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Local Government Debts Reached a New High; Half of New Debts Are to Pay Off Old Debts

China’s debts have continued to soar, with the latest official figures showing that local government debts surged in the first 10 months of the year, reaching a record high of 30 trillion yuan (US$ 4.7 trillion). A more concerning phenomenon is that nearly half of the new debts were not injected into the economy but were used to pay off old debts.

On Tuesday November 23, China’s Ministry of Finance released the latest data on local government bond issuance. From January to October this year, China issued a total of 6.49 trillion yuan (US$ 1.0 trillion) in local government bonds, up 6 percent from the same period last year and hitting a record high. Among them, 2.8 trillion yuan (US$ 0.44 trillion) was issued to refinance bonds, an increase of 75 percent compared to the same period last year. In other words, the increase in local bond issuance this year is mainly due to the issuance of refinancing bonds.

In addition, as of the end of October this year, the balance of local government debt was about 29.7 trillion yuan (US$ 4.7 trillion). From January to October this year, Guangdong surpassed all other provincial governments in bond issuance. The total amount issued was 589.4 billion yuan (US$ 92.2 billion).

Source: Radio Free Asia, November 23, 2021
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/jingmao/ac-11232021044123.html

The Fourth World Media Summit

The “United Front” is both a strategy and an ecosystem of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).  It is a guided or CCP-controlled group charged with advancing both China’s domestic control and its international influence. The media represent an important front. Beijing’s “World Media Summit” is an annual platform to influence overseas media.

According to China’s official Xinhua news agency, the fourth World Media Summit was held in Beijing on November 22. Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and head of Central Propaganda Department, attended the plenary session and read the CCP Chair Xi Jinping’s congratulatory letter and delivered a keynote address.

Huang pointed out that Xi Jinping’s congratulatory letter fully affirmed the achievements of the summit and placed great expectations on the global media to shoulder their social responsibilities and promote the building of a “community of human destiny in a better way.”

Huang told the media “to adhere to objectivity, truthfulness, and scientific and rational judgment; to oppose rumors and bias, and to be responsible in disseminating public information.” Huang then went ahead with the party line: “The CCP and the State have made historic achievements and have made important contributions to the peaceful development of the world.”

Xinhua news agency hosted this year’s summit. Nearly 400 Chinese and foreign guests from more than 260 media and institutions in nearly 100 countries and regions attended the meeting online and in person.

Source: People’s Daily, November 23, 2021
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2021-11/23/nw.D110000renmrb_20211123_4-04.htm

Nepali Secret Document Details Chinese Intelligence Officials’ Role against MCC

Nepal, a country that borders Tibet, is giving consideration to joining the U.S. Millennium Challenge (MCC) aid program. Local media have recently exposed a classified report from Nepal’s national security authorities that revealed that  China’s Ministry of State Security (MSS) has a long history of intelligence espionage and would stop at nothing to thwart the program.

Khabarhub, a Nepali English language media, revealed the classified report on November 12. “Khabarhub obtained the document on the condition of confidentiality and anonymity. It covered in detail the Chinese intelligence apparatus, its modus operandi inside Nepal, and the people involved in it.” “The report also included details about intelligence officials working as diplomats, journalists, and even businessmen.”

“The document states that China is ‘playing a role’ in souring Nepal’s relations with third countries, particularly with the United States, and is currently actively propagating, lobbying and spending against the MCC.”

“The 50-page confidential intelligence document also details all of China’s intelligence priorities, objectives, networks, and individuals in Nepal. Many details of the past are also mentioned in the document.”

“Nepali security forces have concluded that the Chinese intelligence officials’ top priority is to invalidate MCC at any cost. The security authorities have also concluded that the Chinese intelligence agency is actively involved in lobbying against MCC and is disseminating disinformation.”

“Nepali security and intelligence officials warn that the rapid advance and increased Chinese intelligence volume could even play a role in changing Nepal’s political position.”

“Lately, besides gathering intelligence, the Chinese are actively influencing and spending money on Nepali politicians, journalists and even businessmen.”

The report also identifies a Chinese national, Ning Lin, a name at the top of the security authorities’ list of those involved in crafting anti-MCC rhetoric in Nepal. Lin, (also known as “Oscar Ning”), a Chinese intelligence agency (MSS) official, carries two passports and is said to have come from the Chinese province of Hubei.

Source: Khabarhub, November 12, 2021

Nepali security authorities identify a Chinese intelligence agency official involved in anti-MCC propaganda

RFI Chinese: China Shocked the United States by Building A Military Port in the Persian Gulf

Radio France Internationale (RFI) Chinese Edition recently reported that, according to people familiar with the matter, U.S. officials believe China is secretly constructing military installations at a port about 50 miles north of the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi. China’s secret port project in the Persian Gulf shook the U.S. relations with the UAE. The UAE government does not seem to be aware of the military nature of Chinese activities. The UAE is the host country where the U.S. military is stationed in the region and is seeking to purchase advanced U.S. fighter jets and drones. Around one year ago, confidential satellite imagery led U.S. officials to conclude that the Chinese are building some kind of military facility in the port. At some point, the construction site was covered. The Biden administration is trying to persuade the UAE government to block the construction of the base. Beijing denied all the accusations. U.S. officials recently inspected the site and expressed the belief that the construction has stopped. A senior UAE official lamented last month that the UAE was caught in a duel between the United States and China.

Source: RFI Chinese, November 20, 2021
https://bit.ly/3nzhmWy

Lianhe Zaobao: Senior Chinese Public Security Official Competes for INTERPOL Executive Position

Singapore’s primary Chinese language newspaper Lianhe Zaobao recently reported that a senior official at the Ministry of Public Security of China is seeking to compete for a post in the Interpol Executive Committee. INTERPOL will hold a conference in Istanbul from November 23 to 25, and will elect the new members of the executive committee, including two executive committee members from Asia. Hu Binchen, deputy director and First-Grade Inspector of the International Cooperation Bureau of the Ministry of Public Security of China, is one of the candidates for the member from Asia. The INTERPOL Executive Committee consists of 13 members, responsible for overseeing the daily work of the Secretary-General and the General Secretariat. Meng Hongwei, former deputy minister of the Ministry of Public Security of China, was elected as the president of INTERPOL in 2016. However, in 2018, Meng disappeared after returning to China. He was later sentenced to jail for 13.5 years. In March 2019, China’s official anti-corruption agency reported that Meng had “refused to implement the decisions of the Party Central Committee.”

Source: Lianhe Zaobao, November 16, 2021
https://www.zaobao.com.sg/realtime/china/story20211116-1213956

Global Times: Russia Started Delivering S-400 Missiles to India

Global Times recently reported that, according to Russian and Indian media reports, Russia has begun to deliver the S-400 air defense missile system to India, and will complete the delivery of the first batch of S-400 missiles when Putin visits India next month. The United States wants to impose sanctions on India for this, but it also fears that, as a result, India may fall to Russia. Recently, The U.S. has been trying to engage India as an ally. Nonetheless, this Russian deal did bring serious obstacles to strengthening political and military relations between Washington and New Delhi. It is puzzling that India is buying the same system that China also bought. It thereby suffers the risk that China will have full knowledge of the system’s technical details. On the other hand, it is understandable that most of India’s current mature air defense systems are medium and short-range missiles. There are not many choices for missiles with a maximum range of 250 kilometers in the market. The S-400 makes sense when India wants to establish multi-source weapons procurement channels.

Source: Global Times, November 15, 2021
https://world.huanqiu.com/article/45aZZrm81et

Duowei: Biden Promised to Give Up Subverting China’s System. This Shows the Success of Beijing’s Struggle Strategy

Duowei, an Internet news portal stationed in North America and associated with Beijing’s grand propaganda plan, published an article claiming that Beijing won a battle in the struggle between China and the United States.
“The video meeting between Biden and Xi Jinping (on November 16 ) showed the success of Beijing’s struggle in the past few months against the arrogant attitude of the Biden administration.”

The article said, “Although the U.S. draft is extremely restrained and only displays three sections, the outside world can still find from the Chinese draft that the two sides have shown interest in strategic stability, diplomatic security, finance, economics and trade, and climate change. The U.S. willingness in the long-term to have full communication with China on almost all issues is positive in itself.”

The article continued, “During this meeting, Biden clearly recognized China as a major world leader, just like the United States. This is an important evaluation of China. It is not the America First from the Trump era, but China is also the world’s major leader, with whom the United States is willing to discuss issues.

“The Biden administration’s patience with China was not there from the beginning. After taking office, Washington elites such as Antony Blinken and Jake Sullivan still displayed American arrogance, accusing China on the issue of the origin of the new Coronavirus, forcing China to yield using public opinion, and amplifying the human rights issue in Xinjiang into a cotton war, etc. These tactics were no different from the Trump era.

“The high-level meeting in Alaska in March ended unpleasantly. Beijing launched a counterattack ‘full of gunpowder.’ The United States ‘has no right to speak condescendingly with China, and the Chinese do not give a damn.’ The ‘old problems of the United States interfering in China’s internal affairs must be corrected.’ This was a loud warning from Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and director of the Central Foreign Affairs Office. Biden’s climate envoy John Kerry (John Kerry) made his first visit to China in April. It was arranged to be in Shanghai, far away from the political center.”

The article claimed that “Beijing’s tough stance during the Alaska meeting and Kerry’s first visit to China made the Biden administration clearly realize that the original method of dealing with China is no longer applicable.”

The article concluded, “Many people are skeptical about China’s pursuit of an equal footing with the United States, believing that it is too presumptuous and too aggressive. Now it looks apparent that there is no need to worry at all. The American respect that China wants will not come automatically. The change in the United States needs to be forced by an external atmosphere. China has not passively endured all this, but is actively shaping up the situation. From hiding one’s capacity and biding one’s time, to acting proactively, then to daring to fight and being good at fighting, Beijing’s approach of responding to the challenges of the United States has begun to bear fruit.”

Source: Duowei, November 18, 2021
https://www.dwnews.com/全球/60269072/拜登承诺放弃颠覆中国体制这是北京斗争策略的成功

Global Times: It Is Imperative to Build a High-Tech “Non-American” System

China’s state-run media Global Times published an opinion article, calling for China to build a high-tech “non-U.S. system.”

The article said, “November 8th was the deadline for the U.S. government to ‘blackmail’ the commercial data of semiconductor companies. The Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. Ltd. (TSMC) stated that it had ‘responded’ to the U.S. request, but emphasized that no customer-specific data was disclosed. It can be seen that this move by the U.S. government will not only impact the commercial reputation of TSMC and other foundries, but it will also affect the commercial safety of the entire upstream and downstream customers who use the foundries as a link. The U.S. government continues to intensify its political intervention in the global high-tech industry. The most far-reaching effect is for China to urge China, and also to warn all high-tech companies in the world, In order to get rid of the political hegemony of the United States. It is imperative to establish a global high-tech ‘non-U.S. system.’ There is no other way around it!”

“The global high-tech supply chain is chaotic. In addition to the (Covid-19) pandemic factor, the gross intervention of the US government is also to blame. The series of measures taken by the U.S. government not only dispelled China’s illusion of long-term dependence on U.S. core technology and industrial ecology. It also began to alert other countries: without getting rid of the U.S. monopoly and stepping out of the U.S. single-system technology route, it will be difficult to obtain true industrial independence.  … U.S. hegemony is deeply entrenched and difficult to shake off in the short term. The end of the U.S. unilateral monopoly in the high-tech field is the only way out. This is not only the only way for China’s high-tech, but also the only way for global high-tech.”

“The U.S. government’s intensified (intervention) has awakened more companies and countries around the world. To avoid political interference from the U.S. government, and to return the market, technology and science to their roots, the global high-tech industries must complete a revolutionary change — truly activate competition and get rid of the U.S. tech monopoly. On October 29, 2021, Huawei held a mobilization assembly entitled ‘No Retreat is the Road to Victory’ in the Songshan Lake Industrial Park. Ren Zhengfei (The Head of Huawei) clearly proclaimed: ‘Peace is achieved through a fight.’ Not only Huawei, but all high-tech industries in the world should give up illusions.”

Source: Global Times, November 9, 2021
https://opinion.huanqiu.com/article/45VbfTx7l9o