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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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Artistically Shaping China’s Image Based on Three Principles

The China Social Science website posted a theoretical article, suggesting that “a beautiful and artistic image of China, organically integrated with profound Chinese wisdom, can better fulfill Beijing’s mission to be a great nation.” The article listed three “cultural principles” by which to craft an artistic image of China:

  • Values: “The image of Chinese people should be trustworthy and sincere.” This image not only comes from the traditional Chinese culture, but also from “the communist revolutionary cultural values and advanced socialist cultural values.”
  • Ethics: “China has developed an ethical concept that ‘family and home country are integrated as one.'” “Patriotism becomes the fundamental political and ethical spirit, giving rise to the individual ideal that one should ‘cultivate oneself, harmonize the family, govern the country, and settle the world.'”
  • History: “Chinese culture is diversified because the vast Chinese territory comprises multiple geographical units, leading to diverse economic forms and nurturing different cultures.”

Source: China Social Science, January 19, 2024
https://www.cssn.cn/skgz/bwyc/202401/t20240119_5729627.shtml

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources Government/Politics

Xinhua: China Unveils “Thousand Groups Going Abroad” Initiative, Aiming to Boost Overseas Trade

As China’s exports continue to decline, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) announced a new initiative this year called “Thousand Groups Going Abroad.” The plan is to organize over 1,000 batches of business delegations to participate in overseas exhibitions, inspections, and negotiations, aiming to secure export orders and expand China’s overseas markets. The initiative will target China’s key export markets such as the Europe Union, the U.S., Japan, South Korea, ASEAN, and Latin America.

China organized approximately 900 overseas exhibitions in 2023.

Source: Xinhua, January 15, 2024
https://app.xinhuanet.com/news/article.html?articleId=a2b554b08f23afaff0f499798e1b9f74

Briefings | | |   @CS Economy/Resources Government/Politics

People’s Daily: Foster a Comprehensive Ongoing Approach to National Defense Education

People’s Daily published an article on conducting national defense education for the general public in China. The below paragraphs are translated excerpts from the article:

“Our army is the people’s army. Our national defense is the defense of the entire nation.

National defense education is comprehensive, long-term systemic work that emphasizes practical effectiveness and the public participation. Facing the current complex and challenging national security situation, it is essential to consistently regard national defense education as a strategic necessity.

Youth are the future of our country and thus the main focus of national defense education. It is crucial to incorporate national defense education into textbooks, classrooms, and student’s minds, sowing in young hearts the seeds of love for the Party, for the country, and for the military. We should leverage opportunities like military open days and military summer/winter camps to conduct effective national defense knowledge training.

Catering to the characteristics of the audience, national defense education should occur both online and offline, with both hardware and software being developed simultaneously. We should fully utilize local regions’ revolutionary culture (historical sites) and new technologies such as big data and artificial intelligence.

National defense education is not achieved through a single event; instead, it needs to be integrated into daily life and pursued regularly.”

Source: People’s Daily, January 21, 2024
http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2024-01/21/nw.D110000renmrb_20240121_2-06.htm

Briefings | | |   Defense/Military Government/Politics

Survey: German Companies in China Face Stiff Competition, Geopolitical Risks, and Economic Headwinds

A survey by the German Chamber of Commerce Abroad found that 46% of German companies operating in China believe that their Chinese competitors will become leaders in their respective industries within the next 5 years. Some 37% of surveyed companies feel that innovativeness in the Chinese market makes doing business in China increasingly attractive, and 11% of German automotive companies in China view their Chinese competitors as already being the innovation leaders in their industry.

About 83% of German companies surveyed believe that China’s economy is declining, though 64% anticipate this downward trend being just a temporary 2-3 year slowdown. Some 42% of respondents expect positive developments in Chinese industry this year.

The investment outlook among surveyed companies was mixed – 54% think that China’s investment appeal is falling, while a similar percentage plan to increase investment in China over the next 2 years. Risks are top of mind, with about 37% of respondents reportedly taking action to mitigate geopolitical risks and some 20% taking action to mitigate risks related to China’s economy.

Source: German Chamber of Commerce in China, January 24, 2024
https://china.ahk.de/market-info/economic-data-surveys/business-confidence-survey-1

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

RFA: China Jailed More Journalists in 2023 Than Any Other Country

Radio Free Asia (RFA) recently reported on a study by The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an international human rights organization, saying that 44 journalists were imprisoned in China in 2023, more than in any other country. Out of the 44 imprisoned Chinese journalists, 19 were of the Uyghur ethnic group. According to the CPJ report, “censorship makes the exact number of journalists jailed there notoriously difficult to determine, but Beijing’s media crackdown has widened in recent years.” When the CPJ report was released, Jimmy Lai, one of the representatives of press freedom in Hong Kong and the former founder of Apple Daily, was on trial in Hong Kong facing accusations of anti-state crimes. He had been subject to detention in prison for more than 1,140 consecutive days.

The report pointed out that the Chinese government has a tendency to charge journalists with “working against the state.” In 2023, three-fifths of new cases brought against journalists in China involved charges of espionage and incitement, separatism, or subversion of state power. This trend of bringing anti-state charges against journalists reflects the Chinese government’s attitude towards freedom of speech — it wantonly uses the party-state judicial apparatus to directly punish those who use speech in a manner that it deems unfavorable. Criminal charges are often brought on the basis of speech or reporting alone.

It is worth noting that China’s amended Counterespionage Law, which took effect on July 1, 2023, raised concern among members of the press at the time. Since Chinese law has always been vague about what constitutes threats “related to national security and interests,” it is difficult for Chinese and foreign journalists operating in China to gain clarity and feel secure in the reporting work they do.

Sources:

RFA, January 19, 2024
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/yataibaodao/renquanfazhi/wy-01192024115907.html

CPJ, January 18, 2024

2023 prison census: Jailed journalist numbers near record high; Israel imprisonments spike

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics Social Stability

Chinese Officials Disciplined for Reading “Politically Problematic” Books

Chinese media have reported that several recently-arrested provincial and municipal officials were accused of “reading books and magazines with serious political problems.” Such offenses have been cited alongside more common corruption charges such as acceptance of bribes. The “problematic books”  in question include publications and e-books of foreign origin. Government reports about officials accused of such behavior have been published on the websites of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) and China’s National Supervisory Commission.

One example concerns former Guiyang City deputy mayor Lin Gang, who was expelled from the Communist Party and from public office for “unlawfully seeking benefits for others, illegally accepting property, and confronting the organization’s scrutiny.” He was additionally accused of “not believing in Marxism-Leninism, believing in ghosts and gods, participating in superstitious activities, and reading e-books and magazines with serious political issues for a long time.” Other officials recently accused include a former water company deputy general manager, a former deputy secretary of the Guizhou Provincial Party Committee for Political and Legal Affairs, the former deputy governor of Guizhou Province, and a recently expelled Shanxi City deputy mayor. All have faced charges of possession or reading of “politically-problematic” books or magazines originating from outside of China.

Taiwan’s Central News Agency noted that calling out officials for reading questionable publications or e-books has historically been quite rare, although there have been a few prior such cases.

Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), January 30, 2024
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202401300029.aspx

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Beijing Office Vacancies Hit 13-Year High as Demand Falls in Slowing Economy

Demand for office space in Beijing has fallen a;s China’s economy weakens and companies are becoming more conservative about expansion. According to Caixin.com, the vacancy rate for Beijing office space has hit a 13-year high of 20.4%. This is the first time in recent years that the rate has topped 20%.

The shrinking technology industry in Beijing, coupled with conservative growth strategies and cost-cutting measures adopted by companies facing stiff economic headwinds, have combined to dampen office rental demand. According to the Caixin report, the high office vacancy rate in Beijing is mainly attributable to the following factors:

  • companies relocating their headquarters out of Beijing over the past year,
  • downsizing and taking less rental space, and
  • an overall lack of new demand to replace surrendered office space.

The market will likely face further challenges until broader economic growth rebounds. Not only are vacancy rates high, but rents have also fallen. Beijing’s office real estate market is highly dependent on state-owned enterprises, whose long-term tenancy have played an important role in stabilizing the local office rental market.

Source: Radio Free Asia, January 26, 2024
https://www.rfa.org/mandarin/Xinwen/5-01262024134758.html

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

China’s 2023 Crude Oil Imports from Russia Exceeded 100 Million Tons for the First Time

China imported more than 107 million tons of crude oil from Russia in 2023, according to data from China’s General Administration of Customs reported by well-known Chinese news site Sina (NASDQ: SINA). This represents a year-over-year increase of 24 percent in Chinese oil imports from Russia, accounting for approximately 19 percent of China’s total crude oil imports last year and marking the first time in four years that Russia was the biggest source of crude oil supplying China.

In the meantime, Saudi Arabia supplied 85.96 million tons of crude oil to China, a year-over-year decrease of 1.7 percent, ranking second among sources of oil supplying China; Iraq exported 59.26 million tons of crude to China, ranking third; Malaysia and the United Arab Emirates supplied China with 54.79 million tons and 41.82 million tons of crude oil, ranking fourth and fifth, respectively.

Following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict in February 2022, Russia has responded to Western sanctions by increasing oil and gas exports to China, India and other Asian countries. In 2023, about 90 percent of Russia’s oil and petroleum exports went to China and India. In the past two years India, has accounted for about 40 percent of Russia’s total crude oil exports, Russia supplied almost no crude oil to India before the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

According to the Sina news article, “China and Russia are continuing to deepen energy cooperation.”

Source: Sina, January 22, 2024
https://finance.sina.cn/2024-01-22/detail-inaeknmk4499156.d.html?from=wap

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources Geo-Strategic Trend