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

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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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Notice from Ministry of Organization Causes Wave of Withdrawals from EMBA Programs

Xinhua carried an article that Beijing Times had originally published on the wave of Party cadres who have withdrawn from enrollment in executive MBA programs. This phenomenon was due to the fact that, on July 31, the Ministry of Organization issued a notice that prevents Party cadres from participating in high cost training programs, including the EMBA (Executive MBA), without the approval of the human resources department. The notice also required that the participants should be responsible for all training expenses themselves and can’t accept any form of scholarship from any organization. According to the article, the tuition expense for EMBA programs varies. Some can cost as much as US$100,000 a year. Previously, not only could the cadres enrolled in the program have the government cover their expenses; they could also take the opportunity to promote themselves and build their personal network with other participants. The article said that the notice is part of a series of anti-corruption measures that have recently been introduced.

Source: Xinhua, September 15, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2014-09/15/c_126984460.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

International Communication Work Needs to Spread China’s Voice and Create a Good Image

According to Xinhua, on September 14, Liu Qibao, head of the Publicity Department, formally known as the Propaganda Department, attended and spoke at a national conference on international communication work. Liu pointed out that the international communication work conveys China’s “global strategic” mission. The key points of Liu’s talk included the following guidelines. The international communication work should follow Xi Jinping’s directions. It should “create a good image of the country and safeguard the fundamental interests of the country, spread Chinese culture, serve the Party and the country’s international strategy, present good information about China and spread China’s voice, provide a good interpretation of Chinese characteristics, and create an international public opinion environment that is favorable to China.”

Source: Xinhua, September 14, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/politics/2014-09/14/c_1112473487.htm

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Xi Jinping met Putin: China and Russia Should Support and Back Each Other

According to Xinhua News Agency, when Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Tajik capital of Dushanbe on September 11, Xi told Putin that the Sino-Russian bilateral relationship between the two countries and their cooperation in a number of fields was strong. He recommended that the two sides strengthen their mutual support, expand opening up to each other, and back each other up so they can jointly cope with external risks and challenges in order to achieve the grand goal of each country’s own development and rejuvenation. 

Source: Xinhua, September 12, 2014 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2014-09/12/c_1112448800.htm
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Real Estate Companies Face Lower Profits and Higher Inventory

Huanqiu reported that, in the first six months of 2014, half of the real estate companies saw their profits decline. 

Among the real estate companies listed on the stock exchanges of Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong, as of August 31, 156 of them had released their reports for the first half of 2014. Although 135 of them reported gains, half of the 156 companies reported that their profits had declined. 
As their sales decreased, their inventories have been on the rise. As reported on August 31, the inventory levels for Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen had risen by 30 percent, 25 percent, 42 percent and 25 percent respectively for the first half of 2014. It will take 18, 11, 13 and 20 months to deplete these inventories. 
Cash flow has also suffered. Of the 146 real estate companies listed with the Shanghai Stock Exchange, 107 had a negative operational cash flow. Poly Real Estate Group Company Limited, a large state-owned real estate company funded by the People’s Liberation Army, reported a negative cash flow of 14.28 billion yuan (US$2.33 billion), a decline of 250 percent. 
Source: Huanqiu, September 10, 2014 
http://mt.huanqiu.com/Html/ahtml/china/2014-09-10/5133116.html
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Huanqiu: Patriotism and Love for the Party Are the Same Thing

State media, Huanqiu, published a commentary titled “In China, Patriotism and Love for the Party Are the Same Thing.” 

The commentary acknowledged that it is common in China, particularly among young people, for people to be patriotic but not to support the Communist Party. This is “because Western countries have taken advantage of China’s open door policy to do ideological infiltration.” 

“We advocate that, if one loves China, he should love the Chinese Communist Party. The key to patriotism is to love the Party.” The reasons for this statement are: first, that patriotism and love for the Party are consistent with each other; second, the Western multi-party system does not represent the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of China’s people; and third, the Communist Party is the key to running things in China. 
The commentary concluded, “To be patriotic, Chinese citizens must love the Communist Party. Anti-Communism will destroy China. For every Chinese, the true measure of patriotism is whether one loves the Party or not.” 
Source: Huanqiu, September 10, 2014 
http://opinion.huanqiu.com/opinion_china/2014-09/5132838.html
Briefings | | |   Government/Politics

Tajikistan’s Growing Dependence on Beijing

On September 9, Xinhua quoted a report from the Russian newspaper Independent (Независимая газета) that China is becoming Tajikistan’s most important economic and strategic partner.
The article, titled, "Tajikistan Is Becoming China’s Important Client in Raw Materials" stated, "Today, Beijing is one of Dushanbe’s [the capital of Tajikistan] top three trading partners. During 2011, bilateral trade exceeded US$2 billion. Dushanbe believes that this is not the upper limit."
"Xinjiang is treated as one of the future directions of the two sides for expanding trade cooperation. Emomalii Rahmon (the President of Tajikistan) said in an interview, that he hoped to reach an agreement on the Tajikistan-Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) subcommittee on economic and trade cooperation during his talks with Chinese leaders. One cannot rule out that the plan will be implemented, as China regards Tajikistan as Xinjiang’s energy supplier."
"Tajikistan also hopes to participate in supplying natural gas to China. The Central Asia gas pipeline will go through Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan. Dushanbe wants to pump the natural gas from the Bokhtar field into the pipeline. China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) and the French Total oil company have started to develop this field. Experts from the two companies said that Tajikistan is likely to become the region’s second-largest supplier of natural gas to China."
"Last year, China won the right to develop the Zeravshan gold mine. In 2007, China’s Zijin Mining Group Co., Ltd (紫金矿业公司) acquired the Zeravshan Gold Company. In 2013, Zijin invested US$60 million in gold mining. Last year, Tajikistan received a US$140 million long-term loan from China. The funding will ensure the increased production of gold. In addition to gold, China also paid special attention to lead and zinc."
"China’s agriculture encountered little significant competition in Tajikistan. When local farmers traveled to Russia for the Gold Rush, Chinese farmers came to cultivate the land. The Ministry of Agriculture of Tajikistan leased land to Chinese farmers. The Ministry explained that there is a lack of domestic farming capacity, and that cotton-planted lands are no longer suitable for other crops. The Chinese have the technology to restore the salts to the soil. Their Tajikistan grown products will be sold locally."
"In recent years, China’s investment in Tajikistan approached US$500 million (about 3.07 billion yuan); its loans were about US$1 billion (about 6.14 billion yuan). Beijing is becoming a generous and important source of finance for a number of projects in Tajikistan. Tajikistan’s growing economic dependence on China is not only the key for Beijing to access natural resources, but also a tool for political pressure."
Source: Xinhua, September 9, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/cankao/2014-09/09/c_133630666.htm
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

People’s Daily: France Should Not Flip-Flop on Russian Arms Sales

People’s Daily carried a commentary article questioning France’s decision to suspend the delivery of its first Mistral-class amphibious assault ship to Russia. The article said that the French authorities’ decision is rather surprising [disappointing]. 

The article stated, “On whether to carry out the contract to provide Russia the amphibious assault ship, the French authorities had been resisting pressure from the United States and some Western countries. … However, France recently made a 180-degree U-turn. This is primarily because of sustained pressure from the United States. Of course, it is also related to the Russia and Ukraine relations, which started deteriorating some time ago. As can be seen, the French authorities also wanted to use it to exert influence on the Kremlin’s decision makers.” 
The article commented, “In the past, France has been implementing a "de Gaulle" independent foreign policy. Even when the leftist former President Francois Mitterrand was in power, this policy did not change. Now France has to play America’s tune, has become indecisive on major decisions, and has even backtracked. People cannot help but worry about the future of French Foreign Policy.” 

Source: People’s Daily, September 9, 2014 
http://world.people.com.cn/n/2014/0909/c1002-25627747.html

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

Study Times on the Strategic Framework for China’s Rise

Study Times published a commentary on the strategy behind China’s peaceful rise. The framework of its rise includes the following components: 

The first is its path. China must unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development.

Second, regarding breakthroughs, China should extend the Silk Road westward through continental central Asia. It can then extend its resources to Africa for access to Africa’s energy resources and markets and to Europe for its money. China should also extend the Silk Road eastward to the Pacific East Asian economic circle for economic cooperation and mutual trust in the political and security arena. 

The third is related to countries. China should carefully balance the strategic triangular relationship with the United States and Russia with the understanding that in terms of comprehensive national strength, China, the United States, and Russia are the most powerful countries and the major international rules-makers with extensive interests throughout the world. 
The Fourth is principles. China must keep a low profile; it must follow the current strategy with major powers as the key, neighboring countries as a priority, developing countries as the foundation, and multilateral diplomacy as an important platform. 

Source: Study Times, September 8, 2014 
http://www.studytimes.cn/shtml/xxsb/20140908/6494.shtml

Briefings | | |   Government/Politics