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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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Huanqiu Editorial: Chinese Media Should Make a Greater Effort to Support Russia and Putin

Huanqiu, a state-run media under People’s Daily, published an editorial commenting on China’s position regarding the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict. Below are some quotes from the article:

 
“While the Chinese Government is playing the necessary balance of diplomacy in the Ukrainian situation, the Chinese media have been freely discussing the development. Most stand on the Russian side. Their opinions regarded Russia’s move as a reaction to how the West has, over the long-term, been squeezing Russia.” 

“We tend to agree with the public opinion that supports Russia. The reason is that the Russian resistance to the Western forces moving Eastward in Ukraine is not only related to the fate of Russia itself, but also directly related to China’s major strategic interests. We often regard North Korea as a buffer force against the U.S. and Japan. The effect is actually very limited because North Korea is too small. Today, Russia and China will constitute a genuine mutual strategic buffer to enable China’s ascent. If the West were to crush Putin’s Russia, it would be an extremely heavy blow to China’s geopolitical interests.” “Looking at the world today, Russia is our most worthy partner in developing comprehensive strategic cooperation. At least in the coming decades, no one will be able to replace Russia in its strategic importance to China.”

“Putin taught the color revolution a lesson. Russia’s resistance to the West, which Putin has led, has global significance. China does not have to worry that being on Russia’s side will damage our relations with Ukraine. In fact, that concern is unnecessary. Supporting Russia is consolidating China’s grand strategy. As long as the grand strategy is stable, many other bilateral relations will not be a problem.”　 

Source: Huanqiu (Global Times), March 5, 2013 
http://opinion.huanqiu.com/editorial/2014-03/4878080.html http://world.people.com.cn/n/2014/0306/c1002-24543884.html　　

Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

People’s Daily on Ukraine: Be on Guard against the Trap of Democracy

On February 28, 2014, People’s Daily published a commentary on the recent political events in Ukraine, titled “Be on Guard against the Trap of Democracy and Loss of Control.” 

“Acclimating to something alluring could not possibly be the life-saving magic that would bring a country onto a path of smooth development. A country would have no way out if it gave up exploring its own development path.” 
The article commented that, although the bloodshed in Ukraine has ceased, the country is in a total chaos without any control from its government. Ukraine is not alone. “Street riots, social chaos, economic depression and government paralysis have occurred repeatedly in countries in Southeast Asia, West Asia and North Africa. Different and diverse as the unrest is in each of these countries, the underlying reason is the same: a reckless choice of a development path has pushed the country into the trap of democracy. 
Source: People’s Daily reprinted by Huanqiu February 28, 2014. 
http://china.huanqiu.com/politics/2014-02/4866551.html
Briefings | | |   Geo-Strategic Trend

IHL: Why Does the U.S. Maintain a Weak Army?

The International Herald Leader published a commentary on U.S. Secretary of Defense Hagel’s announcement about a reduction of forces that would cut Army personnel by over 70,000 starting in 2015. 

“First, the U.S. Army cut shows that, for a long period of time, the U.S. military will give up massive ground wars outside of its territory.” 

"For China, the U.S. Army’s cuts raise more concerns.” A reduction or giving up a massive ground war in the Asia Pacific region means that “the U.S. will not hesitate to adopt Air Sea warfare as well as other more subversive forms of combat. Instead of combat that would involve a large number of troops, it will adopt air raids, sea and air strangulation, cyber-attacks, propaganda, diplomatic alliances, economic sanctions, and other ‘combined’ means to weaken the opponent’s combat capability; it will try to achieve maximum advances quickly, with minimum or even ‘zero’ casualties.”

“While reduced in forces, the U.S. military will, on the other hand, tighten its fists. China cannot take it lightly and should remain vigilant.” 

Source: International Herald Leader, March 3, 2014                                                       http://ihl.cankaoxiaoxi.com/2014/0303/354514.shtml

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

China to Complete Beidou Global Navigation System in Six Years

Yang Yuanxi, an academician from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said in an interview that China has successfully launched four Beidou experimental satellites and 16 Beidou navigation satellites, with the second stage of the Beidou Navigation Project – Beidou satellites regional networking – successfully accomplished. The level of the accuracy of the Beidou system in the Asia-Pacific region is no worse than the Global Positioning System (GPS), said Yang. He suggested that China accelerate the formulation of relevant industrial policies to improve the navigation industry and guide its orderly development.

Yang said, from the completion of the experimental system of Beidou in 2000, to official provision of continuous positioning, navigation, timing, and other services in the Asia Pacific region by the end of 2012, it took only a dozen years for China to join the club of only four major satellite positioning and navigation systems in the world. It is planned that around 2020, China will complete the Beidou global satellite navigation system of geostationary orbit satellites and 30 non-geostationary satellites, offering complete coverage with high-precision, highly reliable positioning navigation services.

Source: Xinhua, March 4, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/info/2014-03/04/d_133158767.htm

Briefings | | |   Defense/Military

People’s Daily: The U.S.’s Human Rights Trick Is Weak and Feeble

People’s Daily published a commentary on the United States release of the 2014 "Country Reports on Human Rights." The article said, “Once a year, the U.S. State Department releases its "Country Reports on Human Rights" to the world. This is a routine action of the United States in the field of international human rights. It recklessly finds faults and makes comments on the human rights situations of nearly 200 countries and territories, but if it covered all possibilities, (it would find) it is its own human rights situations, that have been widely criticized.” 

The article indicated that America’s approach is not to promote the exchange and development of international human rights, but to use the "human rights stick" to dictate the world.　　 

The article declared, “Year after year, the U.S.’s selective blindness and even groundless accusations in its ‘Country Reports on Human Rights’ has repeatedly exposed its political bias and motives.” “The United States holds the ‘Country Reports on Human Rights,’ which has no credibility, to act as a ‘human rights master’ and interfere in other countries’ internal affairs. No country finds this practice acceptable.” 

Source: People’s Daily, March 1, 2014 
http://world.people.com.cn/n/2014/0301/c1002-24498043.html

Briefings | | |   US-China Relations

Beijing New Home Sales Dropped Drastically in February

According to Xinhua, in February, Beijing’s new home sales were particularly disappointing. As of February 23, new home sales were 1,545 units, a 61.5 percent drop compared to same period last year. The monthly sales were even below normal weekly sales. Existing home sales were equally disappointing. As of February 25, there were 4, 224 existing home sales, a 45 percent decline compared to the same period last year. The fourth week in September last year saw 4,201 home sales, three times the monthly sales of February 2014. In November and December 2013, the weekly sales were above 1,500. 

Source: Xinhua, March 1, 2014 
http://news.xinhuanet.com/house/bj/2014-03-01/c_126207078.htm
Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources

Silent Contest

[Editor’s Note: The PLA National Defense University recently created an educational video called “较量无声” (Silent Contest) on the behind-the-scenes battle between China and the United States. [1] General Liu Yazhou, Political Commissar of the military institution and son-in-law of former president Li Xiannian, produced the work. It postulated that the Soviet Union’s collapse was due to the U.S. inciting a “peaceful revolution.” Using that viewpoint to examine the Sino-U.S. relationship, the video concluded that, while the U.S. has maintained an outward appearance of warmth and peaceful cooperation, beneath the surface it has always been trying to destroy China, using the same methods it applied to the Soviet Union.

To support its premise, the video further outlined five areas in which the U.S. is undermining China: political infiltration, cultural infiltration, public opinion and ideological infiltration, organizational infiltration, and political interference and social infiltration.

This video was produced as an educational document within the Party for specific groups such as the army and university classes. Somehow, in late October 2013, Silent Contest leaked out and circulated widely on the Internet. On October 31, 2013, it began disappearing from Chinese websites. [2] Nevertheless, a number of media have commented on it. [3]

The following is the translation of the Prelude and Part I of the video. Please note that the source of a number of quotes in English could not be identified. Unless the original English source is indicated in the end notes, the quotes in the video are translated from the Chinese text in the video. The translation of Part II will appear in a future issue.]

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Reports | | |   Report

Qiushi: China’s Manufacturing Industry Faces Ten Dilemmas

On March 3, 2014, Qiushi, a journal of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, published an article titled, “China’s Manufacturing Industry Faces Ten Dilemmas.” A description of the ten dilemmas follows:

  1. A lack of the capacity to innovate: China lacks self-owned independent intellectual property products.
  2. Low value-added products: China is the equivalent of a world plant; however, it makes only minimal profits because foreign multinational companies, which have Research and Development (R & D) and management advantages, take away most of the profits.
  3. Severe overcapacity: China currently has a total of 24 sectors, but 21 out of these 24 sectors already have overcapacity problems.
  4. High-end talent shortage: China lacks Research and Development talent.
  5. Corporate tax burden is too heavy: Chinese enterprises have to pay a tax of over 30 percent. Then there is the cost of corruption, plus additional fees. Thus China’s actual corporate tax burden is among the highest of all countries in the world.
  6. Increasing costs: Salaries and wages keep increasing.
  7. A shortfall in funding: The problem of financing directly restricts the survival and development of small and medium enterprises.
  8. Strained resources and the environment: Pollution
  9. Deterioration of the domestic environment: These include debt problems, a widening gap between the rich and the poor, economic depression, and the abnormal development of real estate.
  10. Trade barriers: Increasing trade conflicts with other countries

Source: Qiushi, March 3, 2014
http://www.qstheory.cn/zs/rdht/201403/t20140303_326550.htm

Briefings | | |   Economy/Resources