China News - 19 March 2021
Fiery start to US-China relations under Biden in first meeting in Alaska. US and Chinese officials engaged in a fiery exchange at the start of the first-high level meeting between Washington and Beijing since Joe Biden took office in January. Antony Blinken accused China of undermining global stability with its actions towards Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Taiwan at the start of the two-day event in Alaska. Yang Jiechi responded with more than 15 minutes of comments targeting the US, saying the US should examine its problems with racism and stop promoting its version of democracy around the world. The US side said the length of Yang’s remarks had violated the agreed protocol of two minutes of opening remarks. FT, Reuters, WSJ, Xinhua, 19 March
UK spy agencies push for curbs on Chinese ‘smart cities’ technology. UK intelligence agencies are pushing for new curbs on local authorities’ use of Chinese “smart cities” technology over concerns Beijing could use it for espionage, surveillance or collection of sensitive data. It is the second intervention by the security services against Chinese suppliers, following the Huawei decision. FT, 19 March
Two Canadians held in China over arrest of Huawei CFO go on trial. Canadian diplomats were denied access to the hearing in what Donald Clarke, a Chinese law specialist at the George Washington University, wrote was “as clear a violation of the Canada-China Consular Agreement as can possibly exist”. The agreement guarantees Canada permission to attend any trials of its citizens in China. FT, BBC, 19 March
Ex-Foreign Office chief reveals Whitehall tussle over China policy. Speaking to the Lords international relations and defence committee, Lord McDonald said a Whitehall battle for control of the UK’s China policy is under way between the Cabinet Office security directorate and the Foreign Office. The Guardian, 19 March
Tiananmen Square in London? UK council seeks to rename streets near Chinese embassy’s new site. The council of Tower Hamlets borough has backed a motion to rename streets nearby the area to ‘call out the CCP’s human rights violations’. SCMP, 18 March
France rebuffs China after warnings to lawmakers over Taiwan visit. Reuters, 19 March
China sending children of exiled Uighur parents to orphanages, says Amnesty. BBC, The Telegraph, 19 March
Economy & tech
Japanese carmakers close in on German rivals in China, with market share gap narrowing to 0.2 percentage points. Caixin, 19 March
Finland says APT31 group likely behind 2020 parliament hacking attack. APT31 is linked to the Chinese government. SCMP, 19 March
Chinese regulators tell Alibaba, ByteDance, Nine Others to clean up deepfakes. Yicai, 18 March
Longer reads & opinion
How to deal with China. The Economist cover issue on the rise of China. The Economist, 18 March
Comment: China may need Britain more than it cares to admit. Britain’s cultural cachet in China co-exists with a state-led nationalism which emphasises the UK’s history as an imperialist aggressor. The Guardian, 18 March
China in the Integrated Review. Charles Parton for Council on Geostrategy, 19 March