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

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

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

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The CCP’s Performing Arts Troupes in the U.S.

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China Tightens Control of Muslims and Bans Private Hajj Affairs

On October 12, the United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) released the “Administrative Measures for Islamic Hajj Affairs” on its WeChat public account and announced that it will be implemented in December. According to the new regulation, except for the Islamic Association of China (IAC), the government organization of Muslims, no one else can organize Hajj activities. Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetime by all adult Muslims who are physically and financially capable of undertaking the journey and can support their family during their absence.

The “Measures,” consisting of seven chapters and 42 articles, specifies that Chinese citizens who believe in Islam can only participate in the activities that the IAC has organized if they want to participate in the Hajj. The activities have to be organized and planned in an orderly manner, and proceed in accordance with the law. Except for the IAC, no other organization or individual may organize Hajj activities.

The “Measures” declares that those who organize citizens’ Hajj affairs without authorization or who provide resources for illegal Hajj activities shall be punished. If a crime is committed, criminal responsibility shall be investigated and pursued.

The “Measures” also mentions that people who intend to participate in the Hajj must register in advance with the religious affairs office in the location of their household registration. After unqualified applicants are reviewed and eliminated through screening, the provincial governments will announce the province’s approved list. “Patriotism, being law-abiding, and having good character” are the top qualifications for applicants.

The “Measures” require relevant government bodies to carry out the administrative work, stop illegal Hajj activities, and also oppose religious extremism.

Source: Central News Agency, October 12, 2020
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202010120217.aspx

Briefings | | |   Social Stability

China Claims it Will Build a Space Station within two years

During China’s National Day, the state media revealed much information about China’s construction of the space station “Tiangong-1.” China claims it will complete the construction of the space station within two years.

The Chinese state media reported on this space station project in detail, including the construction schedule, timetable, multiple components under construction and astronaut training. China stated that it will complete 11 intensive lift-offs within two years, using the “Shenzhou” manned spacecraft and the “Tianzhou” cargo spacecraft to deliver astronauts and multiple space station modules into space.

The Long March 5-B rocket is planned to launch at the Wenchang Launch Center in Hainan province in the first half of 2021 to carry the “Tianhe” core cabin module. The Long March 2-F rocket will subsequently launch at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province, carrying the “Shenzhou” manned spacecraft.

China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced on October 1 that 18 astronauts will participate in the program, including seven pilots, seven aerospace engineers and four payload specialists, one of whom is a female.

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation once stated that the mission life of China’s “Tiangong-1” space station will last about 15 years, which can accommodate three astronauts in orbit for a long term station with a half-year rotation, and a short-term stay of six people for ten days.

In June this year, Chinese state media announced it was partnering with 23 entities from 17 countries, including France, Germany, Japan, Kenya, and Peru, to carry out scientific experiments on board.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently issued a warning that China’s space station program may threaten the U.S. space superiority, after the International Space Station is decommissioned. Administrator Jim Bridenstine told the lawmakers this was critical to maintaining US space supremacy in the face of a planned Chinese space station that Beijing hopes will be operational by 2022.

The first parts of the International Space Station were launched in 1998 and it has been lived in continuously since 2000. The station, which serves as a space science lab and is a partnership between the US, Russia, Japan, Europe and Canada, is currently expected to be operated until 2030.

“In order to be able to have the United States of America have a presence in low Earth orbit, we have to be prepared for what comes next,” he added.

To that end, NASA has requested $150 million for the 2021 fiscal year to help develop the commercialization of low Earth orbit, defined as 2,000 km or less from the planet’s surface.

“China is rapidly building what they call the ‘Chinese International Space Station,’ and they’re rapidly marketing that space station to all of our international partners,” said Bridenstine. “It would be a tragedy if, after all of this time and all of this effort, we were to abandon low Earth orbit and cede that territory.”

Source: Voice of America, October 9, 2020
https://www.voachinese.com/a/Chinese-media-touts-its-space-station-program-20201009/5615428.html

Briefings | | |   Defense/Military

Huawei Performed Poorly in First Month after U.S. Sanction

Well-known Chinese news site Tencent News recently reported that Huawei’s smartphone business suffered a significant decline one month after September when the U.S. sanction was fully in place. Based on retail market share statistics, Apple iPhone 11 seized the opportunity and ranked number one in China’s domestic smartphone market. Xiaomi models took the ranks from two to four. Huawei, which used to hold the top sales position, did not make it to the list of the top five. The Huawei P40 Pro model ranked number six. Apple iPhone 11 won the top place with only 4G models when the competition was offering 5G models. It seems that all those patriotic Huawei supporters who refused to touch Apple products disappeared. It is indeed a surprise that Huawei had no product this year that even made it into the top five club. Huawei has already lowered its output forecast for next year.

Source: Tencent News, September 28, 2020
https://xw.qq.com/cmsid/20200927A06LEM00

Briefings | | |   Information/Technology

BBC Chinese: Pew Poll Showed Significant Chinese Reputation Decline

BBC Chinese Edition recently reported that the Pew Research Center just released multi-national poll results which indicated a significant decline in China’s reputation among 14 advanced Western countries and Asian countries. The Japanese result showed an 86 percent negative response.  Sweden, the first country in the West that established a formal relationship with China, was second with a poll that showed 85 percent negative. Australia had the third highest negative view about China, with 81 percent of the people surveyed choosing negative. This is a 24 percent expansion from last year. In the United Kingdom 75 percent of the people reported a negative view, which represents a 19 percent expansion from last year. The United States negative number is at 73 percent, which is the highest in 15 years and is a 20 percent increase since President Trump took office. An average of 78 percent among all the people surveyed distrusted Xi Jinping and 61 percent thought China did poorly in dealing with the pandemic. Among nine countries, negative views against Xi increased by 10 percent in the past year.

Source: BBC Chinese, October 6, 2020
https://www.bbc.com/zhongwen/simp/world-54442667

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Global Times: The Pentagon Invoked Defense Production Act for Rare Earths

Global Times recently reported that, in order to make its rare earths supply “self-sufficient,” the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) invoked “without hesitation” the Defense Production Act of 1950. This new decision was to improve and speed up the U.S. domestic rare earths development effort. The U.S. military depends heavily on rare earths for manufacturing weaponry. For example, to build an F-35 fighter jet, the manufacturer needs 417 kilograms (around 919 pounds) of rare earths. To make a Virginia Grade nuclear submarine, the rare earth consumption level is four tons. Presently, direct imports from China fulfill eighty percent of the U.S. rare earths demand. In the meantime, the remaining twenty percent of the U.S. consumption depends on indirect imports from China via other countries. The Defense Production Act allows the U.S. President to require businesses to accept government contracts, to expand production scale, and to prioritize production material pricing and allocation for national defense purposes.

Source: Global Times, October 7, 2020
http://https//world.huanqiu.com/article/40BiMCOb64v

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources US-China Relations

CCP Youth League Hosted Live Video Group Chat on Trump Contracting COVID 19

On October 2, following the news that President Trump and the first Lady tested positive for COVID 19, China’s official Youth League Weibo account organized a live video group chat session titled, “The Virus Finally Found the Person who Understands it the Best” and encouraged the followers to post comments that are related to the word “懂” (“understand”). The live chat used a popular Chinese song titled, “He doesn’t know” to insinuate that Trump doesn’t know China. Trump often says that no one understands China better than he does, so those pro-CCP youths in China have given him the nick name, “King of Understanding” because of it. During the session, there were comments that cheered the news, but there were also comments criticizing the youth league for hosting the chat session. At the same time, the official Weibo account of the Political and Legal Committee also joined the live video chat.

In a 51 second video, a number of comments had the word “understand” in it. There were also people posting comments such as “(Trump contracting COVID 19 is) China’s National Day gift.” Another comment was, “It’s okay, two more bottles of disinfectant please.” At the same time, people posted complaints about the live video comment session. One person wrote, “I hope you can understand the meaning of these things that the CCP Youth League has issued.” “Your cheer on this side of the ocean gave voters on the other side of the ocean a chance to share the same hatred, stupid as a pig” “Once again it challenged the bottom line of my understanding of human moral values.”

Since the news of Trump contracting COVID 19 first appeared, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs basically repeated diplomatic rhetoric. The Ministry openly cheered about the news, also fearing that it would further harm Sino-US relations. So the youth league hosting a live video group chat session became a channel to guide the opinion of the younger generation and let the pro-CCP youths express their hatred against the U.S. The Youth League’s Weibo and Zhihu accounts have gained popularity among young people in China since they use the internet pop culture. They have become a public opinion tool for the CCP to disseminate its propaganda information targeting the country’s youth.

Source: Epoch Times, October 5, 2020
https://www.epochtimes.com/gb/20/10/5/n12454878.htm

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Pompeo: If China Attacks Taiwan, Appeasement Is Not the Answer

On October 6, U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo participated the quadrilateral security dialogue, or Quad, with Japan, India and Australia. He also accepted an exclusive interview with the Nikkei. During the interview, the reporter asked whether the United States was prepared to defend Taiwan if China unilaterally attacked Taiwan. Pompeo said that the “U.S. is committed to reducing cross-strait tensions,” the mission of the Trump administration in the world. The United States “looks to bring peace, not conflict.” It is shameful that the Communist Party of China instigates tensions with Vietnam, Japan, as well as a series of incidents in the Himalayas (the Sino-Indian border). “This is the Chinese using coercive power. This isn’t how great nations operate.” Pompeo also stressed that “appeasement is not the answer” and the U.S. is the best partner for security with Taiwan and Japan.

The U.S. has a NATO agreement with European countries but there is no similar agreement with the countries in the Asia Pacific region. Facing China’s rapid increase in military and economic influence, security cooperation among many countries is indispensable. Pompeo said. “When one talks about security, one is talking about economic capacity and the rule of law, the ability to protect intellectual property, trade agreements, diplomatic relationships, and all of the elements that form a security framework. It is not just military.” He also stressed that the democratic countries should unite and strengthen the foundation to “counter the challenge that the Chinese Communist Party presents to all of us.”

Source: Liberty Time News, October 6, 2020
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/politics/breakingnews/3313495

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend