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Category: China

  • O’Neill warns Marape over ‘improper’ eleventh hour China meeting

    PNG Post-Courier

    Opposition People’s National Congress leader Peter O’Neill is urging Papua New Guinea’s Prime Minister James Marape and the government to refrain from signing any agreements with China when their foreign minister visits Port Moresby today.

    “Now is not the right time,” the former prime minister said of the visit by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, and of any likely deals to be struck between the two countries.

    Using more diplomatic words, he said: “A foreign minister of any nation visiting our country is an honour and as a gracious host, PNG would welcome the opportunity to showcase our culture, country, and investment opportunities, especially with a world superpower such as China.”

    “Democratic processes such as National General Elections only come around every five years in PNG and the small window of eight weeks of our election timetable should be preserved without international, high-level visits,” he said.

    The Chinese top government envoy, who is State Councillor and Foreign Minister, jets into Port Moresby just after midday today for a short visit to meet Prime Minister Marape and Foreign Minister Soroi Eoe.

    China and PNG will sign off on a Green Sustainable Development Policy which also covers Trade and Investment and Energy, among other issues.

    Foreign Affairs Secretary Elias Wohengu said yesterday that the visit would be brief as he would arrive in the night and would head back to China after meeting Eoe and paying a courtesy call on Marape.

    Bilateral meeting tomorrow
    He said that the official bilateral meeting would be held on Friday morning with Eoe.

    “The meeting will be minister-plus nine on both sides,” Wohengu said.

    “Thirty minutes after the meeting, he will make courtesy call on Prime Minister James Marape before he flies out of the country to China.

    “He will sign one agreement, which is the Green Sustainable Development Policy.

    “On the security status of PNG, we will deal with it ourselves.

    “He is coming back on his return trip to China from his Pacific Islands Forum ministers meeting which was held yesterday, co-chaired it physically out of Suva.

    PNG the ‘last lap’
    “So on his return lap, his last country visit is PNG before he flies out.

    “He was in Fiji and also visited other Pacific Island countries.

    “There has been resentment over Pacific Agreement on security matters.”

    China has said it is willing to make joint efforts with PNG to inject stronger impetus into the overall development of relations between China and the Pacific Island countries.

    “Both as developing countries, China is also willing to, together with Papua New Guinea, strengthen strategic coordination, and jointly voice maintenance for multilateralism and support for free trade in various international arenas,” it has said.

    O’Neill said in his statement that writs for the elections were issued on May 12 dissolving the current Parliament and Members of Parliament were now contesting the election and should not sign any agreements on behalf of the State, particularly with China.

    “All election related preparations have been made or should have been made well in advance and any donations of security equipment or agreements for China to provide security or election support this late in the timetable is improper,” he said.

    ‘Superpower tensions’
    “Tensions in the region between global superpowers from the West and China are driving foreign leaders to give a high amount of attention to the Pacific.

    “These tensions that exist between larger countries are not our doing and we should not be unnecessarily caught up as these larger nations shadowbox.

    “We desperately need partnerships with high quality investors to lift the standards of living for our people, but they must comply with our procurement laws and be done in a transparent way to ensure the best returns for our people.

    “There are some Chinese companies and, indeed, some Singaporean and Australian companies, who have not been subject to normal procurement procedures that warrant urgent investigation.”

    O’Neill said Marape should not have encouraged this visit which draws PNG into a regional and global matter that it does not have any business on choosing sides.

    • Papua New Guinea’s general election is July 9-22.

    Republished with permission.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Scott Ritter & Ray On Ukraine, Russia, China

    Scott and I focused initially on President Biden’s just-completed Excellent Adventure in the Far East and the U.S. effort to woo countries away from China or, at least, pre-empt closer bilateral ties. Why must China’s “win-win” approach be dismissed out of hand — especially when it was so mutually beneficial 50 years ago in reducing tension and keeping the peace? Recent developments, including talks with Chinese officials, have fortified Scott’s view that China remains extremely reluctant to go to war over Taiwan. Nevertheless, China will do so “in a heartbeat” if Taiwan declares independence and develops a more substantial military relationship with the U.S.

    The post Scott Ritter & Ray On Ukraine, Russia, China appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

  • As Wong makes her mark in the Pacific, the Albanese government should look to history on mending ties with China

    ANALYSIS: By Tony Walker, La Trobe University

    Foreign Minister Penny Wong’s decision to embark on a diplomatic offensive to outflank China in the Pacific within days of being sworn in has yielded what appears to have been an early success.

    Whether Wong’s intervention gave Pacific leaders pause about a wide-ranging economic and security pact with China or they would have baulked anyway, the fact is Australian diplomacy can claim a dividend.

    In the process, the country appears to have a new foreign minister who will engage in more creative and activist foreign policy then her predecessor.

    Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s extensive tour of the Pacific has been aimed at extending Beijing’s influence in the region at a moment when regional leaders had grown restive about Australia’s commitment to its immediate neighbourhood.

    The Morrison government’s equivocation on climate has not sat well with leaders of the Pacific’s micro-states.

    Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
    Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s tour of the Pacific has come at a time when regional leaders were unsure of Australia’s commitment to its neighbourhood. Image: AAP/AP

    Wong’s mission appears to have succeeded on three important fronts:

    1. it has reassured Pacific neighbours that a new Labor government will do more than pay lip service to their concerns about climate and other issues
    2. Wong has made it clear Canberra will not be reticent in contesting Beijing’s influence in the region
    3. her mission has enabled her to assert her own authority early over the foreign policy and security reach of her portfolio.

    This latter aspect will be important in how and in what form Australia responds to Chinese overtures aimed at achieving a re-set in relations.

    Labor governments have long managed the relationship well
    In one respect, the new Labor government has history on its side.

    This year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Canberra and Beijing.

    All these years later, another Labor government has the opportunity to re-set Australia’s relations with the dominant regional player at a moment when the Indo-Pacific is undergoing profound change.

    Few would reasonably argue against the proposition that a “re-set” is overdue after years of drift and ill-will under the Morrison government.

    The question for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his national security team is how to proceed in a way that conforms with Australia’s national interest, is faithful to its values, and enables Canberra’s voice to be inserted in regional councils.

    Wong has, for some time, been sketching out a more creative foreign policy approach — evident in her Pacific initiative — that will seek to expand Australia’s regional relationships and, where appropriate, take the lead in alignment with the country’s national interest.

    In this sense, the joint communique on December 21 1972, signalling the establishment of diplomatic relations between Australia and the People’s Republic of China, makes interesting reading.

    Unlike Richard Nixon’s Shanghai communique of 1972, which fudged the Taiwan issue, the Whitlam government document is explicit.

    The Australian government recognises the Government of the People’s Republic of China as the sole legal Government of China, acknowledges the position of the Chinese Government that Taiwan is a province of the People’s Republic of China, and has decided to remove its official representation from Taiwan before 25 January, 1973.

    Albanese and his security policy team can be sure this document will not be gathering dust in a Chinese Foreign Ministry archive.

    China’s attachment to anniversaries is one of the more notable features of its diplomacy. These occasions may be used for political purposes, but history weighs heavily on Beijing’s foreign policy calculations.

    Albanese government should jump on the promise of a thaw
    When Prime Minister Li Keqiang promptly sent a congratulatory message to Albanese on the latter’s success in the recent election, Labor’s historic shift towards Beijing back in 1972 will not have been overlooked.

    The wording of Li’s message was pointed. It said, in part, that China was:

    ready to work with the Australian side to review the past, face the future, uphold principles of mutual respect, mutual benefit.

    Beijing talks a lot about “mutual respect” and “mutual benefit”. These are phrases that are, more often that not, designed to deflect criticism of China’s human rights abuses and other bad behaviour.

    But taken together with overtures for a “re-set” by the new Chinese ambassador in Canberra, Xiao Qian, Beijing has clearly decided it is in China’s interests to turn the page on a sour period between the countries.

    Asked at his press conference after the conclusion of Quad talks in Tokyo about his response to the conciliatory message from Li, Albanese simply said:

    I welcome that. And we will respond appropriately in time when I return to Australia.

    In other responses to questions about troubled relations with China, the new prime minister has said it is up to Beijing to start removing sanctions on Australian exports.

    These Albanese responses are prudent. There is no point in rushing to acknowledge such overtures. However, he would be making a mistake if he seeks to prolong what has the makings of a thaw.

    He might remind himself that virtually all of Australia’s western allies, including America, have working relations with Beijing that enable officials to engage in a constructive dialogue, despite differences.

    Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese
    Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s responses to China so far have been prudent. Image: Lukas Coch/AAP

    Australia’s first ambassador to China, Stephen Fitzgerald, has some wise counsel for the new government in Canberra about how to better manage relations with Beijing.

    Australia under a Labor government must now return to diplomacy, talking with the PRC, for which it is ready and putting away the megaphone of gratuitous criticism, insult and condemnation which were the hallmarks of Morrison’s China policy. If we do this, there will be many issues on which we can have constructive engagement.

    One of these issues can — and should — be the continued detention in China of two Australian citizens, the journalist Cheng Lei and the democratic activist Yang Hengjun. Progress towards their release should be a condition of improved relations, along with removal of punitive tariffs on imports of such items as wine and barley.

    Finally, Albanese’s security policy team should pay particular attention to US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s landmark foreign policy speech delivered to the Asia Society in Washington on May 26.

    In that speech, Blinken laid down guidelines for the conduct of relations with Beijing in a world whose foundations are shifting. His words bear repeating as a template for Canberra’s own interactions with Beijing.

    We are not looking for conflict or a new Cold War […] We don’t seek to block China from its role as a major power […] But we will defend [the international order] and make it possible for all countries – including the United States and China – to coexist and co-operate.

    Blinken’s attempts to define a workable China policy should be regarded in the same vein as another important statement delivered 17 years ago by then Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick in New York. In that speech, Zoellick said:

    We now need to encourage China to become a responsible stakeholder in the international system.

    Blinken’s and Zoellick’s interventions, two decades apart, are important guardrails for a constructive relationship with China.The Conversation

    Dr Tony Walker is a vice-chancellor’s fellow, La Trobe University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.

  • The Guardian view on the UN in Xinjiang: a grave error | Editorial

    The UN human rights chief, Michelle Bachelet, failed to adequately address terrible abuses in the region

    “Not only vindicated, but justified,” a Chinese diplomat crowed on Twitter. His remark came only days after an international media consortium revealed new details of the terrible abuses taking place in Xinjiang. Internal Chinese documents – reportedly obtained by a hacker and passed on to the BBC and others – put a human face on some of the perhaps 1 million mostly Uyghur Muslim detainees who have been held in re-education camps without charge or trial, with police photographs of inmates as young as 15.

    The Xinjiang police files also revealed the existence of a shoot-to-kill policy for anyone attempting to flee these centres, and people being jailed for up to 10 years because their phone has run out of credit – apparently regarded as an attempt to avoid digital surveillance. In one county, around one in eight adults were detained in 2017-18. Previously documented abuses include forced sterilisations, children being sent to state boarding schools because their parents are detained, and people being held because they have relatives overseas.

    Continue reading…

  • Aupito heads to Fiji as government faces pressure over China strategy

    RNZ Pacific

    Aotearoa New Zealand’s Pacific Minister Aupito William Sio is set to travel to Fiji tomorrow, while Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta is under increased pressure over Pacific relationships.

    Sio, who is also associate foreign affairs minister, will travel to Fiji from tomorrow to meet with Pacific ministers, and return on Saturday.

    He said he would be discussing shared concerns with other large ocean states, aiming to build and strengthen relationships after the Our Ocean Conference in Palau in March.

    “The Pacific is central to the lives, cultures and well-being of Aotearoa New Zealand and our Pacific whanau, aiga, kainga, kopu tangata, and fanau. At the Our Ocean Conference, I encouraged progress on issues such as the conservation of our marine environments and the sustainable use of ocean resources, and I intend to continue these dialogues during my visit,” he said in a statement.

    He will also meet with Fiji’s minister of health.

    Minister of Foreign Affairs Nanaia Mahuta has been under increasing pressure over New Zealand’s approach to the Pacific as China’s own Foreign Minister Wang Yi toured eight Pacific countries.

    Wang secured co-operation agreements with Samoa and Kiribati after officially signing a security agreement with the Solomon Islands.

    Greater US attention
    The United States has also been turning increased attention to the region, setting up the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework with 12 other countries including New Zealand.

    China was unable to get its broader regional agreement signed by Pacific countries, however, and Mahuta said that reflected the Pacific’s view that regional measures should be discussed at a regional level — and she believed that would be discussed at the upcoming Pacific Islands Forum in July.

    Mahuta has faced questions over why her Chinese counterpart was was able to do a full tour of the Pacific before she could, and this morning told reporters New Zealand’s relationship with the Pacific was very good, and in good shape.

    “In fact the Pacific rely on us to be consistent, respectful, reliable in the way that we work with them and partner their aspirations … I’ll be absolutely looking to meet with my Pacific foreign minister counterparts, which I already have for many of them.

    “When the border opened for Fiji, which was one of the earliest border openings, I went there to demonstrate that we want to engage very quickly and as border settings allow I’m going to absolutely try and get to many of the places across the Pacific.”

    China had the resources to do a full Pacific tour, had been working for a long time to build its relationship with the Pacific, and Chinese interests in the Pacific were not new, she said.

    “They have the resources to do that obviously but they have over a period of time secured a strong relationship across the whole of the Pacific and they’re building on that.

    “What is unusual is that they’ve done eight pacific countries… in a very short time.”

    She planned to travel to Solomon Islands as soon as the country’s foreign minister, Jeremiah Manele, was available to meet with her.

    Sio meanwhile will also participate in events to celebrate Samoa Language Week and the 60th Anniversary of Samoa’s independence upon his return to Aotearoa New Zealand.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • The Biden Administration Is Escalating The War On China

    The Biden administration is ratcheting up its provocations of China as part of the National Security Strategy of Great Power Conflict, with the President going so far as to say the United States would intervene militarily over Taiwan. The US is also trying to push another trade agreement that would exclude China. On top of that is a propaganda campaign designed to build political support for the New Cold War. Clearing the FOG speaks with independent journalist and political analyst Daniel Haiphong about the war on China, what is happening with Taiwan and the Solomon Islands, Biden’s new trade framework and why China’s “Socialism with Chinese Characteristics” threatens the global elites.

    The post The Biden Administration Is Escalating The War On China appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Sanctions – Wrecking Ball In A Global Economy

    U.S. government strategists are using sanctions as a wrecking ball to demolish the globalized economy. It is a desperate struggle to preserve their global hegemony and a unipolar world. The policy of consciously demolishing supply chains of essential products amounts to a reckless war on defenseless civilian populations. Sanctions disrupt trade worldwide and send shockwaves far beyond the countries directly targeted. This is well understood by financial planners.

    “Food shortages — it’s going to be real,” President Joe Biden said in Brussels March 25 at a NATO press conference, an ominous warning reported around the world. “The price of the sanctions is not just imposed upon Russia. It’s imposed upon an awful lot of countries as well, including European countries and our country as well.”

    The post Sanctions – Wrecking Ball In A Global Economy appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • China to provide South Pacific countries ‘what US, Australia failed to offer’

    As China and South Pacific island countries are going to strengthen their cooperation to better serve local people’s demand for development, some voices from the West or Western media have started to distort the cooperation and hype the fear of a new “Cold War.” Chinese experts said the US and Australia always see the island countries as their puppets. So when China help them to become  independent and prosperous, the West will definitely feel anxious.

    Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi will pay an official visit to the Solomon Islands, Kiribati, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, Vanuatu, Papua New Guinea and East Timor upon invitation from May 26 to June 4, and will also visit Micronesia via video and have a virtual meeting with leaders of Cook Islands and Niue. Observers believe this trip will be a milestone for relations between China and the entire region.

    Wang’s trip will cover cooperation and deals in many fields including economy, infrastructure, climate change, public health, policing and security.The reason why China’s presence has been welcomed by the regional countries is that China could promote the livelihood of the locals and  activate the economic potentials of those islands, experts said. However, some Western media have focused only on the cooperation about security, and tried to exaggerate that the cooperation could spark “new Cold War” between China and the West in the region.

    The post China to provide South Pacific countries ‘what US, Australia failed to offer’ appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Blinken criticises Chinese ‘manipulation’ of high-profile UN visit to Xinjiang

    US secretary of state says conditions imposed on Michelle Bachelet prevented independent assessment of abuses against Uyghurs, including genocide

    US secretary of state Antony Blinken has expressed concern over China’s “efforts to restrict and manipulate” the visit of the UN’s top human rights official to the Xinjiang region.

    “The United States remains concerned about the UN high commissioner for human rights Michelle Bachelet and her team’s visit to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and PRC efforts to restrict and manipulate her visit,” Blinken said in a statement on Saturday.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • News on China | No. 100

    In episode 100, News on China tells of China developing an oral dose of vaccine, prioritizing urban employment, and defending against colonialism by the pirate queen Zheng Yi Sao.

    The post News on China | No. 100 first appeared on Dissident Voice.

    This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.

  • The Need to Mount Long-Term Resistance to Totalitarianism and Ethnonationalist Chauvinism

    Uyghur intellectual Ilham Tohti has been incarcerated for “ethnic separatism” since 2014. New translations of his work offer a primary source for understanding the material conditions at the heart of the Xinjiang emergency.

    This post was originally published on Dissent MagazineDissent Magazine.

  • Amplifying narratives about the ‘China threat’ in the Pacific may help Beijing achieve its broader aims

    ANALYSIS: By Joanne Wallis, University of Adelaide and Maima Koro, University of Adelaide

    Yet more proposed Chinese “security agreements” in the Pacific Islands have been leaked.

    The drafts have been described by critics as revealing “the ambitious scope of Beijing’s strategic intent in the Pacific” and its “coherent desire […] to seek to shape the regional order”. There are concerns they will “dramatically expand [China’s] security influence in the Pacific”.

    But does this overstate their importance?

    A pause for breath
    Australia and New Zealand should be concerned about China’s increasingly visible presence in the Pacific Islands. A coercive Chinese presence could substantially constrain Australia’s freedom of movement, with both economic and defence implications.

    And Pacific states and people have reason to be concerned. The restrictions on journalists during Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi’s visit to Solomon Islands demonstrate the potential consequences for transparency of dealing closely with China.

    And there are questions about the implications of the Solomon Islands-China security agreement for democracy and accountability.

    But before we work ourselves into a frenzy, it is worth pausing for breath.

    The leaked drafts are just that: drafts.

    They have not yet been signed by any Pacific state.

    At least one Pacific leader, Federated States of Micronesia President David Panuelo, has publicly rejected them. Panuelo’s concerns are likely shared by several other Pacific leaders, suggesting they’re also unlikely to sign.

    China wields powerful tools of statecraft — particularly economic — but Pacific states are sovereign. They will ultimately decide the extent of China’s role in the region.

    And these drafts do not mention Chinese military bases — nor did the China-Solomon Islands agreement.

    Rumours in 2018 China was in talks to build a military base in Vanuatu never eventuated.

    What if some Pacific states sign these documents?
    First, these documents contain proposals rather than binding obligations.

    If they are signed, it’s not clear they will differ in impact from the many others agreed over the last decade. For example, China announced a “strategic partnership” with eight Pacific states in 2014, which had no substantive consequences for Australia.

    So common — and often so ineffectual — are “strategic partnerships” and “memoranda of understanding” that there is a satirical podcast series devoted to them.

    Second, the drafts contain proposals that may benefit Pacific states.

    For example, a China-Pacific Islands free trade area could open valuable opportunities, especially as China is a significant export destination.

    Third, the drafts cover several activities in which China is already engaged. For example, China signed a security agreement with Fiji in 2011, and the two states have had a police cooperation relationship since.

    It’s worth remembering Australia and New Zealand provide the bulk of policing assistance. The executive director of the Pacific Island Chiefs of Police is even a Kiwi.

    The drafts do contain concerning provisions. Cooperation on data networks and “smart” customs systems may raise cybersecurity issues. This is why Australia funded the Coral Sea Cable connecting Solomon Islands and Papua New Guinea to Australia.

    Provisions relating to satellite maritime surveillance may cause friction with existing activities supported by Australia and its partners.

    Greater Chinese maritime domain awareness of the region – meaning understanding of anything associated with its oceans and waterways – would also raise strategic challenges for Australia, New Zealand, and the US.

    But there is a risk of over-egging the implications based on our own anxieties.

    China’s interests
    Much of China’s diplomacy has been opportunistic and not dissimilar to what Australia and other partners are doing.

    Although the region is strategically important to Australia, the southern Pacific islands are marginal to China. And apart from Kiribati and Nauru, the northern Pacific islands are closely linked to the US.

    China’s interest may primarily be about demonstrating strategic reach, rather than for specific military purposes.

    So, amplifying narratives about China’s threatening presence may unintentionally help China achieve its broader aim of influencing Australia.

    And framing China’s presence almost exclusively as threatening may limit Australia’s manoeuvrability.

    Given the accelerating frequency of natural disasters in the region due to climate change, it is only a matter of time before the Australian and Chinese militaries find themselves delivering humanitarian relief side-by-side. Being on sufficiently cordial terms to engage in even minimal coordination will be important.

    Indeed, Australia should try to draw China into cooperative arrangements in the Pacific.

    Reviving, updating, and seeking China’s signature of, the Pacific Islands Forum’s Cairns Compact on Development Coordination, would be a good start.

    If China really has benign intentions, it should welcome this opportunity. The compact, a mechanism created by Pacific states, could help ensure China’s activities are well-coordinated and targeted alongside those of other partners.

    Amplifying threat narratives also feeds into Australia’s perceived need to “compete” by playing whack-a-mole with China, rather than by formulating a coherent, overarching regional policy that responds to the priorities of Pacific states.

    For example, Australia has funded Telstra’s purchase of Digicel, following interest from Chinese telco Huawei, despite questions over the benefits.

    What will Australia offer next?
    There is a risk some Pacific states may overestimate their ability to manage China. But for the time being it is understandable why at least some would entertain Chinese overtures.

    New Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong has rushed to Fiji days into the job with sought-after offers of action on climate change and expanded migration opportunities. Pacific leaders might be wondering what Australia will offer next.The Conversation

    Dr Joanne Wallis is professor of international security, University of Adelaide and Dr Maima Koro is a Pacific research fellow, University of Adelaide. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons licence. Read the original article.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • China, Russia time joint bomber flight with Quad summit

    The Japanese Ministry of Defense (MoD) announced on 24 May that six Chinese and Russian strategic bombers were observed flying near the Japan on the same day that Tokyo was hosting the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) summit, prompting the Japan Air-Self Defense Force (JASDF) to scramble its jets in response. According to the MoD, two […]

    The post China, Russia time joint bomber flight with Quad summit appeared first on Asian Military Review.

    This post was originally published on Asian Military Review.

  • China documents threaten Pacific sovereignty, warns FSM president

    RNZ Pacific

    The President of the Federated States of Micronesia says he has serious concerns about the details of two leaked Chinese government documents to be tabled at a meeting next week.

    President David Panuelo warns the sovereignty of the Pacific Island countries is at stake, and that the outcome of one of the documents could result in a cold war or even a world war.

    Panuelo has written to 18 Pacific leaders — including New Zealand, Australia, and the Secretary-General of the Pacific Islands Forum — specifically about the China-Pacific Island Countries Common Development Vision.

    The other document is a five-year plan to implement the outcomes into action.

    In his letter he said the Common Development Vision and Monday’s meeting was a “smokescreen” for a larger agenda, and further warned that China was looking to exert more control over Pacific nations’ sovereignty and that this document threatened to bring at the very least a new Cold War era but in the worst-case scenario, a world war.

    He has urged leaders in the region to look at it carefully before making any decisions.

    In particular, Panuelo noted that the Vision sought to “fundamentally alter what used to be bilateral relations with China into multilateral issues”.

    Ensuring ‘Chinese control’
    The Vision he added sought to “… ensure Chinese control of ‘traditional and non-traditional security” of our islands, including through law enforcement training, supplying, and joint enforcement efforts, which can be used for the protection of Chinese assets and citizens.

    It suggests “cooperation on network and governance” and “cybersecurity” and “equal emphasis on development and security”, and that there shall be “economic development and protection of national security and public interests”.

    “The Common Development Vision seeks to ensure Chinese influence in government through ‘collaborative’ policy planning and political exchanges, including diplomatic training, in addition to an increase in Chinese media relationships in the Pacific …,” he said.

    “The Common Development Vision seeks Chinese control and ownership of our communications infrastructure, as well as customs and quarantine infrastructure …. for the purpose of biodata collection and mass surveillance of those residing in, entering, and leaving our islands, ostensibly to occur in part through cybersecurity partnership.”

    The Vision he said “… seeks Chinese control of our collective fisheries and extractive resource sectors, including free trade agreements, marine spatial planning, deep-sea mining, and extensive public and private sector loan-taking through the Belt and Road Initiative via the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.”

    Panuelo said the proposed China-Pacific leaders meeting on Monday in Fiji was intended to “shift those of us with diplomatic relations with China very closely into Beijing’s orbit, intrinsically tying the whole of our countries and societies to them.

    “The practical impacts, however, of Chinese control over our communications infrastructure, our ocean territory and the resources within them, and our security space, aside from impacts on our sovereignty is that it increases the chances of China getting into conflict with Australia, Japan, the United States, and New Zealand, on the day when Beijing decides to invade Taiwan.

    China’s goal – ‘take Taiwan’
    “To be clear, that’s China’s goal: to take Taiwan. Peacefully, if possible; through war, if necessary.”

    Panuelo said the FSM would attend Monday’s meeting and would reject both documents “on the premise that we believe the proposed agreement needlessly heightens geopolitical tensions, and that the agreement threatens regional stability and security, including both my country’s Great Friendship with China and my country’s Enduring Partnership with the United States.”

    He said the Vision and meeting were a “smokescreen for a larger agenda”.

    “Despite our ceaseless and accurate howls that Climate Change represents the single-most existential security threat to our islands, the Common Development Vision threatens to bring a new Cold war era at best, and a World War at worst.”

    He said the only way to maintain the relationship with Beijing was to focus exclusively on economic and technical cooperation.

    Panuelo hoped that by alerting his Pacific colleagues of developments that “… we can collectively take the steps necessary to prevent any intensified conflict, and possible breakout of war, from ever happening in the first place”.

    “I believe that Australia needs to take climate change more seriously and urgently. I believe that the United States should have a diplomatic presence in all sovereign Pacific Islands Countries, and step-up its assistance to all islands, to include its own states and territories in the Pacific.”

    Not a justification
    Panuelo summed up: “However, it is my view that the shortcomings of our allies are not a justification for condemning the leaders who succeed us in having to accept a war that we failed to recognise was coming and failed to prevent from occurring.

    “We can only reassert the rightful focus on climate change as our region’s most existential threat by taking every single possible action to promote peace and harmony across our Blue Pacific Continent.”

    Panuelo said his cabinet has suggested the FSM resist the objectives of the documents and the nation maintain its own bilateral agenda for development and engagement with China.

    He also said the documents would open up Pacific countries to having phone calls and emails intercepted and overheard.

    China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is currently visiting several Pacific countries.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Defend media freedom in Pacific, says USP’s journalism head

    By Sue Ahearn of The Pacific Newsroom in Canberra

    Pacific journalists must be allowed to do their jobs, says the head of journalism at the University of the South Pacific, Dr Shailendra Singh.

    Pacific journalists have raised concerns about access and secrecy surrounding the tour of the Pacific by China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and a high-level delegation.

    Dr Singh has called for a defence of media freedom in the Pacific and more support from governments in the region for Pacific journalism.

    He told The Pacific Newsroom the state of the media in the Pacific was not just a national issue but a regional concern.

    “We have two different systems here. China has a different political system – a totalitarian system, and in the Pacific we have a democratic system,” he said.

    “And that is how our media is also configured. Anyone is free to comment about what is happening in other countries.”

    Dr Singh is currently attached with the Australian National University (ANU) on a research fellowship.

    Sue Ahearn is founding editor and publisher of The Pacific Newsroom.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Kiribati ‘forced’ to allow China visit on Pacific mission, says journalist

    RNZ Pacific

    A Pacific journalist believes the Kiribati government has been coerced by Beijing to accommodate China’s foreign minister’s visit.

    Kiribati authorities have confirmed that Wang Yi would briefly stopover to meet President Taneti Maamau as part of his Pacific-wide tour.

    Journalist Rimon Rimon said the government had been “very secretive” and “people are frustrated and angry” after only learning about the trip via a Facebook post.

    Rimon said Kiribati was grappling with a covid-19 outbreak and with the borders closed it was a change in practice by the government to oblige Beijing’s request.

    “I think there has been some kind of pressure from Beijing. Only last night I had confirmation from a source from Beijing that before they travelled Kiribati was finally on the list,” he said.

    “So, I finally understood that there had been some pressures and our government has submitted to those pressures.”

    Rimon said a deal with Kiribati had more significance for China, as Beijing had already demonstrated its willingness to develop Kiribati’s northernmost island, Kanton Island, which has strategic military potential.

    Kiribati government ‘reluctant’
    “And I think China is pursuing that. I think our government is quite reluctant on something military-wise, based on the narrative that the government has been saying throughout the years.

    “But I have no doubt this is, this is the number one thing on China’s agenda. How our government will respond to that or accommodate that. I have no idea of that,” he said.

    President Taneti Maamau of Kiribati
    President Taneti Maamau of Kiribati … Kanton Island “the number one thing on China’s agenda,” says journalist. Image: Rick Bajornas/UN

    The Kiribati government said the high-level state visit was an important milestone for Kiribati-China relations, as it would strengthen and promote partnership and cooperation between the two countries after the resumption of diplomatic ties in 2019.

    Meanwhile, Foreign Minister Wang Yi is due to visit Vanuatu next Wednesday as part of his tour.

    The Chinese Embassy in Port Vila has confirmed the arrival date for bilateral talks with the government of Vanuatu.

    The embassy said Wang’s visit in Vanuatu had nothing to do with security issues. Instead, it said, he would discuss five memorandums of understanding as well as other business.

    The embassy said the discussion points would be on tangible benefits that China could bring to the people of Vanuatu.

    As well as Port Vila, Wang is due to visit Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, and Kiribati. He is currently in Solomon Islands.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

  • Solomons media condemns ‘secrecy’ controls over China delegation

    RNZ Pacific

    The Media Association of Solomon Islands (MASI) has urged its members to boycott a media conference for a visiting Chinese delegation in protest over “ridiculous” restrictions.

    China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi leads the high-level delegation which arrives in Solomon Islands today.

    Wang is expected to sign a host of new agreements, including the security pact that has sparked anger in the United States, Australia and New Zealand.

    MASI president Georgina Kekea said it was disappointed that the media were only allowed limited access to the visit.

    Kekea said Solomon Islands was a democratic country and when media freedom was dictated on someone else’s terms, it impeded the country’s democratic principles.

    “The Chinese delegation’s visit is an important and historical one for our country and our members play an important role in making sure it provides the right information and awareness on the importance of the visit to our people,” she said.

    She said only two questions could be asked, one from a local journalist directed to the Solomon Islands foreign affairs minister, and one from Chinese media, directed to their foreign affairs minister.

    “How ridiculous is that? If we want to interview our foreign affairs minister, we can just do it without the event,” she said.

    ‘What’s the purpose?’
    “What is the purpose of hosting such an event for the press when they are only allowed one question and directed to their foreign minister only?”

    Kekea said even the discriminatory manner in which journalists were selected to cover the event did not bode well with the association.

    China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi
    China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi … Pacific influencing travel includes Fiji, Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu. Image: MFA/Chinese govt

    “MASI thrives on professional journalism and sees no reason for journalists to be discriminated against based on who they represent. Giving credentials to selected journalists is a sign of favouritism,” she said.

    “Journalists should be allowed to do their job without fear or favour.”

    She said the reason given that the arrangements were done that way because of covid-19 protocols did not stack up.

    “We have community transmission, people are crowded in buses, shops, markets, banks and so forth, so this is a very lame excuse,” she said.

    Kekea said press freedom is enshrined as a fundamental element in the Solomons’ constitution.

    ‘MASI defending democracy’
    “Same as the prime minister has defended democracy in Parliament after the November riots, MASI is also defending democracy in this space,” Kekea said.

    She added that the boycott was not to disrespect the government or its bilateral partners in any way, but to showcase the media’s disagreement in this matter.

    Solomons Islands opposition leader Mathew Wale has again raised concerns at the secrecy surrounding links with Beijing.

    Wale said only a few top aides know what is in the agreements, and that there’s no justification for the secrecy.

    “Solomon Islands is a democratic country, owned by the people and they are entitled to know what is being transacted in their name,” he said.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • Quad summit in Tokyo ramps up confrontation with China

    Yesterday’s face-to-face meeting in Tokyo of the leaders of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) marked a sharp and systemic stepping up of the US-led war preparations against China. On every front—military, economic, maritime surveillance, supply chains, and cyber and space warfare—the government heads from the US, Japan, India and Australia endorsed aggressive measures to encircle, isolate and provoke Beijing. The summit was a key feature of US President Joe Biden’s five-day trip to South Korea and Japan to display what the White House called a “powerful message” that, even as Washington escalates its proxy war against Russia in Ukraine by pouring in another $40 billion of weaponry and support, it is prepared to fight a war on two fronts, against both Russia and China.

    The post Quad summit in Tokyo ramps up confrontation with China appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Xi Jinping defends China’s human rights record to visiting UN commissioner

    Leader warns against using issue as ‘excuse to interfere in internal affairs of other countries’ as Michelle Bachelet goes to Xinjiang

    China’s leader, Xi Jinping, has spoken with the UN human rights chief, Michelle Bachelet, as she visited the Xinjiang region, warning against the politicisation of human rights as an “excuse to interfere in the internal affairs of other countries” and defending his government’s record.

    It comes amid renewed defensiveness in Beijing after the publication of a significant data leak from Xinjiang’s security apparatus, including mugshots of thousands of detained Uyghurs and internal documents outlining shoot-to-kill policies for those who try to escape.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • Top level Chinese delegation headed to Kiribati – questions over Kanton

    By Barbara Dreaver, TV1 News Pacific correspondent

    Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is to visit Kiribati on Friday for four hours as part of a Pacific tour to strengthen security ties in the region.

    It is the first top level bilateral meeting between the two countries since Kiribati switched allegiance to China from Taiwan in 2019.

    Concern is mounting over a potential security deal following the PRC’s recent controversial agreement with Solomon Islands which allows it to have military presence in the island nation if requested.

    Speaking to 1News, Kiribati Opposition leader Tessie Eria Lambourne said she was “gravely concerned” about any potential security arrangement as she believed it would involve the militarisation of one of its atolls, Kanton Island, and Chinese control over the area.

    “Our rich marine territory in the Phoenix Islands Protected Area (PIPA) will be under China’s control for sure,” she said.

    The area is valuable for its geo-strategic location, including proximity to United States military installations, along with its rich fisheries resources.

    Last year, 1News revealed how the Kiribati government was ditching PIPA, a marine reserve and World Heritage site to open up to commercial fishing in a move believed to have been driven by Beijing.

    China funding feasibility study
    China is also funding a feasibility study to upgrade the runway and causeway on Kanton Island which has raised alarm in the US and Australia.

    Friday’s bilateral meeting which is expected to include discussions about the Kanton Island development was announced late on Tuesday.

    A Facebook post from President Taneti Maamau’s office said the high-level state visit was “an important milestone for Kiribati-Chinese relations, as it will strengthen and promote partnership and cooperation between our two countries”.

    An exemption is being made for the delegation as Kiribati borders remain closed as a covid-19 safety measure.

    While the group will undergo PCR testing when they arrive at the airport, Lambourne said the visit demonstrated the influence the superpower had there.

    “Since the lockdown there have been exemptions extended to Chinese nationals who have been coming in and going out of our country without restrictions while our seafarers and other nationals had to wait more than three years to be repatriated,” she said.

    “Our democratic system, in fact our very sovereignty , is under attack and we need support to ensure our survival as a democratic nation.”

    Delegation arriving in Honiara tonight
    The Chinese delegation is expected to arrive in Solomon Islands tonight and meet with the government on Thursday. The group will also be visiting Fiji on Sunday and Monday and Papua New Guinea next week.

    Speaking to media from New York today, Jacinda Ardern said it was no surprise Yi was set to visit a number of Pacific countries.

    Asked if it was a concern, Ardern said: “We’re very firm that yes of course we want collaboration in areas where we have shared concerns.

    “Issues like climate mitigation and adaptation, we want quality investment and infrastructure in our region.

    “We don’t want militarisation, we don’t want an escalation of tension, we want peace and stability so we will remain firm on those values.”

    Republished with permission.

  • Biden in Tokyo: Killing Strategic Ambiguity

    Could it have been just another case of bumbling poor judgment, the mind softened as the mouth opened?  A question was put to US President Joe Biden, visiting Tokyo and standing beside Japan’s Prime Minister Fumio Kishida: “You didn’t want to get involved in the Ukraine conflict militarily for obvious reasons.  Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that?”  The answer: “Yes.  That’s a commitment we made.”

    Biden was again flatly committing the US to a conflict over Taiwan should China deploy its forces.  He has done so on two previous occasions, showing either a degree of ignorance, or a willingness to throw caution to the wind.  The first took place during an interview with ABC News in August, when he equated Taiwan’s status to those of other allies such as South Korea.  The second, in a CNN town hall, took place in October, when he stated that the US had “a commitment to do that”.

    In doing so a third time, he was helping no one in particular, and taking the hammer to the strategic ambiguity that has marked US-Taiwan policy for decades.  The only thing that could have been taken away from it is a reminder to Beijing that they are not facing a cautious superpower steered by a sage, but a government not unwilling to shed blood over Taiwan.

    Biden has expressed this view before, and grates against a policy Washington has had for 43 years.  It is a policy characterised by two key understandings.  The first is the One China policy, which the Biden administration affirmed in Tokyo.  Beijing, accordingly, remains the sole legitimate authority representing China.

    The Taiwan Relations Act of 1979 is the other pillar that guides US policy towards Taiwan.  The Act declares it the policy of the United States “to preserve and promote extensive, close, and friendly commercial, cultural, and other relations between the people of the United States and the people of Taiwan, as well as the people of the China mainland and all other people in the Western Pacific area.”

    The Act facilitates the provision of arms to Taiwan “of a defensive character” and maintains “the capacity of the United States to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or social or economic system, of the people of Taiwan.”  It does not impose an obligation on the US to intervene militarily in the event of an attack, or to compel the use of forces in defence of the island.

    The first pertinent question was whether an actual change had been heralded in Tokyo.  The National Review certainly thought so.  “Biden’s remarks signal a big shift in US foreign policy regarding Taiwan.”  The New York Times also suggested that, unlike his previous, seemingly incautious remarks on the subject, this could not be treated as a simple gaffe.  Sebastian Smith, White House correspondent for Agence France-Presse, thought that Biden’s response “really raised the adrenaline levels in that palace briefing room”.

    Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs was overjoyed, expressing “sincere welcome and gratitude to President Biden of the United States for reiterating its rock solid commitment to Taiwan.”

    For his part, Biden was having a bit each way, suggesting that strategic ambiguity was still being retained in some modest form.  “We agree with the One China policy and all the attendant agreements we made.  But the idea that it can be taken by force, would just not be appropriate.”  His Defense Secretary, Lloyd Austin was even more adamant that there had been no change to speak of on the part of the president.  “As the president said, our One China policy has not changed,” he stated at the Pentagon.  “He reiterated that policy and our commitment to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.  He also highlighted our commitment under the Taiwan Relations Act to help provide Taiwan the means to defend itself.  So, again, our policy has not changed.”

    On being asked by a journalist what potential risks would rise as part of a US military defence of Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion, General Mark A. Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was unwilling to elucidate.  A “variety of contingency plans” were held by the military applicable to the Pacific, Europe “and elsewhere”, all classified.  “And it would be very inappropriate for me on a microphone to discuss the risk associated with those plans relative to anything with respect to Taiwan or anywhere else in the Pacific.”  Reassuring.

    As often tends to come to pass, when the potential for war lurks in cupboards and around corners, there are those less than unwilling to repel it.  The chance to exercise muscle, especially indulged vicariously, brings out the inner war monger.  Bret Stephens uses the New York Times to promote the popular view held by many in the US and amongst its allies that Biden was quite right not to stick to “diplomatic formulas of a now-dead status quo”.  President Xi Jinping, that sly devil, had “changed the rules of the game” by crushing protests in Hong Kong, repudiating the “one country, two systems” formula and blithely ignored the ruling by the Permanent Court of Arbitration on Chinese claims on the South China Sea.

    Stephens sees opportunity in this statement from Biden, a thankful slaying of ambiguity.  For one, the US can sell more arms to Taiwan while incorporating Taipei into its broader strategic approach.  The administration should also convince Taipei to increase its “scandalously low” military budget.  Washington, for its part, can increase the small component of US Special Operations and Marine personnel already deployed to train local forces.  Biden’s stumble, in short, was a shift; and the shift moves one step closer to inciting war.

    The post Biden in Tokyo: Killing Strategic Ambiguity first appeared on Dissident Voice.

    This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.

  • Biden Vows US Would Defend Taiwan, Contradicting Longstanding US Policy

    President Biden is on his first trip to Asia as president to meet with other leaders from the “Quad” — Japan, India and Australia — as part of efforts to counter China’s growing power in the region. During the trip, Biden has contradicted longstanding U.S. policy of “strategic ambiguity” on Taiwan by vowing to defend it militarily if China attacks. “This idea that the United States is obligated to come to the defense of Taiwan if it [China] attacked, is simply not U.S. policy,” says Michael Swaine, director of the Quincy Institute’s East Asia program. Swaine says the official U.S.-China policy on Taiwan — which prioritizes peaceful unification over military force — has been subtly weakened by both sides, and “President Biden’s recent comment weakens it even further.”

    TRANSCRIPT

    This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.

    AMY GOODMAN: This is Democracy Now!, democracynow.org, The War and Peace Report. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González.

    President Biden is in Tokyo on his first trip to Asia while in office to meet with members of the Quad — that’s the prime ministers of Japan, India and the new prime minister of Australia — as part of efforts to counter China’s power in the region. China has called the Quad a, quote, “Indo-Pacific NATO” and accused it of, quote, “trumpeting the Cold War mentality” and “stoking geopolitical rivalry.” This comes as India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi has resisted U.S. pressure to condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Tension has also hung over the Quad summit since Monday, when Biden contradicted longstanding U.S. policy on Taiwan, vowing to defend Taiwan if it’s attacked by China. He made the comment when questioned at a news conference.

    NANCY CORDES: You didn’t want to get involved in the Ukraine conflict militarily for obvious reasons. Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that?

    PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Yes.

    NANCY CORDES: You are?

    PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: That’s the commitment we made. That’s the commitment we made. We are not — look, here’s the situation. We agree with the One China policy. We’ve signed on to it and all the attendant agreements made from there. But the idea that it can be taken by force, just taken by force, is just not appropriate. It will dislocate the entire region and be another action similar to what happened in Ukraine.

    AMY GOODMAN: White House officials tried to walk back Biden’s comments, as they’ve done before. But Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Biden’s comment “highlighted our commitment under the Taiwan Relations Act to help provide Taiwan the means to defend itself.” Today Biden was again asked about Taiwan. This time, he insisted there’s been no change to U.S. policy.

    JEREMY DIAMOND: Mr. President, is the policy of strategic ambiguity towards Taiwan dead?

    PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: No.

    JEREMY DIAMOND: Could you explain?

    PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: No.

    NANCY COOK: Mr. President, would you send troops to Taiwan if China invaded?

    PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: Our policy has not changed at all. I stated that when I made my statement yesterday.

    AMY GOODMAN: For more, we’re joined by Michael Swaine, director of the Quincy Institute’s East Asia program, longtime U.S.-China relations analyst. His books and briefings include Remaining Aligned on the Challenges Facing Taiwan.

    Welcome to Democracy Now!, Michael Swaine. Why don’t you start off by responding to the significance of what Biden has said — by the way, not just yesterday, and clearly very deliberately, but he has repeated this several times — and then China’s accusation that the Quad, this group of four countries that are meeting — Australia, India, Japan and the United States — are an “Indo-Pacific NATO”?

    MICHAEL SWAINE: Right. Well, thank you. Thanks for having me.

    Yeah, President Biden has spoken now — I think it’s the fourth time he’s said something like he said yesterday, that the United States is committed to come to the security of Taiwan, implication being that if Taiwan were attacked by China. This, if he meant that exact meaning, it is literally not in line with U.S. policy. U.S. policy states that the United States would regard with grave security — grave concern, pardon me, any attack on Taiwan and would — the president would consult with the Congress on what exactly to do about it. That is in U.S. law. There’s no commitment to deploy forces as if Taiwan were a security ally of the United States, which it is not. But there is a commitment to provide defensive articles to Taiwan — i.e. military sales — as the United States judges the security situation becoming more threatened for Taiwan. And the U.S. is providing those military sales now for many, many years. But this idea that the United States is obligated to come to the defense of Taiwan if attacked is simply not U.S. policy. U.S. policy is what’s called strategic ambiguity. It doesn’t want to be clear on this issue, because, A, it doesn’t want to provide what you might call a blank check to Taiwan through possibly endless types of salami slicing or provocation that the U.S. would then need to come to the defense of Taiwan to sort of bail them out of a problem.

    And also, such language reinforces Beijing’s impression that the U.S. is revising its policy and viewing Taiwan as a de facto security partner and an independent nation. And this would absolutely undermine the One China policy that the United States has held now for many decades. Under that policy, it traded a credible U.S. One China stance, that did not challenge the Chinese position that Taiwan is part of China — it traded that for a Chinese assurance to pursue peaceful unification as a top priority, while not completely giving up the possibility of using force, but not putting that as a top priority. Now, both sides have this understanding as the basis of normalization, and it’s being steadily weakened now by both sides. And President Biden’s recent comment weakens it even further.

    JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Well, Michael Swaine, I wanted to ask you — when you talk about this strategic ambiguity, this policy, could you talk a little bit about the origins of it in terms of — there was a period of time, after the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, when the U.S. tried to ostracize and not recognize the existence of the People’s Republic and saw the nationalists in Taiwan as the legitimate rulers of all of China.

    MICHAEL SWAINE: Correct.

    JUAN GONZÁLEZ: Could you talk about the change that occurred back during the Nixon years and the possible implications of President Biden attempting to change that policy?

    MICHAEL SWAINE: Yes. I mean, the change occurred back during the Nixon period in the early 1970s with the opening to — so-called opening to China, when Nixon flew to Beijing and met with Mao Zedong, met with Zhou Enlai. And then, later on, several years later on, actual formal diplomatic relations were normalized in 1979, and the United States transferred its recognition from Beijing — from Taiwan to Beijing, having Beijing and the People’s Republic of China being the sole government of China.

    Now, that happened because of largely strategic reasons at the time. The Soviet Union had become the adversary of both the United States and the People’s Republic of China. And President Nixon thought it would be a much better strategic thing for the United States to have good relations with China as it developed relations or tried to develop relations with Russia, rather than have Russia and China have good relations. So, both China and the United States had a common interest in working with each other to try to maneuver against, counter, exert leverage against the Soviet Union at that time. So that’s the origins of the shift.

    But Nixon also wanted to have contact with China because he thought it was ridiculous to be shunning a billion people — or, I guess at that time it was less than a billion people, 800 million people — on the planet for many decades as we had done, and that it was serving no positive purpose and that we needed to have a normal relationship with the People’s Republic of China.

    So, for Taiwan, although we ended diplomatic relations with Taiwan and no longer regarded Taiwan as a government that represented China and that was a sovereign independent state, we acknowledged — without formally recognizing, but we acknowledged and did not challenge the Chinese position that Taiwan is a part of China. And so, we also established relations with Taiwan, but unofficial relations, nondiplomatic relations, which included contacts in the economic, social, cultural level, some degree of governmental level, but not through diplomatic means. And then —

    AMY GOODMAN: We have 10 seconds.

    MICHAEL SWAINE: — the sale of arms. Then the sale of arms. So we have this kind of a balance now that the United States has tried to keep in its relations with Taiwan, which is now fraying badly.

    AMY GOODMAN: Well, this is something we will continue to cover, Michael Swaine, director of the Quincy Institute’s East Asia program, longtime U.S.-China relations analyst.

    And that does it for our broadcast. Democracy Now! is produced with Renée Feltz, Mike Burke, Deena Guzder, Messiah Rhodes, Nermeen Shaikh, María Taracena, Tami Woronoff, Camille Baker, Charina Nadura, Sam Alcoff, Tey-Marie Astudillo, John Hamilton, Robby Karran, Hany Massoud, Mary Conlon, Juan Carlos Dávila. I’m Amy Goodman, with Juan González. Stay safe.

    This post was originally published on Latest – Truthout.

  • Biden Vows To Intervene Militarily In Taiwan If China ‘Invades’

    On Monday, May 23, President Joe Biden stated that he would defend Taiwan militarily if the People’s Republic of China were to “invade”. These comments were made during a joint news conference with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in Tokyo.

    At the news conference, a reporter asked Biden, “You didn’t want to get involved in the Ukraine conflict militarily for obvious reasons. Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that?” Biden replied “Yes,” adding “that’s the commitment we made.”

    This statement deviates from the US’s historic policy regarding China and Taiwan. The US props up Taiwan both militarily and diplomatically. Officially, however, the United States recognizes the “One China Policy”, acknowledging the People’s Republic of China’s claim that Taiwan is part of China, but not endorsing this claim.

    The post Biden Vows To Intervene Militarily In Taiwan If China ‘Invades’ appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Thousands of detained Uyghurs pictured in leaked Xinjiang police files

    Documents detailing shoot-to-kill policy for people who try to escape published as UN human rights chief visits region

    A new trove of hacked Chinese police photographs and documents shedding light on the human toll of Beijing’s treatment of its Uyghur minority in Xinjiang has been published as the UN high commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet, visits cities in the region.

    The data trove – referred to as the Xinjiang police files and published by a consortium of media including the BBC – dates back to 2018 and was passed on by hackers to Dr Adrian Zenz, a US-based scholar and activist, who shared it with international media earlier this year. It includes thousands of photographs of detained people and details a shoot-to-kill policy for people who try to escape.

    Continue reading…

    This post was originally published on Human rights | The Guardian.

  • China’s high-level ‘milestone’ visit to the Pacific ahead of schedule

    RNZ Pacific

    The Solomon Islands government has confirmed the much anticipated high-level visit by the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi to the country is ahead of schedule this week.

    A statement yesterday said: “Mr Wang and his almost 20 member delegation will spend a day in Honiara, attending various high-level meetings, courtesy calls on the Prime Minister and acting Governor-General, and hosting a press conference alongside his counterpart, Foreign Minister Jeremiah Manele.”

    It said “the highlight of the visit is the signing of several key bilateral agreements with the national government”.

    Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said the visit by Wang will be a milestone in the Solomon Islands-China relationship.

    The ABC reports that the foreign minister will arrive in Honiara late on Wednesday night, and he will have meetings with Sogavare and other senior leaders on Thursday.

    He is also expected to visit Fiji on Sunday and Monday, and Papua New Guinea next week Thursday and Friday.

    According to the ABC, Wang will also have plans to travel to other Pacific Islands nations, including Vanuatu, Samoa, Tonga, and Kiribati, as part of China’s efforts to increase its influence in the region.

    This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

    This post was originally published on Asia Pacific Report.

  • When US Pivot Is Seen As An ‘Expansion’ Into Asia

    Vladimir Putin and other Russian leaders now more than ever have reason to feel encircled with Sweden and Finland moving to join NATO this week.

    Moscow’s persistent fear of Western military encroachment on Russian borders now stands as a stark reality in the wake of the war in Ukraine, a seismic development in European security all the more remarkable when taking a long look back at NATO expansion.

    Analysts and policymakers intensely debated the future of NATO in the early 1990s, when the collapse of the Soviet Union left Russia with a hobbled military that was in disarray. Countries close to Russia cried for protection from a future threat they were sure would emerge once Moscow reordered itself.

    The post When US Pivot Is Seen As An ‘Expansion’ Into Asia appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • News on China | No. 99

    COVID affects economy in China; AI used in constructing hydroelectric power plant in Tibet; and China’s state-owned COMAC C919, a competitor to Boeing 737 and Airbus A320, has already received 815 orders.

    The post News on China | No. 99 first appeared on Dissident Voice.

    This post was originally published on Dissident Voice.

  • Where do you think you are?

    Satellite navigation jamming is a growing concern in the Asia-Pacific. Fortunately, there are steps nations can take to mitigating this menace. A satellite navigation signal travels along to reach us. The US’ Global Positioning System (GPS) has a constellation of satellites positioned approximately 20,200 kilometres (12,550 miles) above Earth. Their signals have a strength of […]

    The post Where do you think you are? appeared first on Asian Military Review.

    This post was originally published on Asian Military Review.

  • What Is ‘Socialism With Chinese Characteristics’?

    Multipolarista editor Benjamin Norton discussed China’s socialist model with economist John Ross, a senior fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China.

    Ross criticized Western left-wing academics like David Harvey, who have argued that China’s economy is capitalist or even neoliberal.

    “The Chinese model has nothing to do whatever with neoliberalism. And that’s why it produced totally different results,” Ross said.

    “China has raised, by World Bank criteria, since 1978, 850 million people out of poverty,” he emphasized. “This is the greatest contribution to human rights in the entire world.”

    “There has never been such an alleviation of poverty in the whole of world history,” he noted.

    The post What Is ‘Socialism With Chinese Characteristics’? appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.

  • Vaccine Patent Shock As Biden Demands China Exclusion

    The Biden Administration says it will veto a global plan to allow countries to ignore patents and make their own Covid-19 vaccines unless the Chinese are specifically excluded, Bloomberg reported.

    The sudden move has jolted top health workers who were hoping that the long-promised patent waiver would enable them to make vaccines available to everyone, including in poor countries in Africa and Asia.

    But the US says it will scupper the whole deal unless China is explicitly excluded from the waiver. In response, China said that it did not wish to be excluded from the pact, but would voluntarily agree not to take advantage of it.

    The post Vaccine Patent Shock As Biden Demands China Exclusion appeared first on PopularResistance.Org.

    This post was originally published on PopularResistance.Org.