Focus on China
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International
Elbridge Colby interviewed on CBC Live. Elbridge Colby is co-founder and principal of The Marathon Initiative, a policy initiative focused on developing strategies to prepare the United States for an era of sustained great power competition.
US shoots down fourth aerial object as UK government launches security review. Washington ordered another balloon be shot out of the sky over the US on Sunday, the third in little more than a week. A US air force jet also shot down a balloon in Canadian airspace with the permission of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Meanwhile, UK defence secretary Ben Wallace said he would work with the US and other partners to examine intelligence and assess the threat posed by the surveillance devices. The Independent, 12 February
China prepares to shoot down unknown flying object near coast. Forbes, 12 February
MPs and rights activists set to protest over Xinjiang official visiting UK. Politicians and human rights groups across Europe have called for sanctions to be placed on Erkin Tuniyaz, governor of the Xinjiang region where about a million Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities have been detained. Tuniyaz is set to hold a meeting with the Foreign Office this week; MPs and peers will join activists in a protest taking place outside the FCDO today. FT, 10 February
No foreign aid should be sent to China, says development minister. Andrew Mitchell said he was “surprised” to learn £50 million was spent in China in 2021 and wants to put a stop to such payments. He added taxpayers’ money could be better used to help other countries rather than the world’s second biggest economy. The Telegraph, 12 February
Chinese firms face procurement ban under tougher laws. Ministers have told The Times that the legislation strengthens the ability for the government to exclude companies and contracts deemed a national security risk on a discretionary basis. Some MPs, including Alicia Kearns, chair of the China Research Group, have urged the government to accept national security as a mandatory ground for exclusion from procurements. The Times, 12 February
Use of Chinese cameras by College of Police is risk to national security, says commissioner. The Telegraph, 12 February
UK universities starting to lose allure for Chinese. Applications from China to UK universities have fallen for the first time in more than a decade, new UCAS figures show. The number of applicants decreased by 4.2 per cent this year. Covid has been cited as a key factor, but experts say that interest in studying in the UK among Chinese teenagers is waning. The Times, 9 February
EU and China to resume human rights dialogue this week. The European Union and China will next week relaunch a human rights dialogue that stalled after a tit-for-tat sanctioning blitz two years ago. EU sources confirmed that talks would take place in Brussels at the end of next week, following a pledge to resume them during the EU-China summit last April. SCMP, 11 February
China says it’s ready to enhance ties with Taiwan opposition. China said it is willing to forge closer ties with the KMT, underscoring recent efforts by Beijing to adjust its tough approach to the democratically run island. Bloomberg, 10 February
Iranian president to visit China as Beijing aims to mend ties after Riyadh summit. Caixin, 12 February
China and Cambodia issue joint statement announcing deeper ties. The Global Times, 10 February
Economy & tech US seeks critical-mineral deal with Japan, UK to curb China. The Biden administration is exploring narrowly focused trade pacts on critical minerals with Japan and the UK in its push to counter Chinese influence in key sectors, according to officials familiar with the matter. The US is looking to create a “critical minerals buyers club” with allies like the EU and G7, the US officials said. Bloomberg, 10 February
Biden plans to bar some US investments in China, track others. Reuters, 11 February China pulls back from global subsea cable project as US tensions mount. China has cut its participation in an internet cable project to link Asia with Europe, with two of its biggest telecoms groups, China Telecom and China Mobile, withdrawing their combined investment of roughly 20 per cent from the Sea-Me-We 6 pipeline subsea cable project last year. FT, 10 February
China regulators querying banks on mortgage prepayment strain. China’s regulators are checking on how the nation’s major lenders are coping with the pressure from a wave of mortgage prepayments as homeowners take advantage of falling interest rates to reduce debt. Bloomberg, 13 February
TikTok team accused of spying had a history of employee complaints. Semafor, 10 February
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