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Briefings - 1035. page

Minister of Culture: Western Soft Power Stronger than China’s

Cai Wu, the Minister of Culture, admitted that Western soft power continues to remain stronger than that of China. He saw no fundamental change, and believed that the status quo is not comparable to China’s rising international status. He expressed that China should “expand the international influence of Chinese culture, and, at the same time, truly protect the safety of domestic culture.” To increase China’s soft power is to, among other things, “promote understanding and respect for China’s core interests.”

Source: Xinhua, April 9, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/newmedia/2010-04/09/content_13323486.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

China’s Real Estate Bubble to Burst in 2011?

Xinhua reported that a timetable predicting China’s real estate collapse in 2011 has been published on the Internet. The timetable compares the Japanese real estate market trend between 1985 and 1991 to that of China between 2005 and 2008 and found China, with its serious real estate bubble, excessive dependency on exports, and pressure on RMB appreciation, is similar to Japan right before the Japanese economic bubble burst in the 1980s. The timetable author concluded that the Chinese economy is facing significant risks and its real estate market will collapse in 2011.

Source: Xinhua, April 6, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2010-04/06/content_13307384.htm

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

Nigeria Recovered Its Broken Wings with Chinese Fighter Planes

Global Times quoted an article from the Nigeria Daily Sun newspaper on April 8, “Air Force Has Recovered Its ‘Broken Wings’ – Inaugurates Chinese Multi-Role Combat Aircraft.” It claimed that Nigeria has recovered its air force power after spending US$250 million to purchase fifteen F-7 fighter planes and armaments from China. The deal included twelve F-7NI single-seat fighters, three F-7NI double seat trainers, twenty live PL-9C air-to-air missiles, ten training PL-9 rounds, unguided rockets, and 250/500 kg bombs. Nigeria’s government approved the deal in 2005. China started training Nigerian pilots in 2008 and delivered the aircraft in 2009. China’s F-7 is a Chinese copy of the Russian Mig-21.

Sources:
1. Global Times, April 9, 2010
http://mil.huanqiu.com/Observation/2010-04/771941.html
2. Daily Sun, Nigeria, April 8, 2010
http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/news/national/2010/apr/08/national-08-04-2010-025.htm

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

China to Invest 400 Billion Yuan in 3G Network

China is going to beef up its investment in promoting 3G mobile networks over the next two years. On April 8, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and seven more ministries jointly issued a “Notice on Promoting the Development of 3G Mobile Communication Network,” outlining the goal and implementation strategy for 3G-network development. The notice calls for 3G-network coverage in all cities at or above the prefecture level and the majority of counties, towns, major highways and tourist areas, by 2011. 400 billion Yuan will be invested in 3G-network construction and over four hundred thousand 3G base stations will be built to support one hundred fifty million 3G users.

According to MIIT, China had only 16 million 3G users as of February 2010.

Source: Shanghai Stock Information Service, April 9, 2010
http://paper.cnstock.com/html/2010-04/09/content_10460.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Antibiotics Abuse in Animal Farming

Outlook Magazine published an article, disclosing that many farmers in China have over-used antibiotics in raising animals, causing meat, eggs, and milk to contain antibiotic residues. Some farmers sell animal products after feeding antibiotics to sick animals. Some farmers routinely feed animals with low doses of antibiotics, though the animals are not sick. These practices produce more resistant bacteria among animals and also threaten human health.

The average Chinese consumes 138 gram of antibiotics per year, the highest in the world and ten times the amount used in the U.S. on an average basis. Among the antibiotics users, only 20% truly need them and 80% are abusers.

Source: Outlook Magazine, April 12, 2010
http://news.sohu.com/20100412/n271440936.shtml

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

The Next U.S. War Target

Xinhua recently republished an article by PLA Life Magazine, authored by popular military commentator, Zhang Zhaozhong, on who will be the next U.S. war target. The article started with the story that the CIA helped Saddam Hussein obtain the ruling power and pushed the war against Iran. Then, after a failed war against Iran, the U.S. tacitly agreed to Saddam’s plan to invade Kuwait as a trap. The Bushes attacked Iraq to sustain control of the region by having a pro-US government. The war in Afghanistan afterwards was to completely remove Russia’s influence and to “put a knife in China’s back.”

The author considers Obama’s peaceful look to be a “political smoke bomb.” The article looked back into U.S. history and concluded that there was no US president that never had a war. Therefore Obama will not be an exception. Zhang predicts the U.S. will not let Iran be the strongest military power in the Middle East.

Source: Xinhua, April 6, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2010-04/06/content_13308134.htm

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Xinhua Published Five Commentaries on Local Government Land Sales

From March 28 to April 1, Xinhua consecutively published five commentaries against local governments on selling land to increase income. The key points of the commentaries were: (1) land-selling based local finance policies are an overdraft that’s not sustainable; (2) local governments must change the mentality of real estate speculation; (3) the entire government real estate approval process should be transparent to avoid corruption; (4) land monopoly causes vicious competition and pushes land prices up; (5) the high profit and immediate contribution to GDP (which is a major measurement of a government’s performance) discourages local government’s willingness to control housing price.

Source: Xinhua, April 4, 2010
http://news.xinhuanet.com/house/2010-04/04/content_13297657.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

People Video Communications Enters the Mobile TV Market

People Video Communications, under state daily news Renmin, announced the availability of online video services for mobile phones. The Mobile video services include forums, news, laws, movies, TV series,  entertainment, and more. The services contents are based on the People’s Daily newspaper. The 24-hour broadcast platform also serves as an integration point of movie and TV distribution channels, entertainment agents, interactive entertainment and value-added mobile services. The Central Propaganda Department of the Communist Party also sent representatives to the announcement ceremony.

Source: Renmin, April 9, 2010
http://wireless.people.com.cn/GB/161827/162080/11327360.html

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology