• December
• November
• October
• September
• August
• July
• June
• May
• April
• March
• February
• January

Prior to 2009 this page also included material on India

• 2010
• 2009
• 2008
• 2007
• 2006
• 2005
• 2004 and earlier

• Space Plan From China Broadens Challenge to U.S.
  By EDWARD WONG and KENNETH CHANG Published: December 29, 2011 BEIJING — Broadening its challenge to the United States, the Chinese government on Thursday announced an ambitious five-year plan for space exploration that would move China closer to becoming a major rival at a time when the American program is in retreat [Aerospace] [China confrontation]
• China’s Newest Province?
  By VICTOR CHA Published: December 19, 2011 NORTH KOREA as we know it is over. Whether it comes apart in the next few weeks or over several months, the regime will not be able to hold together after the untimely death of its leader, Kim Jong-il. How America responds — and, perhaps even more important, how America responds to how China responds — will determine whether the region moves toward greater stability or falls into conflict. [Agency] [KJI_death] [Collapse]
• China Talks With U.S., South Korea on North Succession
  By OWEN FLETCHER BEIJING—China Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi spoke by phone on Tuesday with U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and his South Korean counterpart over North Korea's leadership succession, a government official said, as China continued its call for stability in Pyongyang. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin also invited North Korean leaders to visit China, though he didn't confirm whether Kim Jong Eun, the youngest son of deceased leader Kim Jong Il, was among those invited. "China and North Korea have always maintained high-level visits and we welcome North Korea's leaders to visit China when convenient for both parties." Mr. Liu said at a daily news briefing. [KJI_death] [China NK]
• Falling Out of Love With North Korea
  Beijing may soon conclude that Pyongyang is more trouble as an ally than it's worth.. By CHUNG MIN LEE The leadership transition now underway in North Korea may appear smoother than the last one, in 1994. The death of Kim Jong Il on Dec. 17 was sudden but not unexpected, since he had been in ill health for several years. The regime also has survived one hereditary transition, which was not yet the case when Kim took over from his father Kim Il Sung in 1994. But one very important factor has changed over the past 17 years: China. [KJI_death] [China NK] [Context]
• Nothing Succeeds Like Succession: Chinese Language Perspectives on Kim Jong-Un’s Transition to Power
  By Roger Cavazos December 23, 2011 Roger Cavazos, a Nautilus Institute Associate and consultant on North-East Asia, writes, “The breathtakingly short timeline of announcement of Kim Jong-Il’s death, DPRK announcing Kim Jong-Un as the successor, China affirming and also providing their guidance to 'maintain stability on the peninsula' and the DPRK to responding via Chinese-language press on KCNA indicates that while the specific timing may have been a surprise, the basic outline of the leadership transition had been worked out long ago...For the sake of the Korean people on both sides of the DMZ and regional stability, all sides should use the early indicators of a relatively calm environment to engage in discussions, clarify intentions, and plan basic outlines of responses if things do not continue on a positive trend beyond the short term.” [Transition]
• China denies link with missiles seized in Finland
  BEIJING | Fri Dec 23, 2011 3:52am EST BEIJING (Reuters) - China denied on Friday any link to a batch of 69 Patriot missiles confiscated by Finnish authorities, saying the weapons were destined for South Korea. "As far as we know these goods were made in Germany and were being sent to South Korea. This is a British ship which left Germany carrying Patriot missiles for South Korea," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told a daily news briefing. Some reports have said the missiles were destined for China, but Liu said that was not the case. "I don't see what connection this boat has with China. We think it odd that some people always link certain things to China. The facts are all very clear," he added. [China confrontation] [Arms sales]
• China Begins Using New Global Positioning Satellite System
  China has begun trial operations of its Beidou satellite navigation system, taking a further step toward ending its dependence on U.S. satellites to provide navigation and positioning services. Ran Chengqi, director of the management office of the China Satellite Navigation System, told reporters Tuesday Beidou, or "Big Dipper" will cover most parts of the Asia Pacific region by next year, and the world by 2020. He said the trial operations mark the transition from the system's construction to its application. "Preliminary tests show that the basic positioning and navigation system of Beidou has reached the preset standards and we have officially moved from the test system to the working system." China has launched 10 satellites to support Beidou and is expected to launch six more in 2012. State media have said the system will eventually comprise at least 30 satellites, which will be used for a variety of sectors, including fisheries, meteorology and telecommunications. China began building the Beidou system in 2000 to break Beijing's dependence on the U.S. Global Positioning System and create its own global positioning system by 2020. [China rising] [ICT]
• China is an advanced nation in science, technology: professor
  How much do we, South Koreans, know about China? China is long longer a country with low wages and fakes. The country is developing. China's Shenzhou 8 spacecraft successfully docked with the Tiangong-1 space lab module twice and returned to Earth last month. The docking was the third of its kind in the world, after the United States and Russia. As a result, China moved one step closer to setting up its own space station around 2020. China has outpaced South Korea in information technology and bio engineering as well as aerospace. Beijing already overtook Seoul in 2008 in the amount of money spent on R&D and in the number of patents filed. In a report, titled “Comparison of Competitiveness of Talented People of South Korea and China,” the Samsung Economic Research Institute (SERI) said Seoul legs far behind not only in quantity but also in quality when it comes to competitiveness of talented people. [China competition] [R&D] [Sandwich]
• China, Japan Urge Stability on Korean Peninsula
  The leaders of China and Japan have reaffirmed their commitment to stability on the Korean Peninsula, as Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda Monday ended a two-day visit to Beijing. Discussions Monday between Chinese President Hu Jintao and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda focused on two main topics -- bilateral relations and the situation on the Korean Peninsula.
• Dairy industry hit by new safety scandal
  Global Times | December 27, 2011 01:00 By Huang Jingjing Share E-mail Print Comments(0) A recent sample check by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) detected 1.2 micrograms per kilogram of Aflatoxin M1 in pure milk products made on October 18 by Mengniu's Meishan branch in Sichuan Province.Photo:Xinhua Customer confidence in dairy products may sink to new lows despite Mengniu Dairy Group, one of China's leading milk producers, apologizing after some of its products were found to contain excessive amounts of a known carcinogen. A recent sample check by the General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ) detected 1.2 micrograms per kilogram of Aflatoxin M1 in pure milk products made on October 18 by Mengniu's Meishan branch in Sichuan Province. The amount more than was twice the allowed maximum of 0.5 micrograms per kilogram.
• Xi's visits open new chapter of friendship, win-win cooperation for future
  Xinhua | December 25, 2011 13:18 By Agencies Share Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping's just-concluded official visits to Vietnam and Thailand proved to be a major diplomatic move meant to strengthen China's relations with countries in the neighboring region, a senior Chinese diplomat said Saturday. The visits were of great significance to promoting and making closer China's relations of strategic partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and consolidating and developing China's good-neighborly foreign relations with the neighboring region, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun said. Xi's visits have opened a new chapter for China's traditional friendship with Vietnam and Thailand and boosted mutual benefit and win-win cooperation oriented toward the future, Zhang said upon the conclusion of Xi's tour to the two Southeast Asian countries.
• PKU president bashes US education, sparks criticism online
  Globaltimes.cn | December 25, 2011 18:39 By Yang Ruoyu Share Peking University President Zhou Qifeng bashedUS education as being "a complete mess" during a speech inChangsha, Hunan Province on Saturday, sparking extensive criticism from netizens. "The US education system is a complete mess, even the president of the country hasn't learned to respect others, and uses force to get others to follow his will," Zhou told the audience comprised of students from the city's four elite schools at Changsha No. 1 Middle School. Zhou made the comments amid widespread criticism of China's education system, which Zhou claimed has been a great success. "The reason our country has been making progress is we keep producing talent within our education system," Zhou said. [Decline] [Education]
• Kim's Death Slows Cross-Border Business with China
  The North Korean regime is keeping close tabs on Chinese people leaving North Korea after Kim Jong-il's death to clamp down on the black market during the mourning period. Chinese traders who arrived in Dandong, China on a train from Pyongyang on Thursday afternoon said when the train arrived in Sinuiju, North Korean customs officers got onboard, searched all belongings and confiscated some. The customs officers said they would return the confiscated goods after the mourning period. Trades between Dandong and Sinuiju went back to normal from Wednesday, but entry of some goods, including food, is still restricted. [KJI_death]
• S.Korea mulls follow-up reaction to North
  Global Times | December 22, 2011 01:25 By Hao Zhou A released picture taken by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency on Tuesday shows diplomatic corps in North Korea offering their condolences at the Kumsusan Memorial Palace, where the body of late North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il lies in state, in Pyongyang. North Korea's new leader, Kim Jong-un, has secured a solid power base in both the ruling party and the military, analysts said Wednesday. Photo: AFP South Korea, which is still technically at war with North Korea, is working intensively on a coordinated response to the death of the North's leader, Kim Jong-il, while Seoul's spy agency forecasted a caretaker leadership will take over North Korea's power until Kim's heir takes full control. South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will hold a rare meeting today with ruling and opposition leaders to encourage a bipartisan response with follow-up measures on North Korea, according to the Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency. [KJI_death]
• [Editorial] Serious lack of diplomacy between Seoul and Beijing
  After signs of strain in the past, the true nature of Seoul-Beijing diplomatic relations have come into stark realization with the passing of Kim Jong-il. When the announcement of Kim Jong-il's death came, President Lee Myung-bak had emergency calls with the leaders of major powers like the US, Japan, and Russia. Only China was out of reach. It has been reported that Beijing did not reply to repeated South Korean requests for a conversation with President Hu Jintao. [China SK] [KJI_death]
• Seoul-Beijing relations
  Two countries need to mend fences The so-called strategic partnership between Korea and China has been called into question following the death of Kim Jong-il. President Hu Jintao is yet to accept President Lee Myung-bak's request for telephone communication although Lee talked with leaders of the United States, Russia and Japan. Hu's reluctance to talk with President Lee is puzzling at this critical time although the Chinese leader purportedly does not favor hot-line talks with heads of state. Understandably, Beijing may not want to antagonize or unnerve Pyongyang in its delicate power transition. [China SK][KJI_death]
• N.Koreans in China Rush Home for Kim's Funeral
  Around 50 people lined up to pay their respects at a memorial altar set up inside the North Korean Consulate in Dandong, in China's Liaoning Province, on Tuesday on the border between the North and China, one day after the North announced the death of its leader Kim Jong-il. Those waiting in line were mainly ethnic Chinese and ethnic Koreans. Next to the altar were rows of wreaths with ribbons bearing the consolatory words, "Eternal Life for Our Great Leader General Kim Jong-il." As North Koreans are rushing home from China to pay their respects to the man who led their country for 17 years, trains from Dandong were reported as being almost full, along with a surge in demand for buses to ferry them back across the border. Beijing Capital International Airport is also seeing many North Koreans hastily boarding flights back to Pyongyang. [KJI_death]
• Was China Told First of Kim Jong-il's Death?
  There was confusion Tuesday whether China was told of Kim Jong-il's death before North Korea made the official announcement. Grand National Party lawmaker Hwang Jin-ha and Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Jae-sung quoted National Intelligence Service Director Won Sei-hoon as telling lawmakers Beijing, Washington and Tokyo were kept in the dark, but National Assembly Intelligence Committee chairman Kwon Young-se quoted Won as saying there were unconfirmed "signs" that China had known about it beforehand. Meanwhile a Beijing-based source told foreign reporters Beijing had been informed by Pyongyang of his death on Saturday and Sunday, The source said Beijing was informed on Saturday, the day Kim died, of an "event of great significance," and on Sunday the North confirmed his death. Asked by the National Assembly's Defense Committee if Washington and Tokyo were also really in the dark, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said, "As far as I know, they were." [KJI_death] [China NK]
• China Slow to Respond to Kim Jong-il's Death
  China's state-run media were quick to report the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il but Beijing took a long time giving an official response. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu issued a statement at around 4 p.m. Monday, almost four hours after the death was announced and only in the form of answers to questions from reporters during a regular press briefing. "We express our deep condolences and offer our sincere consolations to the people of North Korea," Ma said and urged North Korea to strengthen its traditional partnership with China to contribute to stability on the Korean Peninsula. [KJI_death]
• No Contact Between Lee and Hu Over Kim Kong-il Death
  President Lee Myung-bak spoke on the phone with the leaders of the U.S., Japan and Russia following the death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, but no phone contact took place with Chinese President Hu Jintao. Kim's death was announced at noon on Monday and Lee spoke with U.S. President Barack Obama at 2 p.m. that day, followed by a phone call with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda at 2:50 p.m. and with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev at 5 p.m. to discuss the situation. A government source said, "China usually dispatches special envoys in urgent situations, but phone calls between leaders are rare." But Seoul and Beijing communicated on Monday and Tuesday through diplomatic channels. Following a request by Beijing on Monday, Lee Kyu-hyung, Korea's ambassador to China met with the Chinese vice commerce minister, and on Tuesday, Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan spoke on the phone with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi, at Beijing's request. A high-ranking Cheong Wa Dae official said, "Korea and China are communicating fully about North Korea. When President Lee visits China early next year, there will be plenty of discussions about the North." [KJI_death] [China SK] [NCW]
• China's N.Korea initiative on right track
  Global Times | December 21, 2011 00:32 By Global Times Share The geopolitical landscape surrounding post-Kim Jong-il North Korea has been taking shape. South Korea, the United States and the United Nations have expressed their condolences over Kim's death and welcomed a smooth transition of power in the country. China responded quickly by supporting the new leader and helping ensure a smooth transition. China's stance has played an important role in contributing to the current situation. China's attitude this time is a successful example of international diplomacy. It is among those countries which sent their earliest condolences to North Korea. Chinese president Hu Jintao visited the North Korean embassy in Beijing in person. China's clear and firm attitude in supporting North Korea has restricted the choices of other countries. China's initiative in its diplomatic strategy toward North Korea cannot be promoted blindly as China's diplomacy must be well-grounded. [China NK] [KJI_death]
• More top Chinese leaders mourn Kim Jong Il as Beijing seeks to reassure Pyongyang
  By Associated Press, Wednesday, December 21, 8:07 PM BEIJING — Premier Wen Jiabao and other top Chinese leaders paid their respects Wednesday to North Korea’s late leader Kim Jong Il, a further sign that China is working to reassure Pyongyang of the strength of ties and retain its influence amid an uncertain leadership transition. Wen and four other members of the ruling Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee made a morning visit to the North Korean Embassy in Beijing to offer their condolences, the official Xinhua News Agency said. China has moved rapidly to reaffirm unique, deep-seated ties and assure the North of its continuing support as Pyongyang’s most important ally and biggest source of food and fuel aid. China has called Kim a “close friend” and hailed his son and successor Kim Jong Un as the North’s new leader. In the Chinese border city of Dandong, there was no sign that North Korea was shutting down, with trucks and tourist busses crossing the Yalu River bridge and tourists aboard pleasure boats cruising along the North Korean bank. [KJI_death] [China NK]
• 27 Chinese Visitors Turned Back at Incheon Port
  Twenty-seven Chinese visitors from Nanhe, Hebei Province who said they were in Korea on a year-end bonus trip from the agricultural firm they worked for were detained for 12 hours at the Incheon Port International Passenger Terminal, Chinese media reported. The news made headlines on major Chinese portal sites such as People and iFeng on Sunday, and gave rise to a flurry of speculation that it must have been retaliation for the aggressive behavior of illegal Chinese fishermen in Korean waters that led to the death a Korean coast guard. [China confrontation]
• Islanders suffer hardship amid Chinese fishing piracy
  By Kang Hyun-kyung Living in the bull’s eye, residents of Baengnyeong Island, 191 kilometers northwest of Incheon, are striving to stave off the negative fallout from China’s maritime piracy. These days Choi Chi-ho, a fisherman depending heavily on the West Sea for his living, had a hard time supporting his family due to a sharp income loss after Chinese fishing boats swarmed near the maritime border there. Chinese fishermen’s illegal fishing in the waters off the island has flourished since the 1990s after a sharp decline of fishery stocks in their country’s waters due to pollution and overfishing. Choi, 65, said he felt all fishery stocks in the West Sea were “depleted.” The lifelong fisherman said Chinese fishermen’s “piracy” is severe especially during the summer, a peak season for fishing, causing a drastic decrease of stocks near the waters off the lower maritime border area. Bottom trawlers, which were widely used in the 1990s, made it easy for the Chinese to collect all fish, even those species living in the bottom of the West Sea. “My fellow fishermen here had to return home empty-handed,” he complained. Choi said the Chinese fishermen took advantage of a regulation under which no South Korean fishermen are allowed to approach the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto maritime border, due to security concerns. [NLL] [Dilemma]
• U.S., China embroiled in trade spat over chicken feet
  Qilai Shen/Bloomberg - U.S. exports of chicken feet grew quickly, but now that crunchy trade synergy has gone awry. By Keith B. Richburg, Published: December 16 BEIJING — The United States produces billions of broiler chickens each year, specially bred to be big and juicy, with plump, sturdy feet to hold them up. And for years, all those feet were considered excess parts, and mostly ground into pet food. But here in China, those same feet are a popular crunchy snack, typically cooked and marinated, and often washed down with a beer. And so, a few years ago, a kind of trade synergy began, with the United States shipping to China all those otherwise worthless chicken feet. The trade grew rapidly, from virtually nothing a decade ago to 377,805 metric tons worth $278 million in 2009. .Then suddenly last year, it all went awry. China began imposing stiff duties — including a tax of more than 100 percent — on those American chicken parts. The move was in response to a request by Chinese chicken farmers and manufacturers, who claimed the U.S. government was unfairly subsidizing the American poultry industry through low feed prices and then selling the “chicken paws,” as they’re known in industry parlance, into China at below-market cost. [Dumping] [Double standards]
• China warily watches U.S. withdrawal from Iraq
  By Keith B. Richburg, Published: December 16 BEIJING — As the U.S. military on Thursday formally ended its intervention in Iraq and prepared to withdraw the last of its combat troops, China was watching warily and with deep concern about where those troops might go next. [US global strategy]
• Collected Thoughts on Phil Karber
  By Jeffrey | 7 December 2011 | 51 Comments Well, what to say about Phillip Karber’s forthcoming report that suggests China might have more than 3,000 nuclear weapons stashed away in all those tunnels that the Second Artillery has been building over the past few decades? Well, for one thing, Karber’s claims are utter nonsense. For another, Karber is unbelievably successful at generating unwarranted publicity. Sure, China has lots of tunnels. But all of Karber’s sources about fissile material production are based on a mid-1990s Usenet posting by an internet troll. Actually, it’s worse than that, but this will take some time to explain. Let’s start with my letter to the Washington Post, which the Post refused to publish. The short version is that China simply doesn’t have enough plutonium for all those warheads, tunnels or not. [China confrontation] [Intelligence] [Military balance]
• Leaders in Beijing Pledge to Ramp Up Spending
  By AARON BACK BEIJING—Chinese leaders pledged to step up spending to maintain growth and social stability amid rising global risks. Chinese leaders are pledging to seek stable and more balanced growth while fighting inflation, ending a top-level economic planning session without major shifts in policy. Above, a vegetable vender arranges her merchandise at a street stall in Shanghai Wednesday. .The statement on Wednesday comes as Chinese authorities have shifted their focus away from controlling inflation—their top priority over the past year—and toward insulating China from Europe's economic troubles, which have already hurt Chinese export growth. China will focus on expanding domestic demand to counter a slowing global economy, the government said in a statement released after a meeting of the central economic work conference, an annual gathering of top policy makers and political leaders during which economic policy is planned for the coming year. [Domestic demand]
• Explaining China’s Falling Current Account Balance
  By Samuel Sherraden,New America Foundation December 15, 2011 | New America Foundation China’s surplus fell from 10.1% of GDP in 2007 to 5.2% in 2010. Whether its current account will continue to decline or will return to higher levels seen in the mid-2000s is a subject of considerable disagreement. [Domestic demand]
• Chinese ambassador met with Aung San Suu Kyi
  Global Times | December 16, 2011 08:31 By Zhu Shanshan Share The foreign ministry confirmed yesterday that the Chinese ambassador to Nay Pyi Taw has met with Myanmar's opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in the first such contact in two decades. Ambassador Li Junhua "met with Suu Kyi in response to her repeated requests to have a meeting with China, and the ambassador listened to her views," foreign ministry spokesman Liu Weimin told reporters, without revealing the exact time and location of the meeting. Pointing out China is always committed to developing Sino-Myanmar relations, Liu said Beijing supports Myanmar's efforts to promote economic and social development as well as domestic reconciliation. [Myanmar]
• China says it is mulling offer from Seychelles to be naval resupply and recreation base
  By Associated Press, Published: December 13 | Updated: Wednesday, December 14, 12:15 AM BEIJING — China said Tuesday it is considering an offer from the Seychelles to host Chinese naval ships in the Indian Ocean island nation, highlighting the increasing global reach of a navy that recently launched its first aircraft carrier. State-run media gave prominent coverage to the Seychelles offer to allow rest and resupply for Chinese ships in the multinational force conducting anti-piracy patrols off the coast of Somalia, which China has joined since late 2008. But the reports were careful to reaffirm China’s firm policy of not establishing permanent military bases overseas, a cornerstone of Beijing’s claim not to be seeking regional hegemony or military alliances with other nations. [China global strategy] [Bases] [Seapower]
• Calls Grow to Boost Coast Guard
  The death of Coast Guard commando Lee Cheong-ho during a crackdown on illegal Chinese fishing on Monday has increased calls in Korea to boost the number of large patrol ships and maritime police picked from former special forces units to deal with the increasingly brutal tactics of Chinese fishermen to avoid arrest.
• No Apology from China for Killing of Coast Guard
  The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday made no apology for the killing of a Korean coast guard officer by the skipper of a Chinese trawler who was caught fishing illegally in Korean waters. The ministry and the state-run Chinese media indirectly admitted the trawler was fishing illegally but refrained from comment on the crime. [Territorial disputes] [China confrontation]
• Korea Must Act Firmly Over Murder of Coast Guard
  Coast Guard commandos Lee Cheong-ho and Lee Nak-hoon were stabbed by a Chinese fisherman with a piece of broken glass on Monday morning while they were trying to arrest him for fishing illegally inside Korea's Exclusive Economic Zone. Lee Cheong-ho died and Lee Nak-hoon was wounded. It was the second time in three years that a Korean national was killed while trying to stop illegal fishing by Chinese fishermen. The last time was in September of 2008, when maritime police officer Park Kyung-jo died after he was hit with a shovel wielded by a Chinese fisherman and fell into the ocean. [Territorial disputes] [China confrontation]
• Lee May Call Off Visit to Beijing Over Coast Guard Death
  The government will reconsider President Lee Myung-bak's planned visit to China in January after a South Korean coast guard officer was killed by the skipper of a Chinese trawler caught fishing illegally in South Korean waters. [Territorial disputes] [China confrontation]
• Thousands of Chinese illegal fishing boats crisscross S.Korean waters
  Observers say more stringent crackdown and large boats are needed against violent Chinese crews By Jung Dae-ha, Gwangju Correspondent Of the roughly ten thousand Chinese fishing boats crossing over to ply South Korean waters, around 1,700 carry permits. The remaining 8,000 or so are mostly outlaws that sling nets between two boats, sweeping up not only young fish but fishing gear as well [Territorial disputes]
• Senior NK diplomat visits China
  BEIJING (Yonhap) -- A senior North Korean diplomat handling U.S. affairs arrived in Beijing Tuesday, spurring speculation over a possible meeting with Washington's special envoy for Pyongyang. Ri Gun, director general for North American affairs at North Korea's foreign ministry, was seen heading to Pyongyang's embassy in Beijing after arriving at an airport in the Chinese capital. His visit comes during a lull in nuclear talks with Pyongyang. Since July, South Korea and the U.S. have each held two rounds of bilateral talks with North Korea to determine its seriousness about nuclear disarmament. The meetings produced no breakthrough, delaying a resumption of broader six-nation talks on denuclearizing the North. Ri took part in both meetings with the U.S., in July and October. Glyn Davies, the U.S. special representative for North Korea policy, is also scheduled to arrive in Beijing Tuesday for a two-day visit. The envoy is on his first tour of South Korea, Japan and China since being appointed to the post in October. Responding to reporters' questions at the airport, however, Ri denied he plans to meet Davies in Beijing.
• Playing with fire: Obama's threat to China
  Obama says US influence will turn from the Middle East towards the "vast potential of the Asia-Pacific region". Michael Klare Last Modified: 10 Dec 2011 14:33 When it comes to China policy, is the Obama administration leaping from the frying pan directly into the fire? In an attempt to turn the page on two disastrous wars in the greater Middle East, it may have just launched a new Cold War in Asia - once again, viewing oil as the key to global supremacy. The new policy was signalled by President Obama himself on November 17 in an address to the Australian Parliament in which he laid out an audacious - and extremely dangerous - geopolitical vision. Instead of focusing on the greater Middle East, as has been the case for the last decade, the United States will now concentrate its power in Asia and the Pacific. [China confrontation] [Oil]
• How the "New Cold War" with China Will Change America's Future
  December 8, 2011 Few things push the frontiers of the future more than an army's desire to defeat its enemies. Just look at what happened to America after World War II. Our need to counter Soviet power delivered a tidal wave of innovation. Defense spending led to the Internet, microwave ovens and GPS devices - not to mention millions of jobs from one of the great tech booms in history. Now comes the "New Cold War" - one that will also prove a boon to a wide range of tech industries. This time the United States is racing against China. You see, the Pentagon recently announced plans to check Chinese ambition with a wide range of responses. They fall under a new program called "Air Sea Battle."
  Indeed, if the United States wants to maintain its edge over China, it will have to invest in advanced weaponry. And that will improve America's future technology. [China confrontation] [Militarisation] [NCW] [MISCOM]
• A Code of Conduct for the South China Sea: What Should It Contain?
  By Mark Valencia December 8, 2011 Mark Valencia, Nautilus Institute Associate and NARP Research Associate, explores options for the upcoming ASEAN and China negotiations concerning a Code of Conduct (CoC) to govern activities in the South China Sea. There are hopes that a Code can be presented and approved at the ASEAN-China 2012 summit, but the key elements have yet to be decided. Valencia contends that the CoC must include an agreement as to 1) where, to whom, and to what the Code applies, 2) how it addresses non-state actors and Taiwan (which is a South China Sea claimant), and 3) the scope of the Code; it should govern all activities, including resource exploration and exploitation, marine scientific research, and military activities. [Territorial disputes]
• Sino-US relations at vulnerable juncture
  By Benjamin A Shobert Dec 9, 2011 The November release of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission's (USCC) annual report on the state of US-Sino relations certainly covered its fair share of the traditional suspects. Spread throughout the report are numerous calls for action on the matter of the yuan valuation, the need for the US to more aggressively access the WTO as a means of addressing its grievances with China, and on the foreign affairs front, China's reticence to deal with North Korea and Iran in ways that America believes China should. [US China]
• What Will China’s Carrier Be Used For?
  U.S. Naval War College professor Andrew Erickson has just come out with another interesting analysis of China’s new aircraft carrier, noting that the ship, equipped with advanced radars and defensive weapons doesn’t sound remotely like a true training carrier. Instead, it will likely serve as the blueprint for a fleet of ships designed to deploy Chinese fighter jets all over the resource-rich South China Sea and the Yellow Sea. From his latest piece written for the war college, titled, Beijing’s Starter Carrier and Future Steps: [China confrontation] [Seapower]
• China's Hu Urges Navy to Prepare for Combat
  Posted by The Congressional China Caucus | December 07, 2011 “The more we understand how complicated things are, the better off we’ll be…This is not a world where the uninformed are going to survive for very long.” Admiral Robert Willard, Commander of U.S. Pacific Command speaking to the San Diego Military Advisory Council in December of 2011. Dear Colleague, I am writing to bring your attention to recent comments made by Chinese President Hu Jintao, who while speaking to China’s Central Military Commission, urged the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Navy to accelerate its modernization in order to prepare for combat. His comments have been reported by the AFP: The PLA Navy should "accelerate its transformation and modernization in a sturdy way, and make extended preparations for military combat in order to make greater contributions to safeguard national security," he (President Hu) said...In a translation of Hu’s comments, the official Xinhua news agency quoted the president as saying China’s navy should ‘make extended preparations for warfare.’ You can find the entire AFP piece here. [China confrontation] [MISCOM] [Spin]
• Qinghai-Tibet grid interconnection project begins trial run
  Xinhua | December 10, 2011 09:00 Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang (2nd R) announces the launch of the trial run of the Qinghai-Tibet power grid during a ceremony in Beijing, capital of China, Dec. 9, 2011. Li Keqiang on Friday attended the ceremony of the trial run of the Qinghai-Tibet power electricity network in Beijing and met with representatives of the construction workers. Photo:Xinhua China's Qinghai-Tibet grid interconnection project, which is expected to ease power strains on the frigid plateau, began a trial run Friday. The project ends Tibetan power grid's isolation -- making the power system on the Chinese mainland fully integrated and providing a solid base to sort out power shortages in Tibet, Vice Premier Li Keqiang said at a ceremony in Beijing.
• Armies back on speaking terms
  Global Times | December 08, 2011 00:37 By Yang Jingjie Share Chinese and US officials attend the 12th round of defense consultations in Beijing on Wednesday. Photo: AFP Chinese and US defense officials met on Wednesday for their first top-level talks since Washington announced arms sales to Taiwan in September, in a bid to avoid conflicts caused by miscalculations of each other's strategic intentions. The annual round of defense consultations was led by Ma Xiaotian, a deputy chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), and US Under-Secretary of Defense Michele Flournoy.
• Washington Post Boosts Obama’s Declaration of War on China
  by JOHN V. WALSH “Mr. President, we must not allow a mineshaft gap”! –General “Buck” Turgidson – Dr Strangelove “China is a vast country—‘When it is dark in the east, it is light in the west; when things are dark in the south, there is still light in the north.’ Hence one need not worry about lack of room for maneuver.” Chairman Mao Zedong Hot on the heels of Obama’s near declaration of war on China in Darwin Australia, the Washington Post snapped to attention and marched off smartly to do journalistic battle. There atop the “National Security” section of the Washington Post a headline blared “Georgetown students shed light on China’s tunnel system for nuclear weapons.” This alarum was produced within days of Obama’s scary announcement of a U.S. military buildup to threaten Chinese commercial navigation, including vital oil shipments from the Middle East. That puts the U.S. on a war footing with respect to China. Disturbing stuff indeed [China confrontation] [Spin]
• China’s “Cult of the Military”
  By Le Hong Hiep December 2, 2011 Under Chinese Communist Party rule, the influence of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) on Chinese domestic politics has generally been carefully controlled, and Chinese generals today appear to enjoy a less privileged status than in centuries past, when they created and ruled states, or played a key role in helping emperors expand territory, maintain social order and suppress rebels.
• Korean Peninsula faces growing uncertainty
  Global Times | December 05, 2011 23:54 By Hao Zhou and Ma Qingyan in Seoul Share Editor's Note: Despite a recent round robin of contacts aiming to resume the Six-Party Talks on North Korea's nuclear program, it seems that the two Koreas, China, the US, Russia and Japan are still far from able to sit down together to discuss how to make the North abandon its nuclear ambition.
• Power in Numbers: China Aims for High-Tech Primacy
  By DAVID BARBOZA and JOHN MARKOFF Published: December 5, 2011 BEIJING — In an otherwise nondescript conference room, Wu Jianping stands before a giant wall of frosted glass. He toggles a switch and the glass becomes transparent, looking down on an imposing network operations center full of large computer displays. They show maps of China and the world, pinpointing China’s IPv6 links, the next generation of the Internet.
• China Sees 'Cold War' in U.S.'s Australia Plan
  By BRIAN SPEGELE BEIJING—China's Ministry of National Defense criticized U.S. plans to establish a permanent military presence in Australia, accusing Washington of acting antagonistically in the region and perpetuating a Cold War mentality. The remarks by Defense Ministry spokesman Geng Yansheng were China's strongest reaction yet to the announcement by President Barack Obama in November of the plan to strengthen military ties with Australia and to eventually station 2,500 Marines on Australia's remote northern coast. Nonetheless, the response was relatively mild in that it didn't warn that the new military presence would damage wider U.S.-China military ties. [China confrontation] [NCW]
• China reproaches Australia over strengthened US defence ties
  by: Ben Packham From: The Australian November 17, 2011 12:00AM CHINA has strongly reproached Canberra over strengthened US defence ties, warning Australia may be "caught in the crossfire" if the United States uses new Australian-based military forces to threaten its interests. A strongly-worded editorial in the state-owned People's Daily said the new Australian-US defence pact posed a security threat to Australia. "Australia surely cannot play China for a fool. It is impossible for China to remain detached, no matter what Australia does to undermine its security," it said. "If Australia uses its military bases to help the US harm Chinese interests, then Australia itself will be caught in the crossfire."
• Illegal Chinese fishing boats to face heavier fines
  By Kim Tae-jong The owners of foreign fishing boats captured while operating illegally in Korean waters will have to pay higher fines to reclaim their boats, the prosecution said Sunday. The measure is a part of efforts to strengthen the crackdown on an increasing number of Chinese trawlers unlawfully fishing in the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
• Chinese Province Starts Drone Patrol of Waters Near N.Korea
  Marine authorities in the northeastern Chinese province of Liaoning near the North Korea-China border are using an unmanned aerial vehicle to watch illegal activities in waters off North Korea. Since not many countries use UAVs for coastal patrols, there is speculation that China wants to monitor North Korean defectors who escape by sea. [UAV] [Media]
• Gary Locke is star in China as first U.S. ambassador of Chinese ancestry
  View Photo Gallery — ?Gary Locke, a former governor of Washington and commerce secretary, is the first U.S. ambassador to China to be of Chinese descent. His low-key, unassuming attitude has charmed the Chinese. Text Size PrintE-mailReprints By Keith Richburg, Thursday, December 1, 1:29 PM BEIJING — At a recent Asia Society forum showcasing American culture for Chinese audiences, the most sought-after celebrities for a quick handshake or a random cellphone photo were the cellist Yo-Yo Ma, actress Meryl Streep, filmmaker Joel Coen and, of course, Gary Locke. Gary Locke? .Yes, that Gary Locke. The low-key, two-term Washington state governor and former Obama administration commerce secretary who — with his wife, Mona Locke, and their three children — has become in just three months something of a media and Internet star in China as the first U.S. ambassador of Chinese ancestry. [Diaspora]
• TPP as a Lynchpin of US Anti-China Strategy
  Saturday, 19 November 2011, 8:08 pm Article: Professor Jane Kelsey The Trans-Pacific Partnership as a Lynchpin of US Anti-China Strategy Professor Jane Kelsey reflects on implications for the TPPA of the APEC leaders’ meeting in Honolulu. Part 1: The Strategy The real agenda behind the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) came into the open at this month’s APEC meeting in Honolulu. As we have always assumed, the driver has very little to do with commercial gain and everything to do with revival of US geopolitical and strategic influence in the Asian region to counter the ascent of China. The US aims to isolate and subordinate China in part through constructing a region-wide legal regime that serves the interests of, and is enforceable by, the US and its corporations – and in the TPPA context, what the US wants is ultimately what counts. [FTA] [China confrontation]
• "NAFTA of the Pacific" and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP): Washington's Hidden Agenda is to Isolate and Subordinate China
  by Dana Gabriel Global Research, November 29, 2011 beyourownleader.blogspot.com At the recent APEC meetings, Canada and Mexico announced their interest in joining the U.S., along with other countries already engaged in negotiations to establish what has been referred to as the NAFTA of the Pacific. The leaders of the nine countries that are part of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) met at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Hawaii and agreed on the broad outlines of a free trade agreement. The current members include the U.S., Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Singapore, Brunei, Peru and Chile. The TPP has been hailed as a, “landmark, 21st-century trade agreement, setting a new standard for global trade and incorporating next-generation issues.” Key features of the TPP are that it would provide comprehensive market access and be a fully regional agreement designed to facilitate the development of production and supply chains. Various working groups have been discussing issues such as financial services, government procurement, intellectual property, investment, rules of origin, telecommunications and trade remedies. The next round of talks will take place in December and there are hopes of concluding negotiations before the end of 2012. Apart from Canada and Mexico, Japan has also expressed interest in being part of the TPP. The door is also open for other countries to join which is why many consider it to be a building block for an Asia-Pacific free trade zone. [FTA] [China confrontation]
• China's first aircraft carrier starts second trial
  (AFP) – 15 hours ago BEIJING — China's first aircraft carrier began its second sea trial on Tuesday after undergoing refurbishments and testing, the government said, as tensions over maritime territorial disputes in the region ran high. [China confrontation]
• KCNA to Shortly Start Chinese Service
  Pyongyang, November 29 (KCNA) -- The Korean Central News Agency will start reporting articles, photos and movies in Chinese from Dec. 1 with homepage address--http://www.kcna.kp. It is occasioned by the 65th anniversary of KCNA. It will contribute to boosting traditional friendship between the DPRK and China and promoting the understanding of the DPRK by a great number of Chinese speaking population.
• Georgetown students shed light on China’s tunnel system for nuclear weapons
  By William Wan, Wednesday, November 30, 2:30 PM The Chinese have called it their “Underground Great Wall” — a vast network of tunnels designed to hide their country’s increasingly sophisticated missile and nuclear arsenal. For the past three years, a small band of obsessively dedicated students at Georgetown University has called it something else: homework. These are clips from Chinese TV news reports and from episodes of a TV docudrama that a group of Georgetown students used to help assemble the largest public database on more than 3,000 miles of tunnels dug by the Chinese to hide and move their missiles and nuclear arms. (Note: The text in these clips was not written by The Washington Post.) .Led by their hard-charging professor, a former top Pentagon official, they have translated hundreds of documents, combed through satellite imagery, obtained restricted Chinese military documents and waded through hundreds of gigabytes of online data. The result of their effort? The largest body of public knowledge about thousands of miles of tunnels dug by the Second Artillery Corps, a secretive branch of the Chinese military in charge of protecting and deploying its ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads. The study is yet to be released, but already it has sparked a congressional hearing and been circulated among top officials in the Pentagon, including the Air Force vice chief of staff. Most of the attention has focused on the 363-page study’s provocative conclusion — that China’s nuclear arsenal could be many times larger than the well-established estimates of arms-control experts (sic). [China confrontation] [Media]

• China pushes Myanmar military ties ahead of Clinton visit
  BEIJING | Mon Nov 28, 2011 5:48am EST BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping offered to boost military ties with Myanmar on Monday, days ahead of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's historic visit to China's isolated southern neighbor that has begun showing signs of political reform. The calls by Xi, heir apparent to the Chinese leadership, to deepen military cooperation with Myanmar come after U.S. efforts to ramp up military engagement in Asia made Beijing jittery. He told the visiting commander of Myanmar's armed forces, General Min Aung Hlaing, that the two countries' friendship had "endured the test of time through sudden international changes." "I hope the militaries of the two countries, hereon, can continue to strengthen exchanges, deepen cooperation and play an active role in pushing forward the development of comprehensive relations," Xi said, according to a statement posted on the Foreign Ministry's website(www.fmprc.gov.cn).
• Exclusive dedication to Confucianism blocks cultural revival
  Global Times | November 28, 2011 18:21 By Zhao Qiguang Share E-mail Print Comments(0) Illustration: Liu Rui China has become an economic giant. This is widely accepted worldwide. China's economic revival not only stirs interest in developing countries, but is earning itself more and more respect from the developed world. But does economic rise entail cultural rejuvenation? There are fierce debates both at home and abroad. I'm not blindly optimistic, but I do believe that a renaissance of Chinese civilization is already on the horizon. History indicates that cultural revival invariably starts with a nation's looking back to its traditions. Exchanges with other cultures bring opportunities for self-inspection and correction. However, a culture has to dig into its indigenous traditions if it wants to step forward. This is taking place in China. The nation is heading forward. Meanwhile it also looks around and looks back. Realizing cultural rise is like to finish a pole vault. External sway is the run-up, but tradition is the pivotal pole. Cultural rejuvenation is a big ambition among the nation's top decision-makers. Cultural rise and soft power are also being hotly discussed among the Chinese public. I'm glad to see the fervor for Chinese classics. If we can assimilate the wealth of China's Axial Age, the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC), China is going to witness its own renaissance. But there is a false mentality at the moment. Mentioning China's cultural tradition, many instinctively think of turning to Confucius, the most famous ancient Chinese sage. In history, China made the mistake of exclusive dedication to Confucianism. But exclusive dedication to any school of ideas indicates the beginning of a decayed culture.
• The Australian Canary
  by Brad Glosserman Brad Glosserman [brad@pacforum.org] is the executive director of Pacific Forum CSIS. “No, thanks.” That, in summary, is the response of Hugh White to the recent announcement that the US would be sending marines on permanent rotation to Darwin, along with naval and air forces that would have increased access to facilities in northern Australia. That answer is no surprise to those familiar with White’s writings on power dynamics in the Asia Pacific region; he has been making the case for strategic reorientation in Canberra for a couple of years now. But White is no starry-eyed academic who hankers after the pacifist dream of complete disarmament. He is a professor of strategic studies at Australian National University, one of Asia’s most distinguished strategists, and a former Australian deputy secretary of defense. [Hegemony] [Subordinate]
• China to probe US green energy industry
  Global Times | November 26, 2011 08:42 By Chen Yang Share The Ministry of Commerce announced Friday it has launched an investigation into US government policy support and subsidies for the renewable energy industry, adding to tensions after earlier this month the US decided to probe sales of Chinese-made solar panels in the US. "The investigation is based on requests from two domestic industry groups, which claim US government policy support and subsidies in the renewable energy industry have constituted a trade barrier for Chinese renewable energy products," the ministry said in a statement on its website Friday. "A series of US policies, such as encouraging Americans to buy US-made products, have violated World Trade Organization (WTO) rules and restrict the development of China's renewable energy sector," the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products, and the China New Energy Chamber of Commerce announced in a joint statement Friday. [Resurgence]
• Chinese FM Congratulates Korean People on Successful Drive to Open Gate to Thriving Nation
  Pyongyang, November 25 (KCNA) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met and had a friendly talk with the DPRK delegation of Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Beijing on Nov. 24. The delegation headed by Vice-Minister Kim Song Gi is on a visit to China. [China NK]
• Seoul, Beijing to Start FTA Talks in January
  Seoul and Beijing hope to start bilateral free trade talks in January. Kim Tae-hyo, the presidential secretary for national security strategy, on Thursday said he would fly to Beijing in December to meet Yu Jianhua, the Chinese assistant minister of commerce, to discuss the bilateral FTA. [FTA]
• China announces Pacific drill
  Global Times | November 25, 2011 01:49 By Huang Jingjing Share Chinese soldiers and Pakistani commandos shout "Long Live China, Long Live Pakistan" as they wrap up their two-week military exercise in Jhelum, Pakistan on Thursday. Photo: AFP China on Wednesday announced a second naval drill in the western Pacific this year, days after US President Barack Obama announced an expanded military presence in the region. "A fleet of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy will go for training in the western Pacific in late November," the Ministry of National Defense announced. "This annual regular training is a routine arrangement, not directed toward any particular country or target," the statement said. "China's lawful rights, including free navigation in relevant waters, should not receive any barriers." The statement did not reveal the location of the drill, nor the vessels to be used. [Resurgence] [Military exercises]
• China's fury building over Obama's new Asia policy
  November 21, 2011 | 1:47 am 2813 REPORTING FROM BEIJING -- Chinese scholars and commentators lashed out with barely repressed anger at President Obama's trip to Asia, complaining that his efforts to shore up U.S. influence in Asia were by implication aimed at containing China. "The United States has alienated 1 billion Chinese. It's not smart public diplomacy," Shen Dingli, a professor of American studies at Shanghai's Fudan University, said Monday. The English-language China Daily in its lead editorial on Monday accused the United States of "scaremongering" over the perceived threat of China's rise and a signed Op-Ed article on Sunday declared, "East Asia not U.S. playground." "The aim of America's strategic move east is in fact to pin down and contain China and counterbalance China's development," echoed Jiefang Daily, a Chinese-language version of the official Xinhua news agency, in a commentary on Sunday. [China confrontation] [US_election12]
• Yes, China Could Have a Global Navy
  November 20, 2011 By James R. Holmes inShare.20 The idea that Chinese strategists are too limited in their thinking to have a world-straddling navy is misplaced, argues James Holmes. My colleague Prof. Bernard ‘Bud’ Cole doubts China’s People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLA Navy) can transform itself into a global force by mid-century, realizing founding father Adm. Liu Huaqing’s vision of a navy that commands an expanding belt of offshore waters before taking its place alongside the U.S. Navy as a world-straddling fleet. Writing in the Naval Institute Proceedings, Cole—a veteran U.S. Navy surface warfare officer and author of The Great Wall at Sea—deems Chinese maritime strategy “antithetical to historic naval strategic thinking, whether formulated by Admiral Alfred Thayer Mahan, Sir Julian Stafford Corbett, or any other maritime strategist of note.” [China rising][Seapower]
• A Pacific cold war is in no one's interest
  November 18, 2011 Opinion .The US military build-up may be counterproductive. PRESIDENT Barack Obama's speech to yesterday's joint sitting of Federal Parliament was of a glitteringly higher rhetorical standard than the usual offerings of either chamber. Australian politicians are not given to invoking ideals of liberty and democracy when arguing about policy or legislation. None of them, however, could have been so dazzled by the President's oratory as to miss the intent in his remarks. Formally, he was addressing the Parliament of a longstanding ally, in recognition of the alliance's 60th anniversary. In reality, he was issuing a declaration to the countries of the region, and above all to China. The US, a Pacific power, aims to keep projecting that power, economically and militarily, on both sides of the ocean.
• Navy’s next stop in Asia will set China on edge
  By Craig Whitlock The USS Independence, a Littoral Combat Ship, transits the Narragansett Bay, off Rhode Island. (U.S. Navy) If China is unhappy with the Obama administration’s decision to send a handful of Marines to northern Australia, wait until the U.S. Navy starts basing warships in Singapore, on the edge of the disputed waters of the South China Sea. The United States and Singapore are in the final negotiating stages of an agreement to base some of the U.S. Navy’s new Littoral Combat Ships at the Changi Naval Base. Former Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates announced in June that a deal was near to deploy the ships to Singapore, and a Pentagon spokesman said this week that officials “remain excited about this opportunity.” [China confrontation] [Special forces]
• Formations in China Desert Are Still a Mystery
  By J. DAVID GOODMAN Google Maps Mysterious shapes seen on Google Maps in the Gobi Desert in China have raised questions online. The arrows above indicate the locations of three such shapes within about 20 miles.In the areas of the Internet that buzz with delight at strange formations writ large on the landscape, a mystery appeared to be solved this week: giant shapes seen on Google Maps in China are simply geometric targets for satellite calibration. Or are they?
• Korea, China to conduct joint naval exercise, talks
  The navies of South Korea and China will hold joint a naval exercise and military talks this week in China, South Korea's Navy here said Monday. The navies will hold their fourth joint Search and Rescue Exercise, or SAREX, from Tuesday to Friday this week. The exercise will be held in waters off Ningbo and Shanghai, the South Korean Navy said. The two navies have previously held the SAREX in 2005, 2007 and 2008. [SK China] [Military exercises]
• Buildup Down Under
  The American president insisted his historic visit to Australia was not about China. But, of course, that's exactly what it was about. BY RORY MEDCALF | NOVEMBER 17, 2011 SYDNEY – U.S. President Barack Obama's just-concluded trip to Australia proved far more than a chance to swap notes with an embattled prime minister on antipodean vernacular or the frustrations of democracy, although he did learn that Australian political discourse involves a great deal of "ear-bashing." The visit was historic on two counts. It marked a tangibly strengthened alliance, with announcements of much-enhanced access for U.S. forces in Australia's north: a first step toward possible basing arrangements on the territory of an ally that for 60 years has hosted only visits, exercises, and intelligence facilities. [China confrontation]
• America's incoherent Asia policy
  Posted By Clyde Prestowitz Thursday, November 17, 2011 - 4:01 PM Share America's Asia policy is internally contradictory and makes no sense. Four recent events make the point. [China confrontation] [F&E] [Strategic incoherence]
• A determined Obama in Asia-Pacific tour
  View Photo Gallery — Obama arrives in Bali for the ASEAN and the East Asia summits after meeting with Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillardm to announce a permanent military presence in Australia beginning next summer. By David Nakamura, Sunday, November 20, 4:38 AM GUAM — As he hopscotched across the Asian Pacific over the past nine days, President Obama cast himself as a leader determined to protect American interests and spread American values, willing to project power and take political risks for the sake of a better future. It was a message that returned a degree of lift and optimism — and the notion of American exceptionalism — to the president’s political oratory, elements that have been largely absent in recent months as he has focused on the grinding task of creating jobs and curbing unemployment at home.
• China, DPRK vow to strengthen military cooperation
  Xinhua | November 18, 2011 16:11 China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) have said they would strengthen military exchanges and cooperation. The two sides vowed to do so during an official goodwill visit from Nov. 15 to 18 to the DPRK by a senior Chinese military delegation led by Director of the General Political Department of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Li Jinai. During a meeting with Li, top DPRK leader Kim Jong Il said the military relationship is an important part of the ties between the two countries. He said he hoped the two militaries would continue to improve their ties so as to help consolidate and develop the China-DPRK friendship. [China NK]
• China vows closer military ties with ally North Korea amid lingering tensions on peninsula
  By Associated Press, Published: November 18 BEIJING — China said Friday it would strengthen military ties with ally North Korea, amid continuing tensions between Pyongyang and Seoul and stalled efforts to restart nuclear disarmament talks. The vow follows a three-day visit to the North by the Chinese military’s top political commissar, Li Jinai, during which he told North Korean leader Kim Jong Il that China’s army wanted to enhance understanding and mutual trust
• China, U.S. Use Same Tracking Base
  Australia Lets Beijing Use Space Facility Without Consulting With Americans By JEREMY PAGE BEIJING—Australian officials said on Wednesday that they didn't consult the U.S. on a plan to allow China to use a space-tracking station in Western Australia that is also used by NASA, despite widespread concerns that the Chinese space program is largely controlled by the Chinese military. The admission comes as a potential embarrassment to Australian authorities as they host U.S. President Barack Obama on his first official visit there. Mr. Obama on Wednesday unveiled plans to boost the U.S. military presence in the country, in large part to hedge against China's escalating firepower. An Obama administration spokesman said late Wednesday that he was unaware of the ground-station issue. .U.S. officials and experts have long expressed concerns that China's space program has potential military applications, including enhancing its ability to target U.S. aircraft carriers, and other Navy ships, with a recently deployed antiship ballistic missile. While the site's owner and Australian authorities say there's no risk of China accessing U.S. operations there, some experts say that China could use it to better position spacecraft for military surveillance. [China rising] [China confrontation] [Subordinate]
• US assures Philippines of 2nd warship amid South China Sea territorial disputes
  By Associated Press, Published: November 17 | Updated: Friday, November 18, 12:19 AM MANILA, Philippines — The United States will provide a second warship to the ill-equipped Philippine military as it confronts China in increasingly tense territorial disputes in the South China Sea, a Philippine official said Thursday. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton assured Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin during talks in Manila on Wednesday that Washington would give its longtime ally a second Coast Guard cutter virtually for free some time next year [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• US reasserts role as Pacific power
  Global Times | November 18, 2011 00:44 By Yang Jingjie Share US President Barack Obama Thursday reiterated his country's determination to consolidate its role in the Asia-Pacific, a day after Beijing questioned Washington's decision to expand its military presence in Australia. "The US is a Pacific power, and we are here to stay," Obama said when addressing the Australian Parliament in Canberra, repeating the exact phrases he used at the APEC summit in Honolulu over the weekend.
• Sino-US war unlikely but not impossible
  Global Times | November 15, 2011 23:01 By Global Times Share Editor's Note: A recent report released by the RAND Corporation, a US think tank specializing in military studies, examined the prospect of China and the US going to war, but concluded it improbable. What is the ultimate red line for a major military conflict between the two powers? Will the US back other Asian countries in provoking China? Global Times (GT) reporter Wang Wenwen talked to Major General Luo Yuan (Luo), deputy secretary-general of the PLA Academy of Military Sciences, and Robert M. Farley (Farley), a professor at the Patterson School of Diplomacy and International Commerce in the University of Kentucky, on these issues. [Conflict]
• Kim Jong Il Receives High-ranking Military Delegation of CPLA
  Pyongyang, November 17 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, Thursday received the high-ranking military delegation of the Chinese People's Liberation Army led by Li Jinai, member of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China and director of the General Political Department of the CPLA, on a visit to the DPRK.
• President Obama Will Announce Increased Marine Presence during Australia Visit
  By Murray Hiebert, Kiet Nguyen Nov 15, 2011 President Barack Obama will visit Australia on November 16–17 to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty and reestablish U.S. leadership in the Asia-Pacific region. His arrival in Canberra will mark his first visit to Australia as president and the first U.S. presidential visit since George W. Bush arrived in Sydney in 2007 for a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum. While reaffirming the historic security relationship between the United States and Australia, Obama will also emphasize economic ties through the nine-country Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement under negotiation. [China confrontation]
• Eyeing China, U.S. Expands Military Ties to Australia
  Charles Dharapak/Associated Press President Obama and Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia after a joint news conference in Canberra on Wednesday. By JACKIE CALMES Published: November 16, 2011 CANBERRA, Australia — President Obama and Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia announced plans on Wednesday for the first sustained American military presence in Australia, a relatively small deployment that is still a major symbol of American intentions to use regional alliances to counterbalance a rising China. [China confrontation]
• Beijing Resists Sea Debate During East Asia Summit
  By JEREMY PAGE BEIJING—China and the U.S. appear to be heading for another confrontation over the disputed waters of the South China Sea during this week's East Asia summit—the first to be attended by a U.S. president—in Bali, Indonesia. Beijing made it clear on Tuesday that it did not want to discuss any aspect of the South China Sea—where its claims overlap with those of Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei—at the two-day summit, beginning Friday. .The White House, however, said later that the subject would come up in discussions on maritime security—a key concern for the U.S. as it seeks to re-assert its influence in Asia in the face of China's more robust diplomacy and maritime activities in the South China Sea. [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• Lawmakers sharply criticize millions in US aid to China as ‘insult’ to Americans amid downturn
  By Associated Press, Published: November 15 WASHINGTON — Lawmakers say it’s an insult to the American people: The United States is borrowing money from China only to give some of it right back as foreign aid. And that, they say, is bolstering Chinese businesses that compete with American companies in hard economic times. A House hearing Tuesday provided a venue for Republicans to pounce on the Obama administration when wasteful spending, questionable foreign aid and US-China relations are all hot issues ahead of next year’s elections. Republicans and Democrats are criticizing the U.S. government’s development agency for providing aid to Washington’s main foreign creditor, China. .But an administration official told lawmakers there was no money going to the Chinese government or Chinese companies. In fact, it helped American companies trying to do business in China. And the idea for the aid? That actually came from Congress when it was under Republican control. [China confrontation] [Aid weapon] [Governance]
• A Cold and Clever U.S. Base Move
  November 17, 2011 By Raoul Heinrichs With its military dominance being hollowed out by China, the agreement over access to Australian bases makes sense to the U.S. But what about Canberra? U.S. President Barack Obama’s sheen may have worn off somewhat in the United States, but not in Australia. Yet amid the handshaking and backslapping, the photo opportunities and exultations of shared values, interests and history, it’s easy to overlook the fact that Obama’s trip “down under” is driven by cold strategic logic: to sell Australians on accepting a greater burden on behalf of their alliance with the United States. [China confrontation] [Subordinate] [Australia]
• Beijing questions US military boost in Australia
  Global Times | November 17, 2011 01:18 By Zhu Shanshan Share Beijing Wednesday questioned Washington's decision to expand its military presence in Australia, with analysts warning that the US is seeking to box China in with military bases and is flexing its muscles over the South China Sea issue. "It may not be appropriate to intensify and expand military alliances at a time when the economy is still recovering. The move may not be in the interest of countries in the region," said Liu Weimin, a spokesman of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Liu was responding to questions regarding a joint statement made by US President Barack Obama and Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard Wednesday on stationing a 2,500-strong US Marine Air-Ground Task Force by 2016 in Darwin. [China confrontation]
• [Editorial] Restoring the balance in East Asia
  The contest between the United States and China over the Asia-Pacific region is becoming ever more overt. If the situation progresses into side-taking and antagonism, the prospects for East Asia’s economy and national security become unclear, and everyone may end up on the losing end. Now is the time for urgently needed sound political decision making and intelligent measures. A few days ago, the Financial Times warned that if the United States shuts China out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement, it could meet with a backlash in its involvements in Asia. The day before, the U.S. and China had a tense exchange at an Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting. The United States said China had to play by the rules, to which China responded that it had no obligation to follow the decisions made by one or several other countries. It was an episode that demonstrated the power shift between the two sides and the conflicts that have arisen as a result. Stepping up its curbs on Beijing on the pretext of answering demands for intervention from Southeast Asian countries that have been in conflict with their neighbor over territorial waters issues and other factors, the U.S. recently signed a free trade agreement with South Korea and brought Japan into the TPP. The world’s top-ranked economy, the United States, accounts for 70% of the gross domestic product for the ten countries taking part in TPP negotiations. Japan, the third-ranked economy, accounts for another 20%. In effect, this is an attempt to bring virtually the entire Asia-Pacific region minus China into the world’s largest free trade zone, with these two countries at the center. How could Beijing not be on edge? [China confrontation] [FTA]
• China opens doors of state-run companies to world’s top talent
  By Vivek Wadhwa, Thursday, November 17, 12:48 AM The top talent in countries around the world have a new suitor: the Chinese government. China has a severe shortage of skilled talent and, in a policy reversal, has decided to open its doors to talent from around the world. This could mean that the brilliant NASA scientists the U.S. laid off, could find new employment — and a new home — in Shanghai or Beijing. .Chinese research labs have long had difficulty recruiting qualified workers to perform necessary research and development, and its corporations struggle to find competent managers. The situation will likely get worse as China’s high-tech industries grow and it increases its national R&D spending from the present 1.62 percent of GDP, according to the Chinese government, to the planned 2.5 percent by 2020. China’s President Hu Jintao, in May 2010, declared talent development a national priority in order to fill the void. The goal is to dramatically increase the education level of China’s workforce and to build an innovation economy. [China rising]
• U.S. pivot to Asia makes China nervous
  By Keith B. Richburg, Thursday, November 17, 5:52 AM BEIJING — With the Obama administration’s high-profile pivot toward Asia this week — pushing for a new free-trade agreement with at least eight other countries and securing military basing rights in Australia — China is feeling at once isolated, criticized, encircled and increasingly like a target of U.S. moves. China’s nervousness is compounded by unease that a meeting Friday and Saturday of East Asian countries in Bali, Indonesia, will become the setting for renewed U.S. criticism of Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea. [China confrontation]
• As U.S. Looks to Asia, It Sees China Everywhere
  Bobby Yip/Reuters The United States uses aircraft carriers like the George Washington, which was in Hong Kong last week, to project power into Asian waters. By IAN JOHNSON and JACKIE CALMES Published: November 15, 2011 The last time the remote Australian city of Darwin played a significant role in American military planning was during the early days of World War II, when Gen. Douglas MacArthur used the port as the base for his campaign to reclaim the Pacific from the Japanese. President Obama was greeted by Prime Minister Julia Gillard of Australia in Canberra, Australia on Wednesday. So it was with considerable symbolism that President Obama arrived on Wednesday in Canberra, Australia’s capital, for a trip that will include an announcement that the United States plans to use Darwin as a new center of operations in Asia as it seeks to reassert itself in the region and grapple with China’s rise. [China rising] [Militarisation]
• A New Era of Gunboat Diplomacy
  By MARK LANDLER Published: November 12, 2011 IT may seem strange in an era of cyberwarfare and drone attacks, but the newest front in the rivalry between the United States and China is a tropical sea, where the drive to tap rich offshore oil and gas reserves has set off a conflict akin to the gunboat diplomacy of the 19th century. The Obama administration first waded into the treacherous waters of the South China Sea last year when Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton declared, at a tense meeting of Asian countries in Hanoi, that the United States would join Vietnam, the Philippines and other countries in resisting Beijing’s efforts to dominate the sea. China, predictably, was enraged by what it viewed as American meddling. [Territorial disputes] [China confrontation]
• AirSea Battle plan renews old hostility
  Global Times | November 14, 2011 02:10 By Global Times The Wall Street Journal reported Friday that the Pentagon is preparing to announce a controversial AirSea Battle concept. This is a roadmap that could serve as a counter to China's "anti-access" capabilities, which include a nascent anti-ship ballistic missile that could hold the US Navy at bay during a regional conflict. This new system will intensify the strategic atmosphere in the Pacific. A US official told the Washington Post that it is a milestone in treating China with new "Cold War" thinking. It has been long argued that there is a new "Cold War" between China and the US. But a US official's acknowledgement grants it special meaning. Should this be taken as a warning to China? If the US takes the AirSea Battle system seriously, China has to upgrade its anti-access capabilities. China should have the ability to deter any external interference but unfortunately, such a reasonable stance is seen as a threat by the US. [China confrontation] [AirSea Battle] [Military balance]
• Battle Plans Tempt Chill in U.S.-China Relations
  November 10, 2011, 7:05 PM By Matt Durnin The Pentagon is preparing to announce a controversial AirSea Battle concept that analysts believe is meant to check China’s growing military but could also spark fresh tensions between the two powers. A news service focused on Pentagon affairs, InsideDefense.com, reported last week that a new joint-force office has been tasked with implementing the concept and defense officials are meeting to discuss how to present the plan publicly. At its foundation AirSea Battle is a roadmap to combining Air Force and Navy assets to overwhelm attempts to limit the U.S. military’s global reach. In the Pacific theater this would serve as the counter-punch to China’s “anti-access” capabilities, which include a nascent anti-ship ballistic missile that could hold the U.S. Navy at bay during a regional conflict. But AirSea Battle could be excessively provocative. [China confrontation] [AirSea Battle] [Military balance]
• Obama’s Pacific Trip: What Will Be the President’s Message?
  Jonathan Pollack, Senior Fellow, Foreign Policy, John L. Thornton China Center The Brookings Institution November 09, 2011 — Continuing the pattern established during his first two years in office, President Obama departs Friday on a major November trip across the Pacific. At the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Honolulu, through bilateral defense agreements to be signed in Australia, and at the U.S.-ASEAN Summit and the East Asia Summit in Bali, the president will reinforce America’s enduring commitment to regional diplomacy, economics and security. [China confrontation] [FTA]
• Illegal Chinese Fishing in Korean Waters Gets Worse
  Some 294 Chinese fishing boats and 2,905 Chinese fishermen have been caught so far this year illegally fishing in Korean territorial waters. The number of Chinese trawlers caught illegally fishing in Korea's Exclusive Economic Zone rose from 79 in 2007 to 91 last year, while the number of Chinese boats that trespassed into Korean territorial waters almost doubled from 27 to 53 over the same period. Chinese fishermen are becoming increasingly brazen in their methods, and the scale of their activities is expanding. In the past, Chinese trawlers would only fish on foggy days or at night and slink away at daybreak. But these days they group together with ropes to create small armadas and resist arrest by using violence, or gang up against police wielding makeshift weapons. Aware of the tense standoff between North and South Korea, other Chinese boats fish near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border separating the two Koreas where South Korean maritime police cannot easily approach. A 100-ton mother ship blocks police vessels to buy time, while smaller fishing boats escape. In some cases, around 100 Chinese fishing boats surround a fertile fishing zone. Korean fishermen complain that Chinese fishing boats are everywhere and make it tough for them to cast their nets. [Territorial disputes] [NLL] [Dilemma]
• US rule of TPP halts natural expansion
  Global Times | November 12, 2011 00:06 By Global Times Share US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton kickstarted a publicity campaign Thursday by Washington to push for a free trade deal called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), while pressing China on human rights. The approach Washington adopted in promoting the pact runs counter to its aim of strengthening mutual trust and ironing out differences in the Asia-Pacific region. The TPP was formed with Singapore, Brunei, Chile and New Zealand as its original members. It gained impetus in 2008 after the US announced its willingness to join and invited other economies to follow suit. There are high benchmarks being set for the proposed TPP grouping, shedding light on product safety, labor standards, monitoring and economic legislation for its member states. The pact is more than a mere economic issue, according to Clinton. The current goals put out by the US are truly ambitious. Clinton’s remarks specifically fueled speculation about Washington’s attempt to contain China through TPP. If the US is sincerely committed to the success of its TPP initiative, Clinton should not have adopted this tone. [FTA] [US global strategy] [China confrontation]
• Chinese, but Not Their Leaders, Flock to U.S. Envoy
  Kin Cheung/Associated Press “I don’t know what is in the mind of the government’s newspapers. I am not here to make a statement about the lifestyle of Chinese leaders.” - Gary Locke By SHARON LaFRANIERE Published: November 11, 2011 GUANGZHOU, China AS the powerful Communist Party chief of Guangdong Province waited in an ornate conference room last week for the arrival of the new American ambassador, Gary Locke, the banter with his aides naturally turned to Mr. Locke’s Chinese roots. Mr. Locke had stopped in Guangzhou to talk to the party chief, Wang Yang, en route to a visit to his ancestral village. Mr. Wang put a quick end to that topic. “He’s no hometown folk,” he told aides as they shifted in a reception line. “He should clearly realize he is an American.” [US China relations] [Diaspora]
• Obama heads to Asia focused on China’s power
  By David Nakamura and William Wan, Saturday, November 12, 1:24 AM As he began a nine-day trip to the Asia-Pacific region Friday, President Obama was aiming to reassure jittery U.S. allies and emerging nations that they have another avenue to prosperity at a time when an increasingly aggressive China is extending its sphere of influence. At each stop — a pair of regional summits in Hono­lulu and in Bali, Indonesia, bookending a visit to Australia to highlight a military alliance — Obama is expected to send a clear signal that the United States is a “Pacific power,” eager to help build economic success and security in the fast-developing region. [Decline] [China confrontation]
• Rethink China's nuke weapons strategy
  Global Times | November 05, 2011 12:06 Having no idea that China does have nuclear weapons, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain suffered his latest mark on his foreign policy credentials this week. The GOP hopeful defended himself by dwarfing greatly China's nuclear capacity when compared to that of the US. The US media might be surprised by Cain's ignorant remarks, but it is the Chinese people who will feel more astonished. Though Cain has successfully worked as the CEO of a big company, a radio host and columnist in the past, his ignorance of China's nuclear capacity is not alone among the US elites in respect of China. In an era when more US politicians will join in the chorus of drafting policies related to China, their voices will become louder than ever. But Cain has taught us a good lesson: US politicians advocating to punish China have wantonly distorted the image of China in their mind. They have no idea what real China looks like. Another facet surprises China: We have taken for granted China has enough nuclear stockpiles to play a strategic deterrent role. The attitude among US society as well as its politicians will influence US authorities in the drafting China-related policies. [Nuclear weapons]
• Herman Cain incorrectly suggests China doesn't have nuclear capability
  November 2, 2011 By Stephanie Condon Topics Campaign 2012 .159 Comments As allegations of sexual harassment from the 1990's continue to loom over Herman Cain's campaign this week, the GOP frontrunner is also raising eyebrows with his foreign policy remarks. In an interview Monday, Cain said part of China's threat to the United States stems from its attempts to develop nuclear weapons -- even though China tested its first nuclear weaponin 1964. "Yes, they're a military threat," Cain said on the PBS NewsHour, in response to a question from Judy Woodruff. "They've indicated that they're trying to develop nuclear capability and they want to develop more aircraft carriers like we have. So yes, we have to consider them a military threat." Cain's remarks have in the past raised questions about his foreign policy credentials. Earlier this month, when joking about "gotcha" questions, Cain said, "And when they ask me, 'Who is the president of Ubeki-beki-beki-beki-stan-stan?' I'm going to say you know, 'I don't know. Do you know?' And then I'm going to say, 'How's that going to create one job?'" Cain also took heat from his GOP rivals when he suggested on CNN this month that he would free the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay in a prisoner exchange with terrorists -- a comment he later walked back. With respect to China, Cain told Woodruff that as president, he would advocate "peace through strength and clarity." "We already have superiority in terms of our military capability, and I plan to get away from making cutting our defense a priority and make investing in our military capability a priority," he said. He said the key way to blunt the threat China poses is to improve the economy. "My China strategy is quite simply outgrow China. It gets back to economics," he said on Monday. "China has a $6 trillion economy and they're growing at approximately 10 percent. We have a $14 trillion economy -- much bigger -- but we're growing at an anemic 1.5, 1.6 percent. When we get our economy growing back at the rate of 5 or 6 percent that it has the ability to do, we will outgrow China." Woodruff moved on to questioning Cain about his campaign strategy, overlooking his remarks on China's nuclear capabilities. While his command of foreign policy issues remains a liability, Cain has been under more pressure this week because of revelations that he was accused of sexual harassment in the 1990's, when he was the head of the National Restaurant Association. It's unclear as of yet how the revelations will impact Cain's current frontrunner status. [Decline] [Governance] [China confrontation] [Domestic]
• Herman Cain’s ‘fortune cookie’ foreign policy approach to China
  By Jonathan Capehart And another thing on Herman Cain and his comments on China. Everyone’s focused on how he didn’t know that China already had nuclear weapons. A mistake so hilarious you’d be forgiven for thinking every Cain television appearance is really one of those SNL Digital Shorts. But there was something else he said that struck me odd. Judy Woodruff of the PBS NewsHour asked the Republican front-runner, “Do you view China as a potential military threat to the United States?” He said yes, which led her to inquire, “And what could you do as president to head that off?” HERMAN CAIN: My China strategy is quite simply outgrow China. It gets back to economics. China has a $6 trillion economy and they’re growing at approximately 10 percent. We have a $14 trillion economy — much bigger — but we’re growing at an anemic 1.5, 1.6 percent. When we get our economy growing back at the rate of 5 or 6 percent that it has the ability to do, we will outgrow China. Sure, “simply outgrow China,”a nation with 10 percent growth — and with 1.3 billion people [Decline] [Governance] [China confrontation] [Domestic]
• Bachmann’s claim that China ‘blinded’ U.S. satellites
  Posted at 06:00 AM ET, 10/04/2011 By Glenn Kessler “And don’t forget I sit on the Intelligence Committee. We deal with the nation’s classified secrets. This is an open-source document. I’m not sharing something I shouldn’t, but China has blinded United States satellites with their lasers.” — Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-Minn.), Sept. 30 A reader sent us an article about Michele Bachmann’s comments on China during an appearance on Laura Ingraham’s show last week. The headline was “Bachmann: China Attacked US Satellites With Lasers.” That certainly got our attention, though when we actually listened to the quote, it was not quite as dramatic as “attacked.” Even Michele Bachmann is sometimes misquoted! [Decline] [Governance] [China confrontation]
• Chinese counterfeit parts found in U.S. weapons
  By William Wan and Jason Ukman, Published: November 8 U.S. officials say a problem that has long plagued luxury handbag makers such as Gucci and Louis Vuitton is now afflicting the Pentagon’s high-end weapons systems: cheap Chinese counterfeits. A months-long congressional probe found at least 1,800 cases of counterfeit electronics in U.S. weapons, with the total number of suspect parts exceeding 1 million. .The results of the investigation, conducted by the Senate Armed Services Committee, are to be presented at a hearing Tuesday, where senators plan to grill defense contractors about lapses in monitoring their parts supply chain. “We cannot allow our national security to depend on electronic scrap salvaged from trash heaps by Chinese counterfeiters,” said committee Chairman Carl Levin (D-Mich.). He called the report’s findings — based on records from 10 defense contractors and their testers — “just the tip of the iceberg.” [Counterfeit] [Inversion] [Bizarre]
• In Hong Kong drama, China’s Communist Party casts Virginian as a villain
  By Andrew Higgins, Wednesday, November 9, 6:36 AM HONG KONG — Mark Simon, a 47-year-old businessman from Falls Church, was until recently just another American lured by the opportunities offered by Asia’s economic boom. Today, the portly Virginian has a dashing but, he says, “extremely unpleasant” new role at the center of a political thriller scripted by China’s Communist Party and its allies in Hong Kong. It features espionage, slush funds, U.S. plots to bring chaos to the former British colony and, Simon says, “intense lies.” .“I’m the ice sculpture in the middle of a big propaganda buffet,” said Simon, a former submarine analyst at the Pentagon who now works for Jimmy Lai, a media tycoon whose outspoken calls for democracy and criticism of China’s ruling party have long riled Beijing. Beijing has been gunning for Lai for years, but attacks on him and other pro-democracy figures escalated sharply in the run-up to hotly contested Hong Kong elections for neighborhood councils. In the voting, held Sunday, pro-China candidates trounced the democracy camp. The elections were mostly dominated by local issues, including the status of Filipina maids and complaints that minibus drivers play their radios too loudly. But pro-China media also homed in on Simon’s past as an intelligence analyst at the Pentagon and his current employment with Lai’s Next Media to paint Hong Kong’s leading democracy advocates as American stooges. [China confrontation]
• The rise of an economic superpower: What does China want?
  As an economic superpower, what does China want on the global stage? By Peter Ford, Staff writer / November 5, 2011 A busy street scene in Shanghai, China. This is the cover story for the Nov. 7 weekly edition of The Christian Science Monitor. It had been billed as a friendly exhibition game in basketball-crazy Beijing, between the Georgetown University Hoyas from Washington, D.C., and the Chinese Army's Bayi Rockets. But after some blatantly biased Chinese refereeing and unashamedly aggressive play by Bayi, it ended in a bench-clearing brawl, with Chinese fans in the Olympic stadium throwing chairs and bottles of water at the Americans. .Some foreigners in the crowd that hot night in August were tempted to see the melee as nothing less than a metaphor for China's role in the world today: contempt for the rules and fair play, crowned by a resort to brute strength in pursuit of narrow self-interest. You certainly don't have to look far for examples of China doing things its own blunt way no matter how much Western sensibilities are offended. [China confrontation] [China global strategy] [China rising]
• Between friend and ally
  By Sunny Lee BEIJING — Sometimes China and North Korea appear too close to each other; and that could mean trouble for China. When North Korea embarks on provocative behavior, the international community looks to Beijing to restrain Pyongyang. The picture, however, may not be exclusive to such ties. When Seoul and Washington look too close to each other in their alliance, which they say is because of North Korea, China tends to think of other possibilities. “The cooperation of Washington and Seoul is targeting North Korea. That’s one goal of the U.S.-South Korea alliance. Another goal is, I don’t want to use the word ‘contain China,’ but that is the big picture of how the United States is seen trying to use South Korea in East Asia,” said Sun Zhe, a professor of international studies at Tsinghua University in Beijing. [China NK] [Sidelined]
• Korea to Strengthen Powers Against Chinese Fishermen
  Korea is seeking a revision of the law so they can confiscate the catch of Chinese trawlers caught illegally fishing in Korea's exclusive economic zone. The Chinese fishermen are seriously depleting stocks by using illegal fine-mesh nets
• Self-burnings drama shows Dalai Lama's desperation
  Global Times | November 05, 2011 12:10 By Yi Duo Share The recent incidents when some young Tibetan monks set themselves on fire in Sichuan Province have caused a stir, despite the local governments reacting promptly to extinguish the fire and send the injured to the hospital. The social order remains stable and people from both secular and religious groups condemned the activities. All the victims are avid believers of the Dalai Lama's separatist thoughts. As the public is still mourning their deaths, the Dalai clique was busy shaping the story the victims died for "Tibet Independence." In less than an hour after the incidents, pictures of the scenes and the victims were widely distributed by the Dalai Lama group [Tibet]
• Whatever You Do, Don’t Read China’s Global Times… …You Might Learn Something
  I’m not crazy about Global Times (the house organ of Chinese hypernationalism) but I like the sniggering condescension of Foreign Policy magazine(the house organ of neo-lioberalism) even less. Actually, Christine Larson’s recent profile of Global Times in Foreign Policy is reasonably even-handed. FP’s editors, however, couldn’t resist juicing the story—and signaling to its readership that GT and its views are not be taken seriously--by titling the piece “China’s Fox News" and adding a sidebar, “The Top 10 Screeds in China’s Global Times,” with takedowns by Uri Friedman. [China confrontation]
• The Top 10 Screeds in China's Global Times
  The nationalist tabloid has published its share of saber-rattling op-eds. BY URI FRIEDMAN | NOVEMBER 1, 2011 Today on Foreign Policy, Christina Larson profiles China's populist, hyper-nationalistic Global Times. Just how belligerent is the state-run tabloid? Let's take a look at 10 of its most scatching screed. [China confrontation]
• N. Korea's mineral exports to China tripled from 2010: study
  11-06-2011 10:36 North Korea's mineral exports to China have tripled this year compared to a year ago, a study showed Sunday. A joint study of Chinese data by Yonhap News Agency and Seoul-based IBK Economic Research Institute showed that China imported 8.42 million tons of minerals from North Korea from January to September this year, worth $852 million. Over the first nine months of last year, China brought in 3.04 million tons of minerals from the North for $245 million. [China NK] [Trade]
• N.Korean Visitor Numbers to China Growing
  North Korean workers rest on a river bank near Dandong in China's Liaoning Province (file photo). /AP-Yonhap Half the North Korean visitors to China went there to work, and there are already 30 percent more of them this year than in 2010. Voice of America on Wednesday said that 110,000 North Koreans officially visited China in the first nine months of this year, according to Chinese government statistics, 31 percent more than the whole of last year. A total of 55,000 said they came to China for work, up 42 percent from last year. Others cited reasons such as "to attend conferences or do business" and "to travel or see relatives." Some 95,000 were men and 15,000 women. [China NK]
• Shenzhou-8 docking successful
  Global Times | November 03, 2011 03:57 By Hao Di Share The graphics shows the procedure of Shenzhou-8 spacecraft docking with Tiangong-1 space lab module on Nov. 3, 2011. Photo: Xinhua The unmanned Shenzhou-8 spacecraft successfully docked with the Tiangong-1 space lab module early this morning after five orbit changes, the first in the country's space program. After the 15-minute procedure, the two spacecraft will fly together for 12 days, then separate and prepare for another docking on November 14. Following two more days of flying together, Shenzhou-8 will leave Tiangong-1 and head back to Earth on November 17. Zhang Bonan, chief designer of the spacecraft, told the Beijing Times that the successful launching and docking of the Shenzhou-8 marks a landmark in China's manned space history, marking the finalization of China's Shenzhou spacecraft technology. Pang Zhihao, a researcher from the Chinese Research Institute of Space Technology, told the Global Times that the achievement enables China to carry out scaled production of its Shenzhou spacecraft, which will significantly cut down expenses, shorten research and preparation time, and guarantee stable performance of vessels. The Shenzhou-8 is the most advanced spacecraft developed by China, and utilizes a large number of domestic devices and new technologies. [China rising] [Aerospace]
• China’s high-speed rail plans falter
  By Simon Rabinovitch in Bazhou With the same force that powered the most ambitious rail programme in history, China has slammed the brakes on its investment in high-speed trains. The sudden halt has led to system-wide whiplash, leaving workers without pay, battalions of heavy machinery sitting idle and setting back plans for bullet trains that were meant to carry the nation’s future. In the farm fields of Bazhou, unfinished pillars and silent cement mixers stand along a gravel path that was designed to be a key link in the high-speed network, connecting Tianjin with Baoding in the north-east. It is now one of the dozens of large rail projects suspended after a crash in July left 40 people dead near the eastern city of Wenzhou. The crash revealed how China had cut corners in its haste to build the world’s biggest bullet train system. [Railways]
• China, Syria firm on no ‘intl meddling’
  Global Times | October 28, 2011 01:25 By Agencies Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem Thursday held talks with China’s special envoy for the Middle East who reaffirmed his country’s opposition to foreign interference in Syria, the official Syrian news agency said. Muallem and envoy Wu Sike met in Damascus for talks, during which they spoke of the “solid friendship” between their countries. China’s envoy reaffirmed the “pursuit of cooperation between the two countries within international bodies” as well as its “opposition to attempts to interfere in Syrian affairs.” Syria has been shaken since mid-March by an unprecedented protest movement against the regime of President Bashar al-Assad. A recent UN statement put the number of civilians killed during the past six months in Syria at 2,600, while Syria blames foreign-backed armed gangs, who it says have killed 700 security forces personnel, according to the Xinhua News Agency. Russia and China on October 4 vetoed a Western proposed resolution threatening the Syrian leadership with “targeted measures.” China on Tuesday called on the Syrian government to positively fulfil the reform promises and respond to people’s reasonable expectations and appeals, Xinhua reported. [Syria] [NCW]

• Chinese State Press Belligerent Over Detention of Fishermen
  An official Chinese newspaper on Tuesday sounded a belligerent note in a dispute over illegal fishing by Chinese trawlers in Korean waters, warning that unless regional neighbors back down they must "prepare for the sounds of cannons." In an editorial after Korea clamped down on illegal Chinese fishing, the English-language Global Times said unless countries in territorial disputes "change their ways with China, they will need to prepare for the sounds of cannons." The editorial was titled "Don't take peaceful approach for granted." [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• Don't take peaceful approach for granted
  Global Times | October 25, 2011 01:22 By Global Times Share E-mail Print Comments(68) Recently, both the Philippines and South Korean authorities have detained fishing boats from China, and some of those boats haven't been returned. China has been increasingly confronted with sea disputes and challenged by tough stances from the countries involved. These events have been promoting hawkish responses within China, asking the government to take action. China has emphasized its reluctance in solving disputes at sea via military means on many occasions. Peace is vital for its own economic development. But some of China's neighboring countries have been exploiting China's mild diplomatic stance, making it their golden opportunity to expand their regional interests. [Territorial disputes] [Resurgence] [Democracy]
• Taiwan cramps US policy toward mainland
  Global Times | October 26, 2011 21:33 By Global Times Share Editor's Note: Military exchanges are seen as one of the most effective ways to improve two countries' mutual understanding and avoid miscalculated actions. But the military communications between China and the US have been repeatedly interrupted by US arms sales to Taiwan. Will the US keep its policy toward Taiwan? How will the sales affect the bilateral military relations? Global Times (GT) reporter Yu Jincui talked to Sherwood D. Goldberg (Goldberg), a retired US Army colonel and senior advisor on Asian Affairs with the Center for Naval Analysis, on these issues. GT: The Sino-US military relationship worsened after the recent arms sales to Taiwan. What are your feelings? Goldberg: I hope the sale is not seen as a challenge to China. It is seen as an obligation that US has to the security of Taiwan. It is an issue that needs to be balanced with the three Communiqués concluded between our two governments and reaffirmed by every president, beginning first with President Nixon in the historical opening to China in 1972, which made it clear that is one China and Beijing represents China, the normalization communiqué in 1979 and then the 8.17 communiqué in 1982 which agreed that as tensions were reduced across the straits, arms sales would be reduced. [US China] Taiwan] [Arms sales]
• Seoul, Beijing discuss NK issues
  Wa Dae, Wednesday. / Yonhap By Park Si-soo China’s Vice Premier Li Keqiang met with President Lee Myung-bak in Seoul, Wednesday, amid hopes of progress in restarting the long-stalled six-nation talks aimed at ending North Korea’s nuclear programs. His visit to Seoul came one day after he met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, spawning speculation that the ranking Chinese official may be a messenger between the two Koreas.
• DPRK Premier visits Shanghai
  English.news.cn 2011-09-28 23:34:49 SHANGHAI, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- Premier of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) Choe Yong Rim visited Shanghai Wednesday. Choe, also member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, said Shanghai is the birthplace of the Communist Party of China (CPC), and the DPRK leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il had both visited the city and the people of the DPRK are familiar with it as well. [China NK]
• Chinese leader urges ally North Korea to improve ties with US, South Korea
  By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, October 24, 6:43 PM BEIJING — China urged ally North Korea to improve its strained ties with longtime foes the United States and South Korea, state media reported Monday, as U.S. and North Korean diplomats began talks about restarting negotiations on the North’s nuclear programs. North Korean leader Kim Jong Il told visiting Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang that North Korea hopes the six-party talks on the country’s nuclear issue “should be restarted as soon as possible,” China’s official Xinhua News Agency reported. Neither Xinhua nor the North’s official Korean Central News Agency elaborated on their meeting. For his part, Li told North Korean Premier Choe Yong Rim on Sunday that improving ties with the U.S. and South Korea would promote stability in the region, Xinhua reported. [Media]
• Chinese vice premier meets DPRK's top lawmaker on ties
  English.news.cn 2011-10-24 19:53:37 PYONGYANG, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang Monday held talks on bilateral ties with Kim Yong Nam, top legislator of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Li said that, thanks to the care of both countries' top leaders and efforts made by both sides, the China-DPRK friendship has been constantly deepened, as evidenced by the frequent high-level exchanges. Economic and trade cooperation between the two sides have also been continuously strengthened as their cooperation projects have made steady progress, he said, adding the two countries have also seen active cultural exchanges and maintained close communication and coordination in international and regional affairs. Li said China is willing to work with the DPRK to continue to deepen their exchanges and cooperation in various fields and advance bilateral ties. "China would like to strengthen communications with the DPRK through various channels to further deepen the understanding and friendship between the two peoples," he said.
  He said China supported the DPRK's efforts in improving the external environment as well as the U.S.-DPRK dialogue, the improvement of North-South relations and the resumption of the Six-Party Talks, adding China would also strive to maintain peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeastern Asia. [China NK]
• Chinese vice premier lays wreath at Friendship Tower in Pyongyang
  English.news.cn 2011-10-24 19:50:56 PYONGYANG, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang laid a wreath at the Friendship Tower in Pyongyang on Monday, paying tribute to Chinese soldiers killed in the Korean War. "Martyrs of the Chinese People's Volunteers will be remembered forever," reads a note on the wreath. The vice premier, his entourage and accompanying officials of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) then observed a moment of silence before the tower. After the DPRK military band played the national anthems of both countries, Li entered the tower where he skimmed through the martyrs' book, watched the wall paintings describing how the Chinese volunteers joined the war and helped the DPRK people with construction. Li said during the visit that peace does not come easily, so the achievements of construction should be treasured even more. As a symbol of China-DPRK friendship, the Friendship Tower was completed in 1959. Also on Monday, Li visited Kim Il Sung University where he observed Chinese-language studies and chatted with teachers and students. Li said the future of the China-DPRK ties depends on the youths of both countries, encouraging DPRK students to promote cooperation between the two countries and pass down China-DPRK friendship from generation to generation. Li toured the e-library of the university and donated education facilities and books. He arrived here on Sunday for an official goodwill visit to the DPRK. [China NK]
• Chinese Vice-Premier's Written Address on Arrival in Pyongyang
  Pyongyang, October 23 (KCNA) -- Li Keqiang, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and vice-premier of the State Council of China, made public a written address on his arrival in Pyongyang at the airport on Sunday. The Korean people have made laudable achievements in socialist revolution and construction in the spirit of self-reliance and strenuous efforts under the leadership of the Workers' Party of Korea headed by General Secretary Kim Jong Il, he said, adding that he was very pleased with this.
• Agreement on DPRK-China Economic and Technological Cooperation Signed
  Pyongyang, October 23 (KCNA) -- Several agreed documents between governments of the DPRK and China, including an agreement on economic and technological cooperation, were signed with due ceremony in Pyongyang Sunday.
• Scene of Chinese topless actress aired on NK TV
  The North Korean state-run TV channel leaked the scene of a topless actress in a Chinese art film on Oct. 20, attracting attention from audiences, the Yonhap News Agency reported Friday. The art film, Hero Zheng Chenggong(1626-1662), was aired for 90 minutes from 8:50 p.m., when prime evening hours started, by (North) Korean Central Television. Zheng Chenggong is an epic figure who campaigned to revive collapsed Ming Dynasty in mid-1600s, when China was reigned by Qing Dynasty (1636-1912). He has been highly praised as one of Chinese heroes as he expelled Holland’s invaders on the Island of Taiwan. North Korea intended to inspire its residents to gain confidence against “American imperial forces” in a psychological battle, by flaring up the Chinese hero who defeated the imperialists in the history. The most striking was the scene of a woman bathing in the middle of the film. the woman was bathing topless with flowers floating on the water in a wooded bath tube in a scene of 39 seconds, which is very rare in North Korean TV channels. It is a unprecedented topless scene given North Korea’s social atmosphere. North Korea is far more closed and feudal society about exposure of women’s body to the public on TV than any other country in the world. The Central TV also provided Chinese and English subtitled, with the film dubbed in Korean to help its residents enjoying the film in a comfortable manner. North Korea has allowed Chinese dramas in TVs often, since four Chinese dramas were aired over the five months in tune to the visit of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to China in April, 2004.
• China says trade with close ally North Korea nearly doubled in first 7 months of 2011
  By Associated Press, Updated: Sunday, October 23, 9:47 AM BEIJING — China’s trade with its close ally North Korea nearly doubled in the first seven months of the year compared with the same period in 2010, state media reported Sunday. The 87 percent increase to $3.1 billion was announced at the start of a visit to the North by Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang that reaffirms strong ties between the communist neighbors. .Li said China was hoping for better relations between North and South Korea and a resumption of long-stalled six-nation nuclear disarmament talks. [China NK]
• Chinese vice-premier visits DPRK for bilateral ties, regional peace
  English.news.cn 2011-10-23 14:12:22 Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang (R Front) shakes hands with Kang Sok Ju (L Front), vice premier of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), at the airport in Pyongyang, capital of DPRK, Oct. 23, 2011. Li Keqiang arrived here on Sunday for an official goodwill visit to the DPRK. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei) PYONGYANG, Oct. 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice-Premier Li Keqiang on Sunday started an official goodwill visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) with an aim to promote bilateral ties and regional peace. In a written statement released upon his arrival at the airport, Li said China and the DPRK are friendly neighbors, and that the traditional friendship between the two countries dates back to ancient times. [China NK]
• China-DPRK ties entering new era of vigorous development: ambassador
  English.news.cn 2011-10-22 23:18:54 FeedbackPrintRSS PYONGYANG, Oct. 22 (Xinhua) -- The relationship between China and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) is entering a new era of vigorous development and boasts a bright future, Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Liu Hongcai said Saturday. [China NK] [Trade]
• Hit-and-run girl Yueyue dies in hospital
  Global Times | October 22, 2011 08:26 By Liu Dong Share E-mail Print Comments(0) Students of Liaocheng University in Shandong Province hold a candle-lit vigil yesterday for Yueyue. The 2-year-old died of organ failure yesterday as the nation reflected on its moral decline. Photo: CFP The 2-year-old girl, Wang Yue, also known as Yueyue, hit by two vehicles and ignored by 18 passers-by on October 13 has died after one week in hospital in Guangdong Province, reigniting the debate about the tragedy. The girl was confirmed dead at 0:32 am on Friday due to multiple organ failure, according to Su Lei, director of the ICU at the General Hospital of the Guangzhou Military Command told a news conference on Friday morning. "Although 30 medical experts tried their best, we failed to save Yueyue due to her serious wounds," Su said at the conference. The body of Yueyue was transferred to a funeral parlor in Foshan on Friday afternoon. Her parents refused to speak with the press. Police said the two drivers that ran over the girl have been arrested and may be charged. "We should look at the ugliness within ourselves with a dagger of conscience and bite the soul-searching bullet," Wang Yang, a top official in Guangdong Province, said at a high-level provincial meeting on Thursday. He added that the tragedy should be a "wake-up call" for society and that such incidents should not be allowed to occur again. [Confucianism]
• A day return from Beijing to Shanghai please…
  By Rail.co Administrator · September 26, 2011 · High Speed, Rail News T064-00241 CRH2 EMU stands at the platform at the futuristic station at Wuhan on the 26th December 2009, the first day of operation of the Wuhan to Guangzhou high speed line. Photo: RailStaff. Written by Colin Garratt in Newton Harcourt and Andrew Benton in Beijing Despite the recent high speed rail disaster in China, the world-wide evidence in favour of high speed rail remains compelling. Whilst China is currently re-evaluating its approach to high speed rail and investigating alleged instances of corruption and corner cutting in the building of its network of high speed routes, its government still envisages a comprehensive high speed rail network that will be a cornerstone in China’s rise to global pre-eminence. [China rising] [Railways]
• China-bashing nothing new
  By Keith B. Richburg, Published: October 19 BEIJING — In this early stage of the U.S. presidential campaign, China seems to be on all the candidates’ minds and in their messages — and in ways that make many Chinese cringe. Republican candidate Mitt Romney has been the most outspoken, pledging, if he is elected, to label China a currency manipulator on his first day in office and to take several punitive steps targeting China’s trade with the United States. In an opinion piece in The Washington Post last week, Romney bluntly accused China of stealing American intellectual property, blocking access by U.S. companies and hacking into foreign computers. .In the GOP, Romney is not alone. Jon Huntsman Jr., the former U.S. ambassador in Beijing, has vowed to open China’s markets to U.S. products, working through local officials. Former senator Rick Santorum, referring to the economic challenge, declared, “I want to beat China.” And Rep. Michele Bachmann (Minn.) accused China of blinding U.S. satellites with lasers and aiding America’s enemies in Iran, North Korea and Afghanistan. Many Chinese — or those paying attention to the constant China talk — call these complaints a normal part of the U.S. election cycle, and they expect the white-hot rhetoric to cool down once the campaign is over, regardless of who wins the White House. [China confrontation] [US_election2012]
• Chinese Vice Premier to Visit Two Koreas
  Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang (file photo) Chinese Vice Premier Li Keqiang, who is being tapped as China's next premier, will visit both North and South Korea at the end of this month. Li ranks seventh out of the nine-member politburo of the Chinese Communist Party. China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu told reporters on Wednesday, "Vice Premier Li will visit North Korea from Oct. 23 to Oct. 25 and South Korea on the following two days." She added that the visits were being made at the invitation of both countries. "North and South Korea are important neighbors of China, and China has continued high-level exchanges with both," said Jiang. "Li will meet with the respective leaders there and discuss bilateral relations, issues of international concern and other areas of mutual interest." Li is likely to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang, where he is widely expected to deliver a message from Chinese President Hu Jintao. Li is expected to arrive in Seoul accompanied by around 80 Chinese government officials, including Chinese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Zhang Zhijun. He will meet with President Lee Myung-bak, National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae and Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik.
• China cuts US debt holdings
  Global Times | October 20, 2011 01:05 By Zhu Shanshan China reduced its holdings of US treasuries by $36.5 billion, or 3.1 percent, in August, the largest amount since 2000 as Beijing works to reduce its trade surplus and optimize its foreign exchange reserves structure. The cut was the first since a 0.8 percent decline in February and also the biggest sell-off by China this year in the wake of net buying of over $8 billion in March, according to data released Tuesday by the US Treasury Department. China's holdings of longer-term notes and bonds declined 3.5 percent to $1.123 trillion, while its position on shorter-term bills rose by $3.9 billion to $14 billion, the data showed. Despite the drop, China remains Washington's biggest creditor, holding $1.14 trillion in US securities. John Gong, an associate professor of economics at the University of International Business and Economics, told the Global Times Wednesday that the cut was a reasonable outcome considering China's trade surplus has been narrowing in recent months and the money has flowed into other sectors. Tan Yaling, president of the China Forex Investment Research Institute, told the Global Times that part of China's holdings of US government securities might have become due in August, but that did not mean US treasuries have lost their advantage or there had been a turning point in China's policy. A People's Daily commentary said that holding US securities is not the best option, but a practical one nevertheless under the current situation. The paper said that China should promote the diversification of its foreign exchange reserves in a timely fashion. [Diversification] [Foreign reserves] [Reserve]
• China warns of "grim situation" in foreign trade
  Xinhua | October 19, 2011 13:14 By Agencies Share The Ministry of Commerce (MOC) on Wednesday warned of a "quite grim situation" for the country's foreign trade as new global uncertainties weigh on the world's second largest economy. "The import and export situation will be quite grim in the fourth quarter of this year and next year, or at least in the first quarter of next year," said MOC spokesman Shen Danyang at a press conference. He attributed the prospect to changes in the domestic and foreign economic environment, "especially increasing instabilities and uncertainties that have affected China's foreign trade in recent few months." China's exports slowed to 17.1 percent year-on-year growth in September from 24.5-percent growth in August, according to customs figures. Imports in September climbed 20.9 percent from a year earlier, compared with the 30.2 percent year-on-year expansion in August. [Trade]
• China 'Unlikely to Intervene in Korea'
  China will not support North Korea militarily in case of a conflict between North and South, according to a Chinese academic. Prof. Chu Shulong (55) of Tsinghua University was speaking at a seminar on Korea-China security strategy at the Seoul Press Center on Monday. "I believe China will call for a diplomatic solution even if the North is attacked by South Korea or the U.S.," Chu said. "Most Chinese don't think a reunited Korea would stand against China, even if the U.S. keeps stationing troops or bases on the peninsula. China won't mind Korean reunification, even if it is led by South Korea." [Takeover] [China global policy] [Conflict] [Chinese IR]
• Interview with Aaron Friedberg: Is China going to displace the U.S.?
  By Jennifer Rubin Aaron Friedberg, former deputy assistant for national security affairs and director of policy planning for Vice President Dick Cheney, is author of a new book, “A Contest for Supremacy: China, America, and the Struggle for Mastery in Asia.” The topic and book could not e more timely, especially since Friedberg, a professor of politics and international affairs at Princeton University, was just named co-chair of the Asia-Pacific working group for the Mitt Romney presidential campaign. What Friedberg thinks about China and the steps he recommends for thwarting China’s increasingly aggressive behavior could well become U.S. policy beginning in 2012. I interviewed him via e-mail a few days ago. [China Rising] [Decline] [F&E][Hegemony]
• Why Americans should learn to love the renminbi
  By David Pilling Until recently, few workers in America, Europe or Japan spent much time worrying about why they earned 10, 20 or even 30 times what a Chinese worker did. What was it that allowed, say, someone stacking boxes in a US factory to earn multiples of the wage earned by a Vietnamese or Mexican worker? Some may have fondly imagined that they worked harder or, put another way, that Mexican or Chinese workers were lazy or incompetent. Others, much closer to the mark, may have put their higher wages and productivity down to their country’s institutional advantages: its legal and education system, and its infrastructure and technology. Some, perhaps subconsciously, may simply have considered their superior living standards a god-given right.
• N.Korean Defectors Strain Seoul-Beijing Relations
  Relations between South Korea and China are strained after Beijing on Tuesday said it is sending 20 North Korean defectors back to their country after arresting them late last month, despite urgent requests from South Korea not to send them to almost certain internment in a gulag, torture or death in the North. [China SK]
• N.Korean Regime Collapse 'Could Trigger U.S.-China Conflict'
  The collapse of the North Korean regime could be a trigger for a military conflict between the U.S. and China, says the California-based RAND Corporation. The hard-right think tank lists the end of the North Korean regime as one of six factors that could cause a clash between the two superpowers. Another factor is differing views on Taiwan and the South China Sea. It also forecast an exodus of North Koreans to areas bordering China, not only to escape from armed conflicts but also to search for food. This situation would lead to increased threats from the North's weapons and missiles, leading to a military intervention from both Washington and Beijing. But RAND said it is highly unlikely that the two countries will engage in a direct war [Collapse] [US China conflict]
• Conflict with China Prospects, Consequences, and Strategies for Deterrence
  by James Dobbins, David C. Gompert, David A. Shlapak, Andrew Scobell This paper presents some scenarios that, if they were to come to pass, could result in military conflict with China over the next thirty years. The authors begin by exploring different plausible sources of conflict — whether it be the collapse of North Korea, possible dwindling relations between Taiwan and China, or other contingencies involving Japan or India. They discuss the operational implications each might present the United States and then turn to the requirements for defense and deterrence. Although China's military capabilities lag far behind those of the United States, it has — or will gain — local superiority, first in and around Taiwan and then at greater distances. As a result, direct defense of contested assets in the region will become increasingly difficult and would likely escalate geographically or into the cyber and economic realms. Enabling capabilities and buttressing the resolve of China's neighbors is one means for improving U.S. prospects for direct defense while reducing the necessity for escalation. In parallel to that strategy, efforts to draw China into cooperative security endeavors should be proffered. The far-reaching specter of economic mayhem that would be a consequence of any Sino-American conflict, in effect a form of mutual assured economic destruction, also acts as a powerful mutual deterrent. [Conflict] [Agency]
• China lambasts US Senate currency bill
  Global Times | October 13, 2011 00:48 By Zhu Shanshan Share Beijing on Wednesday slammed a currency bill passed by the US Senate targeting China's yuan policy, saying the "protectionist" legislation would harm Sino-US ties and the global economy as a whole. "The bill cannot solve unemployment or other economic problems in the US. It is essentially practicing trade protectionism by making an accusation of currency manipulation, which is a serious violation of World Trade Organization (WTO) rules," China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said. In defiance of China's repeated warnings, the Democrat-led Senate passed the Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act with a 63-35 majority Tuesday. [China competition] [Currency] [Protectionism]
• Tires, Trade, and Virtual Nobel Prizes
  Criticism of Senator Schumer’s legislation to punish China for currency manipulation often points out that the most likely outcome of any sanctions would be to shift manufacturing from China to some other low-cost Asia locale, not bring it back to the United States. Paul Krugman, on the other hand, believes that the US will discover proper exchange rates and suitable areas of competitive advantage vis a vis its trading partners, if and when currencies get a chance to sort themselves out correctly. Sanctioning China’s currency manipulation, in his view, would be an important and positive step toward that goal. [China competition] [Protectionism]
• US drivers pay steep price for China tire tariff
  By Peter Lee A World Trade Organization appeals court has ruled in favor of the Barack Obama administration on the issue of the tariff it slapped on imports of Chinese tires in 2009. With President Obama's acceptance of the recommendation of the US International Trade Commission, Chinese tires were assessed at an eye-popping tariff of 55% in 2009, declining to 45% on 2010 and 35% in 2011. A certain amount of misinformation is apparently de rigueur in cases of this sort. No, for Tom Barkley of Marketwatch, the US levy was not a "punitive" tariff. [1] It was a protective tariff, one that acknowledged that the Chinese tires were cheaper, but that the influx was causing unacceptable hardship to American industry. [China competition] [Protectionism]
• The Top 10 Unicorns of China Policy
  BY DANIEL BLUMENTHAL | OCTOBER 3, 2011 Unicorns are beautiful, make-believe creatures. But despite overwhelming evidence of their fantastical nature, many people still believe in them. Much of America's China policy is also underpinned by belief in the fantastical: in this case, soothing but logically inconsistent ideas. But unlike with unicorns, the United States' China-policy excursions into the realm of make-believe could be dangerous. Crafting a better China policy requires us to identify what is imaginary in U.S. thinking about China. Author James Mann captures some in his book, The China Fantasy. Here are my own top 10 China-policy unicorns: {China confrontation]
• The Top Ten Unicorns of China Policy – My Two Cents
  Posted by Stan on 10/04/11 • Categorized as U.S.-China Relations Daniel Blumenthal has a very cool article in Foreign Policy on U.S.-China relations. He organizes this around a list of ten policy misconceptions he refers to as unicorns: [China confrontation]
• China under Deng Xiaoping’s leadership
  September 27th, 2011 Author: Ezra F Vogel, Harvard University When Deng Xiaoping became pre-eminent leader of China in December 1978, China was still in the chaos from the Cultural Revolution. Per capita annual income was less than US$100. By the time he stepped down in 1992, several hundred million Chinese citizens had been lifted out of poverty, and China was rapidly becoming stronger, richer and more modern. Deng Xiaoping did not originate reform and opening — that began under the leadership of Hua Guofeng after the death of Mao Zedong in 1976. [Economic Reform] [Opening]
• China says U.S. policy, not its currency, to blame for economic woes
  By Keith B. Richburg, Thursday, October 6, 2:13 PM BEIJING — The view from Washington, as seen by proponents of the China currency sanctions bill, seems clear: China’s government keeps its currency artificially low. That keeps manufacturing here cheap, which in turn makes Chinese products less expensive. American companies cannot compete. Americans lose jobs. But the view from China — taken from official comments, newspaper opinion pieces and interviews with economists — is often diametrically opposed. China says U.S. policy, not its currency, to blame for economic woes .China’s currency has already been rising in value, according to this view — so much so that Chinese manufacturers are feeling the pinch. Inflation here is running high, adding an extra burden. Many local factories have gone bankrupt. Increasing wage demands, following a series of strikes last year, mean China is no longer the world’s cheap producer of goods. Vietnam, Bangladesh and others have already taken over China’s role. And furthermore, this view holds, Americans should stop blaming China for America’s financial mess. [China competition] [Currency]
• China 'Repatriates 15 N.Korean Defectors'
  Some 15 out of 35 North Korean defectors who were arrested in China last month have already been repatriated to face torture, imprisonment or death in the Stalinist country, according to a South Korean lawmaker.
• Cracks in Beijing’s financial edifice
  By James Kynge The last time – in late 2008 – that economic peril was stalking the US and Europe, China marshalled the might of its state-directed economy and engineered a muscular rebound that led the subsequent global recovery. This time, though, Beijing is feeling a lot less muscular. The exertion of its last effort has sapped internal resources so thoroughly that the pertinent question today is not whether China can once again guide the global economy away from the rocks but whether Beijing retains decisive control over its own economic levers. The central frailty is financial.
• Sun Yat-sen's revolution marked
  Global Times | October 10, 2011 01:31 By Huang Shaojie Share President Hu Jintao (left) shakes hands with his predecessor, Jiang Zemin, at the commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the 1911 Revolution at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Sunday. Photo: AFP The mainland and Taiwan on Sunday separately marked the 100th anniversary of the 1911 Revolution that ended imperial rule in the country, with President Hu Jintao calling for peaceful reunification with Taiwan and the continued rejuvenation of the nation. "A century ago, revolutionaries led by Sun Yat-sen launched the revolution, which shook the world and ushered in unprecedented social changes in China," Hu said at a grand ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. The revolution ended an absolute monarchy, spread the ideas of democracy and republicanism, and brought about massive social changes in the country, Hu said.
• As Its Economy Sprints Ahead, China’s People Are Left Behind
  Shiho Fukada for The New York Times A shopkeeper napping on a busy shopping street in Jilin. While Western companies look at China as a potentially huge market, consumers in Jilin and other heartland cities mostly settle for what state-run department stores and mom-and-pop shops offer. By DAVID BARBOZA Published: October 9, 2011 JILIN CITY, China — Wang Jianping and his wife, Shue, are a relatively affluent Chinese couple, with an annual household income of $16,000 — more than double the national average for urban families. This is the second in a series of articles examining China’s system of government-managed capitalism and the potential weaknesses that could threaten the nation’s remarkable economic growth. Yang Yang and her son, Guo Liming. To save money, Ms. Yang, her husband and son recently moved in with her parents. They own a modest, three-bedroom apartment here in this northeastern industrial city. They paid for their son to study electrical engineering at prestigious Tsinghua University, in Beijing. And even by frugal Asian standards, they are prodigious savers, with $50,000 in a state-run bank. But like many other Chinese families, the Wangs feel pressed. They do not own a car, and they rarely go shopping or out to eat. That is because the value of their nest egg is shrinking, through no fault of their own. Under an economic system that favors state-run banks and companies over wage earners, the government keeps the interest rate on savings accounts so artificially low that it cannot keep pace with China’s rising inflation. At the same time, other factors in which the government plays a role — a weak social safety net, depressed wages and soaring home prices — create a hoarding impulse that compels many people to keep saving anyway, against an uncertain future. [China problems]
• Burma seeks to repair China ties
  By Leslie Hook in Beijing Burma is to send a vice-president to China in an effort to soothe tensions after the suspension of a $3.6bn Chinese-backed dam in the country cast a shadow over ties between the normally close allies.
  Earlier this year, US diplomatic cables published by Wikileaks revealed that Burmese officials secretly chafed under China’s influence and hoped that closer ties with the US might serve as a buffer against Beijing.
• Xinjiang violence reflects broader global context
  Global Times | October 08, 2011 21:59 Elizabeth Van Wie Davis Editor’s Note: The Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, in Western China, has faced a series of violent incidents in recent years, including riots in 2009 and attacks on police stations and personnel earlier this year. What solutions can the central government offer? What are the root causes of the violence? Global Times (GT) reporter Gao Lei interviewed Dr Elizabeth Van Wie Davis (Davis), a US based scholar previously at the Asia-Pacific Centre for Security Studies and now a director of Liberal Arts and International Studies at the Colorado School of Mines, on these issues. GT: How should we view the violent incidents in Xinjiang? Davis: There is more than one way to look at the use of violence that is indisputably happening in Xinjiang. One way is to label it “terrorism” and focus on the use of violence as well as the transnational components that include movement of weapons and extremist rhetoric. Another way is to label it as an “independence movement” and focus on the ethnic, religious and historic components. The use of violence in Xinjiang has characteristics of both – depending on the specific incident and the specific group’s motives – but this is where the two different interpretations of the violence arises: China sees it as terrorism and segments of the international community see it as an independence movement. [Separatism] [Xinjiang]
• 35 N.Koreans 'Unlikely' to Be Sent Back from China
  Dozens of North Korean defectors who were arrested in China are unlikely to be sent back to North Korea anytime soon, a Foreign Ministry official said Thursday. The official quoted the Chinese Foreign Ministry as saying it will take some time to interrogate them. He said the Chinese government does not have a precise report but the number of defectors seems to be less than 30. Earlier reports said there were 35. [Refugee encouragement]
• America and China both lose in a trade war
  Charles Schumer is stirring up tensions between the US and China again. It is the fourth time the Democratic senator from New York has proposed legislation aimed at imposing high tariffs on “currency manipulators”, a pseudonym for China. But this bill is unlikely to fare any better than the previous incarnations because it shoots America in the foot. [China competition][FTA]
• Editorial: The Wrong Way to Deal With China
  Published: October 4, 2011 China is undeniably manipulating its currency. Countries around the world, including the United States, are losing jobs because their manufacturing industries cannot compete with artificially cheap Chinese goods. For the good of the world economy, and its own long-term economic development, China should stop. Still, a Senate bill, with strong bipartisan support, to punish countries that manipulate their currencies is a bad idea. It could do even more damage to the American economy if — as is all too likely — China decides to retaliate. [F&E] [Currency]
• Lawmaker calls for international pressure to stop China’s cyber-espionage
  By Ellen Nakashima, Wednesday, October 5, 2:09 AM The chairman of the House Intelligence Committee spoke in unusually sharp terms Tuesday about China’s alleged efforts to steal American commercial data online, saying Beijing’s cyber-espionage campaign has “reached an intolerable level” that demands action. “Beijing is waging a massive trade war on us all, and we should band together to pressure them to stop,” said Rep. Mike Rogers (R-Mich.) at a hearing on cyber-threats and national security. “Combined, the United States and our allies in Europe and Asia have significant diplomatic and economic leverage over China, and we should use this to our advantage to put an end to this scourge.” [China confrontation] [[Cyberwar]
• Research Topic: Consumer Demand and Demographics
  The urban world is shifting. Today only 600 urban centers generate about 60 percent of global GDP. While 600 cities will continue to account for the same share of global GDP in 2025, this group of 600 will have a very different membership. Over the next 15 years, the center of gravity of the urban world will move south and, even more decisively, east. Today, major urban areas in developed regions are, without doubt, economic giants. Half of global GDP in 2007 came from 380 cities in developed regions, with more than 20 percent of global GDP coming from 190 North American cities alone. The 220 largest cities in developing regions contributed another 10 percent. But by 2025, one-third of these developed market cities will no longer make the top 600; and one out of every 20 cities in emerging markets is likely to see their rank drop out of the top 600. By 2025, 136 new cities are expected to enter the top 600, all of them from the developing world and overwhelmingly—100 new cities—from China. [China rising]

• China and India Making Inroads in Biotech Drugs
  Alexander F. Yuan/Associated Press Heart patients in a Beijing hospital. New generic drugs could treat such ailments more cheaply. By GARDINER HARRIS Published: September 18, 2011 Chinese and Indian drug makers have taken over much of the global trade in medicines and now manufacture more than 80 percent of the active ingredients in drugs sold worldwide. But they had never been able to copy the complex and expensive biotech medicines increasingly used to treat cancer, diabetes and other diseases in rich nations like the United States — until now. These generic drug companies say they are on the verge of selling cheaper copies of such huge sellers as Herceptin for breast cancer, Avastin for colon cancer, Rituxan for non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and Enbrel for rheumatoid arthritis. Their entry into the market in the next year — made possible by hundreds of millions of dollars invested in biotechnology plants — could not only transform the care of patients in much of the world but also ignite a counterattack by major pharmaceutical companies and diplomats from richer countries. [China competition] [Pharmaceuticals] [Decline]
• Korean Reporters Held in China on Spying Charges
  A news team of jTBC, the Joongang Ilbo's new cable TV channel to be launched soon, was arrested in China for gathering news in the North Korea-China border region, it emerged Thursday. Six jTBC reporters were caught by Chinese soldiers shooting a video in the Chinese military zone in the Duman (or Tumen) River basin on Tuesday, a diplomatic source said. "They're being detained on espionage charges after being handed over to police." The group also included Ahn Byung-min, the chief of a research center run by the Korea Transport Institute, and a local guide. But senior jTBC reporter Moon Chang-keuk, who led the team, was not arrested because he was not with the reporters at the time, the source said. The reporters were arrested because they carried tourist rather than press visas, the source added. [Media]
• US ties strained by Taiwan arms sales
  Global Times | September 23, 2011 02:13 By Liu Linlin Share With the US flouting all objections to increase its arms trade with Taiwan, the Chinese mainland has strengthened its stance, warning on Thursday that bilateral military exchanges could be severely disrupted. "Rather than working with China to consolidate and expand the positive growth of bilateral military ties, the US has again announced its plan to sell arms to Taiwan, which will create severe obstacles for normal military exchanges," Ministry of National Defense spokesman Geng Yansheng said on Thursday. Geng's sharply worded comments came after the Obama administration finalized its latest package of weapons for Taiwan, worth $5.58 billion and including an upgrade of Taiwan's 145 F-16A/B fighter jets. The package is now pending approval by Congress. [Arms sales] [Taiwan] [China confrontation]
• UK Official: Sino-UK High-Speed Rail Cooperation May Follow "MG Pattern"
  Xinhua | September 23, 2011 09:32 A senior British official is pointing to China's high-speed rail system as a potential model for the UK. As CRI's London correspondent Tu Yun reports, it comes just weeks before a high-profile Sino-UK business forum in London, which is expected to see more Chinese investment in Britain. Chris Huhne is Britain's Energy Secretary. In a recent speech to the ruling Liberal Democrats' annual autumn conference, he is pointing to China when it comes to promoting the government's green economy campaign. "Look at China, with six of the biggest renewable companies in the world, installing wind turbines across the South China Sea, building 28 nuclear power stations in the time it will take us to build one, building 10,000 miles of high speed rail in the time that'll take to go from London to Birmingham, covering 40 per cent of the Chinese population with low carbon economy zones. The real risk is not doing too much. It's doing too little and getting left behind." [Railways]
• Anti-China bill re-emerges, but business leaders say it's misdirected
  By Kevin G. Hall | McClatchy Newspapers McClatchy Newspapers WASHINGTON — A politically popular bipartisan bill to crack down on China's currency policies was introduced in Congress on Thursday, even as American businessmen operating in China spent this week knocking on lawmakers' doors to urge them to focus more on opening Chinese markets to U.S. exports. Sens. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., have pushed a bill for more than five years that'd punish China for pegging its exchange rate to the dollar at what critics call an undervalued rate. On Thursday, they joined forces with Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, to introduce a new measure. It would instruct the Commerce Department to consider China's undervalued currency an illegal subsidy. With that designation, U.S. companies on a case-by-case basis could seek relief through compensatory penalties against Chinese imports. [F&E] [Protectionism][China competition] [Currency]
• China's scramble for Europe
  China is using its growing economic strength to buy up strategic assets in Europe, from companies to government debt and infrastructure contracts. A new brief published by ECFR – The Scramble for Europe – explores the extent and nature of China’s game-changing presence in Europe. China has moved on from buying African ports and building Saudi railways, taking advantage of its economic strength and European weakness to buy up Europe. Its acquisitions include infrastructure such as ports and railways, symbolic car companies like Volvo and MG, and high tech firms. It has bought large quantities of debt in the EU’s troubled periphery and won government contracts while excluding European companies from bidding for Chinese contracts. [ODI] [Going out] [EU China]
• China calls upon US ambassador to protest against arms sale to Taiwan
  Globaltimes.cn | September 22, 2011 18:03 By Guo Zhen Share China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China called upon Gary Locke, the US ambassador to China, for an urgent meeting to protest against America’s planned arms sale to Taiwan, as announced by the ministry’s website on Wednesday. Zhang Zhijun, vice minister of the ministry, said on Wednesday that the Taiwan question concerns China’s sovereignty and that the US, in disregarding the commitments it made in the 1982 joint communiqué, has tried to interfere with China’s internal affairs and to threaten national security. The move has had an influence on Sino-US relations, and is considered a counterproductive decision which will hamper bilateral cooperation and partnership. Peng Guangqian, an expert on military strategy from China’s Academy of Military Sciences, told the Global Times that the intention of the US in selling Taiwan the upgraded package for F-16 A/B’s, rather than the F-16 C/D jets, lies in balancing various interests. “The US has deliberately chosen to adopt this stance, as it knows clearly that if they sell the F-16 C/D jets to Taiwan, the Chinese government will have a potentially violent reaction,” said Peng. One reason why the US government has continued to sell arms to Taiwan, despite promises to the contrary in the 1982 joint communiqué, is that the Obama administration is giving consideration to right-wing interests due to the upcoming US presidential campaign, according to Peng. [China confrontation] [Arms sales] [Taiwan] [Domestic]
• COMAC set to announce orders for 50 C919 airplanes
  Global Times | September 22, 2011 00:09 By Tu Lei Share Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China Ltd (COMAC) is expected to announce an order of “more than 50 C919 aircraft” next month, COMAC Chief Financial Officer Tian Min said in a speech at the Beijing Air Show Wednesday. “The number of orders is definitely higher than 50, and the orders are from both home and abroad,” Tian said during the release of a report on 20-year fleet demand forecast released by COMAC, saying that China will need another 4,700 passenger jets by 2030, accounting for 15 percent of the global demand. It is the second time for COMAC to announce such an order since the C919 project started in 2008. During the Zhuhai Air Show in November last year, COMAC revealed it had received orders for 100 aircraft from buyers including Air China, China Southern, and China Eastern. China has stepped up efforts to build its own aircraft in a bid to break the monopoly of Boeing and Airbus in China. The C919 is the first home-made commercial airplane in China with the maximum capacity of 168 seats, which will compete with the single-aisle Boeing 737 and Airbus A320 [China competition] [Aerospace]
• DPRK Premier to Visit China
  Pyongyang, September 21 (KCNA) -- Choe Yong Rim, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea and premier of the DPRK Cabinet, will soon pay an official goodwill visit to the People's Republic of China at the invitation of Wen Jiabao, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and premier of the State Council. [China NK]
• China denounces U.S. arms deal for Taiwan
  By Keith B. Richburg, Thursday, September 22, 5:29 AM BEIJING — China on Thursday angrily demanded the Obama administration cancel its plans to upgrade Taiwan’s aging fleet of F-16 fighter jets, warning that the decision will harm U.S.-China ties overall and military cooperation between the two countries. A statement Thursday on the Chinese foreign ministry’s website, and an article on the website of Xinhua, the official news agency here, said China’s Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Zhijun summoned U.S. Ambassador Gary Locke to lodge a “strong protest.” Xinhua said China’s ambassador in Washington, Zhang Yesui, also lodged a protest. .“The wrongdoing by the U.S. side will inevitably undermine bilateral relations as well as exchanges and cooperation in military and security areas,” Zhang Zhijun reportedly told Locke, according to the Xinhua report. [China confrontation] [Arms sales] [Taiwan]
• Analysis: China military growth to boost arms sales to Asia
  By Rhys JonesPosted 2011/09/20 at 8:44 am EDT LONDON, Sep. 20, 2011 (Reuters) — China's military build-up is forcing its Asian neighbors to ramp up their defences, offering a new source of growth to western arms makers keen to offset belt-tightening in their home markets. [Arms sales] [China confrontation]
• Is China Heading for Collapse?
  By Samuel A. Bleicher, September 13, 2011 The likely next leader of China, Xi JinpingAn implicit social contract underlies the Chinese people’s relationship with its government. The people accept the autocratic Communist Party of China (CPC) regime with its corruption and minimal public participation, and the CPC regime delivers a continuous and rapid improvement in the economic standard of living. But that social contract is now at risk, as China is on an unsustainable path that will result in economic stagnation or decline in the coming decades. There are several culprits behind China's impending decline, with ecological limits topping the list. [China decline]
• No New F-16’s for Taiwan, but U.S. to Upgrade Fleet
  By MARK LANDLER Published: September 18, 2011 WASHINGTON — The Obama administration has decided not to sell F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan but instead to help it refurbish its existing fleet, prompting criticism in Congress that the United States is buckling to pressure from China. The decision, which could be announced as early as this week and was shared with Congressional staff members on Friday, is a consolation prize for Taiwan, which wanted to buy 66 F-16’s to replace jets it bought in 1992 during the administration of President George H. W. Bush. [China confrontation] [Arms sales] [Straits]
• Ma denies reports on cross-strait political talks
  The ROC Presidential Office says Sept. 13 that there is no plan to launch political talks with mainland China, and that the time is not yet ripe for leaders of the two sides to meet. (Courtesy of Presidential Office)•Publication Date:09/14/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Rachel Chan ROC President Ma Ying-jeou said the government has no plans to launch political consultations with mainland China any time soon, nor is there a timetable for an official visit to Beijing, according to a Presidential Office statement issued Sept. 13. “The time is not yet ripe for leaders of the two sides of the Taiwan Strait to meet,” Ma was quoted as saying. [Straits]
• N. Korean nuclear envoy arrives in China
  BEIJING (Yonhap) -- North Korea's chief nuclear envoy arrived in China on Saturday for talks with his South Korean and Chinese counterparts on how to restart long-stalled negotiations on ending Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programs. Vice Foreign Minister Ri Yong-ho headed to Beijing's downtown area without making any comment to reporters upon arriving at an airport earlier in the day. Ri is scheduled to hold talks with South Korean chief nuclear envoy Wi Sung-lac around Wednesday, the second meeting in as many months. It was not immediately clear when the North Korean envoy would meet with his Chinese counterpart. Ri met with Wi on the sidelines of a regional security conference in Indonesia in July, paving the way for rare high-level talks between North Korea and the U.S. in New York later that month.
• In South China Sea, a dispute over energy
  By Andrew Higgins, Published: September 17 PUERTO PRINCESA, PHILIPPINES — When China’s largest offshore petroleum producer launched a $1 billion oil rig this summer from Shanghai, Lt. Gen. Juancho Sabban, the commander of Philippine military forces 1,500 miles away in the South China Sea, began preparing for trouble. The drilling platform, said China, would soon be heading in the general’s direction — southward into waters rich in oil and natural gas, and also in volatile fuel for potential conflict. China’s onshore oil resources have been heavily tapped since the 1960s. An expected decline in output is prompting offshore exploration and production in other locations, including the South China Sea. .“We started war-gaming what we could do,” said Sabban, a barrel-chested, American-trained marine who, as chief of the Philippines’ Western Command, is responsible for keeping out intruders from a wide swath of sea that Manila views as its own but that is also claimed by Beijing. Arguments over who owns what in the South China Sea have rumbled on for decades, ever since the doomed Chinese government of Chiang Kai-shek in 1947 issued a crude map with 11 dashes marking as Chinese almost the entire 1.3 million-square-mile waterway. The Communist Party toppled Chiang but kept his map and his expansive claims, though it trimmed a couple of dashes. [Territorial disputes] [Energy]
• China Boosts Nuclear Missile Capacity
  China has turned a nuclear missile brigade into two, boosting its capacity to strike targets as far afield as the U.S. mainland. Quoting a press release from the Project 2049 Institute, a defense think tank in Washington, China's state-run Xinhua news agency on Wednesday said China has put the 805th Brigade in Shaoyang, Hunan Province in charge of DF-31A intercontinental ballistic missiles. This adds to the 812th Brigade in Tienshui in the western province of Gansu, which already handles the missiles. The two brigades are under the Second Artillery Corps, a strategic nuclear missile unit. [Military balance]
• How China can help Europe get out of debt
  By Fareed Zakaria, The European crisis is no longer a European crisis. It has morphed into something that could easily engulf the global economy. Because of its size, because it involves governments and not just banks, and because it comes at a moment of great weakness, this crisis is more dangerous than the one posed by the collapse of Lehman Brothers, which filed for bankruptcy three years ago this week.
• China's stance on NTC clear and supportive
  Globaltimes.cn | September 13, 2011 18:28 By Ren Yingying, Dong Minzhi and Wang Wei Share Libyan embassy in Beijing. Photo: Wang Zi The Chinese embassy in Libya will return to being based in Tripoli, with China expecting a smooth transition and the development of bilateral ties, said Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu at a regular press briefing Tuesday. Although there are concerns on whether a different political ideology in Libya will influence Chinese investment in the country, in the long run a market economy will rule and Chinese investors will integrate their objectives with Libyan commerce, said Lin Limin, director of the Strategy Studies Center at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations. Lin told the Global Times that China retains friendly relations with many countries with different ideologies, including African nations. "In the future, Sino-Libyan relations will not be subject to much pressure from the Western countries because China steadfastly upholds international laws and principles. The NTC is a legitimate government with massive public support," said Lin. China officially recognized the National Transition Council (NTC) of Libya as the country's ruling authority on Monday. [China global strategy] [Libya]
• Will China have to face down the US?
  Global Times | September 13, 2011 01:48 By Global Times Share The 10th anniversary of 9/11 may be a chance for Americans to adjust their strategic positioning, at least psychologically. At present, there are worries in US society as some politicians are trying to divert US attention from terrorists to its real opponent. Verbal attacks on China before presidential elections, as seen in recent years, are leading the public to thinking that China should be regarded as an opponent or even an enemy. If this thinking becomes mainstream in the US, we cannot rule out the possibility that China might be forced to become an enemy of the US. But the reality is that while anti-China emotion is blooming in the US as China rises, resources to balance this out in the Sino-US relationship are also expanding. The next 10 years will see a match between wisdom and folly in the US attitude toward China. [China confrontation] [F&E]
• 'China next on Korea’s FTA agenda'
  Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon By Kim Da-ye
  Kim said that was the power of free trade, stressing that there is no more time to waste in promoting a free trade agreement (FTA) with China before it gets more sophisticated and makes striking a deal with it even more time-consuming. Kim, Korea’s top trade negotiator came off as a minimalist in his promotion of free trade, obviously skipping to mention the likelihood that the record of La Bamba he listened to was pirated with little copyrights enforced. “I want to emphasize that as China keeps growing, so will the degree of difficulty in making a deal with the country,” Kim said, adding that China is also enthusiastic about removing trade barriers. He said that Koreans easily made quite good money running businesses in China five years ago, but that’s no longer the case. [FTA]
• Neutral stand won't shut China out of Libya
  Global Times | September 12, 2011 18:40 By David M Anderson Despite the provocative statements of the Libyan National Transitional Council’s (NTC) representatives and the aggressive opportunism of Europe’s oil companies, China is likely to be a key player in Libya in the months ahead. But it might take time to regain influence. Libya was China’s third most important partner in Africa, after Angola and Zambia. By 2010, projects worth more than $18 billion were underway including several ventures in the oil sector. [Libya] [China confrontation]
• Secret Bid to Arm Qaddafi Sheds Light on Tensions in China Government
  By MICHAEL WINES Published: September 11, 2011 BEIJING — At a United Nations conference in Indonesia this summer, an official of the agency that oversees China’s weapons industry ticked off the hurdles that any proposal to sell Chinese weapons abroad must clear. Among them: arms sales must not alter another nation’s internal security. They must not violate United Nations arms embargoes. And they must win government approval [Arms sales][Libya] [UNUS]
• China’s Tibetan Theme Park
  Richard Bernstein The Kangxi Ceremony in Chengde In the international press, China’s tensions with Tibet are often traced to the Chinese invasion of 1950 and Tibet’s failed uprising of 1959. But for the Chinese themselves, the story goes back much further—at least to the reign of Kangxi, the Qing Dynasty emperor, who ruled for sixty-one years (1661-1722) and, in the official Chinese view, incorporated many lands, including Tibet, into a glorious Chinese empire. One of the most important symbols of those events, moreover, lies not in Tibet but thousands of miles east in the city of Chengde, near Beijing. There, Kangxi built a hunting estate amid a cluster of lakes and jagged hills, and between 1767 and 1771, the emperor Qianlong, his grandson, built one of the more astonishing architectural monuments in China: a Tibetan Buddhist temple housed in a scrupulously detailed scale model of the Potala Palace in Lhasa, the seat of Tibetan cultural and spiritual power. This Little Potala, as it’s called, was intended as an architectural expression of the great unity of China under his rule. [Fragmentation] [Tibet]
• South Korea’s China Play: Facing a Great Wall
  Jae Ho CHUNG Whether China will rise is no longer a question, but the question of when and how China’s rising power will reshape the international order remains to be explored. In the meantime, the essential task for most nations is to determine how to respond to the ascent of China as a key independent variable in international politics. This challenge is particularly daunting for South Korea, which is poised between its strategic ally the United States and its strategic cooperative partner China. [SK China] [Dilemma]
• Muslim militant group claims western China attacks
  By Chi-Chi Zhang, Friday, September 9, 6:15 AM BEIJING — A militant Muslim group claimed by video that it carried out recent attacks in western China that killed at least three dozen people, a monitoring group said. The video was purportedly made by the Turkestan Islamic Party, or TIP, which seeks independence for China’s western Xinjiang region, the SITE Intelligence Group said this week. The militants are thought to be based in Pakistan, where security experts say core members have been trained by al-Qaeda. [Terrorism] [Separatism] [Double standards]
• 'Pacific president' Obama behind diplomatic push
  .The Associated Press AUCKLAND, New Zealand -- President Barack Obama has described himself as America's 'first Pacific president' - and now Washington is trying to show it's serious about its regional role by sending its largest and highest-ranking delegation ever to a meeting of Pacific leaders. U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Thomas Nides is leading a delegation of more than 50 in Auckland this week that includes military and treasury representatives as well as White House officials. The U.S. can't attend official meetings because it is not one of the 15 Pacific forum nations, but diplomats are engaged in informal meetings. Part of the increased U.S. interest here may lie in the fact that China has been making its presence felt in the region through significant economic and political investments. Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/09/08/2395889/pacific-president-obama-behind.html#ixzz1XLNpVMhz [China confrontation] [US global policy]
• Sichuan offers hope for quake-struck New Zealand
  Global Times | September 08, 2011 21:37 By Dave Feickert Share It is now just over three years on from the Sichuan earthquake in May 2008. The damaged cities and towns have been largely rebuilt. The original estimate of the cost as calculated by the National Development and Reform Commission was $147 billion. In New Zealand there have been literally thousands of aftershocks after the second major Canterbury earthquake in February, following the original severe quake in September 2010. These have disrupted recovery work. As assessments are revised, the estimated costs are now projected to rise to as much as $18 billion.
• North Korea looks to China as it launches drive to boost trade and investment
  By Associated Press, Published: September 6 RASON, North Korea — A paved Chinese highway edged with telecommunications towers and electricity lines comes to a halt at the border with North Korea, giving way to a landscape seemingly frozen in time. Oxen plow the fields and cooking smoke rises from farmhouses where fish and tobacco are laid out to dry. A scarecrow lists in a sea of bright green rice plants. In the distance, three men on horseback race toward a small village. . .Cutting through this remote idyll is a yellow ribbon of pale dirt that is the start of a Chinese-built road to the port of Rason that North Korean officials envision as a pathway to prosperity bringing in investors, tourists and much-needed hard currency. The project shows that North Korea is turning to China to revive a moribund economy, relinquishing years of wariness toward its giant neighbor and its market reforms in a sign of desperation. [Rason] [SEZ][Media]

• Interview with China's Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs: 'The West Has Become Very Conceited'
  Katharina Hesse/DER SPIEGELIn a SPIEGEL interview, China's vice minister of foreign affairs, Fu Ying, 58, accuses Europeans and Americans of perpetuating Cold War stereotypes of her country, rejects allegations surrounding the treatment of artist Ai Weiwei and disputes notions that Beijing would like to rule the world. For reasons of data protection and privacy, your IP address will only be stored if you are a registered user of Facebook and you are currently logged in to the service. For more detailed information, please click on the "i" symbol. SPIEGEL: Madame Fu Ying, few countries are more interesting to the West right now than China -- and few others alarm the West to the same degree, now that you have launched your first aircraft carrier. Why does China need to arm itself to this extent? Fu Ying: The first aircraft carrier going to sea is a very exciting event in China. It's something the Chinese people longed for. People think it's a natural step in the growth of the Chinese military -- although this so-called aircraft carrier was really just a framework of a second-hand aircraft carrier that we refitted and will only be used for scientific research and training purposes. It's far, far from being a full-fledged aircraft carrier. In that sense, China is well behind other countries, let alone the United States which has had a mature and highly developed fleet of aircraft carriers for a long time now. SPIEGEL: Are there not more pressing areas where that money could go rather than towards increasing the military budget? [China rising] [Media]
• Intelligence Gathering, the South China Sea, and the Law of the Sea
  By Mark Valencia August 30, 2011 Mark Valencia, Nautilus Institute Associate and NARP Research Associate, examines the implications of new intelligence gathering equipment on maritime conflicts and the Law of the Sea. He writes, “The scale and scope of maritime and airborne intelligence collection activities are likely to continue to expand rapidly in many countries … The Law of the Sea does not adequately deal with these dimensions of freedom of navigation… Unless the issues are addressed and resolved, more incidents and possible conflict lie ahead.” [China confrontation] [Espionage] [Legality]
• China Developing 'Star Wars' Missile Defense Shield
  China is developing a missile defense system in the highest layer of the atmosphere and outer space using high-end technologies like laser beams and kinetic energy intercept. [Missile defense] [Military balance] [China confrontation]
• Video of Chinese general discussing sensitive spying cases leaked onto YouTube
  By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, August 29, 10:51 AM BEIJING — Footage of a Chinese general discussing sensitive spying cases has been leaked onto video sharing site YouTube, in what appears to be an embarrassing failure of secrecy for the usually tightlipped military. It wasn’t clear when or where Maj. Gen. Jin Yinan made the comments and China’s Defense Ministry did not immediately respond Monday to faxed questions about the video. Calls to the National Defense University where Jin is a lecturer rang unanswered. .While some of the cases had been announced before, few details had been released, while others involving the military had been entirely secret. Among those Jin discussed was that of former Ambassador to South Korea Li Bin, who was sentenced to seven years for corruption. Jin said Li had actually been discovered passing secrets to South Korea that compromised China’s position in North Korean nuclear disarmament talks, but the allegations were too embarrassing to make public and graft charges were brought instead. “In all the world, what nation’s ambassador serves as another country’s spy?” Jin said. [China SK] [Espionage] [Corruption]
• The strategic implications of the economic rise of China and India
  August 29th, 2011 Author: Peter Drysdale, Editor, EAF China is already the second largest economy in the world and India is fast coming up behind. Washington, Tokyo, Canberra and other capitals around the world are crawling with security analysts who link China’s rising economic power to its capacity to project military power and who worry about how to respond to that. The rise of India is rarely considered in the same frame, except in terms of its potential to serve as a hedge against China’s putative growing military might. The idea that a new quadrilateral alliance in Asia and the Pacific centred on India’s anchor role, with the United States, Japan and Australia, in a soft, ‘values-based’ containment initiative (Quad Initiative) directed at a strategic encirclement of China blossomed briefly and faded from public view. It’s still around in less formal guise. [China India]
• Kim leaves China after pushing for resumption of North Korean nuclear talks
  By Associated Press, Published: August 27 BEIJING — North Korean leader Kim Jong Il has ended a short trip to northeastern China during which he renewed a push to restart talks on swapping aid for his country’s nuclear disarmament. The official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday that Kim had concluded his visit, which came after he made an official visit early this week to Russia. Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reports that Kim says he is willing to impose a nuclear test and production moratorium and return to international talks on Pyongyang’s atomic program without preconditions. That echoes a commitment made earlier in the week in a meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev in a Siberian city. [Russia1108]
• Kim Jong-il visits China after rare trip to Russia
  August 27, 2011 North Korean leader Kim Jong-il was seen touring industrial facilities in northeastern China yesterday, two days after a rare Pyongyang-Moscow summit in Russia, raising speculations over what has been an unusual travel itinerary for the already unpredictable leader. The visit to China, confirmed by both North Korean and Chinese media, was seen as a short cut to Pyongyang, but some speculated it could be for a meeting with Chinese leaders after a summit with Russian President Dmitri Medvedev. [Russia1108]
• Kim Jong Il Visits Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region
  Pyongyang, August 26 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, on August 25 visited the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region located in the Northeast area of the People's Republic of China on his way home after winding up his visit to the Siberian and Far East regions of Russia. He arrived in Manzhouli of the Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, the border railway station, this afternoon.
• Kim Jong Il Passes through Heilongjiang Province, China
  Pyongyang, August 26 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, on August 26 passed through Heilongjiang Province, the People's Republic of China. He arrived in Qiqihar City, Heilongjiang Province this morning.
• China Attaches Great Importance to Friendly Relations with DPRK: Chinese Defense Minister
  Pyongyang, August 26 (KCNA) -- Colonel General Liang Guanglie, state councilor and minister of National Defense of China, met and had a talk with a delegation of logistics officials of the Korean People's Army led by Colonel General Jon Chang Bok at the August 1 Building in Beijing on August 26. [China NK]
• Kim Jong Il to Visit Northeast Area of China
  Pyongyang, August 25 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, will pay a visit to the Northeast area of the People's Republic of China on August 25 on his way home after winding up his visit to the Siberian and Far East Regions of Russia. [Russia1108]
• NK leader tours industrial facilities in China
  BEIJING/CHANGCHUN/MANZHOULI, China (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il toured industrial facilities in northeastern China on Friday on his way home from his trip to Russia, a source said. [Russia1108]
• China protests Pentagon report on military, labels it distortion
  By Associated Press, BEIJING — China formally protested over a Pentagon report on the Chinese military Friday, calling it a major distortion that flew in the face of a warming trend in relations between the two nations and their militaries. The United States’ annual assessment of China’s military capabilities and doctrine “seriously twists the facts and doesn’t have a leg to stand on,” the Defense Ministry said in a statement read on national television. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• Kim Jong-il in China
  The armored train carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong-il arrived in China on Thursday after he visited Russia, China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The brief report from Inner Mongolia gave no further details about what the North Korean leader was doing or who he was meeting. The trips come after Kim visited Siberia earlier this week, where he said North Korea is ready to return to nuclear talks without preconditions. [Russia1108]
• Pentagon stands as bastion of mistrust of China
  Global Times | August 26, 2011 00:56 By Global Times Share The Pentagon released a report entitled Military and Security Developments Involving the PRC 2011 on Wednesday, an annual paper submitted to Congress that tries to gauge China's military power projection and intentions. The Pentagon has published its annual report regarding China's military for 10 years and the apprehension it tries to convey is increasingly perceived as pathetic by Chinese people. The 94-page, six-chapter report covers China's poential new military might, strategy and US-China military contact. Not surprisingly, the latest report raises concerns about Chinese military's strategic intentions. The report acknowledged China's improvement in the transparency of its military affairs, but added that "there remains uncertainty about how China will use its growing capabilities." The refitting of the aircraft carrier Varyag seems to have exacerbated Pentagon concerns over China's maritime ambition. However, not owning an aircraft carrier as the world's largest developing country until now actually reflected more China's military underdevelopment rather than its sophistication. The report rightly points out that cross-Straits relationships have made significant progress since 2008, but raises the concern that "the PLA shows no sign of slowing its efforts to develop plans and capabilities for a cross-Strait contingency." The Pentagon actually needs to answer why US arms sales to Taiwan continue and remain the biggest factor of uncertainty stopping mainland-Taiwan relationship from advancing without a hitch. The military report also ignored the context of the US strategy of returning to Asia, including the tension the move has created in the South China Sea and East Asia, and what this means for China's national security. Western-backed military interventions in several countries also serve as a reminder of the need to maintain a necessary military capability. Does the Pentagon really need to ask this question? It is prepared for these uncertain security elements that the PLA has apparent "intentions" on. China and the US are increasingly interdependent economically and while cooperation is highlighted politically, the Pentagon is still stuck in a suspicious mindset between the two countries. As the world shifts toward a multi-polar power structure, the Pentagon report wrongly paints a picture of Sino-US confrontation. It is sowing the seeds for potential future conflicts. [China confrontation] [Pentagon] [Military balance]
• China's Defense Ministry firmly opposes Pentagon's report
  Xinhua | August 26, 2011 15:09 The Defense Ministry on Friday voiced "strong dissatisfaction" and "firm opposition" to a newly-released annual report by the Pentagon on China's military. "China has lodged solemn representations with the US side," said Defense Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun in a statement on the report.
• North Korean leader Kim visiting China after landmark Russian trip
  Global Times | August 26, 2011 03:53 By Reuters Share North Korea's leader Kim Jong-il is visiting Northeast China after ending a trip to Russia, the Xinhua News Agency said late on Thursday. The trip is Kim's fourth since May last year. Kim "visited northeastern China starting from August 25 after his Russian tour," Xinhua said. The report gave no other details of Kim's journey, and did not say whether he will meet Chinese leaders. China is North Korea's main source of economic and diplomatic support, and Kim has been seeking help from regional powers for his nation, which is struggling with economic hardship and food shortfalls. Beijing has shored up its support for Pyongyang in the past two years. When Kim visited China in May, the two sides vowed that their alliance, "sealed in blood," would pass on to their successors. While in Russia, Kim promised to consider suspending nuclear arms tests and production if international talks on Pyongyang's atomic program resume, a Kremlin spokeswoman said. The pledge, made at talks with President Dmitry Medvedev, was intended to improve the chances of reviving the Six-Party Talks that collapsed when North Korea walked out in 2008. [Russia1108] [Media] [Inversion]
• DPRK top leader Kim Jong Il visits northeastern China after Russian tour
  English.news.cn 2011-08-25 21:09:37 MANZHOULI, Inner Mongolia, Aug.25 (Xinhua) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defense Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, visited northeastern China starting from Aug. 25 after his Russian tour. Editor: Yang Lina [Russia1108]
• Pentagon details China's military expansion
  6:16pm EDT (Reuters) - The Pentagon said on Wednesday that China was on track to forge a modern military by 2020, a rapid buildup that could be potentially destabilizing to the Asia-Pacific region. Its annual assessment to Congress on China flagged all the major concerns over its growing military might, including Beijing's widening edge over Taiwan. It also noted cyber attacks in 2010 -- including on U.S. government computers -- that appear to have originated in China. Here are details from the report: [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• [ed] Korea-China relations
  Soul-searching needed for mending fences No celebratory mood prevails on the occasion of the 19th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Seoul and Beijng Wednesday. Despite record-breaking economic ties, the two countries have a long way to go before they deepen cooperation. [SK China]
• weather woman in “Fucking” T-shirt
  A weather woman in China broadcast while wearing a T-shirt with a swear word, stirring criticism among the public. The weather caster is said to work at WZTV, one of the national channels in Zhejiang Province.
• Taiwan rejects charge of inadequate F-16 lobbying efforts
  2011/07/27 20:28:30 Taipei, July 27 (CNA) Taiwan firmly rebutted Wednesday a U.S. newspaper report claiming that it has not lobbied strongly to procure new F-16 C/D fighters or upgrades of its existing jets, dismissing the allegation as unfounded and absolutely untrue. In a rare move, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) issued a statement shortly after midnight Tuesday rejecting the Washington Times report that cited an unnamed Pentagon official as accusing [Arms sales] [Straits]
• N.Korea Bought Huge Numbers of Chinese Military Vehicles
  Some 3,000 to 4,000 Chinese-made military trucks and jeeps entered North Korea last month, it was confirmed Monday. According to video clips obtained by the Chosun Ilbo, over 100 military trucks and jeeps made in China went to North Korea everyday last month after going through customs in Dandong. There were eight video clips of varying lengths ranging from two minutes to 16 minutes. The footage shows Chinese-produced military vehicles standing in the 10,000 sq.m parking lot of the Dandong customs office waiting to be cleared along with other civilian cars, and two-story trailers loaded with military vehicles waiting on the side road to enter the customs office. A local source in Dandong said, "Normally, all Chinese-made vehicles going into North Korea were civilian, but in July, a massive number of military cars went to North Korea." [Buildup] [Media] [Military balance]
• What will US Vice President Biden find in China?
  August 15th, 2011 Author: Evan A Feigenbaum, CFR In a recent post, my CFR colleague, Liz Economy asks: ‘What will Vice President Biden find in China?’ I thought I’d try out my own response to this very direct question. First, Biden will find a China whose rise depends on economic growth but whose growth model is no longer sustainable. Bluntly put, China’s leaders know that their capital-intensive, export-oriented approach is delivering diminishing returns and threatens to become a major political vulnerability for the government. The global economic crisis provided clear evidence that China’s export-driven economy is vulnerable to dips in demand in the rest of the world. Meanwhile, its dependence on investment has introduced distortions and imbalances into the Chinese economy. [F&E]
• China’s road
  August 19th, 2011 Author: Zhao Boying, Chinese Central Party School While the media focuses on the ‘Chinese miracle’, some scholars have used terms such as the ‘Beijing consensus’ and ‘China model’ to describe China’s overall strategy and path to development. [China global policy] [China model]
• India losing ground to China on trade with Bangladesh
  August 20th, 2011 Author: Pravakar Sahoo, IEG Since Bangladesh achieved independence, seceding from Pakistan in 1971, India has been its major trading partner. But since 2002 China’s trade with Bangladesh has increased many times over, surpassing that of India. This slowing down of economic relations between India and Bangladesh, coupled with strained and uncertain political relations, is a cause for concern. [China competition]
• Hunt is on for Gaddafi
  Global Times | August 23, 2011 01:42 By Huang Jingjing Share The hunt for Muammar Gaddafi is on as rebels took control of most of Tripoli, and world leaders united in telling the strongman to step down. Rebel fighters, who claim to be in control of 90 percent of the capital, are making every effort to locate the 69-year-old colonel. Muhammad Abdel-Rahman, a rebel spokesman, said violent clashes were ongoing outside Gaddafi's complex, known as Bab al-Aziziya, and that threats remained from troops loyal to Gaddafi. As long as Gaddafi remained at large, the "danger is still out there," he told the AP. Rebels have detained the two eldest sons of Gaddafi, one-time heir-apparent Saif al-Islam and Mohammad, on Sunday night, Al Jazeera reported. It was unclear whether they would be turned over to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Several other former senior Gaddafi officials remain free, including three of his seven sons. In a brief audio recording broadcasted Sunday night, Gaddafi called on Libya's tribes to march on the capital. "How can you allow Tripoli to be burned? Go out and take your weapons. All of you, there should be no fear," the defiant leader said. The Al-Arabiya news network reported on Monday that Gaddafi was traveling to central Libya with loyal troops. [US global strategy]
• US keeps an eagle eye on Asia
  Greg Sheridan, Foreign editor From: The Australian August 15, 2011 WASHINGTON'S foreign policy needs to pivot away from the Middle East and towards the Asia-Pacific, says US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell. In an exclusive interview with The Australian, he says: "One of the most important challenges for US foreign policy is to effect a transition from the immediate and vexing challenges of the Middle East to the long-term and deeply consequential issues in Asia." Few officials would put the choice so starkly. Campbell is not suggesting that the US neglect its responsibilities in the Middle East. But his comments reflect a desire, widespread across the Obama administration, to deepen and widen US engagement in Asia. Campbell has found that the economic troubles of the US have meant that he has to project a more basic message to Asia: that the US is in Asia to stay, and that its security and economic commitments in Asia remain as strong as ever. This took particular form when Campbell's boss, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, was scheduled to deliver an economic speech in Hong Kong recently. She had had various messages about market-opening and intellectual property to deliver. But the sense of the region changed the content of the speech. "When we travelled through Asia, before and after the ASEAN regional forum, it became clear that what a lot of Asians were interested in hearing about was the continued effectiveness and relevance of the United States," Campbell says. [US global policy] [China confrontation] [[Alliance]
• United Daily News: DPP's middle generation has doubts about Tsai
  2011/08/17 11:47:52 Certain middle generation members of the opposition Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) have recently raised doubts about chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen, the party's candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Among them, former Legislator Julian Kuo criticized Tsai's China policy as "too abstract." You Ying-lung, a former vice chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council, thought an election without Chen Shui-bian was "very uninteresting" and said the current DPP leadership was [Straits]
• Students see sovereignty in action at Dongsha Island
  Dongsha Island, Taiwan’s maritime security stronghold in the South China Sea some 450 kilometers off the southern coast, will welcome a group of college students on a summer camp starting Aug. 3. (Courtesy of Coast Guard Administration)•Publication Date:08/02/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Kwangyin Liu A group of Taiwan university students will sail to Dongsha Island as part of efforts to increase understanding of the government’s commitment to safeguarding national sovereignty in the South China Sea region, the Coast Guard Administration said Aug. 2. “The trip will help them better understand the uniqueness and strategic significance of the Dongsha Islands,” an administration official said. [Straits] [Territorial disputes] [South China Sea]
• Biden's noodle diplomacy hailed
  Global Times | August 19, 2011 02:02 By Zhu Shanshan Share US Vice President Joe Biden gives a thumbs up during a chat with a patron at a restaurant during lunch in Beijing Thursday. Biden’s meal cost 79 yuan ($12.36) for five people. Photo: AFP US Vice President Joe Biden impressed the Chinese public Thursday by dining in a small restaurant in Beijing, while he and Chinese leaders vowed to deepen the two countries' economic partnership and expand high-level exchanges. Biden started his second day in Beijing by meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, at the Great Hall of the People. "In the face of a complicated and fast-changing world, cooperation is the only correct choice of the two countries," Xi said. "China and the US are transforming their economic development modes and restructuring their economies, which has provided the two nations with good opportunities for cooperation."
  After meeting with Xi, Biden decided to relax by enjoying some Beijing snack food with his granddaughter and new US ambassador to China, Gary Locke, at a family-owned restaurant. Biden and his entourage ordered local noodles served with special soybean paste, steamed buns and some other Chinese appetizers, according to the official microblog of the US embassy in Beijing, which broadcast the vice president's trip online. [US China] [diaspora]
• Biden visits China amid crackdown on writers, dissidents
  By Tom Lasseter | McClatchy Newspapers BEIJING — Last year, Yu Jie was a bold man. He wrote a book criticizing, even mocking, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao's reputation for being a kindhearted reformer as a shallow act for an authoritarian regime. Yu then continued to ignore the warnings from state security and gave interviews to Western reporters in which he criticized the government. But times have changed. Reached by phone this week, Yu said that he couldn't talk to the press. His reply to a subsequent text message made things clear: "Right now I cannot accept any kind of visits" — presumably from foreign press — "or else there could be danger to the life and safety of myself and my family."
• Fight ends Georgetown basketball exhibition in China
  China Daily/Reuters - Players from the Georgetown men's basketball team and China's Bayi fight during an exhibition game at the Beijing Olympic Basketball Arena. Text Size PrintE-mailReprintsBy Gene Wang, Thursday, August 18, 4:24 PM BEIJING — What began as a goodwill trip to China for the Georgetown men’s basketball team turned violent Thursday night, when its exhibition game against the Bayi Rockets deteriorated into a melee during which players exchanged blows, chairs were thrown and spectators tossed full water bottles as Hoyas players and coaches headed to the locker room at Olympic Sports Center Stadium. Georgetown Coach John Thompson III pulled his players off the court with 9 minutes 32 seconds left in the game and the scored tied at 64 after a chaotic scene in which members of both teams began throwing punches and tackling one another. [US China] [resurgence]
• MND dismisses report of F-16 sale cancellation
  The Ministry of National Defense denies Aug. 15 that the U.S. has notified Taiwan it will not go ahead with the sale of F-16 C/D jet fighters. (CNA)•Publication Date:08/16/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Grace Kuo The ROC government has never received any information to the effect that the U.S. will refuse to sell F-16C/D jet fighters to Taiwan, Ministry of National Defense spokesman Lo Shao-ho said Aug. 15. “Purchasing these defensive arms from the U.S. is our set policy, and this stance has never changed,” Lo said. “We will continue efforts through every possible means to ask the U.S. to sell Taiwan the planes as soon as possible.” Lo’s comments came after the U.S.-based Defense News reported Aug. 14 that “bowing to Chinese pressure, the U.S. will deny Taiwan’s request for 66 new F-16C/D fighter aircraft.” [Arms sales] [China confrontation] [Straits]
• The Pentagon's new China war plan
  Saturday, Aug 13, 2011 13:01 ET Despite budget woes, the military is preparing for a conflict with our biggest rival -- and we should be worried By Stephen Glain This summer, despite America’s continuing financial crisis, the Pentagon is effectively considering trading two military quagmires for the possibility of a third. Reducing its commitments in Iraq and Afghanistan as it refocuses on Asia, Washington is not so much withdrawing forces from the Persian Gulf as it is redeploying them for a prospective war with its largest creditor, China. According to the defense trade press, Pentagon officials are seeking ways to adapt a concept known as AirSea Battle specifically for China, debunking rote claims from Washington that it has no plans to thwart its emerging Asian rival. A recent article in Inside the Pentagon reported that a small group of U.S. Navy officers known as the China Integration Team "is hard at work applying the lessons of [AirSea Battle] to a potential conflict with China." [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• AirSea Battle
  By Richard Halloran A new operational concept looks to prepare the US and its allies to deter or defeat Chinese power. After three Air Force C-130 pilots and crews from Yokota Air Base in Japan finished an exercise called Cope West 10 in Indonesia in April, they wrote up evaluations of Halim Air Base and other airfields from which they had operated, assessing the condition of runways, reliability of electrical supply, safety of fuel storage, and adequacy of parking ramps. Until now, that would have been a routine report to prepare for the next time American airmen might use Indonesian air bases. With the emergence of a joint Air Force-Navy operational concept called AirSea Battle, however, intelligence on airfields has taken on new significance. [China confrontation] [Military balance] [Bases]
• China successfully launches maritime satellite
  Xinhua | August 16, 2011 10:46 Long March-4B rocket carrying orbiter Haiyang-2 lifts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Taiyuan, capital of north China's Shanxi Province, Aug. 16, 2011. The satellite is for the supervision and survey of maritime environment, an important measure for prevention and reduction of maritime disasters. Photo:Xinhua China successfully launched a maritime satellite at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China at 6:57 am Tuesday Beijing Time. The orbiter, Haiyang-2, was boosted by a Long March-4B carrier rocket from the launch center in the city of Taiyuan in Shanxi Province. The satellite is for the supervision and survey of the maritime environment, an important measure for prevention and reduction of maritime disasters. [Satellite]
• Locke stresses US value
  Global Times | August 15, 2011 09:00 By Zhu Shanshan Share Gary Locke, the new US ambassador to China, and his family walk out to meet the press in the courtyard of their residence in Beijing Sunday. Photo: AFP Gary Locke, the new US ambassador to China, met the press Sunday for the first time after arriving in Beijing, reiterating his commitment to strengthening complex Sino-US ties and reassuring China of its investment in the US. "The US and China have a profoundly important and complex diplomatic and economic bilateral relationship – one with challenges, no question, but one which also holds great promises for expanded cooperation and collaboration," Locke said in the company of his wife and three children. "I think being a Chinese American, I have a greater sensitivity and understanding of the history and culture of China. But I am here as a representative of the US government," he told reporters. "On a personal level, I am both humbled and honored to stand here before you as a child of Chinese immigrants representing the US, the land of my birth, and the American values my family holds dear." [F&E] [Diaspora]
• Pakistan gave China access to secret U.S. aircraft involved in bin Laden raid, paper says
  By Reuters, Monday, August 15, 12:56 AM ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Pakistan gave China access to the previously unknown U.S. “stealth” helicopter that crashed during the commando raid that killed Osama bin Laden in May despite explicit requests from the CIA not to, the Financial Times reported Sunday. The disclosure, if confirmed, is likely to further shake the U.S.-Pakistan relationship, which has been improving slightly of late after hitting its lowest point in decades following the bin Laden killing in a Pakistani garrison city.
• Pakistan lets China see US helicopter
  By Anna Fifield in Washington Pakistan allowed Chinese military engineers to photograph and take samples from the top-secret stealth helicopter that US special forces left behind when they killed Osama bin Laden, the Financial Times has learnt. The action is the latest incident to underscore the increasingly complicated relationship and lack of trust between Islamabad and Washington following the raid. "The US now has information that Pakistan, particularly the ISI, gave access to the Chinese military to the downed helicopter in Abbottabad," said one person in intelligence circles, referring to the Pakistani spy agency. The Chinese engineers were allowed to survey the wreckage and take photographs of it, as well as take samples of the special "stealth" skin that allowed the American team to enter Pakistan undetected by radar, he said.
• Perry welcomed Chinese firm despite security concern
  View Photo Gallery — ?Texas governor announced his candidacy for the 2012 GOP presidential nomination Saturday, shaking up the Republican field. Text Size PrintE-mailReprintsBy Carol D. Leonnig and Karen Tumulty, Updated: Sunday, August 14, 2:00 PM It was the kind of scene that Texas Gov. Rick Perry will point to often as he rolls out his presidential campaign: a ribbon-cutting ceremony just outside Dallas, launching a corporate headquarters, with hundreds of new jobs, and validating what he calls his “Texas miracle” of growth. After a months-long courtship that included a trip to China, where he dined with the company’s chief executive, Perry announced that telecom firm Huawei Technologies would base its U.S. operations in Plano. In a video of that October 2010 event — now playing on YouTube, courtesy of the governor’s office — Perry praised the company’s “really strong worldwide reputation” and its chairman, Ren Zhengfei, whose straight talk he said reminded him fondly of West Texans. Texas Gov. Rick Perry joined the 2012 GOP race for president Saturday with an announcement sure to reverberate halfway across the country as his rivals competed in Iowa for the support of party activists. While Perry focused on Huawei’s ability to create jobs in a sluggish economy, national security experts in both the George W. Bush and Obama administrations had concluded that the global telecom giant poses a potential cybersecurity risk to U.S. military and businesses. Three times since 2008, a U.S. government security panel has blocked Huawei from acquiring or partnering with U.S. companies because of concerns that secrets could be leaked to China’s government or military. [F&E] [China confrontation] [Cyberwar] [ICT] [Sanctions]
• KMT honorary chair meets Chinese president
  2011/08/12 23:31:34 Taipei, Aug. 12 (CNA) Chinese President Hu Jintao has expressed fresh hopes that the two sides of the Taiwan Strait can sign an investment protection agreement as soon as possible, according to a statement issued by the office of Lien Chan, an honorary chairman of ruling Kuomintang (KMT), on Friday. [Straits]
• Review: America's Challenge
  By Vivian Yang, August 4, 2011 The relationship between the United States and China is probably the most important current bilateral tie in the world. In his new book America's Challenge – Engaging a Rising China in the Twenty First Century, Michael Swaine at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace interviews over 50 current and former U.S. officials in an effort to identify current problems and challenges in U.S.-China relations, evaluate policies adopted by the U.S. government, and propose ways to improve the relationship.
• Unwanted Missiles for a Korean Island
  By CHRISTINE AHN Published: August 5, 2011 SEOUL — Gangjeong, a small fishing and farming village on Jeju Island 50 miles south of the Korean peninsula, is a pristine Unesco-designated ecological reserve where elderly Korean women sea divers, haenyo, still forage for seafood. It is also the site of a fierce resistance movement by villagers who oppose the construction of a South Korean naval base on the island that will become part of the U.S. missile defense system to contain China. [China confrontation]
• Integration in the Absence of Institutions: China–North Korea Cross-Border Exchange
  by Stephan Haggard, University of California, San Diego and Jennifer Lee, Eurasia Group and Marcus Noland, Peterson Institute for International Economics August 2011 Theory tells us that weak rule of law and institutions deter cross-border integration, deter investment relative to trade, and inhibit trade finance. Drawing on a survey of more than 300 Chinese enterprises that are doing or have done business in North Korea, the authors consider how informal institutions have addressed these problems in a setting in which rule of law and institutions are particularly weak. Given the apparent reliance on hedging strategies, the rapid growth in exchange witnessed in recent years may prove self-limiting, as the effectiveness of informal institutions erodes and the risk premium rises. Institutional improvement could have significant welfare implications, affecting the volume, composition, and financial terms of cross-border exchange. [China NK]
• Taiwan will not consult China on Spratlys issue: MND
  2011/08/05 21:45:18 Taipei, Aug. 5 (CNA) The Ministry of National Defense (MND) on Friday nixed the possibility of Taiwan consulting with China over the controversial Spratly Islands issue. The Republic of China on Taiwan is a sovereign state which legitimately controls Taiping Island, part of the disputed Nansha or Spratly archipelago [Territorial disputes] [Straits]
• How Will Korea Respond to China's 1st Aircraft Carrier?
  The U.S., Japan, Taiwan, and Vietnam have bristled at the test voyage of China's first aircraft carrier, showing off their own weapons and threatening to bolster their nuclear arsenals, but neighbor Korea has yet to respond. There are calls from within the military that strategies and plans to cut troops must be reassessed. [China rising] [China confrontation] [Military balance] [Alliance]
• High-speed rail overhaul begins
  Global Times | August 12, 2011 01:41 By Huang Jingjing Share Railway stations across China have shortened the pre-sale period for tickets in preparation for an upcoming service readjustment following the State Council's order Wednesday to slow down high-speed trains. Most stations shortened the pre-sale period from 15 days to just four or five days. Authorities suspended ticket sales for all high-speed trains starting from Shanghai to Beijing, Nanjing and Hangzhou after August 15. The Ministry of Railways (MOR) released a statement Thursday saying that the ministry is revamping timetables and train arrangements of all high-speed rails, which will take effect later this month. "The high-speed services linking Beijing and Tianjin, Shanghai and Hangzhou will have a 50 kilometer per hour (kph) speed cut to 300 kph. Tickets prices will drop by an average of 5 percent. The number of trains running on the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway will be reduced to 66 pairs from the current 88," the statement said. [Railways]
• Chinese Navy on Goodwill Mission to N.Korea
  North Korean military leaders are seen aboard two Chinese Navy training ships that were visiting Wonsan Port on a goodwill visit to North Korea in pictures released by the North's official KCNA news agency on Monday. The pictures show North Korea's vice minister of the People's Armed Forces Pak Jae-gyong in dark glasses being briefed on deck by a Chinese Navy officer.
• China’s first aircraft carrier takes to the sea
  By Kathrin Hille in Beijing Varyag, China's first aircraft carrier China’s first aircraft carrier has taken to the sea, in a forceful sign of the country’s burgeoning naval power. The Varyag, which the People’s Liberation Army purchased as an unfinished hull from Ukraine in 1998, started its first sea trial in the early hours of Wednesday, the Ministry of Defence said, after a decade of refurbishing. [Military balance] [China confrontation]
• Atonement and forgiveness
  Global Times | August 10, 2011 21:20 By Liang Chen Share A monument in Fangzheng county, Heilongjiang Province, is vandalized on August 3. Photo: CFP While Sino-Japanese relations are normally handled with rigid decorum by stiff and stoic diplomats, several incidents this month have brought latent public hostility over Japanese war atrocities boiling to the surface. Local authorities in Fangzheng county, Heilongjiang Province, completely misread the remaining, deep-seated angst and hatred of the humiliation China suffered at the hands of Japanese soldiers during World War II, which in China is known as the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression. A monument erected in Fangzheng that commemorated the deaths of Japanese who tried to colonize parts of Northeast China was not only vandalized last week, it set off a blistering national debate. It's estimated 35 million Chinese were killed by Japanese soldiers during the war. Japan has neither fully apologized nor sought atonement, and this year will teach some of its schoolchildren a whitewashed version of their country's murderous rampage in China. [Japanese colonialism]
• Smile of North Korean people
  Despite ongoing inter-Korean conflict North Korean citizens smile brightly as they ride a boat on the Amnok (Yalu) River. South Korean photojournalists were on site to take pictures at Dandong City, on July. In the photos, the North Korean people in Sinuiju appear vivid, as if they foretell of an economic boom for North Korea through economic cooperation with China. China and North Korea have agreed to plans to a joint development project for Bidan Island in the Amnok (Yalu) River. [SEZ]
• US senators warn Beijing on South China Sea
  By Kathrin Hille in Beijing, Demetri Sevastopulo in Hong Kong and Roel Landingin in Manila Two senior US senators have warned China that recent clashes with its neighbours in the South China Sea could jeopardise US “national interests” in the region, in comments likely to rankle Beijing. “We are concerned that a series of naval incidents in recent months has raised tensions in the region,” said John Kerry, the Democratic chairman of the Senate foreign relations committee, and John McCain, the former Republican presidential candidate. “If appropriate steps are not taken to calm the situation, future incidents could escalate, jeopardising the vital national interests of the United States.” The senators issued the warning, in a letter obtained by the Financial Times, to Dai Bingguo, China’s top foreign policy official, ahead of a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations foreign ministers and their dialogue partners this week. China is likely to see the comments as a provocation as they echo remarks by Hillary Clinton, US secretary of state, last year that infuriated Beijing. Speaking at the Asean Regional Forum (ARF) in Hanoi last July, Mrs Clinton angered Beijing by saying the US had “a national interest in freedom of navigation ... in the South China Sea”. Mrs Clinton is due to speak at the same forum in Bali, Indonesia, this week, at a time when tensions in the South China Sea are higher than a year ago. Vietnam and the Philippines have accused China of harassing fishing and surveying vessels and said Chinese behaviour has become more aggressive. The South China Sea includes vital sea lanes for most of north-east Asia’s oil imports and other trade with Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India and south-east Asia. China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan claim all or parts of the area, but China’s claims are the most extensive. The comments from the US senators follow a period when the Obama administration has publicly toned down criticism of China’s increasingly aggressive behaviour in the contested energy-rich waters. [China confrontation]
• Chinese Military Chief's Rudeness Bodes Ill for the Future
  China's top military officer Chen Bingde launched into a 15-minute tirade against the U.S. during a meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin on Thursday. Chen said, "Being a superpower, the U.S. says this or that to other countries, but it never listens when other countries express themselves in a similar way." Chen added the actions of the U.S. suggest it wants to "overpower" other countries. Chen's comments were discourteous and violated diplomatic protocol. The portion of a meeting between officials that is open to the press is a time to exchange greetings and other casual remarks, and officials commonly restrict their comments to bilateral issues. Using such a setting to harshly criticize a third country, and a close ally of the visitor's, is unlikely to make the visitor feel comfortable. Chen, who is the chairman of the People's Liberation Army General Staff, ranks lower than China's defense minister, Kim's counterpart. It was a diplomatic discourtesy for Chen to ramble on and on without giving his senior a chance to speak. [China confrontation] [Resurgence] [Client]
• Defense Minister Visits Chinese Fighter Jet Base
  Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin on Saturday observed a demonstration flight of China's top-of-the-line J-10 fighter jet at the Changzhou Air Force flight test base about 200 km south of Beijing. The jet has been deployed since 2005 and is believed to be similar to mid-range American F-16s. It has a maximum speed of Mach 2, and its combat radius is 1,250 km. It can take off and land on short -- 350 to 650 m long -- runways and carry 11 air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles. "Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie said over a dinner after bilateral defense talks last Friday that China has never showed the J-10 base to any foreign visitors before," a Defense Ministry official said. "The opening of the base to our delegation is seen as an expression of China's will to expand exchange and cooperation between the two militaries." [Military balance]
• China blasts US talks with Dalai Lama
  Global Times | July 18, 2011 09:06 By Liu Linlin "It appears that US presidents can still meet the Dalai Lama at will in spite of how vocal China is." Jin Canrong deputy dean of the School of International Studies at Renmin University of China [Separatism] [China confrontation]
• China lodges solemn representations on Obama-Dalai meeting
  09:18, July 17, 2011 Vice Chinese Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai made an urgent summon to Robert S. Wang, Charge d'Affaires of U.S. embassy in Beijing, to lodge solemn representations on U.S. arrangement of President Barack Obama's meeting with the Dalai Lama, a press release from the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. [Separatism] [China confrontation]
• Barack Obama meets the Dalai Lama at the White House
  China had called on US to rescind the invitation to the Tibetan spiritual leader, warning it could sour relations with Beijing guardian.co.uk, Saturday 16 July 2011 23.15 BST Article history President Barack Obama held a White House meeting with the Dalai Lama, a fellow Nobel Peace Prize laureate, hours after China called on the US to rescind an invitation that could sour relations with Beijing. The Tibetan spiritual leader has been in Washington for an 11-day Buddhist ritual. Thousands of expatriate Tibetans joined a 76th birthday celebration Wednesday for the Dalai Lama, who recently relinquished leadership of Tibet's government-in-exile. The White House said that during the 45-minute private session in the Map Room, Obama "underscored the importance of the protection of human rights of Tibetans in China." In a statement issued after the meeting, the White House also said Obama reiterated his support for the preservation of Tibet's religious, cultural and linguistic traditions. Obama restated US policy that it does not support Tibetan independence, a goal that the Dalai Lama said he also does not seek [China confrontation] [Separatism]
• Vatican excommunicates bishop ordained by Chinese state
  Relations between China and Vatican City reach an all-time low Share98 reddit this Comments (91) Jonathan Watts in Beijing The Observer, Sunday 17 July 2011 Article history Pope Benedict XVI. The Vatican says only the Holy See can ordain bishops. China sees this as foreign interference. Photograph: Getty Images The Vatican excommunicated a Chinese bishop as relations between the Catholic Church and the government in Beijing plunged to their lowest level in recent memory. Joseph Huang Bingzhang was thrown out of the church just two days after he was ordained without papal approval as bishop of Shantou. It was the third such ordination pushed through since November by the state's religious authorities, who have also reportedly coerced Chinese bishops to attend the ceremonies. [China confrontation] [Democracy] [Resurgence]
• Chinese Military Chief Lambasts U.S.
  Chen Bingde The top Chinese military officer on Thursday launched a tirade against the U.S. in a meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin. Chinese Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde lambasted Washington for some 15 minutes right after the two sat down to talks at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. "Being a superpower, the U.S. says this or that to other countries, but it never listens when other countries express themselves in a similar way," Korean officials quoted Chen as saying. He added "some actions and expressions" by the U.S. indicate that it is trying to dominate other countries. [US Global strategy] China confrontation] [Client]
• North Korean Treaty still in China's interests
  Global Times | July 14, 2011 22:33 By Global Times Monday was the 50th anniversary of China and North Korea concluding the Sino-North Korean Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance (the Treaty) on July 11, 1951. But given its changing relationship with North Korea, should China think again about what the Treaty means? Five Chinese experts shared their insights on the issue. Han Xiandong (deputy director of the Institute of International Studies at China University of Political Science and Law): Security interests determined the value of the Treaty. Only by guaranteeing a peaceful Korean Peninsula could the economy in Northeast China, the most important industrial base of the nation at the time, shift from wartime mobilization to a state of peace. The transition greatly alleviated the nation's stressed military situation, and also eased the pressure imposed by the Soviet Union. Since the Cold War ended, the international pattern has been restructured and China's strength is growing. Nuclear issues on the Korean Peninsula have become a hot potato for China, which cannot stand by idly. Yet, adjusting our diplomacy toward North Korea because of this will invite greater trouble for China. So far, the Treaty is not an encumbrance to us but a positive factor to help avoid possible war on the peninsula. [China NK]
• S.Korea and China agree to hold regular defense strategy talks
  Observers are waiting to see if the talks can build trust between two countries that unraveled during last year’s S.Korea-US join military exercises in the West Sea By Park Min-hee, Beijing Correspondent South Korea and China reached an agreement to hold regular national defense strategy dialogues at the vice ministerial level, with a first meeting to be held in Seoul in late July. While strategic dialogues have taken place between the two countries’ foreign ministries in the past, this marks the first in the area of national defense. [China SK] [Joint US military]
• Sino-DPRK Friendship Will Be Everlasting: Head of Chinese Delegation
  Pyongyang, July 15 (KCNA) -- The Sino-DPRK friendship will be everlasting, Wu Donghe, chairman of the China-Korea Friendship Association, told KCNA on Thursday. Wu is heading the delegation of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the China-Korea Friendship Association on a visit to the DPRK. The delegation has deeply felt the bilateral friendship from the moment it arrived in the DPRK, he said, adding:
• Chinese Satellites Pose Threat to U.S. Military Influence
  China's rapidly developing satellite program has emerged as a new threat to U.S. military influence in Asia, according to new research from a Washington-based think tank. As China steps up the use of its satellites for military use, the possibility of a power shift in the region is increasingly likely, with the U.S. forced to take a step backwards. [China rising] [Decline] [Military balance][Surveillance]
• China neither world power nor shrinking violet
  Global Times | July 13, 2011 22:39 By Wei Guoan US Admiral Mike Mullen and China's General Chen Bingde sparred over the South China Sea issue Monday. The small-scale war of words made headlines at many media outlets. Chen's tough words impressed more than a few Western analysts, since China's blunt criticism of US military policy during Mullen's visit was obviously something they hadn't expected. Since the 1980s, a few military scholars, including myself, began to write special reports to top decision-makers, reminding them to watch out for and strive to prevent the internationalization of the South China Sea issue. [US China] [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• Kim Jong Il Receives Chinese Friendship Delegations
  Pyongyang, July 12 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, Tuesday received the Chinese friendship delegation led by Zhang Dejiang, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the Communist Party of China and vice-premier of the State Council, and the delegation of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the China-Korea Friendship Association headed by Wu Donghe, chairman of the China-Korea Friendship Association, on a visit to the DPRK to attend the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the DPRK-China treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. Present there were Vice-Chairmen of the Central Military Commission of the WPK Kim Jong Un and Ri Yong Ho, Member of the Political Bureau and Secretary of the WPK Central Committee Choe Thae Bok, Member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and Vice-Premier of the Cabinet Kang Sok Ju, Alternate Member of the Political Bureau of the WPK Central Committee and Vice-Chairman of the NDC Jang Song Thaek, Alternate Members of the Political Bureau and Secretaries of the WPK Central Committee Kim Yong Il and Kim Yang Gon, First Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Kye Gwan and Chairman of the Joint Venture and Investment Committee Ri Su Yong. The heads of the delegations presented gifts to Kim Jong Il and Kim Jong Un.
• Senior Chinese Official Underscores Need to Boost Sino-DPRK Relations
  Pyongyang, July 12 (KCNA) -- Wu Bangguo, chairman of the Standing Committee of Chinese National People's Congress, met with a friendship delegation headed by Yang Hyong Sop, vice-president of the Presidium of Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK, in the Great Hall of the People, Beijing Monday and had a friendly talk with it. Wu Bangguo said Premier Zhou Enlai and President Kim Il Sung signed the DPRK-China treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance 50 years ago, laying a legal foundation for the development of Sino-DPRK relations.
• North Korean leader Kim Jong Il throws party for Chinese officials amid 50 years of friendship
  By Associated Press, Published: July 12 SEOUL, South Korea — North Korean leader Kim Jong Il and his son and heir-apparent Kim Jong Un pledged to keep ties with China close as they staged a dinner party for a visiting delegation of senior Chinese officials to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a treaty of friendship. Kim Jong Il told the Chinese delegation, headed by Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang, that close relations will stay “unchanged no matter how much water flows under the bridge and no matter how frequently a generation is replaced by another,” according to a statement from the North’s official Korean Central News Agency released late Tuesday night after the dinner party. .Zhang was said to have praised Kim’s efforts to boost cooperative ties and promised that Beijing will push forward on the wide-ranging agreements reached by the two countries’ leaders. [China NK]

• China–DPRK’s special relationship of convenience
  Author: Jae Cheol Kim, Catholic University of Korea July 5th, 2011 Kim Jong-il’s visit to China in late May — his third in just over a year — was full of surprises for many observers. It is difficult to find a precedent in any bilateral relationship for this diplomatic episode, which suggests that ties between China and North Korea have been elevated to the point where the two countries are conducting high-level visits without being restricted by the conventional diplomatic protocol of mutual exchanges. The mysterious visit turned out to be rather hollow, as neither country announced any concrete or palpable progress in denuclearisation or economic reform. This has led many pundits to wonder what kind of relationship China and North Korea have. [China NK]
• China's Rise Could Bring Opportunities for Korea
  Han Seung-joo There seems to be a seminar or debate about China virtually every day. The usual theme is when China will become the world's No. 1 economy and what impact this shift will have on the global economic order. I took part in one forum in Beijing two weeks ago marking the 90th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party and debated with intellectuals and policymakers from around the world about China and the changing global landscape. A wide range of opinions and ideas were exchanged, but nobody denied that China had already overtaken Japan as the world's No. 2 economy in 2010 in terms of GDP and will become the biggest economy in the world between 2025 and 2030. What impact will this have on South Korea, one of China's closest geographic neighbors, and how should we prepare for this? China's economic might offers South Korea huge opportunities, but it is also cause for concern and trepidation from a geopolitical standpoint. Is South Korea overly dependent on China's economy? Will reunification between the two Koreas be impossible as long as China continues to support North Korea? Does China condone North Korea's possession of nuclear weapons? Will Korea's interests be squashed between the political objectives of the U.S. and China? [China rising][China SK]
• N.Korea, China Affirm Friendship Treaty
  North Korea and China are affirming their friendship treaty, which has been in effect for 50 years as of Monday. The two countries have each sent delegations to celebrate the half-century-long partnership, and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on Sunday sent a congratulatory telegram to Chinese President Hu Jintao. South Korea's Institute for National Unification says the treaty is essentially a pledge that China will back the North in any military conflict. Under the Sino-North Korean Mutual Aid and Cooperation Friendship Treaty signed in 1961, China is obliged to defend North Korea against unprovoked aggression. Arirang News / Jul. 12, 2011 12:57 KST [China NK]
• China is looking to its dynastic past to shape its future
  Francis Fukuyama The Chinese Communist party celebrated its 90th birthday on July 1. In the days before this event, the airwaves were full of historical dramas depicting heroic People’s Liberation Army soldiers and party cadres struggling against a variety of enemies. There is a new, neo-Maoist faction within the party led by Bo Xilai, the party chief of the western city of Chongqing, who began promoting the singing of classic Communist songs such as “The East is Red” in workplaces and schools throughout the country. Henry Kissinger, in China for a book tour, managed to attend a sing-along there with some 70,000 other people. [Red revival]
• China’s ‘eye-in-the-sky’ nears par with US
  By Simon Rabinovitch in Beijing China has launched reconnaissance satellites that can monitor targets up to six hours a day, a think-tanks says China’s rapidly expanding satellite programme could alter power dynamics in Asia and reduce the US military’s scope for operations in the region, according to new research. Chinese reconnaissance satellites can now monitor targets for up to six hours a day, the World Security Institute, a Washington think-tank, has concluded in a new report. The People’s Liberation Army, which could only manage three hours of daily coverage just 18 months ago, is now nearly on a par with the US military in its ability to monitor fixed targets, according to the findings. [China rising] [Military balance]
• Reception Given on Anniversary of DPRK-China Treaty
  Pyongyang, July 11 (KCNA) -- A reception was given at the People's Palace of Culture Monday on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the DRPK-China treaty of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. It was co-sponsored by the Korean Committee for Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries and the Central Committee of the DPRK-China Friendship Association. Present there on invitation were a friendship delegation of China led by Zhang Dejiang, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the Communist Party of China and vice-premier of the State Council, a delegation of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the China-Korea Friendship Association headed by Wu Donghe, chairman of the China-Korea Friendship Association, Ambassador Liu Hongcai and staff members of the Chinese embassy here and Chinese guests staying in the DPRK. Present there were Choe Thae Bok, member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, Ro Tu Chol, vice-premier of the Cabinet, Kim Jong Suk, chairwoman of the Korean Committee for Cultural Relations with Foreign Countries, Ri Yong Chol, vice department director of the WPK Central Committee, Kim Hyong Jun, vice-minister of Foreign Affairs, Ku Pon Thae, vice-minister of Foreign Trade, and officials concerned. [China NK]
• Bumps Remain as Military Leaders of U.S. and China Meet
  By MICHAEL WINES Published: July 11, 2011 BEIJING — The leaders of the Chinese and American militaries sought on Monday to cast aside decades of hostility between the two countries’ armed services, pledging at a joint news conference here to pursue a “great opportunity” to create a shared vision of cooperation. Related Joint Chiefs Chairman Meets With Chinese Counterpart (July 11, 2011) But neither indicated that his government was willing to alter positions on divisive issues, like Taiwan and the South China Sea, that have long hamstrung better relations. And the Chinese military chief, Gen. Chen Bingde, quickly voiced a string of complaints about American military policies that suggested their shared vision remained a distant dream. [US China]
• Senior Chinese official meets with North Korea’s parliament chief amid 50 years of friendship
  By Associated Press, Published: July 12 | Updated: Wednesday, July 13, 4:39 AM SEOUL, South Korea — A senior Chinese official has held talks with the head of North Korea’s parliament as the two countries mark the 50th anniversary of a treaty of friendship. Footage from Associated Press Television News in Pyongyang showed Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang greeting Kim Yong Nam in Pyongyang on Tuesday and later touring Kim Il Sung University and its computer library. .Zhang arrived in Pyongyang on Sunday and was due to leave Wednesday. The visit comes as China and North Korea deepen economic ties following a May trip to China by North Korean leader Kim Jong Il. The countries fought together in the 1950-53 Korean War, and China remains North Korea’s most important ally. [China NK]
• [Editorial] A China-N.Korea military alliance?
  » North Korean First Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Gye-kwan, left, greets a Chinese goodwill representative visiting to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Sino-North Korean Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance at Sunan International Airport in Pyongyang, North Korea. (AP Newsis) The question of whether China will support North Korea militarily if war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula is once again becoming the topic of discussion. After being dismissed as a belief of the past, the question of China’s automatic intervention on North Korea’s behalf in a military conflict is being talked about as the signing of the two countries’ friendship treaty marks its 50th anniversary. The development is both concerning and regrettable, and demonstrates just how troubling the political situation on and around the peninsula is becoming. Article II of the Sino-North Korean Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, which marks its 50th anniversary today, states, “In the event of one of the Contracting Parties being subjected to the armed attack by any state or several states jointly and thus being involved in a state of war, the other Contracting Party shall immediately render military and other assistance by all means at its disposal.” [China NK] [NCW]
• Hawks have no place in China's future
  Global Times | July 11, 2011 22:27 By Sun Peisong The "China threat" has become a menacing spectre. Unless the US begins to say the magic words, unrest will grow in East Asia and turmoil will worsen. The US claiming to return to Asia and strengthening American responsibility for Asian countries' security has become a kind of exorcism to drive the Chinese demon away. The study of international relations originates from the US. The most experienced diplomats are American. This allows the US to preserve its status as a superpower. Within two years after its "return to Asia," the US has already skillfully put China on the back foot and accurately teased out the political sentiments of East Asian countries. [China global strategy] [China confrontation] [Peaceful rise]
• Chinese general critiques American military spending
  U.S. Adm. Mike Mullen, left, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, shakes hands with Gen. Chen Bingde, chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. | AP Photo/Alexander F. Yuan By Tom Lasseter | McClatchy Newspapers BEIJING — China’s top general publicly admonished the United States on Monday for a wide array of issues, ranging from spending too much on its military during an economic downturn to the timing of joint exercises with other nations in the South China Sea. Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/07/11/117425/chinese-general-critiques-american.html#ixzz1RpgKnRBd [US China] [Military balance] [Joint US military] [Territorial disputes]
• APTN footage shows senior Chinese official starting NKorea visit
  By Associated Press, Published: July 10 SEOUL, South Korea — A senior Chinese official has arrived in North Korea to mark the 50th anniversary of a treaty of friendship between the two allies. Footage from Associated Press Television News in Pyongyang shows Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang greeted by North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hyong Jun after arriving Sunday. .North Korean state media say Chinese President Hu Jintao has sent a letter to North Korean leader Kim Jong Il that says strengthening ties is Beijing’s “unshakable strategic policy.” Kim traveled to China in May and Beijing and Pyongyang have recently begun a new joint economic project. The countries fought together in the 1950-53 Korean War and China remains North Korea’s most important ally. [China NK]
• Global race on to match U.S. drone capabilities
  (William Wan/ THE WASHINGTON POST ) - In recent years, the Chinese have begun developing equivalents to some of the most advanced U.S. drones. The Pterodactyl, is the Chinese answer to the MQ-9 Reaper, one of U.S. Air Forces’ most advanced armed drones. By William Wan and Peter Finn, Published: July 5 At the most recent Zhuhai air show, the premier event for China’s aviation industry, crowds swarmed around a model of an armed, jet-propelled drone and marveled at the accompanying display of its purported martial prowess. In a video and map, the thin, sleek drone locates what appears to be a U.S. aircraft carrier group near an island with a striking resemblance to Taiwan and sends targeting information back to shore, triggering a devastating barrage of cruise missiles toward the formation of ships. .Little is known about the actual abilities of the WJ-600 drone or the more than two dozen other Chinese models that were on display at Zhuhai in November. But the speed at which they have been developed highlights how U.S. military successes with drones have changed strategic thinking worldwide and spurred a global rush for unmanned aircraft. [UAV] [Military Balance] [China rising]
• Senior envoy visits Benghazi
  Global Times | July 08, 2011 02:34 By Huang Jingjing Libyan opposition officials pledged on Thursday to protect Chinese business interests in the areas they control, during talks in Benghazi with a senior Chinese diplomat. Chen Xiaodong, director general of West Asian and North African Affairs at the Chinese foreign ministry, met with members of the National Transition Council (NTC), including deputy head of the NTC executive office Ali Essawi. Urging both sides to restore peace and stability as quickly as possible, Chen pushed for the launch of substantial talks and supported the mediation proposals offered by international organizations, such as the African Union (AU). [China global strategy] [Libya]
• Modernity's grip challenged by China's rise
  Global Times | July 07, 2011 19:02 By Eric Li A little more than 200 years ago, in 1793, a fateful event in Chinese history took place in the Forbidden City. The great Emperor Qianlong reluctantly received George Macartney of the then emerging British Empire. Macartney presented a seemingly simple idea: Let us trade. To that, Emperor Qianlong replied “Our dynasty’s majestic virtue has penetrated unto every country under Heaven, and kings of all nations have offered their costly tribute by land and sea. Swaying the wide world, I have but one aim in view, namely, to maintain a perfect governance. Strange objects do not interest me.” The emperor certainly had good reasons for his position. At that moment, China represented 33 percent of the entire world’s GDP, by some estimates, and was the most powerful and prosperous continental power on earth. [China rising]
• Reply to Kim Jong Il from Hu Jintao
  Pyongyang, July 7 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, on July 6 received a message from Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and president of the People's Republic of China, in reply to his message of greeting sent to the latter on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the CPC. The reply message said: I express sincere thanks to you for sending a congratulatory message to me on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the CPC. We wish to promote the steady development of the Sino-DPRK friendly and cooperative relations, provide the two countries and two peoples with happiness and defend and push forward regional peace, stability and prosperity through the concerted efforts with the DPRK side. We wholeheartedly hope that the Workers' Party of Korea headed by General Secretary Kim Jong Il will steadily register new greater successes in accomplishing the cause of building a thriving socialist nation by leading the Korean people.
• China pissed off with NK’s drug trafficking
  07-08-2011 17:25 The Chinese government has launched crackdown on smuggling drugs from North Korea, a local daily has reported. “North Korea had earned about $1 billion in exports of weapons every year, but the amount decreased to $10 million last year due to sanctions on North Korea. The North is presumed to sell drugs in China to offset export gap from the sanctions,” Dong-a Ilbo has reported, quoting government officials. [Drugs] [Media]
• KMT, not communists, fought Sino-Japan war: President
  2011/07/07 22:32:18 Taipei, July 7 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou urged China Thursday to face up to the truth of the Eight-Year War of Resistance against Japan and agree to a restoration of historical facts at a time when the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are moving toward reconciliation. [Nationalism]
• Former ROC President Lee indicted for embezzlement, money laundering
  Former ROC President Lee Teng-hui and one of his aides were indicted by prosecutors June 30 for embezzling public funds and money laundering during his time in office between 1988 and 2000. Lee became the second former Taiwan head of state to be indicted on corruption charges after ex-President Chen Shui-bian, who served two terms between 2000 and 2008. Wang Yang-chun, Lee’s spokesman, quoted the former president as saying that he will “defend his name against these unfounded accusations.” In its indictment, the Supreme Prosecutors Office Special Investigation Panel alleged Lee and his aide Liu Tai-ying misappropriated US$7.79 million in state funds for the establishment of the private think tank Taiwan Research Institute. [Corruption]
• President Ma urges US to sell Taiwan more weapons
  President Ma Ying-jeou welcomes AIT Chairman Raymond F. Burghardt to the Presidential Office June 28 in Taipei. (CNA)•Publication Date:06/29/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Elaine Hou ROC President Ma Ying-jeou again called on the U.S. to sell Taiwan weapons such as F-16 C/D fighters to help maintain the nation’s defense capabilities in the face of the escalating military threat from mainland China. “We are grateful for Washington’s approval of U.S. arms sales to Taipei in 2008 and 2010,” Ma said June 28. “But to maintain a robust defense, Taiwan now needs F-16 C/Ds, diesel-electric submarines and upgrades for our F-16 A/B jets.” Ma made the remarks while receiving Raymond F. Burghardt, chairman of the American Institute in Taiwan, at the Presidential Office in Taipei. Burghardt is on a five-day visit to Taiwan that wraps up June 30. [Arms sales] [Separatism]
• Taiwan's representative offices in HK, Macau to be renamed
  (update) 2011/07/04 20:28:02 Taipei, July 4 (CNA) Taiwan's representative offices in the two China-controlled special administrative regions (SARs) of Hong Kong and Macau will be renamed to reflect their true status and functions, Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Lai Shin-yuan said Monday. The office in Hong Kong, which since 1966 has been known as the Chung Hwa Travel Service -- a holdover from when the territory was still a British colony --will be renamed the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Hong Kong from July 15, Lai said at a news conference. Lai added that with immediate effect, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in Macau has been re-designated as the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Macau. Referring to Taiwan's representative office in Hong Kong, Lai said that because of the misleading nature of its title, it has often been mistaken as a private travel agency. "The designation fails to manifest its true status as our official representative office in Hong Kong," Lai pointed out. Over the past 45 years -- both during Hong Kong's colonialization and after the Chinese takeover --Taiwan has repeatedly but fruitlessly tried to get the designation rectified, Lai said, adding that the success this [Straits]
• Understanding the claims and claimants in the South China Sea
  June 28th, 2011 Author: Jennifer Chen, Georgetown University How do we resolve the territorial disputes in the South China Sea (SCS)? There is no clear answer, but the first step to settling any argument is to examine all sides of the story. Understanding the claims and claimants in the South China Sea June 28th, 2011 Author: Jennifer Chen, Georgetown University How do we resolve the territorial disputes in the South China Sea (SCS)? There is no clear answer, but the first step to settling any argument is to examine all sides of the story. [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• What a Long, Strange March It's Been
  As China's Communist Party turns 90, its legacy continues to confound both its critics and apologists. BY JEFFREY WASSERSTROM | JUNE 30, 2011 From the Long March to the massive, glittering spectacle of the Beijing Summer Olympics' opening ceremony in 2008, what a long, strange journey it has been for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). On July 1, the party will celebrate its 90th birthday, marking the occasion with everything from a splashy, star-studded cinematic tribute to the party's early years to a "praise concert" staged by two of the country's officially sanctioned Christian groups. The party's nine-decade existence has provided plenty of grist for both critics and apologists to debate its legacy. On the one hand, Jung Chang and Jon Halliday's sensationalistic bestseller Mao: The Unknown Story, paints the party's founding father as a demonic figure whose rule was brutal and disastrous for China. In the words of the authors, Mao's sole accomplishment was bringing "unprecedented misery" to "the whole of China." [CPC]
• President Ma denies 'political maneuver' on Lee's prosecution
  2011/07/01 20:41:38 Taipei , July 1 (CNA) President Ma Ying-jeou rejected Friday accusations that the prosecution of former President Lee Teng-hui on corruption charges was a "political persecution" against the former national leader [Democracy] [Corruption]
• Hu lays out path ahead for CPC
  Global Times | July 02, 2011 08:30 By Huang Jingjing Chinese president Hu Jintao highlighted challenges such as corruption and alienation from the people while hailing the achievements the Communist Party of China (CPC) has made over the past 90 years. "We are facing long-term, complicated and severe tests in governing the country, in implementing reform and opening up and in developing the market economy," Hu, also the general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said in a keynote speech at a grand celebration in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Friday morning. "The whole Party is confronted with the growing dangers of lacking in drive, incompetence, lacking in initiative, and corruption," he added. [CPC]
• China's thirst for copper could hold key to Afghanistan's future
  By Jonathan S. Landay | McClatchy Newspapers JALREZ VALLEY, Afghanistan — In this Taliban stronghold in the mountains south of Kabul, the U.S. Army is providing the security that will enable China to exploit one of the world's largest unexploited deposits of copper, earn tens of billions of dollars and feed its voracious appetite for raw materials. U.S. troops set up bases last month along a dirt track that a Chinese firm is paving as part of a $3 billion project to gain access to the Aynak copper reserves. Some troops made camp outside a compound built for the Chinese road crews, who are about to return from winter break. American forces also have expanded their presence in neighboring Logar province, where the Aynak deposit is. The U.S. deployment wasn't intended to protect the Chinese investment — the largest in Afghanistan's history — but to strangle Taliban infiltration into the capital of Kabul. But if the mission provides the security that a project to revive Afghanistan's economy needs, the synergy will be welcome. Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2009/03/08/63452/chinas-thirst-for-copper-could.html?storylink=MI_emailed#ixzz1QqRfzvLL [Unintended consequences] [FDI] [China rising] [Decline] [AfPak][Spin]
• 2nd ex-president indicted on graft charges in Taiwan; opposition alleges election intimidation
  Text Size PrintE-mailReprintsBy Associated Press, Published: June 30TAIPEI, Taiwan — Former President Lee Teng-hui, a pivotal figure in Taiwan’s modern history, was indicted on graft charges Thursday, becoming the second recent leader accused of corruption and raising opposition claims the government was subverting the island’s still-evolving democracy. Prosecutors insisted the indictment followed the law and that Lee diverted parts of a special presidential fund to use for a think tank to serve as his private office after he left political life. Former President Lee Teng-hui, one of the towering figures of modern Taiwanese politics, was indicted Thursday on charges of embezzling from a state fund, becoming the island’s second ex-leader to run afoul of the judiciary. At left is Wang Yen-chun, Lee Teng-hui’s spokesman. .“Lee Teng-hui pocketed $7.79 million for his own personal use through money-laundering,” the prosecutors’ office said in a statement. “In order to set up the Taiwan Research Institute, he consulted with his advisers and decided to get the money from a National Security Bureau project fund.” [Corruption]

• China's Comac Joins Commercial Passenger Plane Industry
  The Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China has joined the global market for commercial passenger jets so far controlled by Airbus and Boeing. Jim Albaugh of Boeing's civil jet division said the days of the "duopoly" are over, and French business daily Les Echos also noted China's growth in the industry in a recent article by saying China is emerging as the No. 3 aerospace power. ? Competitive Price Comac has already signed a memorandum of understanding with the biggest European budget carrier Ryanair for 200 C919 midsize passenger planes. [China rising] [Aerospace]
• China is complicated
  Global Times | June 29, 2011 21:23 Editor’s Note: In a surprisingly frank interview the Global Times Editor-in-Chief, Hu Xijin, talks about the politicization of democracy, Ai Weiwei and what it means to be born in China. Hu, 51, has worked for the Global Times (GT) since 1993. As a reporter he covered the Bosian and Iraq wars. He has been the Global Times Editor-in-Chief since 2005. The interview was published by Southern People Weekly on June 27. Part of the translated transcript follows.
• Is US -led military invasion of Libya specifically targeting China in its “21st century Resource War”?
  By Kiyul Chung | 18:16 BeiJing Time,Thursday, April 21, 2011384 views Comments(203) [Editorial] An answer to this now becoming very much clear day-by-day and much more apparent question seems to be unfortunately “Yes!” Why? How? Who is the real and main culprit in this (another) imperial saga of “sexed up” games of lies, lies, and lies? As F. William Engdahl has already argued US “resource war” with China in his 2008 book (“Full Spectrum Dominance: Totalitarian Democracy in The New World Order”), Managing Editor of 21st Century Wire Patrick Henningsen also persuasively argues the “21st Century resource war” with China in his most recent article “The West versus China: A new Cold War begins on Libyan soil” as well (see, http://en.m4.cn/ archives/ 7614.html). [China confrontation] [Libya]
• Diageo acquires a taste for China spirit
  By Leslie Hook in Beijing Diageo, the UK drinks group, is to acquire one of China’s best-known liquor makers in a deal that paves the way for one of the first foreign acquisitions of a big Chinese listed company. Western governments have long pressed Beijing to be more open to foreign investment, and the Diageo deal marks the first time a foreign company has gained control of an important Chinese brand. Diageo, which produces Guinness and Johnnie Walker, will spend as much as £815m ($1.3bn) to acquire control of Shuijingfang, a famous brand of baijiu, a fiery spirit, that bills itself as China’s oldest maker and boasts distilling techniques dating back to the 14th century. [FDI]
• China rebukes Cameron for pointing the finger over human rights abuses
  Premier's words contrast with praise for Germany but he said China would send two pandas to the UK as mark of friendship Patrick Wintour, political editor guardian.co.uk, Monday 27 June 2011 21.17 BST Article history The Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, issued a diplomatic dressing down of the British government by declaring the UK should stop "finger pointing" over human rights in discussions with Beijing. Wen also suggested the UK economy needed to do better, in remarks that appeared to differ from his warm words towards Germany, which he was also visiting on his European tour. The rebukes marred the signing of some £1.4bn of trade deals, the most important being an agreement between BG, the UK energy group, and Bank of China for up to $1.5bn of funding to expand projects in China. Britain, for its part, said it would welcome Chinese investment in UK infrastructure, as well as greater co-operation over international development. At a Downing Street press conference, Wen repeatedly aired his frustration at the way the UK government and media seemed to obsess about human rights. He said: "On human rights, China and the UK should respect each other, respect the facts, treat each other as equals, engage in more co-operation than finger-pointing and resolve our differences through dialogue. China is not only pursuing economic development but also political structural reform and improvement in democracy and the rule of law." He said China had been exposed to untold sufferings in its 5,000-year history. "This has taught the Chinese never to talk to others in a lecturing way, but to respect nations on the basis of equality." [Human rights] [Manipulation] [Resurgence]
• Southwestern Chinese city leading ‘red’ revival
  By Keith B. Richburg, Tuesday, June 28, 12:47 AM CHONGQING, China — With the approach of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China on July 1, the country is being swept up in a wave of orchestrated revolutionary nostalgia. Nowhere is that more so than in Chongqing, this southwestern Chinese mega-city of 32 million people that has become the capital of the “red culture” revival. The local satellite television station recently stopped broadcasting sitcoms and now shows only “revolutionary” programs and news. Government workers and students have been told to spend time working in the countryside. The local propaganda department launched a “red Twitter” micro-blogging site, blasting out short patriotic slogans. .And in what seems like a throwback to the days of the Cultural Revolution, residents have been encouraged — or told — to read revolutionary books and poetry and to gather regularly in parks to sing old songs extolling the Communist revolution. A recent Sunday gathering, including a colorful, choreographed stage pageant, attracted an estimated 10,000 flag-waving people, many in uniforms and red caps and mostly organized by the party chiefs in their schools and factories.
• Dispatches from Libya
  Global Times | June 26, 2011 21:21 By Lin Meilian As I madly pack my bags for Libya, I’m struck by an odd thought: Reporters are similar to people who live near volcanoes; we know how to pack fast. The difference is they’re fleeing the eruption while it feels like I’m heading into the volcano and my first assignment in a war zone. As I head for the airport I realize that nobody has told me anything about what is expected of me. I know that my country has not yet fully committed to the ouster of Muammar Gaddafi, and I’m going to be staying with people who want him dead. I’m heading to the rebel-held city of Benghazi, where I’ll work for the next two weeks as a member of the world’s media covering “the Arab Spring”. I know it is going to be a tricky assignment. [Media] [Libya]
• China tests its high-speed rail link from Beijing to Shanghai
  Tania Branigan on the Beijing-Shanghai high-speed rail link guardian.co.uk, Monday 27 June 2011 08.32 BST Article history Chinese rail workers on the high-speed train before it departed on the test journey from Beijing to Shanghai. Photograph: David Gray/Reuters Four would be too few. Ten would be too many. Five or nine would presumably produce an unaesthetic, wonky effect. So the smiling attendants on the test run of the Beijing to Shanghai high-speed rail link revealed precisely six to eight of their teeth to display their pleasure as the train pulled out of the capital. It had, admitted chief conductor Gao Dan, taken considerable practice; in some cases, with chopsticks jammed between their jaws. Extending 820 miles (1,318km), and spanning seven cities and provinces, China's landmark line was built in 39 months at a cost of 221bn yuan (£21.4bn). But as those gleaming white teeth attest, no detail of this massive project was too minor to be subject to official scrutiny. [Media] [Bizarre]
• In Tripoli, Chinese takeout still on the menu
  Ernesto Londono/WASHINGTON POST - Dai Sonxian’s family invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in a new seaside location a month before the Libyan crisis began. Text Size PrintE-mailReprintsBy Ernesto Londono and Lena H. Sun, Monday, June 27, 9:27 AM TRIPOLI, Libya — Even with bombs raining down on Tripoli and gunfire crackling throughout the night, every time the phone rings at the al-Maida Chinese restaurant, the Dai family springs into action. The thousands-strong Chinese labor force that helped make the family one of the most successful restaurateurs in this battered capital left the country soon after an uprising plunged Libya into chaos in February. Gone, too, are most of the foreign diplomats who kept the eatery on speed dial. But having invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in a new seaside location for the restaurant a month before the crisis began, the Dais are not yet willing to become casualties of Libya’s civil war.
• Bridge Comes to San Francisco With a Made-in-China Label
  By DAVID BARBOZA Published: June 25, 2011 At a sprawling manufacturing complex here, hundreds of Chinese laborers are now completing work on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Next month, the last four of more than two dozen giant steel modules — each with a roadbed segment about half the size of a football field — will be loaded onto a huge ship and transported 6,500 miles to Oakland. There, they will be assembled to fit into the eastern span of the new Bay Bridge. [China rising]
• Foreign and Military Affairs Trade zone to boost DPRK economy
  By Bao Chang, Zhu Chengpei and Ding Qingfen (China Daily) Updated: 2011-06-25 07:32 Comments(0) PrintMail Large Medium Small DANDONG, Liaoning - A free-trade area and a tax-free zone will be set up as part of the first special economic zone straddling the mainland and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), a Chinese government official told China Daily. Dai Yulin, secretary of the Dandong committee of the Communist Party of China, said the area will help boost foreign direct investment, turning the zone into a hot investment destination. In early June, China and the DPRK agreed to build three special economic zones to enhance China-DPRK economic and trade cooperation and promote economic relations with the rest of the world. A free-trade area of 20,000 sq m will be established on Hwanggumpyong Island, an undeveloped DPRK island adjacent to China's border city of Dandong, Liaoning province, where a tax-free zone of 10 sq km will be set up. [China NK] [SEZ]
• Unraveling mysteries behind Nixon's 1972 China visit
  By Li Xing (China Daily) Updated: 2011-06-24 08:34 Comments(0) PrintMail Large Medium Small Zhang Yesui, China's ambassador to the US, talks with Henry Kissinger, former US secretary of state, before an Asia Society awards ceremony in Washington on June 15. Kissinger was given a lifetime achievement award by the non-profit organization. [Larry Lee / China Daily] Kissinger's new book offers insights on how the ice was broken in Sino-US relations, reports Li Xing in Washington. Henry Kissinger is scheduled to arrive in Beijing on Friday for a series of public and private meetings as a guest of the Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs. He will discuss with his hosts his latest book, On China, which has been touted in the Chinese media and much coveted among the Chinese. [China card] [Kissinger]
• Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) versus Bilderberg: Where are Real Decisions Being Made?
  by Eric Walberg Global Research, June 22, 2011 As the Western elite gathered in picturesque St Moritz to grapple with pressing world crises, the outsiders met in the bleak steppes of Central Asia. Last week’s 10th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the Kazakh capital Astana highlighted how the major rivals to empire, led by Russia and China -- themselves rivals, are trying to fashion an alternative to US hegemony. The SCO is the only major international organisation that has neither the US nor any close US ally among its members, and its influence is growing across Eurasia. Leaders of member states Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan were joined by leaders from observers Iran, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan and Mongolia. Belarus and Sri Lanka have been admitted as dialogue partners, and prior to his arrival in Astana to attend the summit, Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Ukraine. With a Chinese rhetorical flourish, the Astana Declaration stressed the goal of combatting the "three forces" of "terrorism, extremism, and separatism". The summit called for a "neutral" Afghanistan (read: no permanent US bases), supported by Afghan President Hamid Karzai, even as the US is actively discussing a post-2014 strategic partnership agreement with him. The prospect of permanent US military bases in Afghanistan lies at the core of current US-Pakistan tensions. India has indicated its aversion to "new cold war" tensions appearing in the region. Russia and China fear that the US plan is to establish permanent bases in Afghanistan and to deploy components of its missile defence system. The SCO meeting supported Russian criticisms of the planned NATO missile defence shield underway in Europe . Plans by "a country or small group of countries unilaterally and without restriction to deploy an anti-missile system could undermine strategic stability and international security". The summit also called for Afghanistan’s neighbours to play the leading role in improving security and helping to rebuild Afghanistan, rejecting a purely military solution. "It is possible that the SCO will assume responsibility for many issues in Afghanistan after the withdrawal of coalition forces in 2014," said Kazakh President Nurusultan Nazarbayev, echoing Russian President Dmitri Medvedev’s call "for more intensive and deeper cooperation between the SCO and Afghanistan". [SCO]
• China Warned N.Korea Against Attacking the South, Says Lee
  China clearly warned North Korea that South Korea would retaliate if the North carries out another provocation, President Lee Myung-bak said Thursday. At a lunch meeting with members of the parliamentary Defense Committee, Lee said the Chinese government informed him that the comments were "delivered to North Korea," according lawmakers who were there. "President Lee said North Korea would not be able to carry out further acts of provocation and added that China officially notified our government that it would no longer help the North if it did that," one committee member said. [Spin]
• U.S. Lawmaker Seeks Ban for Chinese Human Rights Offenders
  A U.S. congressman is seeking legislation that would ban senior Chinese officials and their families from entering the U.S. if they have been involved in repatriating North Korean defectors to the North. Rep. Chris Smith, the chairman of the human rights subcommittee of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, introduced a "China Democracy Promotion Act " early this month. [China confrontation] [Manipulation]
• Sellers beware
  Global Times | June 23, 2011 22:54 By Wang Fanfan E-mail Print Comments(0) Foreign buyers doing business in Yiwu. Photo: CFP To an unscrupulous overseas buyer at Yiwu’s massive small commodities market in Zhejiang Province, a Chinese merchant, desperate for an overseas sale, must look like an easy mark. Police say an increasing number of international scam artists and fraudsters are working the world famous market where seasonal knickknacks, toys, wallets or brooms can be purchased by the container load. In 2009, swindlers conned wholesale merchants out of 400 million yuan ($61.8 million), according to investigators. Typically, the foreign buyer begins with a couple of successful transactions and then seeks the good faith of the merchant on a larger order leaving only a small deposit. Once the freight is on board, the buyer and the goods are gone for good; leaving merchants to swallow the loss and out of the reach of Chinese law.
• The South China Sea: Trying to Make Sense of Non-Sense
  By Mark Valencia June 21, 2011 I. Introduction Mark Valencia, Senior Research Associate at the National Bureau of Asian Research and Nautilus Institute Associate, writes "These disputes and incidents are certainly not new—but why are they occurring now, and why is China sending very mixed signals? This was supposed to be a period of negotiations to transform the [Declaration on Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea] into an official enforceable code. Needless to say, this effort may now be moribund. Despite China’s rhetoric, ASEAN nations are genuinely alarmed and are looking to the U.S. for succor and support." [Territorial disputes] [Inversion]
• China Lays Claim to 'Arirang'
  China has outraged patriotic Koreans by registering the folk song "Arirang," widely considered Korea's unofficial national anthem, as part of its own cultural heritage. Beijing says it merely registered the song as part of the culture of ethnic Koreans in China, but some experts believe the move is an extension of the Chinese Academy for Social Sciences' "Northeast Project," which critics say sought to co-opt the culture of the early Korean kingdoms. The move is seen as a precursor to registering those cultural assets on the UNESCO World Heritage list. [China confrontation] [media]
• China to further expand red tourism
  People's Daily Online | June 23, 2011 09:31 2011 is the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China, and Red Tourism is experiencing an unprecedented boom period. Many people want to "feel" China's history and raise their level of knowledge by visiting revolutionary sites. Red Tourism is a subset of tourism in China in which Chinese people visit revolutionary sites with historical significance. A national Red Tourism work meeting was held in Beijing on June 15, where the successful experiences of flourishing Red Tourism sites were summed up and the work for Red Tourism development in the next five years was also fully deployed. Liu Yunshan, member of the Political Bureau of CPC Central Committee, Secretary of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee and Minister of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting. [Brand]
• Is China Overreacting to Passenger-Plane Incident?
  Kim Jin-myung China called on the Korean government on Tuesday to ensure the safety of civilian aircraft flying over its airspace after Korean Marines mistakenly fired on a passenger plane coming in to land in Seoul after a flight from China. "[We] hope that the South Korean side takes effective steps to prevent such an incident from happening again and ensure the safety of civilian aircraft and their passengers flying over South Korean airspace," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters. "We have taken note of the relevant report and expressed our concern to the South Korean side through diplomatic channels." China's stance, as conveyed through diplomatic channels, appears to be more than just an expression of concern. Over the last several days, Chinese media, led by the state-run Global Times, have been reporting that Korea's image has been "tarnished" by the incident. [Buildup] [China confrontation] [Quality] [China SK]
• High-Speed Rail Poised to Transform China
  By KEITH BRADSHER Published: June 22, 2011 CHANGSHA, CHINA — Even as China prepares to open bullet train service between Beijing and Shanghai by July 1, its steadily expanding high-speed rail network is being pilloried on a scale rare among Chinese citizens and the news media. The bullet train bonanza is only likely to increase with the opening of the 1,320-kilometer Beijing-to-Shanghai line, which will create a business corridor between China’s two most dynamic cities. Complaints include the system’s high costs and fares, the quality of construction and an allegation of self-dealing by a rail minister who was fired this year on grounds of corruption. But often overlooked amid all the controversy are the very real economic benefits that the world’s most advanced fast-rail system is bringing to China, and the competitive challenges it poses for the United States and Europe. [China rising] [Decline] [Railways]
• Pakistan courts China as relations with U.S. grow strained
  JASON LEE/AFP/GETTY IMAGES - Pakistan's Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani (R) and China's Premier Wen Jiabao inspect honour guards during a welcome ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on May 18, 2011. Text Size PrintE-mailReprintsBy Griff Witte, Published: June 22ABBOTTABAD, Pakistan — In this city where U.S. Navy SEALs touched down long enough last month to kill Osama bin Laden and to ignite a national furor, residents are courting another foreign invasion. They want China, the emerging superpower just 400 miles to the north along the Karakoram Highway, to invest in this economically depressed region and bring roads, energy, trade and jobs. .“China is our path to prosperity,” said Haidar Zaman, the city’s former mayor. [China rising] [Decline]
• China warns U.S. in island dispute
  STAFF/REUTERS - Protesters hold Vietnamese national flags and banners as they march during an anti-China demonstration on a street in Hanoi June 19, 2011. By Keith B. Richburg and William Wan, Updated: Thursday, June 23, 4:54 AM BEIJING — China warned the United States on Wednesday not to let Southeast Asian countries drag it into ongoing territorial disputes in the South China Sea, saying Washington should instead counsel its allies to show restraint. “I believe the individual countries are playing with fire,” Cui Tiankai, China’s vice foreign minister, told a small gathering of correspondents Wednesday. “I hope the fire doesn’t reach the United States.” [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• Trades reveal China shift from dollar
  By Jamil Anderlini in Beijing and Tracy Alloway in London Published: June 20 2011 20:07 | Last updated: June 20 2011 20:07 China began diversifying away from the US dollar in earnest in the first four months of this year, most likely by buying far more European government debt than US dollar assets, according to estimates from Standard Chartered Bank. China’s foreign exchange reserves expanded by around $200bn in the first four months of the year, with three-quarters of the new inflow invested abroad in non-US dollar assets, the bank estimated. “It certainly appears that China’s finally .. [reserve]
• Libyan rebel leader visits Beijing
  Global Times | June 21, 2011 05:58 By Zhu Shanshan E-mail Print Comments(0) A top Libyan rebel leader will visit Beijing today as the National Transitional Council (NTC) seeks to strike up relations with key global players. The talks with Chinese officials are likely to revolve around China's role as a mediator to end the crisis and Beijing's concerns over its economic interests in the war-torn country. In a short statement, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said that the "chairman of the executive board of Libya's National Transitional Council, Mahmoud Jibril, will be in China on Tuesday and Wednesday." No further details of the trip or agenda were announced. The trip follows China's first confirmed contact with the Libyan rebels last month when a Chinese diplomat met in Qatar with Mustafa Abdel Jalil, the rebel's de facto political leader. Earlier this month, Muammar Gaddafi's Foreign Minister Abdul-Ati al-Obeidi visited Beijing for a three-day trip.
• Public want tough line in S. China Sea
  Global Times | June 20, 2011 05:10 By Huang Jingjing Calls for tougher measures to resolve the South China Sea sovereignty row have intensified as anti-China sentiment continues to mount in Southeast Asia. In an online survey at huanqiu.com, nearly 18 percent of more than 23,000 participants claimed they supported China showing restraint over the issue while about 80 percent disagreed. Only 13.6 percent of respondents said negotiations remained the most reasonable approach to resolve the disputes while around 82.9 percent suggested military actions. [Territorial disputes] [Public opinion] [Democracy]
• China’s brewing political storm
  June 17th, 2011 Author: Elizabeth C. Economy, CFR It is election time in China. With more than two million seats up for grabs in 2,000 counties and 30,000 townships, it could be a raucous campaign season. Of course, 99.99 per cent of the seats will be won by candidates supported by the Communist Party. However, more than thirty Chinese citizens have announced their intent on microblogs to run for local district legislatures as independent candidates, standing outside the umbrella of the Communist Party. While most are activists of one form or another, at least one businessman is also running (perhaps not surprisingly he works for an internet company). [Democracy]
• China 'walking a fine line' in dealing with N. Korea: expert
  WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- North Korea's growing dependence on China, reflected by the launch of new joint economic zones along their border, drives discord among parties seeking to curb North Korea's nuclear weapons drive, experts here said Friday. Jonathan Pollack, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution, pointed out that China is taking advantage of the flexible implementation of the U.N. Security Council resolution adopted in 2009 to punish Pyongyang for its second nuclear test. "It's important to note that the way the Security Council resolution following the nuclear test in 2009 was drafted, it has a sufficiently elastic quality that the Chinese can and do argue that what they are doing is not in defiance of the sanctions, since the sanctions do not place any restrictions on normal economic collaboration between states or to humanitarian assistance," he said at a forum to mark the publication his new book, "No Exit: North Korea, Nuclear Weapons and International Security." He said that the Chinese are walking a fine line, however.
• Getting Beyond the Friend-or-Foe Fallacy
  By Ely Ratner, RAND Corporation and Steven Weber, University of California, Berkeley June 15, 2011 | New America Foundation Photo/Flickr: rebuildingdemocracy “You can't manage what you can't measure” is a widely accepted truism among business and government organizations. It is not widely accepted among psychologists and sociologists, most of whom would recoil at the idea that the condition of a relationship should be ‘marked to market’ every day, or that any meaningful relationship can be boiled down to a single index that quantifies where it is at any moment and whether it is “better’’ or “worse” than a week or a month ago. The question for this paper is this: Which approach makes sense for better policy making in Sino-American relations?
• Beijing OKs role of Taiwan in spat
  Global Times | June 17, 2011 06:04 Safeguarding sovereignty over the South China Sea is a shared obligation for both the Chinese mainland and Taiwan, an official said in Beijing, a statement which may herald an inclination to cooperate with Taiwan on the issue. "It is a shared obligation for people on both sides of the Taiwan Straits to safeguard sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and its adjacent waters," Yang Yi, a spokesperson with the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, told a press conference Tuesday. Taiwan's army said Tuesday that it would send a fleet of ships to the South China Sea and would station tanks on Taiping, the biggest of the Nansha Islands, at the end of June, the Taipei-based United Evening News reported. [Territorial disputes] [Straits]
• Taiwan rules out official use of simplified Chinese
  2011/06/16 17:52:01 Taipei, June 16 (CNA) Premier Wu Deng-yih seconded the opinion of President Ma Ying-jeou Thursday that traditional or long-form Chinese characters will be used in Taiwan instead of simplified Chinese characters. Ma recently gave a directive that the Chinese-language version of government documents and websites should be released only in traditional Chinese characters that are used in Taiwan.
• N. Korea, China Allegedly Agreed to Oilfield Development
  North Korea and China have reportedly agreed to a joint oilfield development in the West Sea in waters off the North's southwestern city of Nampo. At a policy forum on Monday, an adviser to the Korea International Trade Association alleged that the deal to develop the suspected oil reserves in Seohan Bay was likely concluded last year, just one of Pyeongyang's resource-based campaigns to attract foreign capital from neighboring China. Also, referring to the North giving China rights to its mineral resources, the businessman close to the North raised concerns over North Korea's increasing economic dependence on China. Meanwhile, the South Korean government says nothing has confirmed rumors of the deal, adding that some experts have questioned its economic feasibility. MAY 30, 2011 Reporter : yschoi@arirang.co.kr [China NK] [FDI] [Oil]
• Natural resources (Korea, North), Natural resources
  Oil In 1998, North Korea's own Ministry of Oil Industry (then called the Oil Bureau) managed to independently discover an exploitable deposit in the Yellow Sea (West Sea). The Sook Cheong field began producing oil in 2001 and now produces an estimated 300,000 tonnes per year. Further exploration of areas in the West (Yellow) and East Seas (Sea of Japan), with both foreign exploration companies and North Korea's Ministry of Oil Industry are ongoing. Oil In September 2001, the Singapore-based Sovereign Ventures became one of the first foreign companies to be given the right to explore for oil and natural gas in North Korea. In late 2002, the company estimated North Korea's recoverable oil reserves to be between 50 and 100 million barrels of oil. However, initial exploration results are still to be confirmed. Exploration has taken place in Hoeryong and Onsong in North Hamgyong province, while Russian assistance has been used to explore (so far unsuccessfully) in the Anju basin.North Korea's attempts to develop an indigenous oil supply have suffered from the country's political isolation. Malaysia's state-owned Petronas had reportedly considered an exploration contract with the government in 2004 in offshore fields, but withdrew under Chinese pressure. Similarly, a deal struck with South Korea's Korean National Oil Corporation (KNOC) in April 2004 to explore areas of West Korea Bay at the height of inter-Korean rapprochement was abandoned when the agreement was publicised by a South Korean newspaper. Finally, in September 2004 UK company Aminex was reported to have secured an exploration deal with North Korea, which would have involved a joint venture with the government and 20-year sole production rights in the country for the company. However, no information of successful exploration or production has occurred. In 2010 Aminex announced that it had sold a 50 per cent stake in Korex Ltd, a subsidiary holding its interests in the Korean peninsula, to Chosun Energy. Korek Ltd subsequently signed a new 10-year Petroleum Co-operation Agreement [China NK] [FDI] [Oil]
• China capturing North’s business
  South Koreans on border say after sanctions, the good times went away June 08, 2011 BEIJING - South Koreans doing business with North Korea, or across its border with China, are seeing opportunities dry up as Pyongyang gives all the good breaks to Chinese companies. Yesterday, workers were seen getting ready for a ground-breaking ceremony at Hwanggumpyong, a joint industrial complex run by North Korea and China on an island in the Yalu River. North Korea’s official news agency said the complex would further deepen economic ties between the two countries. The exact reverse is happening to South Korean businesspeople. “South Korean firms and investors have pretty much let their businesses at the China-North Korea border go since last May,” said Choi, the owner of a restaurant in Dandong. Choi, 54, has been running his restaurant for a decade and, to him, the good times are over. “When business was active between South and North Korea, there were about 1,000 South Korean businessmen working in Dandong, all doing work related to North Korea,” said Choi. “But now most of them have left.” “Most of the manufacturing jobs done inside North Korea have been taken by Chinese investors and the South Koreans left here in Dandong are mostly contractors for Chinese firms,” Choi said. After the attack on the warship Cheonan in March 2010, business ties between South and North Korea have run dry due to sanctions ordered by Seoul the following May. “I invested millions of dollars into developing the underground natural resources in North Korea before last May,” said Park, 56, who was working from Hunchun in northeast China. “Now that the South Korean government has banned all North Korean goods from entering the South, I’m about to lose all my money.” [Sanctions] [SK NK policy] [China NK]
• China Navy Reaches Far, Unsettling the Region
  By EDWARD WONG Published: June 14, 2011 QINGDAO, China — The photographs of Chinese warships speeding between Japanese islands in the Pacific for drills circulated quickly last week, raising what Japan’s defense minister called “serious concern.” Vietnam, with little forewarning, then began live-fire naval exercises off its coast — a show of bravado in the face of rising tensions with China over rival claims to the oil- and gas-rich South China Sea. Protests against Chinese actions in the sea took place on the last two Sundays in both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, with at least the tacit approval of the government. On Monday, the Vietnamese prime minister signed a decree giving details on a possible military draft. The separate events reflect a new and potentially volatile pattern. As the Chinese government and the fast-modernizing naval branch of the People’s Liberation Army extend the nation’s maritime reach, uneasy neighbors are tracking Chinese vessels, including military and surveillance boats, fisheries law enforcement ships and fishing skiffs, and pushing back hard over anything deemed aggressive. [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes]
• Earthquake's aftershocks shake Tibetan way of life in Yushu prefecture
  Reconstruction work has added to unease over Beijing's policies and fuelled tensions between Tibetans and Chinese settlers Brice Pedroletti Guardian Weekly, Tuesday 24 May 2011 13.59 BST Tibetan monks attend a mass prayer for earthquake victims in Gyegu town of Yushu county, Qinghai. Photograph: Kevin Zhao/Reuters A year ago an earthquake devastated the Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Yushu, in Qinghai province, south-west China, claiming 3,000 lives. Now, it is in the throes of reconstruction. The tremor struck an area not previously affected by Chinese influence, putting an end to such splendid isolation. The residents of the main town, Gyegu (population 80,000, elevation 3,700 metres), have been moved out, one neighbourhood at a time, and the town will be rebuilt as a tourist centre, connected to the rest of China by new infrastructure. [Media]
• SCO hails anti-terror successes
  Global Times | June 16, 2011 04:18 By Liu Linlin The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) marked 10 years since its inception Wednesday during a summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, where the group outlined its future cooperation in anti-terrorism and trade, and its stance on international issues. Analysts noted that although the bloc’s influence is limited, it has gained weight on the global stage in the past decade, and the Western allies, such as NATO, are mulling more cooperation with the group. In a declaration released after the talks, China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan, the six members of the group, pledged to continue fighting against the “three evil forces” of terrorism, extremism and separatism, as well as drugs and weapons trafficking, other transnational crimes and illegal immigration, the Xinhua News Agency reported. [SCO] [Separatism]
• How China could yet fail like Japan
  By Martin Wolf Published: June 14 2011 22:12 | Last updated: June 14 2011 22:12 Until 1990, Japan was the most successful large economy in the world. Almost nobody predicted what would happen to it in the succeeding decades. Today, people are yet more in awe of the achievements of China. Is it conceivable that this colossus could learn that spectacular success is a precursor of surprising failure? The answer is: yes. .
• Keep Sea issue simple, says Beijing
  Global Times | June 15, 2011 05:07 By Li Qian China has warned against attempts to internationalize and complicate the South China Sea issue but said it will not resort to the use of force in defusing tensions. “The recent situation in the South China Sea was due to unilateral actions taken by some countries, which damaged China’s sovereignty and marine interests. These countries made groundless and irresponsible remarks in an attempt to expand and complicate the South China Sea issue. That is the cause of the problem,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei said Tuesday. “China is committed to a peaceful resolution of the South China Sea issue through bilateral dialogues and consultations with related parties. We will not resort to the use of force or the threat of force,” he said. “China is safeguarding its own legitimate rights, not infringing upon others,” Hong said. Beijing’s statement comes a day after Vietnam conducted live-fire artillery training in the South China Sea and the country’s Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung signed an order on eligibility for military conscription. [Territorial disputes]
• Kim Jong Il Receives CPC Delegation
  Pyongyang, June 13 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the DPRK, Monday received the delegation of the Communist Party of China headed by Li Yuanchao, member of the Political Bureau and the Secretariat of the C.C., the CPC who is head of its Organization Department, on a visit to the DPRK.
• Rail prices shake up airlines
  Global Times | June 14, 2011 06:54 By Zhu Shanshan The Beijing-Shanghai high-speed railway moved one step closer to its debut after China’s Ministry of Railways (MOR) announced trial ticket prices Monday, which are deemed competitive by analysts compared with airline costs. Hu Dongya, vice minister of the MOR, told reporters that there will be 63 pairs of trains running at 300 kilometers per hour (kph) on the high-speed railway every day, complemented by 27 pairs of trains running at 250 kph. The shortest time for the 300-kph trains to complete the 1,318-kilometer journey is 4 hours and 48 minutes, almost half the shortest time needed by the 250-kph trains, which have more stopovers. The railway is set to open at the end of this month. Currently, the fastest train linking Beijing and Shanghai takes almost 10 hours. The ticket price for second-class seats on the 300-kph trains is set at 555 yuan ($85.61), which is about 40 or 50 percent of the cost of an air ticket. The price for business class seats on the train is 1,750 yuan. [Railways]
• Kim Yong Nam Meets CPC Delegation
  Pyongyang, June 12 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, member of the Presidium of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the Workers' Party of Korea and president of the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, Sunday met and had a friendly talk with the delegation of the Communist Party of China headed by Li Yuanchao, member of the Political Bureau and the Secretariat of the C.C., the CPC who is head of its Organization Department, who paid a courtesy call on him at the Mansudae Assembly Hall.
• Lawmaker calls for marines to be stationed on South China Sea islet
  2011/06/12 20:38:49 Taipei, June 12 (CNA) A ruling party legislator has called on the government to redeploy marines on Taiping Island in the South China Sea, where the Taiwan coast guard is now stationed, as claims by neighboring countries have grown louder recently. Lin Yu-fang of the Kuomintang (KMT) said a stronger military presence on the Republic of China territory will strengthen the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' stance once negotiations [Territorial disputes]
• N. Korea’s New Economic Zone Signals Deepening Ties With China
  June 06, 2011, 10:46 PM EDT By Bomi Lim June 7 (Bloomberg) -- North Korea said it will set up a new economic zone near its border with China, signaling the nation’s deepening dependence on its economic benefactor after leader Kim Jong Il’s three visits there in the past year. The Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone will be set up to “boost friendship with China and expand and develop external economic relations,” North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency said late yesterday, citing a parliamentary decree. The report didn’t elaborate on the development plans. The announcement is the clearest sign yet that Kim may have won China’s pledge for further economic cooperation during his last trip in May, according to analysts including Cho Bong Hyun of the Seoul-based IBK Economic Research Institute. China last year accounted for 83 percent of North Korea’s $4.2 billion of trade as global sanctions left the regime increasingly isolated. [SEZ] [Sanctions]
• U.S. Urges ‘Extreme Caution’ as North Korea Opens Economic Zone
  June 10, 2011, 1:08 PM EDT By Nicole Gaouette and Bomi Lim June 10 (Bloomberg) -- The U.S. urged other nations to use “extreme caution and vigilance” in doing business with North Korea as China announced it will develop joint economic zones with the country. “We urge transparency, extreme caution and vigilance in any business dealings with North Korea,” said Mark Toner, a spokesman for the State Department, in response to the reports. North Korea announced June 6 that it would create the Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone to “boost friendship with China and expand and develop external economic relations,” North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency said. The Chinese announcement followed yesterday. [Sanctions] [SEZ]
• What Is Hwanggumpyong Island?
  There are 468 islands on the Apnok (or Yalu) and the Duman (or Tumen) rivers. North Korea owns 280 of them, China 187 and Russia one. Under a 1962 treaty between North Korea and China, the North got to possess 127 out of the 205 islands on the Apnok, while China took 78. They claimed islands according to which ethnic group were living on each island at the time of the treaty. Among the North Korean islands on the Apnok are Wihwa (famous as the place where Koryo Kingdom army general Yi Seong-gye, on his way to conquer the eastern part of China, turned back to launch a coup and found the Chosun Dynasty), Hwanggumpyong and Bidan. Wihwa Island sits in the middle of the Apnok River, but Hwanggumpyong and Bidan can look like part of the banks of Dandong, China. In 1962, the Apnok flowed between Dandong and Hwanggumpyong, but sediment collected over the next 50 years and water narrowed to a few feet. There are claims that China tried to incorporate Hwanggumpyong by filling up the river bed with sand. [SEZ] [Media]
• South China Sea tensions flare again as Vietnam announces naval drill next week
  Source: Global Times [12:16 June 11 2011] Comments A row over sovereignty in the South China Sea has flared up again with Vietnam's decision to hold a live-fire naval drill next week. But analysts said Vietnam is testing China's resolve over the Nansha Islands issue. The spat indicates the resource-rich waters' strategic importance to China and the wariness of its regional counterparts over Beijing's rising clout. [Territorial disputes]
• China to develop N Korea trade zones
  By Jamil Anderlini in Beijing and Christian Oliver in Seoul Published: June 9 2011 19:41 | Last updated: June 9 2011 23:43 China has broken ground on two economic development zones in North Korea, in a tentative sign that the authoritarian state is warming to Chinese-style economic reforms. China’s commerce ministry said on Thursday the countries would develop two “government-led, enterprise-based and market-oriented” economic zones close to the Chinese border. There have been numerous attempts by Chinese entrepreneurs, provincial officials and even the UN to promote cross-border economic co-operation, with limited results. Thursday’s announcement marked the first time the two allies had jointly launched such an initiative. After ceremonies attended by Chen Deming, China’s commerce minister, and Chang Sung-taek, administrative director of the Korean Workers’ party, the two sides said the zones would provide “a platform to promote economic and trade co-operation with the rest of the world”. Mr Chang is also the brother-in-law of North Korean dictator Kim Jong-il. Mr Kim has visited China three times in the past year, fuelling speculation the two countries are discussing closer economic ties. China already provides extensive aid to prop up its communist neighbour. One economic zone will be located in the North Korean border city of Rajin-Sonbong (Rason). The other will be built on the undeveloped islands of Hwanggumpyong and Wihwa. Projects include the planned rebuilding of a road from China to Rason, a new cement factory, electricity infrastructure and modernisation of Rason’s port. The US, long concerned that Chinese aid might help North Korea advance its nuclear programme, urged all UN members states to implement fully sanctions against North Korea’s weapons development. “We urge transparency, extreme caution and vigilance in any business dealings with North Korea,” the state department said, adding that Washington wanted Pyongyang to “take real steps” to reform its economy. At the outset of its “reform and opening” process in the early 1980s, China established its flagship Shenzhen special economic zone on the border with Hong Kong, then a British-run capitalist enclave. The Rason Economic and Trade Zone will include an area that North Korea designated as an investment zone in the 1990s, but which has not managed to attract any serious investment. South Korea already runs a small investment zone in the border enclave of Kaesong. South Korean ­officials admit Kaesong, while of little economic importance to Seoul, is intended to sow the seeds of free market reform in the North. However, there is scant evidence that most North Koreans know anything about the South Korean-run factories in their country. Despite interest from Chinese entrepreneurs and enterprises, Beijing has also been reluctant to promote extensive economic ties with its erratic neighbour. Additional reporting by Anna Fifield in Washington [SEZ] [[China NK] [Media]
• China welcomes Libyan NTC envoys
  Source: Global Times [01:52 June 10 2011] Comments China on Thursday said it would welcome a visit by envoys of the Libyan National Transitional Council (NTC), as Western and Arab states met on Thursday in Abu Dhabi to discuss the "endgame" for Muammar Gaddafi. "We are ready to receive a visit from NTC representatives in the near future," Chen Xiaodong, director general of the West Asian and North African Affairs Department of the Chinese foreign ministry, said without specifying a time frame for the visit. "Military action will not solve any problems, but only complicate them. China would like to stay in touch with all related parties in Libya, including the NTC."
• Ceremonies for Projects for Zones to Be Jointly Developed by DPRK-China Held
  Pyongyang, June 9 (KCNA) -- Ground-breaking ceremonies for the Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone and the Rason Economic and Trade Zone to be jointly developed and operated by the DPRK and China took place on June 8 and 9. [SEZ]
• 2nd Meeting of DPRK-China Joint Guidance Committee for Economic Zones Held
  Pyongyang, June 9 (KCNA) -- The second meeting of the DPRK-China Joint Guidance Committee for jointly developing and operating the Rason Economic and Trade Zone and the Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone took place in Liaoning and Jilin Provinces of China on Wednesday.
• Seoul Believes Kim Jong-il Failed to Meet Jiang Zemin
  Seoul has concluded that a planned meeting last month between North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and former Chinese president Jiang Zemin did indeed fail to materialize. Seoul has checked through various channels to find out whether the two met during Kim's visit to Jiang's hometown of Yangzhou but has found no evidence that they did.
• N.Korea, China Break Ground on Joint Development Project
  Workers wait for the ground-breaking ceremony to start at a construction site in Hwanggumpyong Island on Wednesday. /Yonhap North Korea formally started construction on Wednesday of an industrial park on Hwanggumpyong Island in the lower reaches of the Duman (or Tumen) River, which it hopes will attract massive Chinese investment. The ground-breaking ceremony came later than planned, but despite reports that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il failed to secure Chinese central government funding for the project during a recent visit to Beijing, China was represented at the event by several senior officials. Kim met Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao in Beijing during the trip late last month. The ground-breaking ceremony for another Sino-North Korean project in the Rajin-Sonbong special economic zone, which includes building roads connecting it to Hunchun in Yanbian, China, will be held on Thursday. [China NK] [SEZ] [FDI]
• [Editorial] N.Korea, China and Seoul
  » The groundbreaking ceremony for the North Korea-China joint development of Hwanggumpyong (Yonhap News) North Korea and China held a groundbreaking ceremony yesterday for joint development of Hwanggumpyong, an island located below Wihwa Island in the Yalu (Amnok) River. The event was attended by a host of senior officials from both countries, including Jang Song-thaek, National Defense Commission vice chairman and North Korean political heavyweight, and Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming. This indicates that economic cooperation between North Korea and China, which has primarily been carried out by Chinese local governments and regional businesses, is evolving into a new dimension spearheaded by the central government. It is being reported that Chang and Chen will also be attending events in the near future for development projects in China’s Changchun-Jilin-Tumen region and North Korea’s Rason Special District. The ceremony yesterday was originally scheduled for the end of May, and its delay sparked much speculation. A number of analysts said the delay was the result of differences of opinion or friction between North Korea and China, and observers even downplayed the meaning of Kim Jong-il’s China visit in accordance with this perspective. Of course, we will not know until later whether their economic cooperation effort will be successful. At the current stage, it is crucial that we determine all the facts about this endeavor.
• Weekly cross-strait flights to increase to at least 550: officials
  2011/06/08 20:44:57 Taipei, June 8 (CNA) The number of direct flights between Taiwan and China will be increased from 370 to at least 550 per week, officials of two cross-strait organizations said Wednesday. [Straits]
• Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone to Be Set Up
  Pyongyang, June 7 (KCNA) -- The Japanese Tokyo Shimbun Tuesday released the following report titled "Close to setting up economic zone on DPRK-China border:" The Presidium of the Supreme People's Assembly of the DPRK Monday promulgated a decree on setting up the Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands Economic Zone in the border with China. It was reported that the sovereignty of the DPRK would be exercised in the zone and the development of the zone would start from the Hwanggumphyong district. Both Hwanggumphyong and Wihwa Islands are within the territory of the DPRK along the River Amnok flowing along the DPRK-China border. It was basically agreed to develop Hwanggumphyong by the joint efforts of the DPRK and China. A ground-breaking ceremony is expected to take place within one or two days. The project for building the DPRK-China Amnokgang Bridge which started at the end of last year is making brisk headway on the river. It seems that a discussion on the above-said zone was held during the China visit by General Secretary Kim Jong Il in May and it is likely to put greater impetus to economic cooperation between the DPRK and China and development of the border area with the decision as an occasion. The SPA Presidium of the DPRK, explaining the reason for setting up the economic zone, said it was to boost the traditional DPRK-China friendship and expand and develop external economic relations. South Korean CBS released similar news on the same day. [SEZ] [China NK]
• Taiwanese fishermen demand apology from AIT
  2011/06/07 16:10:22 Taipei, June 7 (CNA) A Taiwanese fishermen's group protested outside the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) Tuesday, accusing the United States of killing a Taiwanese skipper and then deliberately destroying the
• Cracks Open in N.Korea-China Ties
  Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie is seen at the 10th International Institute for Strategic Studies Asia Security Summit in Singapore on Sunday. /AP-Newsis Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie's frank comments about North Korea on Sunday were "extremely rare" according to a South Korean intelligence official. "We are trying to persuade them not to take risks," Liang said in a speech at the 10th International Institute for Strategic Studies Asia Security Summit, also known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, in Singapore. [Media]
• When China becomes number one
  By Gideon Rachman Published: June 6 2011 21:12 | Last updated: June 6 2011 21:12 How will it feel when China becomes the world’s largest economy? We may find out quite soon. A few weeks ago, the International Monetary Fund issued a report that suggested China would be number one within five years. The projection that the Chinese economy will be larger than that of the US by 2016 included adjustments for the domestic purchasing power of the two countries’ currencies. Some regard this interpretation of IMF data as a dubious move that artificially boosts the size of the Chinese economy. But even using real exchange rates does not defer the day when America is knocked off its perch by very much. A projection by The Economist, made just before Christmas, foresaw China becoming number one in 2019. [China rising] [Decline]
• China 'Doing More Than It Seems to Contain N.Korea'
  China has done much more to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear program and stop its military brinkmanship than the world gives it credit for, Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie claimed Sunday. "The work we have done with North Korea is much more than what the outside world may expect. We are trying to persuade them not to take risks," Liang said in a speech on the last day of the 10th International Institute for Strategic Studies Asia Security Summit, the so-called Shangri-La Dialogue, in Singapore, according to AP (sic). The situation on the Korean Peninsula "is moving toward relaxation, but the foundation remains fragile. We need to cool things down," he added. [Media]
• Q&A session
  Audio
• China warns N.Korea not to take any risks
  China’s Defense Minister Liang Guanglie said Sunday China is calling on North Korea not to take any risks, the AP reported. “The work we have done with North Korea is much more than what the outside world may expect,” said Liang, also a state councilor. Liang gave the remarks at the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, or Asian Security Conference, organized by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies in Singapore. “We are trying to persuade them not to take risks.” It is highly unusual for a high Chinese official to publicly demand restraint from North Korea. Liang added that China is working privately to engage in dialogue with North Korean officials in regards to the revival of the six-party talks. [Media]
• Kim Jong Il’s Visit to China: Implications for East Asia and the United States
  By Haksoon Paik Chairman Kim Jong Il traveled to China from May 20-27, 2011, his third visit in a year. He held talks with President Hu Jintao on political and security cooperation and with Premier Wen Jiabao on economic cooperation. Kim’s health seems to have recovered as demonstrated by the rigorous and tight schedule he kept, spending nights on the train en route to the next destination.
• US warns Beijing over South China Sea
  By Kathrin Hille and Demetri Sevastopulo in Singapore Published: June 4 2011 09:39 | Last updated: June 4 2011 09:39 Robert Gates, US defence secretary, on Saturday warned that there were “increasing concerns” about recent Chinese provocations in the South China Sea and other disputed waters in Asia. Vietnam and the Philippines have in recent weeks accused China of engaging in aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea, escalating a long-running dispute over the waters. . [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes] [Decline]
• Asia hails Li Na’s French Open win, China urges others to follow her example
  By Associated Press, Updated: Sunday, June 5, 6:03 PM BEIJING — Li Na’s landmark French Open victory sparked celebrations and recognition throughout Asia on Sunday, while China’s state media told its athletes to learn from her as they prepare for the London Olympics. “The First Asian! Li Na is Crowned the Empress of French Tennis,” declared Taiwan’s China Times newspaper in a headline Sunday. [Straits]
• Defense minister says China’s military is 20 years behind the US, no threat to peace in Asia
  By Associated Press, Updated: Sunday, June 5, 5:16 PM SINGAPORE — The strength of China’s armed forces is 20 years behind the U.S. and although the military is developing new capabilities, it is not a threat to peace in Asia, the Chinese defense minister said Sunday. China’s military won’t be used aggressively against its neighbors, General Liang Guanglie said at an Asian security conference in Singapore. .“I know many people tend to believe that with the growth of China’s economy, China will become a military threat,” Liang said. “China will never seek hegemony or military expansion.” “This is a solemn pledge made by the Chinese government to the international community,” he said. [China rising][Military balance] [Media]
• China: Mao and the next generation
  By Kathrin Hille and Jamil Anderlini Published: June 2 2011 20:32 | Last updated: June 2 2011 20:32 ‘Pride of generation’: 1966 lithograph of Mao Zedong. The late chairman’s face has been on China’s banknotes ever since but his memory is being invoked anew by conservatives such as Bo Xilai, a main contender for the politburo standing committee At the heart of the Chinese Communist empire, in an imposing mausoleum in the centre of Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, the body of Mao Zedong still lies in state in a glass sarcophagus 35 years after his death. Hundreds of thousands of visitors arrive annually to gaze at the waxen face of the man hailed for throwing off the yoke of foreign oppression to found modern China, and whose recurrent political campaigns and purges were responsible for the deaths of tens of millions of his compatriots. .
• China Unlikely to Challenge U.S. Military Supremacy, Says Lee Kuan Yew
  Lee Kuan Yew Former Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew says China is unlikely to challenge the U.S.' military supremacy in the near future. Speaking at the 17th International Conference on the Future of Asia in Tokyo, Lee said China's military buildup "is an inevitable development which the civilian government has to find accommodating because the military leadership will not be satisfied with growth only for the civilian side," according to Channel News Asia. [China rising] [Military balance]
• China calls for dialogue between two Koreas
  Source: Global Times [00:49 June 01 2011] Comments China on Tuesday urged North Korea and South Korea to continue their dialogue in order to safeguard peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. "We hope that the concerned parties will continue their dialogue and address their concerns through consultations," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Jiang Yu said. North Korea said in a statement released Monday that it would "never deal with" South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his government, accusing Seoul of trumping up false accusations against the North and undermining its reconciliation efforts. Jiang said that the overall situation on the peninsula had improved this year as the result of joint efforts by all sides involved. "Realizing denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and maintaining lasting peace in Northeast Asia is in the interests of all concerned parties," she said. Jiang suggested that all parties work in the same direction and show flexibility. She also called for the resumption of the Six-Party Talks "as soon as possible." The Six-Party Talks, which involve China, North Korea, the US, South Korea, Japan and Russia, have been suspended since December 2008.
• Old stories of Tibet from veteran American journalists
  Source: Global Times [20:49 May 30 2011] Comments By Li Xiguang As the evening settled on the forested suburb of New York, I was sipping wine with 90-year-old former New York Times editor Seymour Topping on the terrace overlooking their garden when his wife Audrey announced to us that they had their seventh grandchild two days ago. "I am now babysitting for my grandson," said Audrey happily. "My daughter lives just 15 minutes away. I spent the whole day yesterday taking care of the baby." Talking about her daughter and the new baby, Audrey sounded just like any grandmother. One would have no idea that she was also one of the greatest international journalists covering China. [Tibet]

• Kim Jong-il 'Hoped for Arms Supply from China'
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il was accompanied by several officials in charge of arms manufacture and acquisition during his latest visit to China, giving rise to speculation that he was hoping for weapons supplies from his country's staunchest ally. He was accompanied by Ju Kyu-chang, the first vice-director of the Ministry of Defense Industry, and Pak To-chun, a former senior secretary of Jagang Province, where the North's munitions facilities are clustered, and now Workers Party secretary for munitions. Both had been with him on previous China trips. A source familiar with North Korean affairs said Kim may have been seeking China's help in modernizing the North's superannuated weapons. [Military balance] [Sanctions]
• Experts debate China’s role in N.Korea issues at Jeju Forum
  A Chinese ministerial official expressed concerns over Seoul’s linking the Cheonan and Yeonpyeong Island incidents to talks By Son Won-je, Staff Writer The 6th Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity saw a heated debate over the role on China in North Korean reforms, openness, and denuclearization on Sunday, the third day of the event in Seogwipo. Sharp differences in opinion on this issue were observed in a joint press interview by Korean Peninsula experts Shin Jung-seung, director of the China research center at the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security. John Ikenberry, political science professor of Princeton University, Yoichi Funabashi, former editor-in-chief of Asahi Shimbun and Yan Xuetong, dean of the Institute of Modern International Relations at Tsinghua University. At the event, which was jointly organized by the International Peace Foundation, East Asia Foundation, and Jeju Province, experts from South Korea, the United States, and Japan said that by unconditionally taking the side of North Korea, China has not been fulfilling its responsibility of guiding changes in the country [MISCOM]
• Kim Jong-il leaves Beijing after meeting with Hu
  Source: Global Times [04:08 May 27 2011] Comments By Wang Gang in Seoul and Jia Cheng in Beijing Top Chinese and North Korean leaders held talks on the last day of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's unofficial visit to China, focusing on bilateral cooperation and the early resumption of nuclear talks. Kim left Beijing Thursday after meeting with President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and other leading officials. During Kim's dialogue with Hu, he said that North Korea hopes to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, will remain committed to denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and believes that the Six-Party Talks should be resumed at an early date, Xinhua said.
• Kim Jong Il Pays Unofficial Visit to Northeastern and Huadong Regions of China
  Pyongyang, May 27 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and chairman of the National Defence Commission of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, paid an unofficial visit to the People's Republic of China from May 20 to 26 at the invitation of Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and president of the PRC. He was accompanied by Kim Ki Nam and Choe Thae Bok, members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Kang Sok Ju, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-premier of the Cabinet; Jang Song Thaek, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-chairman of the NDC; Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun and Thae Jong Su, alternate members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Mun Kyong Dok, alternate member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the C.C., the WPK and chief secretary of the Pyongyang City Committee of the WPK; Ju Kyu Chang, alternate member of the Political Bureau and department director of the C.C., the WPK; and Ji Jae Ryong, DPRK ambassador e. p. to China.
• China's Port in Pakistan?
  China's dream of Indian Ocean ports -- the so-called string of pearls -- is heightening geopolitical tensions in a rough neighborhood. BY ROBERT D. KAPLAN | MAY 27, 2011 Pakistani officials have announced that the Chinese look favorably on taking over the operation of the Arabian Sea port of Gwadar close to the entrance of the Strait of Hormuz, and perhaps building a naval base for the Pakistanis there as well. The Chinese have apparently contradicted these claims, indicating that they have made no such decisions on these matters. The fact that Pakistan should want deeper Chinese involvement with this strategically located port, even as the Chinese are hesitant to do just that, should surprise no one. Gwadar is where dreams clash with reality
• Find Chinese Venture Capital for Your Business
  Start by calling development groups that promote trade between China and the U.S. Then consider partnering with a sophisticated entrepreneur or investor with personal connections in the country By Karen E. Klein After decades of distrust, the past several years have seen efforts to encourage business partnerships across the Pacific. The formal and informal connections being made capitalize on the flourishing Chinese economy, which is rewarding business owners and spurring them to seek investments, says Steven Shen, chairman of the China-U.S.Business Summit, a nonprofit in Long Beach, Calif. Traditional Chinese investments have been focused on short-term gains in Asian real estate and the stock market, where there are easy exits, says Ben Walters, founder of Ospop, a 3-year-old Shanghai company that markets utilitarian Chinese footwear and accessories internationally. Of course, those investments may have lost some of their luster recently because of worries about a real estate bubble in Asia. Wealthy Chinese, worried about their country's long-term political stability and the wisdom of amassing fortunes in China, continue to seek safe foreign investments, Shen says.
• China not manipulating currency: US Treasury
  Source: Xinhua [09:06 May 28 2011] Comments The US Treasury Department said in a report released on Friday that China was not manipulating its currency. "In China, since the authorities decided in June 2010 to allow the exchange rate to appreciate in response to market forces, the renminbi (RMB) has appreciated by a total of 5.1 percent against the dollar in nominal terms through the end of April 2011, or at an annual pace of approximately 6.0 percent," noted the semi- annual report on international economic and exchange rate policies. [Currency]
• China, Myanmar forge partnership, ink deals on Myanmar president's maiden visit
  Source: Xinhua [08:24 May 28 2011] Comments Chinese President Hu Jintao (R) shakes hands with Myanmar President U Thein Sein during the welcome ceremony in Beijing, capital of China, May 27, 2011. China and Myanmar on Friday upgraded their relationship to strategic partnership and inked economic agreements, the latest sign of stronger ties between the two neighbors. "Once again I congratulate you on becoming the first President of Myanmar," Chinese President Hu Jintao told his Myanmar counterpart U Thein Sein Friday afternoon. Thein Sein arrived in Beijing Thursday for his first state visit since assuming presidency in March. "This is my first talk with you since the new Myanmar government was installed. Hopefully your visit will cement mutual understanding and friendship," Hu said at the start of talks. Thein Sein said relations with China is the "closest and most important diplomatic relationship" for Myanmar. During their hour-long talks, the two leaders reviewed the growth of China-Myanmar ties since the two countries forged diplomatic relations in 1950.
• Chinese vice president stresses innovation, scientific literacy
  Source: Xinhua [10:10 May 28 2011] Comments Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping addresses the eighth national congress of China Association for Science and Technology in Beijing, capital of China, May 27,2011. Photo: Xinhua Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping on Friday called on science and technology workers nationwide to continue to push forward the country's innovation drive while promoting scientific literacy among the public. Xi made the call while delivering a speech at the eighth national congress held by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST). [Innovation]
• Experts respond to Kim Jong-il’s visit to China
  The visit opened possibilities of significant developments in economic cooperation and dialogue North Korean leader Kim Jong-il returned home Thursday following an eight-day, seven-night China visit. The Hankyoreh asked experts for their views on Kim’s visit. Kim Keun-sik, Professor, Kyungnam University Following the strenuous objections that came from Pyongyang after President Lee Myung-bak’s declaration in Berlin that he planned to invite Kim Jong-il to next year’s Nuclear Security Summit, there had been speculation that North Korea might be abandoning its dialogue approach and returning to a hardline stance. But at this latest North Korea-China summit meeting, Kim expressed a determination, albeit one at a very basic level, to resume the six-party talks quickly and improve inter-Korean relations. This could be viewed as agreement to a dialogue framework that goes through Seoul and on to Washington.
• China: the next military rival
  Paul Rogers, 26 May 2011 The death of Osama bin Laden is a crucial military-political opportunity for Barack Obama. But the United States defence complex has Beijing and budgets on its mind. The course of the United States involvement in Afghanistan, and how if at all this will be affected by the killing of Osama bin Laden by US special forces in Pakistan, is now a matter of acute concern in Washington and allied capitals. [Military-industrial complex] [Militarisation] [China confrontation]
• Kim Jong-il's China Trip Turns Sour
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il apparently ran into a stone wall in talks with Chinese President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao about key projects he wants China to invest in. The result is that ground-breaking ceremonies for the development of Hawanggumpyong Island and for roads connecting Hunchun in China with the Rajin-Sonbong special zone have been cancelled. A diplomatic source in Beijing said on Thursday there were differences of opinion. China is seeking to scrap the development of Hwanggumpyong, an island in the lower reaches of the Duman (or Tumen) River, which it considers financially unviable, and focus investment on Rajin-Sonbong, while North Korea insists on developing both.
• Miffed Kim Jong-il Pares Down Entourage for Meeting with Hu
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's entourage to a meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao on Thursday was severely pared down, apparently because Kim is sulking after his hopes for Chinese investment in his backward country did not materialize.
• Kim Jong-il Winds Up China Trip with Look at IT Firm
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il visited the Zhongguancun science park, China's Silicon Valley, in Beijing on the last leg of his seven-day China trip on Thursday. He looked around exhibition facilities and Internet equipment for 50 minutes at the head office of IT services provider Shenzhou Shuma in the Shangdi District of the science park.
• Kim Jong-il calls for early resumption of six-party talks
  Kim says North Korea concentrates on economic development By Park Min-hee, Beijing Correspondent North Korean leader Kim Jong-il said Wednesday that North Korea advocates that the six-party talks on Korean Peninsula nuclear issue be resumed at an early time, China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency reported on Thursday. As talks took place between Kim and Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing, Xinhua News reported, “Kim said the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea hopes to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, sticks to the objective of denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula and believes that the six-party talks should be resumed at an early date.” According to the report, Kim said the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPKR), the country’s official name, sincerely hopes, as always, that relations between the DPRK and the Republic of Korea (ROK) can improve.
• Kim Jong Il Pays Unofficial Visit to China
  Pyongyang, May 26 (KCNA) -- Kim Jong Il, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and chairman of the DPRK National Defence Commission (NDC), paid an unofficial visit to the People's Republic of China (PRC) from May 20 to 26 at the invitation of Hu Jintao, general secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and president of the PRC. He was accompanied by Kim Ki Nam and Choe Thae Bok, members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Kang Sok Ju, member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-premier of the Cabinet; Jang Song Thaek, alternate member of the Political Bureau of the C.C., the WPK and vice-chairman of the NDC; Kim Yong Il, Pak To Chun and Thae Jong Su, alternate members of the Political Bureau and secretaries of the C.C., the WPK; Mun Kyong Tok, alternate member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the C.C., the WPK and chief secretary of the Pyongyang City Committee of the WPK; Ju Kyu Chang, alternate member of the Political Bureau and department director of the C.C., the WPK; Kim Kye Gwan, first vice-minister of Foreign Affairs; and Ji Jae Ryong, DPRK ambassador e. p. to China.
• Kim Jong-il Meets Chinese Leadership in Beijing
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il talked with Chinese President Hu Jintao in Beijing for almost four hours on Wednesday, the sixth day of his China visit. The two leaders are believed to have discussed issues like stronger bilateral ties, the North's power transfer and nuclear weapons program, and closer economic cooperation. Kang Sok-ju, the North's top envoy for nuclear affairs, and Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping were also present at the meeting. Kim is also believed to have met Chinese Premier Wen Jiaobao at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse to discuss joint development projects in the Rajin-Sonbong Special Economic Zone and other cooperative ventures.
• Plans for N.Korea-China Economic Zones Leaked
  Around the time when North Korean leader Kim Jong-il embarked on his seventh trip to China, plans for bilateral economic cooperation started circulating in northeastern China. They include the joint development of an island called Hwanggumpyong in the lower reaches of the Duman (Tumen) River, and of the Rajin-Sonbong special zone in North Korea. It seems that the North deliberately leaked the document to lure investment from Chinese businesses. [FDI]
• Lee Puts Positive Spin on Kim Jong-il's China Visit
  President Lee Myung-bak told senior members of the National Unification Advisory Council on Wednesday he views North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's latest visit to China positively. "When I met Chinese leaders, I told them I take a positive view of China inviting the North Korean leader often" to show its development and talk with him. Chinese leaders "promised to do so," he added. [Spin] [Lee Myung-bak]
• With summit, Hu moderates ‘indirect dialogue’
  Following a breakdown in inter-Korean dialogue, observers say this could indicate growing U.S.-China dominance By Park Min-hee, Beijing Correspondent North Korean leader Kim Jong-il participated in his third summit meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao in the past year at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday, the sixth day of his China visit, sources reported. Kim also reportedly attended an official welcoming dinner at the Great Hall of the People following the summit, just as he did last year. The meeting and dinner lasted around four hours, after which Kim’s limousine departed from the hall at around 9 p.m. Experts are speculating that Kim may have had a separate luncheon meeting before the summit with Prime Minister Wen Jiabao, who oversees economic cooperation with North Korea. With this, it appears that a form of indirect dialogue between North Korean and South Korean leaders has taken shape following a summit between Seoul and Beijing last weekend, with China mediating between them. Amid a breakdown in relations between Seoul and Pyongyang, Beijing has effectively become the lead player in the political situation on the Korean Peninsula. [China rising]
• 'NK leader renews offer to China on shipping route'
  By Lee Tae-hoon The special train with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on board left Beijing Station on 3: 19 p.m. Thursday, on their way back home. Kim departed after visiting China’s version of Silicon Valley in the morning. It is not known whether he will head straight back to Pyongyang or stop by Shenyang and Dandong as he has done on previous visits. In the morning, the 69-year-old North Korean leader visited IT services provider Shenzhou Shuma in Beijing's Zhongguancun district which is known as China’s “Silicon Valley.” Political watchers say North Korean leader Kim Jong-il likely sought greater assistance from China in the development of its Rajin-Sonbong Economic Special Zone during his meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao.
• In China, Kim Jong Il studies the reforms he’s spent decades resisting
  By Chico Harlan, Thursday, May 26, 4:39 AM TOKYO — North Korea’s leader traveled through China this week to observe the very economic reforms that he has resisted for decades. Chauffeured in an armored train and convoy of black Audi sedans, Kim Jong Il toured an automobile factory, a solar panel plant and a discount store, where he reportedly inquired about cooking oil but didn’t buy anything. Kim’s fling with Chinese commercialism — capped by a sit-down Wednesday in Beijing with Chinese President Hu Jintao — fostered the latest hopeful talk that North Korea will open the world’s most controlled economy. For outside analysts, though, the trip revealed the odd stagecraft North Korea must perform as it bluffs interest in reform and then converts China’s approval into the aid and diplomatic support Kim needs to keep his country intact. .“To get these things [Kim] may have to mouth platitudes about reform, privately, or maybe even publicly,” Marcus Noland, a Washington-based North Korea economics expert, said in an e-mail. “But I am quite skeptical of either his true interest or even his capacity to implement.” [Media] [MISCOM] [Inversion]
• North Korea’s Kim reportedly visits tech company in Beijing following meeting with Hu Jintao
  By Associated Press, Updated: Thursday, May 26, 7:28 PM BEIJING — North Korean leader Kim Jong Il reportedly visited a technology zone in Beijing on Thursday following a summit with Chinese President Hu Jintao that highlighted the North’s growing dependency on its most important ally. Kim was on what was expected to be the final day of a secretive weeklong visit to China that comes amid appeals for food aid and a new push by Beijing for its communist ally to enact economic reforms. .Kim’s motorcade was seen Thursday morning leaving the state guesthouse where he is staying and headed for the capital’s Zhongguancun technology zone. South Korean media and Chinese microblogs said he visited information technology company China Digital accompanied by Executive Vice Premier Li Keqiang.
• Visits from North Korean, Myanmar leaders highlight China’s close ties to shunned governments
  By Associated Press, Thursday, May 26, 1:16 AM BEIJING — Visits to Beijing this week by top officials from North Korea, Myanmar, and Iran are spotlighting China’s cozy ties with nations widely shunned for human rights abuses and threatening behavior. North Korea’s supreme leader Kim Jong Il apparently conferred Wednesday with Chinese President Hu Jintao in a meeting underscoring the influence economic powerhouse China has with Kim’s ostracized regime, which struggles to feed its people. [China confrontation]
• Kim Jong-il's 4th Wife Goes Along to China
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's fourth wife Kim Ok is among his entourage on a visit to China. A video clip posted on the Internet shows Kim visiting an LCD factory on the outskirts of the southern Chinese city of Nanjing. In the video, he gets out of a car and is greeted by a welcoming party, while Kim Ok emerges from the other side of the vehicle.
• Kim Jong-il puts son and sun on agenda during China mission
  North Korean leader seeks support for anointed successor and visits solar energy plant as guest of Beijing officials Share113 Jonathan Watts in Beijing guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 24 May 2011 12.30 BST Article history The guesthouse in Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, where Kim Jong-il is said to be staying during his trip to China. Photograph: Yonhap News Agency/EPA The North Korean leader, Kim Jong-il, is exploring the potential of solar energy amid a debilitating dispute over his country's nuclear power programme. On a visit this week to China, North Korea's main ally and aid donor, Kim requested a tour of a solar photovoltaic manufacturing plant in Yangzhou between meetings with senior Communist officials and a trip to a shopping mall. Workers at JA Solar Holdings were told to stay at home while Kim looked around their factory. [Media]
• Kim Jong-il arrives in Beijing for possible summit with Hu
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il arrived in Beijing from Nanjing by train on Wednesday apparently for a summit meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao. Kim arrived in Beijing Station at around 9 a.m. (local time) by his special train and headed in the direction of Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.
• Kim Jong-il Pays Lip Service to Chinese Reforms
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has given the impression that he is keenly interested in reform and opening whenever he visited China, but at home he has done everything to stem the advance of capitalism, which he regards as the worst threat to his oppressive regime.
• Is China Neutralizing N.Korea Sanctions?
  Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met with President Lee Myung-bak in Japan and explained that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's latest visit to China is aimed at getting him to understand and use China's economic development strategy. In other words, the key agenda of Kim's visit is the North's economic development.
• Chinese Outweighs English Skills for Airport Shop Recruits
  Chinese language skills are becoming more important than English for workers at duty free shops at Incheon International Airport. Ahead of the opening of a Louis Vuitton shop at the airport in September, the global luxury brand posted ads for sales and management staff who have a strong command of Chinese or Japanese. Fluency in English, which used to be a requirement for luxury brand shop employees, has become a preferred ability. [China rising]
• Mega oil rig changes game
  Source: Global Times [08:19 May 24 2011] Comments By Li Qian China has inaugurated its most advanced deep-sea oil platform capable of operating at up to 3,000 meters under the surface of the ocean. This move boosts the country's offshore tapping capabilities and enhances its leverage in securing marine resources often contested by other regional players. The announcement, seen as a major technology breakthrough, will serve a national energy ambition as authorities now look to the high seas for answers to soaring energy demands. [Territorial disputes]
• NK leader begins activities in Yangzhou
  BEIJING/YANGZHOU (Yonhap) -- North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, who arrived in Yangzhou on Sunday after a three-day train ride, began his activities in the eastern Chinese city, west of Shanghai, though details of his itinerary have yet to be confirmed, sources said Monday. A motorcade believed to be carrying Kim departed from Yangzhou's guest house at 9 a.m. on the fourth day of his Chinese visit before heading for an unknown destination, said the sources. They speculated that Kim may meet with former Chinese President Jiang Zemin, who met his late father and North Korean founder Kim Il-sung there back in 1991. The North Korean leader may also pay visits to Yangzhou's historical places related to Kim Il-sung, they said, adding a solar energy company could be another destination. Meanwhile, the special North Korean train that brought Kim to Yangzhou is not at the city's train station, triggering speculation that the North's leader may travel to another city, possibly Shanghai, by car. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Sunday in Tokyo that Beijing invited Kim in an effort to help Pyongyang learn about Chinese economic development and use it for reviving the North's economy.
• Kim Jong-il steps up 'economic' diplomacy
  By Kang Hyun-kyung North Korean leader Kim Jong-il paid a visit to an unspecified Chinese firm based in the business district of Yangzhou on the fourth day of his trip to China, Monday. The move came amid reports that the North Korean leader has focused on exploring business and infrastructure facilities in northeastern and southern China. Kim reportedly left his hotel early in the morning for the trip to the local company. Yangzhou’s business cluster houses energy and wind power firms, and medical and health products manufacturers. Kim returned to the hotel before noon. He is expected to visit historic sites in the afternoon, tracing his father’s footsteps when the late Kim Il-sung visited the city in the 1990s. North Korea watchers here speculated that the ailing North Korean leader might have a reunion with the former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin who met his father when the late Kim visited Yangzhou, the former’s hometown.
• Kim’s visit to China
  Pyongyang turns to Beijing for more aid It is extraordinary for North Korean leader Kim Jong-il to travel to China three times in a year. But he has done so by making his third visit to the Asian power since May 2010. This time his journey started Friday by passing through Tumen, a northeastern Chinese city bordering the North. It was construed as an inevitable step for the already impoverished communist state to seek more economic aid and food supply from Beijing.
• “Chat-to-China” Choo Choo: Kim Rides the Rails Again
  By Aidan Foster-Carter The Wall Street Journal may be edited from somewhere to the right of Attila the Hun, but at least you’d expect them to be able to count. Actually WSJ’s Korea reportage is excellent as a rule, but they and most everybody else are wrong to say that Kim Jong Il’s just-confirmed visit to China, still ongoing as I write, is his seventh.[1] Math was never my forte, but I reckon eight—and that’s just the ones we get told about…eventually. Very likely there have been other secret trips as well, especially in earlier years when his father Kim Il Sung was alive.
• Kim Jong-il on Marathon Trek Across China
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, currently on his seventh visit to China, has been on an unprecedentedly busy schedule. He normally stays one night in each city he visits, but this time, he travelled 3,000 km for three days and two nights on his special armored train. On Sunday he arrived in Yangzhou, the hometown of former Chinese President Jiang Zemin who is still a powerful figure behind the scenes. Kim is believed to have met with Jiang there and asked for Chinese aid, economic cooperation and support for the succession of his son Jong-un. A view of the state guest house in Yangzhou, where North Korean leader Kim Jong-il is believed to have spent a night during his visit to China over the weekend /Yonhap The reason Kim manages such long trips is that the train is lavishly equipped. It has a conference room, an audience chamber and luxurious bedrooms. According to South Korean and U.S. intelligence, satellite phone connections and flat-screen TVs are installed so that the North Korean leader can be briefed and issue orders. Four carriages in the 20-carriage train are allotted for medical staff and equipment. Kim is believed to suffer from chronic renal failure, so the train also reportedly has dialysis equipment. A South Korean government official said, "No matter how comfortable the train may be, a long train journey isn’t easy for a man over 70. It seems that one of the objectives of this trip is to demonstrate that he is fit." The special armored train carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong-il stops at Yangzhou Station on Sunday. /Yonhap While Kim briefly stopped at hotels in Mudanjiang and Changchun on Friday and Saturday, an ambulance was seen entering the hotel, suggesting his health is constantly being monitored. In Yangzhou, police were everywhere. Public access to the state guest house in Yangzhou along the shore of touristy Shouxi, or Slender West Lake, was banned. On Saturday, Kim visited the Changchun-based First Automobile Works Group, one of the top two carmakers in China alongside Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation. There are rumors that FAW Group will invest in the Rajin-Sonbong special economic zone in North Korea. A Hongqi sedan, FAW's top brand, was given to Kim as a gift.
• Is China Neutralizing N.Korea Sanctions?
  Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao met with President Lee Myung-bak in Japan and explained that North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's latest visit to China is aimed at getting him to understand and use China's economic development strategy. In other words, the key agenda of Kim's visit is the North's economic development. The government announced sanctions against North Korea on May 24 last year, in response to the North's sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan, halting all trade and economic cooperation with the North with the exception of the Kaesong Industrial Complex. The South also halted aid shipments of rice and fertilizer to the North. As a result, Seoul said it has achieved around US$300 million worth of economic sanctions against the North each year. But the sanctions are losing their effectiveness as China boosts support to North Korea. Trade between China and North Korea, which amounted to $2.68 billion in 2009, rose 29.3 percent to $3.47 billion last year. This has also led to an increase in its trade dependency on China, which stood at 52.6 percent in 2009 but is expected to exceed 60 percent this year.
• China Poised to Secure East Sea Shipping Route
  An armored train carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and his entourage to China traveled non-stop for almost 30 hours from 2:20 p.m. on Saturday until 7:50 p.m. on Sunday, covering around 2,000 km from Jilin Province in the northeastern part of the country to Jiangsu Province in the south. It is the first time Kim has visited China's three northeastern provinces of Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang and the southern industrial region at the same time. Previously Kim made separate trips to southern cities like Shanghai and Guangzhou in 2001 and 2006 and to the three northeastern provinces in May and August last year. The three northeastern provinces are rich in natural resources and considered the least developed in the country, and Beijing is keen to develop them.
• China Juggles Diplomacy with Both Koreas
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il comes out of the Holiday Inn hotel in Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang Province in China on Friday night. /Kyoto News-Yonhap China is busy balancing high-level diplomacy with both Koreas in the same week. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao attended a trilateral summit with South Korea and Japan on Sunday and held separate talks with President Lee Myung-bak, while North Korean leader Kim Jong-il kicked off a visit to China on Friday. Diplomatic sources in China say Kim will meet Chinese President Hu Jintao and Wen in Beijing this coming Thursday or Friday.
• China food choices reshaping world markets
  By Howard Schneider, Monday, May 23, 8:01 AM Beijing — For a sense of how this country’s changing demand for food is reshaping world markets, Liu Shuwen’s journey from street chicken vendor to poultry industrialist is a good start. There are the 24,000 hens he currently raises, triple what he had a few years ago. There’s the expansion to 60,000 he is planning. Then there’s the feed factory that’s under construction, where Liu and his partner will add to growing world grain demand by mixing hundreds of tons of soybeans and corn a year into a recipe he feeds his chickens and sells to other farmers. .It’s a dramatic turn for a man who grew up incubating chicks under his bed, and one that shows why farmers, food economists and others conclude that the world may be entering an era of steadily rising food prices. As developing countries become richer, so do their diets, shifting from traditional staples such as rice and wheat to meat and dairy products, which require more grain as feedstock. That trend, along with the increasing use of corn in fuel, is taxing world grain supplies. So far, that has been a boon to the United States. China relies on American farmers in particular for soybeans to use in animal feed. Last year, total U.S. soy exports were nearly $20 billion — triple the level of a decade ago.
• NK leader heading for southern China: sources
  BEIJING, China (Yonhap) -- A special train carrying North Korean leader Kim Jong-il appears to be heading south for Yangzhou, adjacent to China's economic capital Shanghai, sources said Sunday, contradicting expectations that he would visit Beijing after departing from northeastern Chinese cities. Kim began his secretive trip to China last Friday, when his train crossed the border and arrived in Tumen and Mudanjiang. On Saturday, the second day of his visit, Kim toured a car plant in Changchun, an industrial hub in northeastern China, before passing through Shenyang and heading south. According to multiple sources, security has been noticeably tightened around the main train station in Yangzhou in the eastern Chinese province of Jiangsu, where his late father and North Korean founder Kim Il-sung held talks with then Chinese leader Jiang Zemin in 1991.
• Pakistan says wants China to build naval base
  ISLAMABAD | Sun May 22, 2011 8:51am IST ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - Pakistan said on Saturday it wanted China to build it a naval base, in the latest sign of moves to strengthen ties with Beijing as relations with Washington falter. The announcement from Pakistan's defence minister came a day after Pakistan's Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani returned from a four-day visit to China, Islamabad's biggest arms supplier. "We would be ... grateful to the Chinese government if a naval base is ... constructed at the site of Gwadar for Pakistan," Defence Minister Ahmad Mukhtar said is a statement, referring to a deep-water port in Pakistan's southwest.
• Day after explosion, workers turned away at Foxconn plant
  2011/05/21 22:40:26 Chengdu, May 21 (CNA) Workers arriving at Taiwanese electronic manufacturer Foxconn's factory in China's southwestern city Chengdu were turned away Saturday, a day after an explosion at the plant killed two people and injured 16 others.
  Foxconn, the name used by Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. in China, is the world's biggest contract manufacturer of electronics
• Ferguson vs. Kissinger on the future of China, and what it means for the rest of us
  Posted By Thomas E. Ricks Tuesday, May 17, 2011 - 11:02 AM Share By Patrick M. Cronin Best Defense department of the mandate of heaven Historian Niall Ferguson likes to think big. If most Washingtonians are satisfied with shaping a discrete national policy issue, Niall Ferguson isn't satisfied unless he can challenge the global conventional wisdom of a generation. Ferguson's most recent strategic expository centered on the geopolitical implications of China possibly eclipsing American and Western power, reflections he recently shared at Chatham House in London [published as, "The West and the Rest: the Changing Global Balance of Power in Historic Perspective," May 9, 2011] His compelling if provocative analysis built not only on his latest tome, Civilization: the West and the Rest, but also the much-anticipated sweeping history, On China, written by the Henry Kissinger, and published today. Kissinger's narrative sees Confucian roots in contemporary Chinese decision-making and upheavals. This is a consequential conclusion, because for Kissinger it means that as China's power ascends the temptation to wield power the way Europe or even America has done so will be tempered by tradition. Rather than seeking imperial rule, for instance, China will be content with finding its place under heaven, essentially as the regional Middle Kingdom. It is also likely to employ a classical Chinese strategy of playing external barbarians off one another, only occasionally clinching a few of the barbarians into its ambit.
• The West and the Rest: the Changing Global Balance of Power in Historical Perspective
  Niall Ferguson Laurence A Tisch Professor of History, Harvard University and William Ziegler Professor, Harvard Business School Chair: Professor Michael Cox Department
• MND confirms arms sales to continue under TRA
  The sale of F-16 C/D fighters and other U.S.-made defensive weapons to Taiwan remains on the cards despite Beijing’s efforts to pressure Washington into walking away from its TRA obligations. (Courtesy of USAF) •Publication Date:05/20/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Elaine Hou U.S. policy of providing Taiwan with defensive weapons will not be affected by Washington-Beijing military exchanges, according to Ministry of National Defense spokesman Lo Shao-ho May 19. “Washington has reaffirmed it will continue selling Taipei weapons based on the Taiwan Relations Act,” Lo said, adding that the U.S.-mainland China military dialogue will not come at the country’s expense. [Arms sales] [China confrontation] [Straits]
• North Korean leader visits China: reports
  Source: Global Times [08:15 May 21 2011] Comments By Hao Zhou North Korean leader Kim Jong-il paid a surprise visit to China Friday, South Korean media reported, amid a series of confusing reports about who accompanied him and the purpose of the trip. The Seoul-based Yonhap News Agency quoted a South Korean government source as saying the 69-year-old leader had entered China by train Friday morning and was staying at a hotel in the northeastern Chinese city of Mudanjiang. South Korea's YTN and MBC television stations carried similar reports but South Korean government spokespersons and China's foreign ministry declined to comment. Should Kim's visit be confirmed, it would be the North Korean leader's third trip to China in just over a year after visits in May and August 2010.
• Kim Jong-il makes another unexpected visit to China, 3rd in a year
  Heir apparent Kim Jong-un’s attendance has not yet been confirmed By Park Byong-su, Senior Staff Writer and Park Min-hee, Beijing Correspondent North Korean leader Kim Jong-il reportedly visited China Friday, rejecting earlier reports of his heir-apparent son’s single travel to the country. Although Kim Jong-un’ company has yet to be confirmed, he is not likely to accompany, officials of South Korean government said. According to the officials, a special train appeared carrying Kim Jong-il arrived in China via Tumen, a northeastern border city, at 7 a.m. Friday. A man believed to be Kim Jong-il was witnessed at the Holiday Inn in Mudanjiang, Heilongjiang Province, northeastern China, and he reportedly left there around 9 p.m. The trip marks the third in one year or so, including early May and late August last year.
• Kim Yong Nam Meets Chinese Delegation
  Pyongyang, May 20 (KCNA) -- Kim Yong Nam, president of the Presidium of the DPRK Supreme People's Assembly, met and had a friendly talk with the delegation of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference led by Vice-Chairman Chen Zongxing at the Mansudae Assembly Hall on Friday. On the occasion, the head of the delegation said that the traditional Sino-DPRK friendly relations are growing stronger under the deep care of the leaders of the two countries. He wished the Korean people register greater successes under the wise leadership of Kim Jong Il.
• Kim Jong-un Travels to China
  North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's son and heir-apparent Kim Jong-un is in China. A high-ranking South Korean government official said Kim Jong-un, accompanied by his uncle Jang Song-taek, the vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, crossed the border to meet top Chinese leaders. Kim junior apparently arrived in Tumen, eastern Jilin Province in China early Friday morning. Bridges and nearby areas have been heavily guarded by police since Thursday.
• N.Korea, China to Launch Joint Economic Projects
  North Korea and China are poised to start development work on two joint projects in the border areas. A construction project of developing an island called Hwanggumpyong in the lower reaches of the Duman (or Tumen) River starts on May 28, and construction of roads connecting Hunchun in China and Rajin-Sonbong in North Korea on May 30. High-ranking officials from both countries will visit Dandong and Rajin-Sonbong to launch the projects. According to a North Korean source, Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming and Jang Song-taek, the brother-in-law of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il and vice chairman of the National Defense Commission, are likely to attend both events. There is even speculation that Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, widely tipped as the next president, and Vice Premier Wang Qishan will also attend. [China NK]
• Three Gorges Dam problems revealed
  Source: Global Times [08:14 May 20 2011] Comments The remains of a turtle lie on the dried riverbed of the Wuhan section of the Han River, a tributary of the Yangtze River, in Hubei Province. Photo: CFP By Li Qian The central government has for the first time acknowledged downsides to the Three Gorges Project, but vowed to correct the mishaps and improve disaster prevention mechanisms, as a severe drought in central and southern China threatens millions of people. In a statement issued after a meeting presided over by Premier Wen Jiabao, the State Council said the project had played a key role in flood prevention and power generation, but admitted it had caused severe problems to the environment, shipping, agricultural irrigation and water supplies in the lower reaches of the Yangtze River, an area of 633,000 square kilometers shared by eight provinces. It added that the government would properly handle all negative effects caused by the Three Gorges Project, the largest hydropower project in the world, and improve long-term mechanisms for geological disaster prevention, ecological preservation and the promotion of biological diversity. Efforts should be made to increase oversight
• Departing ambassador flays Rudd
  John Garnaut May 19, 2011 . Kevin Rudd visiting Beijing in 2008 with Geoff Raby. AUSTRALIA'S ambassador in Beijing has launched a thinly veiled attack on Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd in a speech rebuking those who speak Chinese but "do not understand how China works". Geoff Raby, whose term as ambassador ends on August 5, did not name his Chinese-speaking boss, but pointedly observed that "one of the biggest challenges has been managing my own team [including] politicians and officials". "To speak Chinese is not to know China," Dr Raby told a high-powered gathering of more than 400 Australian corporate leaders in Beijing yesterday in a speech titled What does it mean to be China literate?
  "If you establish your head office in Shanghai, effectively you have tattooed on your forehead ‘I don't understand China'," he said. Read more: http://www.theage.com.au/national/departing-ambassador-flays-rudd-20110518-1et6o.html#ixzz1MsdRx4a6
• Who shapes China’s NK policy?
  Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt, a director at International Crisis Group By Sunny Lee BEIJING — Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi abruptly canceled his pre-arranged trip to South Korea, just one day before the visit was to take place in November last year. Yang was supposed to meet with his counterpart Kim Sung-hwan and President Lee Myung-bak. South Korean media fumed over the sudden breach of diplomatic protocol amid already brooding anti-China sentiment over Beijing shielding North Korea in the aftermath of the latter’s two brazen attacks on the South.
• Big Chinese Spenders Delight Korean Retailers
  Tourists shop at a clothing store in Seoul. A Chinese couple in their 30s walked into a branch of the Hyundai Department Store in Gangnam, Seoul on May 5 and bought two Hermes bags for W110 million (US$1=W1,085). Another Chinese tourist last week bought a W100 million Piaget diamond watch, the most expensive item sold at the Walkerhill Duty Free Shop in Seoul so far this year
• Tokyo has no option but to cleave to China
  By Yoichi Funabashi Published: May 17 2011 21:47 | Last updated: May 17 2011 21:47 As the Fukushima nuclear reactors continue to buck efforts to bring them under control, Japan’s triple disaster holds a magnifying glass to my country’s vulnerabilities. Tokyo Electric Power (Tepco), the operator of the Fukushima plant and one of Japan’s most powerful business interests, has informed my devastated nation that a further six to nine months will be needed to stabilise the facilities, increasing concerns of the risks of disruption to our energy supply. .
• Abandoning Pakistan: Can China Fill the Vacuum?
  What would happen if the United States left Pakistan to China? Cutting military and economic assistance to a country in crisis is generally seen as a failure of foreign policy. Such imperial hubris can lead to a miscalculation of national interest and leave a power vacuum in the affected country. In February 1947, however, when Britain announced it could no longer support Greek nationalist forces against the communists, the United States was ready to step in, fearing a communist takeover of the country. The mutual concern of the United States and Britain in containing communism made it possible for the Attlee government to step out and for Truman to move in. Today, another such confluence of interest exists regarding Pakistan; both China and the United States have a vested interest in containing violent Islamic extremism. [F&E] [Global insurgency] [Separatism] [Pakistan]
• N.Korea, Iran 'Exchanged Missile Tech Through China'
  North Korea and Iran have regularly violated UN Security Council resolutions by exchanging ballistic missile technology via China, Reuters said Saturday quoting diplomatic sources. According to a report by a UN panel of experts, the illicit technology transfers took place "through a neighboring third country," and several diplomatic sources told the wire agency that country "was China [Sanctions]
• China Times: Face Taiwan's brain drain crisis
  2011/05/15 15:25:36 China has approached one of Taiwan's most prominent and senior cartoonists recently with lucrative offers, in the hope that he will move his operations across the Taiwan Strait. Hsinchu County-based Liu Hsing-chin has reportedly turned down the offers, but the incident has once again underscored the brain drain Taiwan is increasingly facing with the rise of China. It was no secret that a number of famous Taiwanese artists who have earned fame have moved to China in recent years, including Ao You-hsiang, Tsai Chih-chung and Chu Teh-yung. They headed for China not just because of better offers, but more pragmatically on the back of the allure of a market that is much, much bigger than Taiwan's. The cultural and creative exodus reflects the drain of brains and [Straits] [Migration]
• China Delays Report Suggesting North Korea Violated Sanctions
  By DAN BILEFSKY China has tried to suppress a report at the United Nations suggesting that North Korea and Iran have been routinely sharing ballistic missile technology, United Nations diplomats said Saturday, expressing concern that Beijing was again working to shield the North. The report, by a United Nations panel of experts, said prohibited “ballistic missile-related items” were suspected of being transferred between North Korea and Iran in breach of United Nations sanctions against North Korea. It said the transfers were believed to be taking place on regular scheduled flights of Air Koryo and Iran Air, using air cargo hubs that had less stringent security than passenger terminals. The panel’s findings, first reported by Reuters, said that the technology transfers had “trans-shipment through a neighboring third country.” The report did not specify which, but several United Nations diplomats identified that country as China, North Korea’s neighbor and most important ally. The report was submitted to Security Council members over the weekend, but had been delayed for days before that after the Chinese expert on the panel refused to sign off on the report. “The Chinese expert refused to sign the report, under pressure from Beijing, and this raises serious issues about a panel of experts that is supposed to be free from political interference,” said a senior United Nations diplomat, requesting anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on the issue. The panel is charged with monitoring the North’s compliance with United Nations sanctions, including a ban on trading nuclear and missile technology, an arms embargo and the freezing of assets of several North Korean individuals. Sanctions were imposed on North Korea after it conducted nuclear tests in 2006 and in 2009. North Korea has also conducted a battery of missile tests that have yielded mixed results, and it has come under scrutiny for selling its nuclear and missile technology. China has in the past tried to block reports on North Korea and Sudan, and earlier this week Russia moved to suppress a deeply critical expert panel report on Iran. Both Russia and China, which are permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, typically cleave to the view that the world body should not impinge upon the sovereignty of member countries. [Sanctions] [Sovereignty] [China global strategy]
• The China Challenge
  By Henry Kissinger Societies and nations tend to think of themselves as eternal. They also cherish a tale of their origin. A special feature of Chinese civilization is that it seems to have no beginning. It appears in history less as a conventional nation-state than as a permanent natural phenomenon. In the tale of the Yellow Emperor, revered by many Chinese as the legendary founding ruler, China seems already to exist. [China confrontation]
• Political worries shadow potential Chinese investors in US
  Source: Global Times [21:11 May 12 2011] Comments Illustration: Liu Rui By He Weiwen One of the topics discussed at the third round of the China-US Strategic and Economic Dialogue was expanding Chinese enterprises' investment in the US. According to a poll by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, 28 percent of the surveyed Chinese enterprises indicated their intention to invest in the US, which was ranked as the top investment destination. Inbound investment is also desired by the US, currently plagued by climbing unemployment rate and a depressed manufacturing industry. Many of the US governors have come to China to promote local investment projects, with 35 out of the 50 US states now recipients of Chinese investment. By the end of 2009, of the accumulated foreign investment to the US, only 0.34 percent came from China, suggesting a huge potential for growth. However, Chinese enterprises' expansion in the US has met with obstacles despite the mutual benefits it would bring. [ODI] [China confrontation]
• The West Is Trapped In Its Own Propaganda
  by Dr. Paul Craig Roberts Global Research, May 12, 2011 One of the wishes that readers often express to me came true today (May 11). I was on the mainstream media. It was a program with a worldwide reach--the BBC World Service. There were others on the program as well, and the topic was Hillary Clinton’s remarks (May 10) about the lack of democracy and human rights in China. I startled the program’s host when I compared Hillary’s remarks to the pot calling the kettle black. I was somewhat taken aback myself by the British BBC program host’s rush to America’s defense and wondered about it as the program continued. Surely, he had heard about Abu Ghraib, Guantanamo detainees, CIA secret torture prisons sprinkled around the world, invasion and destruction of Iraq on the basis of lies and deceptions, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Somalia, Libya. Surely, he was aware of Hillary’s hypocrisy as she demonized China but turned a blind eye to Israel, Mubarak, Bahrain and the Saudis. China’s record is not perfect, but is it this bad? Why wasn’t the Chinese Minister for Foreign Affairs criticizing America’s human rights abuses and rigged elections? How come China minds its own business and we don’t? These questions didn’t go down well. None of the other interviewees or guests thought that Hilary had made a good decision, but even the Chinese guests were not free of the common mindset that frames every issue from the standpoint that the West is the standard by which the rest of the world is judged. By pointing out our own shortcomings, I was challenging that standard. The host and other guests could not escape from the restraints imposed on thought by the role of the West as world standard. What has happened to the West is that it can see itself and others only through the eyes of its own propaganda. There was a great deal of talk about China’s lack of democracy. As the BBC program was being broadcast, the news intruded that Greeks had again taken to the streets to protest the costs of the bailout of the banks and Wall Street--the rich--being imposed on ordinary people at the expense of their lives and aspirations. The Irish government announced that it was going to confiscate with a tax part of the Irish people’s pension accumulations. It simply did not occur to the host and other guests that these are not democratic outcomes. It is a strange form of democracy that produces political outcomes that reward the few and punish the many, despite the energetic protests of the many. [Democracy] [Imperialism] [Media]
• China’s America Obsession
  Why Osama bin Laden's death is making Chinese leaders nervous.
  BY JOHN LEE | MAY 6, 2011 In Thursday's edition of China's Communist Party-owned Global Times newspaper, the lead editorial was headlined, "After Bin Laden, will China become US's foe?" Hoping that economic integration would defuse "right-wing paranoia" about China in the United States, the editorial nevertheless concluded: "The rise of China is certain to cause friction" in America. On Friday, the paper led with an editorial that referenced an interview I had given the Global Times in late April to admit that "China could be the loneliest rising power in world history." Of course, editorials in state-owned newspapers do not always mirror the Communist Party's thinking or policies. But in this case, these two editorials remind us of two related points about Beijing's worldview. First, China respects and even fears the United States more than the vast majority of Americans probably realize. And second, China's sense of isolation is not an act but acute and real -- and Osama bin Laden's death will only accelerate America's reengagement with its Asian allies and partners at China's expense. When Washington shifted its focus toward terrorism and the Middle East after the September 11 attacks in 2001, Beijing experienced genuine relief. [China confrontation] [Osama]
• Coach to shift manufacturing from China
  By John Gapper and Barney Jopson in New York Published: May 12 2011 17:57 | Last updated: May 12 2011 17:57 Coach, the US accessories brand, is planning to shift up to half of its manufacturing out of China to escape rising labour costs at the same time as it moves aggressively to expand its sales in the country. Lew Frankfort, Coach’s chief executive, said that over the next five years the company would cut its China production to 40-50 per cent of its total from 85 per cent at present by opening factories in lower-wage economies including India, Vietnam and the Philippines. the world - Jan-17. .Coach’s plans point to the shift in China’s role from workshop of the world to consumer of first resort. .[Domestic demand] [China rising]
• Chopper rumor absurd: FM
  Source: Global Times [08:09 May 13 2011] Comments By Liu Linlin Officials in China and Pakistan have flatly ruled out speculation that technology from parts of a US radar-evading helicopter deliberately destroyed after the US unilateral raid that killed Osama bin Laden early this month would be shared for examination. Responding to a reporter's request to confirm an alleged willingness by Beijing to study the wreckage, Jiang Yu, a spokeswoman for China's Foreign Ministry, said it sounded "absurd," without offering further information.
• US to ease high-tech limits
  Source: Global Times [01:30 May 12 2011] Comments By Huang Jingjing China and the US announced a number of breakthroughs Tuesday in trade and economic cooperation at their third Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED), but failed to make major progress on broader issues. At a joint press conference after concluding the talks, Chinese Vice Premier Wang Qishan said US officials had pledged to relax restrictions on exporting high-tech products to China. [Sanctions] [China confrontation]
• Chinese view of bin laden's death
  Source: Global Times [20:01 May 10 2011] Comments A baby holds a Osama bin Laden toy in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province. Photo: CFP By Shen Weihuang When US President Barack Obama announced to the world that the most wanted terrorist in modern history has been killed, public opinion was naturally split along the geopolitical divide with most Westerners celebrating, while many in the Middle East mourned. In China, however, the public's reaction, as measured by a number of unscientific online polls, was split amid concern that Bin Laden's demise might refocus dormant tensions between the US and China. Almost 60 percent of the 500,000 people who took an online survey conducted by Hong Kong based Phoenix television, agreed with the statement that Bin Laden's death was a sad event because "he was an anti-US warrior." Barely 18 percent clicked the statement to indicate they were happy that "the head of terrorism" had been killed, while almost 10 percent of respondents selected the option that indicated they didn't care. Meanwhile, the Chinese government didn't waffle in its support for the killing of Bin Laden. After his death the Chinese Foreign Ministry welcomed the news, saying his death was an "important event" and that terrorists are a public enemy that China opposes terrorism in all its forms. Another online survey posted on the Global Times' Chinese website asked participants whether they thought the US would get tougher on China now that Bin Laden is out of the picture. More than 75 percent of the 17,000 respondents clicked "yes." Other online portals carried irreverent, even virulent discussions relating to Bin Laden's death. A thread on mop.com, one of China's leading online bulletin boards, suggested Bin Laden's death should be revenged by "attacking the most vulnerable parts of the US." [Osama] [China confrontation]
• N.Korea’s Rason Special District could open country to China
  Chinese officials say the project is a step towards openness for N.Korea By Park Min-hee, Beijing Correspondent China is stepping out into the Pacific through the gates of North Korea’s Rason Special District. North Korea, which has been declaring its aim of creating a “strong and prosperous nation by 2012,” is actively welcoming the move from China. A number of sources, including officials with the Jilin Province government in China, reported that a groundbreaking ceremony is to be held on May 30 for a highway linking the North Korea cities of Wonjong and Rason, bordering directly on Quanhe in Hunchun, Jilin Province. A number of leaders from both countries are scheduled to attend the ceremony, which is to take place in Rason (Rajin-Sonbong), North Korea. A Chinese official working on preparations for the project said in a recent interview with the Hankyoreh that the event would be “an occasion for declaring North Korea-China economic cooperation and North Korean openness to the world.” The official added that dozens of officials from the Chinese central government would be attending, including a number of leaders. [SEZ] [Opening] [Rason] [China NK]
• Chinese Stealth fighter could rival US's best: report
  The next generation stealth fighter under development by the Chinese military could rival America's best fighters in speed, stealth and lethality, abc news said Monday, citing a new private report. Details on the Chinese J-20 fighter are scant as the project has been developed under extreme secrecy. But an analysis conducted by the conservative Washington D.C.-based defense policy think tank the Jamestown Foundation based on the little publicly available information concluded that the fighter "will be a high performance stealth aircraft, arguably capable of competing in most cardinal performance parameters... with the United States F-22A Raptor, and superior in most if not all cardinal performance parameters against the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter," abc news said. The F-22 Raptor, which cost the U.S. government $77 billion for 187 planes from defense contracting giant Lockheed Martin, has never seen combat in any of America's three simultaneous major combat operations, but is considered by the Air Force and Lockheed Martin to be a stealth fighter without match, it said. The slightly cheaper F-35, an all purpose stealth fighter being developed by Lockheed Martin for the Air Force, Navy and Marines, is not meant to focus on air-to-air combat like the F-22, but on air-to-ground attacks and is expected to work in tandem with the F-22, abc news said. [Military balance]
• The Chinese can be tough customers for American retailers
  By Keith B. Richburg, Wednesday, May 11, 12:46 AM SHANGHAI — When Mattel decided in March to shutter its massive, pink-themed Barbie flagship store on Shanghai’s fashionable Huaihai Road, it seemed simply that young Chinese girls were not quite ready to embrace the iconic blond American and her active, glamorous lifestyle. But coming just as two other American retail giants, Home Depot and Best Buy, also announced plans to scale back their China ambitions, the demise of the Shanghai Barbie store offers a broader, cautionary tale for U.S. firms looking to profit from China’s rapidly expanding middle class. .Growing consumerism and more sophisticated shopping tastes here offer boundless opportunities for companies looking to cash in, particularly as recession-wary shoppers in the United States and Europe continue to tighten their belts. Many American retailers, such as KFC and Wal-Mart, are growing strongly and expanding rapidly in China. Despite the potential, some firms have found profits here elusive. Analysts said the most successful American retailers in China are those that recognize the complexity of the market and adapt their products to local tastes and preferences. The Chinese are highly discerning consumers, experts say, and what works on Main Street does not always easily translate. [IM]
• U.S., China reach ‘milestone’ agreement on security, economic policy
  By Howard Schneider and Mary Beth Sheridan, Wednesday, May 11, 12:33 PM The United States and China on Tuesday pledged to deepen their cooperation on economic and military matters, setting aside a year of tension over issues such as arms sales to Taiwan and the value of China’s currency with what officials referred to as a “milestone” agreement. Ending two days of high-level talks in Washington, the two sides agreed that their top military leaders would meet regularly in what has been dubbed the “Strategic Security Dialogue.”
• After Osama: China?
  May 10, 2011 · By John Feffer In the war between the United States and al-Qaeda, the big winner is: China. If the killing of Osama bin Laden were a Hollywood murder mystery, the shootout scene in Abbottabad would be followed by the unveiling of the sponsor who arranged for the al-Qaeda safe house. Is it the Pakistani intelligence officer who appears early in the movie to assure his U.S. counterparts that he is fully committed to bringing bin Laden to justice? Is it the Saudi construction magnate who owes several major favors to the bin Laden family? Or perhaps it's the U.S. embassy official who, it might turn out, believes that Osama is more useful alive than dead — until finally, he is useful no longer.
• China, US engage in candid dialogue
  Source: Global Times [01:43 May 10 2011] Comments By Zhu Shanshan High-level talks between the US and China that started on Monday in Washington were unlikely to produce major breakthroughs amid efforts to resolve economic and political disputes, according to analysts who believe that structural conflicts between the two would not disappear in the short term.
• China developing J-18 vertical take-off, landing fighter
  China has reportedly completed test flights of a vertical takeoff and landing fighter surpassing the capabilities of its stealth jet. The state-run CCTV reported that China has been developing a short-takeoff and vertical landing naval fighter optimized for small aircraft carriers Equipped with stealth functions, the J-18 weighs 12,430kgs and has a range of 2,000kms, CCTV quoted a report by Defense News. [Military balance]
• China Tests Helicopter Drone
  China has successfully tested a medium-sized unmanned helicopter with a maximum takeoff weight of 757 kg. Weifang Tianxiang Aerospace Industry conducted a flight test of the helicopter, model number V750, at a facility in Weifang City in Shandong Province on Saturday, the official Xinhua news agency reported Sunday. [Military balance]
• PLA denies rumors of massive cutbacks
  Source: Global Times [02:15 May 09 2011] Comments A H-6K prototype parks in an unidentified airfield. The photo has been widely circulated in online military forums since Friday. Photo: anonymous By Liu Linlin Analysts say the downsizing of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) appears to be a long-term trend, after a senior army officer dismissed online rumors of massive cutbacks to the military. Speculation on the demobilization of 800,000 military personnel began to circulate online after the Ministry of National Defense released a blueprint of China's army's talent pool last month. The speculation claimed that "the size of PLA will be reduced to 1.5 million in 10 years in order to build a high-tech and highly qualified army." The Ministry of National Defense website quoted an anonymous official with the General Staff Headquarters of the PLA as saying that "such rumors are not true" and "China has always controlled the numbers and size of its armed forces within the limit allowed by its national strength and which is necessary to maintain state security." "The current size of the PLA, which numbers 2.3 million, is appropriate," the officer said. China plans to increase its defense spending by 12.7 percent this year to 601 billion yuan ($91.5 billion), a return to double-digit growth after a slowdown in 2010, according to Li Zhaoxing, spokesman for the annual session of China's National People's Congress in
  Photos of a new type of bomber plane, H-6K, which have been widely distributed on military forums since Friday, have triggered a new round of discussions of the growing strike capability of China's air force. [Military balance]
• US-China talks to cover trade deficits, currency rates and human rights concerns
  By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, May 9, 7:43 PM WASHINGTON — America’s massive trade deficit with China, currency rates and human rights concerns will all be on the agenda when top officials from the United States and China sit down for high-level talks this week. The annual meetings will bring together top officials from both countries representing dozens of government agencies in the areas of trade and finance, and foreign policy. Five years and one financial crisis since the United States and China commenced regular high-level economic talks, fast-growing Beijing might have the upper hand Monday, May 9, 2011, in the latest round of discussions between the world’s two biggest economies. While analysts don’t foresee major breakthroughs at the talks Monday and Tuesday, China’s expanding economic might will give it greater leverage now. .While no major breakthroughs are expected, both sides hope to build on the progress made during a state visit by Chinese President Hu Jintao to Washington in January. That visit helped smooth relations that had been strained in 2010 over such issues as U.S. military sales to Taiwan. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke will lead the U.S. team. Both countries will, for the first time, bring top military leaders to the discussions in an effort to defuse military tensions that were heightened last year by the U.S. arms sales. The Chinese team will be led by Vice Premier Wang Qishan, China’s top economic policymaker, and State Counselor Dai Bingguo, a veteran diplomat. [China rising] [Decline]
• Beijing refutes claims of unfair business practice
  Source: Global Times [02:11 May 06 2011] Comments Gary Locke By Li Qian China defended its business environment on Thursday after US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke lodged complaints in that regard, less than a week ahead of the two sides' annual Strategic and Economic Dialogue. "China is committed to its reform and opening-up policy and will continue to build an open and transparent legal environment based on relevant laws and regulations, as well as rules set by the World Trade Organization (WTO) to embrace foreign direct investment (FDI)," Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said, according to the Xinhua News Agency.
• Cross-strait IPR agreement bears fruit
  •Publication Date:05/04/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Meg Chang The Cross-strait Agreement on Intellectual Property Rights Protection and Cooperation that took effect Sept. 12, 2010 has benefited both Taiwanese and mainland Chinese firms, the Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) said May 3. “The accord has seen a flurry of companies apply for priority rights, patents and trademarks across the strait to protect their products,” TIPO Director-General Wang Mei-hua said. Under the landmark pact, Taipei and Beijing have given each other priority rights and fast tracked applications and dispute settlement since late last year, according to Wang. “With the reciprocal granting of right of priority, when firms with presence in both Taiwan and mainland China file a patent application on one side of the strait, they no longer need to worry that their patent will be infringed upon on the other side,” she pointed out. [IPR] [Straits]
• As China Invests, U.S. Could Lose
  By DAVID BARBOZA SHANGHAI — For three decades, wealthy nations have invested hundreds of billions of dollars in China, helping drive one of the most remarkable economic booms in history. Now, China is poised to return the investment favor. The question is whether the United States will be willing and able to fully participate, according to a new study to be released Thursday. Flush with capital from its enormous trade surpluses and armed with the world’s largest foreign exchange reserves, China has begun spreading its newfound riches to every corner of the world — whether copper mines in Africa, iron ore facilities in Australia or even a gas shale project in the heart of Texas. The study, commissioned by the Asia Society in New York and the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars in Washington, forecasts that over the next decade China could invest as much as $2 trillion in overseas companies, plants or property, money that could help reinvigorate growth in the United States and Europe. [ODI] [China riding] [Decline]
• An American Open Door? Maximizing the Benefits of Chinese Foreign Direct Investment
  Asia Society's Special Report An American Open Door? Maximizing the Benefits of Chinese Foreign Direct Investment. Download the full report Download the executive summary Read the press release Read interview findings on Chinese investment in the US Learn about Chinese FDI in the US with an interactive web application Ambassador Locke's response to the report U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke's Speech - May 4, 2011 - COMPLETE TEXT NYTimes coverage CNN Money coverage Wall Street Journal coverage Reuters coverage Bloomberg coverage NEW YORK, May 4, 2011 — Chinese direct investment into the United States is more than doubling annually, with over $5 billion in 2010 alone. A Special Report undertaken by Asia Society’s Center on U.S.-China Relations and the Kissinger Institute on China and the United States at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars provides the most comprehensive study to date of Chinese FDI in the United States and outlines its enormous potential to create economic growth. But it warns that the United States may squander immense opportunities for employment and investment gains through political fear-mongering. [ODI] [China rising] [Decline]
• We want a carrier: GT poll
  Source: Global Times [02:32 May 05 2011] Comments By Zhu Shanshan More than 70 percent of respondents in a Global Times survey supported the idea of the country developing its own aircraft carrier, despite Beijing downplaying the possibility of launching its first such vessel later this year. Support was buoyed by the vessel's capability to shore up China's overall military power, according to the poll, conducted by the newspaper's Global Poll Center, in which 81.3 percent of respondents offered their support for that very reason. Safeguarding territorial integrity and fending off invasions at sea were ranked as the top reasons for China to develop aircraft carriers (77.8 percent), the survey found. [Resurgence] [Military balance]
• Foreign Ministry hails killing of Al Qaeda leader
  Source: Global Times [03:42 May 03 2011] Comments An Afghan man watches televisions featuring news of Osama bin Laden's death on Monday at an electronics shop in Kabul, Afghanistan. Photo: AFP By Li Qian and Hao Zhou The Chinese Foreign Ministry welcomed the death of Osama bin Laden as an "important event and active progress" at Monday night. In response to the announcement by US President Barack Obama on Sunday night local time that US troops had gunned down the leader of Al Qaeda, spokeswoman Jiang Yu called for more cooperation against terrorism. "Terrorism is the public enemy of the world and China has also fallen victim to it," she said. "China opposes all forms of terrorism and actively participates in international counter-terrorism battles." International society should cooperate in fighting terrorism, she said. "We should root out terrorism by eliminating the soil in which terrorism grows." [Separatism]
• China's insatiable thirst for fine wine threatens to burst Bordeaux bubble
  Bordeaux prices are soaring as buyers in Hong Kong develop a taste for the famed French wine Share11 Jamie Doward The Observer, Sunday 1 May 2011 Article history Visitors to the 2010 Hong Kong International Wine and Spirits Fair sample French wine. Photograph: Mike Clarke/AFP/Getty Images It is one of the most hotly debated topics in the world of wine: is the Bordeaux bubble about to burst? The price of one of France's most celebrated wines has soared over the last 12 months as British buyers compete with an increasing number of Chinese oenophiles to snap up the all too precious cases of claret. With the likes of Chris de Burgh and Sir David Frost recently selling their Bordeaux collections for six-figure sums, attention has focused on the top-tier wines such as Château Lafite, cases of which are going for as much as £15,000.
• China says U.S. human rights outcry is interference
  Sat, Apr 9 2011 By Chris Buckley BEIJING | Sun Apr 10, 2011 11:57am EDT BEIJING (Reuters) - The United States is beset by violence, racism and torture and has no authority to condemn other governments' human rights problems, China said on Sunday, countering U.S. criticism of Beijing's crackdown. The row between Beijing and Washington over human rights has intensified since China's ruling Communist Party extended its clampdown on dissidents and rights activists, a move which has sparked an outcry from Washington and other Western governments. [Human rights] [Manipulation] [China confrontation] [Resurgence] [Media]
• Asia Overview: Protecting American Interests in China and Asia
  Kurt M. Campbell Assistant Secretary, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs Testimony Before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific Washington, DC March 31, 2011 Mr. Chairman, Mr. Faleomavaega, and Members of the Subcommittee, thank you very much for inviting me here today to testify about the vital importance of Asia-Pacific countries to the United States and for the opportunity to underscore key aspects of our engagement strategy for the region. I want to also use this opportunity to underscore the United States’ unwavering commitment to Japan. [US global strategy] [US Japan alliance][China confrontation]
• China won't pass the U.S. anytime soon
  Posted By Clyde Prestowitz Thursday, April 28, 2011 - 7:57 PM There has been a lot of commentary recently on the International Monetary Fund's (IMF) projection of China's GDP passing that of the United States to become the world's largest by 2016. That only proves the adage that "there are lies, damn lies, and statistics." The IMF number that has gotten such attention is the Chinese GDP as calculated based on purchasing power parity (PPP) numbers. If this sounds like gobbledygook, it kind of is. On the one hand, it is a useful calculation to make certain international comparisons with regard to standards of living. So for example, if you make only $2000 annually but your food costs only $200, you may be better off than someone in another country who makes $20,000 annually but who has to pay $10,000 for food. Or maybe the food comparison is not apt because diets differ between countries. In the Americas, potatoes tend to be inexpensive and serve as a main form of starch in the average diet. In Asia, potatoes tend to be expensive. So if you compare how many potatoes one can buy with a certain income in the Americas to how many one can buy with the same income in Asia, the Asians will appear to be poorer and to have a lower standard of living than the Americans. But Asians don't eat potatoes as their main form of starch. They eat rice, and rice in Asia tends to be inexpensive. So a better standard of living comparison is between how much rice an Asian can buy with a certain income as against how many potatoes an American can by with the same income. [China rising] [Decline]
• What's wrong with China becoming Afghanistan's main patron?
  Posted By Steve LeVine Wednesday, April 27, 2011 - 1:26 PM Share We are hearing that Pakistan has urged Afghan President Hamid Karzai to turn away from the United States, and embrace China as his country's chief big-power patron. Is that a wacky idea? The answer is no. As we've observed with the flow of oil and natural gas from Central Asia, an active Big China serves U.S. and western interests when it comes to this particular region. Let's start with the Wall Street Journal report. Eleven days ago, according to WSJ's Matthew Rosenberg, Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani collared Karzai in Kabul, and suggested that the United States is an unreliable partner. Afghanistan would be better served, Gilani said, by throwing his lot in with Pakistan and its own "all-weather" friend, China. Rosenberg reckons he was leaked the details of the meeting as part of an internal Afghan government political struggle (i.e., the debate over who will be its latest Great Game favorite). U.S. officials with whom he spoke think similarly, and dismiss the talk of a leading Chinese role as "fanciful at best." If the U.S. officials mean fanciful because Beijing is unlikely to willingly be sucked into Afghanistan, they may be right. But Washington ought to encourage China to think about it. In terms of U.S. and western interests, there is much to gain, and no downside, to a paramount Chinese role there. Read on to the jump for why. [China rising] [Bizarre] [US global strategy]
• Transfer of Management Rights to Chinese Investment Companies within North Korea
  Date 2011.04.05 Attach NK Brief (11-04-05).docx The trade volume and economic cooperation between China and the DPRK are on the rise. The trade environment for Chinese investment in North Korea has also changed.
  Currently in the DPRK, there are about 200 Chinese companies in operation and more than 70 percent of these companies are concentrated around the cities of Rajin and Sonbong. China has pursued economic cooperation with the DPRK based on the four principles of state-ownership, corporate-centeredness, market-management, and mutual benefit. In the past, China persuaded North Korea with various joint venture projects arguing that, “You have nothing to lose from these projects. Although it’s based on market principles, ultimately it’s beneficial for both parties.” North Korea on the other hand maintained the stance, “You (China) invest and we will manage,” holding on to management rights of these companies. However, for this very reason Chinese companies were reluctant to directly invest in North Korea. Even after contracts were signed, large -scale investment did not transpire due to poor management. [China NK] [FDI]
• 'US To Recoup Libya Oil From China'
  Interview with Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, former assistant secretary of US Treasury by Dr. Paul Craig Roberts Global Research, April 17, 2011 Press TV Press TV has interviewed Dr. Paul Craig Roberts, former assistant secretary of US Treasury from Panama City, who gives his insight on the revolution in Libya and why US President Barack Obama needs to overthrow Qaddafi when no other US presidents did. Press TV: Russia has criticized NATO for going far beyond its UN mandate. In other news a joint Op Ed is going to be written by Obama, Cameron and Sarkozy who have said that “leaving Qaddafi in power would be an unconscionable betrayal to the Libyan people”. We do know that the mandate does not call for regime change; the Obama administration has been saying they are not in there for regime change; but things seem a little different now don't they? Roberts: Yes they do. First of all, notice that the protests in Libya are different from the ones in Egypt or Yemen or Bahrain or Tunisia and the difference is that this is an armed rebellion. There are more differences: another is that these protests originated in the eastern part of Libya where the oil is - they did not originate in the capital city. And we have heard from the beginning credible reports that the CIA is involved in the protests, and there have been a large number of press reports that the CIA has sent back to Libya its Libyan asset to head up the Libyan rebellion. In my opinion, what this is about is to eliminate China from the Mediterranean. China has extensive energy investments and construction investments in Libya. They are looking to Africa as a future energy source. The US is countering this by organizing the United States African Command (USAC), which Qaddafi refused to join. So that's the second reason for the Americans to want Qaddafi out. And the third reason is that Libya controls part of the Mediterranean coast and it's not in American hands. Press TV: Who are the revolutionaries. The US say they don't know who they're dealing with, but considering the CIA is on the ground in contact with revolutionaries - Who are the people under whom Libya will function in any post-Qaddafi era? Roberts: Whether or not Libya functions under “revolutionaries” depends if the CIA wins - we don't know that yet. As you said earlier, the UN resolution puts constraints on what the European and American forces can achieve in Libya. They can have a no fly zone, but they are not supposed to be in there fighting together with the rebels. But of course the CIA is. So we do have these violations of the UN resolution. If NATO, which is now the cover for the “world community,” succeeds in overthrowing Qaddafi, the next target will be Syria. Syria has already been demonized. Why are they targeting Syria? - Because the Russians have a very large naval base in Syria. And it gives the Russian navy a presence in the Mediterranean; the US and NATO do not want that. If there is success in overthrowing Qaddafi, Syria is next. Already, they are blaming Iran for Syria and Libya. Iran is a major target because it is an independent state that is not a puppet of the Western colonialists. Press TV: With regards to the expansionist agenda of the West, when the UN mandate on Libya was debated in the UN Security Council, Russia did not veto it. Surely Russia must see this expansionist policy of the US, France and Britain. Roberts: Yes they must see that; and the same for China. It's a greater threat to China because it has 50 major investment projects in eastern Libya. So the question is why did Russia and China abstain rather than veto and block? We don't know the answer. Possibly the countries are thinking to let the Americans get further over- extended, or they may not have wanted to confront the US with a military or diplomatic position and have an onslaught of Western propaganda against them. We don't know the reasons, but we know they did abstain because they did not agree with the policy, and they continue to criticize it. Press TV: A sizeable portion of Qaddafi's assets have been frozen in the US as well as some other countries. We also know that the Libyan revolutionaries have set up a central bank and that they have started limited production of oil and they are dealing with American and other Western firms. It begs the question that we've never seen something like this happen in the middle of a revolution. Don't you find that bizarre? Roberts: Yes it's very bizarre and very suggestive. It brings back the fact of all the reports that the CIA is the originator of this so-called revolt and protest and is fomenting it and controlling it in a way that excludes China from its own Libyan oil investments. In my opinion, what is going on is comparable to what the US and Britain did to Japan in the 1930s. When they cut Japan off from oil, from rubber, from minerals; that was the origin of World War II in the pacific. And now the Americans and the British are doing the same thing to China. The difference is that China has nuclear weapons and it also has a stronger economy than do the Americans. And so the Americans are taking a very high risk not only with themselves, but with the rest of the world. The entire world is now at stake on American over-reach; American hubris - the drive for American hegemony over the world is driving the rest of the world into a World War. Press TV: In the context of America's expansionist policies, how far do you think the US will stretch beyond the UN mandate? Are we going to see boots on the ground?
  He (Qaddafi) was never before called a brutal dictator that has to be removed. No other president has ever said Qaddafi has to go. Not even Ronald Reagan who actually bombed Qaddafi's compound. But all of a sudden he has to go. Why? Because he's blocking the US African Command, he controls part of the Mediterranean and he has let China in to find its energy needs for the future. Washington is trying to cripple its main rival, China, by denying China energy. That's what this is really about; a reaction by the US to China’s penetration of Africa. [Libya] [China confrontation] [UNUS] [Syria]

• Crisis looms as population growth slows
  Source: Global Times [01:46 April 29 2011] Comments Ma Jiantang (C), director of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), receives questions at a press conference in Beijing, capital of China, April 28, 2011. China's population has increased to 1.37 billion, including 1.3397 billion on the mainland, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said Thursday. The new population figure for the Chinese mainland was 73.9 million more than that of 2000, when China conducted its fifth national census, according to data from the sixth census released by the NBS. The census data shows an annual average population growth of 0.57 percent over the past decade (2000-2010) on the Chinese mainland, slower than the growth rate of 1.07 percent from 1990 to 2000. Photo:Xinhua By Huang Jingjing China's family-planning policy has been effective in curbing its population growth, but problems such as an aging population and gender ratio imbalance are reaching an alarming stage, threatening the development of the world's No. 2 economy. According to census data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Thursday, the country's population reached 1.37 billion in 2010, including 1.3397 billion on the mainland. The figure marked a 73.9 million increase over ten years ago, but the annual average population growth over the past decade dropped to 0.57 percent from 1.07 percent between 1990 and 2000. "The rate indicated the rapid growth of our population has been controlled effectively thanks to the family-planning policy that started in 1980," Ma Jiantang, director of the NBS, said at a press conference, according to the Xinhua News Agency. However, he placed greater emphasis on three major challenges that were shown from the census data – the upward aging population trend, an expanding floating population and the skewed gender ratio among newborns. [Ageing society]
• China Reiterates Call for Peaceful Solution to Korean Peninsula Issue
  Beijing, April 26 (KCNA) -- China reiterated its call for dialogues and consultations to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said at a press conference held in Beijing on April 26, stressing that peaceful approaches are the only effective way to handle the issue. Hong confirmed that former U.S. President Jimmy Carter and his party stopped in Beijing en route to Pyongyang. Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met with Carter and his party, Hong said, Both sides exchanged views on the issues of mutual concern including the situation of the Korean Peninsula. China appreciates dialogues initiated by the parties involved, including the United States and the DPRK, Hong said, expressing the hope that these initiatives will eventually result in the resumption of the six-party talks. It conforms with the common interests in this region to defend peace and stability in the peninsula, promote denuclearization and realize the normalization of relations of the countries concerned, Hong noted. We consider that all parties concerned should settle disputes in a peaceful way through dialogue and negotiations under the present situation and this is the only effective way to handle the issue of the peninsula, Hong said. "Concerned parties should use their flexibility, actively interact with each other and resume dialogues and consultations at an early date," Hong said, urging concerned parties to make joint efforts to send the situation on the peninsula "in a good direction". China will continue to work with concerned parties and play a constructive role in helping restore peace and stability on the peninsula, Hong said. [Peace efforts]
• China Releases Details on Aid to N.Korea
  China said that North Korea has been at the forefront of its international foreign aid efforts which it has been carrying out for the past 60 years. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, China's Vice Commerce Minister Fu Ziying spoke in detail for the first time about the aid his country has given to the North. He said that China helped to build Pyongyang's public infrastructure such as its subway system, but he emphasized that no cash aid has been given. Beijing issued a white paper last week that outlines its foreign aid policy to Africa and Asia.
• Chinese elite face curbs on US visas
  By Jamil Anderlini in Beijing and Richard McGregor in Washington Published: April 26 2011 19:12 | Last updated: April 26 2011 19:12 The US government may make it more difficult for China’s ruling elite and their families to receive visas following a series of diplomatic snubs by the Chinese government, according to US officials. Beijing cancelled several bilateral academic and cultural programmes hosted by the US after Jon Huntsman, Washington’s outgoing ambassador, was photographed in February in the capital near where anonymous internet users had called for a demonstration to support a “jasmine revolution” in China. .While the calls for an uprising along the lines of the Arab spring largely went unheeded, Beijing launched what human rights groups have called the most severe crackdown on dissidents in more than a decade. Several people familiar with the matter said the ruling Communist party had also ordered provincial bosses to cancel meetings with Mr Huntsman over the past two months. The snubs have prompted the US to consider counter measures, including a review of the system for granting expedited visas to senior Chinese officials and their families. “Given the current climate of cancelled meetings and cancelled US-funded programmes in China, we are reviewing our procedures for approving visas for Chinese officials and their families,” said one US official. The Chinese crackdown has affected negotiations to set the agenda for the two countries’ twice-yearly strategic dialogue in early May in Washington. Until now, Washington has informally allowed the Chinese foreign ministry to nominate people for expedited visas through a “courtesy channel”. Those nominated include diplomats, senior officials, executives of state enterprises, journalists from state media and children of party leaders. Many of China’s senior leaders send their children to study at Ivy League universities, including the daughter of vice-president Xi Jinping, expected to be confirmed as head of the Communist party and president of China next year. She is enrolled under a pseudonym at Harvard University, according to faculty and US officials. Bo Guagua, son of Politburo member Bo Xilai, is at Harvard, as is Chen Xiaodan, whose father, Chen Yuan, is chairman of the China Development Bank. In his final speech as ambassador this month, Mr Huntsman made pointed comments about Beijing’s reaction to perceived US slights, saying “cancelling meetings as a sign of displeasure will not encourage greater respect for each other’s views”. “We cannot move forward if, when differences emerge, only one of us is fully committed and fully engaged,” he said. The US state department said: “US embassies and consulates process visas following strict criteria and in accordance with US law. The US continues to work in China, as in any host country, to ensure that the visa process functions smoothly.” [China confrontation] [Subcritical]
• China's foreign aid comes with 'no strings attached'
  Source: Global Times [04:50 April 27 2011] Comments By Liu Linlin While China's booming economy has allowed it to become a major provider of aid to other countries, analysts warned that Beijing needs to adjust its foreign aid policy to fit the fast-changing world. At a press briefing on Tuesday, Vice Minister of Commerce Fu Ziying outlined the White Paper on China's Foreign Aid released by the State Council Information Office. "China does not attach any political strings to its aid. Our foreign aid programs are based on the principles of equality, mutual benefit and mutual development," Fu said. "Many developing countries lack hospitals and roads. Our aid is concentrated on sectors where they need it most." According to the white paper, by the end of 2009, China had provided 256.29 billion yuan ($39.27 billion) in aid to foreign countries, including 106.2 billion yuan in grants, 76.54 billion yuan in interest-free loans and 73.55 billion yuan in concession loans. The aid went to 161 countries and more than 30 international and regional organizations. Since 2004, the country's budgeted foreign aid has increased at an annual rate of 29.4 percent. Yin Jiwu, a professor from the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at Beijing Foreign Studies University, said that unconditional aid does not always result in a win-win situation. According to The Economist, although China deserves credit for helping millions of Africans, its unconditional aid may indirectly facilitate corruption in the region, resulting in faulty projects that in turn damage China's image. The lack of transparency in aid deals between African countries and Beijing also helps embezzlers and fuels suspicion, the magazine added. Pang Zhongying, a professor at the School of International Studies of the Renmin University of China, told the Global Times that it is time for China to attach conditions to its aid. [Aid] [Aid weapon]
• China unveils rival to International Space Station
  Less than a decade ago, it fired its first human being into orbit. Now, Beijing is working on a multi-capsule outpost in space. But what is the political message of the Tiangong 'heavenly palace'? Share113 Tania Branigan in Beijing and Ian Sample guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 26 April 2011 19.02 BST Article history Visitors to the Airshow China exhibition look at a model of the Tiangong-1 space station. Photograph: Ranwen/Imaginechina China laid out plans for its future in space yesterday, unveiling details of an ambitious new space station to be built in orbit within a decade. The project, which one Nasa adviser describes as a "potent political symbol", is the latest phase in China's rapidly developing space programme. It is less than a decade since China put a human into orbit for the first time, and three years since its first spacewalk. The space station will weigh around 60 tonnes and consist of a core module with two laboratory units for experiments, according to the state news agency, Xinhua. Officials have asked the public to suggest names and symbols for the unit and for a cargo spacecraft that will serve it. [China rising]
• Taiwan pool player says citizenship change was a career move
  2011/04/21 20:08:51 Taipei, April 21 (CNA) Taiwan's top pool player Wu Chia-ching, who has changed his nationality to compete under the China flag, said Thursday that the decision was a career move and people should not look at it in a political light. [Straits]
• The Eagle and the Dragon in the Land of Sandalwood: US and China Build Soft Power in Timor-Leste
  By Loro Horta Apr 20, 2011 After 400 years of inept Portuguese colonial rule and 24 years of brutal Indonesian occupation, Timor-Leste (formerly East Timor) gained its independence in 2002 following a UN-sponsored referendum. Since then, the small territory has witnessed an intense competition between the United States and the People’s Republic of China. While Timor-Leste has not been considered as strategically important for either country, both see their presence in the territory as a barometer for their global competition. A US Defense Department official noted: “If we cannot maintain a respectful presence in Timor where we have the support of two of our oldest allies, Australia and Portugal, how can we expect to do so in much more difficult places? This is embarrassing.” [Softpower] [China rising] [China confrontation]
• UMC honorary chair's change of nationality to not affect operations
  2011/04/22 20:04:31 Taipei, April 22 (CNA) The United Microelectronics Corp. (UMC) , the world's second largest contract chip maker, said Friday that its honorary chairman's change of nationality would not affect the company's operations. Reports emerged Friday that Robert Tsao, the company's founder and former chairman, gave up his Republic of China citizenship and obtained Singapore nationality in January. Tsao apparently changed his nationality because he was disgruntled over his lengthy legal tribulations brought on by the semiconductor [Straits]
• Frequent Change of Envoys to China Is Bad Diplomacy
  Former ambassador to Russia Lee Kyu-hyung has been appointed as the next ambassador to China, replacing Yoo Wu-ik. Lee is already the third ambassador to China since the Lee Myung-bak administration was launched in 2008. Yoo served as Seoul’s envoy for just a year and four months, while his predecessor Shin Jung-seung served for a year and eight months. For a diplomat, a year can pass simply with presenting credentials and going through the rounds shaking hands with key political, economic, social and cultural figures of the host country. Of course advances in communications technology mean governments can contact their foreign counterparts directly without the delays their ambassadors in those countries suffer, and times have changed since ambassadors had to make crucial decisions on their own due to difficulties in contacting their own governments speedily. Nonetheless, these envoys continue to play an important symbolic role and their activities and decisions remain crucial in foreign policy. As a result, ambassadors to major countries are usually carefully chosen and steps are taken to ensure their tenure runs smoothly. From that perspective, the frequent changes in ambassadors to China go against all basic principles. Korea's diplomatic ties with China are as vital as its ties with the U.S. in terms of security and business. Rumor has it that the Lee administration’s first ambassador to China was not even able to present his credentials on time due to his weak diplomatic track record. Lee therefore dispatched a chief presidential secretary and key aide to the post. But that official showed little interest in the job, going to the U.S. to attend an academic forum at the height of the crisis surrounding the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan, when Seoul-Beijing relations were being put to a serious test. This is one reason the government has been unable to gauge China's reactions to North Korea's provocations last year and ended up making the wrong moves. [SK China] [China confrontation]
• China’s first report on foreign aid cites positive impact as it becomes a bigger donor
  BEIJING — China defended its often-criticized role as a foreign aid donor Thursday, saying its assistance boosts developing countries and provides an alternative to Western donors who impose more conditions on recipients. China said its rise as an aid donor is a good development at a time when the global financial crisis is straining most other countries’ spending. Its budgeted foreign aid has swelled nearly 30 percent a year since 2004, and from the first year of the Communist government in 1950 through 2009 has totaled 256.2 billion yuan ($39.2 billion), the State Council Information Office said in the report, its first on the subject. .“Over the years, while focusing on its own development, China has been providing aid to the best of its ability to other developing countries with economic difficulties, and fulfilling its due international obligations,” the report said. The gathering pace of Chinese aid is evident in many corners of the developing world. [China rising] [Aid]
• After 11-year hiatus, ROC marines to return to South China Sea: CGA
  2011/04/18 21:56:53 Taipei, April 18 (CNA) Taiwan will soon replace army soldiers stationed on remote islands in the South China Sea with marines as regional tensions simmer over the area's disputed territories, the Coast Guard Administration (CGA) said Monday. Six countries -- Taiwan, China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines -- claim all or part of the 3.5 million-square-kilometer sea and its Spratly, Paracel and Pratas (or [Territorial disputes]
• ROC reaffirms sovereignty over South China Sea islands
  •Publication Date:04/18/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Elaine Hou The ROC government has reaffirmed its sovereignty over four island groups in the South China Sea following recent international disputes in the region, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The ROC has unquestionable sovereignty over the Dongsha, Nansha, Xisha and Zhongsha islands and their surrounding waters, from the perspectives of history, geography and international law,” MOFA said in an April 17 statement. The ROC cannot accept any counterclaim to sovereignty over, or occupation of, these areas, the ministry added. MOFA’s comments follow last month’s clash between a Philippine oil-exploration vessel and two mainland Chinese patrol boats in the South China Sea. The region, which is rich in oil deposits and marine biodiversity, is claimed either entirely or in part by Brunei, mainland China, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. =160328&ctNode=452&mp=9 [Territorial disputes]
• US primacy did not account for China
  April 15th, 2011 Author: Raoul Heinrichs, ANU In 500 years or so, when the next Paul Kennedy sets out to trace the rise and fall of great powers since the end of the Cold War, a good part of the opening chapter might well be devoted to the contradictions of US primacy. There’ll be plenty to choose from. But perhaps the most vexing, and certainly the most consequential, is the way that US primacy — an order built on the indomitable power of the US and designed to entrench American dominance — facilitated the rise of a powerful and dissatisfied China, a peer competitor whose growing power would threaten the foundations of US primacy itself. [China confrontation] [US China][Decline
• Chinese dissident denies getting personal funds from ex-president
  2011/04/17 15:33:48 Taipei, April 17 (CNA) Chinese dissident Wang Dan has dismissed media reports that US$400,000 he received in subsidies from the Taiwan government came out of the personal pocket of jailed former President Chen Shui-bian. On his Facebook page, Wang blasted CNA and other news media on Saturday for misleading the public by reporting that he made the admission during a Taiwan High Court session investigating Chen and his family for allegedly embezzling money from the state affairs fund. In response, CNA spokeswoman Wu Shu-jou said the report was handled in line with professional journalism. In an interview with CNA later Saturday, Wang said he could not elaborate on the subsidies issue due to the court's confidentiality requirement. However, he did say that the money was financial support given to Chinese democracy activists by the Taiwan government during Chen's 2000-2008 administration. Wang had posted previously on his Facebook page that if the money had come from Chen's personal pocket, he "would not have considered accepting it" at the time. He noted that Chinese dissidents welcome political donations that are from legitimate sources and that set no conditions. Chen and his wife, Wu Shu-jen, are accused of stealing over NT$100 million (US$3.45 million) from the state affairs fund when Chen was in office. In his defense, Chen has argued that parts of the fund were used to finance Chinese activists, including Wang, in Taiwan's efforts to spread democracy to China. [Subversion]
• China Showers Kim Jong-un with Invitations
  Senior Chinese officials on four occasions invited North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's son and heir Jong-un to China during recent visits to Pyongyang, the National Intelligence Service says. The NIS officials were quoted by members of the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee as briefing them on Monday. NIS Director Won Sei-hoon said the invitations "weren't written but verbal, but they appear to be considered official invitations."
• US Supreme Court rejects Uyghurs' appeal
  Source: Global Times [02:47 April 19 2011] Comments The US Supreme Court on Monday rejected an appeal by five Chinese Uyghurs protesting their detention at Guantanamo. The prisoners are among a group of 21 men belonging to the minority Uyghur Muslims who ended up in Afghanistan in 2001 but were cleared by the Bush and Obama administrations of all charges of terrorism. In a brief statement, the court said "petitioners have received two offers of resettlement in countries (including Palau) the US determined ‘appropriate,'" although the five detainees are known to have rejected resettlement in Palau." "These offers, the lack of any meaningful challenge as to their appropriateness, and the government's uncontested commitment to continue to work to resettle petitioners, transform the petitioners' claim," the statement said. China has said the detainees were suspected members of the "East Turkistan Islamic Movement," listed as a terrorist group by the UN Security Council, and should be dealt with by China. [Terrorism] [China confrontation] [Separatism]
• India 'worries too much' about China's railway
  Source: Global Times [03:07 April 18 2011] Comments By Jia Cheng A Chinese analyst said on Sunday that India often looks at economic and development issues merely from the perspective of security, after Indian media reported that the government was worried about China's extension of its railway network. The Times of India reported on Sunday that China's decision to extend its railway network from Lhasa to Xigaze, the second-largest city in the southwestern Tibet Autonomous Region, had caused concern in the Indian government, as the network is likely to reduce Nepal's dependence on India. Also, an extension of the railway network up to Kathmandu could also help Nepal import gasoline products directly from China. The report cited an Indian Railway Board official as saying that China has been implementing a feasibility study to lay new tracks from Xigaze to Nyalam. The distance from Nyalam to Kathmandu is about 120 kilometers. Fu Xiaoqiang, an expert on Indian issues at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times that India always approaches economic issues from a security perspective, adding that all engagements and interactions between China and counties in South Asia are viewed as strategic threats. [China confrontation] [China India] [Railways]
• Markets to favor foreign exporters
  Source: Global Times [01:06 April 16 2011] Comments Chinese President Hu Jintao delivers a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the 2011 annual meeting of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) in Boao, south China's Hainan Province, April 15, 2011. Photo: Xinhua By Chen Yang in Boao and Li Qian in Beijing China will boost domestic consumption in the next five years to give momentum to the economy and will continue to be an attractive export market for foreign enterprises, Chinese President Hu Jintao promised at the ongoing Boao Forum for Asia (BFA). In a keynote speech Friday at the four-day forum that opened Wednesday, Hu said China will allow more imports in order to improve the country's economic structure and trade balance, providing a great opportunity for foreign exporters. "As the trend toward multipolarity and economic globalization deepens, the people of Asia have the major task of maintaining both development and stability," Hu told the annual forum held in Boao, a holiday resort in China's tropical island of Hainan Province. More than 1,400 domestic and international dignities, business leaders and journalists participated in this year's conference. [Domestic demand]
• Taiwan's donations to quake-stricken Japan top world: magazine
  2011/04/15 20:58:35 Tokyo, April 15 (CNA) Taiwan has donated more money to earthquake-stricken Japan than any other country or region in the world, surprising the Japanese and making them realize Taiwan was a true friend, a Japanese magazine reported in its latest issue.
• 'China Tells Kim Jong-un to Take a Plane, Not a Train'
  Beijing has apparently asked North Korean heir apparent Kim Jong-un to fly on his next visit to China instead of using a train like his father. Diplomatic sources on Wednesday said China feels a rail trip would make it very difficult to protect him. China has suffered headaches closing off roads and railways due to Kim senior's bizarre habit of travelling abroad only by special armored train. The border crossing alone would attract hordes of foreign journalists and armies of flunkies, and Chinese citizens posted complaints on the Internet about the inconvenience of the traffic disruptions along the way.
• Region sees China aircraft carrier as symbolic of shifting military balance: US Pacific chief
  WASHINGTON — China’s first aircraft carrier could begin sea trials as early as this summer and its deployment would significantly change the perception of the balance of power in the region, the chief of U.S. forces in the Pacific said Tuesday. ? China bought the vessel from Ukraine more than a decade ago, and it is viewed as emblematic of the communist state’s ambition to be a military power that can challenge America’s decades-long supremacy in the west Pacific. China’s state news agency this month carried photos of the carrier in what it said was the final stages of reconstruction. “Based on the feedback from our partners and allies in the Pacific, I think the change in perception by the region will be significant,” Adm. Robert Willard told the Senate Armed Services Committee. Willard also noted the “remarkable growth” of China’s military. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• China Seeks Heft for 'BRICS'
  Emerging Bloc Adds South Africa, but Building Unified Platform Will Be Tough. By OWEN FLETCHER BEIJING—China this week will host a summit of leaders from the so-called BRICS countries as it looks to boost the group's profile as a platform for emerging economies to gain stronger leverage over more advanced countries. .The meeting is the first of its kind to include South Africa as well as Brazil, Russia, India and China, a group that could band together to push for international financial reforms favoring developing countries. The summit, which coincides with meetings of the International Monetary Fund in Washington this week, is set to discuss global financial and economic issues like commodity-price fluctuations—a topic on which China hopes the countries can reach a common position before a Group of 20 summit in Cannes, France, in November. A joint position on such economic issues could boost the BRICS countries' joint heft in G-20 talks as the larger group debates how to address global economic imbalances.
• Forces Regrouped in World Politics?
  12.04.2011 Andrei Volodin, political scientist, PhD(History), professor The BRICS summit will convene in China's Sanya beach resort on April 14. For the first time in the alliance's relatively short history, South Africa will participate in the forum as a member along with Brazil, Russia, India, and China, while the disquieting political settings of the early 2011 reinforce the world's interest in the coming talks between the leaders of the emerging economic heavyweights. It is clear that the revolutionary tide in North Africa and the Middle East and particularly the international intervention in Libya invite resolute steps aimed at rebuilding the international security. Importantly, at the moment all of the five BRICS countries are represented in the UN Security Council. The recent dialog between China's and Germany's diplomacy chiefs showed that both countries are keenly interested in having the conflict in and around Libya resolved as soon as possible. Beijing's logic is to give a role in the process to the African Union whose countries - in part due to the concern that Libya's falling apart would trigger a domino effect across the continent - share the view that any damage to Libya's sovereignty and territorial integrity would be unacceptable. [Realignment]
• China slams US' rights record
  Source: Global Times [05:34 April 12 2011] Comments By Gao Xiaohui China published its report on the US' human rights record Sunday, showing violent and discriminatory elements present in the US. This report ran counter to the US' latest report slamming Chinese human rights. Focusing on six aspects of social conditions in the US, the report is the 11th such annual review published by the State Council Information Office. It comes as a rebuttal to an annual US paper that highlights human rights situations around the world. The Chinese report describes violations of civil and political rights in the US, as well as examples of racial discrimination and of poor women and children's rights. On the international scene, it depicts US violations of human rights in other nations. [human rights] [Resurgence]
• China reveals surge in exports
  By Patti Waldmeir in Shanghai Published: April 10 2011 13:59 | Last updated: April 10 2011 17:20 China on Sunday announced an unexpected surge in March exports, signalling strong global demand despite the Japanese earthquake and high global oil prices. On a quarterly basis, China recorded its first trade deficit since 2004 in the first quarter, the General Administration of Customs said. The first quarter trade deficit of $1.02bn reflected domestic economic strength and rising commodity prices, analysts said. But Zheng Yuesheng, statistics chief with the customs administration, told state television that the first-quarter deficit was likely to be only “temporary”. And a late surge in exports – which rose 35.8 per cent year on year in March – boosted the trade balance narrowly into positive territory for March, with a $140m surplus. China’s trade figures come at a time when analysts are assessing the impact of the Japanese disaster on the global economy. “The stronger than expected export numbers demonstrated the resilience of external demand in March, for now shrugging off the impact of the Japanese earthquake and surging global oil prices,” says Qu Hongbin of HSBC in Hong Kong. [Trade] [Domestic demand]
• Region on Edge as China Readies to Launch Aircraft Carrier
  China's neighbors are on edge as the world's most populous country gets ready to launch its first aircraft carrier. The ship is expected to be deployed for warfare-ready in the South China or East China seas. Japan and Vietnam, which have territorial disputes with China in those areas, are busy working out defenses. Last year, Japan formulated new defense guidelines in favor of increasing the number of large submarines, and Vietnam bought six subs from Russia. [China confrontation] [Territorial disputes] [Military balance]
• China and the US: Access denied
  By Kathrin Hille, Stephanie Kirchgaessner and Paul Taylor Published: April 7 2011 22:01 | Last updated: April 7 2011 22:01 Closed off: Huawei’s failed attempts to enter the US have prompted Ren Zhengfei, chief executive, to develop a new strategy for a market that served as his original role model [China confrontation] [Protectionism][Double standards] [Imperialism]
• Lee Kwan Yew Says China Has Much Catching Up to Do
  Lee Kwan Yew (file photo) Singapore's founding leader Lee Kwan Yew predicts that it would take China at least 20 years to become a technology powerhouse. In an interview in the latest issue of U.S. magazine Business Week, Lee said China is "still behind the U.S. They have to put up a stealth fighter, put a man into space. That's a prodigious effort on their part." Despite being the world's second-largest economy, Lee said China lacks global clout since it "hasn't got a worldwide interest. She only concentrates on those areas where she needs oil and other resources." He downplayed fears of a stand-off between the U.S. and China. "I don't think there will be a face-off in the sense of a conflict. A struggle for influence, yes. I think it will be subdued because the Chinese need the U.S," said Lee, "The Chinese need U.S. markets, need U.S. technology, and need to have students go to the U.S. and study, then start doing business so that they can improve their lot. All that information and all the technological capabilities will be cut off from them." [China rising] [US China]
• China consumer goods: Left on the shelf
  By Louise Lucas Published: April 4 2011 20:52 | Last updated: April 4 2011 20:52 A supermarket in the north-western city of Yinchuan. With the spread of prosperity, western as well as local branded products are increasingly available across China Hair damp and skin aglow, women stream out of a nondescript Communist party-owned block in a drowsy Shanghai neighbourhood (sic) where the most colourful attraction appears to be the Disney-branded English lessons on offer on the building’s lower floors. [Domestic demand]
• US calculations on the F-16s sale to Taiwan
  March 18th, 2011 Author: Sheryn Lee, ANU On 25 January, Taiwanese President Ma Ying-jeou revived calls for the purchase of the latest F-16C/D Fighting Falcon jet fighters from the United States, stating that it was crucial for the survival of Taiwan’s sovereignty. Despite the Obama administration’s apparent commitment to the 1979 Taiwan Relations Act, Washington has deferred sale of the upgraded fighters since Taiwan first formally requested 66 of them in early 2007. [Arms sales] [Straits] [China confrontation]
• Taiwan’s Bureau of Foreign Trade lauds ECFA
  •Publication Date:03/31/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Meg Chang The benefits of the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement have begun being realized in the form of increased trade activity across the Taiwan Strait, Cho Shih-chao, director-general of the Bureau of Foreign Trade, said March 30. “Taiwan’s exports to mainland China climbed 17.2 percent to US$18.94 billion in 2010, while imports from the other side advanced 30.4 percent to US$6.48 billion,” Cho said. “This encouraging state of affairs resulted in a record-high trade surplus of US$12.46 billion.” [FTA]
• How far will China's navy reach?
  Graham Ong-Webb, 16 March 2011 Subjects:Chinachina China's growing naval prowess is not so much an exercise in belligerence but an effort to shake off the shackles that have long confined its strategic reach. Nevertheless, there is reason for concern: Any China-related military conflict is most likely to be triggered and fought at sea. About the authorDr Graham Ong-Webb is a Managing Editor with IHS Jane's. He holds a PhD from the Department of War Studies, King's College London.Often discussed in the same breath as the country's economic rise, China's military modernization is nothing new. However, the specific issue of the country's naval development has gained critical currency only in the last few years. Last year alone saw a flurry of media reports and discussion pieces on the subject. A recent editorial in The New York Times highlighted what it saw as China's intention to challenge US naval supremacy in the Western Pacific, its aggressive pursuit of the disputed offshore islands in the East and South China Seas and how "Washington must respond, carefully but firmly." [China confrontation] [US China] [Military balance]
• Taiwan aims at higher growth for green product exports
  2011/03/23 18:06:42 Taipei, March 23 (CNA) A Green Trade Project Office was established Wednesday as part of the government's effort to promote the country's green products and improve its image in the global green trade sector, according to the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA). [Green] [IM]

• Chiayi City launches drive for age-friendly living
  •Publication Date:03/28/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Elaine Hou Chiayi City Government kicked off an age-friendly living campaign March 26 as part of efforts to become the first metropolis in Taiwan to gain membership of the World Health Organization’s Global Network of Age-friendly cites. [Ageing society]
• China-Korea Culture Wars and National Myths: TV Dramas as Battleground
  Robert Y. Eng China and Korea have been engaged in a culture war in recent years, contesting issues of national identity, historical territorial claims, and cultural heritage. The single most inflammatory topic in this culture war is conflicting interpretations of the history of Goguryeo (Koguryo ???) (37 BCE-668 CE), which ruled large areas in present-day Northeast China and Northern Korea, and constituted one of the Three Kingdoms in Korean history, along with Baekje (Paekche ??) (18 BCE - 660 CE) and Silla (??) (57 BCE - 935 CE) (Figs. 1 and 2).1 North and South Koreans consider Goguryeo to be a key foundation state of their history. They are therefore angered by Chinese claims that the "various tribes that inhabited Koguryo [were] ... among the many minorities that were eventually absorbed into "Greater China," and therefore "its history is considered a part of Chinese national history."2 Fig. 1: Goguryeo, ca. 37 BCE Fig. 2: Goguryeo ca. 391-531 CE North and South Koreans regard this view of Goguryeo as a Chinese state, advanced through research by the government-sponsored Northeast Project,3 as a usurpation of their national history. [Territorial disputes]
• US-China relations: the outlook for harmony
  March 24th, 2011 Author: Ron Huisken, ANU Nation states are a complicated and imperfect species. They are prone to say and do things that surprise other states (and sometimes their own citizens). One of the harder jobs for policy analysts is to decide what constitutes the inevitable ‘noise’ of international relations: the tactical adjustments, someone speaking out of turn, or a simple policy miscue. The rise of China has made this a progressively more acute challenge for most countries but especially those in the Asia Pacific. Hugh White recently authored an influential essay, Power Shift, which addressed the implications of this phenomenon for Australia, predominantly through the lens of the likely nature of US-China relations in the coming decades. [China rising] [US China]
• Tibet marks 52nd anniversary of serfs' emancipation with ceremony
  Source: Global Times [08:40 March 29 2011] Comments A national flag-raising ceremony was held in the heart of Lhasa Monday morning to mark the 52nd anniversary of the emancipation of Tibetan serfs. More than 3,000 people from all walks of life gathered in a square in front of the Potala Palace, watched the flag being raised, sang the national anthem and celebrated the historic date that marks the freedom and equal status of all Tibetans. Monday was the third "Serfs Emancipation Day." In 2009, March 28 was designated the day to commemorate the 1959 democratic reform in Tibet, which ended feudal serfdom and freed about 1 million Tibetan serfs, accounting for more than 90 percent of the region's population.
• A new incarnation
  the Dalai Lama is right to try to divide his religious and political interests. Though he is widely revered, a movement centred on a single person has a limited future. By stepping aside, the Dalai Lama is trying to ensure that his movement will not die when he does – even if the Chinese seek to pre-empt the process by appointing a pliant successor. The leader can also focus on gathering a body of lamas who may have a role in finding that replacement. The Chinese Communist party says the Dalai Lama is playing a cunning political game. That is true. But he is doing this to support his cause – not to betray it. By encouraging a secular, elected leader, the Dalai Lama highlights Beijing’s own democratic deficit. But elections will be no panacea. A large body of younger Tibetans is frustrated at the failure of the Dalai Lama’s “middle way”: dropping demands for Tibetan independence in return for more autonomy. Democracy may lead to a hardening of the line. Nonetheless, Tibetan identity hinges partly on that long fight for recognition. Another problem for Tibetans is that the distinctive role of the Dalai Lama, in their own eyes and those of the world, is the focal point of their identity. The downside of choosing an elected representative is that, by becoming more like everyone else, they risk assimilating themselves out of existence. That predicament is particularly strong when most Tibetans live in exile. Nonetheless, that is a risk worth taking. The path towards normalisation is the greatest threat to the Dalai Lama’s people – but it is also their best hope of keeping their cause alive. [Separatism] [Media] [China confrontation]
• US-China affair is likely to result in mutual pain
  By John Plender Published: March 8 2011 18:33 | Last updated: March 8 2011 18:38 In spite of Chinese rhetoric about wanting to diversify its official reserves away from the dollar, recently revised figures from the US Treasury suggest that the world’s largest creditor country is finding the task pretty much on a par with Sisyphus’s efforts to push the boulder uphill. China’s holdings of US Treasury securities at the end of December turned out last week to be a whopping 30 per cent higher than earlier official estimates, emerging at $1,160bn compared with $895bn a year before. EDITOR’S CHOICE Lex: The Bric trade - Mar-07.Hopes high for China’s push on inflation - Feb-10.China’s Treasury holdings ‘underestimated’ - Mar-01.Lex: China growth - Mar-01.China pull-back paints unsettling rate picture - Feb-15..This huge increase in just one part of the dollar component of reserves that are reckoned to top $2,750bn in total, irks Beijing, which worries that the Federal Reserve’s loose monetary policy is designed to ensure an endemically weak dollar. Yet such vulnerability is the inevitable result of pursuing a mercantilist exchange rate policy while running an excess of savings over investment. As long as China persists in subsidising exports via an exchange rate pegged to the dollar it is condemned to rack up further trade surpluses that suck in yet more dollars. And, given the difficulty of acquiring big dollar equity investments there is not much alternative to buying US government IOUs in the world’s most liquid bond market. As the dollars flow in from exports and foreign investment, the People’s Bank of China has to buy them to prevent the Chinese currency appreciating. The resulting purchases flood the country with renminbi which then have to be mopped up, or sterilised, through the sale of bonds in order to prevent an inflationary surge. When the numbers are as big as they are in China, resisting inflation through sterilisation becomes harder and harder. And because US interest rates are so low China’s rates have to be fixed even lower to avoid incurring a running loss on its huge dollar reserves. This then causes property and other asset prices to overheat, which is where we are today. It would help to develop a more sophisticated financial system. A recent paper by the economist Kristin Forbes estimates that if China’s bond market were as well developed as the cross-country average – about the level of development in South Korea – the country’s holdings of US bonds would be about $200bn less. Yet Beijing has a limited appetite for the deregulatory reforms that this would entail. Meanwhile, the tone of Chinese criticism of US economic policy is increasingly moralistic. Yet the debtor-creditor compact that lay behind today’s global imbalances has been mutually convenient. The Chinese wanted to subsidise their exports by rigging the exchange rate. The Americans were happy to accommodate them in the interests of extending home ownership. So poor Chinese households ended up being taxed to subsidise consumption by rich households in advanced countries. Where is the morality in that? The difficulty for the Americans now is that a huge debt overhang condemns them to sub-par growth. For the Chinese the value of their dollar investments is questionable and the leverage of the creditor country cannot be used without doing serious damage to itself. Selling dollars would simply shrink the value of the portfolio, inflicting severe losses on the central bank. This would then have to be recapitalised at considerable cost to the government’s budget. There is also a political cost to any decline in the value of the dollar. Chinese nationalist feeling runs high when government investments turn sour. Indeed, Chinese sovereign wealth funds caused a public outcry when they invested too early in US investment banks during the financial crisis. The irony here was underlined by a recent WikiLeak revelation that the head of the state-owned China Investment Corporation applied pressure in 2009 to Tim Geithner, US Treasury secretary, to speed the approval of a $1.2bn investment in Morgan Stanley, which was promptly given the green light. Yet to call this pressure, if the story is true, is hilarious. The sovereign wealth fund was offering a boon to a man whose efforts to prop up a failing banking system were at a pretty desperate pass. China is, in effect, a neurotic trillionaire, stuck on a treadmill seeking to resist the structural tendency of emerging market currencies to appreciate. The leverage that comes from being the world’s biggest creditor scarcely qualifies to be described even as soft power. Most of the time it amounts to little more than impotence. Alternatively it can lead to mutually assured destruction. Moralising about debt – an age old habit – is in this case futile. To work, creditor-debtor relationships have to be a two-way affair. Instead, the world’s biggest lender and borrower are conducting a dialogue of the deaf. The two probable outcomes are more protectionism from the US and, ultimately, a huge currency loss for China on its dollar reserves. [China confrontation] [Currency]
• Obama to tap Gary Locke as ambassador to China
  By Steven Thomma | McClatchy Newspapers WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama plans to name Commerce Secretary Gary Locke, the descendant of Chinese immigrants, as the new ambassador to China, administration officials said Monday. Locke would replace Ambassador Jon Huntsman, who's resigning effective at the end of April. Huntsman, who was the Republican governor of Utah when Obama tapped him to represent the U.S. in Beijing, has said he might seek the 2012 Republican presidential nomination to run against his current boss. Read more: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2011/03/07/109968/obama-to-tap-gary-locke-as-ambassador.html#ixzz1FzkEpBye [Diaspora]
• Taiwan excellence' product roadshow kicks off
  2011/03/06 19:08:56 Taipei, March 6 (CNA) A total of 30 high-quality products made in Taiwan are being featured in a countrywide tour that began Sunday as part of the government's efforts to promote domestic quality and design, according to trade officials. [Quality] [Image]
• Chinese Hackers Access Korea's Global Hawk Purchase Plans
  Chinese hackers gained access to the government's top-secret plan to buy the U.S.-made Global Hawk reconnaissance drone in June 2010, it emerged Sunday. "We've had a report from a government official that China launched a hacking attack on the Defense Ministry's computer system and accessed confidential information about the ministry's plan" to buy the drone, a spokesman for Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Hak-yong of the National Assembly's Defense Committee said. "The government hasn't raised this issue with China yet and is apparently still mulling how to handle it." Seoul asked Washington to sell the Global Hawk in 2005, and in 2009 the U.S. Defense Department agreed. Budget problems delayed the purchase, but after North Korea sank the Navy corvette Cheonan last year, the government earmarked W45.2 billion (US$1=W1,116) from the 2011 budget to start negotiations amid growing fears of further North Korean provocations. [Cyberwar] [Pretext] [Arms sales]
• China's Jasmine Headache
  These could have been the best of times for China. China's probity, sobriety, and responsibility during the financial crisis made for a highly favorable contrast with the United States. The U.S. has compounded the irresponsible behavior of the Bush years, both militarily and financially, with a significant abdication of its obligations as the world's only superpower and custodian of the world's reserve currency. In this context, America's harping on the shortcomings of China are little more than a self-delusive attempt to recapture the glories of past decades, while distracting American citizens from the epic, serial failures of America's elites.
  As its response to the Arab revolutions reveals, China's authoritarian model is also not well-equipped to deal with the reality of dissent and dissatisfaction that are not neatly and reliably sterilized by economic growth.
• Libya shows China the burdens of being a great power
  March 6th, 2011 Author: Jonas Parello-Plesner, European Council on Foreign Relations Great powers are sometimes moulded by events as much as, if not more than, by grand strategy. In 1898, the United States — at the time an isolationist and anti-colonial power — entered onto the world stage after Spain allegedly sank the USS Maine in Havana Harbor. [China rising]
• Will China relocate factories to Africa, flying-geese style?
  February 24th, 2011 Authors: Terutomo Ozawa, CSU and Colombia University and Christian Bellak, WU Vienna China has developed increasingly close economic relations with Africa in its quest for oil and minerals through investment and aid. The World Bank recently called upon China to transplant labour-intensive factories onto the continent. A question arises as to whether such an industrial relocation will be done in such a fashion to jump start local economic development — as previously seen across East Asia and as described in the flying-geese (FG) paradigm of FDI. [Going out] [Africa]
• China’s and India’s growing investment and trade with Africa
  Author: Harry G. Broadman, Albright Stonebridge Group February 23rd, 2011 The dramatic increase in recent years of trade and foreign direct investment (FDI) in sub-Saharan Africa by firms from Asia — notably China and India — has become an emotionally charged issue.
  Rigorous analysis of systematically collected data reveals several weak spots in the conventional wisdom about Chinese and Indian firms’ activities in Africa. Most observers believe Chinese (and to a lesser extent Indian) firms dominate Africa’s economies. This presumption does not fit the facts. About 90per cent of the stock of FDI in Africa still originates from Northern companies, especially those from the European Union and the United States. [Going out] [FDI] [Africa]
• Chinese investment in Mongolia: A sequel
  February 22nd, 2011 Author: Justin Li, ICE Julian Dierkes’ thoughtful response to my essay on Chinese investment in Mongolia obliges clarification of some of my earlier points. I confess my ignorance of ‘Third Neighbour’ policy and, though one commentator suggests that it ante-dates large-scale Chinese investment in Mongolia and therefore cannot really be perceived as responding to that, it certainly helps to contextualise aspects of Mongolian foreign investment and trade policy. [FDI]
• Mongolia’s ‘third neighbour’ policy and its impact on foreign investment
  February 15th, 2011 Author: Julian Dierkes, University of British Columbia Justin Li’s 2 February 2011 post is welcome in that it attempts to analyse the economic development of Mongolia in its political context. It is also significant in that it raises an important aspect of China’s perceived rise in standing and its newly assertive foreign policy, namely that this has a very specific impact on regional (security) dynamics and popular perceptions. Li’s essay mainly focuses on the extent to which politics and populism have got mixed up (I assume that’s how he might see it) with investment decisions. This ignores another political arena entirely: foreign policy. The Mongolian parliament is currently debating an updated foreign policy vision, so this particular point may well shift significantly in the coming weeks/months. Up until now the dominant stated theme of Mongolian foreign policy has been the so-called ‘third neighbour’ policy; that is, attempts by successive Mongolian administrations to build closer ties with partners other than Russia and China, its dominant neighbours. [FDI] [Diversification]
• Is China a military threat to Australia? The Babbage fallacies
  February 21st, 2011 Authors: Geoffrey Barker and Paul Dibb, ANU Ross Babbage has deep concerns about China’s growing military power and assertiveness. His concerns are magnified by his pessimism over the economic outlook for the United States throughout the next decade. In Australia’s Strategic Edge in 2030 (Kokoda Paper No. 15, February 2011) Babbage asks what Australia should do to ‘offset and deter’ the rapidly expanding Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) in the Western Pacific. His answer is at once contradictory and radical; it is panicky, even extremist — a surprising response from a senior strategic thinker who was on the ministerial advisory panel for the federal government’s 2009 Defence White Paper, the key findings of which he seems to reject. Babbage says the rise of China’s military power faces Australia with its greatest security challenge since the Second World War. He likens Chinese strategic thinking to that employed by the Japanese in planning their attack on Pearl Harbour. He dismisses the ambitious military modernisation program set out in the White Paper as ‘not very effective.’ Instead he proposes a ‘highly asymmetric’ counter to China, involving acquisitions and policies that he says would be seen in Beijing and elsewhere as ‘game-changers.’ Babbage says Australia should acquire 10 to 12 American nuclear attack submarines, base major US combat capabilities in Australia, arm ‘arsenal’ ships with cruise missiles, join the US in building and deploying a new class of advanced stealthy strike aircraft, expand cyber warfare capabilities, and possibly join the US in developing and employing an advanced missile system. [China confrontation] [Client]
• China: The Intellectual-Property Battleground
  Entrepreneur and inventor James Dyson warns that the U.S. is in danger of Viewpoint February 16, 2011, 4:42PM EST text size: TT losing the patent race to China By James Dyson While America's leaders worry about how to curb China's increasing influence in currency, inflation, and trade issues, they are in danger of overlooking an even larger threat—one that could make those debates pointless: China is expected to surpass the U.S. in patent filings this year. China's National Patent Development Strategy lays out aggressive targets—a doubling of the number of patent examiners to 9,000 and 2 million patents by 2015. This includes both invention patents and utility patents, which cover engineering features. An increase in these utility patents may be even more worrisome. It indicates the focus isn't simply to create the new and revolutionary, but to repurpose the ideas of others. [Decline] [China rising] [Innovation] [Patents]
• China proposes huge investment in N.Korea
  China plans to establish free trade zone with North Korea AFP, Friday 7 Jan 2011 Print Send China has proposed a huge investment deal to revive North Korea's faltering economy, a report said Friday, amid an international drive to coax Pyongyang back to nuclear disarmament talks. China's state-run Shangdi Guanqun Investment plans to invest about $2 billion in a project to build up a North Korean free trade zone into a regional export base, the JoongAng newspaper said. A memorandum of understanding was signed with Pyongyang's Investment and Development Group on 20 December, it said. The two sides hope the area in Rason near the North's border with China and Russia will be the biggest industrial zone to be built in Northeast Asia in a decade, the daily said, citing documents related to the deal. [FDI] [China NK]
• China's success attributed to socialism model
  Source: Global Times [08:18 March 02 2011] Comments By Huang Jingjing The country's economic and political achievements since the late 1970s owe to a unique socialism-featured development model, a government think tank said in a report Tuesday. The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' annual Yellow Paper of World Socialism says China's development path lies in implementing necessary structural reforms and in learning from others' success, while, at the same time, refusing any form of foreign intervention.
• Chinese Businesses Pour into N.Korea's Rajin-Songbong
  North Korea's Rajin-Sonbong special economic zone is seeing a rapid influx of Chinese businesspeople as the impoverished country becomes more desperate amid international sanctions and the aftermath of a botched currency reform. The zone was established in 1991 to attract hard currency but had been practically idle except for a few small traders, due to tight controls by state security. But now sources say Beijing seems to think it is high time to persuade the North to reform and open up as the economy is on the verge of collapse. It is pressuring the regime to develop Rajin-Sonbong into a model of Chinese-style reform, and it needs to use Rason Port for its own Tumen River project. This is swiftly attracting Chinese investment to the area. [FDI] [Rason] [China NK]

• The 3 Faces of China
  China has shown three different faces in relations with South Korea. The first is the smiling face of bilateral cooperation since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992. The second is a brazen face it showed when it stood by North Korea despite mounting international criticism after the North's armed provocations against the South. The third is a threatening face, which had been hidden in the past 20 years of diplomatic relations but began to emerge after the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan in March last year. China's open threats to South Korea are backed by its rapid rise in power. Outpacing Japan in terms of GDP in 2010, China is expected to overtake the U.S. economy in 2022, and South Korean companies face the prospect of having to find a survival plan as their Chinese rivals become global magnets of capital, technology and products. [China confrontation] [China SK]
• Chinese FM Keeps Low Profile in Seoul
  Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi arrived in Seoul on Wednesday. Scheduled to come on Nov. 26 last year, he upset his hosts on Nov. 24 by abruptly canceling his visit in the wake of North Korea's shelling of Yeonpyeong Island a day earlier. Yang skipped a press conference Wednesday in an apparent attempt to keep a low profile. Yang discussed the North Korean nuclear issue with his South Korean counterpart Kim Sung-hwan and expressed opposition to the idea of letting the UN Security Council deal with the North's uranium enrichment program. Yang instead called for inter-Korean dialogue and expressed hope that the stalled six-party nuclear disarmament talks will resume as soon as possible. [China SK] [Peace effort] [Six Party Talks]
• Seoul, Beijing remain unchanged over N. Korea
  Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, left, shakes hands with his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi during their meeting at the Foreign Moinistry in Seoul, South Korea, on Wednesday, Feb. 23, 2011. / Yonhap Foreign ministers meet for first time since Yeonpyeong shelling By Kang Hyun-kyung The top diplomats of South Korea and China met Wednesday to discuss bilateral issues but failed to narrow their differences on North Korea. Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MOFAT) Kim Sung-hwan and his Chinese counterpart Yang Jiechi, however, agreed to expand high-level contacts, including Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik’s visit to China in the first half of this year, in a meeting held in Seoul Wednesday. [China SK]
• China’s strategy driven by desire to check US
  Xu Baokang The following is the fifth in a series of articles examining Seoul-Beijing ties following the tumultuous relationship between the two countries last year. — ED. By Sunny Lee BEIJING — China’s interests in the Korean Peninsula are primarily driven by competition with the United States, a veteran Chinese analyst on Korea said recently. “The primary reason that Beijing pays attention to the peninsula is less about Korea per se, but has more to do with the U.S.,” said Xu Baokang, an expert on Korean issues. [China global strategy] [China US]
• A better metric for Chinese exports
  Recent McKinsey research suggests that although exports are an important driver of economic growth in China, they are less dominant than conventional wisdom would have it: many of the country’s export shipments include imported goods that are reassembled, combined with domestic content, or otherwise modified before being exported. Failing to remove these imports from total exports overstates the contribution of exports to GDP. The researchers thus developed a metric called domestic value-added exports—what you get after subtracting from total exports all imports used to produce goods and services that are subsequently exported. They found that China’s export sector contributed 19 to 33 percent of total GDP growth from 2002 to 2008, about half the contribution indicated by total-exports metrics. To learn more, read “A truer picture of China’s export machine” (September 2010). [Trade] [Statistics]
• China to Launch Mars Explorer in November
  China's first Mars-exploration space probe will be launched in early November of this year from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. If the launch is successful, China will be the fifth country to send a space probe to Mars following the U.S., Russia, the European Union and Japan. The Chinese state media on Sunday quoted an official from the China Space Technology Research Institute as saying, "Through collaborative research, Chinese and Russian researchers decided to launch the space probe in early November of this year and the liftoff will go ahead as scheduled."
• Analysts Say China Poised to Become Leader in Space
  More than four decades ago, the United States won the race to the Moon with the Soviet Union. But today, experts say changes to the U.S. policy could open the door for new leaders in space. Astronauts on board the U.S. space shuttle Discovery returned to Earth this week amid major changes for America's space program. President Barack Obama is calling on private companies, not the national space agency NASA, to carry astronauts into orbit. His plan also ends a government program to return to the Moon. [Decline] [China rising]
• Huawei close to London Underground deal
  By Tim Bradshaw Published: February 20 2011 15:26 | Last updated: February 20 2011 15:26 London Underground is close to securing a deal to put a mobile network on the tube before the 2012 Olympics. Huawei, the Chinese manufacturer, is likely to provide the telecoms equipment for the service, which will be installed and maintained by Thales, in partnership with the UK’s mobile operators. Boris Johnson, mayor of London, has been pushing for greater mobile and wireless internet connectivity across the capital ahead of next year’s Olympics. BT is already running a trial of WiFi on the tube platform at Charing Cross station. Mobile access for the tube has been discussed for many years but has been deemed too expensive, due to the practical difficulties of installation. Critics of the scheme fear that terrorists could use a mobile network to remotely detonate bombs on the transport system
• Talks with Chinese Official Held
  Pyongyang, February 20 (KCNA) -- Kim Kye Gwan, first vice-minister of Foreign Affairs of the DPRK, had talks with Zhang Zhijun, vice-minister of Foreign Affairs of China, at the Mansudae Assembly Hall on Sunday. Present there from the DPRK side were Vice-Minister Kim Song Gi and other officials of the Foreign Ministry and from the Chinese side Zhang Zhijun's party, Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Liu Hongcai and staff members of the Chinese embassy here. At the talks both sides exchanged views on boosting the bilateral friendship and matters of mutual concern.
• New missile 'ready by 2015'
  Source: Global Times [07:59 February 18 2011] Comments Soldiers on Chinese missile frigate "Zhoushan" wave to see off China's sixth naval escort flotilla in the Gulf of Aden November 24, 2010. China's seventh naval escort flotilla began its escort mission on Chinese army is researching a new type of conventional missile that is set to be weaponized and entered into active service within five years, military sources have revealed. China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC), the nation's largest missile weaponry manufacturer, is set "to complete research, production and delivery of this new generation of missile by 2015," the China News Service reported Thursday. The new missile would be part of a network forming a solid defense system allowing for total coverage in both defense and attack, and capable of dealing with various threats from land, sea, air, space as well as cybernetic attacks, according to the report. The report, however, did not provide any further details of the new missile. A military source close to the development, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed to the Global Times yesterday that "The subject under development is a medium- and long-range conventional missile with a traveling distance of as far as 4,000 kilometers." [Military balance] [Missile]
• US Internet declaration bugs China
  By Peter Lee Many of the causes, consequences and implications of the popular unrest sweeping the Arab world and Iran are topics of heated debate. However, one outcome is without dispute: the "freedom to connect" has become the newest, high-profile irritant in United States-China relations. On February 15, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave a speech at George Washington University reiterating the US declaration that "freedom to connect" is the new fifth freedom, added to the four freedoms (freedom of speech and religion, freedom from want and fear) stated by president Franklin Delano Roosevelt in 1941 :
• Chinese Birthday Presents for Kim Jong-il
  China has given North Korean leader Kim Jong-il a massive porcelain peach symbolizing longevity, a sculpture and four DVDs for his 70th birthday. China's Xinhua News Agency and North Korea's state-run Korean Central News Agency reported that state councilor Meng Jianzhu presented gifts during a visit to North Korea on Monday, but they did not say what they were.
• VOA, BBC scale back Chinese-language services
  Source: Global Times [08:13 February 17 2011] Comments By Zhu Shanshan Voice of America (VOA) is to scale back its Chinese service later this year, following a similar proposal by the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), as the Western media landscape is swept by a tsunami of budget cuts. The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), which supervises all US government-supported, civilian international broadcasting, proposed to cut VOA's radio and television programs in China that began in 1942, a move the board said could save up to $8 million. Short-wave radio broadcasts in Chinese Mandarin and Cantonese, as well as Cantonese television programs and a website, will be closed October 1, according to the budget submitted to the US Congress.
• Chinese navy rescued Korean ship from pirates
  Cargo vessel CS DAISY By Sunny Lee BEIJING — A South Korean cargo vessel, which was being chased by pirates in the Gulf of Aden, was rescued by the Chinese navy, China’s state media said. The CS DAISY was being pursued by multiple speed boats late in the afternoon on Feb. 10, according to the state-run Liberation Army Daily, which reported the incident first. The vessel radioed for help from a nearby Chinese naval escort group, which dispatched a ship-borne helicopter to protect the Korean ship from pirates until it sailed out of the danger zone, the report said. An official at the South Korean Embassy in Beijing confirmed the news. A foreign ministry official in Seoul also verified
• China tops Japan in GDP
  By Liu Linlin Word that China had overtaking Japan to become the world's second-largest economy rang loud back in August, but full-year Japanese data confirmed Monday exactly by how much. However, some analysts say the ranking holds little water, as the real measure is per-capita GDP, and the latest figures show that number is still about 10 times higher in Japan than China. In 2010, Japan's full-year GDP was valued at $5.47 trillion with 3.9 percent annual growth, compared with China, which brought in $5.88 trillion and grew more than 10 percent, according to statistics from both countries.
• China backs succession amid NK food woes
  By Kim Young-jin A senior Chinese official has expressed support for the power succession underway in North Korea from leader Kim Jong-il to his youngest son, Kim Jong-un, the North said Tuesday amid changes in Pyongyang apparently driven by food shortages. The show of support came from Meng Jianzhu, Beijing’s state councilor and public security minister who met with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, Monday. Meng congratulated Kim on his reelection in September as general secretary of the ruling Workers’ Party, and Kim Jong-un on becoming vice chairman of its military commission, the Korean Central News Agency said.
• China’s way to the top
  China’s economy is the world’s second biggest, with a $5.8 trillion gross domestic product that eclipsed Japan in 2010. Will China pass the United States? When? There was a similar debate about Japan in the 1980s before growth stalled after a collapse in that country’s financial and real estate markets. Japanese growth has remained low ever since, an era known as the “lost decades.” Some analysts regard China as a bubble waiting to burst, and foresee a perhaps dramatic slowdown for the country — or at least too much less than the 10 percent growth it registered last year. But there are major differences between Japan and China — perhaps most significantly their populations. With its wealth spread among roughly 1.4 billion people, per capita income in China remains low at around $4,200 — representing an immense potential for the country to extend development to its poorer regions. Does that mean sustained, 10 to 11 percent growth is possible, or will China’s expansion slow to a more reasonable rate, say 7 percent or less? As for the United States, its long-term trend GDP growth is around 2.5 percent. Will that be sustained going forward? Simply extending last year’s growth rates for the two countries, China becomes the biggest in 2024.
• US admiral: Carrier killer won't stop US Navy
  By ERIC TALMADGE The Associated Press Tuesday, February 15, 2011; 6:55 AM YOKOSUKA, Japan -- A new "carrier killer" missile that has become a symbol of China's rising military might will not force the U.S. Navy to change the way it operates in the Pacific, a senior Navy commander told The Associated Press. Defense analysts say the Dong Feng 21D missile could upend the balance of power in Asia, where U.S. aircraft carrier battle groups have ruled the waves since the end of World War II. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• N.Korean, Chinese Security Chiefs Meet in Pyongyang
  Chinese Minister of Public Security Meng Jianzhu met with his North Korean counterpart Ju Sang-song in Pyongyang on Sunday, the official KCNA news agency reported. A South Korean government official speculated they probably talked about security along the North Korea-China border, including people who are fleeing the North.
• China’s railway chief dismissed
  By Geoff Dyer in Beijing Published: February 13 2011 06:46 | Last updated: February 13 2011 23:06 China’s minister of railways, Liu Zhijun, has been removed from the top position at the ministry and put under investigation for “severe disciplinary violations”, the Xinhua news agency reported. Mr Liu is the most senior Chinese official to come under investigation since the Shanghai party boss Chen Liangyu was forced out of office in 2006 and later convicted to 18 years in prison for corruption. .Although the Xinhua report provided no details about the reason for the probe, it is likely to raise questions about China’s massive investment into high-speed rail, which Mr Liu spearheaded. .
• The Year of the Metal Rabbit: China's High-Speed Rail Network
  Insight February 9, 2011, 9:01AM EST text size: TT In 2011, China plans to unveil the key links of a bullet-train network stretching across the country, which should have major economic benefits By David Michael It is now the Year of the Rabbit in China. Indeed, it is actually the Year of the Metal Rabbit, as it is a year in which the Chinese earth element Metal aligns with the Chinese zodiac symbol Rabbit, a rare occurrence that typically marks historic moments. The upcoming year will be a truly historic one for China because its fleet of "metal rabbits"—its bullet trains—and their network of tracks will begin to race across the full expanse of the nation, pulling China forward into the next phase of its blindingly fast progression. It is staggering to think that China already has more than 5,000 kilometers (3,106 miles) of high-speed rail in operation. The trouble is that these rail lines are in various segments, and to date they have not linked together the country's most well-known cities. In 2011, however, this will change dramatically. In the months ahead, China will progressively unveil many of the key links to form a true bullet-train network stretching across the nation. [Railways]
• In China, Tentative Steps Toward Global Currency
  SHANGHAI — Now that it has passed Japan to become the world’s second-largest economy after the United States, China is considering the next step as a world power: making its money a global currency. No one expects that to happen immediately. And even the Chinese government is wary of making some of the free-market moves that would enable the renminbi to take its place alongside the dollar, euro and Japanese yen as a fully convertible reserve currency. [Reserve]
• Kim Jong-un 'Could Visit China This Year'
  Kim Jong-un /Yonhap North Korean leader Kim Jong-il's son and heir Jong-un could visit China this year in a bid to consolidate his power base and ease the North's economic woes, the head of a think tank said Monday.
• Is China a measuring stick or a warning sign for America?
  By Keith B. Richburg Washington Post Staff Writer Monday, February 7, 2011; 7:15 PM BEIJING - People here might be forgiven for feeling self-important after President Obama mentioned China four separate times in his State of the Union speech. This Story China a U.S. rival? Many Chinese think not - or not yet State of the Union 2011: 'Win the future,' Obama says Book Review: Amy Chua's "Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother," on Chinese-American family culture The problem for some, though, is the way China was mentioned. China never came up in the foreign policy section of last month's speech, where Obama talked about the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the new nuclear arms treaty with Russia, tension on the Korean peninsula and America's new "partnership" with India. Instead, China was held up as something for Americans to be measured against - a place that is educating its children better, investing more in research, building better infrastructure, and posing a challenge to American greatness. "China became the home to the world's largest private solar research facility, and the world's fastest computer," Obama said at one point. "China is building faster trains and newer airports," he said at another. That might all sound like flattery. But some here who closely track American policy and politics wonder why China is being singled out so regularly, with the compliments overdrawn. Others worry that China is being demonized, and that there could be an anti-Chinese nationalist backlash against everything from the country's growing wealth to its expanding military prowess to its population's new taste for luxury goods. [Decline] [China competition]
• Is China already number one? New GDP estimates
  February 3rd, 2011 Author: Arvind Subramanian, PIIE When the presidents of China and the United States met last week in Washington, neither was likely be aware that, measured in terms of purchasing power, it is Hu Jintao, and not Barack Obama, who represented the world’s largest economy. Some time in 2010, the Chinese economy overtook that of the United States. My calculations of GDP for 2010 — which of course are subject to the uncertainty associated with all such exercises — are based on new estimates of GDP that will soon be published by the Penn World Tables (PWT) under the guidance of Professor Alan Heston at the University of Pennsylvania. [China rising]
• Multilateral alliances critical for Korean future
  Source: Global Times [08:43 February 01 2011] Comments Kwon Young-ghil Editor's Notes: Since the Korean War (1950-53) ended, tension and distrust have shrouded the Korean Peninsula. How is the current hard-line policy of the South Korean government perceived by the public? Does the South have a fair understanding of their Northern countrymen? Global Times (GT) reporter Lu Jingxian interviewed Kwon Young-ghil (Kwon), a member of South Korea's National Assembly and the founder of South Korea's left-wing Democratic Labor Party (DLP), which currently holds five out of 295 seats in the National Assembly, on these issues. GT: What's the position of the DLP on China-South Korea relationship and the Korean Peninsula crisis? Kwon: The DLP intends to work for a better future relationship based on the well-being of the people of both nations. The Korean Peninsula is one of the fundamental elements of peace and security in Northeast Asia. A better relationship between North and South Korea is also crucial to ensuring regional harmony. [SK NK policy] [Capture] [Client]
• China poised to pour $10bn into Zimbabwe's ailing economy
  Zimbabwean government rejects concern that Beijing cash could prop up Mugabe, and says investment can turn economy around Share84 David Smith and agencies guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 1 February 2011 18.21 GMT Article history Miners dig for diamonds in Marange, Zimbabwe. China is said to be looking into investment in mining, infrastructure and IT. Photograph: Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi/AP Zimbabwe could be in line for a windfall of up to $10bn (£6.19bn) from China, a potentially huge boost to its ailing economy, its ministers have claimed. But such an investment would be likely to heighten concerns about president Robert Mugabe's increasingly warm relationship with China, which has been accused of turning a blind eye to human rights violations across Africa. [ODI] [China confrontation] [Double standards]
• China boosts N. Korean export zone
  North Korea leader Kim Jong-il, center, inspects a factory in Hamheung in this photo released by the country’s official Korean Central News Agency on Monday. / Xinhua-Yonhap By Todd Crowell The Rajin-Sonbong Free Trade Zone in the extreme northeast corner of North Korea was always something of a joke. The zone was created in 1991 by the late North Korean dictator Kim Il-sung when the North was in one of its periodic flirtations with Chinese-style free markets. But nothing much came of it. That may be changing as a Chinese state-run investment firm has signed a deal with Pyongyang to pump big money into the enclave to develop infrastructure, coal-fired power plants, oil refineries and other projects to help exploit the natural resources in this corner of the country.
• The Chinese State, Incomplete Proletarianization and Structures of Inequality in Two Epochs1
  Mark Selden and Wu Jieh-min Revolutionaries in the 1950s offered this prospect to the Chinese people: a highly egalitarian society, the product of land reform, collectivization and nationalization, with low but gradually rising income and welfare provisions for all, would chart a course toward mutual prosperity on foundations of socialist development. The key lay in restriction of markets and transfer of the surplus to the state for investment centered in heavy industry in the cities and collective agriculture in the countryside, eventually enabling China to overcome poverty and underdevelopment. This paper assesses the nature and impact of that low consumption socialist regime then and the subsequent strategies that have sustained low consumption for labor in city and countryside in the subsequent market and capitalist transition. We locate the discussion in relation to theories of original accumulation, proletarianization, wage stagnation, and low consumption in the emerging capitalist world economy of which China has been a part since the 1970s.2 We hope to add to that discussion by exploring a range of structures that have produced incomplete proletarianization and inequality during two periods of socialist transition (1950s to 1970) and capitalist transition (1970s to present). Following three decades during which China experienced the world’s most rapid growth, and in which billionaires emerged at a record rate in 2010, hundreds of millions of urban laborers, particularly the more than one hundred million migrant laborers, continue to receive not only a low but even a relatively declining share of the gross domestic product, leaving many at subsistence levels, with meager welfare benefits and bereft of basic citizenship rights.3
• Chinese philanthropist offers to build cross-strait undersea tunnel
  2011/01/30 20:14:24 Taipei, Jan. 30 (CNA) China's best-known philanthropist said in Taoyuan Sunday he would be willing to spend his entire fortune to build an undersea tunnel and high-speed
• What China is after financially
  January 30th, 2011 Author: Barry Eichengreen, Berkeley The big financial news in the run-up to Chinese President Hu Jintao’s recently concluded visit to the United States was Beijing’s decision to allow the state-controlled Bank of China to offer renminbi-denominated bank accounts and currency conversion services in New York. Some observers hailed this as an important step in positioning the renminbi to become a true international currency. Others dismissed it as a mere publicity stunt designed to deflect attention away from China’s refusal to let its currency appreciate against the dollar. My view is that this is another small but significant step in the internationalisation of the renminbi, even if President Hu’s visit explains the timing. [Reserve]
• Hu visit ends any dream of a US-China duopoly
  January 25th, 2011 Author: Amitav Acharya, American University The US-China relationship is often touted as the most important for the world’s future, but bilateral tensions between the two powers over domestic politics will prevent a US-China duopoly from being a global problem-solver. The silver lining is that this leaves room for others to play a more meaningful international role. No one should be disappointed by the outcome of the US-China summit in Washington on 19 January, because nothing much was expected from it. For Hu, it was a ‘legacy’ visit, his swansong as the head of the world’s most populous and potentially most powerful nation before stepping down as the leader of the Communist Party of China in 2012. The Obama White House obliged by allowing him to make the first state visit to the White House since a state visit by Jiang Zemin in 1997. [China confrontation] [Hu1101]
• Despite Reports, China's North Korea Policy Stays the Same
  Stephanie Kleine-Ahlbrandt, The Huffington Post | 21 Jan 2011 During Hu Jintao's visit, he penned a joint statement with President Obama in which -- for the first time -- he voiced concern about North Korea's new uranium enrichment. Many in the U.S. and South Korea are hailing this as support for their position, but they should know better. Despite tactical moves to smooth Hu Jintao's visit, little about China's North Korea policy has changed over the last few weeks nor is it likely to anytime soon. In the past, a less strident Beijing's willingness to calibrate its responses to North Korean provocations was key to the West's strategy to moderate Pyongyang's behavior. But internal debates on North Korea policy have given way to traditionalist and conservative forces increasingly dictating the line, backed by nationalist public opinion. Over the past year and a half, China has strengthened its political, economic and military relationship with the North, refusing to hold Pyongyang to account for deadly attacks on the South which recently brought the peninsula the closest to war since 1953. [China NK]
• China Publicizes Submarine Missile Launch
  The Chinese People's Liberation Army Daily on Friday carried a photo on its front page of the Changcheng 200 submarine test-firing a missile. The disclosure of the exercise follows the dramatic test flight earlier this month of a new stealth fighter jet that coincided with the visit of U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates. [Military balance]

• China’s J20 Stealth Fighter: Made in America...via Belgrade
  I have an article up at Asia Times titled The tearful origins of China's stealth. It addresses a rumor circulating in China that the U.S. bombed the Chinese embassy in Belgrade in 1999 in order to destroy wreckage of a F117A stealth fighter shot down during the NATO air war against Yugoslavia. Regardless of whether or not the stealth wreckage legend is true, it appears highly probable that the embassy was bombed on purpose. Certainly, a lot of people inside China believe the bombing was intentional. The bombing of the Belgrade embassy is something of a 9/11 moment for China. It galvanized the Chinese elite in its determination to upgrade China’s military capabilities. It also occasioned a sea change in Chinese public opinion. [China confrontation] [Resurgence]
• The tearful origins of China's stealth
  By Peter Lee The recent test flight of China's J-20 stealth fighter has occasioned certain uproar in international security circles, as well as paroxysms of joy among China's more nationalistic netizens. Despite no hard information on its stealthiness or its capabilities beyond the fact that it was able to take off, fly for 15 minutes, and land, the J-20 is already serving as justification for heightened concern and its inevitable adjunct, higher military spending, in the United States, South Korea and Japan. From a psychological standpoint, an interesting sidebar to the J-20 furor has been the reporting on allegations that China used industrial and military espionage to develop its stealth capabilities, perhaps with the implication that China's reactive and decadent communist system would be incapable of such innovations on its own. On January 24, an Indian-American engineer who had worked on the B-2 stealth program, Noshir Gowadia, was sentenced to 32 years in prison for selling secret military aviation technology to China. The New York Times characterized the technology, apparently incorrectly, as "stealth missile technology"; according to the Times of India, the technology in question was nozzle technology meant to reduce vulnerability to heat-seeking missiles, rather than the radar-related cloak of invisibility usually associated with "stealth". It is not difficult to view the timing of Gowadia's sentencing (which was reportedly originally supposed to occur in November 2010 after five years of imprisonment and a trial that concluded in August 2010 with a guilty verdict) as an effort to emphasize the tainted character of China's stealth achievement. [Military balance] [Innovation] [Espionage]
• China dims prospects for Silicon Valley jobs
  By Richard Waters in San Francisco Published: January 28 2011 21:06 | Last updated: January 28 2011 21:06 Light bulb maker Bridgelux is exactly the kind of company that Barack Obama had in mind when he stressed the importance of innovation in winning jobs for US workers during his State of the Union address this week. A manufacturer of light bulbs that use low-power light-emitting diodes, it is part of a wave of companies formed in Silicon Valley in recent years specialising in “green” technologies such as alternative energy, new forms of energy storage and conservation, and electric vehicles. Yet most of the people who make Bridgelux’s products are based in Asia and the company is considering moving its remaining manufacturing staff offshore as well, according to Bill Watkins, chief executive. By guaranteeing access to big local markets, countries such as China have worked harder than the US to attract new industries like these, Mr Watkins says. Incentives are also being offered to move research and development jobs to Asia as well. The experience of companies such as Bridgelux points to a dilemma for the US as it faces what Mr Obama called a “sputnik moment”. The country’s universities still lead the world in many areas of basic research, and Silicon Valley’s entrepreneurial system continues to be the envy of other countries. But most new jobs resulting from US innovation are likely to be created in other places, most notably Asia, say many tech industry insiders – and it is not just low-value assembly work that is at stake. Silicon Valley, though a bright spot in California’s labour market, has seen only sluggish job growth since the recession, according to Russell Hancock, president of Joint Venture Silicon Valley Network, which represents business, government and other interests in the region. High costs are likely to prevent even the top tech companies from hiring many more people locally, he says. “Extraordinarily high-value products are still going to emanate from the US – but these companies aren’t going to employ a lot of people here,” says Michael Moritz, a partner at Sequoia Capital, a top start-up financiers. Against that background, Mr Obama’s focus this week on stimulating innovation was generally welcomed in the technology industry, even if the effect on job prospects is uncertain. The president’s emphasis on the need to improve the nation’s infrastructure, alongside spending on basic research and improvements in education, could pay dividends in the long term, says John Seely Brown, a former had of Xerox’s Silicon Valley research centre. “We really have to get back to building things,” he says. “We can’t just design things.” Linking spending on basic research with heavy investment in physical and digital infrastructure points to a “new kind of 21st-century economy that still has us building stuff”. Some Silicon Valley entrepreneurs say the model for the kind of high-tech manufacturing that can work in the US already exists. “The rumours of the demise of the US manufacturing industry are greatly exaggerated,” says Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla Motors, an ambitious Californian electric car start-up that has received a $465m loan from the Department of Energy. Along with staff making rockets at his other company, SpaceX, in California, Mr Musk employs more than 2,000 people in the state. California has “an incredible labour pool, but is kind of expensive”, he says – something his companies have to overcome by “figuring out clever ways to be more productive”. Entrepreneurs such as Mr Musk play down Washington’s ability to shape the conditions for high-tech industries to take root in the US, and cast the issue as a battle between US ingenuity on the one hand and brawn on the other. That battle is being fought out most dramatically in solar power manufacturing. An industry that was once seen as a bright hope in many parts of the US has shifted rapidly to Asia. This month, Evergreen Solar shut a plant in Massachusetts after less than three years with the loss of 800 jobs, and is moving production to China. The pendulum will swing back to the US lead with the next generation of more advanced solar power technology, according to venture capitalists. Yet the fact remains that the companies mastering the new technology are already creating more jobs abroad than at home. Fewer than a third of the workers at First Solar, the leading company in the most advanced photovoltaic technologies, are based in the US – though the construction of large-scale solar farms that use its products will add to the local job-count. [Decline] [China rising] [Innovation]
• U.S. Military Chief Says China Is Serious About N.Korea
  Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, says recent meetings with Chinese officials "convinced him China was serious about curtailing Pyongyang's aggression in the region," according to the Financial Times. The paper on Wednesday paraphrased him as saying Chinese leaders "had shown a renewed commitment to containing North Korea following last week's visit of President Hu Jintao to Washington and an earlier visit" to China by Defense Secretary Robert Gates." "The recent dialogue has been very open," he added. When he visited Seoul last month, Mullen accused Beijing of not using its influence on the North. He did not specify what "renewed commitment" Chinese leaders have recently shown him. [China NK]
• Washington: Welcome News from China
  27.01.2011 Alexander Salitsky, PhD, Chief Scientific Officer IMEMO Chinese poet and historian Guo Moruo wrote in 1952: “German occupants demolished the monument to Victor Hugo in Paris in 1941. Recently, a model of the Ford plant was installed on the monument's pedestal to demonstrate the dominance of the US dollar empire. No less than the French people, we feel outraged as the act is an offense not only to the French culture, but to the culture of the entire humanity”. The Chinese leader's recent visit to the US highlighted the truth that currently the decline of the US financial empire may be much closer than widely believed. Forecasts still have to be cautious considering that China's current administration does not have to see things in the same light as Guo Moruo did in 1952, but at the moment the decline of the “US dollar empire” is in many regards an accomplished fact, and even if Beijing chooses to impede it, there are other players capable of setting the process in motion. For example, the Saudi Arabia can refuse to sell oil for US dollars and Russia's Gazprom – strike a deal with China to switch to the yuan in the gas business. The scenario is of course purely hypothetic. [Reserve]
• China's North Korean Calculations
  By SELIG S. HARRISON Published: January 6, 2011 When President Obama hosts the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, in Washington later this month, North Korea is certain to be high on the agenda. But as in the past, Beijing is likely to use its leverage with Pyongyang only if a major war threatens. Two standard explanations are generally offered to explain why China is reluctant to put pressure on North Korea, whether the issue is nuclear weapons, the sinking of a South Korean Navy vessel, or the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island: China’s fear of instability if North Korea implodes, with the resulting massive flow of refugees across its borders, and China’s appetite for North Korea’s vast reserves of iron ore, magnesite, copper and other minerals. Both of these explanations are valid and important. But more basic geostrategic factors, as well as latent separatism among ethnic Koreans in China’s border region, are also behind its approach to the Korean peninsula. China does not want Korea to be reunified under a South Korean regime allied militarily with the United States, and therefore wants the survival of a pro-Beijing regime in Pyongyang. This was obvious when Beijing was aligned against Washington during the Cold War, but the Chinese desire to keep Pyongyang afloat has increased in recent years as a result of broader conflicts with Washington throughout East Asia, including U.S. ties with Taiwan and U.S. opposition to Chinese seabed claims. [China NK] [China confrontation]
• Cycles of History: China, North Korea and the End of the Korean War1
  Sheila Miyoshi Jager In 1895, the Chinese scholar Kang Youwei was on his way to Beijing on a Chinese steamer when his ship was abruptly boarded and searched by a party of Japanese soldiers on the North China Sea. “I was enraged when the Japanese came and searched our ship,” he later wrote. “If the court had listened to my advice earlier, we would not have to endure such humiliations.”2 But following China’s defeat by Japan in the 1894-5 Sino-Japanese War, this was just the sort of humiliation that China was now forced to endure. That war had been fought over influence in Korea and it marked the end of Korea’s tributary relationship with China. It was the beginning of China’s decline and Japan’s ascendancy in East Asian affairs. For the first time since the founding of the Choson dynasty in 1392, China would have little influence over the Korean peninsula. Woodblock print by Mizuno To depicting the Battle of P’yongyang in Korea in the First Sino-Japanese War China regained much of its influence over North Korea during the Korean War years (1950-53) when Mao decided to intervene in that conflict once UN forces crossed the 38th parallel north after landing at Inch’on in September 1950, thus saving North Korea from certain defeat (Chinese forces did not leave the peninsula until 1958). Kim Il [China NK]
• Pianist Lang Lang's US trip hits sour note
  Source: Global Times [08:09 January 26 2011] Comments Chinese pianist Lang Lang sings "Hey Jude" with US President Barack Obama at the White House on June 2, 2010. Photo: IC By Fu Wen and Huang Jingjing Chinese pianist Lang Lang's trip to the US appears to have struck a bad chord, as critics are slamming his performance at a White House state dinner as being offensive to the host. Lang played a Chinese household song called "My Motherland" at the function to welcome President Hu Jintao. It was the theme music of a 1956 movie named Shangganling Battle, which depicted the fighting of Chinese troops against US troops during the Korean War (1950-53). A lyric in the song goes, "If the jackals come, we will greet them with guns." Lang denied any hidden intentions behind the choice, saying on his Facebook account Tuesday that "it has been a favorite of mine since I was a child. It was selected for no other reason but for the beauty of its melody. I am, first and foremost, an artist. As such, I play music to bring people together." "America and China are my two homes. … I couldn't be who I am today without those two countries," he added. "My mission is to bridge cultures through the beauty and inspiration of music." Lang, born in China in 1982, went to the US to study at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia. He has also gained prestige and honors around the world. This was the fifth time Lang was invited to perform at the White House since 2005. In an interview Tuesday with National Public Radio, Lang said he felt "sad" and "disappointed" that the song was described as "anti-US," saying, "The last thing I want to do" is drop a note of nationalism. Many Chinese Web users had various interpretations of the performance. The Hong Kong-based Wen Wei Po newspaper quoted a mainland Internet user as writing, "Lang Lang speaks our hearts. That is, we are not afraid of any war or hegemony; we never mean to engage in any warfare." [China confrontation] [Resurgence]
• Japan, China Beer Giants to Start Joint Venture
  Japanese beverage giant Kirin Holdings and China's Resources group are planning to establish a joint venture in China. Japan's Nikkei daily reported Monday that the two beer makers will join to produce and sell several beer brands in China, which is the world's biggest beer market. Details of the alliance are still under discussion. But the report says China Resources would use its resources to market Kirin's Ichiban Shibori and several other brands. And it would increase the production of its own Snow brand by outsourcing some production to Kirin. Nikkei says Kirin has been brewing beer in China for several years and it is seeking to expand its sales. The alliance between the Japanese and Chinese beer giants will follow an earlier deal between their rivals Asahi in Japan and Tsingtao in China.
• Military J-20 stealth fighter jet 'innovative, not stolen from US plane'
  Source: Global Times [08:06 January 25 2011] Comments By Song Shengxia Chinese defense officials and military analysts insisted Monday that the country's J-20 stealth fighter jet is a result of technological innovation, refuting a report that alleges the aircraft was developed out of technology gleaned from a downed US fighter. A Croatian admiral who served during the Kosovo War told the AP on Sunday that China formulated the technology for its J-20 jet from a F-117 Nighthawk stealth fighter that was shot down over Serbia in 1999. "At the time, our intelligence reports told of Chinese agents criss-crossing the region where the F-117 disintegrated, buying up parts of the plane from local farmers," Admiral Davor Domazet-Loso was quoted as saying. "We believe the Chinese used those materials to gain an insight into secret stealth technologies." An official at the Ministry of National Defense who declined to be named told the Global Times that "it's not the first time foreign media has smeared newly unveiled Chinese military technologies. It's meaningless to respond to such speculations." China successfully debuted the J-20 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, earlier this month. The test flight coincided with US Defense Secretary Robert Gates' visit to Beijing, but he was assured the timing was just a coincidence. [Military balance] [Innovation] [IPR]
• Taiwan-U.S.-China ties undergoing fundamental change: analysts
  2011/01/22 20:07:40 Taipei, Jan. 22 (CNA) A "metamorphosis" in cross-Taiwan Strait development could bring a fundamental change to the triangular relations among Taiwan, China and the United States, with Washington's influence fading, analysts said Saturday. "The Taiwan issue is not an obstacle to U.S.-China relations now. The increasing U.S. support for China's position on the issue is a result of the metamorphosis of cross-strait relations, " said Chang Kuo-cheng, a researcher at Taiwan Thinktank, in a forum on U.S.-China relations after Chinese President Hu Jintao's state visit to the United States. China does not need U.S. pressure to influence Taiwan at present because both sides of the strait have had extensive direct engagement in recent years, and Taiwan has willingly opted to position itself closer to China, Chang said. The development has led the U.S. to slow its pace of arms sales to Taiwan, he said, adding that Taiwan would not likely gain Washington's [Arms sales]
• China's new world order demands stronger U.S. response
  By Robert J. Samuelson Monday, January 24, 2011 By all appearances, Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Washington last week changed little in the lopsided American-Chinese relationship. What we have is a system that methodically transfers American jobs, technology and financial power to China in return for only modest Chinese support for important U.S. geopolitical goals: the suppression of Iran's and North Korea's nuclear weapons programs. American officials act as though there's not much they can do to change this. It's true that the United States and China have huge common interests in peace and prosperity. Two-way trade (now about $500 billion annually) can provide low-cost consumer goods to Americans and foodstuffs and advanced manufactured products to the Chinese. But China's and America's goals differ radically. The United States wants to broaden the post-World War II international order based on mutually advantageous trade. By contrast, China pursues a new global order in which its needs come first - one in which it subsidizes exports, controls essential imports (oil, food, minerals) and compels the transfer of advanced technology. Naturally, the United States opposes this sort of system, but that's where we're headed. Clashing goals have trumped shared interests. Start with distorted trade. The [China confrontation]
• Chinese arrivals take Spain by storm
  By Victor Mallet in Madrid Published: January 21 2011 22:18 | Last updated: January 21 2011 22:18 When Spain’s footballers won the World Cup in South Africa last year the fans watching it on giant outdoor television screens in Madrid were not the only contented people on the streets of the capital. On that hot July night, dozens of Chinese men and women appeared within minutes of the final whistle and stationed themselves on strategic street corners. From loaded shopping trolleys they sold ice-cold beers to the jubilant Spaniards. They did not have licences. But who cared on such a night? Even at the south-western edge of Europe – in a country that has no memorable historical ties with China – the combination of entrepreneurial Chinese migrants and Beijing’s increasing global influence has started to have a noticeable impact on urban life and the national economy. The China phenomenon in Spain is barely a decade old, but its importance is growing. Chinese immigrants came later to Spain than they did to other developed European economies, probably because the country was itself a slow developer and late arrival in the European Union. In 1961 there were just 161 Chinese nationals resident in Spain, according to official statistics, and they numbered less than 10,000 as late as 1995. Today there are more than 170,000, although the real number including illegal migrants is estimated at about 240,000. The population is already large enough to support its own newspaper industry. “Most Chinese here don’t speak Spanish, so we translate news about Spain into Chinese, so they are informed about general news and above all about immigration policy,” says Tao Xinyi, editor-in-chief at the Ouhua (Europe-China) media group founded in 2002. Chinese immigration began in the traditional way: a family-owned Chinese restaurant here and there; the occasional shop selling cheap household goods and advertising todo a cien (“Everything for 100 pesetas”). Urban Spaniards now go to el chino for spur-of-the-moment purchases just as Britons go their Indian- or Pakistani-run corner shops. In the past few years the Chinese have also established themselves in the Spanish wholesale trade, based in Fuenlabrada, on the southern outskirts of Madrid, where they trade in the increasingly large quantities of clothes, shoes and toys imported from China. In 2009, Spain imported €14.5bn ($20bn) of products from China, now its third biggest supplier after Germany and France, and exported nearly €2bn of its own goods to China. Spanish business owners have reacted to the rise of Chinese enterprise in their midst with a mixture of admiration, resentment and fear. Six years ago there were violent protests against Chinese shoe imports. Spaniards have since been obliged to recognise the importance of the Chinese as customers, competitors and, increasingly, employers. “Now that China is very strong, people get to know us more and start to respect us more, but they are also afraid of the commercial ‘invasion’ and the idea that ‘Chinese people are taking our jobs’,” says a Chinese executive at a large Spanish company, who asked not to be named. Chinese investors have also purchased homes and businesses everywhere from Barcelona to Las Palmas in the Canary Islands. And unlike Spaniards encumbered with regulations and official bureaucracy, they are accustomed to developing new businesses in a matter of weeks rather than over months or years. Liu Songlin, chairman of the Association of Chinese Commercial Companies in Spain, is one of the formidably energetic entrepreneurs who have spearheaded China’s push into the Iberian market. Based in Fuenlabrada, he opened the first Chinese restaurant there for Chinese workers in 1997. He imports clothes and other goods from China, exports Spanish ham and wine to Chinese buyers and continues to make new investments at whirlwind speed, spending a week each month in Wenzhou, in China’s eastern Zhejiang province, where his family has a factory. Mr Liu, dressed casually in leather jacket, is a far cry from the typically dark-suited Spanish businessman. In between texting and talking almost continuously on his mobile telephone while driving between appointments in his silver Mercedes, he rejects common complaints in Spain that Chinese entrepreneurs evade tax. “We pay the same taxes as the Spanish,” he says. “We come from China and work in a foreign country so of course we work harder. Those who work harder earn more. We are investors as well as workers.” The fact that Mr Liu comes from Wenzhou, an entrepreneurial hub, is no coincidence. Some of the earliest Chinese migrants to Spain happened to come from the nearby town of Qingtian. They invited first their relatives and then their townspeople. Chinese residents of Madrid say 80-90 per cent of their compatriots in Spain have their origins in Zhejiang. At first they were barely noticed, while successive Spanish governments and the police turned their attention to managing the influx of millions of jobseekers from Latin America and north Africa. “The Chinese community has existed here for years, but it has been very discreet,” says Pedro Nueno, president of the China Europe International Business School. “Furthermore, it is very entrepreneurial and hardworking and creates no problems. There are no big health costs or unemployment costs.” Nowadays, however, the Chinese presence in Spain is simply too big to escape notice. The warehouses and shops of Fuenlabrada remain the places to go to shop in bulk for clothing, umbrellas, baby chairs, cheap watches or pyjamas. But China is bringing more than toys and shoes. The latest stage of the relationship has meant fast-growing trade and investment in industry and services. There is also an official plan to increase the number of Chinese tourists to 1m a year by 2020. Many of the 90,000 who came last year were big spenders. Luxury goods stores in Madrid such as Hermès have Chinese-speaking staff on hand to serve what is now their most important group of foreign clients. When Li Keqiang, Chinese vice-premier, arrived in Madrid this month to drop hints about buying Spanish sovereign bonds to help alleviate the eurozone debt crisis, he was greeted by Expansión, Spain’s main business newspaper, with the front-page headline: “Welcome, Mr Li!”. It was a reference to “Welcome, Mr Marshall!”, a 1953 Spanish comedy film about a village hoping to benefit from US assistance for postwar Europe. “We are very proud to be Chinese,” says Mr Liu in Fuenlabrada, after Mr Li’s visit. “China is growing and has more power than before, thanks to the Chinese government ... It is very different from western governments, where you have freedom but are not united. We are very united.” .Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2011. You m [China rising] [Diaspora]
• Hu's fruitful visit opens new chapter of China-US cooperation: foreign minister
  Source: Xinhua [08:33 January 23 2011] Comments Chinese President Hu Jintao shakes hands with US President Barack Obama during a bilateral meeting at the White House in Washington, the United States, Jan. 19, 2011. Chinese President Hu Jintao's latest state visit to the United States bore rich fruit and opened a new chapter of cooperation between the two countries, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said Saturday. The tour, from Tuesday through Friday, came at the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century, on the 40th anniversary of the resumption of contact between the two countries and on the opening year of China's 12th five-year plan for national socioeconomic development, Yang noted. Meanwhile, the international situation was witnessing deep and complicated changes, and the China-US relationship was forging ahead with increasing momentum while inevitably encountering some differences and disputes, he said. Against such a backdrop, the Chinese president held frank and in-depth talks with his US counterpart, Barack Obama, and many other senior political figures, and reached important consensus on bilateral relations and a host of major regional and global affairs, Yang said. [Hu1101]
• Maybe Japan Was Just a Warm-Up
  By STEVE LOHR Published: January 21, 2011 IN the 1980s, the United States faced an unnerving challenge from a rising economic powerhouse and export dynamo. It was an impressive challenger, to be sure, but one that often bent rules of global competition unfairly to its advantage by handing out financial subsidies to domestic companies, discriminating against foreign suppliers in government contracts, pilfering Western technology and keeping its currency cheap. Three decades later, Americans are hearing an echo of the past. Yet this time, the object of admiration and angst is not Japan Inc., but China Inc. “We’ve seen this movie before,” says Clyde V. Prestowitz Jr., president of the Economic Strategy Institute and a former United States trade negotiator with Japan in the 1980s. “Like Japan, China is climbing up the ladder of economic and technological development, and using every means at its disposal to do so.” China, of course, is different from Japan in the 1980s in many ways — larger, less affluent, ruled by a Communist government and yet in some respects culturally more entrepreneurial. Silicon Valley venture capitalists, for example, have begun setting up offices in China to forge links with entrepreneurs there, as they never really did in Japan. [China rising] [Innovation]
• Who had the Worst Week in Washington? Hu Jintao.
  By Chris Cillizza Friday, January 21, 2011; 12:00 PM When Chinese President Hu Jintao came to Washington for an official state visit this past week, he was greeted with that greatest of American attributes: skepticism. While Hu was feted at a state dinner (the Fix's invite must have been lost in the mail) and received all the trappings a world leader would expect, there were also some awkward moments. At a joint news conference with President Obama on Wednesday, Hu was challenged on China's human rights record by Bloomberg's Hans Nichols: "First off, my colleague asked you a question about human rights, which you did not answer," said Nichols, referring to a prior question by Ben Feller of the Associated Press. "I was wondering if we could get an answer to that question." Ouch. Hu eventually fessed up that "a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights. [China confrontation] [Arrogance] [Hu1101]
• North Korea issues first report on Hu-Obama summit
  The Associated Press Saturday, January 22, 2011; 5:56 AM SEOUL, South Korea -- North Korea's official news agency has issued its first report on recent talks between President Barack Obama and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao. The Korean Central News Agency said Saturday that a joint statement issued after Wednesday's talks stressed the importance of improving relations between the two Koreas and called for dialogue. It said the statement also urged an early resumption of six-nation negotiations on ending North Korea's nuclear weapons programs. The brief dispatch was North Korea's first report on the summit and contained no commentary. It comes two days after South Korea decided to accept a North Korean proposal for high-level defense talks. [Hu1101]
• What might happen in China this year?
  Despite inflation, bankruptcies, and other problems, industrial enterprises should remain highly profitable. JANUARY 2011 • Gordon Orr
  ..Gordon Orr, a director in McKinsey’s Shanghai office, peers into 2011 and finds ways China may once again surprise the world. Read his six predictions, then let us know what you would add. Inflation in food prices will take longer than expected to control. The drivers of inflation are much more structural than cyclical. Indeed, the entire system is now so highly stressed that one snowstorm brings large spikes in food and energy prices as coal runs short. When ice shuts down the roads, as it does today in much of southwestern China, agricultural products simply cannot get to market. Chinese consumption patterns are shifting as people become wealthier—more meat eating requires more cereals to feed the animals. The food supply chain, running at the limit, is close to breaking, and the pressures this problem creates will lead to further food quality crises. What’s more, price caps won’t be effective in creating a better balance between supply and demand. Rising food prices are a pan-Asian issue: inflation has recently surged in Indonesia (chilies), India (onions), and South Korea (cabbage and now beef as a result of foot-and-mouth disease). China, given its large absolute demand for so many agricultural products, will shape food prices across Asia. A major second- or third-tier Chinese city will see demonstrations over food price rises, unemployment, or both, on a much larger scale than anything that has occurred in recent years. The demonstrators will probably be satisfied quickly by local action to increase financial support for them and to replace local-government leaders. Yet concerns over copycat actions elsewhere will lead to a nationwide preemptive program to support the urban unemployed.
• The China Paradox
  How should Americans understand a country that presents itself as simultaneously weak and strong? By Christina Larson,New America Foundation January 20, 2011 | Foreign Policy Until recently, the Chinese paradox that most puzzled Western audiences was how to understand a country that is both communist and hyper-capitalist. But that is hardly the only, or even the most striking, paradox of the modern Middle Kingdom. China is fast on its way to becoming a global superpower, even as it grapples with such enormous domestic challenges as supplying enough energy to keep its cities lit, absorbing millions of rural migrants into cities each year, reining in choking pollution, creating a social safety net, and attempting to lift millions out of poverty. Although China holds $1 trillion in U.S. debt, its per capita GDP is still roughly one-tenth that of the United States. Beijing is subsidizing China's fast-growing clean-tech export industry, even as the skies above the country's largest cities remain a hazy gray. Such seeming contradictions are dazzlingly confusing to outsiders -- and sometimes to China's own leaders.
• For Hu, style is the substance
  By Peter Lee China's President Hu Jintao's four-day state visit to the United States that ended on Friday has unleashed an avalanche of empty verbiage, courtesy of the two governments, their media enablers, the punditocracy, and the blogosphere. The trip, a victory lap for Hu prior to his retirement next year, appears essentially devoid of significant accomplishments or developments, unless you are a stockholder in Boeing (and can celebrate a US$19 billion payday occasioned partially, if not completely, by China's desire to facilitate the visit with some feel-good tangibles for President Barack Obama and China's friends in American big business). Thankfully, a few useful observations can be extracted from the rhetoric and visuals surrounding the visit. First, 2011 is not 2006. In 2006, the occasion of Hu's previous visit, George W Bush was still riding high in the early years of his second term. The "war on terror", with a few bumps, was rolling along and doing in the surviving members of the "axis of evil" - North Korea and Iran - was at the top of the foreign policy agenda after the third member, Iraq, had already been dealt with. Confronting China - long a preoccupation of vice president Dick Cheney and his wife Lynne Cheney - to moderate its support of North Korea and Iran was an important priority. [1] [China US] [Hu110] [DBA] [Toolkit]
• A Newly Cooperative China
  Published: January 21, 2011 After months of rancor, China is suddenly talking up cooperation on North Korea, the economy, and other difficult issues. There are several possible explanations for the change in tone — and, we hope — substance. Beijing’s bullying has alienated pretty much everyone out there, and China’s leaders may have finally figured that out. The Obama administration’s recent tough talk, coupled with President Obama’s pomp-filled welcome this week of President Hu Jintao, were also clear reminders of the cost of alienating the United States and the benefits of getting along. [China US] [Inversion]
• Chinese president Hu Jintao given frosty reception on Capitol Hill
  Congress unhappy as Hu took only two questions on human rights and trade before heading off to other meeting Share30 Ewen MacAskill in Washington and Tania Branigan in Beijing guardian.co.uk, Thursday 20 January 2011 19.18 GMT Article history Hu Jintao met house speaker John Boehner and Senate majority leader Harry Reid (above), both of whom shunned invitations to the state dinner. Photograph: Jason Reed/Reuters The Chinese president, Hu Jintao, was given a chilly reception in Congress today, where both Republicans and Democrats were outspoken on China's human rights record and what they claim are Beijing's unfair trading practices. Members of the House said afterwards that there had not been enough time to air their complaints as Hu only took two questions before going on to hold a separate meeting with senior senators. Hu met John Boehner, the house speaker, and the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, both of whom shunned invitations to the state dinner for the Chinese leader on last night. The Republican leader in the Senate, Mitch McConnell, also turned down the invitation. [China confrontation]
• China Goes to Nixon
  By PAUL KRUGMAN Published: January 20, 2011 With Hu Jintao, China’s president, currently visiting the United States, stories about growing Chinese economic might are everywhere. And those stories are entirely true: although China is still a poor country, it’s growing fast, and given its sheer size it’s well on the way to matching America as an economic superpower. What’s also true, however, is that China has stumbled into a monetary muddle that’s getting worse with each passing month. Furthermore, the Chinese government’s response to the problem — with policy seemingly paralyzed by deference to special interests, lack of intellectual clarity and a resort to blame games — belies any notion that China’s leaders can be counted on to act decisively and effectively. In fact, the Chinese come off looking like, well, us.
• U.S. Warning to China Sends Ripples to the Koreas
  By MARK LANDLER and MARTIN FACKLER Published: January 20, 2011 WASHINGTON — President Obama warned President Hu Jintao that if China did not step up its pressure on North Korea, the United States would have to redeploy its forces in Asia to protect itself from a potential North Korean strike on American soil, a senior administration official said Thursday. Mr. Obama’s warning, first made in a phone call to Mr. Hu last month and repeated over a private dinner at the White House on Tuesday, persuaded China to take a harder line toward North Korea, the official said, which opened the door to a resumption of dialogue between North and South Korea. On Thursday, the South Korea government said that it had agreed to hold defense talks with the North, the first engagement between the Koreas since a deadly North Korean artillery attack on a South Korean island in November seemed to push the peninsula to the brink of war. [US NK policy] [Inversion]
• Chinese public kept in the dark on Hu Jintao's human rights admission
  By Keith B. Richburg Washington Post Foreign Service Thursday, January 20, 2011; 11:58 PM BEIJING - The BBC television report was airing a clip from Wednesday's Obama-Hu news conference at the White House, on the touchy topic of human rights. "A lot still needs to be done . . . ," Chinese President Hu Jintao started to say. And then the television report went black. Hu's state visit to the United States has prompted saturation media coverage in China, with largely upbeat reports heralding, in the words of one newspaper headline, "a new chapter in relations." There has been in-depth reporting on the trappings of the visit, including the red-carpet welcome, the star-studded guest list for the state dinner and the $45 billion in deals signed for U.S. exports. But largely missing from official Chinese news media reports of the trip - and from the foreign television spots that are subject to government censorship - has been the back-and-forth between President Obama and Hu over human rights. At the news conference, after initially avoiding a reporter's question, Hu made what was considered an unusual allowance, saying China needed to make more progress in protecting its citizens' individual freedoms. "China is a developing country with a huge population, and also a developing country in a crucial stage of reform," Hu said. "In this context, China still faces many challenges in economic and social development. And a lot still needs to be done in China, in terms of human rights." [Manipulation] ]China confrontation]
• Amid the wining and dining of Hu Jintao, a display of American 'smart power'
  By David Ignatius Friday, January 21, 2011 It's hard to imagine Rome giving a state dinner for the marauding Barbarians. Or ancient Athens feting a rising Sparta. So before you make any assumptions about inevitable conflict between America and China, consider the image of President Hu Jintao tapping his toe to the music of Herbie Hancock in the East Room of the White House. The social whirl of a state visit is as short-lived as the flowers that seemed to decorate every available space Wednesday night, softening not just the tables but the mirrors and walls as well. The black-tie event said something about the familiarization of the U.S.-China relationship. Strategic cooperation is in part a habit, built on frequent meetings, careful protocol and the bunting of mutual respect. Put another way, the grand reception of Hu was an example of what Harvard's Joe Nye likes to call "smart power." For Chinese (and Americans) who believe that the United States is in decline, this was a show that only a superpower could produce - and in that sense, a reassuring sign of the continuity of American power. When President Obama toasted Hu, he wisely quoted a Chinese proverb that says if you want to build for a hundred years, invest in people. This is what the United States essentially has been doing since the opening to China in 1971 [Decline]
• Subtle Signs of Progress in U.S.-China Relations
  By MICHAEL WINES Published: January 19, 2011 WASHINGTON — The Chinese have striven to lend this week’s state visit by President Hu Jintao the aura of a fresh start, from feel-good displays of friendly Chinese in Times Square to a Washington newspaper insert that declared on Wednesday that his meeting with President Obama could open a new chapter in a relationship between the world’s two economic giants that had been troubled. That much is doubtful. But for the first time in months, the two leaders may at least have started reading from the same book. After a 2010 notable mostly for Chinese acrimony toward the United States and its policies, Mr. Hu came to the White House not only saying that constructive relations between the two powers were essential, but also offering some modest concessions to demonstrate it. In a joint statement issued Wednesday, the Chinese for the first time expressed public concern over North Korea’s recent disclosure of a modern uranium-enrichment plant, a small but ardently sought step in American efforts to press Kim Jong-il to roll back his nuclear weapons program. More surprisingly, perhaps, Mr. Hu said at a White House news conference that China “recognizes and also respects the universality of human rights,” a palpable shift for a government that has staged a two-year crackdown on internal dissent and imprisoned a Nobel laureate. Until Wednesday, recognizing credos like democracy and human rights as “universal values” had been all but taboo in Chinese political discourse, although China has signed the United Nations convention that enshrines the principle of universal human rights.
• Obama hosts Hu Jintao on state visit, presses China on human rights
  Video U.S., China balance human rights, business President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao sparred over human rights on Wednesday, while balancing concerns against $45 billion in expected new export sales for the U.S. with recent business deals. By John Pomfret and Scott Wilson Washington Post Staff Writers Thursday, January 20, 2011; 12:00 AM President Obama used his summit Wednesday with Chinese President Hu Jintao to place the issue of human rights front and center in the U.S. relationship with the world's preeminent ascending power. And Hu, in a rare concession, acknowledged that China needs to make more progress.
• Analysis: US-China tensions may grow again
  By TOM RAUM The Associated Press Wednesday, January 19, 2011; 6:46 PM WASHINGTON -- Despite the pomp, pageantry and vows of cooperation, tensions between the United States and China are likely to grow - not shrink - after President Barack Obama's summit meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao. While the United States struggles with near-chronic unemployment and a continuing housing crisis, China was the first major economy to power out of the global downturn and recently passed Japan as the world's second-largest economy. As China gets closer to overtaking the U.S. economically in a decade or two, trade and currency disputes seem likely to intensify. A joint news conference Wednesday by Obama and Hu produced a rare concession for a Chinese leader. Hu openly acknowledged "a lot still needs to be done in China on human rights," although he said progress had been made. And both leaders called for a renewed effort of cooperation on a flock of other big issues besides human rights, including trade and currency irritants, fighting global terrorism and tackling the international financial crisis. But while it was in the interest of both countries for Hu and Obama to project a confidence-building image of mended ties after a troubled year for U.S.-Chinese relations, the thaw may be short lived. [China confrontation]
• China Could Ask for U.S. to Get Out of Korea, WikiLeaks Cable Warns
  Timed with the U.S. visit by Chinese President Hu Jintao, WikiLeaks unveiled huge volumes of U.S. diplomatic cables about China. The Norwegian daily Aftenposten published the diplomatic cables on Wednesday. According to the cables, "A peaceful resolution of the threat posed by North Korea might cause China to call for an end to the U.S. base presence on the Korean Peninsula." The forecast is part of a report written in January 2009 by the U.S. Embassy in Beijing titled "Looking at the Next 30 Years of the U.S.-China Relationship" marking the 30th anniversary of bilateral ties. President Barack Obama and President Hu Jintao of China begin their working dinner in the Old Family Dining Room of the White House on Jan. 18, 2011. /Courtesy of White House "Over the past thirty years, Chinese officials have come to begrudgingly acknowledge the benefits to East Asia resulting from the U.S. military presence in the Pacific," the report claims but adds, "Perceived threats to China's security posed by Japan's participation in missile defense or by future high-tech U.S. military technologies might cause tomorrow's Chinese leaders to change their assessment and to exert economic pressures on U.S. allies like Thailand or the Philippines to choose between Beijing and Washington." [WikiLeaks] [US global strategy]
• Why Chinese Mothers Are Superior
  Can a regimen of no playdates, no TV, no computer games and hours of music practice create happy kids? And what happens when they fight back?. By AMY CHUA A lot of people wonder how Chinese parents raise such stereotypically successful kids. They wonder what these parents do to produce so many math whizzes and music prodigies, what it's like inside the family, and whether they could do it too. Well, I can tell them, because I've done it. Here are some things my daughters, Sophia and Louisa, were never allowed to do: .• attend a sleepover • have a playdate • be in a school play • complain about not being in a school play • watch TV or play computer games • choose their own extracurricular activities • get any grade less than an A • not be the No. 1 student in every subject except gym and drama • play any instrument other than the piano or violin • not play the piano or violin. I'm using the term "Chinese mother" loosely. I know some Korean, Indian, Jamaican, Irish and Ghanaian parents who qualify too. Conversely, I know some mothers of Chinese heritage, almost always born in the West, who are not Chinese mothers, by choice or otherwise. I'm also using the term "Western parents" loosely. Western parents come in all varieties. .All the same, even when Western parents think they're being strict, they usually don't come close to being Chinese mothers. For example, my Western friends who consider themselves strict make their children practice their instruments 30 minutes every day. An hour at most. For a Chinese mother, the first hour is the easy part. It's hours two and three that get tough. When it comes to parenting, the Chinese seem to produce children who display academic excellence, musical mastery and professional success - or so the stereotype goes. WSJ's Christina Tsuei speaks to two moms raised by Chinese immigrants who share what it was like growing up and how they hope to raise their children. . .Despite our squeamishness about cultural stereotypes, there are tons of studies out there showing marked and quantifiable differences between Chinese and Westerners when it comes to parenting. [Decline] [Culture]
• Obama toughens line in talks with Hu
  By Richard McGregor and Geoff Dyer in Washington Published: January 19 2011 19:23 | Last updated: January 20 2011 00:04 President Barack Obama warned Beijing that its prosperity has been based on free trade and the stability provided by the presence of the US military in Asia even as he lauded China’s success. At a press conference on Wednesday with Hu Jintao, China’s president, Mr Obama urged Beijing to end discrimination against US companies, allow its currency to appreciate and respect human rights, including in Tibet. Mr Obama stressed that China offered enormous opportunities for the US, saying: “We want to sell you planes, we want to sell you cars, we want to sell you software.” .Mr Obama said China’s success was “a tribute to the Chinese people” but also thanks “to decades of stability in Asia made possible by America’s forward presence in the region” and a global trading system championed by the US. Mr Hu’s arrival in Washington coincides with a low in bilateral relations, with the two sides squaring off over diplomatic, economic and business issues. Appearing at his first extended press conference in the west, Mr Hu insisted Beijing wanted to work closely with the US on global issues but said that ties should be based on “mutual respect”. “China is always committed to the promotion and protection of human rights,” he said. The pair, along with cabinet-level officials, held three hours of face-to-face talks following a welcoming ceremony. They interrupted their talks to sit together with business leaders from both countries to discuss commercial ties. Jeff Immelt, chief executive of GE, the largest US industrial group, said Mr Hu had promised that US companies that were “considered to be part of the fabric” in China would be able to bid for government contracts. He added: “We’re not looking for a handout; we just want to be able to compete toe-to-toe with everybody else.” Mr Obama said he wanted to move past the relationship’s “old stereotypes” according to which China only exported cheap goods to the US, stealing jobs along the way by keeping wages low. “The relationship is much more complex than that,” Mr Obama said. Tensions were evident elsewhere, with three congressional leaders declining to attend the state dinner at the White House on Wednesday evening. In a television interview, Harry Reid, the Senate Democratic leader, called Mr Hu a “dictator”. China also said it would include provincial and local administrations along with the central government in a revised offer it will make this year to join the global regime for government procurement. Central government procurement alone is worth $88bn, Beijing says. The White House said that China had agreed to allocate government funding to buy legal software and strengthen the enforcement of intellectual property rights on the internet and in libraries. Additional reporting by Daniel Dombey .Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2011 [US China] [Militarisation]
• China's New Stealth Jet 'Challenges U.S. Air Supremacy'
  China's next-generation stealth fighter jet J-20 has an operational range of 1,500 km, military experts believe. The estimate comes from Kanwa Asian Defence Monthly, a military magazine published in Canada. The stealth jet, which saw its first test flight last week, has a much longer operational range than China's top-of-the-line J-10 fighter jet, which can fly sorties of some 900 km, the F-16s, the mainstay fighters in South Korea and Japan (550 to 1,100km), and the U.S.' F-22 (760 to 1,200 km). It is similar to the maximum operational range of the U.S.' ultramodern stealth fighter F-35. /Reuters-Newsis Hong Yuan of the Center for Arms Control and Nonproliferation Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences told Kanwa the J-20 will have a big impact on neighboring countries, including South Korea and Japan, since China will now have air supremacy over the West Pacific, as well as over Taiwan, the East China Sea, and the South China Sea. "Especially in the current complicated situation around China, the unveiling of the new aircraft not only demonstrates China's determination to achieve regional air superiority, but also reflects a guarantee of the technology and equipment to realize this determination," he said. China has reportedly started testing the J-20 for flight control, software devices, engine, and aerodynamics. Experts told the magazine China "probably wouldn't be able to make the aircraft fully operational until the end of the decade: It appears to be testing at least two prototypes, which will likely be adapted many times before being put into large-scale production." [Military balance] [China confrontation]
• A strategy to straddle the planet
  By Geoff Dyer, David Pilling and Henny Sender Published: January 17 2011 21:01 | Last updated: January 17 2011 21:01 Reliance alliance: Anil Ambani at the signing last year of an agreement by his Reliance Power group to buy $10bn of power generation equipment from China’s state-owned Shanghai Electric. Favourable financing terms from China have given the billionaire Indian industrialist an edge over rivals in the sector Anil Ambani was in ebullient mood last October when he arrived at a luxury hotel in Shanghai to sign one of the biggest business deals of the year. The Indian billionaire’s Reliance Power had just agreed to purchase $10bn of power generation equipment from the state-owned Shanghai Electric. “It is the largest order in the history of the power sector,” proclaimed Mr Ambani, “and the largest single business relationship between India and China.” The size of the deal was not its only notable aspect. Shanghai Electric was offering its equipment at about 30-40 per cent below the cost of an equivalent turbine from General Electric of the US. With the generous financing deal offered by China Development Bank and a group of other Chinese banks, the discount was in fact closer to 60 per cent. Welcome to a new era of globalisation, China-style. As the financial crisis recedes, one of the big fears is that the process of increasingly closer links among big economies worldwide will go into reverse as governments and countries look inward. The message coming from the world’s second-largest economy for the past year has been clear: China wants to accelerate the integration of the global economy, but on its own terms. Over the past few decades, China has benefited hugely by hitching itself to a process of globalisation where the rules were written in Washington and the American consumer was the buyer of last resort. China prospered by making first the socks, then the washing machines and finally the iPods sold at Walmart. Interactive: China trade See how 43 developed and developing economies’ trade with China has increased over the past two decades ..Coming out of the crisis, China wants to forge a new phase of globalisation where many of the roads – financial, commercial and perhaps eventually political – converge on Beijing. China is not seeking a rupture with the international economic system (although some foreign companies are fearful of a technology grab). But it is looking to mould more of the rules, institutions and economic relationships that are at the core of the global economy. It is trying to forge post-American globalisation. In recent years, a range of important countries have found that China rather than the US is their principal trading partner, from neighbouring Japan and South Korea to commodity-rich Australia and Brazil. At times over the past year, Chinese imports of oil from Saudi Arabia have exceeded Riyadh’s shipments to the US. With the help of its considerable financial firepower, China is deepening these links. Beijing is establishing trade relationships that allow it to sell not just clothing and consumer products but more sophisticated goods such as power equipment. Its banks are helping to expand infrastructure and energy supplies in other developing countries in ways that will accelerate their growth, boost two-way trade and bind them closer to the Chinese economy. Beijing is also looking to establish a role for its currency in the international monetary system, in part at the expense of the dollar. “China will boost its role at the centre of a growing web of economic and financial connections. These links are gradually, but inexorably, integrating east Asia,” says Evan Feigenbaum, head of the Asia practice at Eurasia, a consultancy. “China will continue to seek to reshape the region’s trade and investment architecture, largely on a pan-Asian basis and without the US.” It is not just Asia: Africa, Latin America and the Middle East are all being touched by China’s global push. Central to a great deal of this activity is China Development Bank, which has become the financial muscle in the country’s overseas drive. In the energy sector alone, CDB has awarded loans to other developing country governments or companies of more than $65bn in the past two years, according to Erica Downs at the Brookings Institution in the US. Including China’s EximBank, Beijing has made more than $110bn in long-term loans to developing countries over that period, a number that exceeds the World Bank’s lending. Development by design Run by Chen Yuan – son of Chen Yun, one of the country’s most powerful officials in the 1980s – CDB is a unique hybrid of the Chinese party-state: a “policy” bank whose mission is to assist the development goals of the nation but which has managed to forge an enviable record of profitability and commercial savvy. When Mr Chen took the helm in the late 1990s, CDB’s lending had been so abused by local governments that its bad debt ratio approached 43 per cent. Last year Dragonomics, a Beijing consultancy, described it as “China’s best-managed bank”. Ahead of the crisis, Mr Chen flirted with several big investments in western banks (and CDB did buy a small stake in Barclays of the UK). But over the past two years, he has thrown the bank’s weight behind investments in other developing countries, especially those that are energy or commodity-rich. “Everybody is saying we should go into the market and buy up low-priced [financial] assets,” he told an interviewer last year. “But I think we should be thinking about partnerships in natural resources.” To organise its global push over the past decade, CDB designated each of its branches as having responsibility for a different part of the world. The Henan branch thus took on southern Africa and the Chongqing office was told to develop contacts in the Balkans. By the end of 2009, the bank had teams in 141 countries, including all but a handful of Africa’s 50-plus nation states. In a book about his experiences working overseas for the bank, Shi Jiyang recalls looking at a map of the world in his office in Shenzhen in 2006 and wondering if he would ever get a chance to visit South America: a month later, he was sent there to find new business. “South America is going to be the hot spot for Chinese investment in the coming 10 years,” he writes. “Entrepreneurs who want to ‘challenge the blue ocean’ should be ready to go to South America.” In the process, CDB and EximBank have operated at a scale and speed that cannot be matched by most other financial institutions. Brazil’s Petrobras signed a $10bn loan agreement with CDB in 2009, shortly after agreeing with the US Ex-ImBank on a $2bn line of credit. According to José Sergio Gabrielli, Petrobras chief executive, it was considerably easier to secure credit from the Chinese than the Americans. The US needs to think much more about its strategic interests, he adds. Some of these loans are helping to accelerate the integration of the rest of Asia with China through energy and infrastructure projects – such as oil pipelines from Russia, Kazakhstan and Burma, which are under construction or already operating, or railway lines linking Vietnam, Laos and Burma with south-west China. In the Reliance case, the combination of low-cost finance and competitive Chinese manufacturing is helping India to expand its creaking energy network faster than would otherwise have been possible – and has enabled Mr Ambani to gain an edge over more cautious rivals. Reliance Power is buying 30,000 megawatts of boiler, turbine and generator packages, which Shanghai Electric will provide over three years. Banks in India are reluctant to lend beyond five to seven years but Reliance has won terms as long as 12 years under the China deal. Reliance Communications, another of Mr Ambani’s companies, is using a $1.9bn loan from Chinese banks to pay down more expensive Indian debt. Chinese policymakers see this sort of deal as the start of a powerful trend that will deepen integration with the rest of the developing world. “China is now working closely with all these fast-growing emerging market economies and I see a big future,” says Li Daokui, an adviser to the People’s Bank of China, the central bank. “All the forces are working in the same direction. They have resources and need capital. We have extra capital to invest. So why not?” Beijing’s global push is helping to open new markets for Chinese goods and also serves a broader strategic goal for Beijing, reducing dependence on the US. The American consumer may still be one of the main driving forces in the global economy, but about half of China’s exports now go to developing countries. The big ticket loans also further China’s efforts to diversify foreign exchange reserves away from the dollar. Some of China’s post-crisis objectives represent a more explicit challenge to US leadership of globalisation. Take, for instance, China’s long-term plans to internationalise its currency, which have been sharply accelerated over the past year. The immediate goal is to make the renminbi the main currency for trade in Asia, reducing costs for Chinese exporters. Some of the loans to Mr Ambani’s empire are in renminbi – with the Chinese offering to help hedge the currency exposure. But among Chinese officials and scholars, there is a widely held view that the US has been abusing its position as controller of the main reserve currency by pursuing irresponsible economic policies. Nor do they hide the underlying geopolitical objective of the currency push – to place limits on the role of the dollar in the international monetary system. “The financial crisis ... let us clearly see how unreasonable the current international monetary system is,” Li Ruogu, head of China EximBank, said last year. Jiang Yong, at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, puts it more starkly: ending US dominance of the monetary system is “as important as New China’s becoming a nuclear power”. Risks and roadblocks Yet several obstacles could derail this new phase of China-led globalisation. For a start, India and many other developing countries are aware of the risk of being steamrollered by China’s manufacturing machine, especially when it is bolstered by a quasi-mercantilist economic strategy that keeps the Chinese currency undervalued against those of many of its emerging peers. One Indian executive reflects that his country ships plastic pellets to China that are then made into buckets. If India cannot even make plastic buckets competitively, he implies, its battle will be tough. Dilma Rousseff, Brazil’s new president, has meanwhile indicated that one of her first priorities will be holding talks with China about its currency and trade policies. “This is an issue not only for Brazil but for all emerging countries,” says Fernando Pimentel, her new trade minister. China’s investment largesse also risks sparking a backlash. In some resource-rich nations, such as Australia, its form of state capitalism raises fears that the mining sector will be the Trojan horse that leads to Beijing’s control of commodity prices. In Africa, where China has done deals with some of the weakest governments, there are signs of a backlash by groups protesting at corruption or poor working conditions. “Western companies [in Africa] have cleaned up their act in the past decade, but China is turning the clock back,” says Paul Collier, an Oxford Africa expert. “It is no defence to say: ‘You plundered the poor, so now it is our turn’.” Perhaps the biggest risk to China’s ambitions lies in the security tensions they are provoking in its own backyard. Just as quickly as Asian countries are integrating with China’s economy, they are also rushing into the arms of the US for military protection against a more assertive Beijing. Vietnam invited the US navy to hold a joint drill in the South China Sea last summer. During a bruising diplomatic dispute between Japan and China in the autumn after the Japanese coast guard arrested a Chinese fishing boat captain, China appeared to halt exports of rare earths to Japan. For the rest of Asia, it was a chilling reminder that their economic links with China could leave them exposed if they have a political falling-out with Beijing. For all the economic optimism coursing through Asia at a time when much of the developed world is still struggling, it is worth reflecting on another important difference: while defence spending is under pressure in the west, in Asia it is rising strongly. China is the reason for that, too. .Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2011. You [China rising][China India]
• The west needs to stand up to Beijing
  By John Bolton Published: January 18 2011 16:16 | Last updated: January 18 2011 16:16 Mao Zedong once said that “all political power comes from the barrel of a gun”. Whether his apostolic successor President Hu Jintao, visiting President Barack Obama this week in Washington, believes this particular line in Mao’s catechism is unclear. Completely clear, however, is that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) not only believes it, but is implementing it. Systematic expansion of China’s strategic nuclear weapons and delivery capabilities; rapid growth in submarine and blue-water naval forces; substantial investments in anti-access and area-denial weapons such as anti-carrier cruise missiles; fifth-generation fighter-bomber platforms; and sophisticated cyber-warfare techniques all testify to the PLA’s operational objectives. Western business and political leaders have chattered for years about China as a globally “responsible stakeholder” enjoying a “peaceful rise”. This is the acceptable face Mr Hu will present in Washington. But just because the musclemen aren’t listed on the Chinese leader’s passenger manifest doesn’t mean they aren’t flying the plane. China’s Communist party remains unquestionably dominant, and the PLA remains its most potent element. During US defence secretary Robert Gates’ Beijing meetings last week, China tested its stealthy new J-20, a prototype combat aircraft. Many scoffed at the notion that Mr Hu seemed surprised when Mr Gates raised the test, and at the Chinese leader’s explanation that the timing was coincidental. Was the J-20 flight intended to embarrass Mr Gates and Mr Obama prior to Mr Hu’s Washington visit, or was it a signal to China’s civilian leadership about who is actually in charge? In truth, both seem likely. Both Mr Hu and the PLA undoubtedly understand that China is dealing with the most leftwing, least national-security-oriented, least assertive American president in decades. This matters because China will be heavily influenced by its perception of US policies and capabilities. Mr Obama’s extravagant domestic spending, and the consequent ballooning of America’s national debt, has enhanced China’s position at America’s expense. Indeed, the only budget line Mr Obama has been interested in cutting, which he has done with gusto, is defence. Sensing growing weakness, therefore, it would be surprising if China did not continue its assertive economic, political and military policies. Thus, we can expect more discrimination against foreign investors and businesses in China, as both the US and European Union chambers of commerce there have recently complained. Further expansive, unjustifiable territorial claims in adjacent east Asian waters are also likely. While the Pentagon is clipping coupons and limiting its nuclear capabilities in treaties with Russia, the PLA is celebrating Mardi Gras. Consider two further important issues: Taiwan and North Korea. When Beijing threatened Taipei in 1996 President Bill Clinton sent two carrier battle groups to the Taiwan strait, demonstrating America’s commitment to Taiwan’s defence. Does anyone, particularly in Beijing, believe Mr Obama would do anything nearly as muscular faced with comparable belligerence today? On the North Korean menace, meanwhile, Mr Obama is conforming to a 20-year pattern of US deference to China which has enabled a bellicose, nuclear Pyongyang. Of course, if China sensed an America determined to maintain its dominant position in the western Pacific, and ready to match its determination with budget resources, it might be dissuaded from its recent objectionable behaviour. In such circumstances, more balanced, co-operative and ultimately more productive relations would likely follow. On the other hand, if China is determined to increase its military strength regardless of Washington’s posture, all the more reason for America to ready itself now. China should take careful note: neither Mr Hu nor the PLA ought to assume that Mr Obama truly represents broader US public opinion. There could be a different president two years hence, ready to reverse his agenda of international passivity and decline. Beijing can certainly take advantage of Mr Obama for now, both because of his philosophical and leadership weaknesses. But so doing could cost them in the future, if America in 2012 goes to the next level in rejecting Mr Obama’s failing policies. The writer is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and served as US ambassador to the UN 2005-2006 .Copyright The Financial [China confrontation] [Hardliner] [Bizarre]
• Taiwan missile test fizzles out
  Source: Global Times [08:11 January 19 2011] Comments A Taiwanese-built Tien Kung missile is launched from the Chiupeng missile base in southern Pingtung county during a live-fire drill Tuesday. Photo: AFP By Zhu Shanshan Taiwan test-fired an array of missiles Tuesday in its largest live ammunition exercise since Ma Ying-jeou took position as regional leader in May 2008, but nearly a third of the weapons failed to hit their targets. The move came just days after the mainland confirmed the existence of its first stealth fighter jet. A total of 19 surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles were fired Tuesday from a military base in Chiupeng, southern Taiwan. Among them, six were off their marks. Seventeen types of missiles were test-fired Tuesday, including the region's self-developed Tien Kung, or "Sky Bow," surface-to-air missile, the US-made Hawk surface-to-air missile and the vehicle-launched Tien-chien I, local military authorities said. Ma, who observed the test, told reporters that he was not satisfied with the accuracy of the missiles, urging the military to improve future results. However, Pan Kung-hsiao, with Taiwan's air force, said the results were within expectations despite room for improvement, the Taiwan-based United Evening News reported. [Missiles] [Straits]
• China on equal footing with US as Hu Jintao visits Washington
  China's inferiority in 'hard power' has turned to Beijing's advantage, and signs of its growing 'soft power' abound Share326 Julian Borger, Ewen MacAskill and Phillip Inman guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 18 January 2011 21.41 GMT Article history Hu Jintao, accompanied by the US vice-president, Joe Biden, receives a red-carpet reception at Andrews air force base in Maryland. Photograph: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images The last time Hu Jintao arrived in Washington, back in 2006, he was given a White House working lunch, and by all accounts never forgave George W Bush for the perceived insult. In contrast, it is highly unlikely China's leader could find fault with the welcome laid out by the Obama administration: a private White House dinner tonight to be followed later in the week by a full state banquet, a 21-gun salute and all the pomp and circumstance of a review of the troops. The message is absolutely clear – these are the world's two leading powers meeting together as equals. It is that sense of equal status that distinguishes this Washington summit from earlier such encounters. [China rising] [Softpower]
• Did media generate 'misunderstanding' between Seoul, Beijing?
  Huang Youfu The following is the second in a series of articles examining Seoul-Beijing ties following the tumultuous relationship between the two countries last year. — ED. By Sunny Lee BEIJING — If media reports are correct, the current relationship between China and South Korea is the “worst ever” since they established diplomatic ties in 1992. And the media is part of the problem, according to Huang Youfu, director of the Institute of Korean Studies at Minzu University of China. [China SK] [Media]
• G.E. to Share Jet Technology With China in New Joint Venture
  Agence France-Presse — Getty Images A prototype of the C919 jet that China’s state-owned aircraft maker hopes to begin delivering in 2016. G.E. has been chosen to supply the engines. By DAVID BARBOZA, CHRISTOPHER DREW and STEVE LOHR Published: January 17, 2011 As China strives for leadership in the world’s most advanced industries, it sees commercial jetliners — planes that may someday challenge the best from Boeing and Airbus — as a top prize. And no Western company has been more aggressive in helping China pursue that dream than one of the aviation industry’s biggest suppliers of jet engines and airplane technology, General Electric. On Friday, during the visit of the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, to the United States, G.E. plans to sign a joint-venture agreement in commercial aviation that shows the tricky risk-and-reward calculations American corporations must increasingly make in their pursuit of lucrative markets in China. G.E., in the partnership with a state-owned Chinese company, will be sharing its most sophisticated airplane electronics, including some of the same technology used in Boeing’s new state-of-the-art 787 Dreamliner. For G.E., the pact is a chance to build upon an already well-established business in China, where the company has booming sales of jet engines, mainly to Chinese airlines that are now buying Boeing and Airbus planes. But doing business in China often requires Western multinationals like G.E. to share technology and trade secrets that might eventually enable Chinese companies to beat them at their own game — by making the same products cheaper, if not better. [IJV] [Technology transfer]
• Hu faces an Obama administration more hard-nosed about Chinese government
  By John Pomfret Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, January 18, 2011; 9:06 PM The arrival of Chinese President Hu Jintao in the United States brings him face to face with an Obama administration that has grown more hard-nosed about the course of what is arguably the most important relationship the United States maintains with a foreign power. Hu landed at Andrews Air Force Base on Tuesday afternoon and had a private dinner with President Obama before substantive talks were to begin Wednesday on security, economic and political issues. Hu will meet congressional and business leaders in Washington on Thursday before heading to Chicago for a day. The summit with Obama will probably be Hu's last as China's president; he is set to retire in 2012 and be replaced by the vice president, Xi Jinping. One tangible outcome of the summit is expected to be an invitation to Vice President Biden to go to China, which would set the scene for Xi to visit the United States, a rite of passage for those about to rise the chairmanship of China's Communist Party. [China confrontation]
• MOFA welcomes Clinton’s cross-strait remarks
  •Publication Date:01/17/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Elaine Hou Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs welcomed comments made by U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton lauding the progress of cross-strait relations and the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement. “We thank the U.S. for its unflagging support of Taiwan and continued interest in cross-strait relations,” the MOFA said Jan. 17 in response to Clinton’s speech at the U.S. State Department last week. Clinton said the U.S. was encouraged by expanding cross-strait dialogue and joint economic initiatives such as the ECFA, and urged both sides to continue strengthening bilateral relations. “In the period ahead, we seek to encourage and see more dialogue and exchanges between the two sides, as well as reduced military tensions and deployments,” she said. [Straits] [Spin]
• Chinese-Language Fad Spreads to Kindergartens
  A fad for private Chinese-language education in Korea is spreading even to kindergartens as China continues to enjoy explosive economic growth. "A decade ago, many parents were skeptical about Chinese-language training for kids," the director of a kindergarten said. "But for the last two or three years a growing number of mothers have been visiting us because they feel that it's good to let their kids start to learn accurate pronunciation and intonation when young because Chinese will be a required foreign language in the future." [China rising]
• China’s lending hits new heights
  By Geoff Dyer and Jamil Anderlini in Beijing and Henny Sender in Hong Kong Published: January 17 2011 22:15 | Last updated: January 17 2011 22:15 China has lent more money to other developing countries over the past two years than the World Bank, a stark indication of the scale of Beijing’s economic reach and its drive to secure natural resources. China Development Bank and China Export-Import Bank signed loans of at least $110bn (£70bn) to other developing country governments and companies in 2009 and 2010, according to Financial Times research. The equivalent arms of the World Bank made loan commitments of $100.3bn from mid-2008 to mid-2010, itself a record amount of lending in response to the financial crisis. The volume of overseas loans by the two banks indicates how Beijing is forging new patterns of China-led globalisation, as part of a broader push to scale back its economic dependency on western export markets. The financial crisis allowed Beijing to push the commercial interests of its energy companies by offering loans to producer countries at a time when financing was hard to come by. The agreements include large loan-for-oil deals with Russia, Venezuela and Brazil, as well as loans for an Indian company to buy power equipment and for infrastructure projects in Ghana and railways in Argentina. The World Bank has been trying to find ways to co-operate with Beijing to avoid escalating competition over loan deals. China itself has been one of the biggest recipients of World Bank loans in the past.“One of the topics I have been discussing with the Chinese authorities is how we can work with them to share our mutual experience to support other developing countries, whether in south-east Asia or Africa,” Robert Zoellick, World Bank president, said on a visit to China last year. CDB and EximBank provide more preferential terms than the World Bank and other lenders for certain deals that are strongly supported by Beijing, but offer terms that are closer to international standards for less politically sensitive deals. They also tend to impose less onerous transparency conditions. The flurry of Chinese lending to oil producers has already caused some anxiety in the US about energy security. According to Erica Downs, a China expert at the Brookings Institution, the impact on US interests is mixed. “CDB’s [energy] loans indicate that Chinese lenders are likely to be more concerned about good economic policymaking in recipient countries and they are not reducing the amount of oil available to the US,” she said. “On the other hand, CDB’s loans are empowering anti-American regimes in Latin America.” CDB and China EximBank do not publish figures for overseas loans. They declined to comment. The World Bank said it was working closely with China and welcomed “an important and growing partnership”. The statistics were collected by examining public announcements by the banks, the borrowers or the Chinese government. An adviser to CDB said the volume of lending suggested by public statements understated the real level of the bank’s new loan commitments to developing countries. The World Bank figures are for the International Bank of Reconstruction and Development, the bank’s main lending arm, and the International Finance Corporation, which lends to the private sector. They do not include the International Development Association, which makes grants and low-interest loans. China also gives financial aid to other developing countries, but provides little detail. Beijing has also used offshore lending by CDB and EximBank, which have a mandate to further the interests of the Communist Party and the Chinese state, to accelerate its goal of making its currency more international. For example, half of the $20bn loan it extended to Venezuela was denominated in renminbi and intended for purchases of Chinese goods and equipment. In other cases, the foreign currency in the loans has come directly from China’s foreign exchange reserves. [ODI] [Going Out]
• Editorial: President Hu Comes to Washington
  Published: January 17, 2011 There has been a lot of hype, for a long time, about a rising China. There is now no question about China’s growing economic power or its military ambition. Over the past year, relations between Washington and Beijing have become increasingly tense and mistrustful.
  State dinners and 21-gun salutes are ephemeral. What will earn China respect as a major power is if it behaves responsibly. That must be Mr. Obama’s fundamental message [China confrontation]
• Seoul Must Bring China on Board Over N.Korea
  The South Korean and Japanese foreign ministers on Saturday agreed that before direct talks between Japan and North Korea or a resumption of six-party nuclear talks, there have to be inter-Korean talks. Japan's Seiji Maehara supported Seoul's position that the North must first take positive and responsible action over the sinking of the Navy corvette Cheonan and the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island last year.
• Hu questions future role of US dollar
  By Richard McGregor in Washington Published: January 16 2011 21:46 | Last updated: January 16 2011 21:46 China’s president Hu Jintao has raised questions on the role of the US dollar in the global monetary system on the eve of a state visit to Washington, saying “the current international currency system is the product of the past”. Mr Hu, who arrives in Washington on Tuesday, also delivered a thinly veiled critique of US monetary policy, underlining China’s concern about the impact on its own economy of recent stimulus measures taken by the US Federal Reserve. “The monetary policy of the United States has a major impact on global liquidity and capital flows and therefore, the liquidity of the US dollar should be kept at a reasonable and stable level,” said Mr Hu. Mr Hu made his comments in response to written questions from two US newspapers, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. His unusually blunt comments on the US-led monetary system as a “product of the past” is confirmation that China will continue to take measures to internationalise its own currency, the renminbi. However, Mr Hu said that “making the RMB an international currency will be a fairly long process”. Mr Hu rarely gives newspapers interviews, especially to western outlets, leaving most high-profile media public appearances at home and abroad to be conducted by Wen Jiabao, the country’s smooth-talking premier. Although Mr Hu’s stiffly worded answers contain little that conveys any of his own personality, their distribution illustrates the importance China attaches to the US trip, which also includes a stop in Chicago. In spite of what he acknowledged as a “sensitive” issue of disagreement between the US and China, he generally struck a positive note on bilateral ties, saying the two sides could work productively together. “There is great potential for our mutually beneficial co-operation both in advancing Asia-Pacific regional co-operation and in improving global economic governance and promoting sustainable growth of the world economy,” he said. Mr Hu strongly criticised the structural faults in the world’s banking system that led to the 2008 financial crisis. “Its root cause lies in the serious defects of the existing financial system,” he said, adding that global institutions had failed to fully reflect the changing status of developing countries in the world economy and finance. Mr Hu will be feted in the White House with a state dinner on Wednesday, the type of event that the administration reserves for close friends or countries and leaders that it thinks need to be cultivated .[Reserve]
• China Leader’s Limits Come Into Focus as U.S. Visit Nears
  By DAVID E. SANGER and MICHAEL WINES Published: January 16, 2011 BEIJING — With President Hu Jintao at the helm, China has become a $5 trillion industrial colossus, a growing military force, and, it sometimes appears, a model of authoritarian decisiveness, navigating out of the global financial crisis and sealing its position as the world’s fastest rising power. U.S. Is Not Trying to Contain China, Clinton Says (January 15, 2011) Times Topic: Hu JintaoBut as Mr. Hu prepares to visit Washington this week in an attempt to defuse tensions with the United States, Obama administration officials are grappling with what they describe as a more complex reality. China is far wealthier and more influential, but Mr. Hu also may be the weakest leader of the Communist era. He is less able to project authority than his predecessors were — and perhaps less able to keep relations between the world’s two largest economies from becoming more adversarial. [China US relations] [China confrontation] [China rising] [inversion]
• Chinese President Hu looks for 'common ground' with U.S.
  By Keith B. Richburg Washington Post Staff Writer Sunday, January 16, 2011; 10:51 PM BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao, who travels to Washington this week for a state visit after a year marked by disputes and tension with the United States, said the two countries could mutually benefit by finding "common ground" on issues from fighting terrorism and nuclear proliferation to cooperating on clean energy and infrastructure development. "There is no denying that there are some differences and sensitive issues between us," Hu said in written answers to questions from The Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. "We both stand to gain from a sound China-U.S. relationship, and lose from confrontation.'' To enhance what he called "practical cooperation" on a wide range of issues, Hu urged an increase in dialogues and exchanges and more "mutual trust." He said, "We should abandon the zero-sum Cold War mentality," and, in what seemed like an implicit rejection of U.S. criticisms of China's internal affairs, said the two should "respect each other's choice of development path." Hu took aim at the international currency system, now dominated by the dollar, calling it a "product of the past." China has moved to make its currency, the renminbi convertible on international markets, and Hu pointed to Chinese efforts to boost its use in trade and investment. But he cautioned against any suggestion that the renminbi, also called the yuan, might soon become a new reserve currency. "It takes a long time for a country's currency to be widely accepted in the world," Hu said. [China confrontation] [Reserve]
• Excerpts from Hu Jintao interview
  Sunday, January 16, 2011; 6:47 PM Following are excerpts from written answers by President Hu Jintao of China to questions submitted by The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal, as translated by the Chinese government. A full transcript is posted at washingtonpost.com. 1. How do you view the current state of China-U.S. relationship? What do you see as the most promising areas of mutually beneficial cooperation? . . . What do you see as the major challenges? HU: . . . The strategic significance and global impact of China-US relations have been on the rise. [China US]
• China's Hu Jintao answers questions with Washington Post
  By The Washington Post Sunday, January 16, 2011; 11:00 AM This is a full, unedited transcript of written answers from President Hu Jintao of China to written questions from The Washington Post and The Wall Street Journal. The questions were submitted in late December and the answers, in English, were released to the Post and the Journal by the Chinese government on Jan. 16. [China US]
• Clinton urges China to vigorously implement sanctions on NK
  WASHINGTON -- U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called on China Friday to faithfully implement sanctions on North Korea, imposed by U.N. resolutions, for the North's nuclear and missile tests in the past years. In a speech at the State Department ahead of Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit here early next week, Clinton said, "Until North Korea demonstrates in concrete ways its intention to keep its commitments, China, along with the international community, must vigorously enforce the sanctions adopted by the Security Council last year." [Sanctions]
• Solar Panel Maker Moves Work to China
  Matthew Cavanaugh for The New York Times Evergreen Solar plans to close its main American factory, in Devens, Mass., seen here in September, and lay off 800 workers. By KEITH BRADSHER Published: January 14, 2011 BEIJING — Aided by at least $43 million in assistance from the government of Massachusetts and an innovative solar energy technology, Evergreen Solar emerged in the last three years as the third-largest maker of solar panels in the United States. But now the company is closing its main American factory, laying off the 800 workers by the end of March and shifting production to a joint venture with a Chinese company in central China. Evergreen cited the much higher government [China rising]
• Architects Find Their Dream Client, in China
  Stuart Silk Architects Limited PS A rendering of Bending Paths, a villa designed by a Seattle architect for a Shanghai developer. By LAWRENCE W. CHEEK Published: January 15, 2011 IT was an unusual commission, unlike anything that Stuart Silk, a Seattle architect, had been offered in his quarter-century of practice: design three high-end custom homes for clients he would never meet. Although there were some specifications for functions and dimensions — total square feet, for example, and the number of bedrooms and baths — there wasn’t a clue as to style or a construction budget.
  Mr. Silk’s 17-person firm is among scores of small to midsize architectural practices across the United States that are enjoying a startling boom in Chinese projects — whether in spec mansions for sudden multimillionaires or quarter-mile-high skyscrapers. Although a handful of big firms, like Skidmore, Owings & Merrill of Chicago and HOK of St. Louis, have extended global tentacles for generations, it has been only in the last half-dozen years that Chinese projects have gushed down to their smaller brethren. These firms are grateful for the commissions, and not only for the obvious reason — that the Chinese work has helped fill the void left by a listless American economy. More intriguing, the architects say, is that Chinese developers and even government agencies are proving to be better clients than their American counterparts. They say the Chinese are more ambitious, more adventurous and even more willing to spend the money necessary to realize the designs. This thrills the architects, who have artistic undercurrents that often struggle to find an outlet. [China rising]
• 2011 Kia Optima SX - If Korea can do this, watch out for China
  Warren Brown Washington Post Staff Writer Sunday, January 16, 2011; 9:00 AM DETROIT The traditional global automobile industry has two three-letter threats. One is Kia. The other is BYD. Kia, the other half of South Korea's Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, poses an immediate threat. BYD, a China-based energy company aspiring to produce the world's most efficient and affordable electric cars, threatens to dominate the industry's future. [Auto] [China rising]
• Taiwanese lawmakers act on paid government news
  •Publication Date:01/12/2011 •Source: Taiwan Today •By Grace Kuo The legislative caucuses of the ruling Kuomintang and opposition Democratic Progressive Party agreed Jan. 11 to amend the Budget Act to ban government embedded marketing. The compromise revision prohibits government agencies, state-run businesses, and foundations and reinvestment businesses with half their capital provided by the government from paying for news stories in the media. Any promotion of government policy would have to be labeled as an advertisement, and the sponsoring agency clearly shown. “Government use of product placement is a serious violation of administrative neutrality, press freedom and the people’s rights,” the DPP caucus pointed out. “Such invisible control of the media should be expressly forbidden.” As the amendment incorporates the views of both caucuses, it is expected to pass final reading in the Legislature Jan. 12, said KMT Legislator Lin Yi-shih, who doubles as executive director of the party’s Policy Committee.
  The practice of government embedded marketing was introduced under the previous DPP administration, and has continued under the present KMT government. (THN) [Media] [Propaganda]
• How Advanced Is China's Military Development?
  Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie told his visiting U.S. counterpart Robert Gates earlier this week that China's military technology is decades behind the world's most advanced armed forces and does not threaten any country. The comments came after Gates voiced concerns about the latest developments including the test flight of a stealth jet fighter and the nearing deployment of the "aircraft carrier killer" missile Dongfeng-21D. Is China's military technology really that far behind the U.S.? [Military balance] [China confrontation]
• U.S. Military Chief Warns of Chinese, N.Korean Threats
  Mike Mullen The chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff on Wednesday warned of China's growing military capacity. "China is investing in very high-end, high-tech capabilities" including a next-generation stealth fighter that seem to be "focused specifically on the United States," Adm. Mike Mullen told reporters in Washington. "What I just have not been able to crack is the why on some of these capabilities (sic) . Whether it's this, whether it's anti-satellite, whether it's anti-ship, many of these capabilities seem to be focused very specifically on the United States," he said. [China confrontation] [military balance] [Bizarre]
• Korean Diplomats Prefer Posting in China to U.S.
  Korean diplomats' preferred posting has shifted from the U.S. to China. The Foreign Ministry received applications ahead of a regular reshuffle of senior diplomats at the end of this month and found that those who wanted to be posted at the embassy in Beijing outnumbered those who wanted to work in Washington, which has been the traditional favorite. Seven or eight applicants are apparently competing for two counselor positions at the embassy in Beijing, while only four or five are vying for the same post in Washington. The embassy in Beijing has beaten the one in Washington in terms of the competition among young diplomats being posted overseas for the first time, but this is apparently the first time that senior diplomats have shown the same preference. "We realized the importance of closer diplomatic relations with China following the North Korean attacks on the Navy corvette Cheonan and on Yeonpyeong Island last year, and attitudes have also changed among diplomats," a Foreign Ministry official said. "It seems diplomats feel the need to gain a good knowledge of Chinese affairs to be good at their jobs." [China rising] [Decline]
• Avoiding a U.S.-China cold war
  By Henry A. Kissinger Friday, January 14, 2011 The upcoming summit between the American and Chinese presidents is to take place while progress is being made in resolving many of the issues before them, and a positive communique is probable. Yet both leaders also face an opinion among elites in their countries emphasizing conflict rather than cooperation. Most Chinese I encounter outside of government, and some in government, seem convinced that the United States seeks to contain China and to constrict its rise. American strategic thinkers are calling attention to China's increasing global economic reach and the growing capability of its military forces. [China confrontation] [China card] [Kissinger]
• The Real Problem With China
  By DAVID LEONHARDT Published: January 11, 2011 When China’s president, Hu Jintao, visits here next week, the exchange rate between Chinese and American currency will inevitably become a big topic of conversation. China has been holding down the value of its currency, the renminbi, for years, making Chinese exports to the United States cheaper and American exports to China more expensive. The renminbi’s recent rise has been too modest to change the situation, and Mr. Hu’s state visit is sure to highlight the real tensions between the countries. Yet the focus on the currency has nonetheless become excessive. The truth is that the exchange rate is not the main problem for American companies hoping to sell more products in China and, in the process, create more jobs in this country. The exchange rate does not need to be the focus of next week’s meetings. For the United States, the No. 1 problem with China’s economy is probably intellectual property theft [IPR] [China competition]
• Building regional stability on the Korean peninsula: A Chinese perspective
  January 2011 - Vol. 3, No. 1 Shen Dingli Recent turbulence on the Korean Peninsula raises several key questions: What is the best way to assure stability there? How can the U.S.-ROK alliance play its due role while still being perceived as a stabilizer by other stakeholders, and how can China positively interact with the two allies? If China still feels that the “evidence” that the ROK-led investigation secured regarding the Cheonan’s sinking in March last year was not decisive enough to point to Pyongyang, the DPRK’s artillery barrage on Yeonpyeong should have perplexed Beijing. It would certainly be desirable if Seoul could exercise more restraint on its military drills in the waters that the DPRK has claimed, but the North’s shelling of Yeonpyeong is hardly acceptable at all. [MISCOM] [Clash] [China NK] [Client]
• China 'Developing Military Spacecraft'
  China is making progress in building an "upper-atmosphere" jet fighter, an official said last week, adding to a flurry of speculation about China's growing air power. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• Chinese Leaders Surprised by Fighter Test During Gates Visit
  A senior U.S. defense official says China's civilian leaders did not know about Tuesday's first flight test of the country's new fighter jet when U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates asked about it during a meeting with President Hu Jintao. The situation raised concerns among U.S. officials, coming during the secretary's high-profile visit and just a week before Hu meets with U.S. President Barack Obama in Washington. The U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said when Gates asked about the test during a meeting with Hu Tuesday afternoon, "It was clear that none of the civilians in the room had been informed." Hu is a civilian, and he is also chairman of the country's Central Military Commission. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• China's exchange reserves hit record level
  By Howard Schneider Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, January 11, 2011; 10:37 PM The thorniest problem in economic relations between the United States and China is getting worse, just as the world's two biggest economies prepare for a summit next week in Washington. This Story User Poll: What should President Obama do regarding China's currency policy? A currency stockpile China's exchange reserves hit record level Xie Says China Not Taking Sufficient Steps on Inflation View All Items in This Story View Only Top Items in This Story At issue is the imbalance in their financial relationship. China's central bank said Tuesday that Beijing's holdings of foreign cash and securities amount to $2.85 trillion - a jump of 20 percent over the year before - despite Chinese promises to try to balance its trade and investment relations with the United States and other countries. [China confrontation] [Deficit]
• US concerned over China's rapid development of new weapons
  Defence secretary says Beijing, whose arms development is outpacing US intelligence estimates, could 'put some of our capabilities at risk' Share134 Associated Press in Beijing guardian.co.uk, Sunday 9 January 2011 22.36 GMT Article history The US defence secretary, Robert Gates, is welcomed to Beijing by General Ma Xiao Tian as he begins a four-day visit to China. Photograph: Getty Images US defence secretary Robert Gates says China's rapidly developing defence capabilities are worrisome to the US. China has made strides in building a new stealth fighter jet and Washington is also concerned about a new ballistic missile that could theoretically explode an aircraft carrier nearly 2,000 miles (3,200 kilometres) out to sea. China has also apparently beaten US estimates to develop that weapon. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• Pentagon Must ‘Buy American,’ Barring Chinese Solar Panels
  Leah Nash for The New York Times A new law that forbids the Pentagon to buy solar panels from China could benefit a German firm making solar panels in Oregon. By KEITH BRADSHER Published: January 9, 2011 HONG KONG — The military appropriations law signed by President Obama on Friday contains a little-noticed “Buy American” provision for the Defense Department purchases of solar panels — a provision that is likely to dismay Chinese officials as President Hu Jintao prepares to visit the United States next week. A solar installation at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada. The military is increasingly eager for alternative energy because fossil fuels are dangerous and expensive to transport in war zones. Although there are many big issues to discuss, including concerns about North Korea, trade and economic matters are certain to be high on the agenda. And while both sides are aiming to keep the discussion positive — the United States is the world’s largest importer and China the largest exporter of goods — simmering resentments over trade in green-energy technologies could be a distraction. China has emerged as the world’s dominant producer of solar panels in the last two years. It accounted for at least half the world’s production last year, and its market share is rising rapidly The United States accounts for $1.6 billion of the world’s $29 billion market for solar panels; market analyses typically have not broken out military sales separately. The perception that Beijing unfairly subsidizes the Chinese solar industry to the detriment of American companies and other foreign competitors has drawn concern in Congress. The issue of clean-energy subsidies is also at the heart of a trade investigation under way by the Obama administration, which plans to bring a case against China before the World Trade Organization. The new Buy American provision, created mainly by House and Senate conferees during a flurry of activity at the end of the lame-duck session of Congress, prevents the Defense Department from buying Chinese-made solar panels. The American military is a rapidly growing consumer of renewable energy products, because it is extremely expensive and frequently dangerous to ship large quantities of fuel into remote areas of Iraq and Afghanistan. [Protectionism]
• It is Time for a ‘Change of Thinking’ in Our Rough-And-Ready China Policy
  By Moon Chung-in January 6, 2011 Moon Chung-in, Professor of Political Science at Yonsei University, writes, “We have to have good relations with China. To do that we need to develop a more balanced practical diplomacy. A triangular alliance that is ‘Anti-China’ made up of South Korea, Japan and the U.S. cannot be an alternative. Relations between the U.S. and China as well as relations between Japan and China must be good to ensure the peace, stability and prosperity of the Korean peninsula. In particular, it also is necessary to put emphasis on the improvement of North-South relations.” [China SK] [SK NK policy]
• China Rises, and Checkmates
  By NICHOLAS D. KRISTOF Published: January 8, 2011 Nicholas D. Kristof If there’s a human face on Rising China, it belongs not to some Politburo chief, not to an Internet tycoon, but to a quiet, mild-mannered teenage girl named Hou Yifan. Ms. Hou (whose name is pronounced Ho Ee-fahn) is an astonishing phenomenon: at 16, she is the new women’s world chess champion, the youngest person, male or female, ever to win a world championship. And she reflects the way China — by investing heavily in education and human capital, particularly in young women — is increasingly having an outsize impact on every aspect of the world. [China rising] [Decline][Education]
• U.S. Will Counter Chinese Arms Buildup
  By ELISABETH BUMILLER Published: January 8, 2011 ABOARD A U.S. MILITARY AIRCRAFT — The Pentagon is stepping up investments in a range of weapons, jet fighters and technology in response to the Chinese military buildup in the Pacific, Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said Saturday on the eve of his visit to Beijing. Despite billions of dollars in proposed Pentagon budget cuts that Mr. Gates announced this past week, he said that the Chinese development of its first radar-evading fighter jet, as well as an antiship ballistic missile that could hit American aircraft carriers, had persuaded him to make improvements in American weaponry a priority. [China confrontation] [Military balance]
• Unleashing innovation in China
  Finding ways to spur innovation in product design and business models will be key to sparking Chinese domestic demand. JANUARY 2011 • Gordon Orr Source: Strategy Practice ..China’s latest five-year plan promises to shift the economy from its dependence on exports toward domestic consumption as an engine of growth. The key to achieving this will be for the nation to enhance the ability of its economy to innovate. Yet China’s record on this score is mixed. Understanding why that is, and how to fix it, is important to estimating the likelihood China will succeed in its ambitious goals.
• More N.Koreans Apply for Chinese Citizenship
  Many North Korean residents in China are reportedly seeking to get a Chinese passport. A diplomatic source in Beijing on Tuesday said over the last month or two an increasing number of North Koreans who have lived in China for a long time have applied for Chinese citizenship. The main reason is convenience. Some 4,000 to 5,000 North Koreans live in China with "resident alien" cards, which they have to renew regularly, and they suffer from various disadvantages, including lack of social insurance benefits.
• China to launch 1st aircraft carrier in 2011
  China plans to launch an aircraft carrier for training within this year after completing work to repair it which it bought from the former Soviet Union, Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper reported Tuesday. [China rising] [Military balance]
• China eyes creation of global rail leader
  By Jamil Anderlini in Beijing Published: January 5 2011 18:51 | Last updated: January 5 2011 18:51 China is considering merging its two dominant state-owned railway equipment producers to lead a high-speed rail export drive, in a move that would create the world’s largest company of its kind in terms of operating revenue. If approved, the merger of China North Locomotive and Rolling Stock Corp (CNR) and China South Locomotive and Rolling Stock Corp (CSR) would form an entity controlling well over 90 per cent of the domestic Chinese rail equipment market. The revenues of the combined group would exceed those of global competitors like Bombardier, Alstom and Siemens. CSR and CNR have announced ambitious targets to increase operating income more than threefold in the next five years, to around Rmb150bn ($22.7bn) and Rmb140bn respectively. The move is supported by China’s railway ministry and the state-owned assets supervision and administration commission, Sasac, which holds the government’s majority stakes in the two companies, according to Chinese media reports and people familiar with the proposal. Yet the idea faces opposition from the companies themselves and from other ministries, including the powerful central planning agency, which wants to maintain competition in the home rail equipment market. A spokesperson said CSR had no knowledge of any merger discussions and declined to comment further. Both Sasac and the railway ministry are strong backers of the Chinese rail companies’ push into overseas markets and feel a merged company could compete more effectively for international tenders without fear of being undercut by its domestic rival. China’s high-speed and conventional rail construction boom means the country will remain the world’s single largest rail market for at least the next 10 years. Annual investment is expected to peak by around 2013, however, and roughly halve after that. That would leave CNR and CSR with enormous spare capacity and a merger of the two would allow the companies to focus their energies on competing globally. “I think such a merger is a good idea because neither of these companies owns core technology and there is no need for them to do research and development separately,” said Zhao Jian, a professor at Beijing Jiaotong (transport) university. Combining the two state companies and their dozens of subsidiaries – some of which are publicly listed – would be a mammoth task made more complicated by various joint ventures and agreements they have with international competitors. Many countries are contemplating building high-speed rail lines and both CNR and CSR are aggressively bidding for projects, offering highly competitive prices and a package of cheap financing from Chinese state banks as well as direct backing from Beijing. Chinese-built high-speed rail projects in Burma, Thailand and Laos are expected to start construction this year and the Chinese companies are preparing to bid for as many as eight possible high-speed rail lines under consideration in the US. While Beijing is very eager to promote Chinese high-speed rail construction abroad, CSR and CNR are just starting to look beyond their home market and overseas operating revenues currently only make up around 5 per cent of their total. The Railway Ministry said this week that domestic rail investment this year is expected to top Rmb700bn, roughly the same as last year, with around 70 new inter-city projects scheduled to break ground. China already has the world’s largest high-speed rail network, with a combined 8,358km by the end of 2010, but that total will reach 13,000km by next year and will top more than 16,000km by 2015, according to the Railway Ministry. .Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2011. You may share using our article tools [Railways] [China rising]
• China Develops Nuclear Fuel Reprocessing Technology
  China has made a breakthrough in developing nuclear fuel reprocessing technology which can drastically increase the efficiency of nuclear fuel, the official Chinese media reported Tuesday. The technology, developed by the China National Nuclear Corporation, is able to boost the usage rate of uranium materials at nuclear plants by 60 times, the China Daily reported. "With the new technology, China's uranium resources can be used for 3,000 years," it said. China has about 170,000 tons of proven uranium deposits. Wang Jianjie, the chief engineer of CNNC Fuel Reprocessing Project, was quoted as saying, "Some 96-97 percent of the residual uranium remains in the spent nuclear fuel. It's possible to produce completely new nuclear fuel if we chemically reprocess this." To cut greenhouse gas emissions, China "aims to increase its nuclear power capacity to 40 gW by 2020 compared to just more than 9 gW of nuclear capacity at present." The development could "potentially solve the problem of its supply shortage," the daily added. China has developed technology to extract mixed-oxide fuel, which can be recycled for industrial use, from the spent nuclear fuel, experts believe. Nuclear powers like the U.S., Russia and France have already developed the same technology.
• Chinese Envoy in Seoul Slammed N.Korea's Botched Currency Reform
  The Chinese ambassador to South Korea was highly critical of North Korea's botched currency reform at the end of 2009, calling it a "mistake" that risked "further alienating the populace," according to confidential diplomatic cable revealed by WikiLeaks. Cheng Yonghua told U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens over dinner that the North "would be much better off today if it had followed China's path to reform." [WikiLeaks] [China model]
• Rumored stealth jet undergoes tests: report
  Source: Global Times [08:22 January 05 2011] Comments By Yu Miao The rumored prototype of China's "J-20 stealth fighter jet" has created a stir over the nation's defensive advancements, but analysts suggest that any such program would simply reflect the country's industrial military progress. Pictures of the alleged fourth-generation jet fighter, equivalent to a fifth-generation craft under Western classifications, have been circulating on the Internet since mid-December. [Military balance]
• 5,000 civilians killed by US during Korean War
  By Kim Rahn More than 5,000 civilians were killed by U.S. forces during the Korean War (1950-1953), a state agency said Tuesday, providing the first official tally on the figure. The report released by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Korea indicated that at least 5,291 civilians were killed by the U.S. forces after the three-year war broke out on June 25, 1950. Most deaths took place by Sept. 28 that year, when South Korea reclaimed the capital after retreating to southern parts of the peninsula — 4,091 people were killed in 141 battles. Among the 141, 90 cases of aerial bombing claimed 3,607 lives. This was because the U.S. forces, with their superior air force, bombed routes the North Korean military was likely to take or facilities the military was likely to use as bases. [Korea War events] [Casualties]
• China and Its Neighbors
  In 2011, as in 2010 and previous years, much will continue to be written about the ways in which China and its Northeast and Southeast Asian neighbors are grappling with overlapping claims for islands and coastal/continental shelf zones in waters that run from the Sea of Japan down to the South China Sea. At stake is access to or control of various economic riches (fisheries and oil & gas fields), security for commercial shipping and in the case of some countries the right to maintain or establish defensive maritime positions.
• Brzezinski's wild take on China
  By Jennifer Rubin Zbigniew Brzezinski fancies himself a "realist" in foreign affairs. But his outlook (for example his notion of an imposed peace deal in the Middle East or, worse, his suggestion to shoot down Israeli planes en route to attack Iran) evidences little recognition of the real-world interests and motivations of America's allies and foes. Moreover, he supposes, oddly for a self-proclaimed realist, that personal relationships and personalities trump long-term national interests. His latest offering, in the form of an op-ed in the New York Times, is regrettably no exception
  The visit by President Hu Jintao of China to Washington this month will be the most important top-level United States-Chinese encounter since Deng Xiaoping's historic trip more than 30 years ago. It should therefore yield more than the usual boilerplate professions of mutual esteem. It should aim for a definition of the relationship between the two countries that does justice to the global promise of constructive cooperation between them. . . . For the visit to be more than symbolic, Presidents Obama and Hu should make a serious effort to codify in a joint declaration the historic potential of productive American-Chinese cooperation. They should outline the principles that should guide it. They should declare their commitment to the concept that the American-Chinese partnership should have a wider mission than national self-interest. That partnership should be guided by the moral imperatives of the 21st century's unprecedented global interdependence. But what of the fundamental differences between the countries? Are we to simply accept China's increasingly belligerent actions? Others share the view that Brzezinski's take is decidedly unrealistic. Jamie Fly, executive director of the Foreign Policy Initiative, e-mails me, "China's actions over the past year, including its continued repression of its citizens, its unwillingness to cooperate in confronting common global threats, and its bullying of its neighbors call into question whether U.S. and Chinese long-term interests really are aligned. Unfortunately, Brzezinski seems to think that the United States is just as much of the problem as China is." Stephen Yates, a former Bush official and national security expert, is even more blunt, deeming Brzezinski's take, "wrong, borderline silly." He takes issue with the op-ed's title ("How to stay friends with China") and theme , observing, "Countries do not have emotions. People do. Obama can choose to make Hu his best pal, but he'll find it difficult as Communist Party survivalists bury their emotions (and morals) deep. And the core point for defining relations between countries is meaningful mutually beneficial action -- toward one another and collectively." He continues, "There is a long list of targets for collective action that cheerleaders for China point to while dutifully explaining why the U.S. must play nice -- the global economy, nuclear breakouts in North Korea and Iran, energy and other strategic resource supplies, etc. But these are hopes, at best, for collective action not yet in evidence." To the contrary, there is little indication that China wants to behave in a responsible manner befitting an international power. Even Brzezinski concedes, "China's seeming lack of concern over North Korea's violent skirmishes with South Korea has given rise to apprehension about China's policy on the Korean peninsula." Indeed. Moreover, as Yates points out, a single meeting is hardly going to obliterate these fundamental differences. "The breathless declaration of this January visit being the most important in 30 years is wildly hyperbolic. Neither leader enters this encounter with the combination of power and intention to make great change. Obama may have the intention, but all Hu wants is for the U.S. to play nice with China. And both leaders have question marks in terms of personal power." A true realist would take note of China's growing belligerency and its dangerous stance toward North Korea. A realistic policy would seek to use carrots and sticks to advance American interests and condition further advances in the U.S.-China relationship on progress in China's international behavior. Let's hope the Obama administration is more realistic in its assessment and approach than the faux realist Brzezinski [China confrontation]
• China Quietly Extends Its Footprints Deep Into Central Asia
  Theodore Kaye for The New York Times Kyrgyz shepherds in Tajikistan packed a Chinese solar panel. Chinese goods like clothing, electronics and appliances have lately flooded Central Asia. By EDWARD WONG Published: January 2, 2011 MURGHAB, Tajikistan — On the outskirts of this wind-scoured town, founded in 1893 as a Russian military post, the construction of a new customs compound heralds the return of another major power. When it opens this year, the sprawling new lot will accommodate much larger caravans of Chinese trucks than the existing trade depot, speeding the flow of clothing, electronics and household appliances that have lately flooded Central Asia, from nomadic yurts on the Kyrgyz steppes to ancient alleyways in Samarkand and Bukhara. “Trade is growing between China and all these countries around it,” said Tu’er Hong, whose truck was one of about 50 from China transferring goods to Tajik drivers one day recently at the current post. While China is seizing the spotlight in East and Southeast Asia with its widening economic footprint and muscular diplomacy, it is also quietly making its presence felt on its western flank, once primarily Russia’s domain. Chinese officials see Central Asia as a critical frontier for their nation’s energy security, trade expansion, ethnic stability and military defense. State enterprises have reached deep into the region with energy pipelines, railroads and highways, while the government has recently opened Confucius Institutes to teach Mandarin in capitals across Central Asia. [China rising]
• United Daily News: Time to create a 5th miracle
  2011/01/01 16:07:14 Today marks the first day of the 100th year of the Republic of China. We hereby wish that the nation will jointly create the "fifth miracle" of the ROC: the cross-Taiwan Strait miracle. Over the past century, the ROC has created four miracles: the birth of Asia's first republic, rebirth in Taiwan following a civil war in China, outstanding economic achievements, and democratization. The fifth miracle will be built on these four miracles and will support their continuation in the future. Before martial law was lifted in Taiwan in 1987, relations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait were in a "confrontation period." There was then an "evasion period" during the final years of Lee Teng-hui's time in office and throughout Chen Shui-bian's presidency. But Taiwan and China have entered a "coopetition period" since the 2008 inauguration of President Ma Ying-jeou, who has followed the policy of "no unification, no independence, no use of force" and "one China, respective interpretations." Today and in the future, Taiwan and China do not need to deny or destroy each other like North and South Vietnam or North and South Korea. There is also no need to pursue overnight unification, as East and West Germany did, either. It is most important for the two sides of the Taiwan Strait to respectively improve their governance to jointly make a "cross-strait miracle" that can set a model for human civilization. [Straits]
• Chinese Companies Expand to U.S. Soil and Markets
  Companies from China are increasingly setting up shop in the U.S. to avoid trade barriers and to learn better ways to prosper in their fiercely competitive home market By David J. Lynch January 3, 2011 On a spotless factory floor, workers wearing hair nets snap together metal frames, cables, and photovoltaic cells to produce metallic-blue solar panels. This sort of work could be done just about anywhere, yet China's Suntech Power Holdings (STP) as of October has been making the panels in a 117,000-square-foot plant in the Arizona desert. The sand-colored factory, about 20 miles west of Phoenix in the town of Goodyear, brings the company closer to its American customers and into compliance with "Buy American" requirements in some government contracts. The strategy seems to be working: Suntech plans to double its 75-person payroll by the end of next year [China rising] [Protectionism] [ODI]