In 2000, China’s president, Jiang Zemin, sat down for a rare interview with American television broadcast

CBSnews.com On the eve of his visit to the United States, China’s president, Jiang Zemin, sat down for a rare interview with Mike Wallace.

In a wide-ranging and surprisingly frank interview, Jiang talked about many topics, including relations between the United States and China, Tiananmen Square and American morals.

Britainnica.com

Jiang Zemin (born August 17, 1926, YangzhouJiangsu province, China—died November 30, 2022, Shanghai, China) was a Chinese official who was general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP; 1989–2002) and president of China (1993–2003).

Jiang joined the CCP in 1946 and graduated from Shanghai Jiao Tong University the following year with a degree in electrical engineering. He worked in several factories as an engineer before receiving further technical training in the Soviet Union about 1955. He subsequently headed technological research institutes in various parts of China. In 1980 Jiang became vice minister of the state commission on imports and exports. Two years later he became vice minister of the electronics industry and from 1983 to 1985 was its minister. He had meanwhile become a member of the Central Committee of the CCP in 1982. Named mayor of Shanghai in 1985, he joined the Political Bureau in 1987.

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Lee Kuan Yew, the Prime Minister of Singapore about Americans – Interview in 1965

Footage of an interview of Lee Kuan Yew, the Prime Minister of Singapore, conducted by Australian and British journalists.

Quote: “If the British withdraw, I am prepared to go on with the Austrialians and the New Zealanders. But, I am not prepared to go on with Americans. ….I think they are highly intelligent, often well-meaning, people, and some of their leaders like Mr. Kennedy, the late President, had signs, of growing greatness, depth. But, by and large, the administration lacks depth. But, by and wisdom which comes out of an accumulation of knowledge of human beings and human situations over a long period of time. That is lacking, and it is not their fault what have they got? Three, four hundred years of history, and they have become a nations just recently. I will tell you this. I have had three experiences, only three experiences, with the Americans. And, they did not intend any harm in each one of them. But, the tragedy was; they did real harm.”

Lee Kuan Yew was 44 at the time. He revealed an attempt in 1960 by an agent of the American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to bribe an official of the Singaporean Special Branch to report on the activities of the Singaporean state. He also revealed that the American agent was arrested and threatened with prosecution. But the case did not come to open court. He told the journalists that he sent a message to the American government, which he accused of “lacking finesse”, to give Singapore $100 million dollars for economic development. However, the Americans responded by offering Lee and his political Party $10 Million. He refused.

Read full interview: National Archive of Singapore TRANSCRIPT OF AN INTERVIEW BY FOREIGN CORRESPONDENTS WITH THE PRIME MINISTER OF SINGAPORE, MR. LEE KUAN YEW, HELD AT TV SINGAPURA AT 1130 HOURS ON 30TH AUGUST

Iran’s Hormuz shipping disruptions raise risks for energy, fertilizers and vulnerable economies

Global Agriculutre

13 March 2026, London: Military tensions in West Asia are beginning to disrupt maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, raising serious concerns for global energy markets, fertilizer supplies and vulnerable economies. In a rapid assessment titled “Strait of Hormuz disruptions: Implications for global trade and development,” UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) has highlighted the potential risks posed by interruptions in one of the world’s most critical trade corridors.

The Strait of Hormuz carries nearly one quarter of global seaborne oil trade, along with large volumes of liquefied natural gas and fertilizers. Any disruption in this narrow passage therefore has immediate consequences for global energy prices, maritime transport costs and agricultural input supply chains.

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How would the Iran crisis play out in a world powered by renewables not fossil fuels?

theconversation.com

Imagine the escalating conflict between the US, Israel and Iran unfolding in a world powered mostly by wind, solar and batteries rather than oil and gas.

In today’s fossil-fuelled economy, markets react to Iran’s attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Gulf and the threat to close the strait of Hormuz. Oil prices jump. Governments brace for inflation. Around a fifth of the world’s traded oil passes through the narrow corridor, linking the Gulf states to the wider world. When tensions rise there, energy markets react instantly.

But in a world where most energy is generated domestically from renewables, would the same threat trigger the same global shock? Would instability in the Gulf still lead to more expensive food and fuel across the world? Or would the economic aftershocks look very different?

To understand what’s at stake, we need to first look at how today’s energy system is structured.

map of middle east
The strait of Hormuz is the narrow point between the Persian Gulf and the open ocean. AustralianCamera / shutterstock

A system built on chokepoints

For about a century, the global economy has depended on fossil fuels produced by a few producers in the Middle East. Chokepoints like the strait of Hormuz carry enormous strategic weight.

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Thế giới hậu thuộc địa: Đòi tiền và đòi danh dự

“Phi châu đang tìm cách đòi bồi thường những thiệt hại do chế độ thực dân gây ra trong những thế kỷ trước, hay chí ít là những lời xin lỗi và trả về những hiện vật, di tích lịch sử và nghệ thuật.” (Trích phần mở bài dưới đây).

VN cũng là thuộc địa của Pháp. VN cũng nên “tìm cách đòi bồi thường những thiệt hại do chế độ thực dân gây ra trong những thế kỷ trước, hay chí ít là những lời xin lỗi và trả về những hiện vật, di tích lịch sử và nghệ thuật.”

Đừng khôn nhà dại chợ.

Phạm Thu Hương

***

Tiếp tục đọc “Thế giới hậu thuộc địa: Đòi tiền và đòi danh dự”

The Vietnamese military weapons are so outdated. Why does the world overrate the Vietnamese military’s capacity?

QUORA

Profile photo for Nguyễn Thắng

Nguyễn Thắng · Knows KoreanUpdated 1y

It is true that Vietnam’s weapons are a bit outdated!

But bullets fired from ak47 guns can still kill people like modern guns, right?

Anti-tank guns can still destroy tanks, right?

and the problem is!:

The total military personnel is 5.48 million, accounting for 5.6% of the total population. Of the overall figure, the reserve personnel hit 5 millionranking 1st among 138 country. The fit-for-service is 41.8 million (13rd) while reaching military age annual is 1.65 million (15th).

Vietnam, the country of 97 million people, after the end of the Vietnam War in 1975 has compulsory conscription for men of 18 to 27 for the enlistment of two years while the status for women is voluntary.

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Không để xe ghép ngoài vòng quản lý

Hiện nay ở VN, xe buýt và xe chạy tuyến cố định vẫn còn thiếu điểm dừng đón khách thuận tiện và chất lượng phục vụ chưa thực sự tốt. Việc xe ghép hay xe tiện chuyến được nhiều người lựa chọn là điều dễ hiểu nhờ sự tiện lợi, giá cả hợp lý và lái xe thân thiện.

Tuy nhiên, hoạt động xe ghép đang nằm ngoài sự quản lý của pháp luật, dẫn đến tình trạng lách luật, trốn thuế và tiềm ẩn nguy cơ mất an toàn cho hành khách. Tiếp tục đọc “Không để xe ghép ngoài vòng quản lý”

Vietnam and the Philippines: A study in contrasts

QUORA

Icon for Vietnam-The Rising Dragon

Vietnam-The Rising Dragon · 

Posted by Lucia Millar5y

(HCM, Vietnam)

All nations tend to mythologize their success and, accordingly, mystify their failures. Over the long run, what’s important above all is how each nation learns from its mistakes, recovers from failures through grit and innovation, and confidently marches toward the end of history. In 1881, Gregorio Sancianco published his landmark “El Progreso de Filipinas” (The progress of the Philippines) in Madrid. When most of our neighbors lacked even a single modern university, here was a Filipino book that carefully analyzed the administrative and economic structures of the Pearl of the Orient Seas (Perla del Mar de Oriente).

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China holds back satellite images on the Iran war

QUORA

Icon for China's Future

China’s Future · 

Paul DenlingerSun Lived and worked in China for > 20 years Sun

While there is a tremendous distrust and hostility to China in the US, and here on Quora, there is one fact worth pointing out.

While China supports Iran in the conflict, it has held back on releasing satellite images showing damage to US air and logistics bases, and on US Navy ships in the region. China has private-sector and government reconnaissance satellites with high resolution which can show the damage to the US bases and Israeli bases, but it has held back.

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Ba nhà mạng đồng loạt tăng giá cước Internet cố định

“Ba nhà mạng đồng loạt tăng giá cước Internet cố định”. VN đã có Luật Chống độc quyền từ năm 2004. Cùng nhau đồng lõa định giá của 1 sản phẩm trên thị trường là trọng tội vi phạm Luật Chống độc quyền (Luật Cạnh tranh), đôi khi có thể là vấn đề Hình sự. Ba nhà mạng này (FPT, VNPT và Viettel) có hỏi ý kiến tư vấn của luật sư nào chưa vậy?

Lần trước đây, cũng 3 nhà mạng này “thực hiện động thái tương tự là năm 2023. Khi đó, cả ba ngừng cung cấp gói cước giá rẻ, gói data không giới hạn, còn dịch vụ Internet cố định yêu cầu trả phí lắp đặt 300.000 đồng, thay vì miễn phí như trước . Họ cũng ‘bắt tay’ từ chối ký hợp đồng mới với người còn nợ cước ở nhà mạng khác. ” (Trích). Tiếp tục đọc “Ba nhà mạng đồng loạt tăng giá cước Internet cố định”

What does China’s 15th ‘five-year plan’ mean for climate change?

carbonbrief.org

“Steady and pragmatic decarbonisation, rapid clean-energy expansion combined with cautious emission targets, continued coal use to protect energy security and industrial growth.”

China’s leadership has published a draft of its 15th five-year plan setting the strategic direction for the nation out to 2030, including support for clean energy and energy security.

The plan sets a target to cut China’s “carbon intensity” by 17% over the five years from 2026-30, but also changes the basis for calculating this key climate metric.

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Công nghiệp hóa, công nghệ và nền kinh tế: Đi cho đúng con đường sản xuất

“Lịch sử kinh tế thế giới hiện đại cho thấy không một quốc gia nào thất bại ở sản xuất, mà lại có thể tiến lên nền kinh tế dịch vụ, tài chính thành công cả.” (Trích trong bài – chữ in đậm, màu xanh).

Việt Nam đang “thất bại ở sản xuất”, như vậy sẽ không thể “tiến lên nền kinh tế dịch vụ, tài chính”. Tiếp tục đọc “Công nghiệp hóa, công nghệ và nền kinh tế: Đi cho đúng con đường sản xuất”

Findings from 18 years of a Global Study with Girls from Birth to Adulthood – Landmark study shows global gains for girls, but threats to progress loom

reliefweb.int 26 Feb 2026

Studied Countries: Vietnam, Benin, Brazil, Cambodia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, the Philippines, Togo, Uganda

Groundbreaking research from Plan International that has documented girls from birth for eighteen years reveals that globally, girls’ lives have improved significantly over the past two decades but identifies these gains are now at risk with the next wave of challenges approaching.

With improved access to education, girls are dreaming bigger and new laws protecting them from child marriage means they have broader choices in shaping their futures. But significant barriers – including widespread gender-based violence and the ever-worsening impacts of climate change – still stand in the way of equality.

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Do the Chinese who visit Vietnam, or who live in Vietnam, feel that Vietnam is similar to China?

QUORA

Profile photo for Luca Yang

Luca Yang ·Master in Economics, Fudan University (复旦大学) (Graduated 2019)8y

I visited Vietnam last year. Here’s my feeling:

Yes. Put it in another way, both China and Vietnam look like what a transitional economy on the track of fast growth is supposed to be, a hybrid of new and old powered by heated business activities.

In particular, as a tourist, I feel that the way Vietnamese businessman cooperated with the travel agency tried to solicit goods was very familiar to me.

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Làm sao để nâng vị thế phụ nữ Việt trong khoa học?

Tại VN, phụ nữ làm việc trong lĩnh vực khoa học vẫn phải đối mặt với nhiều khó khăn và rào cản. Việc các nhà khoa học nữ thiếu cơ hội phát triển nghề nghiệp và khẳng định năng lực lãnh đạo phản ánh định kiến giới còn tồn tại trong lĩnh vực khoa học – công nghệ cũng như trong xã hội nói chung.

VN sẽ khó có thể bứt phá mạnh mẽ nếu trí tuệ của phụ nữ – vốn được xem là một nửa nguồn lực quý giá của xã hội – bị lãng phí. Vì vậy, Nhà nước cần tạo điều kiện thuận lợi để phụ nữ nâng cao năng lực trong lĩnh vực khoa học cũng như mọi lĩnh vực nghề nghiệp khác. Bởi đây là bước đi đúng đắn, góp phần thúc đẩy bình đẳng giới và đưa đất nước đi lên.

An An Tiếp tục đọc “Làm sao để nâng vị thế phụ nữ Việt trong khoa học?”