprint led to it being put up for sale two years ago.

But the property was still on the market despite its price being reduced from 100 million baht (US$2.8 million) to 70 million baht, underscoring the growing commercial toll on the monkey-occupied city.

The shopping arcade’s management also cut the rent to help tenants tide over the crisis after they sought to end their leases.

“Previously, a Chinese investor had visited the area to check the feasibility of an investment,” Surachat said.

Monkey attacks, sexism, a punch-up: welcome aboard the cruise from hell

“However, when the investor realised that the problem of monkey population threatening the heart of the city had not been solved, he postponed the investment indefinitely.”

The Lopburi Chamber of Commerce said rules limiting the height of buildings and maintaining the condition of the heritage structures had compounded the problem, Khaosod reported.

Pongsatorn Chaichanapanich, the lobby group’s chief, said businesses had deserted the area opposite to the popular Phra Prang Sam Yot temple.

He added policy changes, including amending the law to allow the management of monkeys in urban areas, were needed to revive the city’s economy and boost tourism numbers.

“The government needs to decide at the policy level how it will develop Lopburi as a historical city with many historical sites and how the government will help promote tourism in the province and attract more tourists,” he said.

Lopburi province and its army of monkeys have long been a draw for tourists from around the world, who typically feed them and pose with them for selfies.

The region also holds an annual monkey festival to thank the animals for helping to attract visitors to Lopburi.

Provincial governor Ampol Angkhapakornkul recently visited the city and pledged to work with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation to tackle the problem.

In 2020, officials launched a sterilisation campaign aimed at reducing the monkeys’ urban growth rate.

Ultrathin smart fibre created by Singapore, China researchers seen as ‘leap’ forward in wearable tech

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3250464/ultrathin-smart-fibre-created-singapore-china-researchers-seen-leap-forward-wearable-tech?utm_source=rss_feed

Scientists in Singapore and China’s top research institute say they have developed an ultrathin smart fibre that can be woven into fabrics to turn everyday outfits into wearable electronics.

A jumper interknitted with the new semiconductor fibres as thin as human hair would be able to share pictures with other wearers via a wireless light-based communication system.

A similarly made beanie could help a visually impaired person cross the road safely, by sending traffic signal information to a phone and triggering it to vibrate in line with the changing colours.

What’s more, both the jumper and the beanie would be machine washable.

Again, instead of a smartwatch with rigid hardware, the fibre would let users opt for a flexible watch band to measure heart rate.

And a “smart top” worn to the museum would be able to receive information about exhibits and feed it into a earpiece while the wearer moved around the halls.

All of these possible applications and more were highlighted by the research team from Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and institutes under the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shenzhen and Suzhou, whose findings were published in the peer-reviewed journal Nature on Thursday.

The fibre can also work deep underwater, the researchers said. In a test, a mini-submarine with fibres glued on to the surface was able to receive commands from a phone for directions.

This comes as scientists worldwide explore ways and new materials to devise comfortable, even imperceptible, next-generation wearable electronics. Future devices and materials should also ideally be highly power-efficient, recyclable and sustainable.

In the latest study, the team developed a technique to create defect-free strands spanning hundreds of metres by embedding synthetic fibres with semiconductor materials.

To do this, a semiconductor wire is first inserted into a glass tube, which is then heated until the wire is soft enough to be pulled into a thin strand. Once the strand cools, the glass is removed.

Next, the semiconductor strand is put into a polymer tube together with metal wires. That is then heated and stretched to make a thin, flexible thread.

Lead author Wei Lei, an associate professor and the director of the Centre for Optical Fibre Technology at NTU, said while the polymer cladding could feel like a fishing line, the functional fibre would make up less than 5 per cent of the total surface area of the fabric to ensure user comfort.

“This way users would feel as if they were wearing a cotton garment. In areas connected to health monitoring, like the heart or the wrists, more fibre could be added [for its sensory function],” Wei said.

He also said the manufacturing process was compatible with machines widely used by the textile industry.

The team will continue its research to turn other electronic components such as batteries into threadlike shapes, so that they can make up a complete system of smart textiles.

“We are also working on displays enabled by light-emitting fibres. The content can then be shown on, say the arm, of the shirt,” Wei said.

“Our long-term goal is to have a fibre battery to power fibre sensors, with display and computing as further functions. Simple computing functions within a wearable device can make sure it only transmits data that is required, thereby reducing power consumption.”

China’s latest wearable tech is an air-conditioned hazmat suit

In an accompanying expert commentary article, two scientists from Virginia Tech in the United States said the team’s work represented “a leap towards embedding microcomputers into everyday clothing”.

“Because the wires embedded in [the new] fibres are easily connected to existing computer hardware, this technology could prove useful in efforts to develop integrated human-machine systems,” the scientists, who were not involved in the study, wrote.

“The work therefore allows us to imagine a generation of smart fibres and fabrics that enable individuals to engage seamlessly with their surroundings – and make their everyday experiences fully immersive.”

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China’s intelligence agency calls case of ‘extreme environmentalism’ a threat to national security

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3250559/chinas-intelligence-agency-calls-case-extreme-environmentalism-threat-national-security?utm_source=rss_feed

China’s top intelligence agency has taken aim at a case of “extreme environmentalism” that targeted the fishing industry, calling it a threat to national security.

It was the Ministry of State Security’s latest warning as Beijing seeks to revive the economy amid intensifying trade rivalry with the US and its allies.

In a post on its official WeChat account on Wednesday, the ministry said it had “lawfully punished” a Chinese resident who was “deeply influenced” by extreme environmentalism while overseas. It said the person, surnamed Li, had engaged in “illegal activities” that endangered China’s national security.

Li had “enthusiastically” taken part in environmental protection activities and was recruited by “anti-China forces” while studying abroad, building connections with non-government organisations, overseas industry associations and multinational companies, according to the post.

The ministry said that with the support of an overseas agency, Li had set up a consulting firm in China to collect information on the fishing industry, including industry policy and data, to share with those contacts.

Death on the high seas: the dark side of China’s rise as seafood superpower

It said Li had received instructions from overseas contacts, had “fabricated” materials to suggest there were environmental problems in the industry, and had helped “some countries” to enact trade restrictions against China.

The ministry said its investigation found that the actions had resulted in suppression of Chinese aquatic exports by some foreign entities under the pretext of “environmental protection”, which it called a “carefully orchestrated political conspiracy”.

The post did not give further details of the allegations, including Li’s nationality or where the “anti-China forces” were located, and it did not say if any arrests had been made.

It said China’s economy was “rebounding and shows signs of long-term improvement” but some countries – which the ministry did not name – were using environmental issues to engage in protectionism that was hindering China’s foreign trade growth.

Beijing is grappling with a sluggish post-pandemic economic recovery, while an increasing focus on national security has permeated all aspects of its governance at a time when rivalry is heating up with the West.

China is the world’s largest producer of aquaculture seafood and it is also the biggest seafood exporter, accounting for more than 60 per cent of global production.

The importance of the fishing industry is expected to grow given its significance in the domestic economy, Beijing’s quest for food security and its push to expand the ocean economy in recent years.

But China has long been criticised for the high state subsidies given to the industry and its role in depleting the world’s fish stocks and damaging maritime ecosystems after exhausting its own resources.

In a 2020 case, a vast Chinese fishing fleet of 340 vessels was reportedly found operating near the biodiverse and ecologically sensitive Galápagos Islands by the Ecuadorian navy, prompting outrage and concern in the region and beyond.

Fish farming floated as an answer to the Earth’s food issues

China formally accepted a World Trade Organization agreement in June last year to cut state subsidies for its fisheries sector as the WTO’s 164 members agreed to work towards diminishing billions of dollars in “harmful” government subsidies that are depleting the oceans.

Responding to international pressure from ocean conservation groups and foreign governments, Beijing has tightened controls of its fishing fleet in recent years, including reducing the number of vessels involved in distant-water fishing.

South China Sea: Philippines’ Marcos approves purchase of submarines to defend sovereignty, amid growing China tensions

https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3250570/south-china-sea-philippines-marcos-approves-purchase-submarines-defend-sovereignty-amid-growing?utm_source=rss_feed

Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr has approved the third phase of the military’s modernisation, which includes the purchase of the country’s first submarine, to defend its maritime sovereignty in the disputed South China Sea.

Navy spokesman for the West Philippine Sea, Roy Trinidad, said on Thursday the third phase of modernisation reflected a shift in strategy away from internal to external defence.

“We may not be a large navy … but we would have a navy that will take care of our territorial rights and sovereignty,” Trinidad said.

‘Urgent we start now’: Philippines to explore oil-rich sea amid China tension

The third phase of the modernisation plan, which underwent revisions to make it more attuned to the country’s needs, is estimated to cost 2 trillion pesos (US$35.62 billion) and will be implemented over a period of several years, said Trinidad.

The announcement comes at a time of growing tensions with China over territorial disputes in the South China Sea. Manila refers to that part of the South China Sea within its exclusive economic zone as West Philippine Sea.

Trinidad could not immediately say how many submarines the Philippines intend to acquire, but he said, “definitely more than one.”

France, Spain, South Korea and Italy have shown interest in supplying the Philippines with submarines, he said.

Southeast Asian neighbours like Indonesia and Vietnam already have submarine programmes.

While the first and second phase of the military’s modernisation plan were “land centric”, said Trinidad, the third phase will seek, among others, to boost military capabilities on the West Philippine Sea.

South China Sea: Beijing, Asean claimant states risk further conflicts in 2024

Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro said last month acquisitions under the third phase will focus on an array of capabilities, ranging from domain awareness, intelligence, deterrence capabilities in the maritime and aerial space.

Beijing and Manila have traded sharp accusations in recent months over a succession of run-ins in the South China Sea, where each have overlapping sovereignty claims, including charges that China in December rammed a ship carrying the Philippine armed forces chief of staff.

Mainland China claims most of the South China Sea, parts of which are also claimed by the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and Indonesia. An international tribunal in 2016 invalidated China’s claim in a ruling on a case brought by the Philippines, which Beijing rejects.

Why doubts over economic data matter more in the US than China

https://www.scmp.com/comment/opinion/article/3250531/why-doubts-over-economic-data-matter-more-us-china?utm_source=rss_feed

In 2019, economists at the San Francisco branch of the US Federal Reserve published a paper examining the extent to which China was “fudging” its economic statistics. Like many analysts, they used an alternative source of data to gauge Chinese growth, opting for imports – on the grounds that exports reported by China’s trading partners were externally reported statistics “unexposed to domestic manipulation”.

Concerns about the reliability and quality of data in China are hardly new but they have intensified since the country became more deeply integrated into the global economy. Part of the problem is the inherent difficulties in trying to get a clear picture of what is happening in a huge economy transitioning from central planning to free markets and struggling to keep up with the statistical requirements for measuring output in a consumer-oriented economy.

However, the lack of confidence in China’s data has been exacerbated by increasing clampdowns on access to sensitive information under President Xi Jinping, making it more difficult for China-watchers to gain deeper insight into the state of the economy, not to mention policymaking in Beijing.

Yet distrust of statistics is not just confined to China. There is also a significant trust deficit – one which could prove hugely consequential – in the United States. The problem with China’s data is that it is unreliable. In the US, by contrast, it is skewed by political partisanship, so much so that it is shaping the economic narrative and exerting influence on politics and policy.

It is bad enough that investors are struggling to interpret data correctly in the world’s biggest and most influential economy. Not only has this caused wild swings in the prices of bonds and stocks, it has created unrealistic expectations that the Fed will cut interest rates aggressively this year despite a persistently strong jobs market and exceptionally loose financial conditions that risk fuelling inflationary pressures.

To revive confidence in China’s economy, clear and reliable data is essential

However, the gap between perception and reality is much wider when it comes to soft data, such as business and consumer surveys. Objectively speaking, the US economy is performing extremely well compared with its peers. Inflation has fallen sharply in the past year. According to some measures, the Fed has already met its inflation target of 2 per cent.

Moreover, gross domestic product expanded by a stronger-than-expected 3.1 per cent last year, making the US the fastest-growing advanced economy, defying lingering fears of a recession. Most investors are convinced the US is heading for a “soft landing”, whereby inflation is quelled without causing a recession.

Yet the optimism is not reflected in surveys of current economic conditions. A closely watched index of consumer sentiment published monthly by the University of Michigan stands close to levels last seen during the acute phase of the pandemic.

The pessimism partly stems from extreme political polarisation. For respondents identifying as Democrats, current economic conditions are better than they were before the Covid-19 pandemic erupted, but for self-identified Republicans the economy has barely recovered. The partisan divide extends to inflation expectations, with Republicans less confident than Democrats that inflation will return to 2 per cent in the next five years.

Misinformation and misperceptions have already had a pernicious impact on US politics, and now they are impairing the quality of economic data. In a paper published in an MIT journal last year, a group of US-based economists noted a “substantial increase in the effect of partisan bias on survey-based measures of economic expectations”.

To be sure, other forces are at work. Although inflation has come down, many prices continue to rise, making consumers nostalgic for the cost of living before inflation took off. Furthermore, despite a remarkably resilient labour market, the sharp increase in borrowing costs is taking its toll on growth, with a steep rise in delinquency rates on credit card loans and a slowdown in bank lending.

Yet political bias is undeniably a factor in explaining the huge disconnect between the relatively strong performance of the economy and how some Americans are feeling. The implications for US politics and monetary policy are significant.

Even though the economy has added 14 million jobs since US President Joe Biden took office, only a third of Americans approve of his job performance. More worryingly for Biden and Democrats, half of African-Americans disapprove of his presidency, according to a recent survey by the Pew Research Centre.

Not only is Donald Trump leading Biden in national polls, 51 per cent of voters in battleground states said they believed Trump would do a better job of managing the economy, the findings of a poll published on Wednesday revealed. This could be because some Americans felt better off under Trump, who left office before inflation and interest rates soared. But it also shows how political bias is shaping the economic narrative regardless of the relatively rosy hard data.

Public misperception and scepticism of economic statistics also pose a challenge for the Fed, which is under pressure to cut rates sooner rather than later. While many things could happen between now and the election, monetary policy is likely to become more politicised, making it more difficult for the Fed to reduce rates without being accused of taking sides in the election and stoking inflation.

Many leading economies are suffering from declining trust in economic data. While the reasons vary, the stakes are higher in the US because the trust deficit has global implications. China’s data reliability problem could appear relatively inconsequential by the end of this year.

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China-Africa trade hit $282 billion in 2023 but Africa’s trade deficit widens, with commodity prices a key factor

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3250552/china-africa-trade-hit-282-billion-2023-africas-trade-deficit-widens-commodity-prices-key-factor?utm_source=rss_feed

China’s total trade with Africa grew a modest 1.5 per cent in 2023 from 2022 to US$282.1 billion, but Africa’s trade deficit with China widened, according to the latest customs data from China.

Chinese exports to Africa reached US$173 billion, an increase of 7.5 per cent over 2022, while its imports from the continent dropped by 6.7 per cent to US$109 billion, figures from the General Administration of Customs showed.

While the US$0.1 billion year-on-year increase made 2023 bilateral trade a record, Africa’s trade deficit with China continued to expand, from US$46.9 billion in 2022 to US$64 billion.

In Beijing, trade officials tried to strike an upbeat tone, hailing China’s role as Africa’s largest trading partner “for 15 consecutive years”.

“The 1.5 per cent growth was … a reflection of strong resilience of the China-Africa trade,” said Jiang Wei, director general of the department of west Asian and African affairs at China’s Ministry of Commerce, at a press conference on Wednesday.

Observers said the modest growth followed the pattern of China’s overall trade with other regions as it faced severe economic headwinds, including weak business and consumer confidence, tepid global demand, a property crisis and heavy local government debt that could constrain the ability to stimulate the economy.

Last year, the value of China’s total global trade slumped 5 per cent from the previous year to US$5.93 trillion.

According to China’s customs data, in 2023 China recorded a drop in trade with its top five trading partners in Africa – South Africa, Angola, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Egypt – which are predominantly resource-rich nations.

In the DRC, where China sources more than 60 per cent of its cobalt to make electric vehicle batteries, two-way trade dropped 13.2 per cent last year to US$18.75 billion compared to the same period in 2022. China’s imports from the DRC dropped by 13.9 per cent last year to US$14.27 billion over 2022.

Analysts said the drop in imports from Africa could partly be attributed to the drop in the price of key minerals, metals and oil that China mostly imports from some African countries. For instance, a tonne of cobalt averaged US$63,739 in 2022 but the price had dropped to below US$30,000 by the end of 2023.

China’s ‘stadium diplomacy’ looking for a win at the Africa Cup of Nations

Lauren Johnston, a China-Africa expert and an associate professor at the University of Sydney’s China Studies Centre, noted that the 2023 trade figures related to price volatility for resources such as oil and copper.

China imports raw materials from the continent, including oil, copper and aluminium, whose prices dropped in the past year.

“A fall in these and Africa’s trade earnings will fall, even if volumes stay the same – and sometimes even if they grow,” Johnston said. “To a large extent today, Africa’s trade balance depends on the price of oil.”

The price of Brent crude oil averaged US$83 a barrel in 2023, down from US$101 per barrel in 2022, a drop mostly driven by an oil supply shortage after fears over the Russia-Ukraine war gripped the markets, sending prices falling.

However, a drop in oil prices is good news for Africa’s own oil importers, which tend to be the economies with a better chance of industrialisation. “It’s not necessarily bad news,” Johnston said.

Carlos Lopes, a professor in the Nelson Mandela School of Public Governance at the University of Cape Town in South Africa, said the modest changes also reflected a continuing lower demand from China despite the ascending curve starting in 2022.

But Lopes said economic growth, consumer demand and overall economic performance in both China and Africa were still recovering from the pandemic and the impact of the war in Ukraine.

“It is also clear that the Chinese government has been adjusting its trade policies, tariffs and regulations considering the tensions with the US and climate-related developments,” Lopes said.

“It is also important to bear in mind that changes in exchange rates have affected the competitiveness of goods from Africa, influencing trade volumes and values.”

China has come under fire for its vast trade surplus with most parts of the world, with some accusing it of promoting an unhealthy balance by selling finished products to Africa while buying mostly raw materials.

To address trade imbalance, Beijing has pledged to grow its imports from Africa by opening “green lanes” to African agricultural exports and allowing more African products into the Chinese market duty-free.

Over the past two years, about two dozen African nations have benefited from Beijing’s decision to waive tariffs on exports from the “least developed countries” in Africa.

On the sidelines of the Brics summit in Johannesburg in August, Chinese President Xi Jinping told African leaders that China would step up efforts to reverse the trade imbalance, including helping African countries produce more food products and set up industries to process them locally.

Beijing has said it aims to import products worth US$300 billion from Africa by 2024.

But Johnston said addressing a trade imbalance would not happen overnight.

China investors eye Africa’s Mauritius as it goes green, tries to sweeten deals

While increasing agricultural exports could improve trade balance with individual countries and raise the income of some rural communities, it is unlikely to make a big dent in Africa-wide trade balances in the near future, if ever, unless there were large-scale exports, such as the soybean exports from the US and Brazil or dairy from New Zealand.

She said it would take long-term effort for both Africa and China to find a trade balance, and China might also need to offer something new.

“Building competitive and sustainable exports beyond energy and minerals is not easy. It takes time,” Johnston said.

China sets sights on Taiwan’s three remaining tiny Pacific allies

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2024/02/01/china-taiwan-pacific-nauru-tuvalu/2024-01-22T05:13:31.001Z

When Tuvalu’s new government gathers for the first time in the coming days, legislators in the tiny island nation will make two decisions whose effects will ripple across the Pacific, all the way to Washington.

First, the 16 lawmakers will decide which of them will lead the nation of 11,000 people. Then they’ll turn their attention to an even bigger issue: What to do about China?

Tuvalu is one of only three Pacific Island nations that still recognize Taiwan, following Nauru’s diplomatic swing to China last month But that could change following last week’s election, when Tuvalu’s pro-Taiwan prime minister surprisingly lost his seat.

Seve Paeniu, the more pro-China finance minister, was not only reelected but also has emerged as one of the top contenders to become prime minister.

Paeniu told The Washington Post he was open to recognizing China — a move that would leave the self-governing island of Taiwan with just two allies in the Pacific — Palau and the Marshall Islands — and fewer than a dozen worldwide.

“As far as I am concerned, it boils down to whichever country … offers the greatest support to achieving Tuvalu’s development priorities and aspirations,” Paeniu said. “The whole relationship will need to be reviewed and assessed carefully before arriving at an informed decision on the switch.”

As China vies with the United States for power and influence in the Pacific, it has tirelessly tried to pry allies away from Taiwan by many means — chief among them, money.

It has offered much-needed funds to struggling island nations like Nauru, and allegedly doled out envelopes of cash to officials — an accusation Beijing denies. They have approached Pacific politicians as they travel overseas, inviting some to lunch and surveilling others. Two Pacific leaders said Chinese officials called to berate them so often they changed their numbers.

“China sees an opportunity,” said Surangel Whipps, Jr., the president of Palau, one of Taiwan’s two other remaining allies in the Pacific, who changed his number after calls from a Chinese official turned angry. Whipps said he and his country have come under intense pressure from Beijing ahead of an election this November.

“They are trying to get the message across: Join us and you’ll be better off,” he said in an interview. “And it is tempting when you’re hit with covid, when you have a lot of debt, when your country is up against the wall and China says we should do all of this for you.”

China’s Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.

As China arrives with a splash in Honduras, the U.S. wrings its hands

It is all part of Beijing’s decades-long campaign to intimidate Taiwan, which it claims is part of China and which has ramped up under Chinese leader Xi Jinping, who recently said that China’s rule over the island is “inevitable.” Beijing has pushed countries to recognize China, not Taiwan, as a way to bolster its claims and, by picking off its allies, China isolates Taiwan on the international stage.

Chinese officials appear to be redoubling these efforts after Lai Ching-te of the Democratic Progressive Party, a man Beijing considers a dangerous separatist, was elected the next president of Taiwan.

Nauru’s surprise switch

Two days after the election, Nauru gave Taiwan two hours’ notice that it was ending relations with Taipei “effective immediately” and establishing ties with Beijing.

As recently as November, Nauru and Taiwan were discussing new airline routes. That month, Nauru officials met with Taiwan and its other Pacific allies on the sidelines of a summit in the Cook Islands. There was no sign Nauru was about to switch. “I thought everything was great,” said Whipps, who was at the meeting.

But by year’s end, Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu was hearing otherwise. Nauru’s Foreign Minister Lionel Aingimea told him the island was under “lots of financial pressure” because of a drop in funding from Australia for an offshore refugee processing center, Wu said.

Wu offered to speak with the United States and Australia about making up the shortfall, but in the background China was already making moves.

Taiwan loses another diplomatic ally as Nauru recognizes China

Wu soon learned that Beijing was offering Nauru a deal worth more than $100 million — more than half of Nauru’s 2023-24 budget and more than 10 times what Taiwan gave Nauru annually in project-based aid.

“We were told by a Nauru friend … that China promised them that the aid is unlimited — whatever they requested,” Wu said.

Aingimea said last month’s diplomatic switch was because China was better able to help Nauru. “To say it’s a question of dollars is absolutely an insult to us,” he told The Post. “It’s about our development strategy.”

Beijing had agreed to infrastructure projects including a sports stadium, schools, hospitals and office complexes, as well as plans to move vulnerable coastal buildings to higher ground and to extend the life of aging phosphate mines.

The discussions with China began more than a year ago, Aingimea said. Nauru never told Taipei it was thinking of switching but it mentioned “geopolitical pressures.”

“They should have stepped up and said they would come and help,” Aingimea said. “We’re not a beggar nation that goes around asking people with our hands out.”

After the success with Nauru, Chinese officials have since promised to lure away more of Taiwan’s remaining allies — 11 countries, many of them small, and the Holy See. The head of the diplomatic team overseeing the reopening of China’s Embassy in Nauru last week suggested the remaining three Pacific nations would soon switch.

“China has already established diplomatic ties with 10 Pacific countries — Nauru was the 11th and I’m confident it won’t be the last,” Wang Xuguang told Chinese state media.

The competition over allies also illustrates China’s bid for influence in regions typically under Western sway.

“In the past, Beijing’s focus was mainly Taiwan itself,” said Lu Yeh-chung, a professor of diplomacy at the National Chengchi University in Taipei. “Now they’ve shown they intend to compete with the United States and Australia by snatching Taiwan’s allies in the South Pacific.”

Nauru’s switch also points to a new effort by Beijing to make the one-China principle — which maintains that Taiwan is part of China — an accepted fact. Announcing its switch and adherence to the one-China principle, Nauru described it as “in line” with a United Nations resolution in 1971 that established Beijing as the sole representative of China to the body. By linking the two, Beijing is “sneaking the idea that Taiwan is part of China into the rules-based international order,” said Lu.

What next for Tuvalu?

Tuvalu’s newly elected officials are now in the process of choosing who will become prime minister. Apart from Paeniu, most of the front-runners have publicly dismissed the idea of switching ties to Beijing. Opposition leader Enele Sopoaga, who retained his place in parliament, said in December that he would “never” side with China.

Taiwan provides Tuvalu around $12 million per year in direct budgetary support, along with funds for projects including roughly $10 million for a proposed new parliament building, said Taiwan’s ambassador to Tuvalu, Andrew Lin.

A sinking nation is offered an escape route. But there’s a catch.

All the while, China has been targeting Tuvalu officials.

Simon Kofe, a member of parliament who was reelected last week, said he was approached by Chinese officials during a trip to Fiji, which has diplomatic ties with Beijing, in 2022, when he was Tuvalu’s foreign affairs minister. The officials offered a meeting with the Chinese ambassador, but Kofe declined. “If it’s happened to me, then it definitely is happening to others,” Kofe said.

Taiwan’s other Pacific allies — Palau and the Marshall Islands — have security agreements called compacts of free association with the United States that make a switch less likely.

Marshallese President Hilda Heine said her nation still had strong ties to Taiwan and was not under Chinese pressure to switch “at the moment.”

But Whipps said Palau’s close U.S. relationship made it even more of a target for China: “They are very interested in flipping a compact country.”

Palau won’t switch while he is president, Whipps said. But he feared for what would happen if someone else were elected.

“We know that if we all sever ties with Taiwan, that just gives China a green light to take over Taiwan,” he said. “For a small island like us, that is kind of scary.”

Miller reported from Sydney. Kuo and Chiang reported from Taipei.

Elderly Uyghur women imprisoned in China for decades-old religious ‘crimes’, leaked files reveal

https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/feb/01/elderly-uyghur-women-imprisoned-in-china-for-decades-old-religious-crimes-leaked-files-reveal

Hundreds of thousands of Uyghur female religious leaders are estimated to have been arrested and imprisoned in Xinjiang since 2014, with some elderly women detained for practices that took place decades ago, according to an analysis of leaked Chinese police files.

There is growing evidence of the abusive treatment of the Uyghur Muslim population of the north-west Chinese region of Xinjiang, with their traditions and religion seen as evidence of extremism and separatism.

New analysis of leaked police files found more than 400 women – some more than 80 years old – were sentenced by Chinese police for wearing religious clothing and acquiring or spreading religious knowledge. Most were sentenced for studying the Qur’an, said researchers from the US-based Uyghur Human Rights Project, who used analysis of the files to extrapolate that hundreds of thousands of women were likely to have been detained, in total.

In 2017, Patihan Imin, 70, was sentenced to six years in prison. Her “crimes” included studying the Qur’an between April and May 1967, wearing conservative religious dress between 2005 and 2014, and keeping an electronic Qur’an reader at home.

Another woman, Ezizgul Memet, was charged with illegally studying scripture with her mother for three days “in or around” February 1976, when she was just five or six years old. She was detained on 6 July 2017 and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

The police files were initially published in 2022 by several media outlets, including the BBC, but this is the first time the treatment of Uyghur female religious leaders has been analysed by researchers. Previous testimony from women confined in camps in Xinjiang revealed they have allegedly been subjected to forced sterilisation, abortion, sexual assault and marriage by the Chinese government.

Other charges included wearing “illegal religious clothing”, purchasing or keeping religious books at home, attending “illegal religious gatherings”, and even organising a wedding without music – which is officially seen as a sign of religious extremism, the report said.

The longest recorded sentence was given to Aytila Rozi, 35, who received 20 years for learning to read the Qur’an while working in inner China in 2007, as well as teaching and studying the Qur’an with a small group of women between 2009 and 2011.

In China, state narratives have portrayed Uyghur women who acted as religious figures in the community as “dupes of religious extremism”, but researchers say religion is an important vehicle for female agency and expression in Uyghur communities.

Rachel Harris, professor of ethnomusicology at Soas University of London and co-author of the new report, said the ustaz (urban female leaders who embraced reformist styles of Islam coming from the Middle East in the 1980s) used religion to pursue education and participate in international trade.

Meanwhile, the büwi (female religious leaders primarily in rural Uyghur communities) held significant power in society, and were responsible for leading birth and death rituals, teaching children and overseeing women’s religious and cultural activities.

“The government narrative was that women needed to be liberated from religious oppression. They really took that [agency] away in the name of liberating women,” said Harris.

While the ustaz still play a prominent role among the Uyghur diaspora, few büwi traditions have survived, said Harris. “The culture of the büwi, including their poetry and songs and religious gatherings, that’s been repressed and suppressed,” she said.

The report comes as the UK, US and other countries condemned Beijing’s treatment of Uyghurs in a rare scrutiny of the country’s human rights record at the UN last week. The UK called on Beijing to “cease the persecution and arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and Tibetans and allow genuine freedom of religion or belief and cultural expression.”

In response, China’s UN ambassador Chen Xu said the concerns were caused by “misunderstanding or misinformation”, and that “a few countries groundlessly accuse and smear China, based not on facts but on ideological bias and unfounded rumours and lies”.

China baker asked to hide US$2,800 inside cake as surprise at engagement party celebration tricked into dirty money scam

https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3249468/china-baker-asked-hide-us2800-inside-cake-surprise-engagement-party-celebration-tricked-dirty-money?utm_source=rss_feed

The story of a bakery shop owner in China who became unwittingly embroiled in a dirty money racket after making a cake for a customer with 20,000 yuan (US$2,800) hidden inside it, has sparked much interest online.

Ordering a “money-hiding cake” is a popular way to present gifts on special occasions in China, social media is filled with videos showing recipients joyfully pulling out cash like tissues from a box.

However, the seemingly innocuous trend has landed a cake shop owner, surnamed Zhang, from Leling in Shandong province, eastern China, in hot water.

Zhang took an order through WeChat which asked him to embed the money inside a cake as a surprise at an engagement party.

Aware of the trend’s popularity and having previously received similar requests, Zhang initially had no suspicions and charged the customer for an eight-inch cake as requested.

Screenshots of their WeChat conversation showed the customer making the inquiry: “If I transfer 20,000 yuan to you, can you withdraw the money in cash for me? I’m currently busy.”

The shop’s customer service replied: “I’ll check with the boss.”

The customer then transferred the money into Zhang’s bank account, saying his family would collect the cake later.

However, what appeared to be a routine transaction quickly turned into an ordeal for Zhang when he discovered his bank account had been frozen soon after completing the order.

Investigations revealed that the 20,000 yuan transferred into his account was likely to have been the proceeds of a crime.

The case, reported by Jupai News, follows a similar incident over last Christmas in Hunan province, southern China, when a cake shop owner took a customer order for a money-hiding cake containing 10,000 yuan.

According to Rednet.cn, after completing the order, the owner also discovered her account had been frozen and was informed by police that she was potentially facilitating cash withdrawals that could be considered crimes.

The cake shop owners involved in these cases have attracted widespread sympathy on mainland social media.

“These days, any preventive measures prove to be useless,” said one online observer.

“I wonder how the merchants can prevent such traps? Of course, they cannot just let the customers go. The merchants are victims,” another said.

A third asked: “So, does this mean the merchant provided the cake and lost tens of thousands in cash, and could potentially be sued?”

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New Chinese defence minister Dong Jun speaks with Russian counterpart

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3250511/new-chinese-defence-minister-dong-jun-speaks-russian-counterpart?utm_source=rss_feed

In his first international engagement, China’s new defence minister held a video conference with his Russian counterpart on Wednesday.

Dong Jun, who took office a month ago, spoke with Russia’s Sergei Shoigu and “exchanged views on international and regional issues of common interest”, China’s defence ministry said in a statement.

In the face of global challenges, the Chinese and Russian militaries should be bolstering mutual trust and expanding cooperation to “elevate the relations between the two militaries to a higher level”, Dong told Shoigu.

“The militaries should play a greater role in deepening China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperation and maintaining global security and stability,” Dong said.

Shoigu said he looked forward to “closest and most fruitful cooperation” with Chinese partners and believed his talks with Dong would “further strengthen the Russian-Chinese strategic partnership in the field of defence,” according to Russia’s Sputnik News.

Shoigu was quoted as saying Russia and China were developing “comprehensive military cooperation” but were “not targeting any third country”.

China removes 9 PLA generals from top legislature in sign of wider purge

“Russian-Chinese military relations are developing steadily in all directions. We regularly hold joint naval, air and land combat training activities, and have successfully conducted combat exercises of different levels of complexity,” Shoigu said.

The defence chiefs both mentioned that China and Russia would celebrate the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relationship this year and hailed the “best in history” relationship under the leadership of Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, the Chinese statement said.

The diplomatic ties between Beijing and Moscow started when the newly established People’s Republic of China was recognised by the Soviet Union in October 1949. In recent years, Xi and Putin have moved closer amid growing tension with the West and declared a “partnership with no limits” just before Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

The two militaries also have stepped up cooperation in various forms, including joint exercises and hi-tech exchanges.

But Shoigu reiterated on Wednesday that it was not a formal military alliance. “Unlike some Western countries, our two countries do not form a military bloc,” he said.

It was Dong’s first diplomatic appearance as the defence minister. The former commander of the PLA Navy was named minister on December 29 after the post was left vacant for more than two months.

His predecessor, Li Shangfu, was suddenly sacked in October without explanation, and there has yet to be an official announcement about Li’s dismissal. It was reported that a major anti-corruption campaign has been conducted within the PLA, with many senior commanders and generals put under investigation.

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Chinese embassy slams British security minister for ‘groundless attack’ on Hong Kong’s coming domestic national security law

https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/3250543/chinese-embassy-slams-british-security-minister-groundless-attack-hong-kongs-coming-domestic?utm_source=rss_feed

The Chinese embassy in London has strongly condemned the British security minister for his “groundless attack” on Hong Kong’s coming domestic national security law, describing his remarks as irresponsible and a show of double standards.

The embassy on Thursday also urged Minister of State Tom Tugendhat to stop meddling in China’s internal affairs, saying he had no right to do so.

“We firmly oppose this UK politician’s groundless attack on the legislation of Article 23 of the Basic Law of Hong Kong,” an embassy spokesman said in a statement.

Tugendhat on Tuesday said during a gathering with Hongkongers in the UK that the coming security legislation would achieve nothing but destroy prosperity in the city by damaging the rule of law, freedom and opportunities, according to Voice of America, the United States government’s external broadcaster.

The politician also said it was absolutely absurd for the Hong Kong government to assert that the new legislation would guarantee prosperity for the city, according to the broadcaster.

The government released a 110-page consultation paper on Tuesday in its second attempt to legislate Article 23 of the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, which requires Hong Kong to enact its own national security law.

Hong Kong colonial-era charges to be kept as part of new national security law

The first attempt, dating back to 2003, failed in the face of massive public opposition. The new legislation is expected to be approved within this year.

The embassy spokesman said the legislation was “a due obligation” for the Hong Kong government to fulfil its constitutional responsibility, stressing that preventing, curbing and punishing acts and activities endangering national security was a pressing task for the city.

“The legislation will protect the fundamental well-being of all [Hong Kong] residents and the interests of global investors in Hong Kong, and better safeguard its long-term stability and security,” the spokesman said.

“The UK just introduced its new National Security Act last year, yet now it is pointing fingers at the [enactment of national security legislation in Hong Kong]. This is nothing but sheer double standards.”

More clarity needed on Hong Kong security law to reassure investors, experts say

The United Kingdom passed the act on July 11, 2023, to increase the authority of British law enforcement and intelligence agencies to combat hostile foreign states.

“We urge UK politicians to stop making irresponsible remarks [about] Article 23 legislation and stop interfering in China’s internal affairs,” the spokesperson said.

The proposed legislation for Article 23, which aims to complement the Beijing-imposed national security law, targets five major activities: treason; insurrection, incitement to mutiny and disaffection, and acts with seditious intention; sabotage; foreign interference; theft of state secrets and espionage.

Stop targeting our students and trying to turn them into spies, China tells US

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3250519/stop-targeting-our-students-and-trying-turn-them-spies-china-tells-us?utm_source=rss_feed

China has accused US authorities of targeting arriving Chinese students “for political purposes” and trying to turn some of them into spies.

Foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at least eight students with valid travel documents were harassed, interrogated and even deported at Dulles International Airport – a hub for direct flights between Beijing and Washington – since the end of November.

Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Wang said US law enforcement officials also made “unabashed” attempts to induce and sway some of the students among the recent cases. “[That] directly threatens China’s national security,” he said.

Wang characterised the US actions as unprincipled and “discriminatory moves” under the guise of law enforcement, with a “strong ideological bias”.

He was responding to a question about recent accounts from Chinese nationals about their treatment when trying to enter the US to study.

Why more Chinese students are looking to Europe – not the US or UK – for study

The questioner alleged that students had been being repeatedly quizzed by US officials about their political backgrounds and research activities, and that some had been told their entry was conditional on providing insider information about the Chinese government.

Wang said the US authorities were “weaponising” academic research, overstretching the concept of national security, persecuting Chinese students, and “poisoning” the atmosphere of bilateral people-to-people exchanges.

The strongly-worded accusation came two days after China lodged a formal complaint against the US for allegedly blocking Chinese students at the border and just months after both countries pledged to encourage educational and other exchanges.

The Chinese embassy in Washington also warned prospective students to “be cautious” about entering the US through Dulles airport, 42km (26 miles) west of the capital’s downtown.

Earlier this month, China Science Daily, a newspaper affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, published details of a PhD candidate who was deported by officials at Dulles airport upon her return in December to continue her biological sciences studies.

According to the report, the student spent eight hours in an interrogation room, followed by 12 hours in solitary confinement. She was also subjected to a body search.

Spy games: why the US-China cold war is heating up in public

When the woman returned to China, she learned of 10 other Chinese students who had similar experiences. They were mainly interrogated about undergraduate scholarships, from the China Scholarship Council, and their involvement in confidential research. the newspaper said.

Institutions attended by the students included Yale, Johns Hopkins University, and the University of Virginia. Majors included preventive medicine, statistics, material physical chemistry, communication engineering, German and business administration.

In the second half of last year, the Ministry of State Security – Beijing’s top anti-espionage agency – alleged that US intelligence recruited several Chinese nationals studying or working as visiting scholars in the US, Japan and Italy.

The ministry said targets were offered gifts and taken on outings – to the Super Bowl, CNN headquarters, the opera, and even strip shows – as inducements to spy against their country for the US.

Beijing arrests Chinese ministry official it says is CIA spy recruit

Both Wang and the embassy accused the US of violating a consensus reached between Chinese President Xi Jinping and his American counterpart Joe Biden during their November summit in California.

In their first face-to-face encounter in a year, Xi and Biden emphasised the need to restore societal interactions in their bid to stabilise relations from their most confrontational point since ties were established 45 years ago in 1979.

The two leaders agreed to encourage the expansion of educational, student, youth, cultural, sports and business exchanges.

In his press conference on Wednesday, Wang urged the US to “immediately stop using the so-called national security as a pretext to suppress and restrict Chinese students”.

“China will take resolute measures to safeguard national security and the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens,” he added.

Xi-Biden summit hit pause on troubled US-China relations: analysts

According to data from the Institute of International Education, Chinese students continue to outnumber any other foreign group studying in the US.

In the school year which ended in September 2023, there were 289,526 Chinese students in the US – a slight decrease of 0.2 per cent from the previous year and the lowest since 2013-14, according to the institute’s annual study funded by the US government.

Washington’s envoy to Beijing Nicolas Burns said last month that the number of American students in China rebounded to 700 last year after falling sharply to a mere 350 in 2022.

[World] FBI says Chinese state hacker group targeted US infrastructure

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-68163172?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA

China hacking threatens US infrastructure, FBI director warns, as Volt Typhoon botnet foiled

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/feb/01/china-hacking-threat-us-volt-typhoon-botnet-fbi-warning

US officials say they have disrupted a state-backed Chinese effort to plant malware that could damage civilian infrastructure, as the head of the FBI warned that Beijing was positioning itself to disrupt daily life in America were the US and China ever to go to war.

The operation disrupted a botnet of hundreds of small office and home routers based in the US that were owned by private citizens and companies that had been hijacked by the Chinese hackers to cover their tracks as they sowed malware.

Their ultimate targets included water treatment plants, the electrical grid and transportation systems across the US, official said on Wednesday.

The comments align with assessments from outside cybersecurity firms including Microsoft, which said in May that state-backed Chinese hackers had been targeting US critical infrastructure and could be laying the technical groundwork for the potential disruption of critical communications between the US and Asia during future crises.

At least a portion of that operation, attributed to a group of hackers known as Volt Typhoon, has been disrupted after FBI and justice department officials obtained search-and-seizure orders in Houston federal court in December. US officials did not characterise the disruption’s impact, and court documents unsealed on Wednesday say the disrupted botnet was just “one form of infrastructure used by Volt Typhoon to obfuscate their activity”. The hackers have infiltrated targets through multiple avenues, including cloud and internet providers, disguised within normal traffic.

The FBI director, Chris Wray, told the House select committee on the Chinese Communist party that there had been far too little public focus on a cyber threat that affects “every American”.

“China’s hackers are positioning on American infrastructure in preparation to wreak havoc and cause real-world harm to American citizens and communities, if or when China decides the time has come to strike,” Wray said.

Jen Easterly, the director of the Department of Homeland Security’s Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, voiced a similar sentiment at the hearing.

“This is a world where a major crisis halfway across the planet could well endanger the lives of Americans here at home through the disruption of our pipelines, the severing of our telecommunications, the pollution of our water facilities, the crippling of our transportation modes – all to ensure that they can incite societal panic and chaos and to deter our ability [to marshal a sufficient response],” she said.

The US has in the past few years become more aggressive in trying to disrupt and dismantle both criminal and state-backed cyber operations, with Wray warning on Wednesday that Beijing-backed hackers aimed to pilfer business secrets to advance the Chinese economy and steal personal information for foreign influence campaigns.

“They are doing all those things. They all feed up ultimately into their goal to supplant the US as the world’s greatest superpower,” he said.

Complicating the threat is that state-backed hackers, especially Chinese and Russian, are good at adapting and finding new intrusion methods and avenues.

US officials have long been concerned about such hackers hiding in US-based infrastructure, and the outdated Cisco and NetGear routers exploited by Volt Typhoon were easy prey because they were no longer supported by their manufacturers with security updates. Because of the urgency, law enforcement officials said, US cyber operators deleted the malware in those routers without notifying their owners directly – and added code to prevent reinfection.

“The truth is that Chinese cyber actors have taken advantage of very basic flaws in our technology,” Easterly said. “We’ve made it easy on them.”

On Wednesday, US officials said allies were also affected by Volt Typhoon’s critical infrastructure hacking but, asked by reporters, would not discuss any countermeasures they might be taking.

China has repeatedly denounced the US government’s hacking allegations as baseless. Beijing has accused the US of “almost daily” intrusions against the Chinese government, with Wang Wenbin, a spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry, saying last year “China is the biggest victim of cyber-attacks”.

But Gen Paul Nakasone, the outgoing commander of US Cyber Command and the National Security Agency, said “responsible cyber actors” did not target civilian infrastructure.

“There’s no reason for them to be in our water,” Nakasone said. “There’s no reason for them to be in our power.”

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China’s factory activity expands in January as export orders rise, business confidence hits 9-month high

https://www.scmp.com/economy/economic-indicators/article/3250503/chinas-factory-activity-expands-january-export-orders-rise-business-confidence-hits-9-month-high?utm_source=rss_feed

China’s factory activity expanded in January thanks to stable growth in output, quicker logistics and the first rise in new export orders since June, helping lift business confidence to a nine-month high, a private-sector survey showed on Thursday.

The positive result, however, contrasted with an official survey released a day earlier which showed manufacturing activity contracted again last month due to persistently weak demand.

Taken together, they point to a still-underperforming economy in need of more policy support.

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI stayed at 50.8 in January, unchanged from December and surpassing analysts’ forecasts of a fall to 50.6. The 50-point mark separates growth from contraction.

“Quicker logistics, increased procurement, and rising inventories reflected improved business confidence,” said Wang Zhe, senior economist at Caixin Insight Group.

However, he noted that employment remained in contraction, price levels were subdued and “deflationary pressures persisted”.

Policymakers in China face a daunting task as they try to revitalise the economy in the face of a property downturn, local government debt risks, deflationary pressures and tepid overseas demand.

The crisis-hit property sector was dealt a fresh blow this week after a Hong Kong court ordered the liquidation of the debt-laden developer China Evergrande Group.

But the Caixin survey offered some hope that external demand may be starting to improve with new export orders increasing for the first time since June last year, though marginally.

The export index may have been affected by the Lunar New Year, which will fall on February 10 this year, as factories and workers geared up for the pre-holiday shipment of goods.

Moreover, forecasts of stronger global demand, planned investment, new product releases and efforts to expand into new markets drove manufactures’ confidence to their highest since April last year.

But factories continued to trim their workforce in January, while efforts to attract and secure new orders prompted them to cut product selling prices.

Heightened deflationary pressures have raised investor bets for further monetary easing after China announced a deep cut to bank reserves last week to support the economy and a plunging stock market.

Chinese brain chip helps paralysed man regain mobility – and it’s less invasive than Elon Musk’s Neuralink

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3250476/chinese-brain-chip-helps-paralysed-man-regain-mobility-and-its-less-invasive-elon-musks-neuralink?utm_source=rss_feed

Chinese scientists have developed a wireless brain-computer interface implant that they say has made “breakthrough progress” in their first patient and is less invasive than Elon Musk’s Neuralink chip.

Tsinghua University in Beijing announced on WeChat on Tuesday that the device created by its research team had made significant progress in rehabilitating a human patient who received the implant on October 24.

The patient is part of an ongoing human clinical trial that has been registered both domestically and internationally, and the device will have to undergo further study before it can seek approval for clinical use.

Also on Tuesday, Musk announced that the first human patient had received an implant from his start-up Neuralink Corp.

The Chinese team’s implant – called the Neural Electronic Opportunity (NEO) – has allowed a quadriplegic patient to perform hand motions with the help of a wearable prosthetic guided by his brain, according to the university, which added that the feat had been achieved without the risk of damage to neurons.

Elon Musk says first human has received Neuralink brain implant

Brain-computer interfaces (BCI) are devices that create a direct pathway of communication between electrical activity within the brain and an external device, such as a computer.

BCI implants have the ability to “assist severely disabled persons in communication and active rehabilitation”, Tsinghua University said in a news release.

These implants could help patients with spinal cord injuries and even diseases such as epilepsy and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

But BCI implants could also allow us to fuse computer and brain intelligence, expanding the brain’s processing ability, according to the university.

The Chinese team’s “minimally invasive” implant is the size of two coins and is designed to be fitted into the skull. It has no batteries, as it is powered remotely with near-field wireless power using a high-frequency antenna, Tsinghua said.

The NEO system is not implanted directly into neural tissue. Instead, its electrodes are placed into the epidural space between the brain and skull.

The electrodes pick up nerve signals and send them wirelessly to an external receiver attached to the scalp. The signals can then be decoded by a phone or computer.

For a BCI implant to be sustainable, it must be minimally invasive, according to the university.

“Compared with BrainGate, Neuralink and other implanted BCIs, our NEO system has validated a new approach of balancing intracranial BCI performance and invasiveness,” Tsinghua said.

Elon Musk announced this week that his start-up Neuralink had implanted its first device into a human patient, and that initial results were promising. The aim of the device is to help patients control a computer using only their brain.

Neuralink’s implant differs from the NEO system as it includes ultrathin threads that are implanted into the brain tissue. Although they are designed to go no further than 2mm (0.08 inches) into the brain, this is still deeper than some other systems under development.

The NEO system has undergone clinical trials in pigs, which the university said showed that the electrodes were able to perform “stable long-term recording” of nerve signals while keeping cortical neurons intact. These nerve cells in the outer layer of the brain are responsible for essential functions such as memory and learning.

In early 2023, after 10 years of developing the implant, the team received clearance to conduct their first in-human study.

The first patient implanted with the NEO system became paralysed in all four limbs 14 years ago after a spinal cord injury caused by a car accident.

In just three months of at-home rehabilitation, he has been able to grasp a bottle using a prosthetic hand.

“With the help of a machine learning algorithm, the patient can independently eat and drink by himself,” the university said.

Tsinghua said that with further rehabilitation and development of the algorithm, the patient “will be able to restore multiple hand movements and functions”.

In December, the team behind the implant, along with medical collaborators at Beijing’s Xuanwu Hospital and Tiantan Hospital, also implanted a NEO device into a second patient who is now undergoing rehabilitation.

“The next phase of the study is to develop a new protocol of BCI-facilitated active rehabilitation to accelerate neural growth at the site of damaged spinal cord segments,” the university said.

China-US relations: navy dialogue depends on status of American delegation, say military analysts

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/3250446/china-us-relations-navy-dialogue-depends-status-american-delegation-say-military-analysts?utm_source=rss_feed

The United States could push bilateral military dialogues to a new level by sending a highly ranked delegation to a Chinese naval symposium, according to military analysts.

For the first time in 10 years the Chinese navy is hosting the Western Pacific Naval Symposium in Qingdao and observers note that the rank of the American delegation will affect “meaningful discussions”.

In April 2014, when Sino-US relations were more amicable, the US sent its top navy brass – including Jonathan Greenert, then the US chief of naval operations, and Harry Harris Jnr, who was commander of the US Pacific Fleet – to attend the meeting.

But bilateral military dialogue ceased after US House speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan in August 2022. The visit by a senior US political figure angered Beijing, which sees Taiwan as part of China to be reunited by force if necessary, and such moves as a challenge to its sovereignty.

While most countries, including the US, do not recognise the self-governed island as independent, Washington is opposed to any attempt to take Taiwan by force and is committed to arming it.

The US might send a “relatively high, but not top-level” delegation to the Qingdao symposium, according to Zhou Bo, a retired PLA senior colonel and a senior fellow at the Centre for International Security and Strategy at Tsinghua University.

“We should note that the military-to-military relations between China and the United States have just been restored and are still in the process of recovery,” Zhou said, suggesting the US might send officials ranked “below the secretary of the navy” to attend.

“While we welcome distinguished guests from all over the world to join the navy’s anniversary celebration, there are also important topics to discuss and agree upon. In 2014’s symposium, one of the most important results was the agreement on the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea.

“Given the current situation of US naval activities in the west Pacific region, both China and the US need to have a senior team from the navy to have meaningful discussions.”

Song Zhongping, a military commentator and former PLA instructor, concurred.

“China welcomes the resumption of military exchanges at all levels with the US, and hopes that the US will think the same,” Song said.

“But it is entirely up to the US to decide what kind of dialogue mechanism and what level they want to engage as they are the one who keep saying that they hope to resume high-level military exchanges. If they do not send officials of the corresponding level, it will show that they are not sincere.”

China and US ‘step in the right direction’ with top-level talks in Thailand

But Hong Kong-based military strategic researcher Liang Guoliang said he expected the US would resume the tradition of sending its chief of naval operations and commander of the Pacific Fleet to attend the naval gathering in April.

“Both the Chinese and US have capable navy fleets deployed in the western Pacific. They need to have contact and exchanges at the highest level of the two navies to discuss some code of conduct to prevent conflicts. There were some understandings in the past, but it cannot address the frequent encounters,” Liang said.

“With the heightened tension in the west Pacific, such decisions and understanding can only be achieved by [meetings of senior navy chiefs], as mid-ranking officials do not have the authority to do so.”

China, as host of the symposium, invited all 23 members and seven observer states to the meeting in Shandong province in eastern China, defence ministry spokesman Senior Colonel Wu Qian said on Thursday, raising hopes of a new round of higher-level military dialogues between the two competing world powers.

Wu’s comment came a week after the People’s Liberation Army’s Navy hosted a working group meeting for the 19th Western Pacific Naval Symposium 2024 in China’s eastern city of Nanjing from January 16 to 18.

It took place amid heightened tension across the Taiwan Strait and in the South China Sea, after William Lai Ching-te, the candidate of the independence-leaning Democratic Progressive Party won the Taiwan election, and following sea encounters between China and the Philippines.

The three-day talks involving 70 naval officials from the member and observer states bordering the Pacific, including Japan, Russia and the US, discussed updating rules on unexpected encounters among other issues to prepare for the coming symposium, Chinese state media said.

The US sent a mid-ranked delegation in early November to take part in Beijing’s Xiangshan Forum hosted by Central Military Commission deputy chairman Zhang Youxia and He Weidong, who stepped in to host after the sudden dismissal of Chinese defence minister Li Shangfu.

The American delegation, led by Xanthi Carras, the Pentagon’s principal director for China, Taiwan and Mongolia, held only some brief sideline chats with mid-ranking Chinese officers.

After Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden agreed to resume bilateral military talks shortly after the Xiangshan Forum, the world’s top two military forces started to engage with each other.

And this month, they resumed an annual military meeting that has not been held since 2021.

Michael Chase, deputy assistant secretary of defence for China, Taiwan and Mongolia, met Major General Song Yanchao, China’s deputy director of the Central Military Commission Office for International Military Cooperation, at the Pentagon for the 17th US-PRC Defence Policy Coordination Talks on January 8 and 9.

The two parties last met in 2021 via a virtual conference because of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Collin Koh, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said “recent developments bode well”, albeit still with much uncertainty.

“So at least for the US side, it’ll seek to build on the current momentum – which can also explain why it’s likely to join [the Western Pacific Naval Symposium],” he said.

“For the Chinese side, at least it shows its willingness to re-engage, even if somewhat grudgingly … since fundamental factors behind the tensions aren’t addressed in Beijing’s eyes, such as the question of Taiwan.”

Koh said that subsequently, the ball was in China’s court.

China names Dong Jun as new defence minister to replace ousted Li Shangfu

Drew Thompson, a visiting senior research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, said the most important military-to-military channel that must be restarted was the Military Maritime Consultative Agreement in which the US and Chinese militaries discuss operational safety and implement the 2014-15 agreement to build confidence and establish so-called rules of the road.

However, he questioned the value of the Xiangshan Forum in military-to-military engagement.

“The objective is not ‘contact’ of any sort, but contact and channels that contribute to stability, rather than propaganda-heavy forums.”

Nato chief praises US for China policy shift under Donald Trump amid ‘dangerous times’

https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3250497/nato-chief-praises-us-china-policy-shift-under-donald-trump-amid-dangerous-times?utm_source=rss_feed

Nato’s secretary general on Wednesday praised American leadership for pushing the transatlantic security alliance’s members to act on threats from China, effectively validating former US president Donald Trump’s stance towards the Asian giant.

“You shifted your policy on China in 2017 under President Trump, and since then, Nato has gone a long way in helping European allies fully appreciate the challenges posed by China and respond to it,” Jens Stoltenberg said in remarks at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, in Washington.

Stoltenberg described “the China challenge” as a task the US could not do alone.

“And you don’t have to,” he said. “Through Nato, the US has the support of 31 allies and the vast network of partners, especially in the Indo-Pacific”.

The remarks followed fresh criticism of the alliance by Trump, the front runner for the Republican Party’s 2024 presidential nomination.

“We are paying for Nato and we don’t get so much out it,” he said last week during a campaign event.

“And I hate to tell you this about Nato. If we ever needed their help – let’s say we were attacked – I don’t believe they’d be there.”

During his presidency, Trump repeatedly threatened to cut American funding for Nato and pull the US out of it.

‘Chaotic for the whole world’: fears over Trump’s Taiwan agenda if he wins again

Stoltenberg on Wednesday asserted things had changed at Nato and that in these “dangerous times, we must stand strong”.

“Over many years, the United States has criticised Nato allies for not spending enough on defence,” he added. “Rightly so.”

All Nato members were now contributing at a higher level than before, Stoltenberg said, with the additional amount totalling US$450 billion more for the alliance.

Earlier on Wednesday, the secretary general told CNN he was confident that if Trump were re-elected to the White House the US would remain a “staunch ally” of Nato.

Viral ‘Pokémon with guns’ game Palworld sparks cloud service race between Alibaba, Tencent in China

https://www.scmp.com/tech/big-tech/article/3250445/viral-pokemon-guns-game-palworld-sparks-cloud-service-race-between-alibaba-tencent-china?utm_source=rss_feed

A popular video game developed by a Japanese studio has set off an unexpected cloud-computing race between Tencent Holdings and Alibaba Group Holding, as the two Chinese tech giants rush to draw players to their respective servers.

Palworld, an open-world survival game developed by Pocketpair that lets players catch and raise creatures known as Pals to build structures and fight, has become a breakout hit since its release on game distribution platform Steam on January 19, selling more than 8 million copies in less than six days.

With Pocketpair struggling to accommodate the surge of gamers that has overwhelmed its servers, the Tokyo-based company has given players the option to host the game on private servers.

Chinese cloud service providers, including Tencent and Post owner Alibaba, have seized on the opportunity to promote their server packages to mainland gamers.

Alibaba is offering dedicated server plans for groups of eight or 20 Palworld players, with monthly fees ranging from 26.5 yuan to 271.8 yuan (US$3.71 to US$38.06). Tencent has also introduced similar packages, priced between 26 yuan and 580 yuan per month.

“In view of the popularity of Palworld … which led to problems on the official servers, setting up private servers is the most stable and comfortable solution for those who are financially well-off,” read a post on Tencent Cloud’s official WeChat account published on January 25.

Alibaba and Tencent have repeatedly engaged in price wars in China’s competitive cloud computing market.

Alibaba Cloud announced last April that it was cutting the prices of its core products and services in China by 15 to 50 per cent. Tencent followed suit soon after, pledging to slash the costs of some of its cloud servers by as much as 40 per cent.

Alibaba and Tencent are capitalising on the popularity of Palworld, which is currently the most-played game on Steam despite its hefty price tag of US$29.99. The average price for games sold on Steam, the world’s largest digital distribution platform for computer games, is US$15.50.

Players are mostly impressed by the game’s clever mash-up of elements, including the thrill of monster-catching and the cute animated designs of those creatures, according to Zhang Shule, a game analyst at CBJ Think Tank.

The Pokémon Company files intellectual property lawsuit in China

However, the game – known among players as “Pokémon with guns” – has also run into controversy. The Pokémon Company said last week that it planned to investigate claims that Palworld infringed on the intellectual property rights of its iconic franchise.

“We have received libellous comments about our artists and some tweets that seem close to death threats,” Pocketpair CEO Takuro Mizobe wrote last week on X, known formerly as Twitter.

While Steam’s global platform is inaccessible in mainland China, Palworld has caught on in the country, where players are known to buy and play games on Steam through virtual private networks.

Palworld is also available on Microsoft’s Xbox.

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AmCham China survey flags tensions and regulatory climate, with a third reducing investment plans for 2024

https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3250471/amcham-china-survey-flags-tensions-and-regulatory-climate-third-reducing-investment-plans-2024?utm_source=rss_feed

Despite improved confidence about China’s near-term economic outlook, survey results continue to show US businesses as reluctant to expand investment in the country – deterred by bilateral tensions and regulatory challenges.

Nearly half of polled American firms said they had no plans to expand investments, or were intending to cut investments, in their China operations, according to the results of an American Chamber of Commerce in China (AmCham) survey released on Thursday.

The bulk of the data was collected in October, ahead of November’s meeting between presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping on the sidelines of an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco.

Overtaking the uncertain policy environment that had been dominating concerns last year, nearly a third of 343 surveyed members cited uncertainties in the US-China economic relationship as the primary reason behind their reduced investment plans in 2024, particularly in the tech and research and development sectors, AmCham said.

‘Opposite directions’: in German trade, US is poised to overtake China in 2024

“Despite the expansion in bilateral trade in recent years, mistrust between the United States and China remains high, and relations are strained,” said AmCham China chairman Sean Stein. “The need for accurate information has never been greater.”

China’s market remains significant for US businesses, with half of polled members viewing it as a top-three global investment destination. And 77 per cent of members across all sectors were not considering relocating manufacturing or sourcing outside of China.

Other top concerns included risk management and uncertainties over the policy environment, trade tensions and market-access barriers, according to the survey.

The two sides have increased cooperation since last year, including meetings of financial and economic working groups, which were launched in September after a visit to Beijing by US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen, with an aim of fostering regular communication.

But the trade prospects continue to be clouded by decoupling calls, tech wars and export controls.

Member companies said they hoped the two governments could moderate their rhetoric and pursue effective, high-level dialogues, while continuing to urge the Chinese government to treat US businesses fairly and engage more effectively with the foreign business community.

Despite improvements from 2022, 57 per cent of companies lacked confidence that China would further open its markets to foreign firms, while the level of reception is complex for US businesses – 39 per cent of the companies felt less welcome in China, voicing concerns about market openness and unequal treatment, while 31 per cent of members said they felt more welcome, up 13 per cent.

Elsewhere, talent retention was reported to have improved, though it still suffered from bilateral tensions, members said.