China News - 25 March 2021

US and EU resuscitate ‘dialogue on China’. Washington and Brussels are relaunching their forum, originally set up in October 2020, to discuss a common approach to China, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday. SCMP reports that three of Europe’s top four parties have already said they will not ratify the CAI until sanctions are lifted, and a lively discussion is taking place in the fourth. SCMP, Politico, 24 March

Statement by more than 30 European think tank directors standing by MERICS. Statement, 25 March

Nike and H&M face China backlash over Xinjiang cotton 'concerns'. The statements in question were made by the companies last year, but only resurfaced in recent days following the announcement of Western sanctions. Many Chinese have called for boycotts, celebrities have cut ties, and e-commerce platforms have dropped H&M. At a daily media briefing at the Chinese foreign ministry, spokeswoman Hua Chunying, when asked about H&M, held up a photograph of Black Americans picking cotton. BBC, The Telegraph, Reuters, 24 March

FT view: Xinjiang sanctions are sign of western resolve on China. FT, 24 March

Facebook removes accounts of 'China-based hackers' targeting Uyghurs. Facebook has removed a group of China-based hackers it says targeted members of the Uyghur community living abroad. It said hackers used malicious websites and apps to infect devices and allow for remote surveillance, with around 500 accounts of journalists and activists targeted. BBC, Facebook statement, 25 March

MPs call for more sanctions as report reveals China's 'cultural erasure' in Tibet. A cross-party group of 15 MPs is calling on the UK to sanction Chen Quanguo, the Communist Party secretary of Xinjiang who previously served in the same capacity in Tibet. The Telegraph, 24 March

Wolf warrior diplomacy: Chinese diplomats list Europe’s historical human rights failings. Hua Chunying tweets, 23 March

We must confront threat of China, says Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg. The Times, 25 March

China watch

UN rights body adopts China-sponsored resolution on human rights cooperation. People’s Daily, 24 March

Xi Focus: Xi stresses full support for innovation on trip to optical lens company in Fujian. Xinhua, 24 March

Wang Yi heads to the Middle East. His six-country tour highlights the region’s expanding importance for China. The Diplomat, 25 March

Economy & tech

Chinese tech stocks fall sharply on rising regulatory concerns and reported plans by Beijing to take control of companies’ user data. FT, 25 March

China pushing for ‘early implementation’ of RCEP trade deal in January. SCMP, 25 March

Longer reads & opinion

Sanctioning China may well backfire. If the Government's policy has no real chance of changing authoritarian behaviour, then is it mere virtue-signalling? The Telegraph, 24 March

Tencent: Ma is less as Beijing tightens grip. Tencent has survived previous curbs on gaming licences and antitrust investigations into its music unit’s deals with record labels. This time is different. Lex in the FT, 25 March

China’s hardline turn lifts chances of deeper EU-US alliance. "Ambassador Lu's behavior is creating an obstacle to improving relations between China and France," a French diplomatic official said. Politico, 23 March

How much will China grow as an export market? A dramatic slowdown in import growth has taken place despite a rapid rise in China’s real effective exchange rate. Hinrich Foundation, 22 March