The Chinese government has called for vessels passing through the strait of Hormuz to be protected by all sides in the escalating Iran conflict, as shipping freight rates soared. Maritime traffic through the strait – a narrow channel on Iran’s southern border that connects the Persian Gulf with the Gulf of Oman – has effectively been closed since the US and Israel launched missile attacks on Iran at the weekend, prompting a retaliation from Tehran. Beijing’s foreign ministry on Tuesday urged “all parties to immediately cease military operations, avoid escalating…
Tag: Asia Pacific
‘Imperialist undertones’: global south condemns US-Israeli war with Iran
The US-Israeli war on Iran has been condemned as illegal across much of the global south, with China saying it was unacceptable to “blatantly kill the leader of a sovereign state”. Many countries objected that negotiations between the US and Iran over its nuclear programme and missile capability were not given a chance to succeed before Washington and Israel began bombing, and analysts often saw the war in terms of a colonial-style exercise of might. Pakistan’s prime minister, Shehbaz Sharif, offered condolences over the killing of the Iranian supreme leader,…
Trump’s show of force in the Middle East creates a weakness China can exploit
As the US and Israel opened a new chapter of chaos in the Middle East, China stands to benefit from a Washington establishment that does not have the political or physical resources to focus on Asia. Officially, China has condemned the attacks. Wang Yi, the foreign minister, called them “unacceptable” and called for a ceasefire, rhetoric that is typical of Beijing in response to Donald Trump’s increasingly erratic foreign policy moves. Wang made similar comments after the US capture of the Venezuelan president, Nicolás Maduro, in January. The Chinese government…
China’s Two Sessions to reveal Xi’s economic and defence plans as military purge casts shadow
Thousands of delegates will arrive in Beijing this week for China’s annual Two Sessions, one of the most important events in the country’s political calendar and a rare opportunity for the global media to see Beijing’s top lawmakers up close. The Two Sessions” are concurrent gatherings of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), an advisory body. Of the two gatherings, the NPC, China’s legislature, is more important. It has the power to amend the constitution, appoint people to political offices, enact laws and…
Boss of theatre hosting Chinese dance group Shen Yun in Sydney won’t be intimidated by ‘outrageous’ threats
The head of the theatre hosting the Shen Yun dance troupe in Sydney says the company would not be intimidated to pull the shows by any “outrageous” anonymous threats and that the publicity had increased interest in the show. On Monday, the Gold Coast venue for the Shen Yun performances was forced to evacuate after a bomb threat, with a similar threat forcing the evacuation of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s official residence, The Lodge, in Canberra the next day. Graeme Kearns, the chief executive of Foundation Theatres – the operator…
Autocracy is rising in the west. But the global south proves it’s not inevitable | Kenneth Roth
There is plenty to worry about in the global contest between democracy and autocracy. Iran’s violent repression of antigovernment protests in January crushed the latest effort to challenge a ruthless regime. In many European countries, including Britain, Germany and France, far-right parties seem ascendant. And Donald Trump is doing what he can to undermine democracy in the United States. Yet a closer analysis shows that autocrats are often running scared of their people. And surprisingly, democracy these days seems sometimes to be held in higher esteem in the global south…
Britain and the US, calm down. The gen Z Chinamaxxers will do you no harm | Coco Khan
As it’s Chinese lunar new year, it would not be surprising if you’ve found yourself scrolling through some China-inspired content. But before you click the heart on a TikTok of paper lanterns or mouthwatering noodles, think twice. As an unsuspecting citizen, you may well be participating in a geopolitical battle where western civilisation itself is on the line. This isn’t the plot of a mediocre action thriller on Amazon Prime – this is “Chinamaxxing”, an internet trend that has got some commentators worrying that gen Z are about to topple…
Jimmy Lai’s fraud conviction overturned by Hong Kong court in rare legal win for activist
A Hong Kong appellate court on Thursday overturned fraud convictions against the media mogul Jimmy Lai, a rare victory in the prominent pro-democracy activist’s legal battles. Lai, 78, an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist party who founded the now defunct Apple Daily, will stay in prison because weeks ago he was sentenced to 20 years after being convicted in another case brought under a China-imposed national security law. It is more than five years since he was arrested under the law, which was used in a years–long crackdown on…
What is Shen Yun – the Chinese dance troupe that received a bomb threat causing the evacuation of the Lodge?
Yesterday’s evacuation of the prime minister from the Lodge has been linked to the Chinese dance troupe Shen Yun. In a bomb threat emailed to the group, the sender said explosives would be detonated if Australian performances by Shen Yun proceeded. This is just the latest controversy surrounding Shen Yun. But this use of a security threat as a prop to achieve other goals exposes a deeper and increasingly consequential struggle over culture, representation and political voice in the transnational Chinese world. At stake is not a dance performance, but…
Japan to deploy missiles to island near Taiwan by 2031, says defence minister
Japan will deploy missiles to a tiny island near Taiwan within five years, its defence minister has said, in a move that is likely to inflame tensions with China. The surface-to-air missiles, which are capable of shooting down aircraft and ballistic missiles, will be located on Yonaguni – Japan’s westernmost island – by March 2031, Shinjiro Koizumi said. “It depends on the progress of preparing facilities, but we are planning for fiscal 2030,” Koizumi told reporters, giving details about the deployment’s schedule for the first time. Koizumi made the announcement…