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Chinese Warplanes Aggressive Maneuver Near Canadian and U.S. Planes

On October 17 a Chinese military aircraft provocatively intercepted a Canadian Armed Forces Aurora aircraft in international airspace near China’s territorial waters. At the time, the Canadian aircraft was in an operation to enforce United Nations sanctions that prevent illegal transportation of oil to North Korea. The Canadian crew had identified a “suspicious vessel” that was on a watchlist.

During its eight hours of flight, the Canadian aircraft was intercepted by at least two Chinese fighter jets who flew with the Canadian plane for several hours. Chinese jet aircraft at one point came as close as 15 feet from the Canadian aircraft. The Chinese aircraft also launched multiple illumination flares in the vicinity of the Canadian aircraft.

The Washington Post reported that in the past few years Beijing has intensified these kinds of dangerous maneuvers targeting planes of the U.S. and its allies and partners. The total number of such encounters is now near 300. On October 17, Pentagon released videos and photos of some incidents, including an incident in January 2023 where a Chinese J-11 fighter jet flew about 30 feet from an American RC-135 plane and lingered for 15 minutes, and an incident in May 2022 where a Chinese fighter jet flew 15 feet laterally below a US Navy EP-3 plane.

Sources:
1. Radio France International, October 17, 2023
https://www.rfi.fr/cn/国际/20231017-加媒-中国战机以-挑衅方式-拦截加拿大军机
2. Washington Post, October 17, 2023
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/10/17/china-fighter-jet-dangerous-maneuvers/

Briefings | | |   @CS Defense/Military Geo-Strategic Trend US-China Relations

CCP Reduces Functions of China’s Central Bank

China’s State Council recently announced an adjustment to the structure and responsibilities of China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China:

  1. The State Council Financial Stability and Development Committee and its office will no longer be retained. Its responsibilities will be transferred to the office of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Central Financial Committee. The Secretariat of the State Council Financial Stability and Development Committee, previously located within the People’s Bank of China, will be transferred to the office of the CCP’s Central Financial Committee.
  2. The daily supervisory responsibilities for financial holding companies and other financial groups will be transferred to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.
  3. The responsibilities for establishing and improving the basic system for the protection of financial consumers will be transferred to the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission.

The People’s Bank of China will reduce 30 administrative positions and 6 leadership positions at the bureau level. After these adjustments, the People’s Bank of China will have 20 internal institutions, with 714 administrative positions and 87 leadership positions at the bureau level.

Chinese news website Aboluo published an article saying that analysts believe this move reflects Xi Jinping’s increasing centralization of power in the CCP’s Central Committee over the State Council, diminishing the role of Premier Li Qiang. Also, the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission is believed to be under the control of Xi’s confidant He Lifeng.

Sources:
1. China Government website, October 13, 2023
https://www.gov.cn/zhengce/202310/content_6908743.htm
2. Aboluo, October 14, 2023
https://www.aboluowang.com/2023/1014/1965621.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources Government/Politics

Xi Jinping Might Have Ended the CCP’s Central Civilization Committee

New Tang Dynasty TV reported that the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) Central Civilization Committee (中央精神文明建设指导委员会), established in April 1997, has quietly disappeared. This organization was founded during the era of former CCP head Jiang Zemin. On paper, it served as a policy-making body to oversee the nation’s “spiritual and ideological development.” Its actual role was to direct ideological messaging and propaganda within the country. One of its major functions was to suppress Falun Gong, a practice of mind-and-body Buddhist-based exercises.

The committee’s member organizations included several key bodies such as the CCP Central Discipline Inspection Commission, the Central Propaganda Department, the Central Organization Department, the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, and the State Council General Office. The first Director of this committee was Ding Guangen, a member of the CCP’s Politburo and head of the CCP Central Propaganda Department. Subsequent directors were all members of the Politburo, including prominent figures from the Jiang Zemin era such as Li Changchun, Liu Yunshan, and Wang Huning. Following the 20th National Congress, Xi Jinping’s confidant, Cai Qi, assumed the position of director.

On October 11 the Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao reported changes to the official website of the Central Civilization Committee. The organization listed as owning the website changed from the Central Civilization Committee to the Central Propaganda Department and the Central Civilization Office. Additionally, the full name of the Central Civilization Office was changed from “Central Spiritual Civilization Development Steering Committee Office” to “Central Spiritual Civilization Development Office,” with the “Committee” part omitted. The article noted that Cai Qi has never publicly used the title of director of the Central Civilization Committee even though he was in charge of it.

The disappearance of this committee shows how Xi Jinping is moving away from Jiang Zemin’s legacy. The CCP’s National Propaganda and Cultural Work Conference, held in Beijing on October 7 and 8 introduced the concept of “Xi Jinping’s Cultural Ideology” for the first time. This marks a new approach in the CCP’s methodology for exercising influence over culture and ideology to control the minds of the Chinese people.

Source: NTDTV, October 11, 2023
https://www.ntdtv.com/gb/2023/10/11/a103803561.html

Briefings | | |   @CS Government/Politics

China’s “Panda Diplomacy”

The Epoch Times reported that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been using giant pandas for its diplomacy agenda. As Sino-U.S. relations have soured, China plans to take back three pandas on loan to the U.S. National Zoo at Washington, DC. by end of this year. If the Atlanta Zoo cannot renew its panda contract with Beijing by next year, then the U.S. will have no panda for the first time in 50 years.

The CCP started its “Panda Diplomacy” with the West in 1972 when it gifted two giant pandas to the U.S. following Nixon’s visit to China.

Scholar Kathleen Buckingham published a research paper in 2013 outlining three phases of the CCP’s “Panda Diplomacy.”

  • The first phase, during Mao Zedong’s era, involved gifting giant pandas purely for political purposes.
  • In the second phase, under Deng Xiaoping, panda diplomacy aligned with economic reforms, with China adopting a capitalistic model to generate revenue by leasing the pandas.
  • In The third phase, starting in 2008, the leasing model has leaned towards countries with free trade agreements and technology transfer agreements with the CCP. For instance, Australia, France, and Canada have received pandas after agreeing to sell nuclear technology and uranium to China. Scotland received a pair of pandas in 2011 as part of an agreement to share offshore drilling technology and supply salmon to China. In 2013, the Netherlands received pandas as they agreed to provide advanced medical services.

To attract attention and as a means of leverage, the CCP now requires foreign heads of state to personally request pandas before deciding whether to lease them.

The CCP has also been recalling pandas as a punitive tool. In 2010, two days after Beijing warned President Obama not to meet the Dalai Lama, China called back the first batch of panda cubs born in the Atlanta Zoo and the Washington National Zoo. Amid the tensions over the U.S.-China trade war in 2019, Beijing retrieved pandas “Bai Yun” and her cub and “Little Gift” from the San Diego Zoo. This year, due to the Netherlands’ adherence to U.S. restrictions on the sale of advanced semiconductor processing equipment to China, Beijing recalled the three-year-old panda “Fan Xing” from a Dutch zoo.

Source: Epoch Times, October 10, 2023
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/23/10/10/n14091930.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Geo-Strategic Trend US-China Relations

Taliban Official Visits Beijing for “Belt Road Initiative” Conference

The Afghan embassy announced that Taliban Deputy Commerce Minister Haji Nooruddin Azizi had arrived in Beijing on October 17, to attend China’s “Belt Road Initiative” forum. Azizi’s visit will include discussions about inviting “major investors” to Afghanistan, road construction plans through the Wakhan Corridor, and negotiations for a large copper mine in eastern Afghanistan. This marks one of the highest-profile international invitations extended to the Taliban since the organization’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021.

Despite the international community’s lack of formal recognition of the Taliban since its takeover of Afghanistan, Beijing has sought official relations with the group. Beijing is motivated in part by Afghanistan’s significant mineral resources. Last month, China’s Ambassador to Afghanistan presented credentials to the Taliban’s acting Prime Minister. Meanwhile, many other countries have avoided formal recognition of the Taliban, retaining their previous ambassadors or chargé d’affaires in Afghanistan so as to avoid the need to submit official credentials to the organization.

Source: Epoch Times, October 18, 2023
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/23/10/18/n14097697.htm

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Xi Jinping Announces Eight-Point Action Plan for Belt for Road

Beijing held the Third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation on October 18. Xi Jinping gave a keynote address, announcing an eight-point action plan for China’s development of the “Belt and Road” Initiative:

  1. Construct a three-dimensional interconnected network for the “Belt and Road.” China will accelerate the high-quality development of the China-Europe Railway Express, participate in the construction of the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, organize the China-Europe Railway Express International Cooperation Forum, and work with all parties to establish a new Eurasian logistics corridor supported by direct rail and road. China will actively promote the integrated development of “Silk Road Ocean Shipping,” expedite the construction of new land-sea transportation channels and the Air Silk Road.
  2. Support the development of an open world economy. China will establish “Silk Road e-commerce” cooperation pilot zones, sign free trade treaties and investment protection treaties with more countries, comprehensively remove foreign investment access restrictions in the manufacturing sector, and actively align with international high-standard economic and trade rules. China will deepen cross-border trade in services and high-level openness for investment, expand market access for digital products, and reform in areas such as state-owned enterprises, the digital economy, intellectual property, and government procurement. China will also host a “Global Digital Trade Expo” annually. In the next five years (2024-2028), China’s total imports and exports of goods and services are expected to surpass $32 trillion and $5 trillion US dollars, respectively.
  3. Promote practical cooperation. China will coordinate the promotion of landmark projects and “small but beautiful” livelihood projects. The China Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of China will each establish 350 billion RMB financing windows, while the Silk Road Fund will inject an additional 80 billion RMB. These initiatives will support co-building the “Belt and Road” projects in a market-oriented and commercial way. During this summit, the Entrepreneur Conference reached 97.2 billion US dollars in project cooperation agreements. China will also implement 1,000 small livelihood assistance projects, promote vocational education cooperation with foreign countries through the “Luban Workshops” (master-craftsman workshops), and enhance security guarantees for co-building “Belt and Road” projects and personnel.
  4. Promote green development. China will continue to deepen cooperation with other countries in areas such as green infrastructure, green energy, and green transportation. They will support the “Belt and Road” Green Development International Alliance, continue to host the “Belt and Road” Green Innovation Conference, establish a photovoltaic industry dialogue and exchange mechanism, and a green low-carbon expert network. They will implement the “Belt and Road” Green Investment Principles and provide training for 100,000 people from partner countries by 2030.
  5. Advance technological innovation. China will continue to implement the “Belt and Road” Science and Technology Innovation Action Plan, hold the first “Belt and Road” Science and Technology Exchange Conference, expand the joint laboratories established with various parties to 100 in the next five years, support short-term work by young scientists from various countries in China, and propose a global initiative on the governance of artificial intelligence (AI) during this summit. China is willing to strengthen exchanges and dialogue with all countries to promote the healthy, orderly, and secure development of global AI.
  6. Support people-to-people exchange. China will host the “Liangzhu Forum” to deepen cultural dialogues with the “Belt and Road” participating countries. In addition to the Silk Road International Theater, Art Festival, museums, art galleries, and library alliances already established, China will create a Silk Road Tourist City Alliance. China will continue the “Silk Road” Chinese Government Scholarship Program.
  7. Build a clean (non-corruptive) “Belt and Road.” China, together with its partners, will release the “Effectiveness and Prospects of Clean Construction of the ‘Belt and Road'” and introduce “High-Level Principles for Clean Construction of the ‘Belt and Road'” during this summit. China will establish an assessment system on “Belt and Road” enterprises’ “clean” (non-corruptive) compliance and cooperate with international organizations in research and training on clean training.
  8. Improve the international cooperation mechanism for the “Belt and Road.” China will strengthen the construction of multilateral cooperation platforms in various fields such as energy, taxation, finance, green development, disaster reduction, anti-corruption, think tanks, media, culture, and more with countries co-building the “Belt and Road.” They will continue to hold the “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Summit Forum and establish a summit forum secretariat.

Source: Website of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, October 18, 2023
https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/zyxw/202310/t20231018_11162839.shtml

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources Geo-Strategic Trend

CCP Media Praises “Community of Common Destiny for Mankind”

{Editor’s note: The “Community of Shared Human Destiny” is a political framework promoted by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) to advance foreign-policy goals, i.e. increasing the CCP’s power to influence other international players and its ability to dominate in the realms of economics, security, and geopolitics. [2]}

Xinhua reported that China’s State Council Information Office recently released a white paper titled “Working Together to Build a Community of Shared Human Destiny: China’s Proposals and Actions.” The article said that “this year marks the 10th anniversary of China’s proposal” of the concept. The article stated that over the past decade, the idea of a “Community of Shared Human Destiny” has formed into a scientific and theoretical system, and that this concept “is superior to the idea of ‘Universal Values’ promoted by a select few Western countries. It aligns with the trend of the times, advocates for global cooperation, and promotes the development of the international order in a more just and equitable direction.”

Sources:

[1] Xinhua, September 28, 2023
http://www.news.cn/world/2023-09/28/c_1129891341.htm

[2] “Community of Common Destiny”, Wikipedia, retrieved October 7, 2023
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_of_Common_Destiny

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend Government/Politics

Yunan University Military Training Performance: Students Act Out Police Suppression of Workers’ Protest

A recent video circulating online shows scenes from a military training performance at Chuxiong Normal University in Yunnan Province. In the video, students acted out how police might suppress workers who have not been paid and who are protesting for their salaries.

In the video, some students dressed as the “unpaid workers,” holding white pieces of paper displaying signs that read “Pay Our Debts.” Some workers at the fore wore black masks and rushed toward the “police,” also played by students. The police dressed in camouflage uniforms, using tear gas and other methods to disperse the workers. They then surrounded and violently restrained the workers, arresting and taking them away one by one.

The video has sparked widespread discussions among internet users. People commented that the CCP “does not treat people as people,” regarding even workers’ demands for unpaid wages as illegal. A report by the Epoch Times provided a footnote saying that China’s economy is worsening, so authorities may anticipate more incidents and clashes around workers’ unpaid salaries.

Source: Epoch Times, October 4, 2023
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/23/10/4/n14087686.htm

Briefings | | |   @CS Social Stability