De Chinese Wouden, maandag 31 juli: Qin Gang, Japan
Er is nog geen echt nieuws over het lot van Qin Gang. Ik neem de ruimte om te openen met een serie relevant nieuws over Europa. Het lijkt erop dat ‘de-risking’ nu niet meer te stoppen is als woord om de herbalanceerdact in de betrekkingen met China te beschrijven. Alleen komen we nu bij de inkleuring van die term. Duidelijk is dat sommige lidstaten liever meer geld blijven verdienen in China.
Maar ook kun je niet ontkennen dat er economische principevragen zitten achter beslissingen welke maatregelen je steunt. Het beste voorbeeld hiervan zijn de voorstellen voor screening van investeringen in het buitenland. Nederland schijnt hier volgens eerdere berichtgeving wat minder happig op te zijn – ook al zit Den Haag wat betreft China-maatregelen in de Europese voorhoede.
Ook hebben we de jaarlijkse Japanse defensierapportage. Tokio is steeds actiever. China is niet blij, Taiwan wel. Er verschuiven grote dingen in de militaire oriëntatie van ‘pacifistisch’ Japan.
Nederland en Europa 🇳🇱🇪🇺
Rumblings in the EU ranks as ‘de-risking’ plan for China gains momentum – SCMP: ‘In Brussels, the economic security strategy is seen as the handiwork of Bjoern Seibert, the cabinet chief to von der Leyen, who diplomats and officials say is close to US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan.’
‘The consensus among a dozen business figures, diplomats and officials spoken to in recent weeks is that events in Brussels and Berlin have set a process in motion. It is impossible now to put the genie back in the bottle, even if nobody is sure where exactly the de-risking agenda will end up.’
‘Europe’s omnicrisis means non-neighbourhood issues – such as China – are often the first to be sacrificed during important meetings.’ 🇪🇺
Finance minister Le Maire says France wants better China access, not decoupling – Reuters 🇫🇷
China hopes France can help take heat out of relations with EU – Reuters 🇫🇷
Italy defence minister: joining China’s Belt and Road was ‘atrocious’ decision – Reuters 🇮🇹
Italië wil uit nieuwe zijderoute stappen – BNR 🇮🇹
Pekings Einflussnahme: Verfassungsschutz warnt vor bestimmten Kontakten nach China – Tagesspiegel: „Im Fokus der Sicherheitsbehörde ist die Internationale Abteilung des Zentralkomitees der Kommunistischen Partei Chinas (IDCPC).“ 🇩🇪
A separate report published by Berlin earlier this month included China on a list of countries ‘with massive spying activities’ in Germany – Bloomberg
Duitsland waarschuwt voor spionerende Chinese studenten – Trouw 🇩🇪
Net als de AIVD- en MIVD-jaarverslagen in Nederland een tijdje terug zal de rapport ook wel tot onvrede in Peking leiden. Peking beschuldigt juist de ‘hypocriete’ VS van inmenging en kan dit niet gebruiken voor China’s imago in de niet-Westerse wereld.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has confirmed his attendance at China’s upcoming infrastructure summit, deterring European diplomats that Chinese leader Xi Jinping is looking to win over – WSJ: ‘If European countries once flirted with joining Belt and Road, they are now competing with it.’ 🇪🇺
Chinese companies are canceling plans for Swiss listings – Nikkei Asia 🇨🇭
‘Great lunch with the @EP_ForeignAff delegation to #Taiwan here in our ROC Legislative Yuan. We discussed pivotal global issues such as trade, security, and the concept of "de-risking."’ – 江啟臣|JOHNNY CHIANG, Twitter 🇪🇺
Taiwan donates US$4m for projects and services in Ukraine – Taipei Times 🇺🇦
Qin Gang 秦刚
China’s Wáng Yì 王毅 makes first statement after reappointment as foreign minister – Reuters
Fog around Qín Gāng 秦刚’s exit signals China’s Communist Party yet to decide fate, analysts say – SCMP
Stony silence over Qin Gang saga does China’s reputation no favours – Wang Xiangwei for SCMP
秦刚之后 曾为外长热门人选的乐玉成也被免职 – RFA
Japan 🇯🇵🗾
China-Taiwan military balance ‘rapidly tilting’ toward Beijing, according to Japan’s annual defence report – Kyodo News
Japan expressed serious concern over joint exercises between China and Russia in its annual defence report, calling the military drills clear and deliberate provocations – Bloomberg
Japan welcomes thaw with South Korea in gloomy annual security assessment – Reuters
China hits out at Japan’s ‘erroneous’ defence white paper – SCMP
Japan seeks to ease arms export rules in bid to be ‘good actor’ in Ukraine war – SCMP
Japan and India vow to promote free and open Indo-Pacific amid China’s rise – Kyodo News
China beïnvloeding
TikTok has pushed Chinese propaganda ads to millions across Europe – Forbes 🇪🇺
How China Trolls Flooded Twitter: Beijing has learned to use Russian-style disinformation – Bethany Allen-Ebrahimian for Foreign Policy
UK govt has ‘completely inadequate response’ to China’s spying activities, says parliamentary body – The Straits Times
Solomon Islands newspaper promised to ‘promote China’ in return for funding – OCCRP
Tech War 💽💥
France’s mining group Eramet blames lack of EU funds for deeper partnership with Chinese – FT
Bosch boss urges Europe to be more competitive and worry less about China – FT
Chinese local governments roll out the red carpet for Big Tech firms as Beijing shifts stance – SCMP
Huawei’s Android and Linux alternatives get boost from Shenzhen as China continues to wean itself off foreign tech – SCMP
9 Chinese firms busted for illegally poaching Taiwanese high-tech talent - Focus Taiwan
TSMC opens new global R&D centre, in Hsinchu – Taipei Times
Europe’s car and chemical makers are at risk of losing competitiveness to China and the US – Bloomberg
Kantelpunt 🌏⏱️
Macron wil een stabiel Nieuw-Caledonië om macht in Indo-Pacific te bestendigen – NRC
China and Russia warships sail through the Soya Strait between Hokkaido and Sakhalin – Kyodo News
Overige
China buitenland en defensie
💡 China accused of using ‘wrecking tactics’ at climate talks – FT: ‘A participant in the discussions described China’s stance, backed by Saudi Arabia, as “stunning” and “increasingly obstructive”.’
‘One climate expert familiar with China’s climate policy team suggested Beijing might be prioritising discussions with the US over the G20.’
Commentaar: (i) voor Peking gaat nationaal partijstaatbelang boven alles, (ii) China is altijd comfortabeler als het in bilateraal overleg zijn gewicht kan gebruiken dan bij multilateraal overleg, waar het coalities tegenover zich kan vinden, en (iii) China ziet zichzelf nog als ontwikkelingsland en vindt dat vooral het Westen moet opdraaien voor klimaatmaatregelen, zonder dat die maatregelen China raken.
US hunts Chinese malware that could disrupt American military operations – The New York Times: ‘The Biden administration is hunting for malicious computer code it believes China has hidden deep inside the networks controlling power grids, communications systems and water supplies that feed military bases’
China’s Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 boosts belt and road in talks with leaders of Indonesia, Guyana, and Georgia – SCMP
Chinese coastguard ships sent on fisheries patrol mission to the northern Pacific – SCMP
China to conduct military training in disputed part of South China Sea – Reuters
Rights lawyer Lú Sīwèi 卢思位, who was fleeing China, has been arrested in neighbouring Laos – AP
China economie
China’s free-trade zones still tasked with ‘leading goose’ role to drive economic development, boost foreign investor ties – SCMP
Dat China nog altijd – bijna vijftig jaar na het begin van de hervormingen – speciale economische zone’s nodig heeft, is niet iets om trots op te zijn: het wijst op het falen van landsbrede systeemhervormingen.
Deflation is curbing China’s economic rise: The world’s second-biggest economy will become a more distant second this year – The Economist
White-collar wage cuts in China fuel deflation risks and hurt consumption – Reuters
China’s graduates unconvinced by calls to toil in countryside – The Guardian: ‘While graduates now joke online that their degrees are worthless, the government is trying to push the message that China’s gen Z are being too picky.’
China eases residential registration rules to boost growth – Nikkei Asia
Zulke hervormingen worden vaak aangekondigd, maar vallen net zo vaak tegen. Protest en tegenwerking zijn te sterk.
China binnenland
Chinese anti-corruption investigators target top Rocket Force generals, sources say – SCMP
China’s military has launched a corruption inquiry linked to hardware procurement and is asking the public to come forward with tips – Bloomberg
China’s scrutiny of the expert-network firms that investors rely on for information about the country began much earlier than is commonly thought – WSJ: ‘Last autumn, in a previously unreported investigation, national-security agents showed up at some of those firms looking to track down leaks around China's highly sensitive Covid policies and vaccine strategy.’
‘Rainbow Hunters’ target LGBTQ Chinese students: Crackdowns against gender and sexual minorities are terrifying activists – Foreign Policy: ‘nine former and current students from five Chinese universities, some of whom wished not to be quoted, told Foreign Policy that student-led LGBTQ groups have been under immense pressure for years.’
Xi Focus: Key takeaways from Xí Jìnpíng 习近平’s diplomacy at Chengdu FISU World University Games – Xinhua
China’s Poyang Lake marks earliest dry season on record, sparking drought concerns – SCMP
Northern China prepares for Doksuri floods, Beijing residents told to stay indoors – Reuters
Hong Kong
Protestlied Hongkong mag niet worden verboden, zoals de regering (en China) wil – de Volkskrant
Taiwan buitenland en defensie
Cabinet proposes 7.5 percent increase to NT$440bn [€12.8b] for defence – Taipei Times
Army skipped required tests for sniper rifle deals – Taipei Times
US to provide Taiwan with US$345mn in weapons from its stockpiles for first time – FT: ‘the first tranche of an annual $1bn “presidential drawdown authority” Congress approved last year’
Two coast guard vessels to be donated to Tuvalu – Taipei Times
Taiwan verkiezingen
DPP councillors urge Control Yuan to probe Ko Wen-je 柯文哲 [Kē Wénzhé] (TPP)’s online ‘KP Show’ as illegal fundraiser – Taipei Times
KMT presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih 侯友宜 [Hóu Yǒuyí] to depart for Japan trip Monday – Focus Taiwan
蔣絜安陷雙論文危機請辭黨務主管 賴清德重申學倫高標準不變 – Mirror Media
Taiwan binnenland en economie
Taiwan returns to growth in Q2 on strong domestic demand, but exports weak – Reuters
Legislature passes revisions to curb sexual harassment – Taipei Times