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Asia & China News

U.S./USA Transitions to Third-World Nation Status

China, Angola sign 9 cooperation agreements

Afrol News - March 7/05 - China's Vice Premier Zeng Peiyang signed a total of nine cooperation agreements with Angola during his recent visit to the country. The agreements primarily include development of Angola's oil and gas riches, but also cover general infrastructure development and financial aid. 

Angola is already China's second largest trading partner in Africa. In 2004, bilateral trade totalled US$ 4.9 billion, representing more than a 113 percent increase from 2003. Vice Premier Peiyang's visit to Luanda last week therefore was of significance. China is also desperately looking for more secure oil deliveries and Angola is sub-Saharan Africa's second largest oil producer.

Most of the Chinese-Angolan cooperation agreements signed last week therefore were related to the energy sector. The Beijing and Luanda governments signed a general agreement on cooperation in the oil and gas sector and cooperation in the mineral resources sector - seeing Angola as an exporter and China as an importer. 

In addition to be a major energy import market, China is also one of the world's main technology centres. One of the agreements therefore foresees a cooperation agreement between the Angolan Ministries of Petroleum and Geology and Mining and China's National Commission for Development and Reform, focusing on technical aid. 

Three concrete oil agreements were also signed. Sonagol, Angola's state oil company, agreed on a long term supply of oil to China's Sinopec oil company. Further, Sonangol and Sinopec are to jointly evaluate Angola's offshore Block 3. Finally, China and Angola will jointly study plans for a new oil refinery in Angola. 

The two governments also agreed on a deepened cooperation on infrastructure development in Angola. Again, this is a sector where China has much technical knowledge and Chinese engineers are currently serving the governments of a large number of developing countries in large-scale infrastructure projects. 

The Chinese Vice Premier also agreed to provide Angola with more development aid funds. An agreement was signed regarding an economic and technical assistance package.... 


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COMMUNISM NOT...DEAD IN CHINA

How to get on in capitalist China? First you learn the thoughts of Mao & CHINA President Hu
By Peter Goff in Beijing


UK - Telegraph - Oct 29/05 - From the thoughts of Chairman Mao to the slogans of Jiang Zemin, a firm grasp of politburo prose is compulsory for pupils, students and ambitious party members.

Now, just as a new generation was hoping that the Marxist textbooks might finally be consigned to history, President Hu Jintao, China's current leader, has insisted that his own turgid rhetoric must be added to the curriculum.

Apparently afraid that his diktats might be swept away by the rapid social change he has allowed, Hu Jintao, who arrives in Britain for a state visit on November 8, has included them on the list of tracts to be memorised....

"I spent two semesters studying Marxism, both philosophy and economics, and they said they were important principles for governing China. But China is now capitalist, even though they call it 'socialism with Chinese characteristics'."

Such is the volume of complex and often contradictory texts that "political studies", is one of the most loathed subjects on any curriculum. Applicants for all degree courses must pass a politics entrance exam.

The addition of Hu's rambling sayings - including "Promote a harmonious society" and "Keep the advancement of the Party" - is not just about flattering the leader's vanity, however. 

With China's economic boom bringing increasing political unrest, his supporters believe that healthy doses of Communist pieties are just the thing to remind the nation who is boss.

To that end, a nationwide education campaign has been drumming the thoughts and deeds of the Hu government into the heads of managers in the country's offices, factories and community associations, in addition to the rank-and-file party members who represent almost five per cent of China's 1.3 billion population.

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Australia mulls Chinese request to explore for uranium 



SYDNEY, (AFP) - Oct 17/05 Australia said that it could give resource-hungry China direct access to its huge uranium deposits if Beijing signs pledges the nuclear material would not be used for military purposes. 


Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said China asked for permission to conduct uranium exploration and mining in Australia during talks early this year in the Chinese capital.

But he said the Chinese plans would have to get past Australia's Foreign Investment Review Board and there would need to be a nuclear safeguards agreement.

"We wouldn't be exporting any uranium to China for military purposes of any kind," Downer said on national radio.

"By that I don't only mean for use in nuclear weapons, but also we wouldn't be exporting any uranium to China for use in military vessels or vehicles of one kind or another," he said.

China has a ravenous appetite for energy to power its rapidly growing economy and is already a major purchaser of Australian coal and natural gas.

Chinese officials first asked for access to Australian uranium deposits during meetings in February with the Australian Nuclear Safeguards and Non-Proliferation Office, officials said.

The Chinese initiative was revealed Monday by The Age newspaper in Melbourne and then confirmed by Downer, who earlier this year raised the prospect of increasing Australian exports of uranium to help fuel expanding nuclear power industries across Asia, notably in China, South Korea and India.

Australia has about 40 percent of the world's known uranium reserves but has only three operating uranium mines, two in South Australia and one in the Northern Territory. The country has no nuclear power industry.

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Global Banking: UBS to acquire 500 mln dollar stake in Bank Of China

ZURICH (AFP) - Sept 27/05 - UBS, Switzerland's largest bank, said it was acquiring a 500-million-dollar (416.4 million-euro) stake in Bank of China (BoC), China's second-biggest bank, as part of a strategic partnership between the two banks. 


The two are forming a mutually beneficial strategic cooperation covering the development of investment banking and securities products and services in China and for Chinese clients.

The deal is subject to Chinese regulatory approval.

A spokesman said Tuesday UBS expected the deal to close by the end of 2005.

Following the deal, UBS's stake in BoC will be around 1.6 percent.

The announcement came ahead of BoC's planned initial public offering (IPO) next year, for which UBS is lead manager.

Royal Bank of Scotland, Merrill Lynch and the Li Ka-shing Foundation agreed earlier this year to acquire 10 percent in BoC for a combined 3.1 billion dollars.

UBS said in June that it was in talks with BoC and that it might invest up to 500 million dollars.

The cooperation and investment will "cement the long-standing relationship between Bank of China and UBS", the Swiss bank said in a statement.

Swiss rival Credit Suisse, meanwhile, was reported to be eyeing a 500-million-dollar stake in China Construction Bank.

UBS's announcement of the BoC investment followed reports in Hong Kong that the Swiss bank was also poised to announce around a 1.7-billion-yuan (210,061-million-dollar, 175,048-million-euro) investment in the ailing Beijing Securities.

UBS declined to comment on those reports.

If confirmed, the investment in Beijing Securities would be the first foreign investment in a Chinese mainland brokerage.

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China to get first crack at Russian oil: Putin
By John Helmer 

MOSCOW - July 16/05 - ATimes - In his most detailed statement to date, President Vladimir Putin has spelled out Russia's priorities for transporting crude oil to Asian markets in the next decade. In diplomatic but unambiguous language, Putin rejected Japanese proposals, in favor of China. 

In a press conference at Gleneagles last week as the new chairman of the G8, Putin identified rail deliveries to China from the new border terminal at Skovorodino as his first priority, with 20 million tons (385,000 barrels per day) the target for delivery, once Transneft, the state pipeline agency, builds the planned new pipeline to Skovorodino. 

This terminal is 600 kilometers east of the main border rail junction at Zabakailsk and Manzhouli, where current Russian oil deliveries by rail cross into China. It is still unclear what rail capacity China has, or will build, to carry the oil from Skorovodino. Current maps show Russian and Chinese rail lines moving east-west in parallel on either side of the border. They are not yet connected. 

An additional 10 million tons (192,000 bpd), Putin said, will be sent on by rail to the new tanker terminal planned near Nakhodka. Construction will take "around three years", the president noted. The president's remarks rejected wishful thinking from Tokyo that a Japanese government offer to finance a pipeline all the way to Perevoznaya Bay, near Nakhodka port, would tempt the Kremlin over Chinese insistence that deliveries to Beijing take priority. "As the oil in this [first-stage] pipeline increases through the development of new sources and fields in eastern Siberia," Putin said, "we will build a second section of the pipeline that will run right to the Pacific coast. This system will then be pumping 50 million tons [972,000 bpd]..." 

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China Unlikely to Cut Venezuela's U.S. Oil...for now 


WASHINGTON - Sept 20/05 - AP-China's increased interest in the Venezuelan oil industry is unlikely to have any effect on U.S. supplies, a top State Department official said Tuesday. 

China, the world's second largest petroleum consumer, has stepped up investment throughout Latin America, including increased buying of Venezuela's oil.

Charles Shapiro, a senior Western Hemisphere specialist at the State Department, told a Senate panel looking at China's role in Latin America that it would be economically painful for Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez to make good on a reported threat to cut off oil shipments to the United States.

He also noted that U.S. refineries are specially designed to refine heavy Venezuela crude oil, while Chinese refineries "would require an investment of billions of dollars."

[State Department Spin: ]
Robert Forden, deputy director for China at the State Department, told the lawmakers there was no evidence that China's increased investment in the region meant it was trying to meddle in Latin America's political affairs.

Instead, he said, the interest is primarily economic

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China sees growth for engineering plastic 

BEIJING - Jul 23/05 -  China has witnessed a rapid growth of demand for engineering plastic in recent years. 

The country's consumption of engineering plastic increased from 244,700 tons in 1998 to 400,000 tons in 2000, up to 500,000 tons in 2001, 700,000 tons in 2002, and further up to 1.13 million tons in 2004. The consumption is estimated to reach 1.35 million tons in 2005, posing an increase of about 27% year on year. Of this, consumption of polycarbonate recorded the fastest growth, expecting to reach more than 30% in the coming years. 

With the rapid development of manufacturing, China has seen an expansion of areas for the application of engineering plastic in recent years. Engineering plastic is an upstream industry for electronics, transportation, aviation and space, and machine tools, holding an advantageous position in the industrial chain. Accordingly, the engineering plastic industry has been given priority for encouragement and development by the state. 

The market demand for engineering plastic is estimated at 1.353 million tons in 2005, which is expected to exceed 2 million tons by 2008, and further up to 2.64 million tons by 2010, approaching the consumption level of that of the United States. 

Attracted by the huge demand in China, foreign companies have concentrated efforts on development and localization of engineering plastic in China. Foreign companies have set up many polycarbonate plants in China in recent years. Bayer has opened a 100,000-ton plant in Shanghai in east China. Some foreign companies also plan to expand their production in China. GE - General Electric - has constructed a 63,000-ton plant in Panyu and also owns a 60,000-ton plant in Shanghai, planning to increase production to 250,000 tons by 2008.

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China & Pakistan producing Joint Strike Fighter

Ap 8/05 - THE submission of the first part of the Kelkar Committee report stressing private participation in defence production in particular and self-reliance and changes in the acquisition process in general coincides with Pakistan and China formally launching production of their joint fighter, the JF-17. Also known as the Xiao Long and the FC-1, it is widely billed as a rival to India’s light combat aircraft, Tejas. Only sketchy details are available about the JF-17. But it is a fact that the project has moved quickly since the aircraft first flew in August 2003. The prototypes are reportedly flying with Russian RD-93 engines, courtesy Mig, and the aircraft itself has been linked to an abandoned Mig-33 design. However, reports from China suggest that they are making good progress in the development of an indigenous power plant for the JF-17.

Pakistan is looking at about 125 to 150 JF-17s to form the backbone of its air force.

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Africa: Platinum Producers Goaded Into Alliances With Chinese

AllAfrica - Mar 17/05 - The Chinese have already been handed some involvement in Zimbabwean mining through a deal with quasi-government mining concern, the Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation (ZMDC).

"We are not forcing them (platinum producers) to get Chinese investors on board. We just believe the Chinese can bring certain expertise that will help our platinum industry to grow at a quicker pace. The response has not been negative from the miners so far," the government official, requesting anonymity, said.

No immediate comment could be obtained from the Zimbabwe Platinum Mines (Zimplats), the country's largest platinum producer. However, Implats, majority owner of Zimplats, was quoted recently as confirming it had been approached by Zimbabwe to open talks with Chinese investors. David Brown, the finance director at Implats, said his company had been asked to take on the Chinese, but said: "We would have to look at the value proposition."

...Zimbabwe is seeking stronger economic links with China to substitute waning business with the West, which has dried up over the last five years of political crisis and economic decline.

Implats, the world number two producer of platinum, has already delayed a plan to spend R4.7 billion to rev up production in Zimbabwe over the next decade pending a pledge from Zimbabwe to secure property rights.

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Chinese Impact in Africa: Growing even Larger

Stories from 2005 (a few)

Governor of Bank of China Visits Bank of Ghana

Sasol's Study On Synthetic Fuels for China Ready Soon

South Africa: STEEL maker Ispat Iscor - Chinese Consortium 'Best for the Job'

Mozambique: Chinese Donation for Interior Ministry

Angola And China Sign Cooperation Agreements

Angola Prime Minister Appeals for Chinese Investment

Nigeria, China Trade Hits $2.18bn

Angola Chinese Group Funds US$400 Million for Telecommunication

African Ministers Seek Permanent Seats On UN Council

Nigeria:  Set to Teach Chinese Language

Chinese Economy Stimulates African Markets

Angola & China: Oil-Backed Loan ($ 2 Billion USD from China) Will Finance Recovery Projects

Chinese the New Economic Imperialists in Africa

The shortage of women is due to a traditional preference for sons, combined with the effects of China's strict birth control policies.

On Hainan Island, which has the worst gender imbalance in the country, A Jun dangles her baby girl on her hip as she waddles towards the village well. At 22, she is heavily pregnant with her second baby, and there is pressure on her to have a boy this time.

"My husband wants a boy," she said. "If the second child's a girl, I'll have another. I want to have a boy too."

So great is her desire for a boy, she is willing to risk a fine and the wrath of the government to have a forbidden third child. She lives in Pingling village, deep in the tropical hillside of Hainan island.

It is a poverty-stricken collection of stone houses which depends on a few small plots of land to scratch out a living. With social security systems non-existent in places like this, families count on sons to look after them in their old age.

"In this sort of village, they treasure boys and don't care about girls," A Jun's friend, Hua, explained.

"People think sons will look after them when they get old. But once girls get married, they belong to someone else. They're not part of your family any more."

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Death of U.S. Textile Industry: Exported to China

With New Textile Rules, U.S. Mill Shuts Down and Turns to Chinese Partner

Feb 3/05 -VOA - For nearly 90 years, the L.W. Packard Woolen Mill has adapted to changes in the worldwide textile industry -- and prospered. But the latest change requires not a minor shift in its business practices, but a revolution.

With the January 1st [2005] expiration of a set of export quotas that determined who could sell which textiles to whom, the rules of the game have changed. The big winner is expected to be China, with its vast resources and cheap labor. And the shift could seal the fate of what's left of the U.S. textile industry.

"Everybody in town once worked in here," recalls Margot Hughes, one of the six remaining employees at L.W. Packard in Ashland, New Hampshire. "As long as I can remember, when I came in, the punch clock was out there, people would talk to each other, took care of each other."

Working alone in a big, empty room, Ms. Hughes turns back to her 30-year-old sewing machine and resumes stitching blankets out of what's left of the company's wool inventory.

L.W. Packard was long at the center of the industry. In the mid-1990s, the company had one of the most modern textile manufacturing facilities in the world. 300 employees worked with luxury fabrics like angora and cashmere, providing products for L.L. Bean, Saks and Lands End. Today, most of the machines that would mix, spin and weave those fabrics have been sold to a factory in China. L.W. Packard is 99 percent closed.

John Glidden with Chinese partners
L.W. Packard President John Glidden shakes hands in Beijing with his new Chinese partners
Workers are disassembling what's left of the machinery. It, too, will be sold and shipped to factories in China. Company president John Glidden points to the work in progress. "Here we are, we're taking some machines apart," he says. "These stainless steel dye kettles…we'll have to patch the floor when we're done."

Mr. Glidden represents the fourth generation of his family to run L.W. Packard. His grandfather's uncle, Luther Packard, started the company in 1916. Back then, New Hampshire was one of the capitals of the country's booming manufacturing sector. L.W. Packard stayed in business in the face of the Great Depression of the 1930's. The company also managed to survive over the next several decades as textile manufacturing began suffering from competition from developing countries. 

US sees a spy in China's Lenovo buyout/Takeover of IBM

WASHINGTON - In a potentially damaging move for Sino-US business relations, American regulators are reportedly blocking IBM's proposed $1.25 billion sale of its personal computer business to the Lenovo Group of China, on national security concerns.

Citing unnamed sources "familiar with the matter", Bloomberg reported on Sunday that members of the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) are concerned that Lenovo employees might be used to conduct industrial espionage. According to the report, these members are worried that Chinese operatives may use an IBM facility in North Carolina to launch industrial espionage to further China's military technology. The Chinese government has a majority share in Lenovo, formerly known as Legend. Incidentally, the US recently sanctioned eight Chinese companies for exporting technology to Iran for use in a missile program, according to a recent New York Times report.

CFIUS comprises 11 US agencies, including the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security, and is chaired by the Treasury Department. The influential committee has the ability to veto the deal and could also launch an investigation into the implications of such a deal. IBM had earlier this month said that it had filed for CFIUS approval as part of the necessary regulatory approvals it was seeking to formalize the deal. The Lenovo sale got a US anti-trust clearance earlier this month.

Lenovo and IBM formally filed a notice seeking CFIUS clearance on December 29, according to the unnamed sources. US law stipulates that if the committee doesn't approve a foreign takeover in 30 days, it must open a formal investigation and finally take the matter the US president for a decision. "Because of national security concerns, we do not comment on matters that may be under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment," Treasury spokesman Tony Fratto was quoted as saying. The committee never reveals whether it's studying a certain transaction or the decisions it takes on them.

IBM and the government are negotiating the matter, the sources told Bloomberg. "IBM has filed a required notice with the Committee on Foreign Investments," Edward Barbini, a spokesman for IBM Corp of Armonk, New York, was quoted as saying. "IBM is fully cooperating with all government agencies in their review of this transaction." In a statement, Lenovo spokeswoman Alice Li said: "Lenovo continues to fully cooperate with relevant authorities." Treasury Department spokesman Rob Nichols declined to comment, so did Chinese government officials in Beijing.

CFIUS, which reviews takeovers of US firms by foreign entities to ensure that the deals do not endanger US national security, has previously blocked similar acquisitions by companies with links to China. In 2003, it scrapped the sale of Global Crossing to Hutchison Whampoa Ltd, the Hong Kong conglomerate controlled by billionaire Li Ka-shing, because of national security concerns raised by Chinese control of the company's global undersea cable communications network.

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Millions go missing at China Central bank

China plans renewed bank bailout

China pumps $45bn into two banks

India to make G7 debut at London talks

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Jan 21/05 - India is set to make its debut at the G7 next month, becoming only the third outside country to attend a meeting of the club of rich nations in a sign of its growing importance as a world economic power.

Asia's fourth-largest economy will attend talks with finance ministers of the Group of Seven leading industrial nations in London, Finance Minister Palaniappan Chidambaram said on Thursday.

Russia and China will also be represented at the London meeting, whose British hosts, chairing the G7 this year, hope to put its focus on tackling Africa's debt problems and climate change.

Economists and diplomats say the invitation to New Delhi is a recognition of India's growing global economic clout and its arrival as an Asian economic superpower along with China.

China and India account for more than a third of the world's six billion people but only four percent and two percent, respectively, of the global economy.

"The post Second World War reality is giving ground to the 21st century reality," said Saumitra Chaudhuri, an economist with domestic ratings agency ICRA and a member of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's economic advisory council.

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Nepal -Nepali forces clash with Communist Maoists, 29 dead

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Jan 20/05 - At least 29 people, mostly soldiers, were killed in a fresh surge of violence in east Nepal, the army said on Thursday, the first major clash with Maoist rebels since a deadline to begin peace talks expired.

Prime Minister Sher Bahadur Deuba has vowed to hold long delayed elections later this year after the rebels, fighting to replace the monarchy with a communist republic, failed to respond to his offer for talks as last week's deadline expired.

The Maoists say they will "shatter" the vote if it is held without resolving root causes of the eight-year conflict that has claimed more than 11,000 lives.

"Any move to hold the elections instead of finding a peaceful solution of the civil war will be very expensive," Maoist chief Prachanda said in a statement received by Reuters.

The latest fighting took place in the tea-growing area of Ilam, about 680 km (425 miles) east of the capital on Wednesday after the Maoists ambushed a security patrol that had gone to clear a road block.

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China

Kings of the East  Oil, Minerals on Table at Canada-China Trade Meet

BEIJING (Reuters) -Jan 20/05 - Canada and China were seeking to convert bilateral agreements on energy and minerals into commercial contracts on Friday as Canadian Trade Minister Jim Peterson and Chinese Vice Commerce Minister Ma Xiuhong opened a trade conference.

The trade mission coincides with a trip by Prime Minister Paul Martin, who on Thursday signed a series of agreements with Premier Wen Jiabao to promote cooperation on oil and gas and establish mechanisms to cooperate in the minerals and metals sectors.

China's diplomacy has been increasingly colored by its desire to secure sources of oil and resources, prompting it to seek investments outside traditional spheres of influence.

Canada has been a target of that push, with China seeking oil supply deals and possibly investment in exploration in oil-rich Alberta.

"China is transforming global commerce. It is driving down the cost of goods manufactured and creating vast new demand for Canadian technology and resources," Peterson told reporters at the opening.

On Thursday, Canada and China signed a handful of agreements including a memorandum of understanding for a dialogue mechanism for cooperation on mineral resources and another on nuclear energy cooperation.

A plan by Canadian pipeline operator Enbridge Inc. to build a pipeline to the west coast would make it feasible for Alberta's oil to reach Asia, increasing output from Canada and securing a steady supply for China, the world's second-biggest oil consumer.

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China's African Safari
Besides buying energy and commodities, China is also trying to win hearts and minds in a continent embittered by colonial experience

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Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org

The New World Capital in Pictures - Shanghai

http://www.time.com/time/asia/photoessays/shanghai/index.html 

Shanghai Cooperation Group Meeting In Tashkent

17 June 2004 -- The presidents of China, Russia, and four Central Asian nations met today in the Uzbek capital Tashkent to enhance their security alliance.

The six Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) leaders are discussing regional threats and are due to inaugurate an antiterrorism center in Uzbekistan.

Afghan Transitional Administration Chairman Hamid Karzai is attending the talks as an observer. Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed establishing a contact group between the alliance and Afghanistan.

Kyrgyz President Askar Akaev agreed, saying that by helping Afghanistan the alliance would be helping itself. Karzai welcomed the initiatives, saying Afghanistan is eager to cooperate with the SCO.

Also at the meeting, Mongolia was approved as an observer nation to the SCO.

Copyright (c) 2004. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org

(AP/dpa)

Japan seeks bigger Middle East role


Dec 17/04 - As signs of life slowly return to the long-comatose Middle East peace process, Tokyo is working hard to make a positive contribution to regional stability. Because it is a close ally of the United States and for decades has also enjoyed an excellent relationship with the Arab world, Japan occupies a unique position, one it increasingly wants to utilize with both Palestinians and Israelis.

Demonstrating regard for Japan and its diplomatic and financial credentials, King Abdullah II of Jordan met with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi on Monday in Tokyo, and Koizumi announced a grant of US$40 million for Jordan to help implement development projects next year for the nation's large Palestinian refugee population. Koizumi also reaffirmed his commitment to the Middle East peace process, a shredded "roadmap" that may be reconstructed after the death of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat and forthcoming elections for a new Palestinian Authority.

Both the Palestinians and Israelis view Japan's efforts very favorably. Nabil Shaath, the minister of foreign affairs for the Palestinian Authority, told Asia Times Online, "As Palestinians, we are very much for global Japanese participation and I think the Japanese themselves are very willing to fulfill this role."

In a separate interview with Asia Times Online, Israel's new ambassador to the United Kingdom, Zvi Heifetz, was also warm to the idea of Japan's involvement in the peace process. "I think the Japanese contribution is completely sincere, they really want to help," he said.

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Japan, slumbering military giant, stirs


TOKYO - Dec 14/04 - (ATimes) - As expected, Japan's cabinet extended the deployment of up to 600 troops in Iraq for another year, though they are largely sequestered in their high-tech desert fortress. This move was billed as unflinching support for its ally the United States and a helping hand to war-torn Iraq. A new defense policy unfurled the following day, however, showed that after a half-century, Tokyo's military and global aspirations, like a once-slumbering giant, may just be starting to stir.

The cabinet, in endorsing the new five-year defense policy, also cracked the door open just a bit, lifting a decades-old arms-export ban, citing as justification an "immediate" need for a joint missile-defense system with the United States. Only certain exports to the US will be allowed - the general ban was not lifted. And for the first time, the defense-policy outline singled out other nations as security concerns - understandably North Korea, but also China. 

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China's Russian pipe dream

MOSCOW - Sep 28/04 - (ATimes) - In a move to secure a steady hydrocarbon inflow from the north, visiting Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has pledged to invest US$12 billion in Russia's infrastructure and energy sector by 2020. But despite the economic incentive, Beijing seemingly failed to win a clear commitment from Moscow to build a $2.5 billion oil pipeline from Siberia.

In a joint statement by Wen and his Russian counterpart Mikhail Fradkov, the two also pledged to boost trade. In the first eight months of this year, bilateral trade reached $12.9 billion, up 35% year-on-year. In 2004, this is expected to hit $20 billion. The two nations have pledged to winch it to $60 billion by 2010.

During his first official visit last week to Russia since assuming the premiership, Wen made a six-point proposal on boosting bilateral ties: improve trade structure; boost mutual investment; develop energy cooperation; reinforce ties in high technology; encourage border trade; and promote humanitarian ties. But despite all the other subheads, Wen's blueprint appears to be in essence energy-driven, aiming at securing steady oil supplies from Russia.

On his Moscow trip from Thursday to Saturday, Wen also met Russian President Vladimir Putin, Federal Council Chairman Sergei Mironov and Russian State Duma Chairman Boris Cryzlov. Through all official meetings and the subsequent announcements, Beijing's preoccupation with energy supplies was evident. 

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China mulls oil pipelines in Myanmar, Thailand

Sep 23/04 - (ATimes) - Booming China, with its voracious appetite for oil and urgent need for oil security, is considering a China-Myanmar oil pipeline and one through Thailand. These are among 10 recent proposals on alternative strategies to secure China's energy supplies.

China first became an oil importing country in 1993. Its insatiable hunger for oil has since been an important factor in driving up world oil prices. The country's demand for oil is expected to grow by 8.1% or 510,000 barrel per day (bpd) by 2005, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

The economy's growth may be severely hindered if the energy needs are not met. This summer saw the worst shortage in over 15 years despite the measures to reduce energy consumption. Throughout China, thousands of factories were asked to halt production for two days a week, shift work to non-peak hours or take mandatory week-long holidays.

Given the fact that China must create some 24 million jobs a year to absorb fresh labor, it just cannot afford such slowdowns. Indeed, with over 54% of the economy reliant on manufacturing, most of which remain energy-intensive, it's little wonder that China is concerned with its energy security.

Figures clearly demonstrate China's energy hunger. According to British Petroleum (BP) statistics, in 2003 China's total energy demand leaped by 13.8% following its GDP growth of 9.1%. China alone accounted for 41% of the growth of the total world oil demand, its oil imports rising 32% to 2.6 million bpd. 

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China's hunger for Central Asian energy

Jun 03 - While Russian, Middle Eastern, European and United States interests are vying for stakes in emerging Central Asian markets, it is China that is most keen to develop oil in Eurasia in an effort to satisfy its massive energy-import needs in coming years. China is turning a keen eye to Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan, in particular, but there are also signs the Chinese may be edged out by multinational oil companies to harvest the riches off the shores of the Caspian Sea.

Chinese energy enterprises are competing with Western oil companies and are having mixed success in making their way into a variety of ventures in Russia, Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan. China has made it clear that energy development in Eurasia is a top priority, not only in Kazakhstan, where a major deal was recently scuttled, but in neighboring Azerbaijan as well.

Last Wednesday, China's Sinopec inked its first major oil deal with the State Oil Co of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR), for the development of a small onshore US$140 million project. The Pirsagat oilfields are estimated to have reserves of close to 50 million barrels. And Sinopec is not alone working in Azerbaijan; the Chinese National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), the parent of PetroChina, already has onshore operations in Azerbaijan. But none of the major Chinese oil companies have sealed deals to assist in offshore development in Azerbaijan. It is offshore in the Caspian where Azerbaijan's great future riches may reside, but deals have been stalled because of the lack of territorial legal clarity for energy exploration rights in and along the Caspian Sea. Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Iran have differing views on the borders of the sea that are complicating factor in developing offshore deposits. 

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Seven U.S. aircraft carriers to move within striking distance of China; Taiwan forces slated to join in drill

July 1/04 - The United States is planning a massive show of force in the Pacific Ocean near China to register a point with Beijing.
 
In an exercise codenamed Operation Summer Pulse 04, it is expected to arrange for an unprecedented seven aircraft carrier strike groups (CSGs) to rendezvous in waters a safe distance away from the Chinese coastline - but still within striking distance - after mid-July.

This will be the first time in US naval history that it sends seven of its 12 CSGs to just one region.

According to a Department of Defence statement, Summer Pulse is to test out a new Fleet Response Plan (FRP) aimed at enhancing the American Navy's combat power and readiness in a time of crisis.

The FRP calls for the despatching of six 'forward deployed' or 'ready to surge' CSGs to a trouble spot within 30 days, and an additional two within 90 days.

Although the statement does not say where the seven CSGs will exercise, the Status of the Navy website said the USS Carl Vinson, Abraham Lincoln, John C Stennis and Kitty Hawk were in the Pacific Ocean as of yesterday.

The USS Enterprise and Harry Truman are in the Atlantic Ocean while USS George Washington is in the Persian Gulf.

According to a posting on Sina.com, an influential website in China, the signs point to a gathering of all seven CSGs in the Pacific.

Sources in Beijing say China's reading is that Summer Pulse is being mounted with it as the target audience, a suspicion reinforced by reports that Taiwanese forces are slated to join in the drill.

JULY 04/ China to conduct military exercises this month in warning to Taiwan

China talks democratically, acts autocratically


HONG KONG - At the same time that China this week was ruling out the possibility of electing the government in Hong Kong, President and Communist Party chief Hu Jintao was announcing: "Citizens' orderly political participation should be expanded and people's democratic election, democratic decision-making, democratic management and democratic supervision in line with laws should be guaranteed."

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Kings of the East  Spinning the nuclear missile wheel

But China also has accelerated its own space program and plans for the military use of space, perhaps even in a first-strike or preemptive mode to knock out US satellites and leave the missile defense system blind. Thus while it follows Russia's suit by building more missiles, it also is apparently aiming to undermine the US system's command, control, and communications capabilities that link it to terrestrial sensors. China has also recently launched two nano-satellites into space. As a result analysts like Richard Fisher of the Center for Security Policy in Washington argue that "China will use micro and nano-satellites for a range of missions, surveillance, reconnaissance, communication, and for destroying enemy satellites. Their size makes them difficult, if not impossible, to detect and either avoid or shoot down."

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  R. CATHOLIC BISHOP Zen and the Chinese art of HK manipulation


HONG KONG -May 13/04 - Roman Catholic Bishop Joseph Zen, a thorn in Beijing's side and a passionate supporter of early universal suffrage here, recently made a surprise visit to Shanghai, at China's invitation. His visit has generated speculation that China is adroitly trying to alienate him from his supporters, minimize his political charisma and isolate other unruly hard-core democrats in the territory.

The invitation to Bishop Zen was extended by Shanghai Bishop Aloysius Jin Luxian shortly after the standing committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) ruled out universal suffrage in 2007 for both Hong Kong's chief executive and in 2008 for its Legislative Council, known as Legco. Bishop Zen, who vigorously has aired his views in support of early popular suffrage in Hong Kong, embarked on the visit - which is being called a personal visit to his hometown of Shanghai - in late April.

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Why all the world feels China's growing pains

May 8/04 The side-effects of the Chinese economic miracle have an increasingly global reach. Jasper Becker reports on an economic phenomenon that affects everything from Egyptian sea cucumbers to British bicycle shops

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Selling Death or Self-Defense? The E.U.'s arms sanctions triangle & China
By Stephen Blank

No sooner did Moscow and Brussels issue numerous reports stating that they were close to a deal on Russia's relationship with the new expanded European Union than Moscow rolled another political grenade down the aisle. This metaphoric grenade, so to speak, was a denunciation of the EU's consideration of lifting its sanctions on arms sales to China.

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Central Asia

Plans for Tajikistan unraveling
By Sergei Blagov

MOSCOW - Moscow and Tajikistan have yet to agree on the fate of Russian armed forces in the Central Asian country, a situation that has the potential to create a geopolitical vacuum - with a number of contenders waiting to fill it. Full Story Here

HONG KONG (AP) - The Chinese navy sailed eight warships into Hong Kong on Friday, Beijing's biggest show of military force since the former colony's 1997 handover from Britain.

The port call appeared to be aimed at boosting patriotism in Hong Kong, but analysts also said China was apparently flexing its naval muscles to send a message discouraging Taiwan from any thoughts of independence.

"We are always on call," said Yao Xingyuan, commander of the battle group. "If necessary, we have the ability to preserve the stability of the Taiwanese political situation."

Yao said the two destroyers, four frigates and two submarines will stay in Hong Kong through Wednesday to commemorate the 55th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army's navy. The ships will sail through Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor when they depart, giving the territory a good look at them, but he wouldn't say where they would go next.

A spokesman for the People's Liberation Army said the vessels are en route to a training exercise at an undisclosed location. Chinese sailors will be allowed to tour Hong Kong in civilian clothing.

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China's boys stolen, sold as police ignore grieving parents

Tim Johnson
Knight Ridder Newspapers
May. 5, 2004

China in an energy quandary

Why Would China have an Interest in Middle East Oil ?

China to consume 270 million tons of crude oil in 2004

Friday, March 26, 2004 
 
China, the world's second largest oil consumer, is expected to consume 270 million tons of crude oil in 2004, according to a Ministry of Commerce report on production material on Friday 

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CHINA JET - GET THE PICTURE ?

China Advanced JetFighter Almost Ready

China: Buying a Foothold ?

The Caribbean island of Dominica has announced it is cutting diplomatic relations with Taiwan and is instead establishing them with mainland China.

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Loosing Power: The US and economic stability in Asia

China & Technology

China's first route switching system high-end core chip makes debut 
China's first route switching system high-end core chip for use in communications area ¨C "Huaxia Network Chip" made its debut in Chengdu High-tech & Innovative Park, Sichuan province in early April 

Full story at: http://english.peopledaily.com.cn/200404/09/eng20040409_139909.shtml 

Thailand in China's embrace
By David Fullbrook

CHIANG RAI, Thailand - Chiang Rai, a province of farmers and tribal highlanders in Thailand's far north, is emerging as central China's southern trade gateway now that transport routes are being upgraded and a free-trade agreement is in place. As trade and investment grow, China's economic gravity will wrest Thailand from a century of Western embrace.

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Russia: Chinese President Looking To Solidify Ties With Moscow, Central Asia

By Jeremy Bransten

26/05/03 - Chinese President Hu Jintao today begins a six-day visit to Russia. After talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other top officials in Moscow, Hu will attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Council and then travel to St. Petersburg for festivities marking the 300th anniversary of Russia's former imperial capital. RFE/RL speaks to two experts about the growing importance of Sino-Russian relations.

Prague, 26 May 2003 (RFE/RL) -- Hu Jintao has chosen Russia for his first official visit abroad since becoming Chinese president. When he begins his visit in Moscow today, Hu will be repaying a courtesy extended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who was the first foreign leader to meet Hu in Beijing last December, after he assumed leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.

But experts say there is far more driving the Russian-Chinese relationship than politeness. Key economic as well as geopolitical issues will be discussed during Hu's visit, among them possible agreement on the construction of a 2,400-kilometer pipeline from eastern Siberia to the Chinese city of Daqing.

Aleksandr Konovalov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Strategic Assessments, explained to RFE/RL why this is the case: "Very important issues will be discussed such as the use of energy resources in Siberia and the Far East, the construction of a gas pipeline to Daqin, and the increasing of oil and gas deliveries from Russia to China. I think the problem of Korea will figure prominently, although that is not a bilateral issue. If you look at the issue, not only from the military point of view and from the standpoint of the unacceptability of the nuclearization of North Korea, I would [underline the importance of] the issue of a transport corridor through both Koreas and China to link up with the Trans-Siberian railroad."

Dmitrii Trenin, at the Carnegie Institute in Moscow, is the author of "Russia's China Problem" and an expert on Russian foreign policy. He told RFE/RL that since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Moscow has been forced to come to come to terms with Beijing's rapidly growing economic might.

"For Russia, which borders China, this creates a new situation -- a new reality. Russia used to look upon China as a backward, distant country. For a time it even tried to dominate China. But these days, Russia has been forced to acknowledge that China has surpassed it not only in terms of population -- which was always the case -- but in the size of its gross domestic product [GDP], which is now five times larger. China is developing at a much faster pace than Russia," Trenin said.

That makes China an increasingly important economic partner. Both sides have emphasized their desire to boost bilateral trade, which currently stands at some $12 billion a year. China is especially interested in imports of Russian military hardware and Russia, Trenin said, has been relying on arms sales abroad as a key source of revenue.

"Russia needs to sell China weapons technology because the sale of armaments abroad is the only way for industries in the military-industrial complex to survive and receive some kind of profit. When Russia's government is not placing orders for modern technology with these military enterprises, they are dependent on foreign clients. And China is one of the leading clients," Trenin said.

Critics say the policy is short-sighted. They warn that Russia, by selling its superior weapons technology to China, will ultimately undercut its own interests and help boost China's geopolitical influence, to Moscow's detriment. But Trenin said the Kremlin is not worried.

"Russia's military and political leaders consider that in the near-term and foreseeable future, China will not present a military problem for Russia, because Chinese arms purchases and the whole structure of its armed forces are oriented towards other tasks -- above all Taiwan and to a lesser degree towards Chinese-American relations. So, they believe Russia can rest easy on this issue," he said.

Geopolitical questions, especially in the aftermath of the Iraq war, are expected to weigh heavily on the Hu-Putin meetings. After a period of tension over Iraq, Moscow appears keen to repair its relations with Washington. China, Trenin said, sees this as an opportune time to mount a charm offensive.

"China wants to send a message to Moscow and other capitals. China wants Russia to remain a dependable [partner]. China does not want Russia to become part of some alliance whose aim could be to restrict China. China believes that now, when Russian-American relations are emerging from their crisis caused by the Iraq war, is the right time to look for new opportunities," he said.

Those opportunities extend to Central Asia, where China has also been keen to check America's post-11 September 2001 presence. Following his three-day state visit, Hu will remain in Moscow for a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, which groups together China, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan.

Trenin explained the importance of the organization to Beijing: "I'd say the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is, for China, another name for Central Asia. That is, thanks to this organization, China can take part in discussions and the resolution of questions tied to security and development in Central Asia as an equal to the countries of the region and Russia. This is important for China, because new opportunities have been opened for the Chinese to consolidate their position and raise their influence in a very important region for them, without antagonizing Russia, which has been the traditional power which has long dominated Central Asia."

Copyright (c) 2003. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. www.rferl.org

China-Russia summit: Giants strengthen ties


PRAGUE - May 28/03 - Hu Jintao has chosen Russia for his first official visit abroad since becoming Chinese president. When he began his visit in Moscow on Monday, Hu was repaying a courtesy extended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, who last December became the first foreign leader to meet with Hu after he assumed leadership of the Chinese Communist Party.

But experts say there is far more driving the Russian-Chinese relationship than politeness. Key economic as well as geopolitical issues will be discussed during Hu's visit, among them possible agreement on the construction of a 2,400-kilometer pipeline from eastern Siberia to the Chinese city of Daqing.

Aleksandr Konovalov, head of the Moscow-based Institute for Strategic Assessments, explained why this is the case: "Very important issues will be discussed such as the use of energy resources in Siberia and the Far East, the construction of a gas pipeline to Daqin, and the increasing of oil and gas deliveries from Russia to China. I think the problem of Korea will figure prominently, although that is not a bilateral issue. If you look at the issue, not only from the military point of view and from the standpoint of the unacceptability of the nuclearization of North Korea, I would [underline the importance of] the issue of a transport corridor through both Koreas and China to link up with the Trans-Siberian railroad."

Dmitrii Trenin, at the Carnegie Institute in Moscow, is the author of Russia's China Problem and an expert on Russian foreign policy. He said that since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Moscow has been forced to come to come to terms with Beijing's rapidly growing economic might. 

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CENTRAL ASIA & CHRISTIANS: Persecution the norm