Category Archives: China

Hungary rolls out red carpet for Xi in final leg of European tour

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Warm welcome for Chinese president contrasts with rest of EU, with up to 18 cooperation agreements expected

Hungary has rolled out the red carpet for Xi Jinping in a show of warmth that contrasts with wariness in the rest of the EU about China’s stance on trade, global politics and human rights.

On the third and final stop of his first European tour in five years, Xi was given a ceremonial welcome by Hungary’s president, Tamás Sulyok, at Buda Castle, in Budapest, before talks with Viktor Orbán. The Hungarian prime minister, the EU’s longest-serving leader, has sought to deepen ties with Beijing and blocked EU motions criticising China’s human rights abuses.

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Chinese PR boss says sorry after glorifying work-till-you-drop culture

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In a crisis of her own making, Qu Jing also threatened Baidu staff who dared to question her management style

The head of public relations at China’s biggest search engine, Baidu, has apologised after creating her own PR crisis with a series of videos glorifying the country’s work-till-you-drop culture.

Qu Jing, who is also vice-president at the company, said she would not take responsibility for her staff’s wellbeing “as I’m not your mother” in the videos posted over the May bank holiday on Douyin, the most popular short-video app in China. In another she said: “If you work in public relations, don’t expect weekends off.”

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Court bans Glory to Hong Kong protest song prompting further fears for free speech

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The territory’s justice minister has called for the anthem to be removed from the internet in the wake of the ruling

Hong Kong has demanded a protest song that was made popular during pro-democracy demonstrations in the territory be removed from the internet, in the wake of a court ruling which banned it.

In its judgment on Wednesday, the court of appeal described the song Glory to Hong Kong as a “weapon” to incite violent protests in 2019.

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Nicaragua cancels Chinese plan for controversial canal 10 years on

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Critics said proposal to build canal linking Atlantic and Pacific would endanger environment and rural communities

Nearly a decade after it broke ground on a controversial plan to build a canal linking the Atlantic and the Pacific, Nicaragua has canceled a concession granted to a Chinese businessman to complete the project which critics said would endanger the environment and displace rural communities.

Despite a symbolic “ground-breaking” in 2014, no work was done on the canal that was to link Nicaragua’s Atlantic and Pacific coasts. At one point, crews broke ground on access roads near the canal but digging the waterway never started.

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‘Countries are now forced to confront it’: Rise in Chinese espionage arrests alarms Europe

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Increase in cases reflects changing mood across continent towards Chinese threats, say experts

As China’s president, Xi Jinping, arrived in Serbia for the second leg of his European tour, authorities across the continent were grappling with a wave of allegations about Chinese spying.

On Tuesday, the UK prime minister, Rishi Sunak, revealed that a “malign actor” had compromised British military payroll records, with reports pointing the finger at China.

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Serbia prepares warm welcome for Xi in contrast to China-EU tensions

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Chinese president hails two countries’ friendship before his arrival, after visiting Pyrenees with Macron

Chinese flags adorned highways as Serbia got ready to give a home-from-home welcome to Xi Jinping, contrasting tensions on the first leg of the Chinese president’s six-day European tour over a potential trade war with the EU.

Xi prepared for his arrival in Belgrade on Tuesday night by hitting out against Nato for its 1999 bombing of the Chinese embassy in the Serbian capital, in which three Chinese journalists were killed.

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China angles for Gaza mediation role to expand influence in Middle East

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Beijing joins France in urging Israel against Rafah offensive in latest effort to make its diplomatic mark

Xi Jinping, sensing a diplomatic opening, is stepping up China’s intervention in the Middle East crisis, issuing a joint statement with the French president, Emmanuel Macron, to urge Israel not to go ahead with an offensive in Rafah.

The rare moment of Sino-European synergy is the latest effort by China to make its diplomatic mark in a region in which it has deep economic interests, but more shallow diplomatic moorings.

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China accuses Australian navy helicopter of flying near airspace in ‘provocative move’

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Foreign ministry says Chinese jet pilot took ‘necessary measures at the scene’ after Australia claimed flares were released in front of helicopter

China’s foreign ministry has accused an Australian navy helicopter of deliberately flying “within close range” of Chinese airspace in a “provocative move” in the latest military altercation between the two nations.

The Australian government said China released flares in front of the helicopter in the Yellow Sea as HMAS Hobart participated in an operation to enforce United Nations sanctions against North Korea.

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Xi’s European tour: where is Chinese leader going and what are visit’s aims?

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Emmanuel Macron and Viktor Orbán among leaders Xi is meeting, with several key issues on the table

China’s president, Xi Jinping, has begun a three-country tour of Europe – his first state visit to the continent in five years – at a time when China-EU ties are under strain from trade disputes and Russia’s war on Ukraine.

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Canberra accuses Chinese fighter jet of dropping flares dangerously close to Australian helicopter

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Defence minister Richard Marles says protests made to Beijing over ‘unacceptable’ altercation that forced pilot on UN mission to avoid being hit

The federal government has accused a Chinese fighter jet of dropping flares dangerously close to an Australian helicopter on a United Nations mission in international waters.

The defence minister, Richard Marles, branded the incident “unacceptable”.

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Xi Jinping arrives in France with Ukraine and EU trade row at top of agenda

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On his first visit to Europe since 2019, Xi is set to meet with Emmanuel Macron before heading to Serbia and Hungary

Xi Jinping has lauded China’s ties with France as a model for the international community as he arrived in Paris amid threats of a trade war over Chinese electric cars and French cognac.

On his first visit to the EU in five years, China’s president will meet his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, and the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, who will urge him to reduce trade imbalances and use his influence with Russia over the war in Ukraine.

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‘It’s just not hitting like it used to’: TikTok was in its flop era before it got banned in the US

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I used to be an avid user of TikTok, but the algorithm serves much less delight and serendipity than it used to

TikTok is facing its most credible existential threat yet. Last week, the US Congress passed a bill that bans the short-form video app if it does not sell to an American company by this time next year. But as a former avid user whose time on the app has dropped sharply in recent months, I am left wondering – will I even be using the app a year from now?

Like many Americans of my demographic (aging millennial), I first started using TikTok regularly when the Covid-19 pandemic began and lockdowns gave many of us more time than we knew how to fill.

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Xi Jinping to visit France, Hungary and Serbia amid EU trade tariff row

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China’s president arrives as EU anti-subsidy investigations and tensions over espionage, Ukraine and Taiwan continue

China’s president, Xi Jinping, is to visit Europe next week for the first time in five years, in a tour that will take in the unlikely trifecta of France, Hungary and Serbia.

The visit comes as China pushes to avoid a trade war with the EU, while attitudes towards Beijing in the bloc are hardening after multiple spying scandals and China’s ongoing support for Russia in the war in Ukraine.

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Bob Carr accuses Winston Peters of defamation after NZ deputy PM calls him a ‘Chinese puppet’

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Former NSW premier’s threat to sue comes amid debate about whether New Zealand should join pillar two of Aukus pact

Australia’s former foreign minister and New South Wales premier, Bob Carr, says he intends to sue New Zealand’s deputy prime minister, Winston Peters, for allegations made about Carr’s closeness to China as debate about Aukus ramps up.

Peters called Carr “nothing more than a Chinese puppet” on the national broadcaster RNZ on Thursday morning.

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Number of writers jailed in China exceeds 100 for first time, says report

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Freedom to Write index says there are 107 people in prison for published content in China, with many accused of ‘picking quarrels’

The number of writers jailed in China has surpassed 100, with nearly half imprisoned for online expression.

The grim milestone is revealed in the 2023 Freedom to Write index, a report compiled by Pen America, published on Wednesday.

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First scientist to publish Covid sequence in China protests over lab ‘eviction’

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Zhang Yongzhen stages sit-in protest, as government attempts to avoid scrutiny over handling of outbreak

The first Chinese scientist to publish a genomic sequence of the Covid-19 virus, in defiance of government orders, has been staging a sit-in protest after claiming he was locked out of his laboratory.

Zhang Yongzhen, a virologist, said in an online post on Monday that he and his team had been given a sudden eviction notice from their lab, and guards had barred him from entering it over the weekend. The post, published on Weibo, was later deleted, Associated Press (AP) reported.

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‘Watershed moment’ for Tesla as Elon Musk’s visit to China reaps quick reward

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Deal to use mapping data from web search giant Baidu is a big step towards launching driver assistance tech in world’s biggest car market

Elon Musk’s visit to China has reportedly reaped immediate rewards with a deal for Tesla to use mapping data provided by web search company Baidu, a big step in introducing driver assistance technology in the world’s largest car market.

Musk made an unannounced visit to China over the weekend. The billionaire posted a picture of his meeting with the Chinese premier, Li Qiang, on X, the social network he took over in 2022.

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Tory MP says he was deported from Djibouti due to criticisms of China

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Tim Loughton had sanctions imposed on him in 2021 by Beijing, which has close ties to east African country

A former government minister who has had sanctions imposed on him by China has said he was detained and deported by Djibouti as a “direct consequence” of the east African country’s close ties with Beijing.

Tim Loughton, the Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham since 1997, said he was held for more than seven hours at the airport earlier this month, barred entry to Djibouti, and told he was being removed on the next available flight.

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