Geo-Strategic Trend - 164. page

Global Times recently reported that China has approved a proposal to increase its investments in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor to around US$62 billion. When the project was first kicked off, the original investment level was US$46 billion. There was one increase to US$55 billion. Pakistani officials also revealed the information at an infrastructure investment conference. According to the Economic Corridor Plan, most of these investments will be spent in the areas of electricity generation and distribution. The newly approved additional investments will be directed to various different industries, including constructing industrial parks. At the same time, talks are still underway to include the City Ring Railway of Karachi within the scope (of its investments).

Source: Global Times, April 14, 2017
http://oversea.huanqiu.com/article/2017-04/10474542.html

Global Times recently reported that the anticipated trade war between China and the United States has been discussed around the world as the source for warnings of global economic risks. However, India may have a different opinion. Some members of India’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) National Executive Committee recently expressed the belief that the U.S. threats to punish Chinese manufacturers may result in China’s need for India’s large domestic market. China’s need to maintain growth can actually provide India a new leverage to play in the regional strategic balance. China’s manufacturing advantage depends on large export markets. Since the United States may no long be there for China, the largest market in Asia for exports is India. In fact, in its relations with both China and the United States, India’s large domestic market can be an advantage. It seems a United States under protectionism can create more trouble for China than for India.

Source: Global Times, April 8, 2017
http://oversea.huanqiu.com/article/2017-04/10442908.html

On March 29, the Chinese edition of Voice of America (VOA) reported that the U.S. permanent representative to the U.N. Nikki Haley delivered a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York.

Ambassador Haley discussed the United States’ goals for its term in April as president of the UN Security Council. She outlined her plans to highlight human rights.

VOA quoted Haley as saying, “In case after case, human rights abuses are not the byproduct of conflict; they are the cause of conflict or they are the fuel that feeds the conflict.”  “It might surprise many Americans to learn that human rights violations have not been considered an appropriate subject for discussion in the Security Council.” Haley observed, “Human rights are at the heart of the mission of the United Nations.”

Ambassador Haley mentioned the North Korean regime, which forces political prisoners to work themselves to death in coal mines to finance its nuclear program, and Syrian intelligence, which uses torture, including the deliberate systemic torture of children, to identify and silence opponents.

VOA noted that Ambassador Haley did not name China, where human rights lawyers and activists face large-scale suppression. However, the Telegraph reported on April 3 that “Russia and China are yet to approve Ms. Haley’s schedule, and as a result she has not been able to (get agreement to) a timetable for the events she wants to hold.”

“The United States is the moral conscience of the world,” said Haley, “We will not walk away from this role but we will insist that our participation in the U.N. honor and reflect this role.”

Sources:
VOA Chinese, March 29, 2017
http://www.voachinese.com/a/nikki-haley-20170329/3787255.html
Telegraph, April 4, 2017
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/04/04/nikki-haley-battles-get-human-rights-un-security-council-agenda/

A Japanese news agency reported that, on March 30, the Japanese ruling Liberal Democratic Party submitted a proposal to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe that the Japanese government purchase the United States “THAAD” anti-missile system. People’s Daily published an article asking, “Korea’s ‘THAAD’ dispute has not yet cooled down. Now Japan is immediately following in Korea’s footstep. What is Japan up to?”

The article commented that Japan already had the intention a long time ago. As early as the end of 2016, the Japanese Ministry of Defense set up a Committee to hear testimony as to whether to import the U.S. military equipment for the “THAAD” anti-missile system. In January this year, Japanese Minister of Defense Tomomi Inada went to the United States Anderson Air Force Base in Guam to inspect the U.S. military’s “THAAD” system. He said Japan would finalize the blueprint for missile defense by the summer of 2017.

In an interview with the newspaper, Zhou Yongsheng, Professor at the International Relations Institute of China Foreign Affairs University, said, “North Korea’s missile threat to Japan is not so urgent. Japan claims that it is to prevent the DPRK’s ballistic missile threat, but defense is only a small part of the anti-missile system. Once the system is completed, it will greatly help Japan to achieve its strategic goal of amending its constitution, finalizing a complete military system, and becoming a military power.”

Zhou also said, “The deployment of ‘THAAD’ is also one of the means by which Japan will move closer to the United States. Arms trade is an important step for the United States to develop its strength. Japan’s purchase of the ‘THAAD’ anti-missile system is to enhance the relationship with the Trump administration and with U.S. arms manufacturers. It has also made the deployment of the U.S. global anti – missile system more complete.”

Source: People’s Daily, April 3, 2017
http://world.people.com.cn/n1/2017/0403/c1002-29186738.html

Well-known Chinese news site Sina recently reported that the opium output in Afghanistan is growing. Since 2015 Chinese genetically engineered opium seeds have been showing up in Afghanistan. The new seeds not only offer early maturity; they also allow year-round growing. This resulted in a major annual growth rate of 43 percent in 2016 across Afghanistan. According to statistics that the Afghan government released, opium output is showing rapid growth, which is in line with the findings that the the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNOCD) report published in 2016. The UN report showed that the growth was mainly the result of the new Chinese seeds and the shortening of the harvesting cycle from three months to two. They also extended the six-month growing season to the full year. Some Afghanistan farmers said some people handed them the seeds and promised to come back and buy the opium. They also provided funding as well as fertilizers. The Afghan government revealed that a large amount of the opium was sold to Russia and Pakistan. Europe and the United States were also major markets. The UN estimated the Afghanistan opium export volume to be US$4 billion in 2007. Now it should be much higher.

Source: Sina, March 27, 2017
http://dailynews.sina.com/gb/tw/twlocal/cna/20170327/19547791696.html