Geo-Strategic Trend - 81. page

On July 8, China’s official People’s Daily newspaper reported on the cooperation and economic relationships between China and Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries.

In February 2021, the head of the Chinese Communist Party, Xi Jinping, hosted the China-Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) Summit in Beijing via video link and delivered a keynote speech.

In 2020, the China-CEE trade volume exceeded US$100 billion for the first time, a growth of 8.4 percent over 2019. In the first four months of this year, China-CEE bilateral trade totaled US$40.71 billion, which was 47.9 percent higher than the same period in 2020.

On May 27, the 100 MW photovoltaic (PV) power plant project in Kauposzburg, Hungary’s largest PV power plant, was put into operation. The China National Machinery Import & Export Corporation (CMC), a subsidiary of China General Technology Group invested in and built the PV plant. After grid connection, It is expected to generate 130 million kWh of electricity annually.

The “China-CEE Energy Cooperation Report” that the China Electric Power Planning and Engineering Institute released shows that, as of September 2020, Chinese enterprises had invested more than 4 billion euros in wind power, photovoltaic and other fields in Central and Eastern Europe. The Chinese new energy vehicle, lithium battery and parts manufacturers have set up factories in CEE countries to integrate into the European new energy vehicle industry supply chain. Key energy cooperation projects such as the Dabar hydroelectric power station in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Pancevo combined-cycle power station in Serbia are under construction.

Montenegro is the leader of those China-CEE countries in the environmental protection cooperation mechanism. The key projects that Chinese enterprises constructed in Montenegro include the Mozura wind power station and the first phase of eco-renovation of the Pljevlja Thermal Power Station.

Source: People’s Daily, July 8, 2021
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2021-07/08/nw.D110000renmrb_20210708_1-17.htm

According to China’s official Xinhua News Agency, on July 6, Xi Jinping, head of Chinese Communist Party (CCP), attended the summit of the Chinese Communist Party and world political party leaders through video conferencing.  Xi delivered a speech.

As part of the CCP’s 100 anniversary celebration, it was reported that more than 500 leaders of political parties and organizations from more than 160 countries, as well as more than 10,000 representatives of political parties attended the meeting. More than 100 countries’ political parties set up nearly 200 venues in their countries for their own party representatives to attend the summit remotely. The 160 countries included Russia, Spain, Vietnam, and others from Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Source: Xinhua, July 7, 2021
http://www.xinhuanet.com/world/2021-07/07/c_1127628998.htm

United Daily News (UDN), one of the primary Taiwanese news groups, recently reported on ten major changes in the ten years since the Hong Kong National Security Law was imposed. In the past ten years, 117 political activists have been imprisoned. One out of every five Hong Kong residents is leaving the city and two of every five are considering it. The head of the police was promoted to Chief Secretary for Administration. This makes him the second in command in the Hong Kong government. Many members of the Legislative Council from the opposition parties were removed from the Council; common law principles have been questioned and foreign judges are leaving. Independent media companies such as Apple Daily have closed their doors. The annual Tiananmen Square Massacre memorial parade has been banned. The education contents in schools have changed while teachers are resigning. Numerous books, newspapers and movies have been censored. Foreign investors (such as Vanguard) are leaving, causing a drastic drop in office space rentals. Rob Chipman, former Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said that move-outs of multinational corporate executives have increased by 30 percent. Some have been monitoring (the situation) since 2019 and concluded that, it appears now it is “about time to leave.”

Source: UDN, June 30, 2021
https://udn.com/news/story/7331/5568555?from=udn-catelistnews_ch2

China’s official newspaper People’s Daily recently published a list of international political figures who called or wrote to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP’s) General Secretary Xi Jinping and the CCP Central Committee to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the CCP.

Edgar Lungu, President of Zambia
David W. Panuelo, President of the Federated States of Micronesia
Blade Nzimande, General Secretary of South African Communist Party
Delfim Neves, President of National Assembly of the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe
Dési Bouterse, President of National Democratic Party of Suriname
Qasim Suri, Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly of Pakistan
Megawati Soekarnoputri, former Indonesian president
Igor Dodon, former Moldovan president
Asadollah Badamchian, secretary-general of Iran’s Islamic Coalition Party
Wee Ka Siong, Minister of Transport of Malaysia
Korneliya Ninova, Leader of Bulgarian Socialist Party
Ichiro Ozawa, former President of Democratic Party of Japan
Mizuho Fukushima, head of the Social Democratic Party of Japan
Fabien Roussel, national secretary of the French Communist Party
Dogu Perincek, chairman of Turkey’s Patriotic Party
Gyula Thurmer, leader of the Hungarian Workers’ Party
Jean Christophe Iseux von Pfetten, Chairman of the Institute for East West Strategic Studies in UK

Source: People’s Daily, June 28, 2021
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2021-06/28/nw.D110000renmrb_20210628_1-03.htm

A Swedish court ruled Tuesday, June 22, to uphold an injunction excluding Chinese telecommunications equipment maker Huawei from being a 5G equipment supplier. The court stressed the importance of national security.

Last year, Sweden banned Huawei from participating in the construction of 5G networks on the grounds of national security. Huawei then appealed the decision. The court rejected Huawei’s appeal on Tuesday, stressing that the security of Sweden is of paramount importance and that, if used in the construction of Sweden’s 5G network, Huawei products could threaten Sweden’s national security.

The media said the court ruling dashed Huawei’s hopes of returning to Europe and that the possibility of China’s retaliatory action against Huawei’s rival, Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson, may increase.

Source: Radio France International, June 22, 2021
https://rfi.my/7VlQ.T

BBC Chinese recently reported that, at a meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK), North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un officially admitted that North Korea is facing a food shortage crisis. He stated, “The food situation that the people now face is becoming increasingly tense.” Due to the flooding that last year’s typhoon caused, the agricultural sector failed to achieve its food targets. There are reports that North Korean food prices have soared. Due to economic difficulties and tensions with the U.S., North Korea’s imports from China recently surged. However, North Korea has just closed its borders again to control the spread of the Covid-19 epidemic. As a result, trade with China dropped sharply. Generally North Korea depends on China for food, fertilizer and fuel. It has been struggling because of international sanctions over its nuclear program.

Source: BBC Chinese, June 18, 2021
https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-57510711