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Reservoirs May Flood Yellow River This Year

The Yellow River is likely to flood this year, warned China Meteorological Administration on June 16, 2008. Rainfall is expected to increase by 20 to 50 percent compared with previous years. The last flood in the Yellow River occurred back in 1982. “The flood situation is very severe due to dangerous reservoirs and hidden safety crises,”  said China Meteorological Administration. The Yellow River is China’s second largest with 5,464 km in lengths.

Source: Xinhua, June 16, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2008-06/16/content_8379394.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

State Imposes Coal Ceiling Price

On June 19, 2008 China State Development and Reform Commission announced temporary price ceiling for coal. Effective December 31, 2008, the June 19 settlement price for coal used for power generation will become the temporary ceiling price. The purpose of this price intervention is claimed to “prevent price hikes of coal and electricity, and to promote coordinated, stable and healthy development of coal and power industry.”

Source: Xinhua, June 20, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/2008-06/20/content_8403443.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Chinese Hacker Website: Not true that China Hacked U.S. Congressional Computers

On June 13, 2008 the largest Chinese hacker website, Hackbase.com, commented on U.S. lawmakers’ announcement that according to FBI, their Congressional computers were hacked by source inside China. Titled “U.S. Congressmen Slanders Chinese Hackers for Hacking Congressional Computers for Two Years,” the Hackbase article states that it is normal that U.S. official websites are hacked, quoting U.S. Pentagon testimony at a Congressional hearing last month.  The article further states that the true purpose of the lawmakers’ announcement is anti-China.

Earlier on June 12 spokesman of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied statement by the two U.S. lawmakers that it hacked into congressional computers, saying that as a developing country it is not capable of sophisticated cyber-crime.

Source: Hackerbase.com, June 13, 2008
http://www.hackbase.com/news/2008-06-13/17709.html
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, June 12, 2008
http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/chn/xwfw/fyrth/t446738.htm

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Xinhua Warns Aganst Economic Slowing Down

Chinese economy may have peaked. Outlook quoted China’s National Bureau of Statistics: “2007 may have seen the peak of economic development for this round. From this year, economy will gradually slow down.” Another government thinktank warns, “Prevention of economic downturn is the problem we should watch out for, now and in the near future.”

According to National Bureau of Statitics on June 12, the CPI for May was down to 7.7% while the PPI for May was up to 8.2% for the fifth consecutive months. It was the first time since February 2007 that PPI was increasing higher than CPI.  Unsettling factors include the U.S. policies to provent recession, particularly the lowering of interest rates, states Outlook News Weekly, a Xinhua journal, on June 14.

Source: Outlook News Weekly, June 14, 2008
http://news.sohu.com/20080614/n257491684.shtml

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Beijing Finding Balances Between Earthquake Relief and the Olympics

People’s Daily issued an editorial after the Central Committee of the Chinese Communsit Party held an "extremely important" meeting on June 13 to discuss emerging chanlleges in light of the Sichuan earthquake, economic statbility and the upcoming Olympics. The editorial calls for maintaining adquate balance between earthquake relief work and preparation for the Olympics. The editorial furthers states that the key to success lies in strengthening the Party’s leadership and resolute implementation of the Party’s decisions.

Source: Xinhua, June 14, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/newscenter/2008-06/13/content_8363411.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Chinese Hack Computers in U.S. Capitol, Korea and India

On Wednesday June 11, U.S. Congressman Wolf said the FBI had found that four of the computers in his office had been hacked by people working from inside China, beginning in 2006. Congressman Chris Smith said two of his computers had been attacked, in December 2006 and March 2007. Both Congressmen said the compromised computers contained information about political dissidents from around the world.

China accounted for 54 percent of the cyberattacks in Korea, according to the Korea Institute of Information Society & Cryptology in late May.  In early May, Indian officials stated that over the past one and a half years, China had mounted almost daily attacks on Indian official computer networks, including an attack on the NIC (National Infomatics Centre), which was aimed at the National Security Council. 

Source: 
Washington Times, June 11, 2008
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/11/AR2008061101208.html?nav=rss_email/components 
Yonhap News, May 20, 2008 http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/techscience/2008/05/20/0601000000AEN20080520004100315.HTML 
The Times of India, May 5, 2008
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/msid-3010288,prtpage-1.cms 
Chinesescope, The Red Hackers, May 16, 2005
http://chinascope.org/main/content/view/456/148/

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Earthquake Stricken Military R&D Base Resumes Operations

A military research and development base in Sichuan under the General Armament Department (GAD) of the People’s Liberation Army has resumed normal operations for all of its major R&D programs, Xinhua reported on June 10. The base is responsible for several major national R&D programs. At the time of the May 12 earthquake, some equipment was going through testing and part of a power building on the base collapsed causing a power shortage.

Source: Xinhua, June 10, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2008-06/10/content_8337590.htm

Briefings | | |   Defense/Military

Chinese Consulate General in NY Rejected Earthquake Donations from Democracy Activists

On May 27, 2008 representatives of Chinese democracy activists visited the Chinese Consulate General in New York wtih donations for victims of the Sichuan earthquake.  The Consulate staff refused the check without explanation.

The donations were colleted in an earlier fundraising event held by the Chinese Democracy Party in front of the Chinese Consulate calling for donations from Chinese democracy activists to help victims of the Sichuan earthquake.

Source: Epoch Times, May 31, 2008
http://news.epochtimes.com/gb/8/5/31/n2137431.htm

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations