China News 12 May 2020
International
China blocking Australian beef after calls for coronavirus inquiry. Beef from four Australian abbatoirs is to be blocked. Analysts say the move is ‘punishment’ after Canberra called for a coronavirus inquiry. It follows new tariffs on Austalian barley. Simon Birmingham, Australia’s trade minister said: “We are concerned that the suspensions appear to be based on highly technical issues, which in some cases date back more than a year.” FT, 12 May
Macron: Xi is “rebuilding an empire, and he is prepared to be very aggressive in terms of pushing the limits of international law.” A new book quotes the French President saying the Chinese government’s aims are “hegemonic”. FT, 11 May
New Zealand backing Taiwan WHO entry despite criticism from Chinese government. We have got to stand up for ourselves,” said Winston Peters, New Zealand’s foreign minister. He added: “true friendship is based on equality”. Guardian, 12 May & Twitter, 11 May
Zhang Xuezhong arrested after criticising government over coronavirus and calling for freedom of speech. The noted human rights lawyer had released an open letter calling for political reforms and freedom of speech. He wrote that. “There were few independent professional media to investigate and report on the outbreak… the government’s long-term tight control of society and people has almost completely destroyed the organisation and self-help capabilities of Chinese society.” He has been released again, but the letter has now been censored in China. SCMP & China Digital Times, 12 May, Translation of part of letter
Chinese Foreign Ministry says China “open and transparent”. In a detailed statement released on Saturday, the Chinese Foreign Ministry claimed “Dr. Li Wenliang was not a whistle-blower, and he was not arrested” and that “China has all along been open and transparent in information release”, Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Statement, 9 May. CNN, 11 May
Soros criticises “dictator” Xi Jinping. In an interview with the Independent, George Soros says, “We must protect our democratic open society… I sympathise with the Chinese people, because they are under the domination of a dictator, President Xi Jinping. I think a lot of educated Chinese are very resentful of that, and the general public is still very angry with him for keeping Covid-19 a secret until after the Chinese new year... When Xi abolished term limits and named himself, in essence, president for life, he destroyed the political future of the most important and ambitious men in a very narrow and competitive elite. It was a big mistake on his part.” Independent, 12 May
Hong Kong government to crack down on school freedoms. The city’s civic education, “Liberal studies” is blamed by Beijing for fuelling protests. Hong Kong Free Press, 11 May
China releases trade unionists after 15 months in jail. China Labor Bulletin, 9 May
Shulan in “Wartime mode.” Outbreaks in Shulan near the Russian border and in Wuhan have sparked fears of a new wave of infections. An official has been sacked in Wuhan over his handling of the crisis . SCMP, 11 May
FT report on “Wolf Warrior” diplomacy. “They have started talking to us in a tone that they would have only used towards countries they considered small or weak,” said a German diplomat.” FT, 12 May
Economy / tech
Lighthizer: “The Era of Offshoring U.S. Jobs Is Over.” In an op-ed, US Trade secretary attacks “China’s predatory trade and economic policies”. He writes that “In some countries, like China, there have been government wide efforts to steal intellectual property for the benefit of domestic companies”. He argues that the decision to stop reviewing China’s Most Favoured Nation status each year has cost the US two million jobs. New York Times, 11 May
China will not buy enough US goods in 2020 to meet US ‘phase one’ trade deal requirement. The Center for Strategic and International Studies projects China might import US goods worth $60 billion in 2020, short of meeting the $186.6 billion requirement. CSIS said, “The pandemic made the unrealistic the impossible.” CNBC, 11 May & CSIS
State media says China not worried: “The US now cannot afford to restart the trade war with China.” Global Times, 12 May
US seeks self reliance in semiconductors, in talks on new US plants. WSJ & TechCrunch 12 May
“US-China economic decoupling accelerates in first quarter of 2020”. FT, 11 May
Kearney “reshoring index” shows US was reshoring even in 2019. Kearney report
Unclear if EU-China summit will go ahead or be “virtual”. Limits on support for China’s State Owned Enterprises and more market access are key for the EU. SCMP, 11 May
Household debt in China above US levels. “The question now is whether or not the rise in household debt has been too fast, given the pressure that the virus outbreak and its corresponding economic shutdowns will place on employment and household incomes.” Rhodium Group, 12 May
“Chinese companies rush to exploit global medical equipment shortages”. FT, 11 May
Chinese government influence over UN telecoms body used to boost Huawei. Heritage, 11 May
TikTok has quietly made London its main hub in Europe, hiring London AI talent. CNBC, 8 May
Long Reads
“How Will China Shape Global Governance?”. ChinaFile, 9 May
“The Pentagon should train for — and not just talk about — great-power competition”. War on the Rocks, 8 May
"China’s Space and Counterspace Capabilities and Activities" USCC, 12 May
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