China News - 7 October 2020

Oct 07, 2020

International

Dominic Raab does not rule out Winter Olympics boycott over Uyghur Muslims. Giving evidence at the Foreign Affairs Committee yesterday, the foreign secretary responded to a question from Alicia Kearns MP about boycotting the Olympics by referring to his "instinct to separate sport from diplomacy and politics" but did suggest that there "comes a point where that might not be possible". He said there had been "egregious human rights abuses" against the group. BBC, The Guardian, 6 October

Axios: Top German official hushed up report on China’s influence in 2018, fearing it would damage business ties with China. The highly sensitive report, completed in 2018, examined the Chinese government’s attempts to influence every level of German government, society and business, according to two former U.S. intelligence officials. But before it could be widely disseminated within the German government, as had been intended, a high-ranking official intervened, Axios reports. Axios, 7 October

Negative views of China soar in West - but a plurality of Europeans see China as the world’s top ranking economic power, new Pew Research poll finds. The Guardian, Pew, 6 October

Increasingly negative evaluations of China across advanced economies

Quad of Australia, India, Japan and US hold talks in a milestone of Asia-Pacific relations. The Times, BBC, SCMP, 6 October

39 Western allies including Germany, the UK and the US, issue joint statement at the UN criticising China treatment in Xinjiang and Hong Kong. Bloomberg, The Guardian, 7 October

Media coverage in China: Attempt of US, other countries to smear China's human rights record fails again at UN (Xinhua) and nearly 70 countries voice support for China on human rights issues at the UN, including Pakistan joint statement on behalf of 55 countries opposing interference in China’s internal affairs (CGTN).

UK aid helps countries stand up to Chinese 'bullying,' says former DFID chief Anne-Marie Trevalyn, speaking at an event on the government’s Integrated Review. Devex, 7 October

China watch

Flu vaccine shortages hit China after rush to avoid 'twindemic', with long queues and inflated prices. The Guardian, 7 October
China announces it has built over 500,000 5G base stations in the past five years. People’s Daily, 7 October

Economy & tech

Chinese government looks to create country’s second-largest coal mining conglomerate by merging assets of several coal mining companies in Shanxi. Caixin, 7 October

From AI to facial recognition: how China is seeking to establish the industrial standards that will shape future industries. FT, 7 October

Longer reads & opinion

Britain must hold its nerve over Hong Kong, as Chinese hostility to countries offering Hongkongers refuge is growing — and heading our way. Roger Boyes in The Times, 7 October

Today’s agenda

Westminster Hall debate: 9.30–11am. Reports of China's rapid expansion of the labour programme in Tibet co-published by the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China. To be moved by Iain Duncan Smith.