The Taiwan Ministry of National Defence said it monitored the situation with its intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems….reports Asian Lite News
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence (MND) detected seven Chinese military aircraft, six naval vessels, and one balloon around Taiwan between 9 am (local time) on Sunday to 6 am (local time) on Monday, Taiwan News reported.
According to Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence, one of the seven People’s Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, entered the southwest air defence identification zone (ADIZ). The aircraft was identified as an unmanned aerial vehicle that came within 170 km (92 NM) of Eluanbi, Taiwan News reported.
In a post on X, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence stated, “7 PLA aircraft and 6 PLAN vessels around Taiwan were detected until 06:00 (UTC+8) today. one of the aircraft crossed the median line of the Taiwan Strait and entered Taiwan’s SW ADIZ. #ROCArmedForces have monitored the situation and tasked appropriate forces to respond.”
The Taiwan Ministry of National Defence said it monitored the situation with its intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems. In response, Taiwan’s MND said it scrambled combat patrol aircraft, dispatched naval vessels and deployed land-based air defence missile systems.
Furthermore, the MND said the Chinese balloon was detected 125 km (68 NM) southwest of Taichung at an altitude of 6,700 m (22,000 feet) at 7:27 pm (local time) on Sunday, Taiwan News reported.
The balloon flew in an easterly direction over northern Taiwan and disappeared at 8:52 pm (local time) on Sunday over the northern end of Taiwan’s central mountain range, the report said. So far in January, Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence has detected 282 Chinese military aircraft and 128 naval vessels.
Since 2020, China has increased the use of “gray zone tactics” in the form of deployment of military aircraft and naval vessels over the median line and inside Taiwan’s ADIZ.
According to Taiwan News report, gray zone tactics are defined as “an effort or series of efforts beyond steady-state deterrence and assurance that attempts to achieve one’s security objectives without resorting to direct and sizable use of force, according to CSIS. (ANI)
India shares 3,488 Km of border with China that runs along the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh….reports Asian Lite News
While maintaining that the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) remains stable ‘but sensitive’, Chief of Army Staff General Manoj Pande on Monday said that in the last one year there haven’t had any more friction areas between India and China.
In an interview with ANI, the Chief of Army Staff said that a total of 20 senior higher military commander meetings and 14 meetings of Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on China-India Border Affairs have taken place since April 2020.
“Situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) remains stable but is sensitive. In the last one year or thereabouts, we haven’t had any more friction areas in this. In terms of our efforts at resolution, our talks and dialogue both at the military level as well as the diplomatic level continue with the adversary,” General Pande said.
He said, “We have had total of 20 senior higher military commander level meetings and 14 WMCC meetings since April 2020. So the means of these talks, we’re hopeful that we’ll find a resolution.”
India shares 3,488 Km of border with China that runs along the states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
Since May 2020, when the Chinese troops tried to aggressively change the status quo on LAC in eastern Ladakh, both sides have been deployed in forward positions near Patrolling Point 15, which emerged as a friction point in the wake of the Galwan clash.
Briefing about the Army’s preparedness levels along the northern border, General Pande said, “Our deployment remains robust as well as balanced and we are also maintaining adequate reserves to be able to deal with any contingencies.”
“While this is happening, we are also focussing on our capability development in these areas in terms of infusion of technology, modernisation, inducting better systems such as our protected vehicles, surveillance drones, better communication radio sets etc. Simultaneously, our effort and focus are also being on infrastructure development. Be it the habitat, forward connectivities to the LAC, or strategic road connectivity…it also includes extending power supply to our forward troops, improving communication in terms of 5G communication to our troops deployed in forward areas,” the Army chief said.
“We are also working alongside other government agencies, local administration and the local population to make sure that our preparedness levels along the LAC always remain high,” he added. (ANI)
Hopes of future Chinese influence in the Middle East are being dashed by the conflict between Israel and Hamas….reports Asian Lite News
China proclaims itself to be a responsible global player. The truth is, despite insistent proclamations of neutrality, it is biased in the way it relates to international crises such as the current Israel-Hamas conflict. Furthermore, this war is exposing the self- interested, mercantile qualities that China brings to all its foreign relations.
China is charting a careful path, simultaneously seeking to undermine the USA and curry favour with Arab states. Its risk-avoidance strategy can perhaps best be described as anti-Western neutrality. Approximately one million Chinese work in the Middle East, while the majority of China’s oil imports originate from the Middle East – 87.5 million tonnes in 2022, with Saudi Arabia being the largest supplier of crude.
On January, 26-27, Foreign Minister Wang Yi met US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan in Bangkok. China’s readout briefly stated that regional issues like the Middle East were “discussed”. That was the limit of it. No mention of the Red Sea or Gaza.
In contrast, the USA said it attempted to persuade Beijing to pressure Iran to stop Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping. According to a White House official, China agreed to “raise this with the Iranians.” Nonetheless, an American official pondered, whether China “chooses to use that leverage in that way, I think that remains to be seen”.
China has done nothing to curb North Korea’s nuclear aspirations, plus it has offered tacit support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Relying on China for anything substantive is a vain hope. China mediated a diplomatic deal between Saudi Arabia and Iran in March 2023, but Beijing has no real leverage over Teheran and certainly it cannot get it to reign in Hamas.
Interestingly, showing which side China really is on, the Houthis said Russian and Chinese ships will not be targeted in the Red Sea. The People’s Liberation Army Navy has had anti-piracy task forces in the Gulf of Aden since 2008. However, reports suggest that three Chinese warships, sailing near a merchant ship under attack from Somali pirates and Houthi missiles in late November 2023, refused to respond to its distress calls.
On October 15, 2023, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi criticized Israel’s killing of civilians. He said Israeli actions had “gone beyond self-defense,” describing Israel’s campaign as “collective punishment”. This slap in the face showed Israel that any previous friendship was simply one of convenience; Beijing has no real affinity with Israel and it sits low among its strategic priorities. Israel said it was “deeply disappointed” by Beijing’s response.
On the other hand, Wang said on November 20, at the Arab and Islamic ministerial committee on the war in Gaza held in Beijing, that “China is a good friend and brother of Arab and Islamic countries … We have always firmly safeguarded the legitimate rights and interests of Arab Islamic countries and have always firmly supported the just cause of the Palestinian people”.
Indeed. Historically, China has always sympathized with Palestine and, from early on, Mao Zedong sent Palestine weapons for use in its struggle against Israel. China is obviously positioning itself on the side of Arab and Muslim countries. But this is quid pro quo, for Beijing will expect their support in international organizations on issues like Taiwan and Chinese global governance.
However, Ahmed Aboudouh, a nonresident fellow with the Atlantic Council, an American think-tank, assessed: “Beijing’s policy will most likely backfire. China neither has the trust of Israel nor the Palestinians. China’s position is at odds with the influential Arab states and lacks credibility and leverage to rein in Iran and its proxies in the region. Israel, the more powerful party to the conflict, no longer sees China as a credible mediator.”
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas visited Beijing in June 2023, where the relationship was elevated to a “strategic partnership,” the second-highest level. Yet Beijing has offered a miserly USD4 million in humanitarian assistance to Palestine since the conflict erupted, which shows just how strategic Palestine really is to China.
Palestine will not be fooled by Chinese verbosity any more than Israel is. Even Israel’s Arab neighbours have done more than China in criticizing the Hamas attack. Beijing refuses to blame Hamas or even mention the name of the organization (which is an acronym for Islamic Resistance Movement). In essence, Beijing has lifted Hamas to the same level as the Palestinian Authority, and by equating Hamas and the Palestinian cause, China reveals its lack of understanding of the complicated dynamics. Furthermore, it incorrectly calls it a “Palestine-Israel conflict” rather than a “Hamas-Israel” one.
Pro-Palestine rally in Europe
Aboudouh concluded, “The culmination of all the challenges above creates an unmitigated dilemma for Beijing. On the one hand, if China chooses to change its future policies and play a central role in the conflict, there is no evidence it will be willing to spend much political capital on presenting alternative solutions to the US view of the two-state solution or the Arab Peace Initiative. China doesn’t have a vision for a political settlement and is unlikely to offer one soon. This intensifies the credibility deficit that has dominated China’s position since the conflict began, which is expected to increase as long as no one in Israel and the Gaza Strip, the West Bank or the wider region takes China’s proposals seriously. Although China is interested in exerting pressure on the USA’s stance, it has no desire to directly challenge its historical role as the sole interlocutor in the conflict.”
China issued a position paper on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict on November 30, 2023. It stressed the “need for an immediate ceasefire and ending the fighting, ensuring that the humanitarian corridors are safe and unimpeded, and preventing the expansion of the conflict”. Beijing’s solutions are as follows: implementing a comprehensive ceasefire and ending the fighting; protecting civilians effectively; ensuring humanitarian assistance; enhancing diplomatic mediation; and seeking a political settlement.
Undoubtedly, this will be as useful as China’s twelve-point position paper on the Russia-Ukraine war, which was promptly forgotten by everyone. China has promulgated a two-state solution since the beginning, although Hamas categorically rejects anything less than the destruction of Israel. A public opinion poll conducted by Tsinghua University in November 2022 showed that only 3.3 per cent of Chinese respondents believed peace in the Middle East should be China’s top international priority. In fact, it was the lowest-ranked issue after items such as US- China relations, pandemics and territorial disputes.
There is an obvious lack of sympathy for Israel’s plight and its legitimate security concerns on China’s part. Four Chinese nationals have been killed, six injured and two remain missing since the Gaza conflict broke out on October 7, 2023. Surprisingly, however, this is not widely reported on Chinese social media and correspondingly there is no strong push by the public for the government to take action. Indeed, the conflict is a topic remote from the lives of most Chinese.
Noa Argamani, an Israeli woman of Chinese descent, was kidnapped by Hamas and remains a hostage. Her mother pleaded for the Chinese government to intercede in a post that had gathered 260 million views on Sina Weibo by late October, but Chinese officials and state media remain mute. Instead, many hardhearted netizens criticized the mother for being “presumptuous” in asking for Beijing’s help.
As one op-ed on Baidu, China’s equivalent of Google, stated: “After all, like the Israelites, they took a book of scripture and claimed that God asked them to reestablish their country here and to use force to drive away the millions of people who had lived in this land for thousands of years. This kind of folk custom of doves occupying magpie’s nests is simply unacceptable to us Chinese people.” Of course, one might lay the same charge that this is exactly what China did with territories like Tibet and Xinjiang.
Beijing’s official stance is that there should be a ceasefire and ultimately a two-state solution. This is reflected in this kind of social media post: “The death of Chinese is unforgivable. Hamas really should not lead Palestine, but Palestine really has no other choice. But that doesn’t mean we should go to one-sided support for Israel. We should look at the view of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs: armistice negotiations, the implementation of the two-state solution. Let groups like Hamas lose their ground for survival. It is irresponsible that Israel is doing the opposite. Finally, this war in the Middle East will not end in a short period of time. Let’s hurry up and evacuate the Chinese.”
Another common sentiment is that the USA is the instigator and perpetuator of the conflict between Israel and its neighbors. This is a narrative pushed by Chinese state- backed media, and online posts that refer to Palestinian casualties and that support Beijing’s official position go uncensored.
Chinese social media platforms are rife with anti-Semitism too, despite Chinese law forbidding people from using the internet to promote extremism, ethnic hatred or discriminatory information. Chinese media has not adequately covered Hamas’ attack, and instead it only fixates on Israel’s retaliatory campaign. Conspiracy theories abound too.
One writer on Baidu urged, “We Chinese do not owe the Jews anything at all, but now Israel is desperately blaming China. This is a typical case of repaying kindness with enmity. If Israel is unwilling to give us basic respect, then it does not deserve any respect from us.”
Authors Patricia M. Kim, Kevin Dong and Mallie Prytherch of the Center for East Asia Policy Studies wrote for the Brookings Institute: “…Neither Chinese leaders nor the Chinese public envision a major role for their government in the ongoing crisis.”
They further suggested, “Beijing will not pass up the opportunity to use the current and future crises to discredit the United States while amplifying its alignment with its non-Western friends. It is likely to remain a nominal power broker in the Middle East by choice for the foreseeable future.”
Xi has initiated the China-Arab States Summit and the China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit to foster engagement. As more Arab countries doubt US commitment to Middle East security, more are open to approaches from players such as China.
Sine Ozkarasahin, an analyst at the defense research program of EDAM – the Centre for Economics and Foreign Policy Studies in Turkey – gives more credit to Chinese influence in the Middle East. She wrote for The Jamestown Foundation: “With a well- planned strategy and a careful exploitation of the gaps opened by US foreign policy shifts, China has successfully increased its role as a strategic actor in the Middle East, including by gaining a foothold in the regional arms market.”
Ozkarasahin commented, “Although Beijing is known for using infrastructure investment and economic leverage to increase its overseas influence, Sino-Arab relations are not as purely transactional as some argue. On the contrary, they carry the utmost strategic value. With important partnerships in the fields of technology and arms transfers, Chinese influence in the region is already more extensive than many realize. As China improves its relations with once-close US allies, Washington faces two imminent risks. The first risk is economic, whereas the second danger is strategic.”
“The economic risk is that Washington is already losing its most lucrative arms market to its biggest rival,” Ozkarasahin noted. “The second risk relates to geopolitics and has strategic implications. While filling the burgeoning arms market with alternatives to Western suppliers, China is also expanding strategic ties with the leading Arab states, which could reset the balance of power across the region.”
Sino-Saudi diplomatic relations were established in 1990, but three years before that China supplied the kingdom with DF-3 medium-range ballistic missiles. It appears that China is supporting Saudi Arabia with current ballistic missile programs too. Satellite imagery dating from October 2021 showed that the kingdom had begun manufacturing its own missiles in the town of Dawadmi.
Saudi Arabia is China’s largest trading partner in the Middle East, plus it participates in the Belt and Road Initiative. But even as ties with Saudi Arabia deepen, this puts China in something of a bind, because Beijing has traditionally been a friend of Iran too. If Riyadh is developing ballistic missiles, that will affect the balance of power with nemesis Iran.
China will sit on the sidelines and blame others, instead of positively contributing to a solution. Of course, if the USA is taking the blame, that is sufficient reason not to get involved.
Nonetheless, hopes of future Chinese influence in the Middle East are being dashed by this conflict. China’s words, without any backup actions, reveal it is in a position of weakness. Self-interest is the bottom line, and China will likely remain risk-averse in the region. (ANI)
China claimed that North Koreans fleeing to China are not political refugees but only illegal migrants seeking economic opportunities….reports Asian Lite News
Human rights experts have resisted China’s latest claims that North Koreans fleeing into China are not political refugees but only illegal migrants seeking economic opportunities, emphasising that it is a way of supporting Pyongyang’s authoritarian system, which is similar to China does, as reported by Voice of America (VOA).
Earlier this week, China claimed that North Koreans fleeing to China are not political refugees but only illegal migrants seeking economic opportunities.
“There (are) no so-called DPRK defectors in China. People who illegally entered into China for economic reasons are not refugees,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Wednesday at a press briefing.
His statement came after South Korea called on Beijing to protect North Korean defectors in China during a Tuesday UN meeting examining China’s rights records, according to VOA.
Notably, the meeting held in Geneva was the fourth review by the UN Human Rights Council’s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group since February 2009.
South Korea’s ambassador to the UN office in Geneva, Yun Seong-deok, highlighted that Beijing should stop repatriating North Koreans.
He further said that Beijing should consider making its refugee law comply with the 1951 Refugee Convention.
This was the first time South Korea addressed China at the UPR for its treatment of North Korean defectors.
Reportedly, they face harsh treatment, including torture and death sentences, when they are forcibly repatriated, according to Human Rights Watch and the advocacy group Liberty in North Korea.
China is a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and its 1967 Protocol, highlighting that Beijing is obligated to comply with the principle of nonrefoulement.
This “asserts that a refugee should not be returned to a country where they face serious threats to their life or freedom,” as per the convention.
According to China’s constitution, it “may grant asylum to foreigners who request it on political grounds,” VOA reported.
William Nee, a research and advocacy coordinator at Chinese Human Rights Defenders, emphasised that China has been consistently refusing to set up a screening system.
“China has consistently refused to set up a screening system” in coordination with the UN High Commissioner for Refugees “to determine whether North Koreans who have fled to China qualify as refugees,” he said.
“Unfortunately, since the Chinese and DPRK governments share the same Leninist system, it is highly unlikely that China would admit that there are political defectors in North Korea because this could indirectly cast doubt on the CCP’s own system,” he added.
Notably, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been China’s ruling party since the People’s Republic of China was established in 1949.
China and North Korea rooted their government systems in communist ideology espoused by the former Soviet Union’s first leader, Vladimir Lenin, who ruled the country with dictatorship and severe control of its population, as reported by VOA.
Robert King, who served as the US special envoy for North Korea’s human rights in the Obama administration said that Beijing refers to North Korean defectors as “economic migrants” because, in its view, North Koreans want to take advantage of its economy.
He further said that China is “not willing to admit that North Koreans may want to leave North Korea and go to South Korea or elsewhere” because that would suggest there is a problem in North Korea’s political system and pose “concern for communism.”
King stressed that this is a way to protect China’s own authoritarian government and support its restrictions on freedom, human rights and information so that it can “maintain control” of people and power.
Recently, Wang Wenbin, China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said that Beijing “advocated the protection and promotion of human rights through security,” following its own “development path” based on “the socialist nature of China’s human rights cause.”
Meanwhile, Roberta Cohen, former deputy assistant secretary of state for human rights in the Carter administration, stated that China has been fearing being held complicit in North Korea’s crimes against humanity.
“China fears being held complicit in North Korea’s crimes against humanity, against North Koreans who escape the country,” Cohen said.
“China’s denial of the situation is an effort to ward off international criminal charges that could well be levelled one day,” she added.
A 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry report on North Korea’s human rights conditions highlighted that the regime’s acts, including murder, torture and enslavement, are tantamount to crimes against humanity, as reported by VOA.
Greg Scarlatoiu, executive director for the Committee for Human Rights in North Korea, said that for China to consider North Korean defectors as refugees, it would have to honour its obligation under the 1951 Convention “instead of engaging in blatant breaches of these international human rights instruments it ratified.
China Vice FM, DPRK FM Meet
North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son-hui has met with a visiting senior Chinese diplomat in Pyongyang, its state media reported on Saturday, as North Korea appears to be seeking to strengthen ties with Beijing amid its stepped-up cooperation with Russia.
On Friday, Choe met with Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Sun Weidong, who is visiting North Korea this week, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a brief statement as quoted By Yonhap news agency report.
Noting that this year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between North Korea and China, the two sides agreed to “continue to strengthen tactical cooperation and keep pace with each other to defend the common core interests,” the KCNA added.
The talks took place in “a comradely and friendly atmosphere,” it added. (ANI)
The highest number of bankruptcies have been filed in China’s Zhejiang province….reports Asian Lite News
An estimated 233 home developers in China have registered for bankruptcy in 2023, Taiwan News reported citing the China Real Estate Association.
The highest number of bankruptcies have been filed in China’s Zhejiang province. As many as 36 cases of bankruptcy filed in Zhejiang accounted for 15.45 per cent of China’s total. Hunan and Guangdong provinces were second and third respectively in China, according to a Taiwan News report.
According to the report, the number of bankruptcies for 2023 was the lowest since 2020. As many as 408 home developers filed for bankruptcy in 2020, the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, Taiwan News reported. As many as 341 home developers filed for bankruptcy in 2021 and 308 registered for bankruptcy in 2022.
Home developers in third and fourth-tier cities suffered the most due to the economic downturn. China-based CRIC Securities’ research department has hinted that home sales in China continued to dwindle in 2023 and challenges would continue in 2024 despite favourable policies. Low consumer confidence and inventory overhang suggest that China’s housing market could remain sluggish for some time, according to Taiwan News report.
Earlier this month, some migrant workers, labour brokers and shop owners started moving out of the coastal cities and returning home as jobs in China’s coastal cities faced a reduction in job opportunities, the Voice of America (VOA) reported.
January in China is particularly a time when many migrant workers begin an annual trip home to celebrate the Lunar New Year, according to the VOA News report. However, this year, the massive exodus from coastal cities to provinces across the country began much earlier.
Since China lifted the COVID-19 restrictions near the end of 2022, China’s economy has been struggling to stage a comeback. In a televised speech on December 31, Chinese President Xi Jinping acknowledged the challenges faced by China’s economy in 2023.
A worker, Ha Hailiang, who worked in China as a labour broker for the past seven years, said that before the COVID-19 pandemic, there were plenty of jobs in Shantou’s Chenghai district, home to many factories that manufacture toys. Now, orders and work have slowed dramatically in the city located north of Guangzhou and Shenzhen, VOA News reported.
“Business here in Shantou is particularly bad right now, and no factory has orders,” Ma said. “I initially brought 200 people to the factory, but they left for various reasons. Now, there are only 30 of them left. “Some left because they were working more than 12 hours a day. Others left because the factory had no orders and had to lay off workers, he said.
Shen Mei (37) returned to Henan’s Xinxiang City from Guangzhou late last month. She told VOA that she once could earn around USD 1,000 to 1,100 a month working in a factory, which is much more than she could earn in her hometown.
“We would work 12 hours a day and often have to work overtime. It is normal to work 14 hours a day. I work the night shift and eat my first meal at 11 pm,” she said.
Shen said that most young people in her hometown go to other cities to work, but it has been hard to find jobs nationwide as many factories have closed.
“The situation in China is particularly bad right now. Many people are gnashing their teeth against the government but dare not speak out. No one is happy except for those who work in government,” Shen Mei said, according to VOA News report. She said, “The miserable life of ordinary Chinese people is indescribable. It’s not an individual case. It’s how most people’s lives are.”
Ma Lijuan (38), a chef at a toy factory in Guangzhou, said she sees fewer workers in the canteen these days. She said that many workers who have worked in the factory for a long time had pay cuts this year. “My current income is half what it used to be before the pandemic,” she said. (ANI)
The inauguration of the Marshall Islands president took place in the national capital, Majuro, on Monday and was attended by dignitaries from around the world, including Taiwan….reports Asian Lite News
Newly elected Marshall Islands president Hilda Heine has reaffirmed her support for strong ties with Taiwan, as reported by Focus Taiwan.
The inauguration of the Marshall Islands president took place in the national capital, Majuro, on Monday and was attended by dignitaries from around the world, including Taiwan.
At her inauguration, messages of congratulations were read out, including from Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen and representatives from the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Japan, Palau, and the United States, according to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) press release.
Taiwan’s Deputy Foreign Minister Tien Chung-kwang, who attended the inauguration as a special envoy of President Tsai, highlighted that both countries share the values of democracy and freedom, referencing the fact that both have just conducted national elections, according to Focus Taiwan.
President Heine, meanwhile, reaffirmed the 26 years of strong ties between the two nations, adding that her administration will continue to cherish the long-standing friendship, MOFA said in its press release.
Moreover, Heine once again congratulated Vice President Lai Ching-te of the ruling Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) for being elected president on January 13 and praised Taiwan as a model of democracy, it said.
Reportedly, Heini was elected president on January 2 this year by a 17-16 margin over David Kabua, who ousted Heine in 2020 after his previous stint as president from 2016 to 2020 by a 20-12 vote plus one abstention.
In the Marshall Islands, presidents are chosen by the country’s 33 parliamentarians, who are selected by the electorate.
During his stay in the Pacific nation, Tien also met with top officials, including Foreign and Trade Minister Kalani Kaneko, Minister of Natural Resources and Commerce Anthony Muller, Minister of Assistance Bremity Lakjohn, and Minister of Justice and Immigration Wisely Zackhras, to discuss cooperation projects, MOFA said.
Taiwan also saw the delivery of 60 tonnes of rice donated by Taiwan to the Mashall Isamad during a ceremony, it said.
According to Tien and his delegation were scheduled to return to Taiwan later Tuesday, according to MOFA.
Tien’s delegation departed Taiwan last Wednesday, two days after Nauru, roughly 1,000 kilometres southwest of the Marshall Islands, announced that it was severing ties with the Republic of China (Taiwan’s official name) to recognise the People’s Republic of China.
Moreover, the move left China with 12 allies worldwide, including the Marshall Islands, Tuvalu, and Palau in the Pacific region. Tuvalu and Palau have also recently pledged to stick with Taiwan.
The severing of ties between Taiwan and Nauru came two days after Lai was elected president, according to Focus Taiwan.
It was also the 10th diplomatic ally Taipei has lost to Beijing since President Tsai took office in May 2016 amid deteriorating cross-Taiwan Strait relations. (ANI)
Nauru Ee-Establishes Diplomatic Ties With China
China and Nauru have restored diplomatic ties, marking a significant development after the Pacific island nation unexpectedly cut off relations with its former ally Taiwan, a move deemed “unfortunate” by the United States. The Pacific region has become a battleground for influence between Washington and Beijing, with both powers vying for diplomatic alliances.
In a ceremony held in Beijing, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Nauru’s counterpart Lionel Aingimea officially signed an agreement to re-establish bilateral relations, including the immediate resumption of ambassadorial ties. Wang emphasized the historical friendship between the two nations, despite their geographical distance and vast oceans that separate them.
Aingimea expressed optimism about the new relationship, highlighting its foundation in strength, development strategy, policy synergy, collaboration, and shared governmental principles. He spoke positively about the bright prospects for the partnership.
Taiwan, a democratically governed island, lost Nauru as one of its few remaining diplomatic allies to China on January 15, just two days after the election of a new Taiwanese president. China regards Taiwan as its own territory with no right to establish state-to-state ties, a stance vehemently contested by Taiwan.
Nauru’s government stated that the decision to resume diplomatic ties with China was made in the best interests of the country and its people, seeking a full restoration of relations with the Asian giant.
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a peer-review process under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council, where UN Member States assess each other’s human rights records….reports Asian Lite News
China’s human rights record is facing international scrutiny during the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, taking place from January 22 to February 2.
This review is a unique opportunity for member states to hold China accountable for its human rights obligations, according to analysts and rights advocates.
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a peer-review process under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council, where UN Member States assess each other’s human rights records, their fulfilment of human rights obligations and commitments, and provide recommendations to the State under review.
This is China’s fourth appearance before this mechanism. The last one was in November 2018. At the time, countries called out the existence of mass detention camps for Uyghurs a few months after they were revealed by a UN committee.
During China’s 3rd UPR in November 2018, China received 346 recommendations from 150 countries, and accepted 284 of them, with many questionably noted as ‘accepted and already implemented.’
Despite a seemingly high acceptance rate, China broadly rejected recommendations on the rights of Uyghurs and Tibetans, cooperation with the UN and unrestricted UN access to all regions of the country, enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention, the death penalty and the ratification of international treaties.
Since 2018, mounting human rights abuses have been largely documented by a range of UN human rights bodies.
After the narrow defeat of a resolution calling for a debate on the situation in Xinjiang at the Human Rights Council, in September 2022, the UPR is one of the few spaces left where China’s record can be openly discussed, challenged and scrutinised on the basis of UN information.
This is also the first UPR session since the publication in 2022 of the UN ‘Xinjiang Report’, which found that Beijing’s actions against Uyghurs and other minorities could amount to ‘crimes against humanity’, and which Chinese diplomacy has worked hard to suppress.
In the absence of a UN Human Rights Council debate on the human rights situation in China, the UPR is a rare moment of global scrutiny of the country’s human rights crisis.
After the review, the government will review the recommendations it received, and decide which ones it commits to implement or not. During the June 2024 session of the Human Rights Council, China will have the opportunity to provide further information, and a limited number of governments and NGOs will be able to make comments. The Council will then adopt China’s UPR report.
The Chinese government is expected to implement accepted recommendations until its next UPR in 2029. The government is also encouraged by the UN to report on the status of implementation halfway through, by publishing a ‘mid-term report’; yet, China has never done it for past reviews. (ANI)
China hit back almost immediately after Taiwan elections by announcing on January 15 that Nauru was switching recognition from Taiwan to Beijing….reports Asian Lite News
Following the Taiwanese people’s refusal to buckle to Chinese coercion in the January 13 elections, voting back into power the incumbent Democratic People’s Party (DPP) with its new leader Lai Ching-te, opinion varies as to what Beijing’s next course of action will be.
Will China make a precipitative military move against Taiwan, or will it continue its policy of incessant coercion? China’s reaction has been rather subdued so far, though this does not preclude more vigorous actions before Lai assumes office in May.
Notably, though, China hit back almost immediately by announcing on January 15 that Nauru was switching recognition from Taiwan to Beijing.
Taiwan now has diplomatic ties with just twelve nations as China picks off its allies one by one. Nauru asked for “massive economic assistance,” according to Taiwan, but Taipei cannot compete with China in this regard.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning denied that money exchanged hands: “Those who see ‘dollar diplomacy’ as a go-to tool need to understand that there are things that money cannot buy.”
One wonders what China can offer Nauru other than money. In some respects, then, it is better for Taiwan to shrug off the burden of countries who value money more than morals.
Nonetheless, this marked a setback for the USA, for President Joe Biden has been working hard to rally nations in support of a “rules-based international order”. Nauru is a tiny nation of just 12,500 inhabitants, but China has gained a sharp win there against the wider run of play.
Wendell Minnick, a veteran American defence analyst based in Taiwan, is pessimistic about cross-strait ties. Indeed, he thinks China will act militarily this spring (i.e. March-May), catalysed by the DPP’s election win.
“This could be the beginning of ballistic-missile strikes and cruise missile strikes on command-and-control nodes, radar, air defence batteries and the utter destruction of airbases. Xi is growing old quickly and wants a legacy that brings Taiwan back into the bosom of Mother China. He wants to be the Father of Modern China–to take down Mao’s picture at Tiananmen Square and replace it with his own. He is a man. He is not a win-win negotiator. He wants to be beloved by the nation for the next 100 years.”
Minnick added that the lunar-solar calendar is perfect for military operations around April-May, which leaves “summer for fighter and bomber aircraft to clean up the scraps, then the amphibious invasion in the autumn with the lunar-solar calendar holiday of Ghost Month.”
The latter period is when conditions in the Taiwan Strait calm again and become more conducive to amphibious operations.
However, it will be a massive challenge for the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to cross this “moat” that separates Taiwan from the mainland.
China is encountering severe challenges that might cause Chairman Xi Jinping to take irrational actions. As tsar Vladimir Putin demonstrated with his fateful invasion of Ukraine, the twisted calculus of leaders in autocratic countries often does not correspond with logic.
Xi might calculate that his window of opportunity is narrowing, or that he needs a national crisis to bind China around him.
One disconcerting issue is China’s economy, which is deeply unwell.
Last year, China’s gross domestic product (GDP) fell in dollar value to about USD 17.5 trillion. This was the first drop in almost 30 years, and China’s share of world GDP slipped to slightly less than 7 per cent.
In yuan terms, China’s GDP rose by more than 4.5 per cent, but this ignores a sharp drop in the yuan’s value.
In 2023, America’s GDP rose 6 per cent to about USD 27 trillion. The gap between the respective GDPs of the USA and China grew by USD 2 trillion last year, which is set to widen unless China’s economy turns a corner.
George Magnus, an economist at the China Centre, Oxford University, and at the School of Oriental and African Studies, London, commented: “Given (what) we know about population shrinkage, debt capacity constraints, weak governance and the political awkwardness of market reforms, China’s tech prowess islands are not the saviour. Only a real policy shift can do that, and the government is in stasis.”
He added that this year will therefore be important policy-wise. The bite of reality is a far cry
from Xi’s New Year message that the economy had “sustained the momentum of recovery”.
Taiwan-China flag
Another looming issue is demographics. China’s population is shrinking; the birth rate contracted 5.7 per cent last year to reach the lowest in modern China’s history – and the death rate in 2023 was the highest it has been since 1974, during the throes of Mao Zedong’s Cultural Revolution.
With 280 million citizens aged over 60 (a figure that will increase 30+ per cent over the next decade), China is facing a ticking demographic time bomb.
However, many would disagree with the dire warnings from the likes of Minnick in Taiwan.
For example, Professor Rex Li, Research Affiliate of the Lau China Institute, King’s College London, assessed: “Although China has not recognised the legitimacy of the Lai government, it is unlikely that it will opt for a military solution to the Taiwan issue for the time being.
Most analysts believe that China does not yet possess the full military capability to take over Taiwan by force, especially if it has the backing of the United States. In addition, China is currently facing considerable economic difficulties due mainly to the recent COVID lockdowns. Beijing is also keen to stabilise its relations with Washington following the Xi-Biden summit in San Francisco in November 2023.”
Li concluded, “It can be expected that Beijing will continue to exert economic and military pressure on Taiwan and constrain its international activities where possible. But China would try to avoid a major armed conflict with Taiwan, which might trigger an unpredictable reaction and intervention from the US.”
Leading figures in the US armed forces concur with this viewpoint.
For instance, Admiral John Aquilino, head of the US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), said at a Pacific Forum conference in Hawaii in mid-January that he expected the PLA to put on a show of “force against Taiwan in the near term”.
“The pressure campaign against Taiwan continues, and we’re watching it in the wake of the elections…Their actions over the past number of years have been pretty consistent. When something occurs that they don’t like, they tend to take action.”
An obvious example is the PLA’s reaction to then-Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi’s 2022 visit to Taiwan.
Admiral Aquilino predicted that China would also manipulate events so as to put the blame on American shoulders. He suggested Beijing would “attempt to spin it in the information space as the United States as the aggressor. I don’t know how you connect those dots, but they’re pretty effective in the information space. Doesn’t have to be true. They’ve just got to say it enough times.”
The INDOPACOM commander also commented on China’s increasingly aggressive actions farther south. Its “expansive claims in the South China Sea are not just thoughts anymore. What we are seeing as it applies to Second Thomas Shoal and our Philippine partners is that the rhetoric and the actions, whether they be lawfare, information warfare or physical actions, are now enforcing or attempting to enforce that illegal claim.”
Separately, General Charles Flynn, commander of the US Army Pacific, described recently at the Irregular Warfare Forum in Virginia how China is seeking to disrupt American regional influence.
“The Chinese are trying to disassemble, fragment and fracture a network of allies and partners that the United States enjoys globally, but definitely in the Indo-Pacific. And they’re working every day.”
The American commander said China is on a “very, very dangerous path. The PRC’s immediate goal: prepare the operational environment for the seizure of Taiwan, full stop.”
If conflict erupts, it is essential that Taiwan already have in place the military equipment that it needs, for the PLA could effectively blockade the island and prevent American resupplies from reaching Taiwan.
Taiwan needs to strengthen its mobile air defences and drone fleets with much larger quantities; such asymmetric capabilities strengthen its “porcupine strategy” designed to deter China by imposing an unacceptable level of loss and risk on the PLA.
Taiwan is taking actions to deter China militarily, but these are often done under sufferance. This month, Taiwan’s military conscription period extends from four months to twelve for 18-year-old males, after the USA pressured Taipei to raise the duration.
Conscription is deeply unpopular in Taiwan but, faced by recruitment issues, conscription is the only way to fill out the armed forces.
Bloomberg Economics, in an effort to quantify the cost of a Chinese invasion of Taiwan – came up with a figure of USD 10 trillion, equating to about 10 per cent of global GDP.
Taiwan is the leading maker of advanced-logic semiconductors, and global supply would be hard hit.
Of course, it is impossible to accurately predict the cost of a conflagration involving Taiwan.
Regardless, Bloomberg predicted a 40 per cent drop in GDP for Taiwan in the first year, -16.7 per cent for China, -6.7 per cent for the USA, and -10.2 per cent for the world.
However, military adventurism is fraught with risk for China, especially an operation as complex as an amphibious invasion. Xi still does not have confidence in the PLA, with serious question marks about the loyalty and capability of the Rocket Force in particular at present.
Of course, the loss of Taiwan to Chinese military conquest would be horrendous. Apart from the tragedy of a democracy being swallowed by an authoritarian regime, a Chinese presence on Taiwan shatters the so-called First Island Chain of containment upon which the USA’s whole defensive strategy depends.
PLA forces garrisoned in Taiwan would have instant access to the Western Pacific, threatening maritime and aerial routes from the USA to Japan, South Korea and all American military bases there.
It was Sir Walter Raleigh who said, “Whoever commands the sea, commands the trade; whosoever commands the trade of the world, commands the riches of the world, and consequently the world itself.”
China would be able to control all seaborne trade heading to and from economic powerhouses like Japan and South Korea.
Taiwan already has de facto independence, but this means the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is fed up with the status quo. “Reunification” is a stated national goal, and it has become a point of pride for Xi.
China was visibly angered that nations like Japan and the USA should congratulate Taiwan’s Lai on his recent election win, though interestingly, Biden’s first comment was, “We do not support independence.”
Separate from military pressure, China has plenty of other tools at its disposal. For instance, it can economically pressure Taiwan with measures such as fining Taiwanese companies in China, cancelling tariff reductions, banning certain imports from Taiwan, or restricting individual tourism.
Xi advocated stronger United Front efforts to win Taiwanese hearts and said in an article published by the CCP’s Qiushi magazine: “The patriotic, unifying forces in Taiwan should be developed and empowered. Separatist acts for Taiwan independence should be rejected. The full reunification of the motherland should move forward.”
Beijing will continue to exert undue influence, and the fact that the DPP won only 40.5 per cent of the votes (compared to 57.13 per cent in 2020) might encourage the CCP in thinking that the more amenable Kuomintang party might win the next election.
During an official visit to Egypt, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said, “Taiwan independence seriously threatens the wellbeing of Taiwan compatriots, seriously damages the fundamental interests of the Chinese nation, and will also seriously undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. It is a dead end and a path to ruin. China will eventually achieve complete reunification and Taiwan province will surely return to the embrace of the motherland.”
Such sweeping talk illustrates the absurdity of Taiwan’s international status – it is unrecognised by the United Nations and ostracised at every opportunity by China.
China has no power or sovereignty over Taiwan’s physical territory, yet it continues to force the rest of the world into maintaining a fiction about Taiwan’s actual status. The CCP is imposing its will and a falsehood on the international community, with far too many being afraid to upset China. (ANI)
India told China to “continue taking measures to promote gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls….reports Asian Lite News
India has urged China to unwaveringly uphold its dedication to human rights and gender equality, emphasizing the importance of its constructive participation in fulfilling the aspirations of developing nations
The recommendations were given by Indian diplomat Guarav Kumar Thakur during the 45th Session of the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) at the United Nations.
India gave China three recommendations during the UPR which included, “Continue taking steps to ensure fullest enjoyment of basic human rights by its people through inclusive and sustainable development.”
Secondly, India told China to “continue taking measures to promote gender equality and empowerment of all women and girls.”
Lastly, India urged China to “continue to play a constructive role in the realisation of aspirations of developing countries including through reform of mulitateral institutions.”
China’s human rights record is facing international scrutiny during the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, taking place from January 22 to February 2.
This review is a unique opportunity for member states to hold China accountable for its human rights obligations, according to analysts and rights advocates.
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a peer-review process under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council, where UN Member States assess each other’s human rights records, their fulfilment of human rights obligations and commitments, and provide recommendations to the State under review.
This is China’s fourth appearance before this mechanism. The last one was in November 2018. At the time, countries called out the existence of mass detention camps for Uyghurs a few months after they were revealed by a UN committee.
During China’s 3rd UPR in November 2018, China received 346 recommendations from 150 countries, and accepted 284 of them, with many questionably noted as ‘accepted and already implemented.’
A Chinese flag is seen in front of the Friendship bridge over the Yalu River connecting the North Korean town of Sinuiju and Dandong in China’s Liaoning Province, April 1, 2017. REUTERS/Damir Sagolj
Despite a seemingly high acceptance rate, China broadly rejected recommendations on the rights of Uyghurs and Tibetans, cooperation with the UN and unrestricted UN access to all regions of the country, enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention, the death penalty and the ratification of international treaties.
Since 2018, mounting human rights abuses have been largely documented by a range of UN human rights bodies.
After the narrow defeat of a resolution calling for a debate on the situation in Xinjiang at the Human Rights Council, in September 2022, the UPR is one of the few spaces left where China’s record can be openly discussed, challenged and scrutinised on the basis of UN information.
This is also the first UPR session since the publication in 2022 of the UN ‘Xinjiang Report’, which found that Beijing’s actions against Uyghurs and other minorities could amount to ‘crimes against humanity’, and which Chinese diplomacy has worked hard to suppress.
In the absence of a UN Human Rights Council debate on the human rights situation in China, the UPR is a rare moment of global scrutiny of the country’s human rights crisis. (ANI)
The UK strongly called for the repeal of China’s national security law in Hong Kong, aligning with UN suggestions…reports Asian Lite News
The United Kingdom on Tuesday severly criticised China for the persecution, arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and Tibetans and asked Beijing to “guarantee an impartial judiciary” and implement measures to allow genuine freedom of religion without fear of surveillance and torture.
Simon Manley, the UK’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, has delivered a set of four strong recommendations to China targeting various aspects of human rights violations, urging China to address key concerns.
Manley called to “cease the persecution, arbitrary detention of Uyghurs and Tibetans.”
He also urged China to “allow genuine freedom of religion or belief and cultural expression, without fear of surveillance, torture, forced labour or sexual violence and implement OHCHR recommendations on Xinjiang.”
The UK strongly called for the repeal of China’s national security law in Hong Kong, aligning with UN suggestions. Manley specifically called for the cessation of prosecutions, including that of media tycoon Jimmy Lai.
“Repeal the law on safeguarding national security in Hong Kong as recommended by the UN and cease prosecutions including of Jimmy Lai,” he said, giving recommendations to China.
The UK representative also called for a “guarantee of an impartial judiciary,” demanding an end to “harassment of lawyers, the use of the death penalty, and residential surveillance in designated locations.”
UK’s Manley urged China to lift “restrictions on civil society and independent media,” while also calling for an immediate halt to forced repatriations and the cessation of targeting human rights defenders.
“Cease the restrictions of civil society and independent media and forced repatriations and stop targetting human rights defenders,” he also said.
A recent report from the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has shed light on a troubling pattern in China, where nearly half of the journalists imprisoned in 2023 were identified as Uyghurs.
As many as 44 journalists are in jail and about half of them are Uyghurs. This shows Beijing’s poor press freedom record and its human rights abuses against the majority-Muslim ethnic group, report added.
The data, offering a global overview of journalists incarcerated for their work as of December 1, paints a concerning picture of press freedom in China, especially concerning its treatment of the majority-Muslim ethnic group.
Notably, China’s human rights record is facing international scrutiny during the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group session of the United Nations Human Rights Council, taking place from January 22 to February 2.
China forcing marriages between majority Han Chinese and ethnic minority Uyghurs
The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a peer-review process under the auspices of the UN Human Rights Council, where UN Member States assess each other’s human rights records, their fulfilment of human rights obligations and commitments, and provide recommendations to the State under review.
This is China’s fourth appearance before this mechanism. The last one was in November 2018. At the time, countries called out the existence of mass detention camps for Uyghurs a few months after they were revealed by a UN committee.
During China’s 3rd UPR in November 2018, China received 346 recommendations from 150 countries, and accepted 284 of them, with many questionably noted as ‘accepted and already implemented.’
Despite a seemingly high acceptance rate, China broadly rejected recommendations on the rights of Uyghurs and Tibetans, cooperation with the UN and unrestricted UN access to all regions of the country, enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention, the death penalty and the ratification of international treaties.
Since 2018, mounting human rights abuses have been largely documented by a range of UN human rights bodies.
In the absence of a UN Human Rights Council debate on the human rights situation in China, the UPR is a rare moment of global scrutiny of the country’s human rights crisis. (ANI)
