Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 145

China bans students from mass cycle rides at night

Authorities across China are cracking down on thousands of college students who took part in mass night-cycling events that commentators said could be seen as a new form of protest against the ruling Chinese Communist Party.The police department in Henan’s Zhengzhou city issued a warning to students on Nov. 9, following a mass “night ride to Kaifeng” by thousands of young people a day earlier, as

China car killings could spark new round of security measures

A fatal car attack on pedestrians at a sports facility in southern China that left at least 35 people dead could spark a fresh round of security measures, observers said, as the ruling Communist Party counts the cost of a growing number of “social revenge” attacks on members of the public. At least 35 people were killed and 43 injured when a driver rammed his car into a crowd at a stadium in

Philippines rejects China’s new map claim in South China Sea

The Philippines on Tuesday protested against China’s recent unilateral announcement of the baselines around the disputed Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, calling it a violation of “the Philippines’ long-established sovereignty over the shoal.” China announced the baselines of its territorial sea around the shoal to strengthen its claim over the South China Sea feature that lies within

Philippines enacts laws asserting maritime claims

The Philippines has enacted two laws to bolster its maritime claims including in the South China Sea, leading to an annoyed Beijing, which claims almost the entire sea, summoning Manila’s envoy to protest. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. signed the laws at a time of heightened tension in the South China Sea, where confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels have dramatically

Specter of China hovers over U.S. colleges

The leaves were turning red and orange at Georgia Institute of Technology on a recent afternoon, and students were studying for midterms. Yet within this quiet haven, a global conflict has raged. Georgia Tech, as the university is known, has been pulled into the geopolitical strife between the United States and China. A group of U.S. lawmakers say that Chinese officials have been trying to pilfer

As Trump Threatens a Wider Trade War, the U.S. Confronts a Changed China

Eight years ago, when a newly elected Donald J. Trump promised to apply the powers of the Oval Office to start a trade war with China, the target of his ire was widely viewed as a juggernaut. China was the indispensable factory floor to the world and a swiftly developing market for goods and services.As Mr. Trump now prepares for his second stint in the White House, he is vowing to intensify

China nears record $1 trillion trade surplus as Trump returns

China’s trade surplus is on track to hit a fresh record this year, increasingly leaving it on a collision course with some of the world’s biggest economies by aggravating an imbalance in global commerce that risks provoking President-elect Donald Trump.The difference between Chinese exports and imports is set to reach almost $1 trillion if it continues to widen at the same pace as it has in the

From China’s Past: The ‘Empress of China’ and the beginning of U.S.-China trade

New York City is in the midst of one of its mildest winters ever, with its latest first snow ever, and even that just a dusting. Such was not the case in 1784, when an exceptionally cold February kept the Hudson River and much of the harbor frozen.Among the ships kept in port by the cold was a 360-ton schooner named the Empress of China. While her captain, John Green, waited anxiously, “the

Chea Mony: Leader of Cambodia’s new opposition party

It was in his first job as a teacher 30 years ago that Chea Mony, who last month became head of Cambodia’s newest opposition party, got involved in activism. Together with another young teacher, Rong Chhun — who later became a prominent labor activist — they formed a teachers' union to combat what they viewed as injustices at the school.“We were called ‘democratic teachers,’” Chea Mony, 55, told

Vietnam faces Trump era with awkward trade surplus with the US

While the Vietnamese public watched the U.S. election with curiosity, the leadership in Hanoi probably looked at the results with trepidation. While Hanoi’s “bamboo diplomacy” of building balanced strategic relationships with major global powers gives it a measure of comfort, Vietnam is far more vulnerable to changes in U.S. economic and trade policies, not to mention security policy, than almost