Chinascope – Page 742

China Review News: The U.S. Sets Off and Puts Out War Fires around the World

On September 6, 2014, China Review News published an article accusing the United States of being an arsonist in global wars, titled, “The U.S. Sets off War Fires Globally and Has Planted Sino-Japanese Dispute War Seeds.” The article asserted that the United States has been the cause of all of the chaos in the Middle Eastern countries because it has “spread the democracy fire seeds” and supported the “Arab Spring” movement. According to the article, the United States is also responsible for the current “Ukraine crisis” because it has supported “color revolutions” including Ukraine’s “Orange Revolution.” In terms of the Senkaku (Diaoyu) Islands dispute between Japan and China and the South China Sea conflicts between China and Vietnam and the Philippines, “the United States appears to be putting out the fire but is actually fanning the flames.”

The article concluded, “Through setting off fires and putting out fires, the United States hopes to highlight its presence, display the superiority of its own values, realize its own strategic interests, and make some money from arms sales.”

Source: China Review News, September 6, 2014
http://hk.crntt.com/doc/1033/7/3/4/103373437.html?coluid=4&kindid=16&docid=103373437&mdate=0906075819

Briefings | | September 10, 2014 | US-China Relations

Xinhua: International Companies Threaten to Reduce Their Investments in China

Xinhua recently reported that the American Chamber of Commerce in China just released the results of a report showing that many international companies are considering reducing their investments in China. This new trend came about mainly because of the antitrust investigations and other legal attacks these companies have been facing in China. Greg Gilligan, Chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China, pointed out that international companies were obviously singled out in this round of legal attacks. Of the member companies of the Chamber that were surveyed, half expressed the belief that the Chinese government is "selectively and subjectively” targeting them using law enforcement as the justification. The Chamber’s report suggested that China is moving closer and closer to the risk of losing its attractiveness as an investment destination. Sixty percent of the companies surveyed said they did not feel welcomed in China. The same number was 40 percent at the end of 2013. The EU Chamber of Commerce did research this year that drew a similar conclusion.

Source: Xinhua, September 3, 2014

http://finance.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2014/0903/483485.shtml

Briefings | | September 9, 2014 | US-China Relations

BBC Chinese: China Appreciates That South Africa Declined the Dalai Lama’s Visa Request

BBC Chinese recently reported that the spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs gave high praise to South Africa because of the fact that South Africa refused the Dalai Lama’s visa request. The Dalai Lama was planning to attend the Nobel Prize Winners’ Summit in Cape Town, South Africa. South Africa has had four Nobel Prize winners on the basis of human rights, including former South African President Nelson Mandela. The Dalai Lama’s representative stated that the South African government called him and told him that they could not issue the visa since it might “interfere” with the relationship between South Africa and China. China stated that South Africa “took the right position.” China is South Africa’s largest trade partner. In the year 2012, the trade volume between the two countries reached $21 billion.

Source: BBC Chinese, September 5, 2014

http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2014/09/140905_china_safrica.shtml

Briefings | | September 9, 2014 | Geo-Strategic Trend

21 CN: Profitability of the Large Companies in China is Worrisome

The TenCent website carried an article that was originally published by China Telecom on 21CN. The article stated that Chinese companies have been unable to make it to the list of the top brands in the world. They lag behind in their profitability and in their investment in research and development. According to the article, among the Forbes’ top 100 world’s most valuable brands list and the Interbrand’s Best Global Brands 2013, no Chinese brand made it to the list. Meanwhile the net profit that Chinese companies make lags far behind compared to those large companies in the U.S. and England. According to the China Enterprise Confederation, the profitability of the large companies in China is worrisome. Among the world’s top 500 companies, the average net profit for U.S. companies was 9.33 percent while Chinese companies were at 5.1 percent. Among the world’s top 500, of the 49 companies that had financial losses in 2014, one-third were Chinese companies. The article said that large companies in China lack the capacity for innovation and rely heavily on imports for their core technology. In 2014, among China’s top 500 companies, the average ratio of research and development spending to income from sales was 1.25 percent. This figure had declined over the last three consecutive years. At the same time, the technology commercialization ratio in China is only at 10 percent which is far below the 40 percent ratio in developed countries.

Source: TenCent, September 5, 2014
http://finance.qq.com/a/20140905/058701.htm

Briefings | | September 8, 2014 | Economy/Resources

Huanqiu: China Built the First G20 World Think Tank Summit System

On September 3, Huanqiu reported that the China Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies of Renmin University organized a G20 world think tank summit in Beijing, a step towards reinstating the world’s first G20 think tank system. The article said that the summit will help to lay out the plans for the upcoming G20 Leaders Summit in Australia. According to the article, the theme of the summit is “Great Finance and Global Comprehensive Growth.” The summit participants include think tanks from China, Russia, the U.S., India, Japan, and the EU, as well as representatives from the World Bank, the IMF, and the United Nations. The article claimed that hosting the summit shows the rise of China’s think tanks in their competitive position of the world knowledge. It also demonstrates the ability of China’s think tanks to attract, appeal to, and influence the think tanks in the world. In an interview with Huanqiu, the deputy director of the Chongyang Institute said that the reason that the Chongyang Institute took the lead to reinstate the G20 thank tank system is that China wishes to inject its wisdom and its ability into global management, especially in the reform of the international financial system. He said that China is the country that has made the fewest number of mistakes in financial management in the past 20 years and that the world’s future development needs the Chinese people’s governance experience.

Source: Huanqiu, September 5, 2014
http://world.huanqiu.com/exclusive/2014-09/5127787.html

Briefings | | September 8, 2014 | Government/Politics

People’s Daily: Party Leadership Provides the Fundamental Assurance to the People’s Congress System

Following Xi Jinping’s recent talk during the 60th anniversary of the People’s Congress, People’s Daily published a commentary in which it reported on the statement that Xi made. Xi stated, “In order to uphold and improve the People’s Congress’s system, the Party must maintain the core leadership power in China.” The article commented that China has no prosperity without the Party and the Party’s leadership must be increased not diminished. The article concluded that the People’s Congress is important and irreplaceable in managing the country but only when it is under the Party’s leadership can it maximize its role.

Source: Guangming Daily, September 7, 2014
http://politics.gmw.cn/2014-09/07/content_13087923.htm

Briefings | | September 8, 2014 | Government/Politics

People’s Daily: Radical Opposition Groups are the Major Roadblock to Democracy in Hong Kong

On September 5, an opinion article appeared on People’s Daily called, "Radical Opposition Groups are the Major Roadblock to Democracy in Hong Kong."

The article stated, "One can draw three conclusions. First, British colonial rule is not compatible with democracy. Basically, the development of democracy in Hong Kong got off the ground after the transfer of sovereignty. Second, the central government is an important driving force for the development of democracy in Hong Kong. The basic political framework of ‘one country, two systems; Hong Kong being governed by the people of Hong Kong’; and the Basic Law are the cornerstone of Hong Kong’s democratic governance. Third, democracy in Hong Kong is developing steadily and swiftly. If the Legislative Council of the SAR Government approves the reform package, Hong Kong will achieve universal suffrage in 2017."

"However, while speaking highly of the development of democracy in Hong Kong, we should also see that the development of democracy in Hong Kong still faces considerable difficulties and obstacles. One obstacle is that Hong Kong’s few political forces are resisting the central government’s governance rights."

"After reunification, the vast majority of people in Hong Kong have had a high degree of recognition that they are Chinese. However, since British colonial rule lasted a hundred years, there are still a small number of political forces holding a mentality of exclusion and confrontation against the central government. A handful of politicians even still regard the United Kingdom as their mother country, with a hope that the United Kingdom and other Western countries will interfere with Hong Kong’s politics. Although these political forces are few in number, with overseas support, they still have considerable political energy."

"The issue facing our society today is not whether to develop democracy, because democracy in Hong Kong has embarked on a road of rapid development. Anyone who blocks the development of democracy will be unpopular. The problem is that some political forces expect to mislead the quest for democracy in Hong Kong society by confronting the central authorities. If Hong Kong cannot achieve a high degree of consensus on the issue of national identity, the election of Chief Executive by universal suffrage in 2017 is likely to abort and the development of democracy in Hong Kong will be undermined. In order to achieve universal suffrage in 2017, we must prevent the radical opposition from creating social divisions on the issue of national identity, so that Hong Kong’s democratic politics can move forward within the framework of the Chinese Constitution and the Basic Law."

Source: People’s Daily, September 5, 2014

http://paper.people.com.cn/rmrb/html/2014-09/05/nw.D110000renmrb_20140905_8-05.htm

Briefings | | September 5, 2014 | Geo-Strategic Trend

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.”

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