Readings above 40C expected on Saturday with some cities at highest alert level and warnings of dam failures due to melting glaciers
China is set for the return of more heatwaves over the next 10 days, with temperatures set to start spiking in parts of the country on Saturday.
Some coastal cities are already on their highest alert level and inland regions warning of dam failure risks because of melting glaciers.
Continue reading...UK temperatures exceed 40C while France and Portugal hit new highs, with some extreme consequences
Record-breaking heat continued to affect parts of western Europe during the past week, with UK temperatures exceeding 40C (104F) for the first time since records began.
On Tuesday, several weather stations across London, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire broke the 40C barrier, with a top temperature of 40.3C in Coningsby, Lincolnshire. A further 39 stations across central and southern England also broke the previous highest temperature of 38.7C, which was set in July 2019.
Continue reading...Defence ministry also sounds alarm at prospect of Beijing-Moscow ties deepening amid expectations Tokyo will boost defence spending
Japan’s defence ministry has said it is alarmed at fresh threats from Russia and has growing worries about Taiwan, in an annual report that comes as Tokyo considers significantly increasing military spending.
The document includes a chapter on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which it says risks sending the message “that an attempt to unilaterally change the status quo by force is acceptable”.
Continue reading...US military advises against House speaker’s reported trip as president is due to talk to Xi Jinping for first time in four months
Joe Biden has cautioned against the reported trip to Taiwan next month by the House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, saying the US military had assessed “it is not a good idea right now”.
The Financial Times reported earlier this week that Pelosi would lead a delegation to Taiwan in August to show support for the democratically ruled island, which Beijing claims is a breakaway province. The trip was initially scheduled for April but was postponed due to Pelosi testing positive for Covid at the time.
Continue reading...Thousands send condolences after zoo staff euthanise panda, who was in poor health and had stopped eating
The world’s oldest male giant panda in captivity has died in a Hong Kong zoo on Thursday.
The panda, named An An, was euthanised at the age of 35, the equivalent of 105 years for humans. He was born in the wild in the south-western Chinese province of Sichuan in 1986.
Continue reading...Bill Burns says China ‘unsettled’ by Russia’s war in Ukraine and it may influence decisions on the possible use of force against Taiwan
Russia’s experience in Ukraine is affecting China’s calculations on how and when it may decide to invade Taiwan, the head of the CIA said on Wednesday.
Appearing at the Aspen Security Forum, Central Intelligence Agency director Bill Burns played down speculation that Chinese president Xi Jinping could move on Taiwan after a key Communist party meeting later this year.
Continue reading...No change in Operation Sovereign Borders policy
Clare O’Neil is asked about the desperate situation in Sri Lanka, where many people are trying to find a way out.
Operation Sovereign Borders is Australian government policy.
Officials in Guangzhou apologise for ‘violent’ behaviour after 84 homes broken into during search for possible close contacts
Authorities in southern China have apologised for breaking into the homes of people who had been taken to a quarantine hotel, in the latest example of heavy-handed virus-prevention measures that have sparked a rare public backlash.
State media said that 84 homes in an apartment complex in Guangzhou city’s Liwan district had been opened in an effort to find any “close contacts” hiding inside and to disinfect the premises.
Continue reading...The decision to produce a film glorifying China’s Communist party in a town destroyed by civil war has been described as ‘appallingly bad taste’
A Chinese action film executive-produced by Jackie Chan has triggered outrage after shooting scenes in al-Hajar al-Aswad, a Syrian town destroyed in the civil war.
Home Operation, directed by Song Yinxi, is inspired by China’s evacuation of hundreds of its nationals from Yemen in 2015 during the civil conflict there, and is the first joint venture between Chinese and Emirati producers. AFP reported that Song said the film was intended to glorify the Chinese Communist party (CCP): “It takes the perspective of diplomats who are Communist party members, who braved a hail of bullets in a war-torn country and safely brought all Chinese compatriots on to the country’s warship unscathed.”
Continue reading...It’s important to view encounters between the two militaries in operational context
Last week it was reported that in early July an Australian warship had been closely followed by a Chinese guided-missile destroyer, a nuclear-powered attack submarine and multiple military aircraft as it travelled through the East China Sea.
This incident followed a confrontation on 26 May, when an Australian maritime surveillance plane was dangerously intercepted by a Chinese fighter over the South China Sea.
Continue reading...Analysis: worsening meltdown in the country’s debt-laden property market is at the heart of a problem that comes at a precarious time for the Communist party
The alarm bells are ringing louder. Last week, hundreds of depositors gathered in front of the Zhengzhou branch of the People’s Bank of China in the provincial capital of Henan, demanding their frozen life savings held in rural banks. A day later, tens of thousands of homeowners threatened to stop paying mortgages on scores of unfinished housing projects they had purchased. All of this happened in a week where the officials reported lacklustre second-quarter economic performance.
China’s economy is facing a dangerous cocktail of stalling growth, high unemployment, spreading mortgage payment strikes and continued Covid shutdowns that threaten to explode with serious social and political consequences.
Continue reading...Global Times quotes comments by foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin on military encounters in the South China Sea
China has accused Australia of provocation in the South China Sea and said Australia – along with the United States and Canada – must “refrain from abusing China’s restraint”.
Foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin was responding to a question about recent military encounters in the South China Sea, including reports in Politico that a Chinese fighter jet had an “unsafe” and “unprofessional” interaction with an American C-130 aircraft.
Continue reading...Intervention comes as thousands of homebuyers refuse to make mortgage repayments in deepening property sector crisis
Chinese banks have been told to bail out struggling property developers to help them complete unfinished housing projects and head off the growing mortgage strike that threatens to seriously damage the economy.
With thousands of homebuyers banding together to refuse to keep up with mortgage instalments on unfinished apartments bought off the plan, regulators have stepped up efforts to encourage lenders to extend loans to qualified real estate projects.
Continue reading...Another 12 missing in flash floods in Sichuan and Gansu, as some areas receive double their monthly rain in less than two days
Flash floods in south-west and north-west China have left at least a dozen dead and put thousands of others in harm’s way, state media has reported.
In the south-western province of Sichuan, at least six people have died and another 12 are missing after torrential rain triggered flash floods, state-owned news outlet CGTN reported on Sunday.
Continue reading...Former prime minister warns era of political and economic dominance by west coming to an end
Tony Blair has issued a rallying call to western nations to come together to develop a coherent strategy to counter the rise of China as “the world’s second superpower”.
Delivering the annual Ditchley lecture on Saturday, the former prime minister called for a policy towards Beijing of “strength plus engagement” as he warned the era of western political and economic dominance was coming to an end.
Continue reading...While leaders presented a picture of harmony, more vexing topics like Australia’s fossil fuel ambitions and China were kicked down the road
At the close of the Pacific Islands Forum the leaders emerged from their retreat smiling, cut a giant cake with a sword and then, in an impromptu moment of diplomatic bonhomie, posed for a selfie after Anthony Albanese whipped out his phone, Ellen DeGeneres style.
It was, quite literally, a picture of harmony.
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Continue reading...Analysis: US president aiming to convince Jeddah to increase oil supply in order to calm global energy markets
Joe Biden landed in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah to a tepid welcome from the Saudi crown prince whose country he once pledged to make a “pariah” on the world stage.
While Saudi Arabia announced it would open its airspace to flights from Israel, making Biden the first US president to fly directly from Tel Aviv to the kingdom, expectations of further gains during his visit remained low. The US national security adviser Jake Sullivan told journalists onboard Air Force One not to expect any bilateral announcements in response to American demands that Saudi Arabia pump more oil to calm global energy markets after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Continue reading...Portugal declares ‘state of contingency’ as France, Spain and Morocco also battle fires, while record heat hits China
Thousands of people in Portugal, Spain, France and Morocco have been evacuated from their homes as firefighters tackle wildfires caused by this week’s heatwave, which has brought extreme temperatures of more than 45C (113F) to parts of Europe and north Africa.
One person has died and at least 135 people have suffered mainly minor injuries since wildfires began in Portugal last week. A “state of contingency” has been in effect since Sunday, and about 800 people have been evacuated from their homes, according to the country’s Civil Protection Authority.
Continue reading...President shown surrounded by smiling and clapping Uyghur residents on first visit in eight years
China’s president, Xi Jinping, has paid his first visit to Xinjiang in eight years, as western nations continue to accuse Beijing of genocide against the region’s mostly Muslim Uyghur population.
State media reported on Friday that the visit from Tuesday to Thursday included stops at a university and a trade zone in the regional capital, Urumqi. A photo from the official Xinhua news agency showed a maskless Xi surrounded by smiling and clapping residents, many of them apparently Uyghurs wearing traditional costumes and Muslim prayer caps.
Continue reading...Lola handbag range and signature trenchcoat give luxury fashion retailer boost elsewhere
Burberry has reported sales growth of only 1% in its latest financial quarter because of the impact of Covid-19 lockdowns in China, while sales were boosted elsewhere by its Lola handbag range and signature trenchcoat.
The luxury fashion retailer said sales fell 35% in mainland China because of restrictions and store closures to contain the latest outbreak of the coronavirus, while sales grew 16% across the rest of the world in the 13 weeks to 2 July.
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