Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 125

South China Sea: 5 things to watch in 2025

The South China Sea has become one of the world’s most perilous geopolitical hot spots in recent years, with China stepping up the reinforcement of its expansive claims and countries from outside the region getting increasingly involved. Here are five areas to watch in 2025:The situation in the Taiwan Strait has been becoming notably more tense, with nearly 3,000 incursions into Taiwan’s air

Will China Invade Taiwan in 2025?

Experts have told Newsweek that China will continue to escalate against Taiwan in the new year as the "unpredictable" Donald Trump takes office as U.S. president later this month. Newsweek has reached out to the U.S. State Department and Trump's transition team, as well as the Chinese Embassy and Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington, D.C., for comment by email.China

Donald Trump Doesn't Want to Ban TikTok Because He Gets Billions of Views

President-elect Donald Trump said he does not want to ban TikTok as he apparently gets billions of views on the social media app. In a post on Truth Social early Friday morning, the president-elect wrote, "Why would I want to get rid of TikTok?" alongside a graphic showing Trump-related content receives billions of views on the app. The source of the graphic is unclear and Newsweek could not

Three Issues That Could Shake China's Vulnerable Economy in 2025

Beijing hopes its recent moves to stimulate the world's second-largest economy will bear fruit this year. An ongoing property sector crisis, deflationary pressures exacerbated by muted consumer confidence and the specter of tariff hikes pledged by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump loom large over China's 2025 growth prospects.The country's economy has failed to roar back after the government

Bracing for the US-China trade war to come

China’s announcement of export controls on 28 US companies, including defense giants Lockheed Martin and Boeing Defense, signals an ominous start to 2025. This latest trade war salvo in the US-China rivalry comes just as Donald Trump prepares to resume the presidency, reigniting speculation that tit-for-tat trade policies will define the global economic landscape this year and possibly

Torbjørn Færøvik: Kina kunne ikke ha funnet på noe dummere før presidentskiftet

Kina avsluttet fjoråret slik det begynte det: med et massivt cyberangrep. Offeret denne gang ble det amerikanske finansdepartementet. Angrepet fant sted tidlig i desember. Hvilken skade det har forårsaket, er foreløpig uklart, men mye tyder på at hackerne skaffet seg tilgang til sensitiv informasjon.Finansdepartementet, kjent som ”The Treasury”, sitter forståelig nok på et vell av høyt gradert

US lawmakers demand answers after treasury confirmed Chinese hackers breach

The cybersecurity breach of the U.S. Treasury Department by China-backed hackers is “extremely concerning,” said senior American lawmakers, urging Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to provide them with a detailed briefing on the matter. The department announced on Monday that China-backed hackers in December accessed workstations and unclassified documents through a compromised third-party software

Taipei hits back over Chinese military’s New Year propaganda video

Taiwan’s government on Thursday hit back at a New Year’s propaganda video created by China’s People’s Liberation Army in which President Xi Jinping reiterated Beijing’s claims on the democratic island. The video, set to the song “Chinese People” by veteran Hong Kong pop star Andy Lau, features Chinese warships and planes, and what appeared to be a Chinese fighter jet flying near a P-8 Poseidon

China places new restrictions on Tibetan students during winter school break

With the start of winter school break in Tibet, Chinese authorities have implemented new restrictions on Tibetan children, banning private Tibetan-language lessons and requiring ones that focus on Mandarin skills and Chinese political topics, two sources with knowledge of the situation said. In some areas, they are even forbidding children from wearing religious symbols or participating in

‘Major incident’: China-backed hackers breached US Treasury workstations

The US Treasury Department notified lawmakers on Monday that a China state-sponsored actor infiltrated Treasury workstations in what officials are describing as a “major incident.” In a letter reviewed by CNN, a Treasury official said it was informed by a third-party software service provider on December 8 that a threat actor used a stolen key to remotely access certain Treasury workstations and