Author: Media Library

A Chinese court has convicted 27 individuals of smuggling more than 166 tonnes of antimony, a critical mineral used in weapons, semiconductors and flame retardants, in a significant enforcement action under Beijing’s tighter export controls for dual-use items. The Shenzhen Intermediate People’s Court in Guangdong province ruled that the group had illegally shipped the critical mineral without obtaining export licences, according to a statement released on Tuesday. Lead defendant Wang Wubin was sentenced to 12 years in prison and fined 1 million yuan (US$142,000), while the others received penalties ranging…

China’s military mouthpiece aimed its rhetoric at Japan’s space ambitions and its new intelligence unit on Thursday, accusing Tokyo of embarking on a space arms race and undermining regional security. The criticism in two articles in the PLA Daily is the latest salvo in a diplomatic dust-up over the past month that has involved near-daily rebukes from Beijing. In one of the articles, two researchers from the People’s Liberation Army’s Space Engineering University in Beijing accused Japan of seeking to militarise space. Advertisement “Japan’s accelerated push towards the militarisation of…

Facing an ever-increasing trade deficit with China, Europe has limited options to balance the situation in the short term even though it still holds an edge in key sectors including pharmaceuticals, machinery and components, analysts said. A lot of China’s redirected exports went to the European Union, adding to pressure following a €305 billion (US$357.9 billion) trade deficit with China last year – before Trump launched his tariff war. Advertisement “The trade imbalances will get much, much, much worse,” said Jacob Gunter, lead analyst for economic research at the Mercator…

China extended its support to Venezuela and opposed “unilateral bullying” in a foreign ministers’ phone call on Wednesday amid rising US pressure on the South American country. Foreign Minister Wang Yi told his Venezuelan counterpart Yvan Gil that China and Venezuela were strategic partners and that mutual trust and support were a tradition of bilateral ties. In a veiled swipe at the US, Wang said “China opposes all forms of unilateral bullying and supports countries in safeguarding their sovereignty and national dignity”, according to a Chinese foreign ministry statement. Advertisement…

Late last year, as European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen began her second term in office, a giant purple banner was draped over the side of the EU executive arm’s headquarters, declaring: “United for our Future, 2024-2029.” Its leaders will gather on Thursday to try to round off the year with a collective bang, but there is growing fear it will end with a series of disparate whimpers. Advertisement European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen speaks during a debate on the bloc’s position on a proposed peace plan…