More than 60 people in Vietnam have been given long prison sentences for being members of the so-called “Provisional National Government of Vietnam,” since it was classified as a terrorist organization by the Ministry of Public Security in 2018. The U.S.-based group was founded in 1991 by soldiers and refugees that had been loyal to the South Vietnamese government prior to the country’s unification under communist rule in 1975. But two lawyers who were called to defend the accused told Radio Free Asia they believe “Provisional National Government” followers were…
Day: April 17, 2024
Will the riddle of China’s ancient Wuwangdun tomb finally be solved?
Archaeologists could know later this year who was laid to rest in a massive 2,000 year-old-tomb being excavated in eastern China. Gong Xicheng, a researcher at the Anhui Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, told state news agency Xinhua on Wednesday that researchers were working to complete the excavation of the “Wuwangdun” tomb – which covers about 1.5 sq km (0.6 square miles) – in the province this year. “And perhaps the mystery of the tomb owner’s identity will be solved by then,” Gong said. The tomb dates back…
China’s ‘red circle’ law firms rush to tap other markets
China’s top “red circle” law firms are stepping up efforts to expand into other markets, rapidly increasing their international presence and working for fees that are sometimes half those of western rivals. At least eight of the largest law firms from the Chinese mainland have opened offices in Asia and the US since the start of 2023, with more planned. The expansion by big Chinese firms, collectively known as the “red circle” in counterpoint to London’s legal “magic circle”, comes as some international rivals retreat from the mainland and Hong…
Time for animal abusers in China to face proper justice
A video posted on Weibo last month – showing a college student in Jiangxi province holding a white kitten, kicking it, beating it with a coat hanger and hitting it against a door, making the cat cry out in pain – has roused public anger in China. After the video was posted, the college announced they had expelled the student after receiving 14 letters accusing him of animal abuse. According to a document read out by a college spokesperson, “The incident spread widely online and affected the school’s reputation.” It…
US prepared to ‘take further steps’ as it warns China against enabling Russia
state department — The United States warned China on Wednesday against helping Russia in its war on Ukraine and said it is “prepared to take further steps as necessary.” In Italy, foreign ministers from the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations gathered to reaffirm their support for Ukraine’s defense. “We believe that the PRC is supporting Russia’s war effort and is doing so by helping ramp up its defense production,” State Department principal deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters during a briefing in Washington. “Specifically,” he said, “the PRC is…
How a little known spin-off of Chinese battery giant CATL has come to dominate the global home energy storage market
Unlike CATL, which focuses on large-scale industrial energy storage and car batteries, and ATL, which specialises in battery technologies for smartphones, laptops and digital cameras, Ampace targets the use of lithium-ion batteries in residential and commercial energy storage systems, electric two-wheelers, and medium-sized electronic devices such as drones, robots, vacuum cleaners, and power tools. Within three years of its inception the little-known company has managed to quietly move into a leading position in the global home energy storage market, in which batteries allow households to store surplus electricity for later…
China sounds warning after Philippines and US announce most expansive military drills yet
Philippine and US forces will carry out their first ever military exercises outside the south-east Asian country’s territorial waters, in a move China has said will only lead to greater insecurity in the South China Sea. The annual Balikatan or “shoulder-to-shoulder” drills – which will run from 22 April to 10 May – will involve 16,700 soldiers simulating retaking enemy-occupied islands in areas facing Taiwan and the South China Sea. It will be the first time the maritime exercises are carried out beyond Philippine territorial waters, according to Michael Logico,…
Nasa chief warns China is masking military presence in space with civilian programs
The head of Nasa has warned of China bolstering its space capabilities by using civilian programs to mask military objectives, cautioning that Washington must remain vigilant. “China has made extraordinary strides especially in the last 10 years, but they are very, very secretive,” Nasa administrator Bill Nelson told lawmakers on Capitol Hill. “We believe that a lot of their so-called civilian space program is a military program. And I think, in effect, we are in a race,” Nelson added. He said he hoped Beijing would “come to its senses and…
China is moving towards full monetary independence
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The writer advises financial institutions on asset allocation and is founder of The Practical History of Financial Markets course The world’s second-largest economy is about to move to monetary independence and in so doing it will destroy the current international monetary system. China needs to not just reflate its economy but to inflate away its debts. The country has one of the highest total non-financial debt-to-GDP ratios of any major…
Biden calls for tripling tariffs on Chinese metals
“Many trading partners of the United States, including China, are strongly dissatisfied with the United States’ frequent use of national security, non-market behaviour, overcapacity and other reasons to impose restrictions and politicise trade issues,” embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu said in a statement to the BBC. BBC