Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 123

Trump fired the latest tariff shot at China. Is Beijing prepared to make it a trade war?

President Donald Trump has finally made good on a campaign promise to raise tariffs on Chinese imports – announcing on Saturday duties of 10% on all Chinese goods coming in the country as part of sweeping trade measures that also targeted Mexico and Canada. Now the question for Chinese leaders is how strongly to retaliate.In the wake of the announcement, Chinese officials – who were hit by

Xi tells Putin that China is pleased with Russia’s efforts to end Ukraine war

China’s President Xi Jinping had a call with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin on Monday and said he was pleased with Moscow’s efforts to hold a summit with the U.S. toward ending the war in Ukraine, state broadcaster reported. Putin updated Xi on the latest contacts with the U.S., according to CCTV, which didn’t give further details.Xi said that “China is pleased to see that Russia and relevant

Here’s why Chinese warships near Australia and New Zealand have prompted alarm

Leaders in Australia and New Zealand say China should have given them more warning before its navy conducted an unusual series of live fire exercises in the seas between the two countries, forcing flights to divert on short notice. The drills by three naval ships happened in international waters beneath a busy commercial flight path over the Tasman Sea on Friday and Saturday, and at least once

China's hopes to be Ukraine peacemaker collide with its goals on Trump, trade

For the last three years, China has repeatedly signalled a willingness to act as a peacemaker in the war in Ukraine. There were rounds of shuttle diplomacy by Beijing's envoy to countries from South Africa to Indonesia. A peace plan with Brazil. A group of "friends for peace" with developing nations. And even a proposal to send Chinese peacekeepers to Europe.But when Russian and U.S. officials

Trump orders use of CFIUS to restrict Chinese investments in strategic areas

President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Friday that directs the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to restrict Chinese investments in strategic areas, a White House official said. The national security memorandum is aimed at promoting foreign investment while protecting U.S. national security interests from threats posed by foreign adversaries like China, the official

Trump’s freeze on foreign aid could give China an opening on the world stage

President Donald Trump’s restrictions on foreign aid and targeting of a key agency funding programs around the world may be offering an opening to America’s biggest adversary — China. From the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development to quitting international groups, Trump’s drastic “America First” moves have raised concerns among some lawmakers and experts about whether the

China extends prison term for Tibetan environmental activist after he rejects charges

Chinese authorities have extended the prison sentence of a Tibetan environmental activist from Sichuan province by an additional eight months after he rejected charges of “disrupting social order,” two sources from inside Tibet told Radio Free Asia. In a video clip posted in October on the Chinese social media platform WeChat, Tsongon Tsering, 29, spoke out against the illegal extraction of sand

INTERVIEW: A former China correspondent examines identity and control under Xi

After nearly a decade covering China as an NPR correspondent, Emily Feng returned to Washington, D.C. Her reporting spanned a period of profound social and economic change : Xi Jinping’s consolidation of power; the Xinjiang detention camps; Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement and the crackdown against it; China’s strict zero-COVID policy; and the country’s transformation into a surveillance

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio Snubs G20 Foreign Ministers Meeting in South Africa

A meeting of foreign ministers from G20 countries will take place in Johannesburg on Thursday, but U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will not attend amid diplomatic tensions between South Africa and the U.S. Diplomats including Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi are expected to attend the gathering, while the U.S. will be represented by acting ambassador

South Korea requests to be excluded from Trump’s efforts to increase tariffs

South Korean officials have asked the Trump administration to exclude their country from U.S. plans to impose aggressive tariffs on trade partners, emphasizing that Seoul is already applying low duties on American products under the free trade agreement between the two nations.South Korea’s government on Friday said Deputy Trade Minister Park Jong-won made the request while traveling to