Geo-Strategic Trend - 31. page

Primary Taiwanese news agency Central News Agency (CNA) recently reported that India has suspended the issuance of tourist visas to holders of Chinese and Hong Kong SAR passports. In the past, Hong Kong passport holders could apply for an Indian e-Visa online or submit their application in person at the Indian Consulate General office in Hong Kong. Business visas are not affected, and British National (Overseas) (BNO) passport holders are still eligible to apply for visas.

This move may be related to the tense relations between China and India. Regarding visa eligibility of Hong Kong BNO passport holders, India is probably drawing a distinction between Hong Kong SAR passport holders (regarding them as Chinese citizens) and BNO passport holders, who are British nationals.

The Indian online visa platform shows a list of countries and regions whose residents can apply for Indian visas. Mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau are excluded from the list, but Taiwan residents are included.

The Consulate General of India in Hong Kong did not respond to CNA’s inquiries on this matter.

Source: CNA, September 30, 2023
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202309300053.aspx

The chairman and vice chairman of the Taiwan People’s Communist Party (TPCP), Lin Te-wang and Cheng Chien-hsin, were indicted on charges of receiving financial support from China’s Taiwan Affairs Office (TAO) to influence Taiwan’s elections. Prosecutors said Lin was expelled from Taiwan’s Kuomintang party (KMT) in 2016, lost an election, then formed the TPCP in 2017 and served as its chairman. Since then, Lin has contacted TAO officials and led delegations to China to develop ties. In 2018, a TAO official instructed Lin to run for office and nominated Cheng as well. During their campaigns, they received funding from the TAO. The TPCP has also protested visits by U.S. officials. Prosecutors said the TPCP has become an agent of China, using intimidation to influence Taiwan’s sovereignty and democracy.

Analysts say this incident shows China’s sophisticated infiltration model of using small parties to influence specific groups so as to achieve the effect of “encircling the city from the countryside.” The lack of awareness by Taiwanese people is also a problem, with numerous cases of Taiwanese people spying for China.

Prosecutors have indicted Lin and Cheng and recommended harsh sentencing under Taiwan’s Anti-Infiltration Law. Nonetheless, some experts have expressed concern that Taiwan’s legislation is inadequate for this case, with punishments lighter than in other countries — that there is a need for greater consciousness among the public regarding China’s hostile intentions and latent infiltration across all levels of society.

Source: Radio Free Asia, October 3, 2023
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/gangtai/twspy-10032023102526.html

{Editor’s Note: Last week many international media reported that China’s Coast Guard deployed floating barriers in the disputed Scarborough Shoal area to block Philippine fishing boats from entering those waters. The Philippine Coast Guard responded by cutting the ropes so that its fishermen could enter the lagoon and fish.}

China’s state media has said that reports about the Philippine Coast Guard are a lie, saying that it was China that removed the floating barrier from the Scarborough Shoal, not the Philippine Coast Guard. Xinhua published a statement by Chinese Coast Guard Spokesperson Gan Yu on September 28:

On September 22nd, official vessels of the Philippine Fisheries and Aquatic Resources Bureau illegally entered the waters near China’s Scarborough Shoal without China’s government approval, engaging in provocative activities. The Chinese Coast Guard lawfully employed measures such as verbal warnings and route controls to effectively manage the situation. They temporarily deployed anti-intrusion nets in response to the Philippine vessels’ attempt to forcibly enter the lagoon. On September 23rd [the China Coast Guard] proactively removed those blockades and restored the area to a state of normal control. These operations were conducted professionally and in accordance with the law. The Philippine claim that they removed Chinese barriers [by themselves] is entirely fabricated and self-staged.

Source: Xinhua, September 28, 2023
http://www.news.cn/world/2023-09/28/c_1129890388.htm

The Central American Parliament ratified an agreement on September 25th to admit China’s National People’s Congress (NPC), the country’s rubberstamp Congress, as a permanent observer. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin welcomed the move at a press conference on September 26th, saying China is willing to further friendly cooperation with the Central American Parliament and countries in Central America on the basis of the one-China principle.

The agreement was approved by a majority vote at the Central American Parliament’s plenary session in Managua, Nicaragua. Wang said the decision reflects the parliament’s firm determination to develop ties with China.

On August 21st, the Central American Parliament adopted a resolution to abolish the status of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan as permanent observer and admit China’s NPC instead. On September 22nd, the Speaker of the Central American Parliament and the NPC Standing Committee Chairman signed the agreement in Beijing, making the NPC a permanent observer.

The Central American Parliament statement said the NPC’s accession as observer will deepen dialogue around cooperation in areas like education, health, infrastructure, trade, agriculture and food security.

Source: Sputnik News, September 26, 2023
https://sputniknews.cn/20230926/1053644515.html

Russia’s ONGK and China’s XY Group Industrial Development Co (轩辕集团实业开发有限公司) have agreed to jointly invest $686 million to build an oil transit complex in Russia’s Far East. This will boost Russian oil exports to China as Moscow expands infrastructure and shifts exports eastward, away from politically “unfriendly” Europe.

The financing deal was signed last week at an economic forum in Vladivostok. The complex will be built near a railway bridge crossing the Amur River, connecting Russian and Chinese border towns.

The $686 million complex will include a terminal able to store and load 5.8 million metric tons of crude oil yearly, plus oil and gas condensate blends. It will also have a warehouse for receiving, storing and distributing 1 million metric tons of petroleum products and fuel oil annually. Additionally, it will include facilities for transshipping 650,000 tons of liquefied petroleum gas per year.

China’s crude imports from Russia hit a record high in May, up 15.3% year-on-year. Meanwhile, Europe has cut Russian oil imports by 90% since the Ukraine war began.

Sanctioned by the West, Russia has turned to China as its strongest ally. China refuses to criticize Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and has increased economic cooperation, helping Russia offset losses from Western sanctions. Amid strengthening China-Russia economic ties, senior Chinese official Wang Yi visited Russia September 18-21 for strategic consultations, possibly to prepare for the leaders’ upcoming meeting.

Source: Voice of America, September 18, 2023
https://www.voachinese.com/a/russia-and-china-to-build-oil-transshipment-complex-for-686-mln-20230918/7272923.html