Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 314

Hong Kong eases travel rules in apparent shift from zero-Covid policy

Hong Kong will lift a ban on flights from nine countries and reduce hotel quarantine alongside a “roadmap” towards eased restrictions that suggest a departure from the territory’s zero-Covid policy, its leader has announced. From 1 April, fully vaccinated Hong Kong residents who have received a negative PCR test will be allowed to enter on flights from the UK, Australia, Canada, France, India,

‘A blatant lie’: China and Taiwan fight for credit over rescue of sailors lost at sea for 29 days

Tensions between China and Taiwan have found an unlikely battleground – a fight over who rescued nine Papua New Guinean sailors who were lost at sea for nearly a month. The dispute came after the rescue of the Papua New Guinean nationals in Solomon Island waters after 29 days lost at sea, late in February.Credit for the mission was claimed by China in an article published in the Global Times, an

A run through the snow, PCR tests and no guests: a wedding in China’s Covid lockdown

When Amanda Liu Chang and Jia Shihan grow old, they can tell their family members of the time they got married in the middle of a pandemic, Liu having to trudge with her wedding dress through the snow. The story began on 19 March when the couple awoke in their respective Tangshan city apartments in China’s Hebei province, looking forward to formalising their three-year romance with family and

Covid-19: Should India be bracing for a fourth wave?

There's a fresh surge in Covid cases around the world - infections are rising in the UK and parts of Europe. China and Hong Kong are seeing their largest spike in cases in more than two years. With more than 40 million confirmed cases, India has the world's second biggest caseload, behind US. More than half a million deaths have been officially recorded - the third largest toll in the world.Is

Ukraine Applies Subtle Pressure on China to Help End War With Russia

Ukraine has asked China to help bring a more amenable Russia to the negotiating table in a move that doesn't embarrass Beijing, but makes it clear it can and should do more.Dmytro Kuleba, the Ukrainian foreign minister, hailed bilateral relations with China, based on "mutual respect, understanding and benefit," in a tweet posted on Monday. The official didn't criticize or dismiss China's

Volodymyr Zelensky to Speak With China's Xi Jinping 'Very Soon': Adviser

Andriy Yermak, the head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office, told a virtual briefing on Tuesday he hoped the Ukrainian leader would speak with President Xi Jinping "very soon," as Beijing mulls support for Russia's ongoing invasion of the country. Yermak told the event—hosted by the British Chatham House think tank—that Kyiv wants China to do more to help end the fighting, which has so far

US expands travel bans on Chinese officials for persecution

The Biden administration on Monday expanded existing U.S. travel bans against Chinese officials whom it accuses of repressing ethnic and religious minorities. The State Department said it is barring those targeted from traveling to the United States due to their involvement in crackdowns on freedom of speech and religion in China and abroad. The department did not identify which officials would

China says military development of islands within its rights

China on Tuesday said it has the right to develop South China Sea islands as it sees fit in the wake of U.S. accusations that it has fully militarized at least three of several islands it built in the disputed waterway in violation of a previous commitment. China’s deployment of “necessary national defense facilities on its own territory is a right entitled to every sovereign country and is in

Torbjørn Færøvik: Kyiv - byen med det vakre hjertet

Forleden kom jeg over et maleri som forestiller Kyivs grunnleggelse i år 482. Okser og muskelsterke menn pløyer den første dype plogfuren. Rundt dem står forventningsfulle kvinner og barn. En av kvinnene, en ung skjønnhet, sitter i gresset med en blomsterkrans på hodet, og i bakgrunnen flyter livets kilde, elven Dnipro. Kyiv ligger på et høydedrag med vid utsikt over Dnipro og slettene bortenfor.

What Will Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine Mean for China’s Belt and Road?

While primarily a geopolitical event, the Russian invasion of Ukraine will profoundly reconfigure global geoeconomics. “Geoeconomics” is defined here simply as the intersection of economy and geography. Examples include infrastructure-based connectivity initiatives such as China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), the European Union’s Global Gateway, the U.S.-led Blue Dot Network (BDN), the G-7’s