The White House said on Wednesday that China had agreed to postpone Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing, as war in the Middle East rages on, complicating the US president’s position at home and abroad. China has not yet commented on the delay to the highly anticipated trip, in which Trump and the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, will meet in person for the first time since October. Trump previously said he hoped to delay the trip, originally scheduled to run from 31 March to 2 April, for “five or six weeks”.…
Tag: Asia Pacific
Rise and fall of Prince Group raises awkward questions for Cambodia
A giant golden clam shell, illuminated by lurid neon lights and filled with playing cards and red dice, once glowed nightly on the facade of Sihanoukville’s Jin Bei casino. Today, the casino’s gaudy signage is covered by sheets, and its doorway blocked by a Chinese sign that reads “under renovation”. The casino in the Cambodian resort city was once emblazoned with the name Jin Bei, a company US prosecutors have accused of running scam compounds on behalf Prince Group, which an October indictment alleged was one of Asia’s largest transnational…
Trump seeks to delay China summit as Vance denies ‘wedge’ over Iran war
Donald Trump revealed that he had asked China to delay his forthcoming visit to Beijing while the war with Iran was continuing, as he attempted to strike a united front on Monday with his vice-president JD Vance, who is believed to have been skeptical over attacking Tehran’s regime. Appearing together with Vance for the first time in two weeks, Trump said he did not think the conflict – which started on 28 February after the US and Israel opened hostilities – would be over this week but predicted victory would…
China ‘still communicating’ with US over Trump visit despite talk of delay
China has said it is in communication with the US about Donald Trump’s planned visit to Beijing, despite hints from the US president that he might delay the trip if his prospective hosts do not help to unblock the strait of Hormuz. China’s foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said: “Head-of-state diplomacy plays an irreplaceable strategic guiding role in China-US relations. The two sides are maintaining communication regarding President Trump’s visit to China.” Trump had suggested the highly anticipated trip to Beijing this month could be suspended if China did not…
Apple cuts China App Store commission fees after government pressure
Apple announced late on Thursday it would lower the commission fees collected in its App Store in mainland China. The move follows pressure from regulators in the tech company’s second-largest market, as well as global scrutiny of its payment requirements. Fees for in-app purchases and paid transactions will be lowered to 25% from 30% starting on Sunday, Apple said in a statement on its blog for developers. “Apple is making changes to the App Store in China following discussions with the Chinese regulator,” the company’s announcement reads. “As of March…
The kill line v Chinamaxxing: a window into how China and the US see each other
Across two online worlds that are normally splintered, over the last few months there has been a mirroring of sorts. On TikTok and Instagram, young people are diving into the joys of Chinese culture – from drinking hot water to playing mahjong – all under the banner of “Chinamaxxing”. On the Chinese internet, however, the US is losing its decades-long grip on soft power, and is instead being replaced by a darker trend: the kill line. The kill line is a dangerous place to be. In gaming, the term refers…
If oil price shocks weren’t bad enough, Trump’s war could have other unintended consequences | Adam Hanieh
With the US-Israeli war against Iran in its second week, energy markets are in turmoil. On Thursday, the price of Brent Crude Oil topped $100, only slightly lower than the $119 peak per barrel on Monday. These swings have focused attention on key energy choke points such as the strait of Hormuz, where about one-fifth of the world’s shipped oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) passes each day. This shutdown of the strait will be felt in people’s everyday lives for months to come, particularly in the form of spiralling…
China’s rubber-stamp parliament set to approve ‘ethnic unity’ law
China’s National People’s Congress (NPC), the state legislature, will vote on Thursday on a suite of new laws agreed at this year’s annual two sessions gathering, including a piece of legislation that will diminish the role of minority ethnic languages in the education system. NPC delegates are expected to approve a new ethnic unity law, along with a new environmental code and the 15th five-year plan, the economic planning document for 2026-2030. Delegates have spent the last week debating Beijing’s proposed bills, which they are all but certain to approve.…
China-North Korea trains to restart, six years after Covid brought them to stop
Passenger train services between China and North Korea are to resume this week, six years after their suspension because of the Covid-19 pandemic, travel operators have said. Train journeys between the two countries were halted in 2020 as strict border closures were imposed to prevent the virus spreading. China has since fully reopened its borders, but North Korea has proceeded more slowly – though direct flights and train services with Russia resumed last year. Travel agents for official ticketing booths in Beijing and the Chinese border city of Dandong said…
X suspends 800m accounts in one year amid ‘massive’ scale of manipulation attempts
Elon Musk’s X said it had suspended 800m accounts over a 12-month period as it fights the “massive” scale of attempts to manipulate the platform. The social media company told MPs it was continually fighting state-backed attempts to hijack the agenda on its network, with Russia the most prolific state actor, followed by Iran and China. As part of the battle against such content, X suspended 800m accounts in 2024 for breaching its rules on platform manipulation and spam, although it did not reveal which of those suspensions related to…