China News - 22 April 2021
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International
UK MPs are set to vote on a motion “this House believes that Uyghurs and other ethnic and religious minorities in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region are suffering crimes against humanity and genocide” at around 5pm today in the House of Commons.
Britain slashes aid to China by 95%. The UK is to reduce aid to China by 95 per cent as part of £4 billion in cuts to the international aid budget. The UK’s £18 million bilateral aid to China, which will be reduced to £900,000 spent on human rights projects. The Times, Politico, 21 April
Australia cancels Victoria BRI projects. Marise Payne, Australia’s foreign minister, invoked a law passed last year by the federal government to cancel the deals signed in 2018 and 2019 by the Victoria government and China’s National Development and Reform Commission. Beijing has condemned Canberra’s decision, warning that the decision would harm Australia and aggravate strained relations. FT, 22 April
Hong Kong journalist convicted for accessing public records. Hong Kong documentary producer Bao Choy has been found guilty and fined for making false statements while researching an RTHK programme on anti-government protests in 2019. The Independent, NYT, HKFP, 22 April
Biden’s climate summit: US hopes Xi Jinping will unveil further measures to fight climate crisis at summit today. Boris Johnson will urge countries to match the UK’s target to deliver net zero carbon emissions by the middle of the century to limit global warming, his office said. Reuters, SCMP, 22 April
Chinese Foreign Minister meets German counterpart via video link. German Foreign Minister Heiko Mass said "in all these three dimensions we need strong, sustainable communication channels with Beijing. De-coupling is the wrong way to go." Xinhua, Reuters, 22 April
US lawmakers intensify bipartisan efforts to counter China. The Senate Foreign Relations Committee backed the "Strategic Competition Act of 2021" by 21-1, while a group of lawmakers are also separately backing the $100bn “Endless Frontier Act”, represents to shore up advanced technology research and innovation with federal funding. Reuters, SCMP, 22 April
Four killed in Taliban bomb attack at Pakistan hotel hosting Chinese ambassador. BBC, The Telegraph, 22 April
Britain’s top diplomat in Australia threatened cooperation over security. The UK’s High Commissioner has been excluded from the free trade talks underway in London. SMH, 22 April
Chinese diplomat in Australia says China welcomes foreign journalists if they ‘present true image’ of country. SCMP, 22 April. China and US close to naming new ambassadors. WSJ, 20 April
Canada judge delays extradition hearings in win for Huawei executive. The Guardian, 22 April
China watch
China’s lawmakers told to vigorously study Xi Jinping’s legal theories. Legal theories by President Xi Jinping are the “fundamental guidance” to govern China with laws, a top aide of Xi said as he lectured the country’s lawmakers. SCMP, 22 April
China scraps some import duties to spur innovation. Caixin, 22 April
Longer reads & opinion
China’s fishing fleet, the world’s largest, drives Beijing’s global ambitions. Chinese boats involved in distant-water operations—meaning outside a country’s own territorial waters—total as many as 17,000. WSJ, 21 April
Delivering success at the Leaders’ Summit on Climate. China Dialogue, 22 April
How the Chinese Communist Party ‘positions’ the United Kingdom. A new paper by Matthew Henderson for the Council on Geostrategy, 22 April