Donald Trump has instructed the Pentagon to immediately start matching other nuclear powers in their testing of nuclear weapons, specifically citing Russia and China. In a post to Truth Social, Trump said that “because of other countries’ testing programs, I have instructed the Department of War to start testing our Nuclear Weapons on an equal basis. That process will begin immediately.” The post came less than an hour before Trump met the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, in South Korea on Thursday morning in an effort to come to a trade…
Tag: Europe
EU carmakers ‘days away’ from factories halting work in chip war with China
Industry body says reserves of Nexperia semiconductors are dwindling after Beijing bans exports of key components Carmakers in the EU are “days away” from closing production lines, the industry has warned as a crisis over computer chip supplies from China escalates. The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) issued an urgent warning on Wednesday saying its members, which include Volkswagen, Fiat, Peugeot and BMW, were now working on “reserve stocks but supplies are dwindling”. Continue reading… The Guardian
World’s climate plans fall drastically short of action needed, analysis shows
Recently drafted climate plans from scores of countries fall drastically short of what is needed to stave off the worst effects of climate breakdown, analysis has shown. More than 60 countries have so far submitted national plans on greenhouse gas emissions to the UN, setting out how they will curb carbon for the next decade. Taken together, these plans would cut carbon by only about 10% by 2035 compared with 2019 levels. This is only about a sixth of the drop in global emissions needed to limit global heating to…
‘China is watching’: Finland warns defeating Russia’s invasion of Ukraine key to stability in Indo-Pacific
Defeating Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is critical to restraining China in the Indo-Pacific, Finland’s defence minister has said, warning Europe and democratic partners, including Australia, face a fight of global consequences. Antti Häkkänen praised Donald Trump’s decision to impose sanctions on two Russian oil companies last week, calling the move a major sign of resolve by the US president against Vladimir Putin’s three-year long war. In an interview with Guardian Australia at the ministry of defence in Helsinki, Häkkänen said the West’s willingness to stay the course in opposing Russia’s…
Volvo and VW say Dutch takeover of Chinese chipmaker could halt car factories
Car companies across Europe and Japan including Volvo, Honda and Nissan, have warned that the Dutch takeover of a Chinese-owned chip manufacturer could hit production at factories. Last week’s decision by the Netherlands government to take control of Nexperia has sent shock waves around the auto industry, which is already facing potential shortages in products such as magnets amid China’s latest restrictions on rare earths exports. The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association, whose members include Nissan, Toyota, Honda and Mazda, said on Thursday it had received a warning from Nexperia that…
‘They told me not to speak out’: the woman who took on China – and won her husband’s freedom
Zeynure Hasan was at home in Istanbul in July 2021 when her husband finally called. It had been four days since she last heard from him as he got ready to board a flight to Casablanca. The silence had been torturous. But the news Idris now shared with her was even worse. He had been arrested and imprisoned on arrival in Morocco and told he was going to be deported to China. “You should call anyone who can help me, anyone who can rescue me,” he told her, before the…
‘I was doing nothing at home’: the Chinese nationals fighting for Ukraine
In a war that has been characterised by merciless attacks on civilians, one of the worst took place on 8 July 2024. Russia missile strikes killed at least 43 people in cities across Ukraine in one of the deadliest days of the war last year. One of the most shocking blows was to the Okhmatdyt children’s hospital in central Kyiv, which reduced the country’s largest paediatric clinic to rubble. Tim, 43, was delivering aid on the outskirts of Kyiv when he heard a missile fly overhead. A short while later,…
US raised concerns about Chinese boss of chipmaker before Dutch takeover
US authorities had raised concerns about the boss of a China-owned chipmaker before it was taken over by the Dutch government this week, according to court papers. The documents show US officials warned the Netherlands in June that Nexperia may not be able to export to the US if its Chinese chief executive, Zhang Xuezheng, remained in post. Late on Sunday the Dutch government said it had invoked a cold war-era law to effectively take control of the company, citing “major shortcomings that could jeopardise security of supply” of chips…
China’s Temu more than doubles EU profits to nearly $120m despite having only eight staff
The Chinese online marketplace Temu’s EU operations more than doubled pre-tax profits last year to just below $120m (£90m) despite employing just eight people, accounts show. They rose 171% in the 12 months to December 2024 compared with the $44.1m the year before, as shoppers snapped up its low-cost goods, which are widely promoted on social media. However, the company paid just $18m in corporation tax, almost $3m of which was a mandatory top-up tax brought in at the end of 2023 after the EU signed up to a global…
Ukraine war briefing: China providing Russia with intelligence on missile targets, Ukrainian official claims
China is providing intelligence to Russia to enable Moscow to better launch missile strikes inside Ukraine, a senior Ukrainian intelligence official has said. Ukrainian Foreign Intelligence Agency official Oleh Alexandrov told the state news agency Ukrinform that China was passing on satellite intelligence on targets, including those benefiting from foreign investment. “There is evidence of a high level of cooperation between Russia and China in conducting satellite reconnaissance of the territory of Ukraine in order to identify and further explore strategic objects for targeting,” he said. “As we have seen…