Chinascope – Page 1250

Water Shortage Threatens China

Floods, draught and severe water pollution will be the three constraints for China, Study Times observes. “China’s water resources total 2.8 trillion cubic meters, ranking No. 6 in the world, but the per capita water resource is only 2,200 cubic meters, about 30% of the world average.” “The water shortage amounts to 40 billion cubic meters. Nearly two-thirds of the cities suffer from insufficient water resources. On average drought disasters hit 2.3 million mu of agriculture land [1 mu = 0.165 acre] every year.” The article concludes that China is highly eco-environmentally vulnerable.

Source: Study Times, June 22, 2009
http://www.studytimes.com.cn/WebPage/ny1.aspx?act=0&id=2727&bid=1

Briefings | | July 6, 2009 | Economy/Resources

U.S.- Indian Policy Targets China

The International Herald Leader under Xinhua reported, when commenting on Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s announcement of a “US-India 3.0” relationship, that government think tanks have published that the U.S. is improving its relationship with India in order to contain China, .

The article of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences states, “The China factor is very obvious” in the 2005 ‘New Framework in the India-U.S. Defense Relationship’ between the United States and India. “Both countries feel an inexplicable but obvious insecurity toward the growth of China.” The article cites U.S. media on China’s building a nuclear submarine in Sanya, Hainan, Indian and western media on China’s involvement in Sri Lanka’s Hambantota Port, and on Chinese naval ships escorting merchant ships in the Indian Ocean earlier this year.

Source: International Herald Leader, June 22, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/herald/2009-06/22/content_11580302.htm

Briefings | | July 6, 2009 | US-China Relations

China Warns against US Protectionism

Xinhua observed that the United States is increasing trade friction with its recent WTO case against China over its export restrictions on raw materials. It is the first case during the Obama administration and the European Union is joining the United States in the action, noted Xinhua.

"As the two largest trading nations, it is normal to have trade friction. However, a series of trade frictions will damage bilateral trade relations." "Although a trade war would be a lose-lose for all, still, China should not allow the United States continue to discriminate against Chinese products."

Source: Xinhua, June 25, 2009
http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2009-06/25/content_11596474.htm

Briefings | | July 6, 2009 | US-China Relations

Ming Pao: China’s Tax and Spending Dilemma

Hong Kong based Ming Pao reported on June 28 that the latest Chinese statistics showed the government has less income from tax but is spending more. The government’s official response is to reduce spending on car purchases, receptions, officials’ visits (tours) of other countries, and construction of government buildings. However, given the massive corruption in China, it is impossible to control the government’s spending. The other option is to increase taxes, but that also presents big challenges, as the government promised the public that it would reduce the tax burden to stimulate the economy’s growth. Therefore, the government is trapped.

Source: Ming Pao, June 28, 2009
http://specials.mingpao.com/cfm/News.cfm?SpecialsID=20&News=8a449547606c739b9a24c44c2ebb40919b1dd5c4a23f11a0a804595d2eb7

Briefings | | July 2, 2009 | Government/Politics

Outlook: The Balance between Defending the National Interest and Maintaining Area Stability

Outlook published an article stating that China should seek to highly unify its strategies of defending the national interest while maintaining area stability when dealing with its neighboring countries.

It listed China’s strategic security environment and development opportunities as: China is adjacent to many counties, some of which are large countries and many of which have nuclear weapons; in the ocean, China is surrounded by several countries along the first island chain and the second island chain; neighboring countries and regions are concerned about China’s rise; and western countries set up international rules on ocean rights that do not favor the developing countries.

“Equally important, the first twenty years of the 21st century is the strategic opportunity era for China. That means that China needs to seek at least twenty years of having a peaceful environment to develop and strengthen itself, to establish its competitive advantage in the areas of the economy, politics, culture, diplomacy, and the military. Then China can better defend its own interests.”

Source: Outlook, June 22, 2009
http://news.sohu.com/20090622/n264682762.shtml

Briefings | | July 2, 2009 | Geo-Strategic Trend

Washington Times: The U.S. Should Confront China’s Duplicity

The Washington Times published an article by James Lyons, a retired U.S. Navy Admiral, and former commander in chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, stating that “the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has developed an extremely devious strategy to challenge U.S. strategic interest not only in the Western Pacific, but also globally.” China has built networks with countries such as North Korea, Burma, Iran, Sudan, Venezuela and Yemen – to mention but a few – all of which are hostile to the United States and other democracies. China is behind all of North Korea’s moves. China has been supplying nuclear technologies to other countries, and China has been using Iran as a proxy to support the Taliban, where China provides weapons and ammunition to Iran, which are then passed to Shi’ite militias and the Taliban. Lyons argued that the U.S. should tell China to reverse its nuclear and missile proliferation policy and should also take other measures to confront China’s duplicity.

Source: Washington Times, June 21, 2009
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jun/21/confront-chinas-duplicity/print/

Briefings | | July 2, 2009 | US-China Relations

Not Guilty – Rights Lawyers Defending Falun Gong

Ten years ago, on July 20, 1999, the State’s Ministry of Civil Affairs declared Falun Gong and the Falun Dafa Research Society to be illegal, thus starting the persecution that has continued unabated to the present time. In spite of the State’s high-pressure tactics, a growing number of rights lawyers in China have stepped forward to provide a not-guilty defense in court.

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Analyses | | July 1, 2009 | Opinion

What is Green Dam Damming?

Recent news reports revealed that the Chinese government has mandated that every PC sold in China must include a censorship program called Green Dam beginning July 1. Several computer experts from the Computer Science and Engineering Division at The University of Michigan conducted an investigation of the software and published their research Analysis of the Green Dam Censorware System on the Internet (http://www.cse.umich.edu/~jhalderm/pub/gd/).

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Analyses | | July 1, 2009 | Opinion

Xinhua Commentary Series: Spotlight on the U.S. Presidential Election

Wu Guoguang: Xi Jinping’s Reversal of the Course, Will China’s Transition be Peaceful or Marked with Bloodshed?

Cheng Xiaonong: U.S.-China Strategic Relations Have Crystallized

Xinhua Commentaries: “Exposing the Three Major Political Deficits of the U.S.”