China News 27 May 2020
International
China says UK Huawei move is “stab in the back” and “UK will pay price if it carries out decision to exclude Huawei.” An editorial in state-run China Daily threatens that excluding Huawei would be “a very costly policy reversal that would cause an all-lose scenario for all stakeholders, and one whose ramifications would undoubtedly ripple far beyond technological concerns.” It attacks the move as “a further stab in the company's back following the latest US attempt to cut the company's supply lines.” It notes: “Since the Chinese government has attached great significance to the way Huawei is treated overseas, and literally taken it increasingly as a test stone of bilateral ties, its reaction to such a decision should be easy to predict. Losing the UK market will no doubt be a heavy blow to Huawei. But Huawei won't be the sole loser.” China Daily, 24 May
Hong Kong:
Riot police flood city, 240 new arrests, pepper balls fired as protests pick up in Hong Kong. Riot police surrounded the Central Government Complex in an attempt to disperse crowds protesting the new legislation set to strip Hong Kongers of fundamental freedoms and rights. Guardian, Reuters, Independent, MarketWatch, SCMP, RTHK, 27 May & Pictures, Footage, Twitter
Beijing plans to ban Hong Kong judges sitting in cases under National Security Law. Protesters fear the move could mark the end of the territory’s judicial independence, one of the cornerstones of the “one country, two systems” principle. Reuters, Times, 26 May
FT reports on contents of the law. Much remains unknown about the law, including the definitions of “splittism, subversion, terrorism and foreign interference,” reports the FT. “From Beijing’s point of view, these uncertainties may be a feature rather than a bug: fuzzy legal boundaries will compel more people to engage in self-censorship,” said Alvin Cheung, a legal scholar. FT 27 May
US mulls sanctions: “The Treasury Department could impose controls on transactions and freeze assets of Chinese officials and businesses” President Trump suggested there woudl be action this week. Bloomberg, Reuters, 26 May
China crackdown on Hong Kong threatens global order, EU says - but not looking at sanctions. Josep Borrell told a European Parliament committee on Tuesday: “I don’t think sanctions against China is going to be the solution to our problems with China.” Bloomberg, 27 May
State-run CGTN faces fine, as Ofcom finds it breached British broadcasting rules in its coverage of Hong Kong protests. Guardian, FT, 26 May
YouTube is deleting comments with two phrases that insult China’s Communist Party. Comments containing the Chinese characters for “communist bandits” are automatically deleted in around 15 seconds, but written in English they are not. YouTube says it is an error. The Verge, 26 May
Days before court decision on Huawei’s Meng, China threatens ‘damage’ to relations with Canada. Globe and Mail, 26 May
“Chinese spies ramp up operations against Australia at an 'unprecedented' rate.” Daily Mail, 27 May
Chinese city plans to turn coronavirus app into permanent tracker. Concerns have been raised by some Chinese people as Hangzhou authorities announce a coronavirus tracking app is to become a permanent part of their lives: “We have no privacy left whatsoever,” one user commented online. Guardian, 26 May
Chinese Defence Minister accuses the US of ‘suppression and containment’. SCMP, 27 May
Chinese Legislator Proposes Canceling English Translation Services at Press Events. Adopting the motion would “maintain the dignity of the Chinese language” and “demonstrate cultural confidence.” Sixth Tone, 27 May
Martin Wolf on growing risks from US-China superpower conflict. FT, 27 May
Economy/tech
Businesses stand to lose as US-China relations deteriorate. FT, 27 May
China threatens with retaliation over US tech laws. Forbes, 26 May
US extends “entities list”, sanctioning 24 Chinese companies and universities it said had ties to the military. Bloomberg, 26 May
Long reads
The end of Europe’s Chinese dream. “structural changes working through the global order may have eventually produced a new debate about China anyway. But now that Covid-19 has laid bare both Europe’s dependencies and China’s true intentions, a strategic shift is well underway.” - Mark Leonard, ASPI, 27 May
“Meanwhile in Beijing”. Rana Mitter explores how China is making the case for its model of government. BBC Sounds, 25 May
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung looks at the changing UK debate on China. FAZ, 26 May
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