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Geo-Strategic Trend - 197. page

IHL: A Sovereignty Declaration Might Result in an “Accidental Discharge”

On January 7, 2013, the International Herald Leader, a newspaper under Xinhua News Agency, published an article in which the reporter interviewed Major General Luo Yuan on the “probability of accidental discharges” involving neighboring countries. In the interview, Luo pointed out that many neighboring countries may declare sovereignty [over islands or border areas in dispute] and “some countries are good at sneak attacks.” Luo therefore foresaw the “probability of accidental discharges” occurring in 2013. Thus, he suggested, China must get ready.

Source: International Herald Leader, January 7, 2013
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2013/0106/145995.shtml

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Xinhua: The U.S. is Mass-Selling Weapons to China’s Neighbors

Xinhua recently published an article which reviewed a number of media reports from Russia, Hong Kong, Iran, Taiwan, Japan, and Britain on U.S. arms sales in Asia. The number of fighter jets, missiles, and rockets that the U.S. will sell to China and North Korea’s neighbors is expected to increase significantly in 2013. U.S. Aerospace Industries Association, whose members include Lockheed-Martin, Boeing, and Northrop-Grumman, issued the same forecast. The Asian focus of the Obama administration and the increased Chinese defense budget are considered primary drivers behind this move. Experts suggested that conflicts in the South China Sea and the East Sea are fueling the U.S. arms manufacturers. Four Global Hawk unmanned aircraft worth US$1.2 billion were sold to South Korea right after North Korea’s rocket launch last month. It seems that both U.S. allies and their opposition agree that the re-balancing process in East and Southeast Asia is profiting the U.S. arms industry.
Source: Xinhua, January 5, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2013-01/05/c_124184314_3.htm
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Xinhua: PetroChina Investments in Iran Got Stuck

Xinhua recently reported that Iran’s Oil Ministry announced, at the end of 2012, that PetroChina “lacked the willingness” to push forward on the investments in some of its projects in Iran. The two sides have been in negotiations for over half a year and PetroChina is not moving forward. Last summer there had already been reports on PetroChina withdrawing from its investment plans. However, PetroChina officially denied any withdrawal. This new Iranian announcement is the latest development under the “shadow of U.S. sanctions.” PetroChina has recently been pulling workers out of some sea-side Iranian cities. PetroChina officials were not available to comment on the latest Iranian government announcement. After the U.S. sanctions started, all Western companies left Iran, which made the Chinese companies the primary investors in Iran’s energy industry. Restrictions and policy constraints present other barriers to PetroChina’s project schedules. PetroChina currently has four investment projects in Iran totaling over US$10 billion. 
Source: Xinhua, January 5, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2013-01/05/c_124186289.htm
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27 Percent of China’s Billionaires Have Emigrated

China’s International Migration Report (2012) was released in December 2012. The report showed that in China, among business owners with personal assets of more than one billion yuan (US$160 million), 27 percent have emigrated, and 47 percent are considering emigration. In the past three years, at least 17 billion yuan ($US2.7 billion) of capital has flown abroad.

The Blue Book shows that the emigration of the wealthy reflects, to a certain extent, the problem of capital flight. Some people transferred their "gray income" overseas to achieve tax avoidance and also to evade prosecution in accordance with the national laws. This capital flight has led to a huge loss of the nation’s wealth.

Source: Xinhua, January 6, 2013
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2013-01/06/c_124191693.htm

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Military Official Calls for a Powerful Chinese Air Force to Counter the U.S. and Japan at Sea

Senior Colonel Dai Xu, Director of the Marine Security and Cooperation Research Institute and a Professor a the National Defense University of the PLA China, recently published a commentary in Global Times (a division of People’s Daily). Dai recommended that China should develop a powerful air force to deal with the crisis in the open sea. He pointed out that "Japan has continuously dispatched F-15 fighters to intercept Chinese maritime surveillance aircraft and has deployed anti-submarine aircraft to harass China’s ocean surveillance ships.” “For Japan to send fighter jets is a qualitative change in diplomatic moves. … The Chinese Air Force has no choice but to come forward with equivalent or even greater efforts. The Chinese Air Force should develop a plan as soon as possible, have targeted training and deployment, make sure China is able to take immediate action when needed, and be able to win the war when in the fight.”

 “In the numerous exercises the United States and Japan have held, they not only directly targeted the Diaoyu Islands or the South China Sea waters, but also aimed at attacking China’s economically developed coastal regions. This requires that the Chinese Air Force cannot just be satisfied with having influence within its territorial waters and airspace; it must also have an awareness of the crisis and the ability to cope with it, to suppress the opponent’s intentions in a war on the high seas, and to suppress its adventures; it must even be able to intercept the enemy and destroy the enemy when going to war.” 
Source: Huanqiu, December 29, 2012 
http://mil.huanqiu.com/observation/2012-12/3430991.html
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Military Professor: China Must Be on Guard against ‘Peace Disease’

On December 12, 2012, the International Herald Leader, a newspaper under Xinhua News Agency, published an article titled, “Liu Minggfu: China Must Be on Guard against ‘Peace Disease.’” According to Liu Mingfu, a professor at the PLA National Defense University, we must firmly grasp the “Missile” (People’s Safety) and the “Egg” (People’s Livelihood) with both hands.

Liu stated, “The development of China’s military forces is behind China’s economic development; it lags behind what is needed for the Sino-US strategic competition. Therefore, China must increase military spending and speed up the pace of the army’s build-up.”

Source: International Herald Leader, December 12, 2012
http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2012/1212/134491.shtml

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The Chinese Government Actively Supports the Development of Confucius Institutes

On Dec. 16, 2012, China’s State Councilor, Liu Yandong, delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of the seventh conference of Confucius Institutes. According to Liu, who is also the president the Confucius Institute Headquarters Council, the Chinese government will actively support the steady development of Confucius Institutes, following the spirit of the 18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party.

In 2012, 400 Confucius Institutes and over 500 Confucius Classrooms were in operation globally. They received about 655,000 registered students from 108 countries and regions. Liu encouraged Confucius Institutes to expand the coverage of their operations from major cities to other regions and from colleges to communities.

Source: Xinhua, December 16, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2012-12/16/c_114044652.htm

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Xinhua: China’s Global Strategy

Xinhua recently published an article discussing the strategic adjustments that are required based on the current global political environment. The article suggested that many countries in the world (such as the U.S. and Japan) are adjusting their global strategies and China needs to do the same in order to keep pace with them. The article discussed four areas for the new strategic adjustments. On the east side, China should stabilize the Asia-Pacific region as an answer to the U.S. shift of its strategic focus to the East. This stabilization effort should especially emphasize the relationship with Japan and the ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations). On the north side, China should enhance its relationship with Russia, focusing on nuclear technology, space technology, and trade. On the west side, China should strengthen its ties with the Mid-Asian and West Asian countries, especially with nations that are rich in energy resources and who may be suffering from the U.S. strategy of “reducing its energy dependency.” On the south side, China should pay extra attention to the traditional “Southern” developing countries that include the African countries and the Latin American countries. Direct investments from China to these countries are growing very rapidly. 
Source: Xinhua, December 16, 2012
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2012-12/16/c_124095365.htm
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