Decoding Trump’s Plan to Rein in China
By Sui-Lee Wee via New York Times
December 19, 2017
Much of the newly released national security blueprint focused on brewing disputes between Beijing and Washington over emerging industries of the future — and who will control them.
National Security, Donald Trump, Trade
China Unveils an Ambitious Plan to Curb Climate Change Emissions
By Keith Bradsher and Lisa Friedman via New York Times
December 19, 2017
China released plans on Tuesday to start a giant market to trade credits for the right to emit planet-warming greenhouse gases. The nationwide market would initially cover only China’s vast, state-dominated power generation sector, which produced almost half of the country’s emissions from the burning of fossil fuels last year.
Coal, Greenhouse Gases, CO2 Emissions, Energy
West Grows Wary of China’s Influence Game
By Jamil Anderlini and Jamie Smyth via Financial Times
December 19, 2017
“Aodaliya renmin zhan qi lai! The Australian people have stood up,” the country’s prime minister Malcolm Turnbull told reporters in mangled Mandarin — a deliberate echo of Mao’s declaration in 1949 that the Chinese people had stood up.
Chinese Influence, Australia, Chinese Economic Influence, Authoritarianism
China Set to Move into United States’ Backyard with National Development Plan for Grenada
By Stephen Chen via South China Morning Post
December 19, 2017
China is helping the government of Grenada prepare a national development plan 34 years after the Caribbean island nation was invaded by US-led forces due to concerns in Washington that its government was too close to the Soviet and Cuban communist regimes.
Carribbean, Chinese Influence
The China-India Row That Spells Disaster for Flood Victims
By Navin Singh Khadka via BBC
December 19, 2017
Fear of flooding has been growing in the Indian state of Assam ever since upstream China stopped sharing river data crucial for issuing early warnings.
China-India Relations, India, Flooding, Environment
Trump National Security Strategy Sees U.S. Confronting China and Russia
By David Sanger and Mark Landler via New York Times
December 18, 2017
President Trump’s first national security strategy envisions a world in which the United States confronts two “revisionist” powers — China and Russia — that are seeking to change the global status quo, often to the detriment of America’s interests.
U.S.-China Relations, Russia, National Security, Trade
China’s Warplanes Hold Drill near Japan, South Korea, Taiwan
By Associated Press via ABC
December 18, 2017
Chinese air force spokesman Shen Jinke said the air force dispatched bombers, fighters and reconnaissance planes through the Tsushima Strait to the Sea of Japan to “test its ocean combat ability.”
Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Military Drills
Thousands in China Watch as 10 People Sentenced to Death in Sport StadiumThousands in China Watch as 10 People Sentenced to Death in Sport Stadium
By Benjamin Haas via Guardian
December 18, 2017
A court in China has sentenced 10 people to death, mostly for drug-related crimes, in front of thousands of onlookers before taking them away for execution.
Death Penalty, Criminal Justice, Legal System, Crime
China Property Price Growth Slows to 21-Month Low
By Hudson Lockett via Financial Times
December 18, 2017
Growth in the cost of new housing in China decelerated for a twelfth straight month in November, according to official figures, marking the slowest rise since early 2016.
Housing, Urban Life, Economic Growth
China Hails ‘First Antarctica Flight’ for Its Tourists
By BBC via BBC
December 18, 2017
According to Chinese media, the country’s first commercial flight to Antarctica brought 22 lucky tourists to the exotic destination this weekend.
Tourism
China Plans to Kill Local Subsidies for Electric Cars
By Bloomberg News via Bloomberg
December 18, 2017
The Ministry of Finance is working on a plan that would mandate authorities to phase out the incentives to discourage protectionism and help rein in state expenditure, people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified discussing government policy proposals that aren’t yet public.
Automobile Industry, Automobiles, Electric Cars, Electric Vehicles, Clean Energy
Xi Jinping Says War Must Never Be Allowed on Korean Peninsula as South's President Tries to Mend Relations on Visit to China
South China Morning Post
December 14, 2017
Chinese President Xi Jinping has said that wars on the Korean peninsula are never acceptable, adding that China would continue to support dialogue between Seoul and Pyongyang.
Xi Jinping, North Korea, China-North Korea Relations, Nuclear Crisis
Latin America Needs a China Strategy
Bloomberg
December 14, 2017
To judge by the pomp and shuttle diplomacy, Latin America and China are best of friends.
China-Latin America Relations, Chinese Foreign Policy, Chinese Investment, Chinese Economy
Google Plans Big AI Push in China
Fortune
December 14, 2017
Google is expanding its artificial intelligence, or AI research to China.
Google, Chinese Economy, Technology, Foreign Investment
What to Do about China's "Sharp Power"
Economist
December 14, 2017
WHEN a rising power challenges an incumbent one, war often follows.
Chinese Economy, Chinese Foreign Policy, Global Politics, Culture
At South Korea-China Summit, South Korean Journalist Beaten Bloody
CNN
December 14, 2017
The summit was intended to cement improved relations after a frosty period of tension between China and South Korea.
South Korea, Journalism, Economy, Trade
China Accuses US of Meddling over Potential US Navy Visits to Taiwan
Voice of America
December 14, 2017
China submitted an official protest with the United States Thursday after U.S
Donald Trump, Taiwan, China-Taiwan Relations, U.S.-Taiwan Relations, Military, Navy
Tillerson offers North Korea talks ‘without preconditions’
By Demetri Sevastopulo and Katrina Manson via Financial Times
December 13, 2017
US secretary of state Rex Tillerson offered to open direct talks with North Korea “without preconditions” in a new overture to Pyongyang that jars with the more confrontational stance of the White House.
Rex Tillerson, North Korea, North Korea Sanctions, Oil
China Marks Nanking Massacre's 80th Anniversary
By Wayne Zhang and Gerry Shih via ABC
December 13, 2017
Chinese officials struck a tempered tone on the 80th anniversary of the Nanking Massacre on Wednesday, saying China would “look forward” and deepen friendship with its neighbor Japan despite historical misgivings.
Nanjing, Xi Jinping, Yu Zhengsheng, China-Japan Relations, Invasion
Founder of China's Embattled LeEco Placed on Debt Blacklist
By Engen Tham, Adam Jourdan via Reuters
December 13, 2017
The high-profile founder of struggling Chinese tech conglomerate LeEco has been placed on an official blacklist of debt defaulters, a further blow to a firm that had spent heavily to compete in areas from smart cars to online entertainment.
Technology, Debt, Entrepreneurs
Fearing the Worst, China Plans Refugee Camps on North Korean Border
By Jane Perlez via New York Times
December 13, 2017
A Chinese county along the border with North Korea is constructing refugee camps intended to house thousands of migrants fleeing a possible crisis on the Korean Peninsula, according to an internal document that appears to have been leaked from China’s main state-owned telecommunications company.
China-North Korea Relations, North Korea, Refugees
China: Minority Region Collects DNA from Millions
Human Rights Watch
December 13, 2017
Chinese authorities in Xinjiang are collecting DNA samples, fingerprints, iris scans, and blood types of all residents in the region between the age of 12 and 65, Human Rights Watch said today. This campaign significantly expands authorities’ collection of biodata beyond previous government efforts in the region, which only required all passport applicants in Xinjiang to supply biometrics.
Xinjiang, Ethnic Minorities, Human Rights, Human Rights Abuses
Google to Open Beijing AI Center in Latest Expansion in China
By Shelly Banjo and David Ramli via Bloomberg
December 13, 2017
Google is deepening its push into China as it seeks an edge in one of technology’s most competitive fields: artificial intelligence.
Google, Beijing, Technology
Chinese Rooftop Climber Dies in 62-Storey Fall
By BBC via BBC
December 12, 2017
A well-known Chinese climber has died while performing one of his trademark daredevil skyscraper stunts.
Skyscrapers, Death, Weibo
Australian Lawmaker to Resign amid Global Allegations of Chinese Meddling
By Simon Denyer via Washington Post
December 12, 2017
Relations between Australia and China have nosedived in the past week, since Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull’s government moved to ban foreign political donations, citing “disturbing reports about Chinese influence” in Australian politics.
Australia, Chinese Influence, International Relations
China Conducts ‘Island Encirclement’ Patrols near Taiwan
By Reuters Staff via Reuters
December 12, 2017
China’s military announced the action on Tuesday, after a senior Chinese diplomat threatened that China would invade the self-ruled island if any U.S. warships made port visits there.
Taiwan, China-Taiwan Relations, U.S.-Taiwan Relations
Trump’s Claim That West Virginia Is ‘Sending Clean Coal’ to ‘China’
By Nicole Lewis via Washington Post
December 12, 2017
“If you look at what’s happened in West Virginia and so many different places, we’re sending clean coal. We’re sending it out to different places — China," Trump said last Tuesday.
Coal, Coal Industry, Energy Reform, Trade
Need Stretchy Pants? China's Energy Squeeze May Mean Higher Prices
By Keith Bradsher via New York Times
December 12, 2017
Homes, businesses and even hospitals across northern China are running short of natural gas. Some schoolchildren are shivering. And in the chemical industry — well, the spandex supply is getting tight.
Natural Gas, Coal, Coal Industry, Energy Management, Heating
The Traditional Chinese Dance Troupe China Doesn't Want You to See
By Nicholas Hune-Brown via Guardian
December 12, 2017
Shen Yun seems like a kitsch dance troupe. But Beijing sees it as the propaganda wing of the Falun Gong movement, and a threat to their rule – and hounds the dancers from city to city, trying to sabotage their shows.
Falun Gong, Crackdown, Human Rights
China, Taiwan Spar over Chinese Diplomat's Invasion Threat
By Ben Blanchard, Jess Macy Yu via Reuters
December 11, 2017
A threat by a senior Chinese diplomat to invade Taiwan the instant any U.S. warship visits the self-ruled island has sparked a war of words, with Taipei accusing Beijing of failing to understand what democracy means.
China-Taiwan Relations, Taiwan, Tsai Ing-wen
Forced Evictions in China's Capital Spark a Rare Display of Dissent
By Joseph Hincks via Time
December 11, 2017
The protests in Feijia, a village in Beijing’s northeastern Chaoyang district, follow a controversial clean-up campaign that began after an apartment block fire killed 19 people last month, the South China Morning Post reports.
Eviction, Forced Evictions, Beijing, Urban Development, Urban Planning
Germany Says China Seeking to Ensnare Officials on LinkedIn
By Tobias Buck via Financial Times
December 11, 2017
Chinese intelligence agencies are using social networks such as LinkedIn to establish contact with German politicians and officials, according to a study by Germany’s internal security service.
China-Germany Relations, Germany, Cybersecurity, Intelligence
Worries Grow in Hong Kong as China Pushes Its Official Version of History in Schools
By Rob Schmitz via NPR
December 11, 2017
The new proposed curriculum for city schools is missing key parts of modern Chinese history, like Hong Kong’s 1967 pro-Communist riots against British rulers and the Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989, when Chinese troops killed hundreds of unarmed pro-democracy demonstrators in Beijing.
Hong Kong Independence, Hong Kong-Mainland Tension, Hong Kong
China Telecom Picked to Become the Philippines' Third Telecoms Player
By Reuters via South China Morning Post
December 11, 2017
China Telecom Corp could become the Philippines’ third nationwide telecommunications operator, officials of the Southeast Asian country said on Sunday, as the government sought to stir up competition to boost notoriously poor fixed-line broadband and mobile network operations.
China-Philippines Relations, Philippines, Mobile Phones, Telecommunications
China's Top Paper Says Australian Media Reports Are Racist
By Reuters Staff via Reuters
December 11, 2017
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said last week he took reports very seriously that China’s Communist Party had sought to interfere in his country.
Australia, Soft Power, Chinese Influence
Why Is China So Worried about Trump Recognising Jerusalem as Israel's Capital?
South China Morning Post
December 7, 2017
China anticipates more conflict in the Middle East following the United States’ move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, which in turn would disrupt its investment plans in the region, diplomatic observers said。
Donald Trump, Israel, Middle East, Palestine
Four U.S. Engineers Charged with Trying to Steal Chip Designs for a Chinese Startup
Fortune
December 7, 2017
Four former Applied Materials Inc. (AMAT, +2.37%) engineers have been charged with attempting to steal chip designs from the semiconductor equipment company to sell to a Chinese startup.
Intellectual Property, Computer Chips, Engineering
North Korea Says U.S. Threats Make War Unavoidable as China Urges Calm
Reuters
December 7, 2017
Two American B-1B heavy bombers joined large-scale combat drills over South Korea on Thursday amid warnings from North Korea that the exercises and U.S. threats have made the outbreak of war “an established fact”.
North Korea, China-North Korea Relations, North Korean Missiles
Rich Countries Are Reducing Their Emissions—by Exporting Them to China
Quartz
December 7, 2017
Historical greenhouse-gas emissions data make clear that much of the burden of climate change lies with rich countries. The US, the UK, Germany, and others built their economies burning fossil fuels without thinking about the consequences.
Greenhouse Gases, Emissions, Climate Change, Environment
China's Debt Levels Pose Stability Risk, Says IMF
Guardian
December 7, 2017
Fears that China risks being the cause of a fresh global financial crisis have been highlighted by the International Monetary Fund in a hard-hitting warning about the growing debt-dependency of the world’s second biggest economy.
Chinese Financial Market, Financial Crisis, Debt, GDP
Why China's GDP Growth Rate Tells Us Nothing about Its Economy
Fortune
December 7, 2017
China clocked in GDP growth of 6.9% in the first three quarters of 2017, and is set to end the year at 6.8%. But Peking University finance professor Michael Pettis believes that the figure is no indication of the actual state of the Chinese economy.
Chinese Economy, GDP
China Will Lead an Electric Car Future, Ford's Chairman Says
By Keith Bradsher via New York Times
December 6, 2017
The world’s automakers are just starting to bet on an electric car future — and already, one of the most powerful people in the industry says that future belongs to China.
Electric Cars, Electric Vehicles, Air Pollution, Clean Technology
China Province near North Korea Warns about the Dangers of Nuclear War
By Simon Denyer via Washington Post
December 6, 2017
A provincial state newspaper on China’s border with North Korea spooked a few people Wednesday by dedicating an entire page to advice for local residents on how they might survive a nuclear war.
North Korea, Nuclear Weapons, North Korea Nuclear Test, Defense
Trump Wasn’t Soft with Xi Jinping on Trade Gap, Says US Ambassador to China
By Holly Ellyatt, Geoff Cutmore, Eunice Yoon via CNBC
December 6, 2017
The U.S. ambassador to China has defended President Donald Trump’s stance towards the Asian nation during his recent visit, amid criticism that the U.S president was too soft on trade imbalances between the two superpowers.
Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, Trade
China Scolds Australia over Its Fears of Foreign Influence
By Damien Cave via New York Times
December 6, 2017
The Chinese Embassy in Australia accused Australian officials on Wednesday of “making irresponsible remarks” and damaging “mutual trust,” a day after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull unveiled a series of proposed laws to curb foreign influence in Australian politics.
Australia, Campaigns
Why Is China So Worried about Trump Recognising Jerusalem as Israel’s Capital?
By Liu Zhen via South China Morning Post
December 6, 2017
Beijing has extensive economic and military relations with Israel, but also maintains close ties with Palestine.
Israel, Palestine, Donald Trump, One Belt One Road
Will Tech Firms Challenge China’s ‘Open’ Internet?
By Robin Brant via BBC
December 6, 2017
China has been smart and ruthless in its control of the internet within its borders. It blocks some foreign sites altogether and it censors - heavily - what Chinese are allowed to see.
Internet Censorship, The Great Firewall, Censorship, Technology, Business
China’s Drive for Cleaner Energy Is Causing a Gas Shortage for Winter
By Huileng Tan via CNBC
December 6, 2017
China's push to clean up its environment may have had an unintended consequence: a shortage of heating fuel supply is hitting some regions in the dead of winter, sending prices of domestic liquefied natural gas (LNG) to a three-year high.
Clean Energy, Natural Gas, Environment, Coal
Starbucks Is Opening a Store in China Every 15 Hours
By Angelica LaVito via CNBC
December 5, 2017
China has become Starbucks’ second largest and fastest growing market, and one the company expects to eclipse the U.S. market one day. Starbucks already operates more than 3,000 stores in the country and 2,000 more by 2021.
Starbucks, Coffee, Foreign Companies
China Will Lead an Electric Car Future, Ford's Chairman Says
By Keith Bradsher via New York Times
December 5, 2017
Speaking in Shanghai, William C. Ford Jr., Ford Motor’s longtime executive chairman, outlined why in an unusually blunt comment. “When I think of where E.V.s are going,” he said, using an abbreviation for electric vehicles, “it’s clearly the case that China will lead the world in E.V. development.”
Automobile Industry, Automobiles, Electric Cars, Electric Vehicles, Clean Energy
Are Alibaba and Tencent Fueling a Tech Bubble? Investors Weigh the Worrisome Question
By Polina Marinova via Fortune
December 5, 2017
Alibaba has spent roughly $1.72 billion buying at least 50 startups and small businesses since 2013, while Tencent has doled out at least $780 million over the same period, according to Nikkei Asian Review.
Investment, Capital, Start-Ups, Technology, Internet
The Underclass That Threatens Xi's 'China Dream'
By Andrew Browne via Wall Street Journal
December 5, 2017
Beijing’s mass evictions of migrants cast a chill over Xi’s lofty equality goals.
Eviction, Forced Evictions, Beijing, Urban Development, Urban Planning
Ad Promises Students 'You Won't Feel Like You're in China When You're on Our Buses'
By AnneClaire Stapleton via CNN
December 5, 2017
At first glance, it looks like any other email touting travel deals. In this case, it was a bus company offering its services to students of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Higher Education, Racism, U.S. Colleges, College/University
Behind China's Attempt to Ease the Rohingya Crisis
By Nicholas Bequelin via New York Times
December 5, 2017
Beijing strenuously avoids playing a high-profile part in ameliorating international humanitarian crises. Its most identifiable role in Myanmar had been to shield the local military from international criticism for carrying out what the United Nations high commissioner on human rights has called a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing” that has set off the exodus of more than 600,000 people to neighboring Bangladesh.
China-Myanmar Relations, Myanmar, Human Rights, Migration, Borders, United Nations
China Gets 300 Political Parties to Endorse Xi as Peacemaker
By Tingshi via Bloomberg
December 4, 2017
The signatures of almost 300 foreign political leaders on a document praising Chinese President Xi Jinping’s contribution to world peace has provided him valuable ammunition to counter arguments by those who fear the country’s rising international clout.
Xi Jinping, Peace, Myanmar, Global Politics
Special Report: Hidden Peril Awaits China’s Banks as Property Binge Fuels Mortgage Fraud Frenzy
By Engen Tham, Clare Jim, Yawen Chen via Reuters
December 4, 2017
While property prices in China continue to rise, mortgage fraud remains largely a hidden danger, much as subprime loans in the United States remained mostly out of sight ahead of the 2008 global financial crisis.
Markets, Housing, Loans
Free Trade Talks with China Will Not yet Begin
By Chris Hall via CBC News
December 4, 2017
Canada will not begin formal free trade talks with China — at least not yet.
Canada, Free Trade, Li Keqiang, Human Rights
Apple CEO Backs China’s Vision of an ‘Open’ Internet as Censorship Reaches New Heights
By Simon Denyer via Washington Post
December 4, 2017
Reading headlines from the World Internet Conference in China, the casual reader might have come away a little confused. China was opening its doors to the global Internet, some media outlets optimistically declared, while others said Beijing was defending its system of censorship and state control.
Apple, Tim Cook, Internet Censorship
China in Pole Position amid 'Desperate' Global Race to Secure Lithium Supplies
By Sam Meredith via CNBC
December 4, 2017
China is outpacing the U.S. and other countries in a global race to secure supplies of an all-important element for electric cars.
Electric Cars, Electric Vehicles, Hybrid Cars, Climate Change, Global Warming, Clean Technology
China Closes School ‘Teaching Women to Be Obedient’
BBC
December 4, 2017
Chinese authorities have shut down an institute that was teaching women to be obedient and subordinate to men.
Gender Equality, Education, Values, Morality
China Sends Its Top Actors and Directors Back to Socialism School
Washington Post
December 1, 2017
Culture is the soul of the nation, Chinese President Xi Jinping declared in a key speech last month. And like Chairman Mao Zedong before him, Xi believes that Chinese culture must serve socialism and the Communist Party.
Xi Jinping, Core Socialist Values, Actors, Socialism
'North Korea Is the Biggest Threat to All Humankind.' U.S. Ambassador to China Terry Branstad Talks to TIME
Time
December 1, 2017
Tucked between northeastern Beijing’s third and fourth ring-roads, the U.S. Embassy in China is a squat complex of silver-gray buildings, with the ambassador’s office on the fourth floor.
North Korea, China-North Korea Relations, Trade, Xi Jinping
Stability and Strategy: Why Is China So Easy on North Korea?
CNBC
December 1, 2017
While the world watches North Korea test yet another missile in defiance of international sanctions and warnings, China continues to be a friend to Kim Jong Un's regime.
North Korea, China-North Korea Relations, Missile Crisis, Pyongyang
China's Evicting Mentions of Its "Low-End" Migrants from Cyberspace
Quartz
December 1, 2017
First Beijing pushed thousands of migrant workers out of the city in the name of safety. Now authorities are carrying out a parallel virtual eviction as well, removing references to China’s “low-end population” from the internet.
Censorship, Internet Censorship, Migration, Beijing
Trump's First Major Trade Fight with China Could Be over Solar Panels
New York Times
December 1, 2017
With President Trump vowing to get tougher on trade, troubled American makers of everything from steel tubing and aluminum foil to washing machines have lined up to ask Washington for protection from foreign rivals.
Solar Energy, Donald Trump, Trade
Scientists Discovered an Ancient Flying Reptile Eden in China
Quartz
December 1, 2017
Scientists have unearthed a massive trove of fossilized eggs and remains in China—giving us a peek into the life and death of a giant flying creature that lived tens of millions of years ago.
Archaeology, Science