Category Archives: China

China begins anti-subsidy investigation into European dairy imports

Posted on by

Inquiry into eight EU countries is latest chapter in hostility between Beijing and EU over trade

Chinese authorities have launched an anti-subsidy investigation into European dairy imports, in the latest sign of escalating trade tensions between Brussels and Beijing.

The announcement from China’s commerce ministry on Wednesday came a day after the European Commission revealed revised duties on Chinese electric vehicles as part of its examination into what it viewed as artificially cheap cars that posed a threat to jobs in Europe’s motor industry.

Continue reading...

Philippines president says ‘heads will roll’ after wanted mayor allegedly flees country

Posted on by

Alice Guo, a mayor with alleged links to China, denies any wrongdoing amid human trafficking investigation sparked by raid on compound in her town

The controversy surrounding wanted Filipino mayor Alice Guo has taken another dramatic turn, with government officials alleging that she fled the Philippines in July.

Guo was mayor of the town of Bamban in Tarlac province and is at the centre of a mystery that began in March when officials raided a compound in the town and found about 1,000 workers, including victims of human trafficking, along with luxury villas, high-end cars, and expensive cognac.

Continue reading...

Japan broadcaster apologises after disputed Senkaku Islands called ‘Chinese territory’ on air

Posted on by

Unscripted remarks about the Japanese-administered islands were made during during a Chinese-language programme on the public broadcaster NHK

Japan’s public broadcaster, NHK, has apologised after a member of staff referred to the disputed Senkaku Islands as “Chinese territory” during an internationally broadcast radio programme this week.

The presenter, a Chinese national in his 40s, made the unscripted remarks for about 20 seconds during a Chinese-language broadcast on Monday on the NHK World-Japan and Radio 2 channels, according to the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper.

Continue reading...

Australia and Indonesia to deepen military ties after striking ‘historic’ security pact

Posted on by

Anthony Albanese and Prabowo Subianto announce conclusion of treaty negotiations but reporters weren’t able to ask questions about new deal

Australia and Indonesia have struck a new security pact that will lead to more joint military exercises and visits, prompting human rights advocates to call for safeguards.

The Australian prime minister, Anthony Albanese, told the Indonesian defence minister and president-elect, Prabowo Subianto, in Canberra on Tuesday that there was “no more important relationship than the one between our two great nations”.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free morning and afternoon email newsletters for your daily news roundup

Continue reading...

Chinese and Philippine ships collide near disputed Sabina Shoal in South China Sea

Posted on by

Philippines says two coast guard vessels damaged by China’s ‘unlawful manoeuvres’, while Beijing says it took ‘control measures’ after vessels illegally entered waters around shoal

Chinese and Philippine vessels collided on Monday during a confrontation near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea, the two countries said.

Both countries blamed each other for the incident near the Sabina Shoal.

Continue reading...

‘Monument to history’ battle between US and China over future of Mao’s secretary’s diary

Posted on by

Beijing is believed to be behind court bid to secure account of life inside Communist HQ

In the early hours of 4 June 1989, Li Rui, a veteran of the Chinese Communist party (CCP), was standing on the balcony of his apartment on Chang’an Boulevard in central Beijing. He could see tanks rolling towards Tiananmen Square.

For weeks, up to a million protesters had been gathering peacefully in Beijing’s plaza, demanding political reform. But they failed. Instead, as Li observed from his unique vantage point, troops opened fire, killing an estimated several thousands of civilians. It was the worst massacre in recent Chinese history. “Soldiers firing randomly with their machine guns, sometimes shooting the ground and sometimes shooting toward the sky,” Li wrote in his diary. A “black weekend”.

Continue reading...

Chinese woman loses final appeal in her fight to freeze her eggs

Posted on by

Beijing court rejects lawsuit brought by Xu Zaozao, who was seeking to widen access to fertility treatment in China

A Chinese woman who filed a groundbreaking lawsuit to win the right to freeze her eggs has lost her final appeal, exhausting the legal avenues in her fight to widen access to fertility treatment in China.

Beijing No 3 intermediate people’s court ruled that Xu Zaozao’s rights had not been violated when Beijing obstetrics and gynaecology hospital refused to freeze her eggs in 2018. Chinese regulations stipulate that assisted reproductive technology is only for married couples with fertility issues. Xu, now 36, said the doctor gave her some friendly advice instead: hurry up, get married and have children now.

Continue reading...

China adds new clean power equivalent to UK’s entire electricity output

Posted on by

Data shows continued surge in wind and solar power amid hopes Chinese greenhouse gas emissions may have peaked

China added as much new clean energy generation in the first half of this year as the UK produced from all sources in the same period last year, data shows, as wind and solar power generation continued to surge in the world’s biggest emitter of greenhouse gases.

Electricity generation from coal and gas dropped by 5% in China in July, year on year, according to an update from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) thinktank, basing its analysis on data released by the Chinese government on Thursday.

Continue reading...

Custody ruling in same-sex case hailed as LGBTQ+ milestone in China

Posted on by

Woman wins visiting rights to see daughter, but not son, in first recognition that child can have two legal mothers

A woman fighting a landmark LGBTQ+ custody battle in China said she “still has faith for the future” after winning the right to make monthly visits to her daughter.

Last month, Didi, who is 42 and lives in Shanghai, travelled to Beijing to visit her seven-year-old daughter, who lives in the capital with Didi’s estranged wife and their other child. It was the first time Didi and her daughter had seen each other in four years.

Continue reading...

Conviction of Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai ‘unjust’, says Chris Patten

Posted on by

Former governor speaks out after appeal court upholds convictions of seven activists over 2019 protest

Chris Patten, the former governor of Hong Kong, has decried as “unjust” a decision by the Chinese city’s top court to uphold the conviction of Jimmy Lai and other prominent pro-democracy activists for participating in a peaceful protest in 2019.

On Monday, Hong Kong’s court of final appeal unanimously agreed to uphold the convictions of seven activists who participated in an unauthorised 2019 protest in which 1.7 million people – roughly a quarter of Hong Kong’s population – took to the streets to oppose Beijing’s tightening grip on the city.

Continue reading...

Lammy plans China visit for September to kick-start high-level engagement

Posted on by

Exclusive: Move highlights ambition to reconnect with Beijing but minister will face pressure over human rights

David Lammy is planning a visit to China in September that would fall within the first 100 days of him taking office.

The foreign secretary is in talks over a trip to Beijing next month that would signal the UK wants to resume high-level engagement with the country.

Continue reading...

Harris and Trump agree to televised debate | First Thing

Posted on by

ABC confirms US presidential candidates will face off for the first time on 10 September. Plus: the return of panda diplomacy

Good morning.

Kamala Harris and Donald Trump will face off for the first time on 10 September in a highly anticipated televised debate on ABC, the network confirmed Thursday, as Harris continues to gain momentum, leaving the Trump campaign scrambling.

What did Trump say at the press conference? Trump attacked Harris and falsely claimed that no one was killed in the 6 January attack on the US Capitol. He grew heated over comparing crowd sizes, and claimed he wanted to do three debates. Earlier, Trump had suggested he would back out of the 10 September debate that had previously been set with Joe Biden before Biden stepped down from his re-election campaign.

What do the polls say? While Biden had been trailing Trump in key swing states, Harris has made gains, particularly after announcing the Minnesota governor Tim Walz as her running mate. An Ipsos poll published on Thursday found Harris ahead of Trump by 42% to 37%, compared to a 22-23 July Reuters/Ipsos survey, which showed her up 37% to 34% over Trump.

How has the Trump campaign been reacting to the rise of Harris? Concerns have created fractures inside Trumpworld, with some Maga allies criticizing Trump’s political advisers who are working to paint Harris as more progressive than she is and launch “Willie Horton” attacks from the old Republican playbook that suggest she is directly responsible for crimes some migrants committed.

How many people have died from Tropical Storm Debby? At least seven people have died from the storm, which made first landfall early Monday on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Debby made a second landfall in South Carolina early on Thursday, and more flooding is expected in North and South Carolina before the storm clears those states.

Continue reading...

China lists Taiwanese independence supporters it wants people to denounce

Posted on by

Beijing website asks for information about supposed ‘crimes’ of ‘secessionist’ current and past Taiwan officials

China’s government has called for people to denounce “diehard secessionists” and give information about their “criminal activities” as it intensifies its legal and rhetorical intimidation of Taiwan.

The Taiwan affairs office and ministry of public security this week launched new webpages with lists of 10 current and former officials in Taiwan who have been named as “diehard” separatists.

Continue reading...

Aukus pact will turn Australia into ‘51st state’ of the US, says Paul Keating

Posted on by

Former prime minister argues Australia has made itself a target by aligning with American ‘aggression’ towards China

Australia’s participation in the Aukus defence pact risks handing military control of the country to Washington and becoming the “51st state of the United States”, according to former prime minister Paul Keating.

Speaking on ABC’s 7.30 on Thursday night, Keating argued that Australia had made itself a target for aggression by joining the military alliance with the US and the UK in implicit opposition to China’s growing power in the Asia Pacific region.

Continue reading...

US plans more frequent bomber deployments to Australia amid China’s ‘escalatory behaviour’

Posted on by

Australia-US talks also turn to Middle East conflict as representatives ramp up calls for Gaza ceasefire

The US says it plans “more frequent” deployments of bomber aircraft to Australia amid concerns over China’s “dangerous and escalatory behaviour” in the region.

The announcement after annual talks on Wednesday builds on a long-term trend of increased rotations of American forces to Australia, along with moves to upgrade Australian military bases and pre-position US army equipment in Australia.

Continue reading...

China sees highest number of significant floods since records began

Posted on by

So far this year officials warnings have been issued for 25 floods, and China is only halfway through its peak flood season

Halfway through the peak flood season, China has already experienced the highest number of significant floods since record keeping began in 1998, and the hottest July since 1961, authorities said on Friday.

This year so far it has recorded 25 “numbered” events, which the Chinese Ministry of Water Resources defined as having water levels that prompt an official warning or are measured at a magnitude of a “once in two to five years” event.

Continue reading...

World Bank warns 108 countries risk being stuck in ‘middle-income trap’

Posted on by

Too many nations, including China and India, are relying on outmoded strategies to become advanced economies, says report

More than 100 countries – including China, India, Brazil and South Africa – risk becoming stuck in a “middle-income trap” unless they adopt radical growth strategies for their economies, the World Bank has said.

The Washington-based development organisation said emerging market nations would struggle to close the gap on US living standards unless they relied less heavily on investment to increase growth.

Continue reading...

China used ‘shocking’ bullying tactics ahead of Taiwan Ipac summit, organiser says

Posted on by

Member countries from the global south were intimidated in an attempt to dissuade them from attending summit, says executive director

China’s attempts to stop foreign parliamentarians from attending a summit in Taiwan were “massively overstepping” acts of bullying, the organiser has said at the end of the gathering that saw the group – designed to counter China – expand.

The Inter-parliamentary Alliance on China (Ipac) held its fourth annual summit in Taipei this week, attended by about 50 parliamentarians from 23 countries.

Continue reading...

Trade row won’t hurt US and China’s emissions talks, says US climate chief

Posted on by

John Podesta says negotiations ‘to find a path forward’ continue with urgent discussions planned for Cop29

Trade frictions and increasing tension between the US and China won’t affect climate negotiations between the two superpowers if he can help it, the US climate chief has pledged.

John Podesta, a senior adviser to Joe Biden on international climate policy, said the relationship between the world’s two biggest emitters and largest economies was critical to climate action, despite what appears to be a deepening gulf over trade policy.

Continue reading...

Standard Chartered plays down fears of US-China trade war under Trump

Posted on by

Chief executive says tensions ‘not impacting’ business as bank reports pre-tax profits of $1.6bn for second quarter

Fears of a China trade war erupting under a second Trump presidential term are overblown, according to bosses at Standard Chartered bank, as they suggested that the country’s real estate woes were “largely in the rearview mirror”.

While the London-headquartered bank makes most of its money in Asia, particularly in Hong Kong and Singapore, its chief executive, Bill Winters, played down the impact that increasingly strained relations between Washington and Beijing might have on the business.

Continue reading...