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Xinhua: Chinese and Russian Think Tanks Say AUKUS Is Promoting Nuclear Proliferation

China’s state-run Xinhua news reported on August 3rd that the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association and the Russian Center for Energy and Security Studies jointly released a research report in Vienna, Austria, titled “The Risks of AUKUS Nuclear Submarine Cooperation on Nuclear Non-Proliferation Mechanisms and Global Security.” The report claims that AUKUS, a trilateral security pact between Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, is intensifying the risk of nuclear proliferation. The report additionally says that AUKUS “poses a serious challenge to the international nuclear non-proliferation system and the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), severely threatening regional peace and stability.”

The report says that AUKUS cooperation “undermines international norms and creates negative impacts on various non-proliferation mechanisms, nuclear safety, and security, leading to increased arms competition and global insecurity.”

Li Song, the Chinese representative to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna,  said that AUKUS nuclear submarine cooperation should be handled through consultation and consensus among the member states of IAEA, the International Atomic Energy Agency. He said that China will continue to work towards promoting “open, inclusive, and sustainable” intergovernmental discussion processes at the IAEA.

Source: Xinhua, August 3, 2023
http://www.news.cn/world/2023-08/03/c_1129784778.htm

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend US-China Relations

UDN: Alfred University Closed Its Confucius Institute

United Daily News (UDN), one of the primary Taiwanese news groups, recently reported that Alfred University, which is in New York, recently announced that it will close its Confucius Institute before the end of June. The university received a grant from the Pentagon to carry out a research project on sensitive hypersonic weapons, which drew concerns from Congress starting on October. The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of the United States for the fiscal year 2021 prohibits the Department of Defense from providing funds to higher education institutions that have Confucius Institutes. Mike Gallagher, chairman of the House Select Committee on China, pointed out that, due to this ban, as of June last year, more than 100 American colleges and universities had closed their Confucius Institutes. Gallagher pointed out that unless Alfred University closes its Confucius Institute or applies for a government exemption, the subsidized research program will become illegal. The Confucius Institute is just one of many tools in the Chinese Communist Party’s toolbox, and Beijing may also use research partnerships, talent programs, and other initiatives to acquire sensitive technology that will advance the People’s Liberation Army. According to the statistics of the National Association of Scholars, under the joint control of the executive and legislative branches of the United States. In recent years, as of March 22 this year, a total of 108 Confucius Institutes in the United States had been closed or wee being closed, and currently only 13 remain.

Source: UDN, June 17, 2023
https://udn.com/news/story/6813/7241414

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

China’s Police Shared Experiences on Conducting Operations Overseas

Recently overseas media reported that Chinese police from Qingtian County, Zhejiang Province published their “successful” experiences in conducting operations in other countries. The article was published in the second issue of the Zhejiang Police College Publication in 2019.

There are 330,000 Chinese from Qingtian County who live in 128 foreign countries and regions. These diasporas have established 314 diasporas associations.

The police experience article talked about their work of combining “one concept, two overall plannings, three collaborations, four major mechanisms, and five areas of governance.”

“Two overall plannings” included the planning for domestic and overseas,words, two battlefields. Domestic planning – visit the relatives (inside China) of the overseas “stability maintenance” targets (usually the political activists/dissidents whom the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) views as a threat to its rule in China). Overseas planning – send working groups abroad to meet with the Chinese diasporas.

“Three collaborations”: One is to collaborate with Chinese embassies and consulates and  them to reach out to local Chinese diaspora groups. Two is to collaborate with the leaders of diaspora associations – Qingtian police has established regular collaborative mechanism with 230 Chinese diaspora associations and maintained regular contacts with 150 influential diaspora leaders. Three is to collaborate with the people who were the former police officers or relatives of former police officers.

The article also talked about strengthening the party’s leadership, including expanding the party organization’s reach to the overseas Chinese diaspora associations and establishing a party structure inside the Chinese diaspora associations via the party organs at China’s embassies and consulates.

The Qingtian police created a “Police-Diaspora Station” service center. Its online system started operation in 2018. The Qingtian police led the efforts, with Chinese diaspora associations participating in and providing offices. The service center has organized video conferences, information sharing sessions, regular meetings, and timely service. It created 15 sub-centers in 11 countries including Spain, Italy, and France.

The “four major mechanisms” includes establishing a “grid-management” mechanism, with larger diaspora associations as the base, and diaspora leaders, diasporas who are party members, and overseas police liaisons as the expanding points, to manage the diaspora communities. It has “successfully” handled 15 cases of a few diasporas’ protests against the CCP or its leader’s visit.

The “five areas of governance” listed anti-Falun Gong as its first area. It quoted that Qingtian police guided the “World Chinese Diaspora Anti-Cult Association in Spain” to protest the Shen Yun performance held in Barcelona in 2014.

Source: Epoch Times, May 25, 2023
http://cn.epochtimes.com/gb/23/5/25/n14003947.htm

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State Media: “As Expected, China Did not Indulge the US, It Rejected Meeting of Defense Ministers”

A Chinese media commented that China has rejected U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s request to meet with China’s Defense Minister Li Shangfu as not to “spoil” the U.S. (as one might spoil a child).

The article stated:

Why did China reject the meeting request? The U.S. should reflect on itself. In the past year, the U.S. created many frictions and caused Sino-U.S. relations to hit rock bottom. The U.S. has maliciously speculated about China’s military threat to the U.S., continued to impose malicious sanctions on China, and even embarrassed China in the diplomatic field. It wants to restore high-level communication, especially on military matters, to avoid misjudgments by either side that might lead the two countries into military conflict. This is for the U.S.’s own interest – so that it can continue its military surveillance and border provocation and not to worry about getting its military into danger.

Not removing the sanction on Li Shangfu is another reason for China to reject the meeting.

Since 2021, China has rejected or not answered more than 10 requests initiated from the U.S. Department of Defense on key leadership contact. The U.S. should look at itself for reasons – it has unshirkable responsibility for damaging the relationship between China and the United States.

Source: Net Ease, May 30, 2023
https://www.163.com/dy/article/I5VL0HNG05562BTO.html

Briefings | | |   @CS US-China Relations

CBN: LinkedIn to Shut Down Chinese Jobs App

China Business Network (CBN) recently reported that Microsoft’s workplace social media network, LinkedIn, just announced layoffs and that it will shut down its job-seeking application service in China. The company further said it plans to cut 716 jobs as demand fluctuates. It is worth noting that LinkedIn continues to downsize its business in China. The company decided to withdraw most of its Chinese business in 2021, and it shifted its business focus in China to meet the needs of job hunting and recruitment, and no longer produce content. After the latest business adjustment, LinkedIn said that, due to fierce competition and a challenging macroeconomic environment, it will take its only remaining application InCareers offline on August 9. However, a company spokesperson said LinkedIn would maintain a presence in China to help companies with operations in China recruit and train workers abroad. LinkedIn CEO Ryan Roslansky said in a letter to employees, that the company will be offloading more work to external partners in the future, who will then take on some of LinkedIn’s current work. The company also said the move to cut positions in sales, operations and support teams is aimed at simplifying the company’s operations and will move towards a more flattened management structure for faster decision-making. Microsoft acquired LinkedIn in 2016 for an estimated US$26 billion. According to Microsoft CEO Nadella previously revealed that, in 2021, LinkedIn’s global annual revenue was about US$10 billion.

Source: CBN, May 9, 2023
https://www.yicai.com/news/101751217.html

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology US-China Relations

The U.S. and Europe to Take Joint Action against China

Well-known Chinese news site Sina (NASDAQ: SINA) recently reported that Western countries continue to hype the topic of so-called “economic coercion” by China. Following the Group of Seven (G7), the United States and the European Union also plan to repeat some old expressions of “concern” about China at a meeting at the end of this month, promising to take “joint actions” against China in a number of different fields such as the economy and trade. U.S. Secretary of State Blinken, European Commission Executive Vice President Vestager and other senior officials will attend the fourth ministerial meeting of the U.S.–EU Trade and Technology Committee (TTC) in Luleå, Sweden from May 30 to 31. According to a draft statement about that meeting, the United States and the European Union intend to commit to continued coordination and cooperation in the field of export control and investment review, and to address the challenges posed by issues such as non-market policies and practices and economic coercion. The U.S. and the EU have expressed the concern that “certain countries” use economic coercion to “induce or influence” foreign government decisions or actions for their own strategic political or policy goals. The parties committed to holding regular talks to discuss how to prevent companies in their regions from using knowledge related to foreign investment to support the technology advancement of their strategic competitors. The announcement draft also includes a bilateral commitment by Washington and Brussels to coordinate export controls on “sensitive items,” including items with military uses and semiconductors. The Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson said, in response to an inquiry, that the U.S.-led groups are not only “suppressing China,” but also depriving developing countries of their right to scientific and technological progress, hoping to forever suppress these countries at the low end of the industrial chain.

Source: Sina, May 14, 2023
https://k.sina.com.cn/article_1887344341_707e96d502001dd6d.html

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend US-China Relations

The U.S. May Introduce Unprecedented Investment Restrictions on China

Well-known Chinese news site Tencent News recently reported that, since February 2023, multiple major U.S. media outlets have successively quoted U.S. officials in their reports, stating that the White House intends to prohibit U.S. companies from investing overseas in some advanced technology-related industries that may threaten national security. Although these reports did not mention any country,  people familiar with the matter broke the news that the new regulations formulated by the White House mainly involve U.S. investment in China. Earlier, the outside world generally believed that, as the world’s two largest economies, China and the United States are deeply connected in the economic field and Washington does not intend to turn its face away completely. Now it appears that the Biden Administration seems to be preparing for a complete showdown. The U.S. media revealed that the White House is preparing to introduce a comprehensive policy to contain China. Bloomberg did suggest that the U.S. government’s investment restrictions on U.S. companies may be too strict. They may cause companies to move their business from the U.S. to other countries. The new restrictions may end up having little benefit to national security and will further weaken America’s global competitiveness. It is worth mentioning that the U.S. media used the word “unprecedented” to describe the new regulations formulated by the White House. Therefore, for the time being, it can be regarded as a comprehensive policy of containing China. One report also showed that a U.S. official confirmed that the government has begun briefing groups such as industry organizations in the U.S. and the American Chamber of Commerce in China on the outline of the regulations. However, some details of the new policy are yet to be finalized.

Source: Tencent News, April 24, 2023
https://new.qq.com/rain/a/20230424A02N1600

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Huawei’s Net Profit Dropped 68.7 Percent Last Year

Well-known Chinese news site Sina (NASDAQ: SINA) recently reported that Huawei released its 2022 annual report. The report shows that Huawei’s global sales revenue was RMB 642.3 billion yuan (around US$93.5 billion), a year-over-year increase of 0.9 percent, and its net profit was RMB 35.6 billion yuan (around US$518 million), a sharp decrease of 68.7 percent year-over-year. In 2022, Huawei’s sales in the high-end smartphone market fell sharply by 44 percent year-over-year, and its share in the high-end smartphone market further dropped from 5 percent in 2021 to 3 percent. Regarding Huawei’s return to the 5G smartphone market, Huawei’s rotating chairman responded that the mobile phone business has been most affected by the U.S. sanctions, from the second in the world to “others.” Currently Huawei can only make 4G phones. To buy a Huawei 5G mobile phone, one would have to wait for permission from the U.S. Department of Commerce. Huawei also confirmed its strategy of not building cars, but helping car companies build good cars. According to Huawei’s CFO, in 2022, Huawei’s operations faced greater pressure. Overall, the operating performance was in line with expectations. At the end of 2022, Huawei’s asset-liability ratio was 58.9 percent  and its net cash balance was RMB 176.3 billion yuan (around US$25.7 billion), showing a stable financial position.

Source: Sina, March 31, 2023
https://cj.sina.com.cn/articles/view/7501277582/1bf1c698e02001dxw4

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