Day: October 24, 2022

What are China’s major infrastructure projects in an economically fraught 2022?

Chin@Strategy

China’s Ministry of Water Resources said that 703.6 billion yuan (US$98 billion) was invested in water-conservancy infrastructure projects during the first eight months of 2022 – an increase of 63.9 per cent over the same period in 2021. In total, the ministry said that construction had begun on more than 19,000 water-conservancy projects, of which 31 were considered “major” projects. 01:52 China launches mega US$10 billion canal project in a bid to help its economy China’s ambitious South-North Water Transfer Project – an underground network of water tunnels that relocates…

Xi Jinping’s party purge prompts fears of greater Taiwan invasion risk

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Xi Jinping’s purging of political rivals and elevation of loyalists to the top ranks of the Chinese Communist party has raised fears that his now unfettered and unquestionable power could increase the risk of an attack on Taiwan. Beijing has pledged to annex Taiwan under a disputed claim that it is a Chinese province, and in recent years has increased its military activity and other forms of harassment and coercion. No timeline has been set, but senior defence figures have said China could be capable of invasion as early as…

Justice Dept. Charges 2 Chinese Citizens With Spying for Huawei

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WASHINGTON — The Justice Department announced on Monday that it had indicted two Chinese intelligence officials who are believed to have unsuccessfully tried to obtain inside information about a federal investigation into a Chinese telecommunications company accused of stealing trade secrets, which people familiar with the situation later identified as Huawei Technologies. The Chinese intelligence officials, Guochun He and Zheng Wang, paid bribes to an official with access to sensitive details of the investigation into Huawei by the U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of New York, according to charging…

Chinese spy duo charged in Huawei case as US condemns ‘egregious’ interference

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Two Chinese intelligence officers tried to bribe a US law enforcement official as part of an effort to obtain inside information about a criminal case against the Chinese telecommunications company Huawei, federal prosecutors alleged in an indictment unsealed on Monday. The announcement of charges against the two alleged agents came as attorney general Merrick Garland detailed two other cases in which Chinese intelligence operatives harassed dissidents inside the United States and pressured US academics to work for them. Garland said that the cases showed that China “sought to interfere with…

Interview: ‘History is something you want to be on the right side of’

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Since its founding in 1986, the Elie Wiesel Foundation for Humanity has striven “to combat indifference, intolerance and injustice through international dialogue and youth-focused programs that promote acceptance, understanding and equality.” In late January, the human rights organization ran a full-page advertisement in The New York Times calling for a boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing unless China ended its persecution of the Uyghurs in Xinjiang. Now, the foundation has added grantmaking to its lineup of activities, focusing on funding advocacy for the Uyghurs.  The foundation expects to…

The Hidden Audience of China’s Undiplomatic Diplomacy

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Advertisement On October 16, a Hong Kong protester in Manchester, England, was dragged onto Chinese consulate grounds and beaten by unidentified staffers. The violence broke out as individuals emerged from the consulate and began destroying protesters’ posters, which depicted Xi Jinping wearing only a crown and underwear. As they retreated, the men pulled a nearby protester inside the consulate gates and kicked him repeatedly on the ground. Manchester police eventually separated both parties, but not before eyewitness video had ignited the latest China-U.K. diplomatic controversy. The consulate’s actions – reactionary,…

Can the Social Media and Poster Campaign Against Xi Jinping Make a Difference?

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Advertisement On October 13, just three days before the opening of the 20th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), two hand-written protest banners appeared on Sitong Bridge, located in Beijing. In simple language, the sole protester called on the government to stop its zero-COVID strategy and continue to conduct economic reforms, and advocated for democracy and the removal of “dictator” Xi Jinping. In 2018, the authoritarian leader repealed constitutional term limits and created a path for him to stay as China’s top leader indefinitely. At the 20th Party…

Tesla Cuts Prices in China in Sign of Slowing Demand

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Tesla on Monday cut prices for its cars in China, a sign of intensifying competition in the world’s largest car market that provoked a slump in the company’s shares. Tesla’s Chinese website was offering the Model 3 sedan on Monday for a starting price of 265,900 renminbi, or $36,600, including government subsidies, a 5 percent reduction. The Model Y sport utility vehicle was advertised at 288,900 renminbi, a 9 percent cut. Tesla shares fell more than 6 percent before recovering a little as the price cuts reinforced fears among investors…

Pro-democracy Publisher Jimmy Lai Found Guilty on Fraud Charges

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Advertisement Pro-democracy Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai was found guilty Tuesday on two fraud charges related to lease violations, the latest in a series of prosecutions apparently aimed at punishing him for his past activism. Lai was arrested during a crackdown on the pro-democracy movement following widespread protests in 2019 and under the city’s sweeping Beijing-imposed National Security Law. He is already serving a 20-month sentence for his role in unauthorized assemblies. His media company, Next Digital, published the now-shuttered Apple Daily, Hong Kong’s last pro-democracy newspaper. Lai also faces…