Report - 41. page

The following two articles focus on the relationship between China and Mexico’s economy. They were published in the International Herald Leader. They point out that, “As a close neighbor of the U.S., Mexico provides a rare market opportunity for China. Establishing mutual trust with Mexico is advantageous to China’s dealings with the U.S. in the event of a very likely new tide of trade protectionism in the Western Hemisphere. It may lead to the rising Chinese manufacturing industry opening a southern gate leading to the high-end market in North America.” These two articles cite some projects in the China-Mexico economic relationship. Below is a translation of the two articles.

In order to free itself from its dependence on the U.S. economy, the Mexican Government is training a large number of "China trade experts." Currently, the gross spending of this plan has exceeded 4 million USD.

Every March, dozens of Mexican students cross the ocean to go China. Their destinations are Zhejiang University and Fudan University. These students graduated from local institutions of higher learning and had work experience. They tell the International Herald Leader that learning the Chinese curriculum isn’t the only reason to study in China. How to do business with the Chinese is the ultimate goal of their further education.

They are the Mexico-China Trade Training Plan students that the Mexican government has dispatched to China to learn from their experiences. They resolve to become the business elites who will advance both countries’ trade and keenly seize the market trends.

All Levels of Government Invest in the Training Plan

For many years, Mexico has been busy doing business with the U.S., which accounts for nearly 80% of Mexico’s foreign trade. Mexico-China trade is less than one-tenth of the Mexico-U.S. trade. But at the present, an unceasing inrush of made-in-China [products] has forced Mexico to pay attention to Mexico-China economics and their trade relationship. The Mexico-China trade deficit continues to increase, while Mexican exports to China has made no progress. Many Mexican merchants hope to export products to China but feel they don’t know where to begin because of a lack of understanding of China. At the same time, the Western view that "China is a threat" deepens Mexican merchants’ worries about developing the Chinese market.
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The "Mexico-China Trade Training Plan" was developed out of this background. According to sources, the Mexican Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Import-Export Bank, various state governments, universities, and research centers all jointly launched this plan. It was officially implemented in February 2005. Hereafter, every March and September, Mexico sends students to China to participate in one to two years of training. Students are eligible to receive $20,000 USD scholarships each year. The Mexican Federal Government pays one half and local governments pay the other half.

Candidate students are first recommended within the various states. First the National Economic Development Secretariat Association screens them. Then they are confirmed. According to the requirements, only those who have high academic degrees, work experience and have passed English tests are selected. So far, 11 states in Mexico have dispatched over 130 students to China. Spending on this plan has already reached over $4,000,000 USD.
 
Mexican officials told the reporter that the government hopes to take advantage of the developing trade with China to gain independence from the U.S. economy and to   avoid being more limited by U.S. trade policies.

"Learning from Experience" in China Proves Difficult

Those who are lucky enough to come to China are the elite from various Mexican states. They have received basic training in Mexico beforehand. When they arrive, they go to Zhejiang University to study Chinese. Then they pursue advanced studies at Fudan University. Chinese, the history of modern Chinese economic development, the history of the development of thought and culture, and the history of the development of foreign trade are mandated subjects [3]. Upon graduation, students must score 80% or better in each course to gain state government approval.

In order to intensify the study of the Chinese "business bible," these foreign students often need to take business trips to participate in various seminars, trade investment  conferences, and exhibitions in Hong Kong, Beijing, and Guangzhou as well as to visit Chinese factories and mining enterprises.

For a majority of Mexican students, China is remote and strange. A student from Michoacán told the reporter that China was very different from what he imagined, "There is a lot of seasoning in the food with unknown names; delicious but curious." "The Chinese people are very diligent, with a higher desire to become rich than Mexicans." "China seems to lack nothing; [it] can even produce traditional Mexican handicrafts."
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The most amazing thing to [Mexican] students is China’s huge consumer power. They find that many Chinese go abroad on their vacations. They often hope to go sightseeing in Mexico, so this is also a market worthy of the Mexican’s earnest consideration.

Graduates Show Their Skill

Because it hasn’t been long since the project started, the majority of Mexican students are still studying in China. Very few have graduated and returned to Mexico to work. However, a portion of the students have begun to taste the sweetness of training abroad. They told the reporter that some are working for enterprises in their state in order to connect them with Chinese enterprises. Some, after returning to Mexico, have worked in related government agencies. Some simply have established China trading companies.

In 2005, Michoacán’s Daniela Carlonell was among the first group of students to be dispatched to China. After graduating and returning home, she has been working in the government and responsible for the national “Mexico-China Trading Training Plan.” Carlos Moran, who was dispatched by Colima, is the former Colima branch chief of the Mexico Employers Association. He has already spent over four months in China. According to the particular circumstances of the state, he conducted more than 30 specific studies and found commercial export opportunities for products such as chicken feet, kelp, yogurt, etc. [He] has also provided business information for 67 enterprises that want to do business with China. Some students have also found export opportunities to China for Mexican skin care products and cosmetics, as well as health foods such as fruit juice, coffee and so on.

"I want to help enterprises in our state," a student by the name of Salvador Soares
told the reporter. He has studied for two years in China and will soon complete his studies. "I really don’t want to hear anymore about how ‘China is a threat.’ We should transform the so-called ‘threat’ into ‘business opportunities.’"

Knocking Open the South Gate of North America [2]

Mexico is the tenth largest economy in the world. It is also one of the countries most likely to adopt trade protectionism measures. Since joining the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade in 1986, its strong stance and direct methods to protect its domestic market have been imitated by other developing nations. Last year, Mexico’s protective measures against Chinese import products such as steel, iron and textiles came down one after another. It was a looming force.
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Now, without a doubt, it has the intention to know oneself and know one’s enemy in order to win every battle [when] this kind of a country begins to train "China trade experts." But looking at it from a geo-economic point of view, this is a positive signal.

As a close neighbor of the U.S., objectively Mexico provides a rare market opportunity for China. Establishing mutual trust with Mexico is advantageous to China’s contending with the U.S. in a very likely new tide of trade protectionism in the Western Hemisphere. [It can] lead the rising Chinese manufacturing industry to open the southern gate that leads to the high-end market in North America.

First, [one] must understand that many things will happen in the coming year that will affect the stability of the North America free trade area composed of the U.S., Canada and Mexico. China-Mexico economics and trade relations will subtly deepen with this background.

According to the goal of North America free trade area, by 2008, zero customs duty and the elimination of trade and investment limits should be completely reached. This is not a problem between America and Canada; only the weak Mexico is left out. After being a member of the free trade area for more than ten for years, although Mexico has obtained huge export profits and huge foreign investments, its national industries and agriculture have actually suffered heavy losses. At present, Mexico still has to safeguard the basic interest in exports to Canada and the United States and use it as a bargaining chip to protect its domestic interest.

Luckily, this is the year of a U.S. presidential election. The Democratic Party presidential candidates have formed a united front, and all think that continuing to advance the North America Free Trade Agreement violates the national interest. They blame American unemployment and declining living standards on the inexpensive-product-and-labor-providing Mexico, [and] advocated revising and even abandoning the Free Trade Agreement. When the American economy is not booming, passing the burden of the crisis wins support. Although men of insight remind the U.S. not to dump the problem on its neighbor, this voice appears very weak.

Mexico understands that in order to achieve maximum benefit from global trade, it cannot depend only on U.S. arrangements. If the Democratic Party wins the election and raises a big stick against Mexican products, folks in history will sigh once more, "Pitiful Mexico—so far away from God, yet so close to the U.S." The current political situation of the North American free trade area paints the background for Mexico’s urgent need for "China Trade Experts."
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China has become Mexico’s second largest trading partner after the U.S. Although there are obvious disparities between China-Mexico trade and U.S.-Mexico trade, it has already seen the best result among its trading partners, outside of local areas. Mexico is willing to approach and fully communicate with China. [This] means expanding bilateral common interests day after day and an unwillingness to see U.S. trade protectionism casts its shadow on its economic development.

China’s brightest investment outlook in Mexico is in the manufacturing industry. Taking advantage of its production strength and superior export geography, [China] may open up new markets in North and Latin America. More than three months ago, a Chinese auto group began a joint venture to construct a base for passenger vehicle production. [This] indicates that Chinese investment in Mexico is transforming towards high-tech levels. This may foreshadow Chinese automobiles entering the American market.

Endnotes:
[1] International Herald Leader, March 10, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2008-03/10/content_7753953.htm
[2] International Herald Leader, March 10, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2008-03/10/content_7753965.htm
[3] Included in these courses, and especially in the history of the development of thought and culture, is indoctrination to the communist worldview.

On January 21, 2008, Outlook Weekly published an article entitled “Directions on Fostering a Sense of Crisis.” The article cited words of Mao Zedong, Deng Xiaoping, Jiang Zemin, Hu Jintao and other high-ranking Communist officials, reflecting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s attitude towards domestic and international situations. Below is a translation of the entire article. [1]

It is the time of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, after 30 years of reform and opening up… The country is inspired, and China has become the focus of world attention.

In discussing the organization of work in 2008 and in the future, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) high-level authorities have frequently expressed that at all times we should maintain a sense of urgency. Before the New Year an the Central Party School, facing almost 200 new Central Committee members and alternate members, General Secretary Hu Jintao said, “The better our situation, the more we should have a sense of urgency and crisis; the more we should be vigilant.”

In the second Plenary Session of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection on January 15, Hu Jintao reaffirmed, “Our party, in the new situation of reform and opening up and developing a socialist market economy, holds a very sober and consistent attitude that we are aware that the inner-party has problems. In particular, risks and crises, may arise.”

Dr. Jiang Yong, Director of the Research Center of Economic Security at the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations felt that the central committee’s repeated emphasis on our sense of urgency in recent years has a profound meaning and significance.

Many experts, including Jiang Yong, who are close to the decision-making level and attend the activities of the Central Committee told “Outlook Weekly” that Beijing’s emphasis on a sense of urgency and crisis does not reflect a deliberately held negative attitude. The Central Committee indeed thinks that the challenges we face are many and great and we should not ignore them or be careless about them.

Starting from a new historic point, emphasizing the sense of crisis is strongly directed and instructional. For instance, as stated by Shen Jiru, an investigator from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Institute of World Economics and Politics, some high-ranking officials and local and department cadres may not know well or be sufficiently vigilant about financial risks, the energy crisis, trade protectionism, and other issues.
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Ye Ducu, an expert in the Central Party School, also said that our previous sense of crisis was mostly directed at internal problems and deficiencies, but now we have a better understanding of the risks in this time of modern globalization. The sense of risk awareness and of overcoming the challenges has escalated. He said, “In training senior cadres at the Central Party School, there has been an increasing emphasis on having a ‘global vision’ and ‘strategic thinking.’”

The Director of the Institute of Strategic Studies of the National Defense University, Junior General Jin Yinan claimed, “Generally speaking, we have a deep understanding of how ‘Backwardness is beaten,’ but are not sufficiently prepared mentally for ‘They are bound to rein in the rise,’ and for how “new unsafe factors arise with high-speed development.’”

Remain Sober-minded in the Event of a Historic Change

"2008 will be the Year of China," said Newsweek in its 2007 year-end special edition.

A new round of "China fever" in the overseas mainstream media has begun. From the large number of reports being issued, it has reached a new climax. Chinese media have only reported this issue in international reports and in specific columns, while the foreign media often focus on China using the front page, booklets, special editions and editorial reports.

This is different from the “China collapse theory," the "China threat theory," the "Chinese Century" and the "China opportunity theory" from previous years.

Regardless of challenges or praises, in Shen Jiru’s view, their bone of contention is mainly the “China threat theory,” except that it is now expressed as a worry that China will surpass the West.

Central authorities warn that we should never be conceited or overly optimistic when faced with accomplishments, cheers and praises. Shen Jiru said the key is to keep a sober mind and have a clear understanding of the basic domestic situation no matter whether we receive “curses” or “praise.”

“To keep the people in mind and to have long-term strategic thinking determines whether a leader has a sense of crisis and urgency,” Jiang Yong said.

A strong sense of urgency and crisis is a feature of the Chinese Communist Party’s rule. This is closely related to the one-hundred-year history of China. In the Seventh Party’s Congress, with the great victory of the anti-Japanese war in sight, Mao Zedong cited 17 difficulties and risks in one breath, and exhorted all its members to "prepare for disadvantages."
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After the reform and opening up, Deng Xiaoping repeatedly emphasized, “We should focus our work on big risks and prepare countermeasures. Thus, the sky will not fall even if there is a big risk.” Jiang Zemin also pointed out, “Only when we stand at a higher point, see farther, and make scientific predictions and correct judgments on economic risks that may appear in our march, can we take precautions and remain undefeated.”

At the New Years tea party of the CPPCC National Committee, General Secretary Hu Jintao said that we will make a systematic review and summary on reform and opening up. According to experts’ judgments, the review and summary will not only illustrate the enormous accomplishments that everyone can see, but will also summarize the risk-defying arduous exploration, including eliminating all kinds of interference from various erroneous ideologies and tendencies. We will not take the old road of being rigidly closed, nor will we change the banner to give up leadership of the Communist Party and the road of socialism.

A clear sign is that the Central Committee has been more and more expressive on issues of risks and challenges, as manifested in the related high-level meeting before the New Year. For instance, when warning about the more predictable and unpredictable risks, and about the possibility and reality of various problems and even quite big risks, a number of examples were given: the wide spread of a severe contagious disease like SARS; some severe natural disasters having an overall impact; severe financial crises like the Asian financial crisis; the worldwide energy crisis; the situation that international anti-China forces band together to put pressure on China; and a major “Taiwan-independence incident,” to name a few.

At end of the report of the Party’s Seventeenth Congress, four “musts” were prominently emphasized. The first one was “we must be vigilant and enhance the sense of crisis.” The experts we have interviewed think about enhancing the sense of crisis from the angle of concern for the Party; we can see the Party is facing many unprecedented new tests. Hence the messages from the top-down emphasize: All party members should firmly keep in mind that if a political party advanced in the past, it does not mean it will advance in the present; advancing now does not mean advancing forever; the party’s core leadership status is not permanent; past possession does not mean possession now; current possession does not mean permanent possession.

In Ye Ducu’s view, the livelihood of the people and the fight against corruption are among the most critical tests for leadership. He said that the livelihood problems have not been satisfactorily resolved, which is related to the insufficient sense of crisis among high-level cadres, and they did not sufficiently attend to the opinions and complaints of the people. The Central Committee has made great efforts on the livelihood issue, but the actual results depend on whether high and middle level cadres can substantially implement the policy.
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The issue of anti-corruption is related to the survival of the nation and the party. In an observation of the recently held Second Plenary Session of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Ye Ducu thinks that our party is very clear on this issue. However, "we should win the confidence of people with facts”.

There Should be a Sense of Urgency on Both Internal and International Issues

During the long holidays of October 1, 2007, some district governments in Chongqing City assigned special “homework” to more than 400 cadres at or above the level of assistant county governor: to read the book “Currency War.”

An important view of the book is that, at present, instigated by a handful of "financial oligarchy forces," the "financial terrorists" are likely to launch a bloodless "currency war" in an attempt to eliminate China’s wealth that Chinese workers have accumulated over the years.

After reading this book, Junior General Qiao Liang, the author of "Unrestricted warfare," said, “China’s financial decision-makers should possess two abilities: one is to be vigilant to others’ conspiracies; the other is to have the ability to play conspiracies on others! "

Jiang Yong, who we have interviewed, does not fully agree with the reasoning process in the book, but highly values the sense of urgency. Jiang Yong himself is a scholar and has appealed for the state’s financial security for years.

Jiang Yong points out, “The recent world economic history is not only a history of the creation of wealth, but also a history of how the West (including Japan) has plundered external wealth. Now the times have changed. The modern West may trade and invest to earn money by taking advantage of the international division of labor; but it may also steal or directly grasp money utilizing the so-called intellectual property rules.”

“Currently, domestic and international problems are often inter related," said Shen Jiru. Domestic and international factors affect each other, traditional and non-traditional security threats coexist. We should be more vigilant regarding financial and energy security issues, because we were not previously familiar with them. They are not to be solved behind closed doors. "The prevention of financial crises is a very important project."
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Shen Jiru also expressed that energy crisis is another pivotal issue to be prevented during globalization. Because of the uneven geographical distribution of oil reserves, and because the monopoly policy of the western countries, especially of the oil cartels, China, as the third largest petroleum consuming country and the second largest petroleum importing country, is only a passive recipient of the oil price. The so-called national oil "strategic reserve," in his view, can only be described as a "contingency reserve," and far from a guarantee of security.

To view the sense of crisis from the requirement of maintaining social harmony and stability, the interviewed experts candidly said that in our country, because of the unbalanced development and limited productive forces, domestic internal contradictions centering on livelihood are still quite conspicuous. There have been increasing conflicts originating from the gap between rich and poor, the urban-rural gap, and unfair distribution, social security and employment. Meanwhile, the construction of a democratic legal system and expansion of the people’s democracy do not yet fully meet the requirements of economic and social development. Because of pluralistic values, a small number of people have confused ideology, their faith is shaken and they have misplaced values about honor and dishonor. The conventional social managerial approaches are no longer sufficient to adapt to the new management tasks. The management of "social people," the new economic and social organizations and the virtual community are still in the process of exploration.
 
Therefore, the messages from high-levels emphasize that, on the 30th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up, how to deepen reform draws much internal and external attention. To seize opportunities and overcome challenges should start with resolving current prominent conflicts. There should be an overall plan for reforming the system in the next few years, with timely research and a proposal to reform programs in important areas and with key steps. We should maintain a high degree of vigilance on difficulties and risks to be encountered, and be cautious in order to prevent problems. Meanwhile, a risk evaluation mechanism should be established for various reforms and decision making in order to reduce social contradictions at the source.

To Secure Preparation for the Olympic Games

The external media calls 2008 “the Year of China,” which means, to a large extent, “the Year of the Olympics.” During the Olympics, nearly 100 heads of state, heads of government, thousands of athletes, tens of thousands of foreign journalists, and millions of domestic and foreign spectators and tourists will gather in Beijing. Whether we can host the Olympics is drawing worldwide attention.

According to the Central Committee’s requirements, we would rather have a sufficient evaluation of the risks and difficulties than be at a loss and be passive because of underestimation. Our goal is to ensure a smooth and safe Olympics, and safeguard overall national security and social stability.
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Related experts claim that there are signs that the hostile forces are attempting to launch political attacks against our country because it is holding the Olympic Games, and they are conspiring to transform the Olympics into an “arena” to demonize our country, carry out infiltration and sabotage us.

As the 17th Party’s Congress proposed earlier, it is necessary to "improve the national security strategy, to perfect the national security system, to keep a high degree of vigilance, resolutely guard against all kinds of separatist, infiltration and subversive activities, and effectively protect national security." In the year of the Olympics, this test will not be an easy one.

There have been multiple events where international anti-China forces have "kidnapped" the Olympics in order to pressure our country. The external dividing forces and religious organizations are also attempting to disrupt and sabotage activities using the Olympics as an opportunity. Experts have pointed out that Chen Shuibian’s promoting “tying the referendum with the general election” is not without a relationship to the Olympics.

Unexpected events such as natural disasters, accident disasters, public health incidents and social safety incidents require, in themselves, a high level sense of urgency and crisis. According to related experts, it can be expected that in the Olympic year, the high-level and the related departments will be more vigilant, take more stringent precautions, use more sufficient plans, and will certainly provide a safe and harmonious social environment for the Beijing Olympic Games.

Act in response to emergencies took effect on November 1, 2007, facing the approaching test of Olympic Games. Professor Mo Yuchuan from the China People’s University Law School said that now that the law is available, the next step is to simply act in accordance with the law and implement the law. The Olympic Games test is also an opportunity to innovate concrete ways of responding.

According to the requirements from the high-level, in the implementation of the plans for handling emergencies, it is necessary to seriously study the experience and lessons of other countries in hosting the Olympic Games, to comprehensively analyze the factors that security faces, to formulate effective plans for all types of incidents, and to try out necessary combat exercises, thereby improving the ability to cope with emergencies.

 [1] Outlook Weekly, Jan 21, 2008
http://news.sohu.com/20080121/n254782916.shtml

This is an article published on March 19, 2008 on the website of the CCP (Chinese Communist Party) Central Committee Party School, entitled “Military Strategy of Active Defense in The New Era.” The article points out that China should strive to win regional wars in the information era, seek to prevent conflicts and wars, improve joint operations and the ability to complete diversified military tasks, push forward the Chinese characteristics of military reform, develop the strategy of a people’s war, and create a safe environment for the nation and peaceful development. The following is the translation of major parts. [1]

……

As a large developing country, the economic, social, ecological, security issues and so on during development are relatively more prominent [in China than elsewhere]. In a nation of over 1.3 billion people, the modernization of the country is unprecedented, the fast speed of the economic transformation, its wide impact, and the complexity of the issues are rare in the world. Because the market economy has not been fully developed, during the crucial period of reform and development, the economy’s dependence upon the outside has substantially increased. The threat from terrorism, separatism, and extremism to our border security has become increasingly evident. Traditional security threats, the core of which is military and economic, still exist. Unconventional threats to economic security, information security, energy security, maritime strategy channel security, pubic ecological security, terrorism, etc. are on the rise.

In order to adjust to the changes of the international strategic situation and the national security environment, China has formulated its military strategy of active defense in the new era. Its main contents are as follows:

First, focus on winning a local war during the information age. The main conflict that China’s military buildup faces is that its level of modernization does not meet the requirement of winning local wars under the information age. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is turning to the trend of military development in the world, takes informationization as the direction for modernization, promotes the combined development of mechanization and informationization, gradually implements from mechanization and semi-mechanization to the transformation of informationization, and will achieve the holistic improvement of military power, attack capability, mobility, protection capability, and the overall improvement of information capability. Thus China has drawn up a three-step development strategy of the national defense and military modernization: To build a solid foundation by year 2010, to achieve significant development around 2020, and to reach the strategic goals of completing the informationalized military buildup and winning informationalized foreign military.
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Second, pay attention to prevent conflicts and the outbreak of war. To safeguard the important period of strategic opportunities for the nation’s development and overall situation of national interests, the PLA persistently engages in coordinating closely military actions with politics, economics, diplomatic moves, and so on, and makes comprehensive use of various means and strategies to prevent conflicts and the outbreak of war. China’s security environment is complex—both the major and minor strategic directions have potentials for crises and conflicts. China has always been upholding the principle of no-first-use of nuclear weapons, and adheres to a self-defense nuclear strategy. The fundamental goal of this strategy is to contain other countries in the use of or threat of the use of nuclear weapons against China, and China won’t have any nuclear arms race with any other country.

Third, enhance the capability of joint operations and completing diversified military tasks. To meet the requirement of the modern warfare system and a variety of security threats and responses, the PLA uses joint operations as its basic combat modus operandi to enhance the military deterrence and combat capability, as well as carrying out non-war military operation capabilities. In the new era and new stage, the PLA not only needs to respond to traditional security, but also to deal with unconventional security; not only to protect homeland security, but also to safeguard the interests of overseas security; not only to safeguard national development and stability, but also to maintain world peace and development. To this end, the strategy of armed services is undergoing a significant change: our army is moving from a regional defense to global mobile mode, the Navy is changing from close to or on-shore defense to offshore, on-sea defense mode, the Air Force from the air-defense to the offensive-defensive, and the Second Artillery Corps is to be equipped with both regular and nuclear munitions systems.

Fourth, promote military reform with Chinese characteristics. To meet the challenges of new military changes, the PLA applies the strategy of building the military with quality and high technology, enhances the PLA’s weaponry and the innovation of national defense technology, and carries out military training under the informationization age and trains high quality and new types of military personnel. The PLA persists in seeking development in reform and innovation, promoting innovative military organizational structure and management, adjusting and reforming the military establishment and policy systems, to achieve the unification of speed, quality, and effectiveness of the armed forces. From 1985 to 2005, during the 20-year period, the PLA implemented three large-scale disarmaments, a total reduction of 1.7 million personnel. The size is now stabilized at 2.3 million. The PLA focuses on reducing the army’s personnel and military forces equipped with out-of-date technology and equipment, and strengthens the development of the Navy, the Air Force, and the Second Artillery Corps.
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Fifth, develop the strategy and tactics of the people’s war. China’s real advantage and strength lies in the masses of people to build and consolidate national defense. Facing new changes in modern warfare, China adheres to combining the standing army and strong national defense reserve forces, and pays heightened attention to the buildup of militia and reserve forces. According to the strategy of combining peacetime with wartime, and combining the military and civilians with training people to be soldiers, we should develop a unified and highly efficient national defense mobilization mechanism; create new war tactics suitable for normal people to participate in the war, and fully utilize the power of people’s war. Militia is an important component of the armed forces in China. China currently has 10 million primary militia. At present, the militia in China is undergoing changes from infantry forces to a professional technology regiment. Our focus is to develop the air defense sub-teams, branches of the armed forces, and emergency units.

Sixth, create a safe environment that is beneficial to the peaceful development of the nation. The PLA carries out the national peaceful development strategy and foreign policy, develops military cooperation under the no-alliance, no-confrontation and not targeting any third party, and opposes hegemonism and power politics. We do military exchanges and cooperation, and create the military security environment with mutual trust, mutual benefits, jointly preventing conflict and war. We participate in United Nations peacekeeping operations, in the international cooperation to fight terrorism and disaster relief operations, and play an active role in safeguarding the world and regional peace and stability. Since 2002, China has held 18 joint military exercises with 11 countries and regional organizations. Since 1990, China has participated in 18 U.N. peacekeeping operations, and has sent over 9,000 peacekeepers and military personnel. Eight military personnel died in peacekeeping missions. China has sent the most peacekeeping forces among the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council. Currently there are 1,700 peacekeepers carrying out the peacekeeping task. The PLA also sent troops to participate in the Indian Ocean tsunami, as well as Algeria, Iran, Indonesia, Pakistan earthquakes, and other international relief operations.

…

Endnotes:
[1] CCP (Chinese Communist Party) Central Committee Party School
http://www.ccps.gov.cn/dxrd.php?col=161&file=4975

On March 19, 2008, Outlook Magazine under the State-run Xinhua New Agency published an article entitled “Why Is the United States Strengthening Control over Exports to China?” The article stated that the strengthened control over exports to China is part of a U.S. military containment strategy. The author of the article is a deputy director, associate researcher at the American Studies Department of China’s Institute for International Issues. The institute is a Chinese Government think tank. Below is the translation of the article. [1]

In recent years, along with new changes in the strategy of yhe United States national security and China’s national defense modernization development, the United States has further tightened its control over exports to China using the areas of legislation, list management, the organization establishment, departmental coordination, multilateral systems and so on.

The first change to occur was the revision of regulations on export and re-export licensing for China and expanding the scope of controlled items. In June 2006, the United States officially announced a new export licensing policy for China. The new regulation requires all exports to China to re-apply for a license when the exported merchandise is suspected to be destined for military use in China. The list of items covers 20 product categories and associated technologies and software such as aircraft and aircraft engines, avionics and inertial navigation systems, lasers, and depleted uranium, as described in 31 entries on the Commerce Control List. Controlled categories may be added as needed. Some products that are not originally on the control list may also be included.

The second was to strengthen the control of “deemed exports.” The U.S. government has stipulated Chinese scholars and researchers must apply for a deemed export license when they will have access to sensitive information and technology. This includes American Chinese citizens and foreign corporations that may bring sensitive technology to China. In 2005, the U.S. Department of Commercial Affairs also proposed restricting individuals who were born in the United States but held another country’s citizenship from obtaining U.S. technology. Although, as a result of strong opposition from the academic community and industry associations, it was eventually abolished, the U.S. Department of Commerce still indicates that it will further tighten the deemed export control. At the year-end of 2006, the Department of Commerce established the Deemed Export Advisory Committee (DEAC), which will advise the Secretary of Commerce on export controls for China. In 2006, the U.S. government reviewed 865 deemed export licenses, 60% of which were held by Chinese citizens.

The third was to strengthen the construction of the export control mechanism, enhance control efficiency, set up new coordination organizations, strengthen the management of the blacklist system; and strengthen the “end-user-visit” system.
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The fourth was to strengthen sanctions on corporate and individual violators, both in the United States and foreign countries. This includes the so-called severe punishment of any companies or individual that is suspected of selling sensitive technology to China, strengthening sanctions over foreign corporations, and deliberately bringing public attention to Chinese spy cases. Since 2005, the U.S. has successively brought public attention to the "Mark espionage case," the "Moo Ko-Suen espionage case," and several others. In November 2007, the United State-China Economic and Security Review Commission declared that China has been engaged in espionage to obtain key technologies in the U.S. military industry. It called for immediate action, to conduct comprehensive reviews of China’s “illegal technology transfers,” and to provide additional funding for export control and counter-espionage work.

The fifth was to promote and strengthen multilateral export control systems and obstruct and sabotage the normal military trade and cooperation between China and other countries.

Export control has always been one of the important methods that the United States has employed in maintaining national security and implementation of external strategies. In recent years, the further strengthening of export controls for China has been closely related to the adjustment of the U.S. global security strategy since “911,” and is meant to ultimately serve the U.S. military containment strategy for China.
 
First, the U.S. security concepts went through a fundamental change after “911.”  Anti-terrorism and anti-proliferation have become the core of its global security strategy. The U.S. officials believe export controls for China still have many flaws in the legal system, license approval, and regulation implementation. Some companies have “poor” records. Therefore, it is necessary to implement more restrictive export control policies for China in order to be in compliance with the U.S. “broader national security and diplomatic agenda.”

Next, the United States continues to strengthen the China Containment Policy and ensure its military has technological superiority over China. U.S. officials believe, after entering into the new century, that China’s national defense modernization has accelerated, and China’s national defense foundation industry is approaching or even surpassing the powerful western countries at an unprecedented pace. Certain more advanced technologies like the nuclear industry and man-in-space flight technology have reached the world’s leading level. Therefore, it is necessary for the U.S. to globally prevent advanced military technology and equipment from getting into China, to hinder the modernization advancement of China’s national defense, and to safeguard the U.S. military’s hegemony.
{mospagebreak}
Thirdly, U.S. existing laws and regulations lag behind and it is difficult for the laws and regulations to catch up with the steps of technical upgrades and proliferation. U.S. officials believe that the U.S. military is no longer the main source of the advanced dual-purpose technology. Now many leading technologies are flowing from private enterprises to the military, which makes it difficult for the government to define military technology and therefore include it in the control list. This makes it more complex for monitoring.  Following the rapid Internet development, the methods of obtaining technical information have become more convenient, and technical proliferation has increased exponentially. Multinational corporations seek investments, production, and sales throughout the world. As a result, production and work process technology flow to overseas subsidiary companies and it is inevitable that dual-purpose technology transfers overseas.

In addition, multilateral export control mechanisms have various holes and problems and need to be amended. After the end of the cold war, priorities in many countries shifted from security to economic welfare and business competition. The U.S. and allied countries differ on export controls. The Wassenaar Arrangement replacing Batumi is the result of such a difference. It does not officially list the countries that are subject to export control, nor has it a strict control mechanism. The organizational structure is extremely loose. A member of the allied countries makes his/her own decisions in carrying out export control based on common control policies and a detailed list, and in granting export licenses. U.S. officials think it is difficult for the above system to monitor the dual-purpose technology exports. “It is time to start the coordination of licensing policies in all countries in order to minimize the differences in international export control systems.” Therefore, the United States urges to revise some provisions, so as to better coordinate member countries’ export licensing policies and close the loopholes of the multilateral export control system.

Endnote:
[1] Xinhua, March 20, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2008-03/20/content_7824003.htm

On February 29, 2008, the Chinese Ministry of Defense signed an agreement on setting up a direct confidential telephone line with its U.S. counterpart in Shanghai. It was widely believed that the Sino-U.S. military hotline would be opened within a month, and that it would be the first military hotline between the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and another country. However, to everyone’s surprise, it was Russia that became the first country to which the PLA wanted to make a direct phone call. The International Herald Leader, a newspaper under Xinhua, published an article called “The Chinese and Russian Military Hotline.” [1]

Sino-Russia Military Hotline Successfully Set up

While the Sino-U.S. military hotline still waits to be finalized, the phone line connecting Beijing and Moscow is already open.

On March 14, the day when China’s Ministry of Defense and the Russian Ministry of Defense formally established a direct phone line, China’s Minister of Defense General Cao Gangchuan had a phone conversation with his Russian counterpart Serdyukov for the first time.
 
It was 14 days after an agreement on setting up a direct confidential military telephone line between China and the United States in Shanghai. It was widely believed that the Sino-U.S. military hotline would be opened within a month, and that it would be the first military hotline between the PLA and another country. However, to everyone’s surprise, it was Russia that first connected China by phone line.
 
A Manifestation of Political Trust between Two Countries

“The launching of a hotline before the Sino-U.S. direct phone line shows the closeness of relationship between China and Russia,” Teng Jianqun, deputy secretary-general of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association told the International Herald Leader, “The launch sent a signal, implying that everything including the military hotline is built upon the foundation of mutual trust.”

On March 3, the U.S. Department of Defense released the “2008 China Military Power Report,” which, as usual, disseminates the “theory of Chinese military threat” by charging PLA for lack of transparency.

“In my impression, there has not been any ‘theory of Chinese military threat’ in Russia.” Teng added that it was obvious China and Russia have a much deeper mutual trust. As said by Minister Cao in the telephone conversation with Serdyukov, the direct phone line between China and the Russian Ministry of Defense is a reflection of bilateral trust and strategic cooperation.
{mospagebreak}
Major Difference from Sino-U.S. Hotline

Mutual trust is determined by a bilateral diplomatic relationship. “Whether in mutual trust, or level of maturity, the Sino-Russian strategic cooperative partnership is more constructive than that between China and the U.S.,” Major General Luo Yuan, the deputy director of the World Military Research Division of China Academy of Military Science, told the reporter.

These differences directly affect the attitudes toward the two major military hotlines. In Teng’s opinion, “China and Russia share common positions on issues such as arms control, national security, and U.N. disarmament talks. Therefore, communications between the two countries are easier. The Sino-U.S. communications, however, is shadowed with more precaution because China does not feel assured because of the actions of distrust from the U.S. side.”

The strains are felt in the negotiations of the technical aspects of the Sino-U.S. hotline. “How should the hotline be placed? Where to put it? When should the line be connected? What is the duration? Who is responsible?” Teng said, these are all technical barriers that the Sino-U.S. hotline needs to overcome, while none of them exist between China and Russia.
 
The two hotlines also differ on the goal of communications. The purpose of the Sino-Russia hotline, as stated by Cao, “is to the advantage of prompt communications of important issues related with bilateral military contacts and cooperation, and of timely exchange of views and coordination of positions on international and regional hot issues.”
 
Teng explains, a major issue of “important issues related with bilateral military contacts and cooperation” is to strike terrorist and separatist groups on the border so as to jointly safeguard border security. The goal of the Sino-U.S. military hotline, however, “is in a hope of solving the crisis by means of dialogue, avoiding antagonizing each other,” according to Luo.

Nevertheless, the two hotlines do have something in common. “It is clear that the establishment of Sino-Russia and Sino-U.S. military hotlines have special meaning during the dangerous periods across the Taiwan strait,” Major General Luo Yuan explains. “President Hu Jintao recently stressed that separatist activity for ‘Taiwan independence’ has become the largest danger to the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, the largest obstacle to the development of cross-strait relations, and the biggest threat to the regional peace and stability. Under these circumstances, China certainly needs to exchange views and coordinate positions with other countries to safeguard peace, stability, and strategic benefits.”
{mospagebreak}
What is Behind ‘Sudden’ Open Is Inevitable

What impress people are not only the vast differences in the attitude toward the two military hotlines, the contents of communications, but the suddenness of the opening of the Sino-Russia hotline. It is hard to trace the origin of the negotiations either by searching the documentations or consulting experts. In Teng’s view, it is not unexpected. The hotline is “actually an extension of the mutual trusts of Sino-Russia military.”

The bilateral military trust wass built starting in April 1990, when China, Russia, Kazak, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan signed an agreement on mutual reduction of military forces in border areas. Two years later, when then Russian President Yeltsin visited China, China and Russia issued The Joint Declaration on the Foundation of Bilateral Relationship, confirming the friendly status between the two countries.

The following two years, the bilateral military relationship continued to advance. In 1993, the Ministry of Defense of both countries signed a cooperation agreement. In 1994, both countries announced to develop “equal and trustable strategic cooperation partnership geared toward the 21st century” by signing a joint declaration that neither country would be the first to use nuclear weapons against each other and would target their strategic nuclear weapons at each other. China, Russia, Kazak, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan also signed an agreement on strengthening military trust in border areas.
 
In 2007, the joint military exercise of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization pushed the Sino-Russia military relationship to a new height. Teng said that the relationships between the two countries are both “bilateral” and “multilateral”. It is obvious from the bilateral military exchanges that the launch of the hotline is a natural result.

Endnote:
[1] International Herald Leader, 2008 March 18
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/200803/18/content_7812332.htm

On March 18th, when “Xi Zang” (Tibet) was typed in  Google’s search engine, other than  Beijing’s official medias, there were not any other reports about the Tibet Incidence (note: this research was done in China, behind the Internet blocks the communist government has imposed).

Below is a translation to this article: [1]

User:” Look at the recent “attempted bomb attack” that was successfully aborted in Xinjiang, as well as the “gasoline incident” on an airplane. It was reported earlier that the gasoline was not to be lighted until the airplane got close to Beijing.” (N)

User: “The enemies have very little time left and they are getting crazy.” (H)

User: “There have been Tibetan riots in the capital of Tibet these days, which had caused an increasing number of deaths.” (N)

User: “An Australian Reporter reported that the number of deaths are still rising.”(N)

User: “In the past several days there have been several Tibetans rebellious incidences in Tibet’s capital, they are drawing a lot of attention from the outside. The picture below shows a group of Tibetan protesters burning a Chinese national flag.” (N)

Below are historical records (also cached) from an Internet forum in China before they were removed.
{mospagebreak}
2008-03-1602:00:50
”Only 80 people died. Just a minor tragedy, not a big deal.”(H)

2008-03-1622:05:41
”It turned out that Tibetans’ lives are so cheap!” (S)

2008-03-1710:15:06
”Not sure how it is going over there. I’m from Shanxi.” (N)

2008-03-1809:54:35
“If you want to know more details, you can go onto international news pages." (N)

2008-03-1615:58:41
“Kill this trash.” (H)
Comment in reply to: “Only 80 people died. Just a minor tragedy, not a big deal.”

2008-03-1811:52:30
”Non-humans can speak after all.” (S)

2008-03-1811:53:54
”I am really looking forward to the fourth, fifth and sixth atomic bombs on Japan’s territories. It must be really cool." (H)

2008-03-1814:19:50
"For those “people” who want to die, just “rise up." (H)

2008-03-1814:25:40
“Eliminate them.” (H)

2008-03-1814:47:43
"Resolutely wipe out all reactionary forces!” (H)

2008-03-1814:51:48
“What can I say?” (I)

2008-03-1814:54:48
“Everything has a cause.” (S)
{mospagebreak}
2008-03-1814:56:45
“We cannot give up even an inch of the properties our ancestors left us.” (I)
Comment in reply to:” Only 80 people died. Just a little massacre, not a big deal.”

2008-03-1814:56:48
"Human trash, talking like this!!!!” (S)

2008-03-1815:00:14
“Only Chinese say things like this.” (S)
Comment in reply to:” Only 80 people died. Just a little massacre, not a big deal.”

2008-03-1815:11:40
“Who the hell are you? What kind of crap are you saying!!!!!!!” (S)

2008-03-1815:15:36
“How beautiful it would be if there are five or six atomic bombs explode simultaneously right above Japan!!!!” (H)

2008-03-1815:17:46
"Tragedy. Chinese people’s tragedy. Tao brother (referring to the president of China-Hu Jintao), you are leaving us with zero hope. I don’t want to say anything anymore. Brothers and sisters, let’s just focus on working and making money.” (S)

2008-03-1815:21:58
 ‘Even if they become independent, can they survive?” (I)

2008-03-1815:37:09
“Any reactionary forces and violent forces must be punished harshly and we must be determined to destroy them. " (H)

2008-03-1815:40:58
“We should assign someone good to go and kill Dalai. That would resolve all the problems.” (H)

2008-03-1815:41:47
“We should use forces to finish up Dalai as early as possible.” (H)

2008-03-1815:45:24
“Kill. It would give us 50 years of stability.” (H)
{mospagebreak}
2008-03-1815:51:02
"Those who are calling for independence, we must shoot them like birds. Whenever one comes out, kill him first. No matter how crazy they get, there will not be the second Mongolia. Go as crazy as you want, but wherever you are, you are always the ones to be ruled.” (H)

2008-03-1815:58:49
“Carry out proletariat dictatorship over those anti-revolutionaries who commit grave crimes.” (H)

2008-03-1815:59:43
"This incidence has a deep background and profound causes. The Dalai’s group carefully planned and organized it. The important thing to realize is that they have used the shortcomings and underdevelopment of our nation’s political system. From now on we must persistently enhance and improve it, so that others will not take advantage of it.” (H)
Comment in reply to:” Only 80 people died. Just a minor tragedy, not a big deal.”

2008-03-1816:01:
“Are you Chinese or Japanese?” (S)

Below are error messages after clicking the“3.14 Tibet Incidence” search results in several Chinese search engines

Web page of the“3.14 Tibet Incidence”:
Error: The page you are trying to visit probably does not exist or has encountered other problems or errors. Please visit other pages or visit the Spacewomen homepage.

Web page of the“3.14 Tibet Incidence”:
Please do not publish any other articles about Tibet Incidence.

Web page of the“3.14 Tibet Incidence”:
The article you are looking for is from bbs. Kaoyan.com. We will delete it and other relevant ones shortly. We ask for your cooperation. Thanks.

Video Web page of the” Tibet Incidence”: Sina.com Blog – the video has been deleted.

Endnotes:
[1] Boxun News, March 18th, 2008
http://news.boxun.com/news/gb/china/2008/03/200803181955.shtml

On November 28, 1966, the central Cultural Revolution Leading Group held a Proletariat Cultural Revolution Congress for Literature and the Arts in Beijing. Leader Kang Sheng of the central Great Cultural Revolution Leading Group announced that the following Peking operas, “Taking Tiger Mountain by Strategy,” “The Red Lantern,” “Harbor,” “Sha Jia Bang,” “The Surprise Attack White Tiger Group,” and the ballets, “The White-Haired Girl,” “The Red Detachment of Women,” as well as the music of “Sha Jia Bang” were all “revolution model plays.”

The authorities showcased the “revolution model plays” from May 9 to Jun 15, 1967, in commemoration of the 25th anniversary of Mao Zedong’s speech during the “Yenan seminar on literature and arts.” The performance lasted 37 days with 330,000 audience members attending the 218 shows. Mao Zedong, Lin Biao, Zhou Enlai and the central Great Cultural Revolution group members also watched parts of the show. People’s Daily wrote, “The eight revolution model plays prominently propagandized the brilliance of Mao Zedong’s thoughts, and prominently eulogized the workers, peasants and soldiers. This joint performance is a major event in the revolution of the arts. It has greatly uplifted the proletariat spirit and greatly extinguished bourgeoisie power and prestige… It has established a glorious model for the proletariat revolution’s literary arts.”
{mospagebreak}
Recently the Ministry of Education office sent out a “Notice on Launching Peking Opera into Elementary and Middle School Classrooms,” requiring the teaching of Peking opera in the music curriculum. The Ministry of Education has revised the “Compulsory Education Music Curriculum Standards” to include the related Peking opera teaching materials, and has chosen 15 Peking operas for elementary and middle schools music classes. Surprisingly all of the “revolution model plays” except “White-Haired Girl” were included in the teaching materials. The selected pieces even include “Harbor,” which promotes class struggle and continuing revolution.

….

[2008]

To the provincial and municipal education departments of Beijing, Tianjin, Heilongjiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Guangdong, Gansu (Education Committee):

In order to implement the party spirit proposed during the 17th party congress, inherit the Chinese nation’s outstanding culture, and construct the spiritual realms of the Chinese nation, our unit has decided to bring Peking opera into the nine years of compulsory education music curriculum. 15 Peking operas’ classical arias have been added to the revised “Compulsory Education Music Curriculum Standard” to be taught to the students during the 9 years of education. Editing the teaching materials and the production of CDs have already started.

From March 2008 to July 2009, we will experiment with teaching Peking opera to elementary and middle schools in Beijing, Tianjin, Heilongjiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Jiangxi, Hubei, Guangdong, and Gansu before gradually extending to the entire nation.

Each province (city) will select 20 schools (10 elementary schools and 10 middle schools) for the experiment. We suggest selecting schools in central city areas that have good foundations.

The education department for each site should treat the teaching of Peking operas as a priority. At the same time, each site should maximize the role of professionals in the training of teachers.
{mospagebreak}
Each site must have model guidance, establish school teaching and research systems, and encourage the general music teachers to enhance their grasp of Peking opera teaching and ability through various means.

In order to help the experimental site to train the teachers and raise the standards of Peking opera in elementary and middle schools, our unit will organize training for teachers in March 2008.

The educational administration departments of the test sites must earnestly summarize their experiences and solve the problems they encounter to help teach the whole nation.

In order to facilitate work in the test site, we ask that each test site earnestly fill in information on their schools (see Appendix 1) and submit it to our unit before February 29.

The Ministry of Education

February 2, 2008

cc: The People’s Education Publishing House and the National Peking Opera Theater

Endnotes:
[1] new century website, on February 27, 2008
http://2newcenturynet.blogspot.com/2008/02/blog-post_27.html
[2] Chinese Ministry of Education, on February 2, 2008
http://www.moe.edu.cn/edoas/website18/info1203386774849553.htm

A report from CNN on March 7, 2008 stated that several young hackers claimed that they had successfully invaded the government Internet network of several countries such as the U.S., Germany, the U.K., and France; in addition, they had obtained important information from a number of departments including the Pentagon. [1] According to this report, one of the hackers called Xiao Chen claimed his colleague received a cash reward from the Chinese government after succeeding in hacking into the Pentagon.

Three days later, Global Times, a media outlet under Xinhua News Agency, responded to the CNN report with an article titled “Chinese ‘Hackers’ Denounce U.S. Media: ‘Sheer Nonsense.’” [2] The following is a translation of the article.

“Inside an ordinary-looking residential complex in Zhoushan Island, which is south of Shanghai, several young men in their twenties were seated inside a nearly unfurnished apartment unit, fixing their eyes on the computer monitors while moving the mouse swiftly. Although they do not look harmful, they are the key members of hackers who have invaded into the most sensitive network in the world, including the Pentagon network.” [3] On March 7, CNN presented an exclusive report, claiming that CNN reporter Vause conducted a face-to-face interview with several young hackers. In its story highlights, the report stated, “the interview site is close to one of China’s navy bases” [4], as if making a special note for the “Chinese hacker threat.” 

A reporter from Global Times talked to one of the interviewees Xiao Chen (online name) over the phone on March 9. According to Xiao Chen, CNN’s report was “sheer nonsense;” he also pleaded to the reporter to help “clarify the situation.”

‘Chinese Hackers’ Admitted They Hacked into the Pentagon Network?

In the CNN report titled “Chinese Hackers: No Site Is Safe,” the main interviewees are a Chinese young man whose online name is Xiao Chen and his two colleagues. Vause described them in the following manner: “The three belong to what some Western experts say is a civilian cyber militia in China, launching attacks on government and private Web sites around the world.”

According to Vause, Xiao Chen and his friends do not want to reveal their true identities. “No Web site is one hundred percent safe. There are Web sites with high-level security, but there is always a weakness,” says Xiao Chen, the leader of this group. He claims two of his colleagues—not the ones with him in the room—hacked into the Pentagon and downloaded information, although he wouldn’t specify what was gleaned.” Vause also stated repeatedly, “CNN has no way to confirm if his claim is true.”
{mospagebreak}
Xiao Chen: ‘Obviously They Are Distorting the Story Purposely!’

With the clues revealed from the two-minute video provided by CNN, the reporter from Global Times located the lead hacker Xiao Chen. He is one of the founders of the website “Hacker World.”

“They are literally distorting the story. It’s all negative stuff, sheer nonsense!” That was the first response from Xiao Chen when he accepted a phone interview with our reporter. He pleaded to the reporter to be sure to help to “clarify the situation.”

According to Xiao Chen, the reporter from CNN had emailed to him back and forth over 20 times. The reporter claimed that he would come up with a positive report for his website and he would only need a 3-minute interview with Xiao Chen. However, the reporter came and stayed for two days. Xiao Chen revealed that during the interview, the CNN reporter asked directly, “Can you quickly show me the data you downloaded from the U.S. Department of Defense?” He also asked, “Isn’t it the Chinese government which gives you funds to attack sensitive overseas websites?”

“I said ‘no’ to all these sensitive questions,” Xiao Chen said. “Our website is simply a sharing platform for hackers. We never teach others to attack other websites; nor have we ourselves attacked any website, including that of the U.S. Department of Defense.”

“I did say not a single computer is safe,” Xiao Chen added, “however, it turned out to be no site is safe in the report. I stated that my colleagues and I established this website together, while the report had it as the government sponsored us. As a matter of fact, we have limited income from online advertisements. We are currently expecting to get funding from venture capital.”

The U.S. Has Played Up the Chinese Hacker Threat Several Times

In recent years, the American media and some U.S. officials have been attacking China with “China’s hackers are dangerous” being one of the main accusations. Especially in the last year, with the American media taking the lead, British and German media also constantly play up the propaganda that “hackers within China’s People’s Liberation Army are a threat to the world.” In the sensational description in Western media, not only the Department of Defense of the United States has been attacked by “Chinese hackers sponsored by the Chinese government,” some cross-national companies, and even some of the physical training associations in the U.K. have been the “target of attacks from China.”
{mospagebreak}
On March 4 this year, the U.S. Department of Defense submitted the 2008 annual report on “China’s Military Force” to the Congress. In this report, China is criticized for hacking into the government websites of other countries. In response to this, the spokesperson of China’s Department of Foreign Affairs Qin Gang replied that this claim is ungrounded. He also said the Chinese government and military would not hire civilian hackers to attack other countries’ government websites.

According to a report released by Symantec, an Internet security company in the U.S., the U.S. is home to hackers making chaos internationally. The number of attacks originated from the U.S. far exceeds other countries. The report also said, among all target countries of these hackers, China is the biggest victim.

Endnotes:
[1] CNN, March 7, 2008
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/03/07/china.hackers/index.html
[2] Xinhua, March 10, 2008
http://news.xinhuanet.com/mil/2008-03/10/content_7754330.htm
[3] The original CNN English: “ZHOUSHAN, China (CNN)—They operate from a bare apartment on a Chinese island. They are intelligent 20-somethings who seem harmless. But they are hard-core hackers who claim to have gained access to the world’s most sensitive sites, including the Pentagon.”
[4] The original CNN English: “The hackers met with CNN on an island near a Chinese naval hub.”