Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 143

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

WHO urges China to share Covid origins data, five years on from pandemic’s emergence

The World Health Organization has urged China to share data to help understand the origins of Covid-19, five years on from the start of the pandemic in the Chinese city of Wuhan. On December 31, 2019, the WHO’s China office noted a cluster of “pneumonia” cases in a statement from health authorities in Wuhan. More than three weeks later, Chinese authorities locked down the city of 11 million.

Full text of President Xi Jinping's 2025 New Year address

On New Year's eve, Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered his 2025 New Year address through China Media Group and the Internet. The following is the full text of the address:"Greetings to everybody! Time flies fast, and the new year will be with us shortly. I extend my best wishes to you all from Beijing. In 2024, we have together journeyed through the four seasons. Together, we have experienced

Uyghur group welcomes key laws passed in US defense bill

Uyghur-American activists have welcomed the 2025 U.S. defense spending bill’s inclusion of key laws aimed at the repression of Uyghurs in China, including one that requires the federal government to monitor rights abuses in Xinjiang and sanction implicated Chinese officials. The 2025 National Defense Authorization Act was passed by the U.S. Congress on Dec. 18 and signed by President Joe Biden on

New Mekong dam project sparks concern in Laos and Thailand

Plans to proceed with a benefits-and-risks review of a proposed hydropower dam on the Mekong River has sparked concern in both Laos and Thailand about the impact on communities and the ecosystem. The US$2-billion, 12-turbine Sanakham hydropower dam will be built about 155 kilometers (100 miles) west of the Lao capital of Vientiane, and 25 km (15 miles) upstream from Sanakham district of Vientiane