Thẻ: China

Maldives ‘thoát Ấn’ hay cuộc cạnh tranh ảnh hưởng của các nước lớn ở Nam Á

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

VOV – Thứ Tư, 11:47, 17/01/2024

Trong một động thái đáng chú ý ở khu vực Nam Á, Maldives yêu cầu Ấn Độ rút binh sĩ đang đồn trú tại nước này trước ngày 15/3.

Maldives là quốc đảo nhỏ ở khu vực Nam Á, vốn phụ thuộc đáng kể vào nước láng giềng Ấn Độ về nguồn cung lương thực, xây dựng hạ tầng và công nghệ. Tuy nhiên mối quan hệ này gần đây xuất hiện dấu hiệu căng thẳng.

Tổng thống Maldives Mohamed Muizzu. Ảnh: AP
 

Trong khi đó, trong chuyến thăm Trung Quốc hồi tuần trước của Tổng thống Maldives, hai bên nhất trí nâng cấp lên “quan hệ đối tác hợp tác chiến lược toàn diện”. Các nhà phân tích cho rằng động thái của Maldives phản ánh phần nào sự chuyển hướng chính sách của một số quốc gia ở Nam Á trước cuộc cạnh tranh ảnh hưởng giữa các nước lớn.

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Full Text: A Global Community of Shared Future: China’s Proposals and Actions

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2023-09-26 10:35

A Global Community of Shared Future:

China’s Proposals and Actions

The State Council Information Office of

the People’s Republic of China

September 2023

Contents

Preface

I. Humanity at a Crossroads

II. An Answer to the Call of the Times and a Blueprint for the Future

III. Deep Roots in History and Cultural Traditions

IV. Direction and Path

V. China’s Action and Contribution

Conclusion

Preface

In the universe there is only one Earth, the shared home of humanity. Unfortunately, this planet on which we rely for our subsistence is facing immense and unprecedented crises, both known and unknown, both foreseeable and unforeseeable. Whether human civilization can survive these has become an existential issue that must be squarely faced. More and more people have come to the realization that rather than amassing material wealth, the most pressing task is to find a guiding beacon for the sustainable development of human civilization, because we all care about our future.

Ten years ago President Xi Jinping propounded the idea of building a global community of shared future, answering a question raised by the world, by history, and by the times: “Where is humanity headed?” His proposal lights the path forward as the world fumbles for solutions, and represents China’s contribution to global efforts to protect our shared home and create a better future of prosperity for all.

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What’s behind China’s mysterious wave of childhood pneumonia?

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nature.com

Scientists expected a surge in respiratory disease, but what is happening in China is unusual.

Many adults and children, a lot of them wearing masks, in a hospital waiting room.
Parents wait for their children to be treated for respiratory disease in Chongqing, China.Credit: Costfoto/NurPhoto via Getty

China is grappling with a surge in respiratory illnesses, including pneumonia, in children. The World Health Organization (WHO) said last week that common winter infections — rather than any new pathogens — are behind the spike in hospitalizations. A surge of infections was expected in the country this winter, China’s first without COVID-19 restrictions since the pandemic began in 2020. What is unusual, say epidemiologists, is the high prevalence of pneumonia in China. When COVID-19 restrictions were eased in other countries, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) drove most spikes in illness.

The WHO requested information, including laboratory results and data on recent trends in the spread of respiratory illnesses, from China’s health authorities last week. This followed reports from the media and the Program for Monitoring Emerging Diseases — a publicly available system run by the International Society for Infectious Diseases — about clusters of “undiagnosed pneumonia”.

In a 23 November statement, the WHO said that China’s health authorities have attributed the rise in hospitalizations since October to known pathogens, such as adenoviruses, influenza virus and RSV, which tends to cause only mild, cold-like symptoms. However, an increase in children being admitted to hospital since May, particularly in northern cities such as Beijing, is mainly due to Mycoplasma pneumoniae, a bacterium that infects the lungs. It is a common cause of ‘walking pneumonia’, a form of the disease that is usually relatively mild and doesn’t require bed rest or hospitalization, but that is hitting children hard this year.

Benjamin Cowling, an epidemiologist at the University of Hong Kong, is not surprised by the wave of illness. “This is a typical ‘winter surge’ in acute respiratory infections,” he says. “It is happening slightly earlier this year, perhaps because of increased population susceptibility to respiratory infections resulting from three years of COVID measures.”

A familiar pattern

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Trung Quốc: Chính quyền địa phương, bất động sản và shadow banking

~ Phạm Thu Hương ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

TS. Phạm Sỹ Thành (*) – Chủ Nhật, 27/08/2023

(KTSG) – Tốc độ tăng giá nhà luôn gần như gấp đôi tốc độ tăng trưởng thu nhập bình quân đầu người của Trung Quốc trong vòng 20 năm qua, nó cũng tăng gấp tám lần mức độ tăng trưởng của đô thị hóa. Nhưng khi các chính sách siết chặt tài chính với tên gọi “ba lằn ranh đỏ” được công bố vào năm 2021, cộng với thời gian dài phong tỏa để thực hiện chính sách zero-Covid, các trục trặc đã xuất hiện. Rất nhanh chóng, phản ứng domino xảy ra giữa các công ty bất động sản và lan sang ngân hàng bóng mờ (shadow banking).

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China’s Belt and Road Initiative: 10 years of evolution and beyond

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China’s Belt And Road Initiative: 10 Years Of Evolution And Beyond | Insight | Full Episode


CNA Insider – 12 thg 9, 2023

It is the 10th year of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). From Central and Southeast Asia to the Middle East and Africa, how has China’s mega infrastructure project changed the world? In this retrospective on the 10th anniversary of the BRI, Insight looks at the developments in Asia and Africa that have sprung from China’s marquee project. From growing trade links to environmental impacts to political influence, the BRI has undeniably changed the region. But with growing economic headwinds and a flagging Chinese economy, will Beijing continue to invest in the BRI? What will the next decade bring?

0:00 Introduction

01:10 Belt and Road Initiative in Central Asia

07:55 How the war in Ukraine is shaping the BRI

12:13 Growing China-ASEAN trade

13:57 How the BRI increased durian exports from Thailand to China

17:54 Dams: Good for energy generation, bad for food supply?

26:28 China’s growing influence in the Middle East

31:21 Why China is investing so much in Africa

35:34 Debt trap diplomacy?

38:40 Rise in non-performing loans on the Belt and Road

40:16 A shift in strategy for the BRI?

===============

ABOUT THE SHOW: Insight investigates and analyses topical issues that impact Asia and the rest of the world.

Beijing to host global gathering as Xi Jinping lays out China’s vision

~ Trần Đình Hoành ~ Bình luận về bài viết này
Chinese leader Xi Jinping speaks at the China-Central Asia Summit held this past May in Xi'an.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping speaks at the China-Central Asia Summit held this past May in Xi’an.Huang Jingwen/Xinhua/Getty Images

BeijingCNN — Chinese leader Xi Jinping is gathering world leaders in Beijing this week for a high profile forum with a clear set of goals: laud China’s role backing economic development over the past decade and project its expanding ambitions as an alternative global leader to the United States.

That bid takes on heightened significance as renewed conflict in Israel and Gaza threatens to trigger broader instability in the Middle East, a region where the US is the traditional power broker, but China has been growing its influence and efforts to play a role in peace.

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China’s Three Gorges Dam: This Dam affected Earth’s Rotation

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The Three Gorges Dam is a hydroelectric gravity dam that spans the Yangtze River, in Central China. It is the world’s largest hydroelectric power station, but all that power comes with great responsibility. According to NASA, the dam delays the rotation of the Earth by 0.06 microseconds. This happens when the dam raises trillions of pounds of water 574 feet (175 m) above sea level increasing the Earth’s moment of inertia and thus slowing its rotation. Will the dam cause major consequences in our future or will the very minor delay not be noticeable for thousands of years?

Global Engagement Center Special Report: How the People’s Republic of China Seeks to Reshape the Global Information Environment

~ Trần Đình Hoành ~ Bình luận về bài viết này

REPORT

GLOBAL ENGAGEMENT CENTER

SEPTEMBER 28, 2023

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Every country should have the ability to tell its story to the world. However, a nation’s narrative should be based on facts and rise and fall on its own merits. The PRC employs a variety of deceptive and coercive methods as it attempts to influence the international information environment. Beijing’s information manipulation spans the use of propaganda, disinformation, and censorship. Unchecked, the PRC’s efforts will reshape the global information landscape, creating biases and gaps that could even lead nations to make decisions that subordinate their economic and security interests to Beijing’s.

PRC Information Manipulation

The PRC spends billions of dollars annually on foreign information manipulation efforts.2 Beijing uses false or biased information to promote positive views of the PRC and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). At the same time, the PRC suppresses critical information that contradicts its desired narratives on issues such as Taiwan, its human rights practices, the South China Sea, its domestic economy, and international economic engagement. More broadly, the PRC seeks to cultivate and uphold a global incentive structure that encourages foreign governments, elites, journalists, and civil society to accept its preferred narratives and avoid criticizing its conduct.

The PRC’s approach to information manipulation includes leveraging propaganda and censorship, promoting digital authoritarianism, exploiting international organizations and bilateral partnerships, pairing cooptation and pressure, and exercising control of Chinese-language media. Collectively, these five elements could enable Beijing to reshape the global information environment along multiple axes:

Overt and covert influence over content and platforms. Beijing seeks to maximize the reach of biased or false pro-PRC content. It has acquired stakes in foreign media through public and non-public means and sponsored online influencers. Beijing has also secured sometimes restrictive content sharing agreements with local outlets that can result in trusted mastheads providing legitimacy to unlabeled or obscured PRC content. In addition, Beijing has also worked to coopt prominent voices in the international information environment such as foreign political elites and journalists. Beyond focusing on content producers, the PRC has targeted platforms for global information dissemination, for example, investing in digital television services in Africa and satellite networks.

Constraints on global freedom of expression. On issues it deems sensitive, the PRC has employed online and real-world intimidation to silence dissent and encourage self-censorship. The PRC has also taken measures against corporations in situations where they are perceived to have challenged its desired narratives on issues like Xinjiang. Within democratic countries, Beijing has taken advantage of open societies to take legal action to suppress critical voices. On WeChat, an application used by many Chinese-speaking communities outside the PRC, Beijing has exercised technical censorship and harassed individual content producers. Notably, data

harvested by PRC corporations operating overseas have enabled Beijing to fine-tune global censorship by targeting specific individuals and organizations.

An emerging community of digital authoritarians. The PRC promotes digital authoritarianism, which involves the use of digital infrastructure to repress freedom of expression, censor independent news, promote disinformation, and deny other human rights.3 Through disseminating technologies for surveillance and censorship, often through capabilities bundled under the umbrella of “smart” or “safe cities,” the PRC has exported aspects of its domestic information environment globally. Beijing has also propagated information control tactics, with a particular focus on Africa, Asia, and Latin America. In parallel, the PRC has promoted authoritarian digital norms that other countries have adopted at a rapid pace. As other countries emulate the PRC, their information ecosystems have become more receptive to Beijing’s propaganda, disinformation, and censorship requests.

Future Impact

The PRC’s global information manipulation is not simply a matter of public diplomacy – but a challenge to the integrity of the global information space. Unchecked, Beijing’s efforts could result in a future in which technology exported by the PRC, coopted local governments, and fear of Beijing’s direct retaliation produce a sharp contraction of global freedom of expression. Beijing would play a significant – and often hidden – role in determining the print and digital content that audiences in developing countries consume. Multilateral fora and select bilateral relationships would amplify Beijing’s preferred narratives on issues such as Taiwan and the international economy. Access to global data combined with the latest developments in artificial intelligence technology would enable the PRC to surgically target foreign audiences and thereby perhaps influence economic and security decisions in its favor. Lastly, Beijing’s global censorship efforts would result in a highly curated international information environment characterized by gaps and inherent pro-PRC biases.

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China dams make ‘upstream superpower’ presence felt in Asia

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asiaa.nikkei.com PAK YIU JULY 24, 2023

Enormous water diversion projects spark concern across region

A large cloud of dust Description automatically generated

Water is released from the Xiaolangdi Reservoir Dam on the Yellow River in a sand-discharging operation. July 2022, Luoyang, China. (Footage via Getty Images)

Drought in China dried up parts of the Yangtze river last year – but the largest water transfer apparatus ever built still drew from it to supply Beijing’s needs. 

More than a billion cubic meters flowed through the colossal South-to-North Water Diversion Project in 2022. It traveled from a reservoir in central China to millions of households in the capital 1,200 kilometers away. The journey, via underground tunnels and canals that cross the Yellow River, roughly equaled the distance between Amsterdam and Rome.

The movement highlights the scale of China’s measures to shore up water security – and the profound potential effects these have on neighboring countries.

Many of Asia’s transboundary rivers originate in the Indo-Tibetan plateau in China. They flow into 18 downstream nations such as India, Kazakhstan, Bangladesh and Vietnam, delivering water to a quarter of the world’s population.


That alone makes the world’s second most populous nation an upstream superpower with enormous influence over irrigation of much of the continent. Projects such as building dams and hydropower plants potentially fuel existing regional political tensions – and create new ones.

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China has plans for grand canals

~ Đào Thu Hằng ~ 1 bình luận

economist.com

The building scheme is part of an effort to become a “transportation power”

Mandatory Credit: Photo by Xinhua/Shutterstock (13331262b)Aerial photo taken on Aug. 28, 2022 shows a construction site of the Pinglu Canal project in Lingshan County, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. The construction of the Pinglu Canal project officially kicked off on Sunday. The canal, stretching about 135 km, aims to link Xijiang River with ports in the Beibu Gulf. Upon completion, the canal, starting from the Xijin reservoir in city of Hengzhou and ending at Luwu Town of Lingshan County, where ships could reach the Beibu Gulf via the Qinjiang River, will open a shorter route to the sea for Guangxi and other regions in southwest China.China Guangxi Pinglu Canal Project Construction - 28 Aug 2022

Sep 15th 2022Share

These are good times for local officials who want to build expensive infrastructure. To revive a flagging economy, battered by draconian pandemic-control measures, the central government is giving them freer rein. The southern province of Guangxi has a project that fits the bill: a canal costing $10.5bn that will link its main river system to the sea. It will involve a spree of demolition, digging, dredging and building over the next four and a half years. Mulled over for more than a century, the project began last month.

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A Review on Renewable Energy Transition under China’s Carbon Neutrality Target

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mdpi.com

by Fuquan Zhao 1,2, Fanlong Bai 1,2, Xinglong Liu 1,2 and Zongwei Liu 1,2,*

1 State Key Laboratory of Automobile Safety and Energy, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China 2Tsinghua Automobile Strategy Research Institute, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China

*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed. Sustainability 2022, 14(22), 15006; https://doi.org/10.3390/su142215006 Received: 7 October 2022 / Revised: 5 November 2022 / Accepted: 7 November 2022 / Published: 13 November 2022 (This article belongs to the Special Issue Renewable Energy and Sustainable Economy Transition)

Abstract

To achieve their carbon peak and carbon neutrality target, China’s energy transition is seen as the most important instrument. Despite the rapid growth of renewable energy in China, there are still many challenges. Based on the review of the contemporary literature, this paper seeks to present an updated depiction of renewable energy in the Chinese context. The potential, status quo, and related policy of China’s renewable energy are thoroughly investigated. The challenges facing renewable energy development under the carbon neutrality target are analyzed, including enormous transition urgency and pressure, technology, and policy issues. Then, coping strategies are proposed to guide the direction of renewable energy development. Technology paths and policy recommendations are presented. This paper contributes to technology developing and policymaking by providing a comprehensive, thorough, and reliable review of renewable energy development in China.

Keywords: 

renewable; energy transition; policy incentive; technology path; power system

1. Introduction

In recent years, climate change and energy issues have become the prominent global challenge and a major concern of China. In 2020, president Xi Jinping pledged to achieve carbon peak by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060 (referred to as the dual carbon target). China’s energy sector, which heavily relies on fossil energy, especially coal, is the largest contributor to China’s carbon emissions [1]. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China’s energy consumption accounts for nearly 90% of China’s total CO2 emissions in 2020 [2]. The carbon neutrality target poses a huge challenge to China’s energy system, causing energy transition to be the key to the overall decarbonization of China’s economy and society.

Despite aggressive energy transition goals, China still faces many challenges in the energy sector. In terms of energy supply, fossil fuel still dominates with the problem of overcapacity to be addressed [1,3,4]. The supply and consumption of renewable energy resources in China are also highly mismatched, the center of renewable energy is in the northwest, and the electricity consumption center is in the east. In terms of energy consumption, the load profile of energy is becoming increasingly complex and the regional energy distribution is becoming more diversified, which demands a higher power system flexibility [5]. Moreover, China’s economy is still growing at a considerable rate and renewable energy cannot independently meet the energy requirement of the economy’s growth. Effective incentives for promoting renewable energy consumption are yet to be formulated [6].

In facing the above difficulties during the energy transition, renewable energy is recognized as the most important instrument and has attracted more and more attention. China has rich reserves of renewable energy. In recent years, the development of renewable energy has been impressively rapid. At present, renewable energy has accounted for nearly 30% of China’s electricity generation [7,8]. China has shown a great commitment to renewable energy. The target of renewable energy generation was set to taking up more than 50% of China’s total installed power generation by the end of the 14th Five-Year Plan [9]. It is estimated that by 2060, China will invest about RMB 122 trillion to build a new power system with clean energy as the main body [10].

There are many studies on the renewable energy transition in China. They can be classified into two groups. The first group of studies focus on quantitative analysis of the development of renewable energy. For example, Zhang et al. adopted the China TIMES model to analyze the required renewable energy supply and electrification rate in achieving carbon peak. The results showed that if emissions peak in 2025, the carbon neutrality goal demands a 45–62% electrification rate and 47–78% renewable energy in primary energy supply in 2050 [11]. Another study predicted that by 2050, renewable energy would account for 60% of the total energy consumption and 90% of the total power generation and the electrification rate would be close to 60% [12]. Liu et al. studied the latest hourly wind and solar data from 2007–2014 and provided the optimal wind/solar ratio for hybrid wind-solar energy systems [13]. Wen et al. presented an approach for the quantitative analysis of energy transition. They explained whether China’s cumulative carbon emissions can match the emission allowances under the global 2 °C target and provided directions for the low-carbon transition.

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Sudan conflict: how China and Russia are involved and the differences between them

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theconversation.com

Published: June 8, 2023 12.44pm BST

As clashes continue between the Sudanese military and rapid support forces, the current and historic role of foreign governments in Sudanese affairs is under close examination.

Unsurprisingly, the Sudan conflict has amplified concerns from the US and other countries about the roles Russia and China are playing in Sudan specifically, and in Africa.

Researchers had been concerned that Beijing’s loans for infrastructure and development to countries including Sudan might be “debt-trap diplomacy”, a predatory attempt to acquire key foreign infrastructure such as ports.

Analysts had previously suggested the implications of China’s growing military engagement with Africa including establishing naval bases and its use of security contractors are examples of Beijing wanting to expand its military power and political influence abroad.

Others have suggested that Russian activity in Africa could be a return to Soviet-era levels of influence through arms sales, joint military exercises, and installing their own set of security contractors to train the Sudanese military.

The Wagner Group, a high profile group of Russian mercenaries, has denied any involvement in events in Sudan, saying in a post on Telegram: “Due to the large number of inquiries from various foreign media about Sudan, most of which are provocative, we consider it necessary to inform everyone that Wagner staff have not been in Sudan for more than two years.”

China favours stability

Our work for PeaceRep, an international research consortium led by Edinburgh law school, suggests that the US and Europe should be cautious about lumping Russia and China’s goals in Africa together. It found that Beijing and Moscow are taking different approaches. China has its own set of interests, but its approach appears to fundamentally favour stability.

As a result, China is keener to work with the broader international community on issues such as peacekeeping and mediation of conflicts. Conversely, Russia pursues its interests in Africa without as much cooperation with international institutions.

Our new report looks at the available data for pre-war Sudan to see how well claims from scholars and commentators match Russia and China’s behaviour.

We consolidated data from the United Nations, Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, the AidData research lab on Chinese and Russian engagement with Sudan, as well as news reports to examine how well the arguments from scholars and policymakers hold up.

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