China: S China Sea, Silk Road, trade agreements, Africa, S Pacific, Arctic, Antarctic, deep ocean, Huawei, etc.

Investigation: Why is China on the move in the South Pacific? (23 minutes)
60 Minutes Australia | Nov 17, 2019

A special 60 Minutes investigation revealing China's soft invasion of Australia’s island neighbours...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BzCqQKnF9Oo

(Interesting to contrast 60 Minutes topics in Australia v US:
https://www.60minutes.com.au v. https://www.cbsnews.com/60-minutes/ )

WORLD EXCLUSIVE: Chinese spy spills secrets to expose Communist espionage (40:48)
60 Minutes Australia | Nov 24, 2019

A Chinese spy defects to Australia. His shocking revelations are guaranteed to infuriate Beijing. How China conducts questionable activities around the world, including its attempts to infiltrate the Australian government.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zdR-I35Ladk

Youtube's notorious semi-exiled-to-California China hands Serpentza and Laowhy86 (the former of whom used to train doctors in Shenzhen in medical English, is married to a Chinese doctor who formerly practiced in China, and has many contacts) provide inside info on Coronavirus. It's far worse than being reported. Have only had a chance to watch a bit of it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk5XkhUKMDM

Sounds like China was quick to code the Corona virus's DNA, so should be vaccine in a year or so: https://www.statnews.com/2020/01/24/dna-sleuths-read-coronavirus-genome-tracing-... ; https://www.sciencealert.com/australian-scientists-asked-to-make-coronavirus-vac... ; https://www.cnn.com/2020/01/20/health/coronavirus-nih-vaccine-development/index.... .

Until then we rely on public health measures to contain the virus, and with a changing, infectious disease that could be a challenge: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2020/jan/26/coronavirus-from-food-market-to-... .

Amazing that China is building a 1,000 bed hospital in one week: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-51245156 .

Still, I'm reading that "only" 25% of cases are serious and "only" 4% result in death--mostly elderly and immune-compromised? An emerging disease kills the most in a new "naive" population. Expect less mortality with good public health and good hospital care--more risk for westerners from flu?--but could be awful in crowded, poorer areas in the world?

In The Coming Plague, Laurie Garrett predicted a pathogen would come out of crowded, urban area like Mexico City. Risk must be worse in places like China (and Africa--Ebola) where close exposure to wild animals? (More opportunity for pathogens to jump species...)

Maybe I'll pick up another bottle of elderberry concentrate for the pantry... (Supposed to help shorten the course of flu, at least: https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-434/elderberry . Gave it to my son (the unvaxxed son) over holidays and his flu ran "only" four days, sore throat to fever breaking. I THINK it arrested other family members' colds last fall, so planned to keep it on hand anyway... Also zinc lozenges for initial sore throat of cold and flu...)

>4 margd: Yeah. And hope something in the antiviral arsenal is found to have some effect on it. And cross fingers against unfavorable mutation.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2020/01/25/china-coronavirus-how-do-y...

>3 davidgn: Serpentza and Laowhy86 are correct that H95 face masks and even some surgical masks are sold out on Ammazon--I checked. Must be a lot of fear out there? (ETA: 4% of a billion people is 40 million?)

I usually keep a few face masks on hand for household use (chems, drywall dust,etc.), and my son wore one when he was coughing with the flu at Christmas--along with Zn, elderberry, his own bathroom, disinfection of doorknobs, etc.--to hopefully prevent spread of the virus. Our other son (vaccinated) has condition that can result in complications from flu, so we do our best to protect him. Success--this time! (And unvaxxed son resolves to get shot next year at least--he had a miserable few days.)

Chris Martenson's PhD is in toxicology, but I appreciate his common-sense analyses.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2GZg1qzohY

His best guess, looking at the impact on Chinese hospital systems, is that either the number of cases or the rate of case complications has been lowballed by an order of magnitude. And he highlights the very unfortunate fact that this illness appears to be transmissible by asymptomatic individuals, with a very long incubation period. Frankly, a bit of a nightmare. Makes screening of traveling populations largely useless.

Before this is over, Corona virus will crush economies...quarantines, healthcare & fear, closure of schools and workplaces?

One upside, although it's a shame it took human misery to prompt it, is ban on wildlife trade. Let's hope that Chinese authorities extend the ban and that the trade in wildlife isn't driven underground. If so, rare and endangered species throughout the world might at least benefit. And we might be spared another species-hopping pathogen... HIV, Ebola, MERS

As Coronavirus Fears Intensify, Effectiveness of Quarantines Is Questioned
Chris Buckley, Raymond Zhong, Denise Grady and Roni Caryn Rabin | Jan. 26, 2020. Updated Jan. 27, 2020

...In a signal of the gravity of the crisis, and its likely disruption to China’s short-term growth, the government announced on Monday that the annual weeklong Lunar New Year Holiday would be extended. For now, at least, many workers will get another three days off, and go back to work on Feb. 3.

Even before that notice, Suzhou, a big manufacturing hub in eastern China, declared that factories there should not start back at work any earlier than Feb. 8.

The national government on Sunday also banned the wildlife trade until the epidemic passes. The outbreak had drawn fresh attention to China’s animal markets, where the sale of exotic creatures has been linked to epidemiological risks.

In Hong Kong — which was badly hit by the SARS coronavirus in 2003, with nearly 300 deaths, more than any city in the world — worries about the spread of infectious diseases run deep. On Sunday, the government said it would bar residents of Hubei Province, which includes Wuhan, and people who had been to the province in the past 14 days from entering Hong Kong until further notice.

Six cases of the new coronavirus have been confirmed in the city...

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/01/26/world/asia/coronavirus-wuhan-china-hubei.html

_____________________________________________________________________

ETA
Coronavirus Fears Are Hitting the Dow Hard. Travel Stocks Like Delta, Chip Makers, Are Plunging.
Al Root | Jan. 27, 2020 at 10:03 a.m. ET
https://www.marketwatch.com/articles/stocks-moving-premarket-delta-air-lines-wyn...

Martenson latest:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZO_XC3jI2c4

Citing:
Containing new coronavirus may not be feasible, experts say, as they warn of possible sustained global spread
https://www.statnews.com/2020/01/26/containing-new-coronavirus-may-not-be-feasib...

Tens of thousands likely infected now: HKU experts
https://news.rthk.hk/rthk/en/component/k2/1505090-20200127.htm

Recommended measures:
https://www.cdc.gov/nonpharmaceutical-interventions/pdf/gr-pan-flu-ind-house.pdf
https://www.cdc.gov/childrenindisasters/checklists/kids-and-families.html

See also reporting from Bloomberg:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZO_XC3jI2c4

Pandemic in progress. But flu still likely more dangerous.

Early pre-pub data suggests an R of 4.08. Early data. Not peer-reviewed. Not good,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nmrm0mk5928 (Video not exactly recommended beyond intro)

The pre-pub.
https://www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1101/2020.01.27.20018952v1.full.pdf

Some criticism has come out:
http://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/01/scientists-warn-ncov-more-inf...

ETA:
And other estimates are lower:
https://www.livescience.com/how-far-will-coronavirus-spread.html

Poorer populations in places like India may get clobbered...
Lots of great spices and herbs (curcumin, amla) come out of India--and some may help soften course of disease,
until vaccine and proven therapeutics are available...

India confirms its first coronavirus case
David Reid | Jan 30 2020

...The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare said the country’s first case was in a patient in Kerala, a southwestern coastal state.

The ministry said in a statement that the patient is a student at Wuhan University in China and has been isolated in a hospital...

https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/30/india-confirms-first-case-of-the-coronavirus.htm...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

India bans export of protective masks, clothing amid coronavirus outbreak
January 31, 2020

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India on Friday banned the export of personal protection equipment such as masks and clothing amid a global coronavirus outbreak...

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-health-india/india-bans-export-of-prote...

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India’s homeopathic ‘cure’ for coronavirus ‘immature and irresponsible’
Vasudevan Sridharan | 31 Jan, 2020

The Indian ministry for traditional medicines faced a backlash after it issued an advisory recommending herbal remedies to combat the novel coronavirus...

https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/health-environment/article/3048398/indias-homeopa...

Uh oh--maybe Corona virus needs its own thread...
This message, from a Canadian university far from any known outbreak, but experiencing ostracization of Chinese and Asian students:

...There is, however, a related and insidious social challenge already emerging amongst us, one which we must all face and directly combat. Actions taken out of fear, guided by misinformation and false assumptions, do a disservice to every member of our community. Ignorantly ostracizing Chinese and Asian students will rip apart the beautiful tapestry of our international campus and must be repudiated by everyone. Now is a time to come together and care for one another, with dignity and respect. This virus does not discriminate, and our greatest weapon against it is knowledge and correct, preventive action...

https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/stories/coronavirus-update-principal-urges-queen-...

>12 margd: Want to do the honors?

Market manipulation, data manipulation...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yV6IEdPc7AY

Possible preliminary treatment protocol emerges in Thailand --
https://www.physiciansweekly.com/cocktail-of-flu-hiv/

>13 davidgn: Re new thread, let's wait until scientists name the virus--within next couple days, sounds like.
Interesting that WHO has naming guidelines to discourage unwarranted backlash/actions:

How the new coronavirus will finally get a proper name
Jasmine Taylor-Coleman | 5 February 2020

...Official names can also prove problematic. The WHO criticised the name Mers (Middle East Respiratory Syndrome) in 2015.

"We've seen certain disease names provoke a backlash against members of particular religious or ethnic communities, create unjustified barriers to travel, commerce and trade, and trigger needless slaughtering of food animals," it said in a statement.*

As a result, it issued guidelines. According to these, the name for the new coronavirus should not include:

Geographical locations
People's names
The name of an animal or a kind of food
References to a particular culture or industry

It says the name should be short and descriptive - such as Sars (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome)...

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-china-51371770

The coronavirus is less deadly than SARS so far: Here’s why the fatality rate could rise
Feb 4, 2020

... SARS had a fatality rate of 9.6% compared to the fatality rate of 2.1% so far for this new 2019-nCoV strain of coronavirus...

The fatality rate has remained steady for the last several weeks. However, that death toll could rise as the weeks progress. Whether the fatality rate will remain steady has yet to be determined.

Assuming an incubation period of up to 14 days, with an average of seven days before a person presents with symptoms of the virus, the current fatality rate may end up being higher than the eventual rate.

The current fatalities of 425 based on the total number of cases reported seven days ago (2,700) by Chinese health officials equates to a fatality rate of closer to 15.8%...

...If, on the other hand, the number of infections has been vastly under-counted, the 2.1% coronavirus fatality rate could fall, which would be good news for those who have contracted the illness...

Maciej Boni, an associate professor of biology, at Pennsylvania State University, said the 2009 H1N1 flu pandemic initially overestimated the final fatality rate, while the SARS fatality rate rose as the virus spread.

... Sean Beckmann, assistant professor of Biology at Stetson University in Florida who is an expert in zoonotic infections, which jumped from animals to humans...“It isn’t something that looks like it can hang out on surfaces or in the air for a long time and still be infectious,” he said. “It looks like it requires pretty close contact, which is why outside this epicenter in China we’re not seeing a lot of human-to-human transmissions...This does not look like a virus that is able to stay alive in the air or on surfaces for a very long time. Which is good”...

https://www.marketwatch.com/story/coronavirus-is-less-deadly-than-sars-but-that-...

Expert thinks there are actually 50,000 new coronavirus cases a day
https://metro.co.uk/2020/02/06/expert-thinks-actually-50000-new-coronavirus-case...

"Professor Neil Ferguson, director of the MRC Centre for Global Infectious Disease Analysis at Imperial College London, says that the number of cases is ‘going up all the time’. To put things into context, he said that only 10% of all infections in China are being detected at the current time. He added that the rate of detection was better overseas, but even then only a quarter of infections were being discovered."

The Quarantine Power: A Primer in Light of the Coronavirus ("2019-nCoV") Situation
Robert Chesney | February 7, 2020

1. The Quarantine Dilemma

2. Are we talking about state law or federal law?

3. Explain how federal quarantine law works.

4. Which diseases currently qualify for federal quarantine authority?

5. Let’s get to the details: What do the regulations implementing federal quarantine authority actually say?
a. Who decides?
b. What is the standard that determines when the Director can issue a federal quarantine order?
c. Does the Director have to give an explanation?
d. Is it possible for a detained person to challenge the decision?
e. What about judicial review?
6. What are the penalties for disobedience?

7. How about state quarantine laws?
https://www.ncsl.org/research/health/state-quarantine-and-isolation-statutes.asp...

https://www.lawfareblog.com/quarantine-power-primer-light-coronavirus-situation

Latest Martenson.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ir79nIFbobA

Lack of sick pay in the US combined with pressure to show up at work when sick will ensure Corona patients experiencing mild cold system are out and about--infecting others...

Study claiming new coronavirus can be transmitted by people without symptoms was flawed*
Kai Kupferschmidt | Feb. 3, 2020

...(Anthony Fauci, director of the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases), for one, still believes (transmission from asymptomatic people does occur). "This evening I telephoned one of my colleagues in China who is a highly respected infectious diseases scientist and health official," he says. "He said that he is convinced that there is asymptomatic infection and that some asymptomatic people are transmitting infection." But even if they do, asymptomatic transmission likely plays a minor role in the epidemic overall, WHO says. People who cough or sneeze are more likely to spread the virus, the agency wrote in a situation report on Saturday. “More data may come out soon. We will just have to wait,” (Marc Lipsitch, an epidemiologist at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health) says.

The German cluster does reveal another interesting aspect about the new virus, (virologist Christian Drosten of the Charité University Hospital in Berlin) says. So far most attention has gone to patients who get seriously ill, but all four cases in Germany had a very mild infection. That may be true for many more patients, Drosten says, which may help the virus spread. “There is increasingly the sense that patients may just experience mild cold symptoms, while already shedding the virus,” he says. “Those are not symptoms that lead people to stay at home.”

https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/02/paper-non-symptomatic-patient-transmitti...

______________________________________________________________________________________

* https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMc2001468

Incubation period may be up to 24 days. What a nightmare. Quarantine periods to date are insufficient and will need to be reset.
https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/coronavirus-new-study-finds-incubati...

Via:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD2-QVBQi48RRQTD4Jhxu8w
Along with other disheartening updates. Not least, that it now appears to be spreading via aerosolization.

How to properly wash hands--more than soap while singing the alphabet song! (Who knew?)

Washing your hands properly is an important part of slowing the spread of a virus,
so we asked ⁦@DrSarahJarvis exactly how it should be done #coronavirus #bbcpm
0:55 ( https://twitter.com/BBCPM/status/1226888946430435328 )

- BBCPM @BBCPM | 10:21 AM · Feb 10, 2020

Yesterday: 97 died of Coronavirus in China alone.
Today: President Trump announced plans to cut funding for global health programs by 34%.
It's like a unilateral, willing surrender to pandemic disease. Hard to believe.

- (Senator) Chris Murphy @ChrisMurphyCT | 4:57 PM · Feb 10, 2020

Africa May be Spared from Coronavirus – No Thanks to its Leaders (CCN)

the continent's hot and humid weather may save it from the deadly disease...

>23 John5918: Sure hope Africa and South America and India (one case) and Thailand (few cases) etc. are spared epidemics, whether due to heat and humidity or to previous exposure to other diseases (malaria?).

Below, after announcing plans to cut funding for global health programs by 34% (#22), Trump counts on summer temps slowing spread in North America, but sounds like, as with flu, 2019-nCoV would roar back in fall:
(0:32) https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1227029695176355840

Until vaccine is widely available, public health measures are needed to keep cases down to level that can be dealt with by traditional medicine, ventilators, etc....

The coronavirus is pretty much the only topic of conversation here in China. Just like during SARS, many of the measures to stop the spread of the virus are being implemented by communities, not the government. For example, security guards at our community are taking people's temperature-- but when asked what temperature they were looking for, had no idea. "Don't worry," the guard said, "So far all the temperatures are the same." Oh, and they are also taking the temperature of pets (who knows why)

I live far from Wuhan, in a city with few cases, but the quarantine is getting stricter and stricter. Almost no restaurants or other businesses are open. Just pharmacies and supermarkets. Parks and public squares are fenced off. Face masks cannot be bought at any price-- but you cannot enter a business or ride public transport without one. Poor people who live paycheck to paycheck, and small businesses, will really struggle if this continues for even a few more weeks.

ETA: Everyone is terrified of going to the hospital, where you are almost certain of getting the virus. I injured my hand a couple of days ago, and should probably see a doctor, but I've decided not to-- not worth the risk.

Thread continued here: https://www.librarything.com/topic/316600

>25 madpoet: Stay safe, MP.

>25 madpoet: Masks are being snapped up here, too--in pharmacies and online. Hoarding?
(I was looking for masks for DH (flu) to wear on 2-day road trip with hope ONE of us could drive!)

Not just espionage, foreign influence could undercut attempts to fairly assess proposals and research. (Favoritism starts in university classes and labs, or so I've heard.) Tough, too, on scientists who play fair, but whose ethnicity may now attract unwarranted suspicion.

Fifty-four scientists have lost their jobs as a result of NIH probe into foreign ties
Jeffrey MervisJun. 12, 2020

Some 54 scientists have resigned or been fired as a result of an ongoing investigation by the National Institutes of Health into the failure of NIH grantees to disclose financial ties to foreign governments. In 93% of those cases, the hidden funding came from a Chinese institution.

...Michael Lauer, NIH’s head of extramural research...an effort NIH launched in August 2018 that has roiled the U.S. biomedical community, and resulted in criminal charges against some prominent researchers, including Charles Lieber, chair of Harvard University’s department of chemistry and chemical biology.

...In the vast majority of cases, Lauer reported, the person being investigated has been an Asian man in his 50s. Some three-quarters of those under investigation had active NIH grants, and nearly half had at least two grants. The 285 active grants totaled $164 million.

Lauer also presented data on the nature of the violations that NIH has uncovered. Some 70% (133) of the researchers had failed to disclose to NIH the receipt of a foreign grant, and 54% had failed to disclose participation in a foreign talent program. In contrast, Lauer said, only 9% hid ties to a foreign company, and only 4% had an undisclosed foreign patent. Some 5% of cases involved a violation of NIH’s peer-review system...

doi:10.1126/science.abd3084
https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/06/fifty-four-scientists-have-lost-their-jo...

The recent escalations in the South China Sea and on the Indian border show that Beijing is getting more aggressive and opportunistic. I suspect it is because Xi wants to distract the Chinese public from his disastrous domestic policy. What an era: the worst American president ever, at the same time as the worst Chinese leader since Mao, the most nationalistic (in an aggressive way) Indian PM ever, and Putin in Russia...

>30 madpoet:

For those with a warmongering tendency, whether it be in Beijing, Moscow or Washington, they will see the weakness and dysfunction of one as an opportunity. Trump is giving that opportunity to both Beijing and Moscow.

31 They don't really want a war, of course-- what they are hoping for is a Crimea-like situation, where they can just steal land or bully their neighbours and get away with it.

Amid pandemic, SE Asian nations warn of 'alarming' South China Sea incidents
James Pearson | June 26, 2020

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam and the Philippines warned of growing insecurity in Southeast Asia at a regional summit on Friday amid concerns that China was stepping up its activity in the disputed South China Sea during the coronavirus pandemic.

Both Hanoi and Manila lodged protests with China in April after Beijing unilaterally declared the creation of new administrative districts on islands in the troubled waterways to which Vietnam and the Philippines also have competing claims.

...China has been pushing its presence in the Exclusive Economic Zones of other countries while claimants are preoccupied tackling the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting the United States to call on China to stop its “bullying behaviour” there...

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-asean-summit/amid-pandemic-se-asian-nations-w...

This moving photo of Hong Kong protesters holding up blank signs—now that their messages are illegal—is a stark reminder that the movement there isn't over, even w/the National Security Law imposing severe constraints.

Image ( https://twitter.com/JulianGewirtz/status/1279869506152615939/photo/1 )
Photo by Lam Yik Fei for the NYT*

- Julian Gewirtz @JulianGewirtz | 4:07 PM · Jul 5, 2020

-----------------------------------------------------------

* Hong Kong, Changed Overnight, Navigates Its New Reality
Vivian Wang, Elaine Yu and Tiffany May | July 5, 2020

In a city where China has made some ideas suddenly dangerous, people are trying to figure out where the boundaries lie, and how their lives have changed.

...Even as old markers of resistance have come down, subtler ones have surfaced. Some protesters have turned to puns and created new meaning from well-worn phrases, a tactic long adopted by mainland internet users to skirt government censorship.

On Wednesday, in one of the city’s commercial hubs, someone had spray-painted “Arise, ye who refuse to be slaves” — the opening line of China’s national anthem.

And one shop, in place of protest slogans, hung up nearly two dozen posters of propaganda from Mao-era China, including one that proclaimed: “Revolution is not a crime, rebellion is reasonable.”

https://nytimes.com/2020/07/05/world/asia/hong-kong-security-law.html

James Palmer (Deputy ed Foreign Policy) @BeijingPalmer | 10:01 AM · Mar 13, 2022:
https://twitter.com/BeijingPalmer/status/1503008431690690562

Quick thoughts on this interesting Hu Wei piece -

Possible Outcomes of the Russo-Ukrainian War and China’s Choice
US-China Perception Monitor | Written on March 5, 2022. Translated by Jiaqi Liu on March 12, 2022.
https://uscnpm.org/2022/03/12/hu-wei-russia-ukraine-war-china-choice/

a) This is a cogent and I think accurate take on what China *should* do.

b) It has little bearing on what China *will do.*

c) It's not coming from any position of power or government sanction - think of it as like, say, a professor writing a piece for a think tank. It's possible people might read it and be influenced by it, but it's not reflective of Chinese politics or govt position.

d) if Russia's invasion of Ukraine continues to fuck up Russia's place in the world and reassert Western unity, that's going to be used by experts in China to attempt to argue for a return to more cautious policies and approaches for a variety of personal reasons.

(Hu reads to me like a man who has a moral/political argument to make here too but is wisely framing it in the terms of power, influence, and pragmatism)

e) one of the underlying arguments that may end up having real power in Chinese internal discourse is 'the US and the West are stronger than we thought and not necessarily in decline.' The problem with that argument is that it implies the last decade of Chinese FP fucked up.

That makes it a particularly tricky case to make in the Xi-ist era, given who was in charge for that decade.

Jiří Hudeček @HuJirui (Department of Sinology, Charles U, Prague):
I think it's relevant to mention that he's a leading authority on Deng Xiaoping and advocate of Deng's policies, which puts him at odds with the prevailing ideology (although Hu also works in some "Centre for Xi Jinping Thought"). )

James Fallows @JamesFallows:
Agree with all of this.
Also, the specific incompetence / weakness (though also murderous brutality) of Russian *military* force is probably registering in CN, given PLA’s total lack of modern combat experience.

James Palmer @BeijingPalmer:
yup - I discussed this briefly here toward the bottom-

Did Russia Catch China Off Guard in Ukraine?
Beijing may have at least bought Moscow’s narrative of a quick invasion.
James Palmer | March 2, 2022
https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/03/02/china-russia-ukraine-invasion-surprise/

Chinese Stocks Slide as Covid-19 Lockdowns Add to Investor Concerns
Hong Kong’s Hang Seng closes at six-year low
Dave Sebastian | March 14, 2022

The rout in Chinese stocks deepened as the country’s escalating battle with Covid-19 rattled a market already contending with potential U.S. delistings, domestic regulatory pressure and the global economic consequences of the war in Ukraine.

After a recent surge in coronavirus infections, authorities have imposed restrictions on cities including Shenzhen, the southern financial and technology hub where companies such as Huawei Technologies are based...

https://www.wsj.com/articles/chinese-stocks-fall-as-covid-19-lockdowns-add-to-in...

China Sees ‘Unprecedented’ Capital Outflow Since War, IIF Says
Ye Xie and Maria Elena Vizcaino | March 24, 2022

China has seen investors pull money out of the country on an “unprecedented” scale since Russia invaded Ukraine in late February, marking a “very unusual” shift in global capital flows in emerging markets, according to the Institute of International Finance.

...“Outflows from China on the scale and intensity we are seeing are unprecedented, especially since we are not seeing similar outflows from the rest of emerging markets,” IIF chief economist Robin Brooks and his colleagues wrote. “The timing of outflows –- which built after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine -- suggests foreign investors may be looking at China in a new light, though it is premature to draw any definitive conclusions in this regard.”

Official data showed that foreign investors reduced their holdings of Chinese government bonds by the most on record in February, in part as the Russia-Ukraine war spurred redemptions among global fixed-income investors. Sanctions have frozen the Russian central bank’s foreign reserves held in euros and dollars, leading to speculation that Moscow may sell its holding of Chinese assets to raise funds.

The Chinese stock market also tumbled earlier this month, as overseas investors retreated, partly on concern that the U.S. and European Union sanctions on Russia may somehow spill over to China. The stock market has recovered since last week as policy makers pledged to support capital markets...

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-24/china-sees-unprecedented-capi...

There are many factors hurting the Chinese economy right now. Like Western economies, it has been shocked by rising oil prices. Then there is the Evergrande collapse and the danger of real estate markets around the country losing value. Shanghai (China's 'Big Apple') is in lockdown. There is fear of sanctions against Chinese companies if Beijing trades with Russia-- but trade with Russia is the only silver lining for China in the Russo-Ukrainian War. Overall, it's not a good year for China. Not a good decade, so far.

Communist China Has Thrown Out The Old Rules of War
Tyler Durden's | Apr 22, 2022

...If you look closely at everything China has done since 1999 – at all aspects of its economic, military, diplomatic, and technological relations with the rest of the world – it’s like watching Unrestricted Warfare come to life. One can find other glimpses into the secretive mentality of the CCP leaders, but this one is the single most important book for understanding the China of today. “Unrestricted Warfare” is the main blueprint for China’s efforts to unseat America as the world’s economic, political, and ideological leader. It shows exactly how a totalitarian nation set out to dominate the West through a comprehensive, long-term strategy that includes everything from corporate sabotage to cyberwarfare to dishonest diplomacy; from violations of international trade law and intellectual property law to calculated abuses of the global financial system. As one of the authors stated, “The only rule in ‘Unrestricted Warfare’ is that there are no rules.”

The book is the key to decoding China’s master plan for world domination, which has been progressing more steadily and successfully than most Americans realize – even accelerating in the reign of Xi Jinping. The manipulation of COVID policies, stonewalling the world about its origins, and mounting a massive disinformation campaign to blame the United States are merely recent examples.

So why is “Unrestricted Warfare” so obscure, even to people who study China professionally on behalf of the U.S. government, the Fortune 500, the investment world, the nonprofit world, academia, or the military? It’s not as if the book is some secret document that has never escaped the inner sanctum of the Chinese Communist Party. Just the opposite: The original translation by the U.S. government is in the public domain; you can google it and click on an English translation, for free, in less than a second.

The problem is that “Unrestricted Warfare” is hard to read...

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/communist-china-has-thrown-out-old-rules-...

Jonathan Martin @jmartNYT | 7:11 AM · May 23, 2022:
“You didn’t want to get involved in the Ukraine conflict militarily for obvious reasons,” a reporter said to Mr. Biden. “Are you willing to get involved militarily to defend Taiwan if it comes to that?”
“Yes,” Mr. Biden answered flatly.
“You are?” the reporter followed up

In fact, he repeated the notion that his commitment to Taiwan went beyond what he had done for Ukraine…”It would dislocate the entire region and be another action similar to what happened in Ukraine. And so it’s a burden that is even stronger”

Thousands of detained Uyghurs pictured in leaked Xinjiang police files
Documents detailing shoot-to-kill policy for people who try to escape published as UN human rights chief visits region
Vincent Ni | 24 May 2022

A new trove of hacked Chinese police photographs and documents shedding light on the human toll of Beijing’s treatment of its Uyghur minority in Xinjiang has been published as the UN high commissioner for human rights, Michelle Bachelet, visits cities in the region.

The data trove – referred to as the Xinjiang police files and published by a consortium of media including the BBC – dates back to 2018 and was passed on by hackers to Dr Adrian Zenz, a US-based scholar and activist, who shared it with international media earlier this year. It includes thousands of photographs of detained people and details a shoot-to-kill policy for people who try to escape....

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/may/24/thousands-of-detained-uyghurs-pict...

China wants 10 Pacific nations to endorse sweeping agreement
NICK PERRY | 25 May 2022

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — China wants 10 small Pacific nations to endorse a sweeping agreement covering everything from security to fisheries in what one leader warns is a “game-changing” bid by Beijing to wrest control of the region.

A draft of the agreement obtained by The Associated Press shows that China wants to train Pacific police officers, team up on “traditional and non-traditional security” and expand law enforcement cooperation.

China also wants to jointly develop a marine plan for fisheries — which would include the Pacific’s lucrative tuna catch — increase cooperation on running the region’s internet networks, and set up cultural Confucius Institutes and classrooms. China also mentions the possibility of setting up a free trade area with the Pacific nations.

China’s move comes as Foreign Minister Wang Yi and a 20-strong delegation begin a visit to the region this week...

https://apnews.com/article/wang-yi-beijing-china-new-zealand-96f78c97071116055eb...

Mao persecuted the pre-revolutionary elite savagely, with millions dying in famine.
Their children were stigmatised, and were less educated and had lower income than average.
But today their grandchildren have regained much of their lead.

Image ( https://twitter.com/StefanFSchubert/status/1535062942127112192/photo/1 )

https://economist.com/graphic-detail/2022/06/09/the-grandchildren-of-chinas-pre-...

- Stefan Schubert @StefanFSchubert | 8:55 PM · Jun 9, 2022

Tingting Liu 劉亭廷 @tingtingliuTVBS | 11:35 PM · Aug 1, 2022:
Foreign affairs and military reporter @tvbs_news, Taiwan.

PRC has just banned the import of more than 100 Taiwanese food products, including very popular brands of titbits* and biscuits. A move believed to be targeted in response to PRC’s condemnation of Pelosi’s potential visit to Taiwan.

* tid·bit (tĭd′bĭt′) also tit·bit (tĭt′-) n. A choice morsel, as of gossip or food: "The book is chock-full of colorful tidbits about theater and theater people" ( https://www.thefreedictionary.com )
__________________________________________________

Maybe because of Biden's willingness to defend Taiwan? Pelosi is highest ranking politician o visit in 25 years? Pelosi once unfurled democracy banner in Tianamen Square? Russia's invasion of Ukraine?

Tim O'Brien TimOBrien | 6:53 AM · Aug 2, 2022:
Senior Executive Editor, Opinion. Political Analyst, @MSNBC. Priors: New York Times, Wall Street Journal, HP. Author: “TrumpNation.”

So much moaning about Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan. I don’t remember hearing all of this whining when Senators John Cornyn, Mike Crapo, Mike Lee and Tommy Tuberville visited Taiwan last year.
___________________________________________________

Tingting Liu 劉亭廷 @tingtingliuTVBS | 9:19 AM · Aug 2, 2022:
Foreign affairs and military reporter @tvbs_news, Taiwan.

Taiwan’s tallest building and most iconic landmark, Taipei 101, lit up at 9pm tonight, welcoming @SpeakerPelosi ’s visit to Taiwan. Words include “Speaker Pelosi”, “Welcome to TW”, “Thank you”, “TW ❤️ US” (1/2)
0:35 ( https://twitter.com/tingtingliuTVBS/status/1554456783238090752 )

The Mandarin words roughly translate into: “Thank you friends of democracy forming support TW”, “Co-maintaining world order”, and “U.S.-Taiwan friendship lasts forever”. (2/2)

Joe Biden Just Crushed China's Semiconductor Industry
Dark Brandon strikes again.
Jonathan V. Last | 11 Oct 2022

...How significant is this new policy?
Technology experts said the rules appeared to impose the broadest export controls issued in a decade. While similar to the Trump administration’s crackdown on the telecom giant Huawei, the new rules are far wider in scope, affecting dozens of Chinese firms. And unlike the Trump administration’s approach — which was viewed as aggressive but scattershot — the rules appear to establish a more comprehensive policy that will stop cutting-edge exports to a range of Chinese technology companies and cut off China’s nascent ability to produce advanced chips itself...

...this policy doesn’t just hurt China’s ability to get chips now—thus hurting its economy and military. It also hobbles China’s ability to build its own advanced semiconductor industry because now the Chinese have to reinvent every wheel in the process just to get to par as it exists in the West circa 2022...

https://thetriad.thebulwark.com/p/joe-biden-just-crushed-chinas-semiconductor

An Unhinged Putin Is A Warning to China and Xi (7:07)

As he turns 70, Vladimir Putin won’t be reflecting on how his longevity at the top has resulted in a rotten state structure and disaster abroad. Xi Jinping, who is 69 and counting, should.

Clara Ferreira Marques | October 6, 2022

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2022-10-06/an-unhinged-putin-and-his-...

How China does voter suppression?

Frida Ghitis @FridaGhitis | 5:28 AM · Oct 22, 2022:
CNN CNNE Contributor, World affairs columnist: CNN Opinion, Washington Post contrib columnist, WorldPoliticsReview columnist. Frm CNN Prod/Corresp 60+countries

Former Chinese leader Hu Jintao* taken out of the Chinese Party Congress — apparently against his will. What happened? Hu was China’s top official before Xi. Did he oppose Xi’s historic power grab?
CNN reporting on the incident censored in China

1:21 https://twitter.com/FridaGhitis/status/1583752083605684225
From 自由亚洲电台

* Hu Jintao is a retired Chinese politician who served as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party from 2002 to 2012, president of the People's Republic of China from 2003 to 2013, and chairman of the Central Military Commission from 2004 to 2012. Wikipedia

Frida Ghitis @FridaGhitis | 9:56 PM · Oct 24, 2022:

It’s very clear that Hu Jintao did not want to leave.

2:20 (https://twitter.com/FridaGhitis/status/1584725579089473538)
From Mike

Alibaba, Tencent shares plummet 11% alongside China tech stocks as Xi tightens grip on power
Arjun Kharpal | Oct 24 2022

Key Points
Shares of Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Tencent closed down more than 11%; search company Baidu was 12% lower while food delivery firm Meituan tanked more than 14%.

The moves come after Chinese President Xi Jinping paved the way for an unprecedented third term as leader and packed the Politburo standing committee with loyalists.

Investors fear continuing strict policy that could hamper growth of tech giants and very few people who can challenge Xi’s policies, even those that are negative for growth.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/10/24/alibaba-tencent-shares-plummet-as-xi-jinping-tig...

Samuel Ramani @SamRamani2 | 7:38 PM · Nov 5, 2022:
DPhil/PhD Intl Relations @UniofOxford, Assoc Fellow @RUSI_org,
Bylines @ForeignPolicy, WaPo etc...

BREAKING: Japan and Britain to sign security pact that counters China

The security pact is expected to take shape in December

Japan has also agreed to enhance security cooperation with Germany this week, which occurred in tandem with Scholz's controversial meeting with Xi Jinping

>46 margd: Geez. Looking at American presidents, the three that were at least 70 when inaugurated were showing signs of age slowing them down mentally. Biden is doing well for his age; he's not incompetent, but Biden at 30 or 40 wouldn't have made some of the gaffs that Biden at 78 has. I've seen analysis of Trump's speaking in the 1990s as opposed to when running or elected; he wouldn't have been morally better--it's 9/11 when he pointed out on TV that the WTC falling meant Trump Tower was the tallest in the area--but it's clear he would have been better at thinking. At that age, people just aren't as sharp as they used to be, or flexible in dealing with a world that far from their childhood.

I tend to believe that oligarchies that have built in fluidity tend to be better than dictatorships. There's issues, but most Chinese citizens would be better off, I think, with the CCP running China than Xi Jinping running China.

Interesting discussion. Unofficial Chinese "police" stations in many, many countries--Netherlands, Hungary, Canada, Ireland, Spain, Italy, etc.

Anders Åslund @anders_aslund | 4:20 PM · Nov 18, 2022:
Economist & author. Russia, Ukraine & Eastern Europe. Read my latest book: "Russia's Crony Capitalism" ...
https://twitter.com/anders_aslund/status/1593715676396625921

Quite incredible. Unofficial Chinese police stations have been detected in the Netherlands, Hungary and now also in the US. What is this? Has elementary counterespionage collapsed in the West? What other countries host Chinese police stations? All? ...
--------------------------------------------------

China Has Opened Up Secret Police Stations in These Countries
John Feng | 10/19/22

Beijing's law enforcement tactics beyond its borders are under scrutiny after a report revealed dozens of cities—including New York—were hosting Chinese overseas police stations.

A pilot program run by the public security bureaus of Fuzhou and Qingtian counties—of coastal Fujian and Zhejiang provinces, respectively—had established 54 "overseas police service centers" across five continents, 25 cities and 21 countries as of June 21, according to Spain-based NGO Safeguard Defenders.

The overseas service stations were created in the name of combating transnational crime, especially telecommunications fraud, which has already seen the arrest of a large number of Chinese nationals living abroad. Their stated tasks also include the provision of administrative services, such as the renewal of Chinese driver's licenses, the report said.

Safeguard Defenders said China's policing tactics were problematic as they targeted suspects without firmly establishing links to crime or adhering to due process in host countries, chiefly by coercing the family members of alleged fugitives as a means to "persuade" them to return on their own...

https://www.newsweek.com/china-overseas-police-service-center-new-york-city-crim...

Russia & Tucker, now China, attention to Canada.

Justin Trudeau to appoint special rapporteur to probe foreign interference in elections
Move comes after allegations of Chinese interference in recent Canadian elections and amid mounting political pressure to push back against Beijing
Leyland Cecco | 6 Mar 2023

...Last week members of an independent panel, created to monitor possible threats to national elections, told lawmakers that the meddling attempts by China did not threaten Canada’s ability to have a free and fair election in 2021...

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/mar/07/canada-pm-justin-trudeau-special-r...

European young adults are critical of both US and China - study (BBC)

Young people in three European countries are sharply critical of the world's two most powerful countries, a study has found. They are concerned about the US's role as the "world's policeman" and China's growing economic might, says US-based Pew Research Center. The findings are based on focus groups with some 120 adults aged 18-29 in the UK, France and Germany. Participants were from across the ideological spectrum. Many voiced concerns about how the US has wielded its power on the global stage and criticised its actions abroad as self-interested. "Across all three countries and four ideological groupings, young Europeans are steadfast in the opinion that the US acts as the world's policeman to the detriment of the world community"... Underpinning the wariness of China's economic dominance in the Pew study are severe critiques of the country's domestic human rights abuses and military actions in the South China Sea...

>55 John5918: I hope those students also realize that their own countries were a little complicit in allowing US hegemony so that they could effectively outsource their national security. The reputation of the US is justifiably tarnished, but some coalition needs to be put in place unless one is comfortable with China and Russia (or the BRICS coalition) dominating the world stage.

Anton Gerashchenko @Gerashchenko_en | 7:28 AM · May 20, 2023:
Ukrainian patriot. Advisor to the Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine. Founder of the Institute of the Future. Official enemy of Russian propaganda
{Comments at} https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1659883799969136640

Congratulations to the great geopolitical strategist Putin.

The China-Central Asia summit, to which China invited representatives of Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan - but did not invite Russia - is a very important signal.

This shows that China created a new Central-Asian C5, which China will lead. And Russia has lost its influence in the region where it historically had a lot of impact.

Group photo ( https://twitter.com/Gerashchenko_en/status/1659883799969136640/photo/1 )

China says it seeks dialogue with US, but warns over Taiwan
DW | 4 June 2023

China's defense minister said Beijing is open to a military dialogue with the US. But he stressed that China will not tolerate any provocations when it comes to Taiwan...

https://www.dw.com/en/china-seeks-military-talks-with-us-amid-warnings/a-6581795...

Analysis: China’s Military Influence in Africa Grows as Russia’s Diminishes
Kate Bartlett | August 04, 2023 3:27 PM

...Russia — which also has ties to many former liberation movements — has long been by far the biggest arms supplier to Africa.

“However, China is ahead on every other metric, when you look at military professionalism, when you look at military training and capacity building, when you look at support to the African Union,” said {Paul Nantulya, a research associate at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies}.

...Analysts think the war in Ukraine and related Western sanctions could benefit China in terms of catching up to Russia in weapons sales too.

“Russia's ability to supply military equipment, for instance, is hampered both by its expulsion from international cross-border payment networks like SWIFT and by it having to consume most new arms production for its own needs,” Darren Olivier, director of conflict research consultancy African Defense Review, told VOA.

“China is well placed to take over much of Russia's market share in that regard. It has increasingly been a supplier of weapons to African armed forces over the years, with deliveries ranging from basic infantry weapons to increasingly sophisticated transport aircraft, helicopters, UAVs and air defense systems,” he said...

https://www.voanews.com/a/analysis-china-s-military-influence-in-africa-grows-as...
----------------------------------------------

This week as Beijing suddenly announced that China's foreign minister Qin Gang had been removed after just seven months in the job, his predecessor and now replacement, seasoned diplomat Wang Yi, was on a tour of some of Africa's key economies....

https://www.voanews.com/a/amid-chinese-foreign-ministry-shake-up-wang-on-africa-...

Wow! Doesn't seem so long ago that Canada was the US's largest trading partner? Not that amounts have decreased, just that China and Mexico trade increased?

Samuel Ramani {Oxford U} @SamRamani2 | 4:51 AM · Sep 12, 2023:

Decoupling in motion? Mexico surpasses China as U.S. trade partner
Graph ( https://twitter.com/SamRamani2/status/1701518911185813519/photo/1 )

Taiwan reports over 100 Chinese warplanes near island
The island's defense ministry said the number of Chinese military aircraft was a "recent high."
DW | 9/18/2023

The defense ministry in Taiwan on Monday called on China to halt "destructive, unilateral action" after reporting that 103 warplanes had been sent towards the island over a 24-hour period.

According to the ministry, the planes were detected from 6 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday, heading towards Taiwan and then turning back before reaching the island.

Forty of the Chinese aircraft were reported to have crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait between mainland China and the island.

...Last week China sent naval vessels including the aircraft carrier Shandong into waters near Taiwan. The drills came shortly after the US and Canada sailed warships through the Taiwan Strait...

https://www.dw.com/en/taiwan-reports-over-100-chinese-warplanes-near-island/a-66...

Philippines condemns Chinese ‘floating barrier’ in South China Sea
Reuters | Sep 24 2023

...Beijing seized the Scarborough Shoal in 2012 and forced fishermen from the Philippines to travel further for smaller catches.

Beijing allowed Filipino fishermen to return to the uninhabited shoal when bilateral relations were improving markedly under then-President Rodrigo Duterte. But tension has mounted again since his successor, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, took office last year.

Philippine coast guard and fisheries bureau personnel discovered the floating barrier, estimated at 300 m (1,000 feet) long, on a routine patrol on Friday near the shoal, locally known as Bajo de Masinloc, Tarriela said.

Three Chinese coast guard rigid-hull inflatable boats and a Chinese maritime militia service boat installed the barrier when the Philippine vessel arrived, he said.

Filipino fishermen say China typically installs such barriers when they monitor a large number of fishermen in the area, Tarriela said.

The Chinese boats issued 15 radio challenges and accused the Philippine ship and fishermen of violating international and China’s laws, before moving away “upon realizing the presence of media personnel onboard the (Filipino) vessel”, he said...

https://www.cnbc.com/2023/09/24/philippines-condemns-chinese-floating-barrier-in...

DW News @dwnews | 12:48 AM · Oct 12, 2023:

There's a new creditor in town and they're playing hardball.
The IMF has long been the world’s most powerful financial lender, but China is now lending billions to cash-strapped countries. Here's a quick explainer:

1:30 ( https://twitter.com/dwnews/status/1712329282805014603 )

China's Belt and Road Initiative: Kenya and a railway to nowhere (BBC)

The first section of Kenya's Chinese-built railway was opened with much fanfare in 2017 - but two years later work on the tracks stopped in the middle of the country and the master plan of linking it to other landlocked countries in East Africa seems to have derailed... There is no doubt the passenger side of the business is doing well and is fully booked, but it cannot pay back the loans on its own - and it was never meant to do so. This burden falls to the cargo side of the business - bringing inland the containers that arrive at Mombasa port. It was intended that they would reach Uganda, Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The problem is that they can go only go as far as the Kenyan town of Naivasha - 120km from Nairobi but still far from the Ugandan border - on the SGR. Most of the freight trains then return to Mombasa empty, a huge loss of potential income...

I travelled on the SGR from Nairobi to Mombasa and back just last week, and there's no doubt that the passenger side of the business is doing well. Like the passengers interviewed in the article we saw a lot of wildlife along the way. First class was moderately comfortable, economy class was distinctly uncomfortable - we tried both. However, despite seeing a few freight trains, we also saw long streams of heavy lorries plodding along the road which parallels the railway for much of the way. Until they make it economically attractive for businesses to shift their freight by train rather than road, the railway cannot be deemed a success.

https://chasfreeman.net/a-world-divided/

A World Divided
Remarks to the Cambridge Executive Leadership Programme

Ambassador Chas W. Freeman, Jr. (USFS, Ret.)
Visiting Scholar, Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University
By Video, 26 October 2023

Sometimes history is the product of strategic design, sometimes of miscalculations and blunders. The peace managed by the Concert of Europe was an artifact of statecraft. World War I was a mishap that ushered in almost a half century of ruinous turmoil. Bretton Woods and the post-World War II order were the creations of statesmen. Ours is an age of irrational antagonisms born of strategic misjudgments and bungling. It is off to an unfortunate start.

There is renewed warfare between great powers in Europe and open antagonism between the United States and China. It is pointless to ask who is to blame. Future generations of historians will render judgments on this that transcend our current passions. We live in the present and must look to the future. The international system we have known, in which China, America, and others cooperated and prospered, is disintegrating. The questions before us are: what new world is being born and how shall we as societies or individuals fare in it?...

Theresa Fallon @TheresaAFallon | 4:23 AM · Dec 3, 2023:
Director, Centre for Russia Europe Asia Studies(CREAS) NR Snr Fellow @ChicagoCouncil. Geopol,Energy. B4:Beijing,Moscow,London,Paris,Kyoto @ForeignPolicy

“Defaults by Chinese borrowers have surged to a record high since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, highlighting the depth of the country’s economic downturn and the obstacles to a full recovery. A total of 8.54mn people, most of them between the ages of 18 and 59, are officially blacklisted by authorities after missing payments on everything from home mortgages to business loans, according to local courts.” FT {Financial Times, London}

Screengrab ( https://twitter.com/TheresaAFallon/status/1731242655974048226/photo/1 )

Ray McGovern reflects on his Analysis Directorate's contributions to Kissinger and Nixon's opening to China, and how we have squandered the legacy of the Sino-Soviet split.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NVefJ_mApDc

Interpreting the Taiwan Elections: Democracy in the Shadow of Geopolitics

Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
8.06K subscribers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HCWSKDHbFsc

Started streaming 3 minutes ago
Taiwan’s most unpredictable election in two decades has been fought against a background of dangerous deterioration in the US–China relationship, making the outcome hugely consequential not just for the people of Taiwan, but for the entire world. But the competing binaries around which the campaign has been waged—democracy vs autocracy and war vs peace—may do more to obscure than clarify the meaning of the contest and its outcome.

Join the Quincy Institute for a discussion among three experts on Taiwanese politics and its position in US–China contention, offering a careful dissection of the election results and their significance. Shelley Rigger, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Dean of Faculty and Brown Professor of Asian Politics at Davidson College, will have just returned from Taiwan after monitoring the election on the ground. She will be joined by Steven M. Goldstein, an associate at the Fairback Center for Chinese Studies and director of the Taiwan Studies Workshop at Harvard University, and Michael D. Swaine, senior research fellow at the Quincy Institute. Kelley Beaucar Vlahos, Editorial Director of Responsible Statecraft and Senior Advisor at the Quincy Institute, will moderate the panel.

The conversation will take place on Wednesday, January 17th from 12:00-1:00 PM EST.

And another side of the coin. Staring down complete disaster.

Taiwan ELECTS Anti-China President
Breaking Points
1.16M subscribers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZ4VloUxVvg