China News - 6 March 2023
Chris Cash, the Director of the China Research Group, has been made an Associate Fellow at the Council on Geostrategy.
Cash joined Mark Logan MP on PoliticsHome’s The Rundown podcast to discuss whether the UK is getting it right on its China policy. Listen here.
International
Two Sessions: China looks at reforms to deepen Xi Jinping control, 5% growth target set. Xi Jinping is set to deepen his control of China's government and economy, as lawmakers meet in Beijing this week to pass far-reaching reforms. The National People's Congress (NPC), a rubber-stamp parliament, will confirm Mr Xi's third term as president, and the appointments of his top team. China has set a modest growth target of “around 5%” for 2023, according to the government work report released on Sunday. BBC, 5 March
China to increase defence spending by 7.2%, science and technology by 2%. CNBC, 4 March
China’s prime minister, Li Keqiang, set to retire. The Economist, 3 March
Yu Jie, Senior Research Fellow at Chatham House, used a Twitter thread to summarise the decisions made at start of China’s ‘Two Sessions’:
UK and Australia urge Washington to ease secrecy rules in security pact. Australia and the UK are urging the Biden administration to relax restrictions on the sharing of technology and information that they say risk undercutting the trilateral AUKUS security pact. There is concern that the second pillar of AUKUS, which includes undersea capabilities and electronic warfare, faces obstacles that have slowed its momentum. FT, 5 March
US prepares new rules on investment in China. The Treasury and Commerce departments said they were considering a new regulatory system to address US investment in advanced technologies abroad that could pose national security risks, according to The Wall Street Journal. While the reports didn’t identify specific sectors the Biden administration views as risky, it said sectors that could advance rivals’ military capabilities would be a focus of the programme. WSJ, 3 March
Chinese surveillance cameras discovered at royal Sandringham estate and at least give Government departments. The Mail on Sunday has established that CCTV cameras made by Hikvision are being used at one of the King's main residences and at least five Government departments – months after Ministers ordered their removal from sensitive sites on national security grounds. The Mail On Sunday, 5 March
EU official warns of sanctions if China crosses 'red line' and arms Russia. It would be an absolute "red line" if China provided weapons to Russia, an anonymous senior European Union official said on Friday, adding that the EU would respond with sanctions. Reuters, 3 March
Germany bans officials from downloading TikTok. Germany has become the latest western state to restrict its officials’ use of TikTok, the Chinese video-sharing app, as pressure builds in the US for a nationwide ban. The Times, 3 March
International schools shift to new markets after China boom stalls. In 2019 education consultancy Cairneagle recorded that 80 per cent of schools set to be opened by British institutions were in China. In January, that had fallen to 15 per cent. FT, 5 March
Hong Kong elite pressed to give up western passports. Beijing is pressing Hong Kong’s elite to give up their western passports in order to be selected for the Chinese parliament as it tries to stamp out foreign influence and tighten control of the territory. FT, 6 March
Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil organisers convicted under national security law. The Guardian, 4 March
Blinken says US ‘not distracted’ by Ukraine war, Quad offers ‘choice’ from China. SCMP, 3 March
Economy & tech
British chipmakers hold talks with White House amid Biden charm offensive. Some of Britain’s top microchip companies have held talks with the White House after a $53bn (£44bn) subsidy scheme launched by Joe Biden triggered a scramble to shift operations to the US. The companies involved included IQE, Paragraf and Pragmatic Semiconductor, all vocal critics of Britain's failure to develop a credible chip strategy. The Telegraph, 3 March
Huawei ‘abandons’ plans for £1bn Cambridge research campus. Huawei has quietly shelved plans for a Cambridge research campus as the embattled Chinese telecoms giant winds down its UK presence. Huawei had planned to build cutting-edge facilities that would have been used to develop broadband technologies, microchips and artificial intelligence software. The Sunday Telegraph, 5 March
Chinese company BGI Group rejects rights accusation after US sanctions. One of the world’s biggest genetics analysis companies was added to an ‘entity list’ last week after the US government said there was a danger some of its units might contribute to Chinese surveillance. Bloomberg, 6 March
China approves $1.3bn loan rollover for Pakistan: finance minister. Nikkei Asia, 3 March
Billionaire investor Mark Mobius says he cannot take money out of China. Reuters, 5 March
Opinion & editorial
Muddled engagement with China leaves Xinjiang in the lurch. Toothless sanctions and empty agreements with Beijing fail to improve human rights in the region. Yuan Yang. FT, 5 March
Why aren’t China and America more afraid of a war? Next to China’s irresponsible stand-off with America, the cold war looks almost like a model. David Rennie. Chaguan - The Economist, 3 March
World out of balance is not yet China's to set right. Abishur Prakash. Nikkei Asia, 6 March
Long reads
2022 letter. Dan Wang. DanWang.co, 4 March
Inside the Chinese war machine plotting to transform Putin’s invasion. Support for Russia would boost the invading armies in Ukraine - and allow China to test weapons systems. The Sunday Telegraph, 5 March
What the ChatGPT moment means for tech competition. Rishi Iyengar and Liam Scott. Foreign Policy, 3 March
Here and Now: portraits of British-Chinese identity – in pictures. The Guardian, 3 March