De Chinese Wouden, vrijdag 15 november: onrust, APEC
Woensdag stond er in de nieuwsbrief al nieuws over de man die in het zuid-Chinese Zhuhai met zijn auto op mensen inreed bij een sportcomplex. Nu er tenminste 35 doden zijn, is de omvang van de tragedie duidelijk. Er zijn nog meer mensen gewond. Het is buitengewoon triest. Ook is duidelijk hoe gevoelig dit onderwerp is in China.
De bloemen en mementos die geschokte omwonende achterlaten bij het stadion worden onmiddellijk weggehaald. Ook online is er veel censuur. Dit dreigt de Chinese ambtenaren ongevoelig te doen lijken terwijl er oprechte schok en verdriet heerst over deze afschuwelijke daad.
Helaas overheerst de angst van de Partij voor onrust en negatieve berichtgeving. De nadruk ligt op daadkracht. Xi Jinping heeft instructies gegeven. Het partijcomité van het politieministerie kwam bijeen om deze belangrijke woorden te bestuderen. De politie verhoogt haar inspanningen om de orde te bewaren en ‘tegenstellingen’ onder de massa te bestrijden.
Want er zijn meer berichten over spanningen in de samenleving. De teleurstellingen in de minder florissante economische omstandigheden zouden ook bij andere incidenten een rol spelen. Er waren meer gewelddadige aanvallen dit jaar. Natuurlijk is men ook bang voor copycats. Maar duidelijk is dat vanuit Peking bezien de incidenten niet alleen erg zijn voor de betroffen mensen, maar dat het natuurlijk nog erger natuurlijk is de gebeurtenissen de Partij in een kwaad daglicht zouden kunnen stellen.
Nederland en Europa 🇳🇱🇪🇺
China roept provincie Zuid-Holland op matje om afbouw relatie [met provincie Hebei] – Omroep West: „Deze houding leverde vragen op bij de Chinese ambassade in Den Haag: ‘Daarom ben ik op eigen initiatief naar ambassadeur Tan Jian gegaan om een toelichting te geven’, zegt gedeputeerde Van Leeuwen.” 🇳🇱
Dan klopt de kop dus niet.
Opinie: De onderwijsbezuinigingen zijn een symptoom van Nederlands geopolitieke nonchalance – Remco Breuker en Casper Wits in de Volkskrant 🇳🇱
Motie van het lid Paternotte c.s. – Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (D66, GroenLinks-PvdA, CDA, VVD, SGP): „verzoekt het kabinet te pleiten voor het starten van officiële onderhandelingen over een investeringsovereenkomst tussen Taiwan en (een kopgroep van) Europese landen” 🇳🇱
Motie van het lid Van der Werf c.s. – Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal (D66, CDA, VVD): „verzoekt de regering bij de uitwerking van de nationale grondstoffenstrategie specifieke maatregelen te formuleren om zo snel en zo veel mogelijk onafhankelijk te worden van de levering van Chinese kritieke grondstoffen voor de defensie-industrie” 🇳🇱
Interview Wopke Hoekstra: „China wil naar de maan, dan kunnen ze ook meer doen voor het klimaat” – FD 🇪🇺
Taiwan defence minister Wellington Koo 顧立雄 (DPP) mum on Ukraine missile gift and pending arms sales – Focus Taiwan: ‘Forbes, citing former Pentagon official Tony Hu, reported on Tuesday that Taiwan has donated its surplus HAWK surface-to-air missile batteries to the Ukrainian air force.’ 🇺🇦
Taiwan may have rearmed Ukraine’s air defence force – Forbes: ‘Hu’s comments to YouTube channel RJ War Room seem to confirm reporting from 2023 hinting at a U.S.-brokered air-defense deal between Taiwan and Ukraine.’ 🇺🇦
Mandelson’s China stance makes him bad choice for US ambassador, say critics – The Guardian 🇬🇧
Top Russian official Shoigu visits Zhuhai air show on final trade day – Reuters 🇷🇺
China and Russia to advance law-enforcement, security cooperation – Xinhua 🇷🇺
onrust binnenland
Hoe China een aanslag met 35 doden razendsnel uit het geheugen wist – NU+
Zhuhai car attack: China clears memorial as government scrambles to respond – Reuters: ‘bouquets were being immediately removed by security personnel deployed there, sometimes even before a person was able to put them on the ground.’
Residents in China’s Zhuhai city reel from deadly car rampage – The Straits Times: ‘Residents visited hospitals and blood donation vans to donate blood to help the injured shortly after the attack, local media reported.’
As China mourns, some question delay in release of information about deadly car attack – The Guardian
An effort to tamp down emotions in Zhuhai — which saw 35 people killed by a motorist — risks making Communist Party officials appear unfeeling – Bloomberg: ‘Xi urged officials up and down the country to step up efforts to prevent attacks’
China vows to tackle ‘risks at source’ after deadly car-ramming attack – Nikkei Asia
Safety and educational videos resurface online in China after deadly car attack – Reuters: ‘an instructor demonstrating to children how to avoid being rammed by a car.’
Chinese police enhance prevention measures against extreme cases – Xinhua: ‘The ministry called for efforts to further enhance patrols and monitoring of densely populated areas and other key locations to effectively deter potential crimes and deal with violations.’
China’s Ministry of Public Security urges to maximise resolution of contradictions and issues at grassroots level – The Global Times: ‘The ministry held an expanded meeting of its Party committee in Beijing on Wednesday to convey and study the important instruction made by Chinese President Xi Jinping on the incident’
China battles rare wave of violent crime as economic woes bite – AFP: ‘The country has experienced a spate of violent attacks in 2024, challenging Beijing’s proud reputation for public order’
China’s gun and explosive-related crimes drop 25.8 pct year on year – Xinhua
Officiële cijfers zijn waarschijnlijk te laag.
Handel 🚗🇪🇺
Chinese EV makers’ go-global drive hits bumps amid Beijing’s warning and failed deals – SCMP: ‘after Beijing warned them not to invest in certain markets and a battery maker’s failed US$4 billion plan for production in Germany provided a bitter lesson.’
Volkswagen and Rivian named leaders for their multibillion-dollar joint venture and showcased a prototype electric vehicle – Bloomberg 🇩🇪🇺🇸
China battery giant CATL says it would build US plant if Trump allows it – Reuters 🇺🇸
China’s Geely 吉利 to merge Lynk 领克 and Zeekr 极氪 brands amid fierce EV battle – Nikkei Asia
China’s ‘iPhone city’ Zhengzhou reborn as EV production hub – Nikkei Asia
Europese auto-industrie wacht bevreesd op Trumps tariefmuur – FD 🇪🇺
Trump’s tariff war is imminent, Macron and Draghi warn Europe – POLITICO Europe: ‘The French president said Trump could be out to “force the Europeans to separate faster from China”’ 🇪🇺
Tech War 💽💥
Gekelderde beurskoers of niet, ASML ziet toekomst nog net zo zonnig in als altijd – de Volkskrant 🇳🇱
ASML CEO says AI boom benefits the company – Reuters 🇳🇱
ASML sees growth continuing through 2030 on AI demand – Reuters 🇳🇱
Key iPhone assembler Hon Hai 鴻海 reports a stronger-than-expected quarterly profit on persistent demand for servers powering AI applications – Bloomberg 🇹🇼
German lithium plant hopes to turbo-charge Europe’s EV makers – AFP: ‘an Australian firm says it can help, with a refinery in Germany set to extract the sought-after mineral from briny underground water deep below a town near the French border.’ 🇩🇪🇪🇺
Europe’s deep tech companies are struggling, and potential saviours are hard to find – Bloomberg: ‘German electric aircraft maker Lilium […] was forced to file for insolvency after the German government denied it a guarantee on a €50 million loan.’ ‘You can almost hear Mario Draghi whispering,“I told you so” from the sidelines.’ 🇩🇪🇪🇺
Heb je een keer een mogelijke kampioen…
Rio Tinto’s €2.55 billion project in Serbia has triggered protests, but President Aleksandar Vučić sees it as critical to strengthening ties with Europe – Bloomberg 🇷🇸🇪🇺
Olympus to assemble endoscopes in China as hospitals ‘buy Chinese’ – Nikkei Asia
Ook een probleem voor Philips.
Siemens to ‘defend market share’ in China, says CEO Busch: German industry giant secures stake in China despite Berlin derisking push – Nikkei Asia 🇩🇪
Zuid-Korea en Taiwan zetten zich schrap voor Trumps heffingen op chips – NRC 🇰🇷🇹🇼
TSMC 台積電 extends dominance of semiconductors with 56% share of global lithography systems – SCMP
Hon Hai 鴻海 (Foxconn) to invest more in US with AI and EVs in focus – Focus Taiwan: ‘will aim to develop more AI applications, while it is expanding its EV operations in Ohio’ 🇺🇸
China’s widebody C929 ambitions could be lifted by US and European plane-part giants – SCMP 🇪🇺🇺🇸
China’s space ambitions face ‘huge test’ from Musk presence in Trump White House – SCMP 🇺🇸
Embraer kijkt meer naar China – Up in the Sky 🇧🇷
APEC-top Peru 🏔️🇵🇪
Biden and China’s Xi to meet on Saturday in Peru, US officials say – Reuters 🇺🇸
Will Xi’s final summit with Biden ease US-China anxiety before next Trump presidency? – SCMP 🇺🇸
China’s Xi arrives in Lima for APEC, to open Pacific megaport – Reuters 🇨🇳
Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 says his visit to take China-Peru comprehensive strategic partnership to new level – Xinhua 🇨🇳
Urgent: Xi calls for open Asia-Pacific economy – Xinhua 🇨🇳
Ex-Vice Premier Lin Hsin-i 林信義 arrives in Peru for APEC summit – Focus Taiwan: ‘Taiwanese presidents have been unable to attend the forum’s leaders’ summit — even though Taiwan is a full APEC member — due to pressure from China’
Taiwan feels APEC pinch as host Peru welcomes Xi and Chinese megaport – Nikkei Asia 🇵🇪
South America’s ‘made in China’ megaport prepares to transform trade – FT: ‘Peruvian officials argue the port, built by Cosco with local miner Volcan, will transform Peru — a big producer of copper and fruit — into the Singapore of South America, and will upend maritime trade along the continent’s Pacific coast as it can accommodate larger vessels in its deep waters.’ 🇵🇪
Kantelpunt 🌏⏱️
NAVO-kopstuk admiraal Rob Bauer ziet machtsstrijd VS-China in oorlog Oekraïne – ANP: „De NAVO kijkt al langer voorzichtig richting China en zal dat mogelijk des te meer doen nu NAVO-criticus Donald Trump terugkeert in het Witte Huis.”
Speech NATO Admiral Rob Bauer, Princess Beatrix Lecture – Studio Europa Maastricht: ‘There is a crucial player in all this, and that is China. NATO is deeply concerned about the role that China plays in international security. China has become a decisive enabler of Russia’s war against Ukraine. Without China, Russia would not be able to continue.’
‘We thought we had a deal with Gazprom… but we actually had a deal with Putin. Same goes for Chinese owned infrastructure and goods: we actually have a deal with Xi.’
Ik snap niet helemaal de keuze om Stefan Zweigs beschrijving van de euforie en saamhorigheid in Wenen bij de uitbraak van de Eerste Wereldoorlog aan te halen als voorbeeld voor onze steun voor Oekraïne.
Europa wil zelf weer sterk worden in de ruimte, helemaal met Trump en Musk aan de macht – NRC: „Willen we echt dat onze militaire veiligheid in handen is van Elon Musk?” 🇪🇺
Trump: van toevalstreffer tot tijdperk – Luuk van Middelaar in NRC: „Nu al gaat de prijs voor onze militaire afhankelijkheid van de VS omhoog.” 🇪🇺🇺🇸
US aircraft carrier joins military drills with South Korea and Japan – Reuters 🇺🇸🇰🇷🇯🇵
Trump’s election victory is prompting South Korea to rethink the possibility of sending weapons directly to Ukraine – Bloomberg 🇰🇷🇺🇦
BRICS offered Turkey partner country status, Turkish trade minister says – Reuters 🇹🇷
Xinhua Headlines: Think tank report says Chinese modernisation pioneers new model for human advancement – Xinhua: ‘It not only delivers happiness and wellbeing to the Chinese people, but also actively advances common prosperity of the world.’
全文丨人类文明新形态的世界意义 – 新华社研究院：“中国式现代化，这一人类文明史上的新篇章，是中国强国建设、民族复兴的康庄大道，也是中国谋求人类进步、共筑世界大同梦想的必由之路，正悄然而深刻地改写着世界历史的轨迹。”
Weekend 🏖️📚
Longreads en achtergrond
Samenwerken met het Vaticaan is voor China toch een veiliger optie – Trouw: „Het Vaticaan en Beijing blijven stappen zetten om de verdeelde Chinese katholieke gemeenschap te verenigen. Hoe wenselijk is dat voor rooms-katholieken in China?” 🇻🇦
In China’s regimented society, youth find release at underground raves – AP
Manufacturing fetishism is destined to fail – Martin Wolf in FT
The inner workings of a Chinese embassy – Zhuoran Li for The Diplomat
Inside Goldman Sachs’ years-long power struggle over its China venture – FT: ‘the saga demonstrates the difficulty, even for large global corporations, of operating in China, especially when the counterparty has such deep connections to the highest levels of the ruling party.’
Podcasts
How China might view a second Trump administration: A conversation with Mr Rick Waters – CSIS ChinaPower Podcast 🍎
The ideology behind Xi Jinping’s China – FT Rachman Review with Kevin Rudd 🍎
Geweldig boek.
The Centre of the Vortex: Survivors’ notes from Hong Kong writers – The Little Red Podcast 🍎
Overige
China buitenland en defensie
Zuid-Chinese Zee
South China Sea: Beijing updates Sansha city map amid flaring tensions over disputed islands – SCMP: ‘The city comprises two disputed island chains – the Paracels and the Spratlys, known respectively as the Xisha and Nansha Islands in Chinese – and an undersea atoll.’ 🇵🇭
Chinese military conducts sea and air patrol around shoal amid tension with Philippines – SCMP 🇵🇭
China’s coastguard circles Scarborough Shoal after Philippines stakes its legislative claim – SCMP 🇵🇭
Jakarta seeks to contain fallout from South China Sea agreement with Beijing – Benar News: ‘This “understanding” or agreement [between Prabowo and Xi] compromised Indonesia’s territorial and maritime rights, most regional experts said.’ 🇮🇩
Indonesian president says he will safeguard sovereignty in South China Sea – Reuters 🇮🇩
Malaysia to protest to Philippines over its new maritime laws – Reuters 🇲🇾🇵🇭
Verenigde Staten 🇺🇸
China to host leaders of international economic bodies to brief them on country’s economic development as global uncertainties mount – SCMP: ‘It would represent an update of the annual 1+6 round-table mechanism, which dates back to 2016.’ 🇺🇸
China arms itself for potential trade war with Donald Trump – FT: ‘Beijing has introduced sweeping new laws over the past eight years that allow it to blacklist foreign companies, impose its own sanctions and cut American access to crucial supply chains.’ 🇺🇸
China wields new powers as it confronts the prospect of another trade conflict with the US – Bloomberg 🇺🇸
Het toekomstige buitenland-team van Donald Trump: anti-Chinees en pro-Israëlisch – NRC: „De vraag is hoeveel waarde je aan vroegere uitlatingen en het stemgedrag van sommige kandidaats-bewindslieden mag hechten.” 🇺🇸
Trumps nieuwe buitenlandteam: een grote afkeer van China en weinig warmte voor Oekraïne en de Navo – de Volkskrant: „In Rubio’s wereldbeeld zijn de VS en China met elkaar verwikkeld in een zero-sum game.” 🇺🇸
Trump set to deepen tech Cold War with China – The Washington Post: ‘Nikakhtar predicts the new administration will be disposed to introduce new rules to further restrict U.S. exports of advanced technologies to China’ 🇺🇸
Donald Trump’s China policy could pit deal makers against ideologues, analysts say – SCMP 🇺🇸
Will Trump take the Musk path or the Rubio path on Taiwan? – Lev Nachman for Nikkei Asia 🇺🇸
US-China relations will depend on which Trump shows up – Evan Medeiros for FT 🇺🇸
Rubio pick signals a Trump China policy that could go beyond tariffs – Reuters 🇺🇸
Hoe meer ik lees over hoe het eraan toeging in het Witte Huis onder Trump, hoe meer ik denk dat we niet te moeilijke moeten denken. Trump is een simpele man die niet veel nadenkt.
Investigation into Chinese telecommunications hacking reveals ‘broad and significant’ spying effort, FBI says – AP: ‘aimed at stealing information from Americans who work in government and politics’ 🇺🇸
China-linked hackers stole surveillance data from telecom companies, US says – Reuters: ‘agencies said the hackers also copied “certain information that was subject to U.S. law enforcement requests pursuant to court orders.”’ 🇺🇸
US lawmaker introduces legislation to revoke China’s trade status – SCMP 🇺🇸
overige
Chinese envoy to UN urges Israel to stop using Gaza humanitarian assistance as bargaining chip – Xinhua: ‘The biggest challenge in scaling up humanitarian assistance “does not lie in the shortage of humanitarian supplies, but lies in the man-made restrictions on humanitarian access,” said Fu’ 🇮🇱🇵🇸
Chinese vice premier Dīng Xuēxiáng 丁薛祥 calls for more international cooperation on climate change adaptation for islands – Xinhua 🇦🇿
Chinese vice premier Dīng Xuēxiáng 丁薛祥 meets with Azerbaijani president Aliyev – Xinhua 🇦🇿
Canadian indigenous groups seek resource deals with China despite federal security fears – FT: ‘China has spotted an opportunity in the sometimes fraught relations between Canada’s national and provincial governments and indigenous groups.’ 🇨🇦
Beijing is key to Brazil’s grand economic plans, but Trump’s aggressive stance on China could thwart that – Bloomberg 🇧🇷
Chinese hackers target Tibetan websites in malware attack, cybersecurity group says – AP: ‘appears geared toward obtaining access to the computers of people visiting to obtain information on them and their activities’
Cold War bomber enhances China’s ability to strike US bases – Reuters: ‘The Taiwanese and Japanese militaries have reported that H-6 bombers have been frequently deployed on flights near their airspace in recent years.’
China economie
China sets yuan reference rate to 14-month low as Trump win piles on the pressure – SCMP
China borrows almost as cheaply as US in return to dollar bond market – FT
China’s job market braces for record number of fresh graduates next year – SCMP
BNP lays off a dozen China dealmakers amid fee plunge – Reuters 🇫🇷
China’s hog farms move south – Dim Sums
China binnenland
Chinese social media reels over young woman’s illegal surrogacy case – Reuters
Chinese city Guangzhou still officially in summer as 30-year heat record broken – The Guardian
Hong Kong
Head of Hong Kong’s Democratic Party says members have faced harassment in run-up to internal election – HKFP: ‘he believed the messages were part of an attempt to dissuade people from running’
Hongkonger charged with sedition under Article 23 security law over ‘seditious’ social media posts – HKFP: ‘The statement said the posts incited “hatred towards the Central Authorities and the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region as well as inciting violence.”’
Man charged with insulting China’s national anthem during World Cup qualifier in Hong Kong – HKFP
Hong Kong re-numbers lamp posts with inadvertent reference to date of Tiananmen crackdown – HKFP
Taiwan buitenland en defensie
Taiwan should raise US purchases to address trade issues, Central Bank suggests – Focus Taiwan: ‘To narrow the trade surplus, the bank suggested increasing purchases of energy, farming produce and military products from the U.S.’ 🇺🇸
Taiwan central bank chief doubts Trump administration will penalise Taiwan – Reuters: ‘given the island’s central role in the semiconductor industry.’ 🇺🇸
Premier promotes US ties – Taipei Times 🇺🇸
Taiwan has no concrete arms shopping list for Trump but keen to discuss, Taiwan security officials say – Reuters 🇺🇸
Former Taiwan president Tsai Ing-wen 蔡英文 (DPP) to visit Canada next week, sources say – Reuters: ‘planning to visit Nova Scotia and deliver a speech at a Halifax International Security Forum conference which begins on Nov. 22’ 🇨🇦
China to court G20 nations to bypass US-led sanctions in potential Taiwan conflict, report says – SCMP 🇨🇳
MAC criticises retired naval officer for ‘praising’ China military in Zhuhai – Focus Taiwan 🇨🇳
[China’s] aviation and defence strength solid protection for Taiwan compatriots, spokesperson says – Xinhua 🇨🇳
Palau president wins second term, will seek to diversify tiny Taiwan ally’s economy – Reuters 🇵🇼
Taiwan binnenland en economie
DPP lawmakers call out KMT legislator Weng Hsiao-ling 翁曉玲’s proposal as treasonous – Taipei Times: ‘propose removing […] ban on active-duty military personnel and retired military personnel […] engaging in […] behaviors that recognize China’s political authority.’
KMT bill could shut down courts, TPP legislator writes – Taipei Times: ‘proposed by KMT Legislator Weng Hsiao-ling (翁曉玲)’ ‘would require 10 justices to agree on a ruling, which would be difficult to meet if the legislature does not ratify judicial nominees.’
KMT legislator Wang Hung-wei 王鴻薇 apologises to female doctors she accused of being escorts – Taipei Times: ‘but would not apologize to former Ministry of Health and Welfare officials who were pictured with them.’
Tuna giant FCF in hot water again over environmental and human rights violations – The News Lens
Flights, trains, and ferry services in Taiwan affected by Typhoon Usagi – Focus Taiwan