De Chinese Wouden, vrijdag 3 februari: halfgeleiders, weekend, techwar
Voor je Chinavermaak zul je eerst wel terechtkunnen bij de vermeende Chinese spionageballon die boven het noorden van de VS zou hangen. Ik zou me vooral bezig houden met de verscheidenheid aan andere dingetjes in het nieuws. Het is weer bijna weekend, dus er zit een collectie achtergrondstukken en podcasts bij.
We openen nog altijd met halfgeleiders. Vandaag is er vooral aandacht voor Japan. Ook een mooie selectie citaten die helpen met de context. Onder de Techwar-sectie vraag ik aandacht voor wéér een anti-Amerikaans commentaar in het Volksdagblad in aanloop naar het bezoek van Blinken. Deze keer noemt men de Inflation Reduction Act bij naam en citeert Europese leiders om aan te tonen dat Amerikaanse bondgenoten niet mee willen doen met de zogenaamde Nieuwe Koude Oorlog van de VS.
Halfgeleiders 🇳🇱🍪
Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 says at Tuesday’s Politburo group study China must quicken pace of tech self-reliance to prevent being ‘strangled by foreign countries’ – SCMP
ASML en co. zijn juist bang op deze manier de Chinese markt te verliezen.
Japan talks: China’s Qín Gāng 秦刚 urges open tech ties and Taiwan caution in meeting with country’s top diplomat Hayashi Yoshimasa 林 芳正 – SCMP: ‘Qin called on Japan to “continue to uphold market principles and the spirit of freedom and openness to carry out economic, trade, scientific and technological cooperation with China” for safeguarding international trade rules and its own long-term interests, according to the Chinese foreign ministry.’
China’s economic coercion powerless versus alliances, says US ambassador to Tokyo Rahm Emanuel – Nikkei Asia: ‘Emanuel did not confirm whether Japan and the Netherlands have agreed to extend some export controls the U.S. adopted in October to their own companies, such as ASML Holding, Nikon and Tokyo Electron. “There hasn’t been any formal announcement,” he said.’
Japan and China agree to hold talks ‘at all levels’ to improve ties – Kyodo News: ‘The two also exchanged views on the war in Ukraine launched by Russia, the Japanese ministry said without elaboration.’
In de Japanese versie komt vrijhandel juist niet voor en gaat het allemaal over militaire zorgen van Tokyo: Senkaku/Diaoyutai, Taiwan en Oekraïne.
Hoe reageert China op chipboycot van Nederland? Ogen zijn gericht op nieuwe Chinese minister van Buitenlandse Zaken – EenVandaag kwam langs met de camera om te praten met mij over Qin Gang en ASML.
Biden’s chip battle with China picks up steam as allies buy in – Bloomberg Supply Lines Newsletter: ‘“Ultimately, the outcome sought is not necessarily decoupling but about political control,” said Hosuk Lee-Makiyama, a director at the European Centre for International Political Economy. “Export controls provide governments with not just emergency breaks, but first-hand data on technology transfers.”’
The EU will struggle to de-risk its trade with China – Alan Beattie for FT: ‘when a policy is more contentious and particularly affects one member state, EU processes are generally pushed aside in favour of national competence.’ ‘it was the Dutch, with their comparative lack of economic and diplomatic heft, in the negotiating room with the US, not the EU collectively.’
Watching China in Europe, February 2023 – Noah Barkin for GMFUS: ‘With his remarks, Breton gave the Dutch the European cover that they had sought. At the same time, with a few words, he nudged Europe closer to Washington’s vision for technological engagement with (some would say containment of) China.’
‘Some officials in Brussels are worried that neither Germany nor France has understood that economic security is likely to dominate the policy agenda in the coming years.’ ‘Efforts by The Hague to convince Berlin and other capitals to work together on a more unified response to US export controls have not yielded results’
Nederland en Europa 🇳🇱🇪🇺
Staatssecretaris Christophe van der Maat onderzoekt Chinese invloed bij bouwen pantserwagens in Friesland – RTL Nieuws 🇳🇱
UK and Australia launch pact against Chinese economic ‘coercion’ – POLITICO Europe 🇬🇧
Why Vladimir Putin is not a pariah in China – The Economist’s Chaguan: ‘Each night for almost a year, the main evening news has blamed the Ukraine conflict on America and the nato defence alliance’ 🇺🇦
CIA chief William Burns claims China’s Xi a little sobered by Ukraine war – Reuters
Liechtenstein returns US$11 million to Taiwan in Lafayette scandal case – Focus Taiwan 🇱🇮
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning’s Regular Press Conference on February 2, 2023 – Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China: ‘We have noted recent media reports on individual Western politicians’ public burning of copies of the Quran. The incidents shine a spotlight on the hypocrisy of some Western politicians who pride themselves on their respect for freedom of religious belief.’
Zeitentechwarwende ⏱️💽
阵营对抗没有前途,互利共赢人心所向(钟声) – 《人民日报》(2023年02月03日 第03版):“事实一再表明,美国只是把盟友当作棋子,盟友的利益必须为美国霸权私利让路。”“许多美国盟友认识到,冷战思维早已过时,跟随美国挑起“新冷战”不符合自身利益。”
Wéér een anti-Amerikaans commentaar in het Volksdagblad onder de gezaghebbende pennaam Zhong Sheng. Deze noemt de Inflation Reducation Act bij naam als het uiteenzet hoe de VS keer op keer bewijzen dat ze uit eigenbelang onrust veroorzaken en bondgenoten als speelstukken gebruikt. Daarna haalt het Scholz, Macron, Michel en anderen aan om te bewijzen dat veel Amerikaanse bondgenoten zich bewust worden dat het onmogelijk is Washington blind te volgen in een Nieuwe Koude Oorlog tegen de eigen belangen in.
Frankrijk en Duitsland steunen Europees Groene Industrieplan, ook Nederlands lijkt ermee te kunnen leven – De Volkskrant
Voorstel van Europese groene industrieplan van 250 miljard euro kritisch onthaald door veel lidstaten – VRT Nieuws
Europa mengt zich in groene subsidierace – met „aanzienlijke risico’s” – NRC
A free-for-all in national industrial policies is the wrong solution – Luis Garicanoa and Guy Verhofstadt for POLITICO Europe
The problem with European militaries’ Indo-Pacific push: The best way Europe can support the US Indo-Pacific strategy is by shoring up European security – Rupert Schulenburg for The Diplomat
Amerikanen krijgen toegang tot vier extra militaire bases in Filipijnen – NOS
VS streven naar ‘militaire ring’ langs de oostkust van China – NRC
China’s tech money is now radioactive: Washington is increasingly concerned about China poaching US technology – Foreign Policy
Cold-War mentality and bloc confrontation unpopular in Asia-Pacific, says Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson – Xinhua: ‘“NATO should deeply reflect on the role it has played in European security,” Mao said, adding that NATO has already disrupted Europe and should stop attempting to disrupt the Asia-Pacific region and the world.’
Weekend
Longreads en achtergrond
Chinakenner Ties Dams: „China was met Trump beter af dan met Biden” – FD
Verdeckte chinesische Behörden in Den Haag – DW 🇳🇱
Where does Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 go from here? A rocky couple of months are unlikely to shake the Chinese leader’s grip on power – Neil Thomas for ChinaFile
Lǐ Wénliàng 李文亮 : The man who was wrong to have been right – Geremie Barmé vertaalt zijn ‘zelfkritiek’, geschreven als straf.
Diversification isn’t enough to cure Europe’s economic dependence on China – MERICS
The risks of Russia’s growing dependence on the yuan – Alexandra Prokopenko for Carnegie
Bleak New World: American society in China’s official barrative – John S. Van Oudenaren for Jamestown China Brief
In Kazakhstan, Generation Z on alert over China – Berikbol Dukeyev for Jamestown China Brief
Podcasts
💡 Autocrats’ pact – The Economist Drum Tower met een paar harde waarheden voor mensen die wensdromen over Chinese ‘neutraliteit’ in Oekraïne. 🍎
Overige
China buitenland en defensie
Suspected Chinese spy balloon found over northern US – NBC News: ‘not unprecedented’ ‘the difference this time is the balloon is staying over the U.S. longer than usual.’
Antony Blinken to meet Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 in first visit to China by a Biden cabinet secretary – FT: ‘making him the first US secretary of state to meet the Chinese leader in nearly six years’
The US wants to set a ‘floor’ under its ties with China. Recent moves make that look increasingly unlikely – Bloomberg
India hikes defence budget 13% with an eye on China – AFP
China calls for multilateral lenders to ease Zambia’s debt burden – SCMP
China’s put-upon maritime neighbours are pushing back – The Economist’s Banyan: ‘None of the South-East Asian states wants to provoke China openly—that is not the asean way. But an increasingly steadfast spirit of resistance is a growing feature of their response, in various spheres, to Chinese assertiveness.’
China and the US are wooing Indonesia, and Beijing has the edge – The New York Times
China economie
China binnenland
China’s Covid deaths and severe cases down almost 90 per cent since infection peak, CDC report says – SCMP
Chinese police conclude missing teen Hú Xīnyǔ 胡鑫宇 took his own life – SCMP
Hong Kong
Taiwan buitenland en defensie
US general’s ‘gut’ feeling of war with China sparks alarm over Taiwan predictions – The Guardian
Taiwan’s Tsai Ing-wen 蔡英文 [Cài Yīngwén] welcomes retired US admiral Phil Davidson with NBR group for China talks – AP
Beijing ‘overreacting’ to ‘normal’ lawmaker exchanges, says Speaker You – Taipei Times
China urges further resumption of direct cross-Strait flights – Xinhua
China border controls can be discussed, says president Tsai – Taipei Times
St. Kitts and Nevis envoy vows support for Taiwan’s international inclusion – Focus Taiwan
Taiwan binnenland en economie
Advocacy group EDU accuses Singapore-based Sea’s Shopee of Chinese infiltration – Taipei Times
Amendment bill by former target, legislator Fàn Yún 范雲 (DPP), aims to declassify more White Terror files – Taipei Times