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Geo-Strategic Trend - 197. page

Xinhua: French Customs Seized Two Million Cases of Counterfeit Drugs

Xinhua recently reported that, at the end of February, the French customs seized over two million cases of Chinese counterfeit drugs in the port city of Le Havre in Northern France. According to the announcement made by French customs, this is the largest batch of medicine confiscated in the history of the European Union. French customs reported that all of the cases were marked “Chinese Tea.” Customs also emphasized that some of these drugs contained no active ingredients and that their only use was to cheat the consumers. Some medicines contained an inaccurate level of active ingredients, which can seriously threaten the health of the consumers who take them. 
Source: Xinhua, April 11, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/overseas/2014-04/11/c_126380377.htm
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Chinese Investment in Australia

In March of 2014, KPMG and the University of Sydney’s China Study Center jointly published the report, "Demystifying Chinese Investment in Australia." The report explores the recent direction of Chinese investment in Australia.

In 2013, Australia lost to the United States as the top destination for Chinese outbound direct investment. The total value of Chinese investments in Australia from 2005 to 2013 was $57,250 million, second to the U.S., which was $59,900 million.

Although Chinese investments in Australia registered a 10 percent decrease in 2013 as compared to 2012, there was a clear shift toward larger numbers of small to medium sized deals having larger shares of private Chinese investors, particularly in the commercial real estate sector.

For the first time, Chinese investments in Australia were not concentrated in the mining sector. Instead the power transmission industry dominated with the State Grid deal accounting for 40 percent of the total investment value in 2013, followed by mining (24 percent), gas (21 percent), commercial real estate (14 percent) and agribusiness (1 percent).

Source: "Demystifying Chinese Investment in Australia," March 2014 Update.
http://www.kpmg.com/au/en/issuesandinsights/articlespublications/china-insights/pages/demystifying-chinese-investment-in-australia-march-2014.aspx

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Xinhua: Peruvian Government Called Temporary Halt to CHINALCO Copper Project

On March 31, Xinhua reported that the government of Peru has recently shut down a China Aluminum Corporation (CHINALCO) copper mine development project temporarily, citing environmental violations. CHINALCO controls the Toromocho Copper Mine located in central Peru. The development is to construct one of the largest copper mines in the world, with the level of its capacity at 10-million tons. The Toromocho project is also China’s largest copper project overseas. The Peruvian environmental protection agency OEFA ordered the temporary shut-down due to the fact that the copper waste being discharged into the nearby lakes violated environmental protection codes. This was discovered around mid-March. The CHINALCO spokesperson refused to confirm the news because of the “lack of details.” China Aluminum Corporation is a multinational aluminum company headquartered in Beijing. It is the world’s second largest aluminum producer (and the only producer in China).
Source: Xinhua, March 31, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2014-03/31/c_126334845.htm
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People’s Daily: Street Politics is not Democracy

People’s Daily published a commentary on “street politics” or “color revolutions,” citing interviews with three Chinese scholars of international political science.  

According to the article, Western media tend to characterize street protests aimed to overthrow the government as resulting from people’s great efforts for democracy, while they dub other street events as "anarchist riots." Contrary to democracy, countries with street protests for “democracy” suffer from chaos and violence. This is because of the major forces that promote “street politics” from behind the scene. The influence of Western forces is behind the scene in many of the countries where they take place. Repeated changes of governments bear a close relationship to whether or not the West likes them. All countries can explore their own path, but it must be done according to the laws of that country. 

Source: People’s Daily reprinted by Xinhua, April 3, 2014 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2014-04/03/c_126349005.htm

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BBC Chinese: China and Britain Signed Agreement on RMB Settlement

BBC Chinese recently reported that the British government signed an RMB Clearing and Settlement Agreement with China. This is the first agreement of its type outside of Asia. It further strengthened London’s position as the primary RMB exchange center in the Western world. After Hong Kong became the first offshore trading center for the Chinese currency (RMB) in 2009, several other cities such as Singapore and Tokyo competed to be the second primary RMB trading market. The Chinese government is trying to make the RMB a key player in the competition to challenge the U.S. dollar as the dominant currency in the global economy. The Bank of England signed a currency exchange agreement with the People’s Bank of China in June last year; that agreement expires in three years.
Source: BBC Chinese, March 26, 2014
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/uk/2014/03/140326_china_uk_rmb.shtml
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Sino-Russian Youth Friendship Exchange Year Launched in St. Petersburg

The opening ceremony of the "Sino-Russian Youth Friendly Exchange Year" was held on March 28 in St. Petersburg, Russia. Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin each sent a letter of congratulations.

In his letter, Xi Jinping said that, "President Putin and I jointly decided to hold the ‘Sino-Russian Youth Friendly Exchange Year.’ Year 2014 is a ‘Sino-Russian Youth Friendly Exchange Year’ and year 2015 will also be a ‘Sino-Russian Youth Friendly Exchange Year.’" The initiative will promote the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Russia at a high level and will promote the China-Russia friendship for the coming generations. The leaders of the two countries have undertaken this major initiative with an eye toward long-term bilateral relations.

In his letter, Putin expressed that large humanitarian events such as Russia’s "Year of China" greatly expand bilateral cooperation in many fields, including education, science, culture, tourism and sports. The "Youth Friendly Exchange Year" will further strengthen the China-Russia comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Source: Xinhua, March 29, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2014-03/29/c_126330401.htm

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Study Times: China Should Develop a Silk Road Economic Zone

According to an article published by Study Times, for China to develop the Silk Road economic zone (Silk Road Belt), the selection of routes is a matter of control and dominance and should be based on a consideration of China’s long term “strategic need for national rejuvenation.” 

The Silk Road Belt may have five routes. Starting from the north, the first route is the Eurasian Continental Bridge followed by the second route, the New Eurasian Continental Bridge North line. These are the northern routes. The third route is from central Asia, Iran, Turkey, and Europe (Africa), the main trunk of the ancient Silk Road. This is the central route. The fourth and fifth are the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the Bangladesh-China-India-Myanmar Economic Corridor, which are the southern routes. All things considered, the central route has obvious advantages. 
The breakthrough for the central route will be to advocate building a Civilization Rejuvenation Community (CRC). As there are many ancient civilizations along the central route, the common denominator is civilization rejuvenation. At one time or another, they were prosperous, bullied by super powers, suffered the pains of marginalization, experienced clashes between domestic values and Western values, and shared similar development problems and a desire to accelerate economic development. They all resonate with strong ethnic revival. Building the CRC along the central route will revitalize our relations with these countries and enhance China’s International Discourse Right. 

Source: Study Times, March 24, 2014 
http://www.studytimes.cn/shtml/xxsb/20140324/4258.shtml

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Beijing Joins Taipei in Criticizing Student Protesters

The students’ occupation this month of Taiwan’s parliament to oppose the government’s attempt to pass a controversial trade agreement with China is indeed unprecedented. The trade deal allows Beijing and Taipei to invest more freely in each other’s service markets. Protesters say the deal will hurt Taiwan’s economy and leave it vulnerable to pressure from Beijing, but Taipei says it will benefit Taiwan’s economy.

Beijing’s official media joins Taipei in criticizing the protesters.

People’s Daily Online quoted from the Chicago China News & Digest, a local Chinese language newspaper, which stated that the Taiwan Benevolent Association in Chicago had issued a "solemn declaration" that the recent development revolving around the trade deal turned Taiwan’s representative politics into "mob politics." Opposition parties’ politicians are using inexperienced students as a tool in a power struggle. They have trampled on democratic politics and disgraced Taiwan’s international image.

People’s Daily Online also quoted from the Taiwan based United Daily News that some Taiwanese have organized a "White Justice Alliance" and called for a street parade on March 29. The Alliance states that not everyone is against the trade deal.

[Editor’s note: The students are also concerned that the KMT has steamrolled the political system, reneging on a promise to allow a thorough review and public consultation on the terms of the deal, thus threatening Taiwan’s hard-earned democratic system.]

Source: People’s Daily Online, March 27, 2014
http://tw.people.com.cn/n/2014/0327/c14657-24752121.html
http://tw.people.com.cn/n/2014/0327/c14657-24751014.html

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