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December
Taiwan Pledges Deeper Japan Security Cooperation as Senior Lawmaker Visits
Written by Nur Yasmin
Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen pledged on Saturday to deepen security cooperation with Japan to ensure freedom in the Indo-Pacific, during a meeting with a senior member of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
Although Japan and Chinese-claimed and democratically governed Taiwan do not have formal diplomatic ties, they have close unofficial relations, and both share concerns about China, especially its increased military activities near them.
Meeting in the presidential office in Taipei, Tsai thanked Koichi Hagiuda, the LDP's policy chief, for Japan's support over issues like maintaining security in the sensitive Taiwan Strait.
"We have seen in recent years Taiwan-Japan relations have become ever closer," she said.
"In the future, Taiwan will continue to deepen cooperation with Japan in various fields such as security and work together to ensure the freedom, openness, and stability of the Indo-Pacific region."
Hagiuda said Taiwan was a good friend with shared values.
"Taiwan is an extremely important partner and a valued friend of Japan, with whom Japan shares fundamental values such as liberal democracy, basic human rights, and the rule of law, as well as close economic relations and personal exchanges," he said.
"In this context, our help and cooperation with one another has built up over time."
Hagiuda is in Taipei to attend a Sunday forum about Taiwan-Japan relations, and he told Tsai he will also pay his respects at the grave of former President Lee Teng-hui.
The Japan-educated Lee, who died two years ago, was dubbed "Mr. Democracy" for burying autocratic rule in favor of freewheeling pluralism in Taiwan.
Japan has watched with growing concern China's belligerence towards Taiwan as Beijing seeks to assert its sovereignty claims over the island.
China staged military drills near Taiwan in August to express anger at a visit to Taipei by then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, including launching five missiles into the sea close to Okinawa, within Japan's exclusive economic zone. (Reuters)
December
White House Calls on Bangladesh to Investigate Reports of Pre-election Violence
Written by Nur Yasmin
The White House on Friday called on the government of Bangladesh to fully investigate reports of violence against journalists and human rights activists ahead of a major political protest, and urged all parties to refrain from violence.
Local media in Bangladesh this week reported police killed one person and wounded more than 60 people on Wednesday in Dhaka when they fired upon activists and members of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), the country's largest opposition party.
The Voice of America, meanwhile, reported that thousands of BNP members had been arrested over the past month ahead of a protest planned by the party in Dhaka on Saturday that activists say could attract 1 million people.
The United States is concerned about the reports and is monitoring developments in Bangladesh "very, very closely," national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters.
Kirby said the United States was continuing to call for the right of Bangladesh citizens to engage in peaceful protests without fear, intimidation, harassment or violence.
"We call on all parties in Bangladesh to respect the rule of law, to refrain from violence. We want to see them refrain from harassment, intimidation, and we call on the government to ensure that no party or candidate threatens, incites or conducts violence against any other party," he said.
Kirby said Washington was also urging government authorities in Bangladesh to "fully investigate reports of violence in a thorough, transparent and impartial manner."
The protest comes ahead of national elections planned in Bangladesh next year. (Reuters)
December
Taiwan Mulls WTO Case After Latest Chinese Import Bans
Written by Nur Yasmin
Taiwan may take China to the World Trade Organization after the country effectively banned the import of more Taiwanese food and drink products, Premier Su Tseng-chang said on Saturday as Beijing accused Taipei of "political manipulation".
Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, has complained for the past two years of Chinese import bans on various agricultural and aquatic goods, including pineapples and grouper fish, saying it is part of a Chinese pressure campaign.
The latest bans cover more fishery products, chief among them squid, as well as some beers and liquors, which China has said is due to the Taiwanese companies not properly completing relevant paperwork.
Speaking to reporters, Su said China was using administrative means to "interfere" in normal trade which is not in line with WTO norms.
The government will do its best to communicate with relevant Chinese departments on the issue, he added.
"If there is any non-compliance with the relevant WTO norms, we will also follow the relevant channels to file a complaint."
Taiwan and China are both WTO members.
In a statement late on Friday, China's Taiwan Affairs Office said the problem was an administrative one in that the affected companies were not properly registered and this was a "normal food safety supervision measure".
It said it hoped that Taiwanese companies will provide the information that meets government requirements as soon as possible.
"At the same time, we are telling the relevant departments on the island to immediately stop any political manipulation and not to do anything stupid that harms companies on the island."
Agriculture is not a major part of Taiwan's semiconductor-oriented economy but the farming and fishing community is largely based in parts of the island that traditionally support the ruling Democratic Progressive Party, especially in southern Taiwan. (Reuters)
December
China's Wang Huning, A Backstage Ideologue and Political Survivor
Written by Nur Yasmin
When ex-Chinese leader Hu Jintao was escorted from the stage in October at the Communist Party Congress, a powerful behind-the-scenes figure took a brief turn in the spotlight as China-watchers pored over video to try to figure out what happened.
Wang Huning, one of just two top officials reappointed to join President Xi Jinping on the elite seven-man Politburo Standing Committee, has carved an unusual career path as the party's top theoretician.
While he typically operates in the background, Wang played a key role in the Hu drama when another top official, Li Zhanshu, briefly moved to assist the 79-year-old former president, who appeared to be confused.
Wang, watching intently, stopped Li, discreetly tugging his jacket - a small but seemingly significant act in an episode that has yet to be fully explained but was widely viewed as the symbolic end of any remnants of a pre-Xi political era.
An irony is that Wang, 67, served both Hu and his predecessor Jiang Zemin before becoming one of Xi's closest advisors as his chief ideologue, a trajectory unique in an era when every other member of the Standing Committee is seen to be a Xi career loyalist.
“He made almost every trip, I believe, with Jiang Zemin, no matter where he went. And the same was true with Hu Jintao and then with Xi Jinping,” said Kenneth Lieberthal, a China expert who served as a senior official for Asia in the Clinton administration between 1998-2000 and has met Wang several times.
“He clearly has a facility for relating to personalities at the highest levels of power and building a relationship of trust. It’s quite remarkable.”
In his first five-year term on the Standing Committee, Wang ran the party's secretariat, an organ responsible for day-to-day affairs.
In Xi's third leadership term, Wang is on track to be in charge of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body.
However, Wang's power transcends specific roles, analysts say.
Over three decades, Wang has established himself as the party's top theoretician, according to analysts, influencing policy concepts and slogans used to push China's interests and legitimising party rule in an era when Xi has bolstered its role across all aspects of Chinese society.
Ideas such as "Chinese-style modernisation", and "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" - positioned as Xi's governing philosophy - have been associated by analysts with Wang.
"He is a political beautician, very good at using cosmetics to dress up political policies and slogans, including foreign policy," said Willy Lam, a senior fellow at The Jamestown Foundation in Washington.
"All the major slogans, from Jiang Zemin to Hu Jintao to Xi Jinping, seem to have come from Wang Huning," Lam said.
'AMERICA VS. AMERICA'
Where most Standing Committee members have experience such as running a major city or province, Wang is an academic. He taught political theory, among other subjects, at Shanghai's elite Fudan University from 1981 to 1995 before moving to Zhongnanhai, the leadership compound in central Beijing, where he has been ever since.
From 2002 to 2020, Wang headed the Central Policy Research Office, a party institution responsible for drafting major documents on ideology and theories, as well as providing guidance on policy matters. His tenure was unusually long in a bureaucracy where officials rotate through different roles.
At the same time he rose in the party hierarchy, from the Central Committee to the Politburo, and in 2017, to the top governing body in China, the Politburo Standing Committee.
According to Ming Xia, a political science professor at City University of New York (CUNY), Wang has avoided factional struggles or the accumulation of wealth that has been the downfall of many Chinese officials.
During his first Standing Committee term, Wang was the only member to speak at high-level discussions held after publication of the second, third and fourth volumes of "The Governance of China", a collection of Xi speeches and writings that is ubiquitous in China's bookstores.
Wang became well-known in China for his 1991 book, "America vs. America". Based on a six-month stay that included visits to 30 cities, Wang sought to understand the secret to U.S. success, in hopes of helping China to become a strong nation.
While the book praises some aspects of the United States, it is also criticises excessive individualism, money in politics and the state of race relations.
"The United States today faces challenges from Japan, in large part because American institutions, culture and values oppose the United States itself," Wang wrote of a time when Japan was the top U.S. economic rival.
WANG'S PERSONALITY
CUNY's Xia, who as a Fudan undergraduate took a class in Western political theory taught by Wang before becoming his colleague there in the late 1980s, described him as a workaholic, introvert and insomniac.
During 1989's pro-democracy student protests, Wang told Xia not to stand with the students, a warning Xia did not heed.
"Back (in Fudan), Wang Huning was clearly a supporter of neo-authoritarianism," said Xia.
Two years later, when Xia left for the United States, Wang warned him about his future home.
"I've been there. That country is a machine operating at a high speed, you need to get used to the machine the moment you step foot or you will be crushed into chicken powder," Xia said Wang told him at the time.
During formal meetings between Clinton and Jiang, former political adviser Lieberthal said he had sought to engage with Wang as the principals walked out of the room, but that Wang was standoffish despite the two having met during his six-month stay in the United States.
“He was known at the time as someone who would never talk to Americans. I assumed that was him trying to protect himself by not directly associating with Americans – certainly not in that company.”
One person who attended a meeting with Wang when he was director of China’s Central Policy Research Office said he came across as scholarly but with a temper, recalling how Wang had upbraided a staffer for several minutes for not having brought his preference of pens.
“I don’t think he suffers fools, I’ll say that,” the person said. (Reuters)
December
Beijing Swings From Anger Over Zero-COVID To Coping With Infections
Written by Nur Yasmin
Beijing's COVID-19 gloom deepened on Sunday with many shops and other businesses closed, and an expert warned of many thousands of new coronavirus cases as anger over China's previous COVID policies gave way to worry about coping with infection.
China dropped most of its strict COVID curbs on Wednesday after unprecedented protests against them last month, but cities that were already battling with their most severe outbreaks, like Beijing, saw a sharp decrease in economic activity after rules such as regular testing were scrapped.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that many businesses have been forced to close as infected workers quarantine at home while many other people are deciding not to go out because of the higher risk of infection.
Zhong Nanshan, a prominent Chinese epidemiologist, told state media that the Omicron strain of the virus prevalent in China was highly transmissible and one infected person could spread it to as many as 18 others.
"We can see that hundreds of thousands or tens of thousands of people are infected in several major cities," Zhong said.
With regular COVID testing of Beijing residents scrapped and reserved only for groups such as health workers, official tallies for new cases have plunged.
Health authorities reported 1,661 new infections for Beijing Saturday, down 42% from 3,974 on Dec. 6, a day before national policies were dramatically relaxed.
But evidence suggests there are many more cases in the city of nearly 22 million people where everyone seems to know someone who has caught COVID.
"In my company, the number of people who are COVID-negative is close to zero," said one woman who works for a tourism and events firm in Beijing who asked to be identified as just Nancy.
"We realise this can't be avoided - everyone will just have to work from home," she said.
'HIGHER RISK'
Sunday is a normal business day for shops in Beijing and it is usually bustling, particularly in spots like the historic Shichahai neighbourhood packed with boutiques and cafes.
But few people were out and about on Sunday and malls in Chaoyang, Beijing's most populous district, were practically deserted with many salons, restaurants and retailers shut.
Economists widely expect China's road to economic health to be uneven as shocks such as labour crunches due to workers calling in sick delay a full-fledged recovery for some time yet.
"The transition out of zero-COVID will eventually allow consumer spending patterns to return to normal, but a higher risk of infection will keep in-person spending depressed for months after re-opening," Mark Williams, chief Asia economist at Capital Economics, said in a note.
China's economy may grow 1.6% in the first quarter of 2023 from a year earlier, and 4.9% in the second, according to Capital Economics.
Epidemiologist Zhong also said it would be some months before a return to normal.
"My opinion is in the first half of next year, after March," he said.
While China has removed most of its domestic COVID curbs, its international borders are still largely closed to foreigners, including tourists.
Inbound travellers are subjected to five days of quarantine at centralised government facilities and three additional days of self-monitoring at home.
But there are even hints that that rule could change.
Staff at the main international airport in Chengdu city, asked if quarantine rules were being eased, said that as of Saturday whether or not one needed to do the three days of home quarantine would depend on a person's neighbourhood authorities. (Reuters)
December
U.S. Bid For Battery Metals Has Africa Blind Spot
Written by Nur Yasmin
Mining companies and governments in Africa are calling for stronger trade ties with the United States after a new climate law set out incentives for U.S. carmakers sourcing battery materials from trade partners.
The $430 billion Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has been criticised by the European Union and South Korea, who say it could hurt their car industries.
It could also negatively impact African nations that produce battery materials.
The United States has a Free Trade Agreement in place with only one African country, Morocco. Yet the continent is a key copper producer and Democratic Republic of Congo produces most of the world's cobalt.
Battery materials and trade are set to be a focus at next week's U.S.-Africa Leaders' Summit in Washington where President Joe Biden will meet presidents of African countries including Congo.
"The IRA was intended to push out China, and what it's ended up doing is pushing out the DRC, and the EU, and South Korea," said Indigo Ellis, managing director at consultancy Africa Matters Limited, who will attend the Dec. 13-15 summit.
Under IRA, U.S. carmakers will get tax credits if they source at least 40% of battery materials domestically or from American free-trade partners. This risks carmakers replacing Congolese cobalt with Australian, Canadian, Moroccan, or U.S. cobalt.
Congo produced 74% of the world's mined cobalt last year while the next-biggest single producer, Australia, was responsible for just 3%, according to a Cobalt Institute report.
An adviser to Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi said a USA-DRC Free Trade Agreement "is an option for the medium to long-term, but in the short term other avenues will be explored".
A spokesperson for the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said "we look forward to discussing ways to strengthen and deepen our trade and investment ties with our partners throughout Africa" during the summit.
The IRA aims to boost U.S. mining and processing, which some companies fear could come at the expense of value-added processing in Africa.
"The West needs to work with us to build some value-add," said George Roach, CEO of Premier African Minerals (PREM.L), which has a lithium project in Zimbabwe.
His is one of many projects across sub-Saharan Africa aiming to produce battery materials like lithium, nickel and graphite.
Joe Walsh, managing director at Australia-listed Lepidico (LPD.AX), which is building a lithium mine in Namibia and chemical plant in Abu Dhabi, said the IRA makes the United States a more attractive location for a planned second plant.
"The U.S. is not going to be able to incentivise the development of a significant battery raw material production base of its own without ruffling a few feathers along the way." (Reuters)
December
As China Loosens COVID Restrictions, Protesters Fear Retribution
Written by Nur Yasmin
Late last month, Shanghai resident Pei was one of many people who came out in support of historic protests against China's COVID-19 curbs, including filming several seconds of footage of a man being arrested on a street corner.
Almost immediately, Pei said, five or six plainclothes police grabbed him. He was taken to a police station and held for 20 hours, at times with his arms and legs tied to a chair, he told Reuters.
"The policeman who shoved me into the car tried to intimidate me by saying I should be worried if other people find out what I did. Feeling defiant, I told him, I will let the world know what you police are doing," said Pei, 27. He asked to be identified only by part of his name for fear of repercussions.
Now, as many Chinese residents welcome a relaxation of lockdown measures that have crippled businesses and stoked unemployment, some protesters scooped up by China's security apparatus face an anxious wait about their fate.
While Pei and other protesters were released with a warning, some rights lawyers and academics note President Xi Jinping's hard line on dissent over the past decade, and say risks remain of further harassment and prosecution.
"'Squaring the accounts after the autumn harvests' is the Party's way of dealing with people who have betrayed it," said Lynette Ong, a University of Toronto professor, referring to the practice of delaying score settling until the time is ripe.
China's Ministry of Public Security did not respond to a request for comment on the laws they might use against protesters. The Shanghai police also did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Pei's description of how he was arrested or on what further actions they might take.
Last week, in a statement that did not refer to the protests, the Communist Party's top body in charge of law enforcement agencies said China would crack down on "the infiltration and sabotage activities of hostile forces" and would not tolerate any "illegal and criminal acts that disrupt social order".
Asked about the protests, China's foreign ministry has said rights and freedoms must be exercised lawfully.
FINES AND JAIL TIME?
Reuters was unable to establish how many protesters are still in police custody. Social media appeals for details on the whereabouts of a handful of missing protesters remain online.
The protests, widely seen as a tipping point to an easing in tight COVID restrictions, largely petered out in several cities after police mounted a heavy presence on streets.
The repercussions of protesting in China have grown in recent years under Xi's tenure, with the Ministry of Public Security introducing guidelines two years ago that have been used by local authorities to ban protesters from taking up jobs such as tour guides or insurance agents, and also make it harder for their family members to obtain government-related jobs.
Zhang Dongshuo, a Beijing-based lawyer who has handled rights cases in the past, said the levels of punishment for protesting in China vary widely.
Those deemed to be bystanders could be let off with a small fine and up to 15 days' detention, while physical altercations with police could lead to jail terms for disrupting public order or "picking quarrels" and provoking trouble.
Those who shouted slogans calling for the ouster of Xi or the Communist Party - as seen in a number of protests across China - potentially face heavier charges of inciting or engaging in subversion of the state, Zhang said, which in the most extreme cases carry punishment of up to life in prison.
Eiro, another Shanghai protester who was detained after trying to stop police from taking away a fellow protestor, said that during her interrogation, police particularly wanted to know if anyone had distributed blank A4 sheets of paper that were a defining symbol of these protests, as well as the identities of protest organisers.
"The police said there'll be no punishment for all of us this time, but may call us back after further investigation," she told Reuters on an encrypted messaging app.
Pei, Eiro and other protesters Reuters spoke to said they were asked by police to sign letters of repentance, with some of them asked to read the letters aloud while being filmed.
During Hong Kong's protracted anti-China, pro-democracy protests in 2019, thousands were arrested but only charged much later with offences such as rioting and subversion, and many are still in legal proceedings.
"I probably won't go (protesting) again in the short term," Eiro said. "Everyone was impulsive this time and had no experience. We hadn't prepared well and there wasn't any mature organisation and communication platform that could unite and organise everyone."
"WORTH IT"
During a meeting in Beijing last week with European Council President Charles Michel, Xi attributed the dissent in part on youths frustrated by the pandemic, according to one senior EU official.
Alfred Wu, assistant professor at Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in Singapore, said a harsher crackdown was only more likely if authorities believed the protests to be organised and political in nature, rather than leaderless and spontaneous.
"They just sprang up organically because people were driven by a sense of hopelessness and desperation about the never-ending COVID restrictions," Wu said.
For some, however, the desire for broader political freedoms remains undiminished even with the COVID relaxation measures.
"I don't think this is good news or a victory in our struggle because what we are asking for is liberty," said Eiro.
Despite the looming shadow of future reprisals by authorities, Pei said he had no regrets.
"It was worth it. It allowed me to personally see the Communist Party's control over our speech, and to see how the freedom of the people under its rule is deeply restricted." (Reuters)
December
North Korean Hackers Exploited Seoul Halloween Tragedy To Distribute Malware, Google Says
Written by Nur Yasmin
North Korean government-backed hackers referenced the deadly Halloween crush in Seoul to distribute malware to users in South Korea, Google's (GOOGL.O) Threat Analysis group said in a report.The malware was embedded in Microsoft Office documents which purported to be a government report on the tragedy that killed more than 150 people after tens of thousands of young revellers crowded into narrow alleyways.
"This incident was widely reported on, and the lure takes advantage of widespread public interest in the accident," the Threat Analysis Group said.
Google attributed the activity to a North Korean hacking group known as APT37 which it said targets South Korean users, North Korean defectors, policy makers, journalists and human rights activists.
Google also said it has not determined what the malware, which exploited an Internet Explorer vulnerability, was intended to achieve. It reported the problem to Microsoft on Oct. 31 after multiple reports from South Korean users on the same day. Microsoft issued a patch on Nov. 8.
A United Nations panel of experts that monitors sanctions on North Korea has accused Pyongyang of using stolen funds gained through hacking to support its nuclear and ballistic missile programmes to circumvent sanctions.
North Korea does not respond to media inquiries, but has previously released statements denying allegations of hacking.
On Thursday, South Korean officials warned businesses against inadvertently hiring IT staff from North Korea.
In May, the United States issued a similar advisory, saying rogue North Korean freelancers were taking advantage of remote work opportunities to hide their true identities and earn money for Pyongyang. (Reuters)
December
New Zealand's Ardern Hopes To Lead Trade Mission to China Once Border Controls Allow
Written by Nur Yasmin
New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Friday she hoped to lead a trade mission to China once border settings are changed to allow travel to her country's biggest trading partner as it emerges from the pandemic.
Ardern said she had expressed her hopes to visit to China's President Xi Jinping during talks last month on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok, which had been their first in-person meeting since 2018.
"I do hope to return to China in person when the settings allow, and I discussed with the President our ambition of taking a trade mission into China early next year – a plan that was welcomed by the President," Ardern told a meeting of the New Zealand-China Council in Auckland.
Ardern said New Zealand's trade and economic links with China have proven resilient, despite the challenges of COVID. Her comments came just two days after China announced it was dismantling key parts of a strict "zero-COVID" policy, in a much-needed move to give momentum to a flagging economy.
Delivering a speech marking 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, Ardern said New Zealand's relationship with China was important but complex and evolving.
Ardern said "we continue to recognise that there are areas where China and New Zealand do not agree, where our interests or world view differ."
She added that in those areas where New Zealand and China disagreed her government remained willing to engage but would always advocate for New Zealand's interests and values, and speak out when needed.
"We do this predictably, consistently and respectfully," she said.
During the talks in Bangkok Ardern discussed bilateral relations and areas of co-operation with Xi, while also raising concerns about human rights and the Taiwan Strait.
New Zealand has long been seen as the moderate, even absent, voice on China in the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance, but it adopted a tougher tone this year after China and the Solomon Islands struck a security pact.
While Australia's relationship with China has deteriorated, New Zealand and China's interactions have remained largely cordial. (Reuters)
December
Canada Adds Sanctions On Russia, Iran, Myanmar Over Human Rights
Written by Nur Yasmin
Canada on Friday imposed fresh sanctions on Russia, Iran and Myanmar, citing alleged human rights violations by their governments.
The measures included sanctions against 33 current or former senior Russian officials and six entities involved in alleged "systematic human rights violations" against Russian citizens who protested against Russia's invasion of Ukraine, the Canadian foreign ministry said in a statement.
Since Russia's invasion on Feb. 24, Canada has imposed sanctions on more than 1,500 individuals and entities from Russia, Ukraine and Belarus.
Sanctions were also imposed on 22 individuals in Iran, who included senior members of the judiciary, prison system and law enforcement, as well as political leaders, such as senior aides to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and figures in state-directed media outlets, the statement added.
Sanctions on Iran came a day after Iran hanged a man convicted of injuring a security guard with a knife and blocking a street in Tehran, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency, the first such execution over recent anti-government unrest. Nationwide protests erupted after the death of 22-year-old Kurdish Iranian woman Mahsa Amini in police custody on Sept. 16.
"There is more work to be done, but Canada will never stop standing up for human rights," Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said.
In addition to Iran and Russia, Canada also imposed sanctions on 12 individuals and three entities in Myanmar that perform key functions on behalf of the Myanmar military, facilitate arms flows to the military and enable the military's violence, Canada said.
The military seized power in a coup in Myanmar last year. Rights activists say the junta is now regularly using the death penalty as a "political tool."
More than 16,500 people have been arrested and more than 13,000 of them remain in detention since the coup, according to a human rights organization that documents violations by the Myanmar military. (Reuters)