Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 182

China’s Communist Party meets to set direction for troubled economy

After months of unexplained delay, top officials from China’s ruling Communist Party are gathering in Beijing this week to signal the direction forward for the world’s second largest economy as it faces major economic challenges and friction with the West. Stakes are high for the meeting, which takes place every five years and is known as China’s third plenum. It has historically been a platform

Japan’s Defense White Paper Sounds Alarm Over China, North Korea, Russia

In its latest defense white paper, Tokyo has for the first time sounded a direct warning against the growing risk of a grave situation akin to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine occurring in East Asia. “Japan is facing the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II. It cannot be ruled out that a serious situation similar to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine may occur

China’s Third Plenum: Without efforts to revive market confidence, Beijing’s broader reform agenda could falter.

In the days ahead of the Chinese Communist Party’s long-delayed Third Plenum, few observers expect that the reform announcements will be enough to revive confidence in the economy. Instead, most expect more of the same: a focus on Party centralization, national security, technology-led development, and skepticism toward foreign businesses. This is despite the fact that China’s economy continues

NATO allies are discussing reclaiming some Chinese-owned infrastructure in Europe

NATO officials are discussing taking action to reclaim some Chinese-owned infrastructure projects in Europe should a wider conflict with Russia break out in the east of the continent, three officials involved in the discussions told CNN. A decade ago, when Europe was still crawling out of the economic crater caused by the global financial crisis, the promise of infrastructure funding from

Germany moves to ban China’s Huawei, ZTE from its 5G network

Germany will phase out components made by China’s Huawei and ZTE from its 5G wireless network over the next five years, a move that risks worsening its already strained relations with the world’s second-largest economy. Mobile network operators including Vodafone, Deutsche Telekom and Telefonica have agreed to remove the components from their 5G “core networks” — which are connected to the

China examining if EU is putting up ‘trade barriers’ as tensions intensify

The Chinese government said Wednesday that it would investigate whether the European Union’s probes into Chinese companies constitute “trade barriers.” Concerns are rising in the West that jobs and strategically important industries could be wiped out by cheap Chinese imports propped up by government subsidies. Earlier this year, the EU launched investigations into China’s state support for its

NATO calls China ‘decisive enabler’ of Russia’s war in Ukraine

Chinas is a «decisive enabler» of Russia’s invasion in Ukraine through its support for the country’s defense industry, says a statement issued by the 32 NATO members at a summit in Washington on Wednesday. The Chinese and Russian militaries meanwhile held joint military exercises in western Belarus – a staunch ally of Moscow – close to the border with NATO member Poland, but Beijing publicly

US needs smarter policies to avoid a China war

A group of men – knives and axes at the ready – boards opposing ships and immobilizes them. Think this is from the Age of Sail? Think again. China’s recent escalation of its dispute with the Philippines is another example of Beijing’s willingness to defend its claimed territory. This event follows a similar escalation in 2020 along the Sino-Indian border where both sides used sticks and stones to

China redefining air power with huge stealth fighter rollout

China is on a roll with its rapid deployment of advanced fifth-generation fighters, potentially revolutionizing its airpower versus potential adversaries such as the US and India. This month, Nikkei reported that China’s new stealth combat aircraft, the J-31B, is expected to be deployed on its third aircraft carrier, the Fujian. Nikkei mentions that the fifth-generation fighter jet, revealed by

China tightening its grip on leaky rare earth supplies

China has launched a set of new rules to improve the traceability in its rare earth sector to ensure that sanctioned American firms can’t gain access to the nation’s precious metals. The State Council recently unveiled a set of new regulations, set to take effect on October 1, to regulate the country’s rare earth industry. The new rules state that no organization or individual may appropriate or