Tag: International Relations

Why China and Russia Are Closer Than Ever

Chin@Strategy

Follow the latest news of the Putin-Xi summit in Russia. Xi Jinping, China’s leader, is scheduled to meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia in Moscow this week in the most high-profile visit by any world leader to Russia since before the pandemic. Coming more than a year after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine, the meeting will be watched closely by Western officials for any indications of how far China may be willing to go to act as a mediator in the conflict. Chinese officials have framed the…

Who Are Russia’s Friends Amid the War in Ukraine?

Chin@Strategy

The state visit by China’s leader, Xi Jinping, to Russia highlights the close ties between the nations, a relationship that is increasingly crucial for Moscow as it is cut off from most of the West. China is a critical trading partner for Russia, buying up much of its oil exports while selling large volumes of products used by Russian civilians and the military. It is one of a number of countries that have maintained good terms with Russia amid its invasion of Ukraine — some providing diplomatic or economic support,…

China as Peacemaker in the Ukraine War? The U.S. and Europe Are Skeptical.

Chin@Strategy

WASHINGTON — As Xi Jinping, China’s leader, prepares to meet with President Vladimir V. Putin in Moscow this week, Chinese officials have been framing his trip as a mission of peace, one where he will seek to “play a constructive role in promoting talks” between Russia and Ukraine, as a government spokesman in Beijing put it. But American and European officials are watching for something else altogether — whether Mr. Xi will add fuel to the full-scale war that Mr. Putin began more than a year ago. U.S. officials say…

Claims of Chinese Election Meddling Put Trudeau on Defensive

Chin@Strategy

OTTAWA — The leaked intelligence reports have set off a political firestorm. They describe plans by the government of China and its diplomats in Canada to ensure that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal Party took power in the last two elections, raising troubling questions about the integrity of Canada’s democracy. But as two prominent Canadian news organizations have published a series of leaks over the past month, Mr. Trudeau has refused calls to launch a public inquiry into the matter, angering political opponents and leading to accusations that he is…

WHO Accuses China of Withholding Data on Covid’s Origins

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The World Health Organization rebuked Chinese officials on Friday for withholding scientific research that may link the origin of the coronavirus to wild animals called raccoon dogs, asking why the data had not been made available three years ago and why, after it was published online in January, it could not be found now. Before the Chinese data disappeared, an international team of virus experts downloaded and began analyzing the research. They say it supports the idea that the pandemic could have begun when illegally traded raccoon dogs infected humans…

China’s Xi to Visit Putin Under Shadow of War-Crimes Warrant

Chin@Strategy

Global dividing lines over Russia’s war in Ukraine hardened on Friday with the announcement that China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, would personally meet with President Vladimir V. Putin in Russia next week — and that he would do so under the shadow of an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court that accuses Mr. Putin of war crimes. Mr. Xi’s visit was cast by China as a mission of personal diplomacy to help make peace between Russia and Ukraine. But it is more broadly seen by Western officials as…

Xi, Cast as Peacemaker, Wades Into Russia’s War in Ukraine

Chin@Strategy

China’s top leader, Xi Jinping, has cast himself as a global statesman, helping Saudi Arabia and Iran broker a deal to restore diplomatic ties while extolling the virtues of “Chinese solutions and wisdom” in solving the world’s biggest security challenges. Now, Mr. Xi is putting himself at the center of Russia’s war with Ukraine, working to portray himself as a mediator who could cool down the protracted fight. The Chinese leader is expected to meet in person next week with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, and a call with…

Japan-Korea Relations Improve, but Ties Are Still Fragile

Chin@Strategy

To underscore the celebratory atmosphere surrounding the long-awaited visit by South Korea’s president this week, Japan’s prime minister hosted not just one, but two, dinners on Thursday night in Tokyo. Shortly after Yoon Suk Yeol, of South Korea, told reporters that “frozen ties should be thawed” and Fumio Kishida, of Japan, hailed “a new chapter” in their long-fraught relationship, they went with their wives to a traditional restaurant in Tokyo’s luxury Ginza district. The two leaders then broke off for a more casual meal of “omurice,” a popular dish of…

U.K. Bans TikTok on Government Devices

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Britain on Thursday became the latest Western country to prohibit the use of TikTok on “government devices,” citing security fears linked to the video-sharing app’s ownership by a Chinese company. Speaking in Parliament, Oliver Dowden, a senior cabinet minister, announced the ban with immediate effect, describing it as “precautionary,” even though the United States, the European Union’s executive arm, Canada and India have already taken similar steps. Social media apps collect and store “huge amounts of user data including contacts, user content and geolocation data on government devices that data…

China Wine Tariff Pushes Australia’s Grape Growers Into Crisis

Chin@Strategy

For years, China’s thirst for Australian wine seemed insatiable. Chinese drinkers were so passionate about big-bodied red wines from Australia that many vineyards replaced white grapes with darker varieties. Wineries even reverted to using corks — instead of convenient screw tops — because Chinese consumers liked the traditional plug. But then everything unraveled. In April 2020, Australia’s prime minister at the time, Scott Morrison, called for an independent investigation into the origin of Covid-19. Beijing was furious, denouncing “political games” meant to assign blame for the pandemic. In response, China…