Geo-Strategic Trend - 238. page

On February 10, 2011, China expressed its support for the Mubarak government’s efforts to “maintain social stability and restore order” through a statement by its Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu, “China understands and supports Egypt’s efforts to maintain social stability and restore normal order, and holds that Egypt should decide its own affairs independently, without intervention from the outside.” On February 12, 2011, after President Hosni Mubarak stepped down, Ma commented, “I hope the latest developments will help Egypt restore national stability and the normal order.” Official media in China only briefly reported the events in Egypt.

Source: China News, February 10, 2011 & Xinhua, February 12, 2011
http://www.chinanews.com/gn/2011/02-10/2834006.shtml
http://news.xinhuanet.com/video/2011-02/12/c_121070763.htm

Xinhua published an article on February 12, 2011, stating that southern Sudan’s independence is a tragedy. The article blamed the United States for being hostile to Sudan for a long time, making a big fuss over the genocide in Darfur, and issuing an arrest warrant for Sudan’s President al-Bashir. The article suggested that it was suspicious that the leader of South Sudan, John Garang, who was a firm supporter of Sudan’s unification, was killed in a plane crash. “Looking back, the West determined the road of separation that Sudan took. South Sudan, after its independence, will probably embrace the West like Kosovo has done. The northern government of Sudan will have more difficulties in contending with the United States.”

Source: Xinhua, February 12, 2011
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2011-02/12/c_121069952.htm

The World Journal reported that China will sign an agreement with North Korea on February 15, 2011, to jointly extract North Korea’s mineral deposits. 

“The agreement will specify the mineral sites. … The minerals to be extracted include gold, anthracite coal, and rare earth.” The two countries will set up a jointly owned company in Hong Kong to raise money from China’s private investors. South Korea estimates that North Korea’s total mineral deposits are worth US$6.3 trillion.

Source: World Journal, February 7, 2011
http://gb.worldjournal.com/view/aChinanews/11295144/article–ifbase4-base164-JUU1JTgzJUI5JUU1JTgwJUJDNi0zJUU1JTg1JTg2JUU3JUJFJThFJUU1JTg1JTgzLSVFNCVCOCVBRCVFNSU4
RiVBRiVFOSU5NiU4QiVFNyU5OSVCQyVFNSU4QyU5NyVFOSU5RiU5MyVFNyVBNCVBNiVFOCU5NyU4Rg~~?
instance=chin

Xinhua reported that the Committee Chairman of the African Union (AU) recently visited the construction site of the AU Convention Center, which China’s African Aid program funded. A Chinese construction company also did the work. The AU appreciated the “gift” from China and was satisfied with the progress made on the project. It is one of the key projects under the African Aid program. The Convention Center is located in Ethiopia. The construction started on June 16, 2009, and is expected to reach completion by the end of the year 2011.

Source: Xinhua, January 21, 2011
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2011-01/22/c_121011695.htm

China approved a special project, “Dynamic Database for the Promotion of China’s Culture Overseas,” under the National Social Science Foundation. The project focuses on four research areas: the “going abroad” strategy, China’s image in international media, Chinese studies overseas, and “China’s position in the world of ideologies and cultures.”

Zhang Xiping, Director of Overseas Chinese Language Studies, Beijing Foreign Language University, and a leader of the project, claimed that the purpose of the project is to serve national strategy. “When research on China’s culture makes an impact on the world, it will augment China’s soft power and help China gain stature in the areas of research and ideology.”  

“To do this, (China) should study the target countries’ short-term and long-term cultural needs and convert those requirements into our basic goals and tasks.” “Research can include Western countries’ acceptance of Chinese culture, each country’s policy on Chinese language and culture, and the history, language, culture, religion, political parties, economy, and natural environment of African and Asian countries that are important to China’s strategic interests.”

Source: Qiushi Journal, January 6, 2011
http://www.qstheory.cn/wz/jiangt/201101/t20110106_61366.htm

On January 25, 2011, Xinhua reported that China signed a memorandum of understanding with Zambia in which the two countries agreed to promote cooperation between their respective media industries. Liu Binjie, Director of the General Administration of Press and Publications, told Zambia Minister of Information and Broadcasting Services, Ronnie Shikapwasha, “Zambia can learn from China’s experience of rapid development in traditional media and new media, and can, through cooperation, accelerate the construction of digital media platforms to achieve a quantum leap in development.”

Source: Xinhua, January 25, 2011
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2011-01/25/c_121019115.htm

China and Russia held their fifth round of strategic security talks in Moscow on January 24, 2011. Led by State Councilor Dai Bingguo and Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, the parties discussed  the global security situation and their bilateral relationship in depth. The two sides acknowledged that the bilateral relationship has achieved unprecedented progress and has firmly supported each country’s core interests. The parties affirmed that the bilateral consultation mechanism is an important channel to communicate and coordinate on major strategic global issues. The next round of consultation will take place in China in 2011.

Source: Xinhua, January 25, 2011
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2011-01/25/c_121019062.htm

Yao Jian, spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, recently commented, in a monthly media briefing, that China must improve its national “soft power.” The commercial video currently playing in Times Square in New York is an example of this effort. The Ministry attempted this once before with another “image building” commercial video called “China Made with the World.” China also tried to promote the “China Brand” at the F1 games. Yao suggested that, in the future, China will use various means to continue the propaganda effort. On April 16, 2010, China rolled out a “Made in China” commercial at F1. At the end of 2009, China also aired another “Made in China” commercial on CNN.

Source: Global Times, January 18, 2011
http://world.huanqiu.com/roll/2011-01/1439440.html