Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 355

China Targets Lithuania, Says U.S. Incited Them Into Supporting Taiwan

A Chinese spokesperson accused the United States of supporting Lithuania in its recognition of Taiwan as independent from China. Lithuania opened a Taiwanese representative office in its capital, Vilnius, under the name Taiwan in November. To appease China, most countries open offices under the name Taipei. Lithuania became the first European Union nation to let Taiwan use its own name in a

Intel deletes mention of Xinjiang in letter after China backlash

US chipmaker Intel has deleted references to Xinjiang from an annual letter to suppliers after the company faced a backlash in China for asking suppliers to avoid the sanctions-hit region. Last month, Intel was slammed on Chinese social media for a letter to suppliers published on its website. The 23 December letter said Intel had been “required to ensure that its supply chain does not use any

Pacific faces ‘strategic surprise’, says US official, alluding to China

The Pacific may be the part of the world most likely to see “strategic surprise”, the US Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Campbell has said, in comments apparently referring to possible Chinese ambitions to establish Pacific island bases.Campbell told Washington’s Center for Strategic and International Studies that the United States has “enormous moral, strategic, historical interests” in the

North Korea fires second suspected missile in six days

North Korea has fired a suspected ballistic missile, less than a week after it launched what it claimed was a hypersonic missile. South Korea said it detected the launch at 07:27 local time on Tuesday (22:27 GMT on Monday). Japan's coast guard also reported the launch, saying North Korea had fired a "ballistic missile-like object".It comes shortly after six countries issued a statement urging the

Sudha Bharadwaj: The prison life of India's best-known woman activist

After three years in prison, one of India's best-known activists is trying to set up home in a new city and find work. Bail conditions prohibit Sudha Bharadwaj from leaving Mumbai until the end of a trial in which she is accused of a role in a 2018 incident of caste-based violence and alleged links with Maoists. She is also not allowed to talk about the case.Since June 2018, Prime Minister

Chinese anti-virus lockdowns add to concerns over economy

China’s lockdowns of big cities to fight coronavirus outbreaks are prompting concern about more disruptions to global industries after two makers of processor chips said their factories were affected. That has added to unease about the omicron variant’s global economic impact. Analysts warn Vietnam, Thailand and other countries important to manufacturing chains might impose anti-disease measures

Stop relying on China. Move the supply chain to Central America

In July, 200,000 migrants were apprehended at the southern U.S. border, a 21-year high, according to an analysis by Pew Research. It’s no surprise that this unprecedented, post-COVID-19 surge in migration has stretched our immigration, asylum and border systems to the breaking point.This surge is a full-fledged humanitarian disaster, but like so many other governance challenges, our immigration

Overfishing fuels South China Sea tensions, risks armed conflict, researcher says

A collapse of fishery stocks in the South China Sea due to overfishing and climate change could fuel serious tensions and even armed conflict, one of the authors of a new report on the topic has warned. “The simmering conflict that we see in the South China Sea is mostly because of fish even though countries don’t say it out loud,” said Rashid Sumaila, a professor at the University of British

Xi’s ‘Communism With Chinese Characteristics’ Has Triggered A Religious Revival

Since the dawn of the 20th century, China has been deeply concerned about the place of religion in the country’s society and politics. Both the nationalist Kuomintang (KMT) and the Communist party tended to associate religion with China’s corrupt, inefficient and feudal past presided over by a series of Emperors claiming a divine right to rule. Therefore, both the nationalist KMT led by Sun

Sri Lanka Seeks Chinese Debt Restructuring Amid Crisis

The president of debt-ridden Sri Lanka on Sunday asked China for the restructuring of its loans and access to preferential credit for imports of essential goods, as the island nation struggles in the throes of its worst economic crisis, partly due to Beijing-financed projects that don’t generate revenue. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa told visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that it would be