Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 142

Joshua Wong shouts ‘I love Hong Kong’ as more than 40 leading democracy leaders handed lengthy prison terms in mass trial

More than 40 of Hong Kong’s best known pro-democracy figures have been sentenced to prison terms of up to 10 years on subversion charges, in the biggest single blow to the city’s already shrinking political freedoms following Beijing’s sweeping crackdown on dissent. Among those handed sentences on Tuesday was Joshua Wong, a former student leader and poster child of the city’s once thriving

Fresh Chinese support may not be enough to save Myanmar junta

Myanmar's military dictator, Min Aung Hlaing, returned from a five-day trip to China, his first since the February 2021 coup, with promises of further Chinese assistance, in a desperate attempt to shore up his flailing regime and bankrupt economy. Min Aung Hlaing was invited to attend the 8th Greater Mekong Subregion Forum, and was kept confined to Kunming, the capital of neighboring Yunnan

EXPLAINED: Who are the Hong Kong 47?

Sentencing is expected on Tuesday following the trial of 47 Hong Kong opposition politicians and pro-democracy activists charged with subversion under the city’s 2020 National Security Law for taking part in a democratic primary in the summer of 2020.Police on Monday cordoned off the area outside the city’s High Court with traffic barriers and high fences, with armored vehicles standing by. The

Megaport opens up Latin America to Chinese trade as US looks on

As the world waits to see how the return of Donald Trump will reshape relations between Washington and Beijing, China has just taken decisive action to entrench its position in Latin America. Trump won the US presidential election on a platform that promised tariffs as high as 60% on Chinese-made goods. Further south, though, a new China-backed megaport has the potential to create whole new trade

China’s Growing Influence in Latin America

ina’s role in Latin America has grown rapidly since the turn of the century, promising economic opportunity while also raising concerns over Beijing’s influence. China’s state firms are major investors in the region’s energy, infrastructure, and space industries, and the country has surpassed the United States as South America’s largest trading partner. Beijing has also expanded its diplomatic,

China and Russia engage Latin America and the Caribbean differently. Both threaten US interests.

Influence, relating to foreign powers, comes in many forms and is accrued in many ways. It can encompass premeditated operations directed at a nation or region to spread disinformation, undermine democratic practices, and instigate dissension and strife. It can also mean the ability to constrain, channel, or divert what would otherwise be domestic-level decisions into a more favorable direction

Professor Arne Jon Isachsen: For mye av en god ting

Kina sliter med å innfri to sentrale mål. Jevnere levekår for kinesere i Kina. Og etablering av Kina som en dominerende aktør globalt. Det krever ny kunnskap som gir grunnlag for innovasjoner og nye produkter som vi knapt nok kan forestille oss i dag.Den industrielle revolusjonen innebar en overgang fra håndverk og muskelkraft til fabrikkproduksjon og maskinkraft. Oppfinnelser som dampmaskinen og

Eight killed and 17 injured in mass stabbing in eastern China

Eight people were killed and 17 others injured in a stabbing attack on a college campus in eastern China on Saturday, police said — the latest in a recent spate of attacks that has shaken a nation long used to low rates of violent crime. The attack took place around 6:30 p.m at the Wuxi Vocational Institute of Arts and Technology in the city of Yixing, Jiangsu province, according to a police

Biden’s final meeting with Xi Jinping reaps agreement on AI and nukes

President Joe Biden and China’s leader Xi Jinping met for just under two hours on the sidelines of the APEC summit Saturday, marking the end to their 15-year diplomatic relationship and ushering in a new era of uncertainty as Donald Trump prepares to return to office.The two leaders agreed to avoid giving artificial intelligence control of nuclear weapons systems, and they made progress toward

Remarks by President Biden and President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China Before Bilateral Meeting, Lima, Peru

"It’s a great pleasure to see you again, President Biden. Over the past four years, China-U.S. relations have gone through ups and downs. But under our joint stewardship, the two sides have also been engaged in fruitful dialogue and cooperation, and the relationship has been kept stable on the whole.These developments reconfirmed the experiences and lessons of the past of 45 years of China-U.S.