Torbjørn Færøvik's Blog, page 389

As many try living with virus, China keeps up zero tolerance

Wang Lijie planned to spend three days in the Gobi Desert last month to take in the area’s famous poplar forest as its trees turned a golden yellow. Instead, the Beijing resident has been stuck for more than three weeks, much of it in quarantine, after authorities discovered a cluster of COVID-19 cases in a nearby city. He was among more than 9,000 tourists who became trapped in Ejin Banner, a

NBA player Enes Kanter felt encouraged to speak out against China after NBA supported players fighting other injustices

Boston Celtics star Enes Kanter says he felt encouraged to speak out against China after the NBA supported players in fighting other injustices and human rights issues. In recent months, Kanter has used social media posts and specially designed clothing during NBA games to bring awareness to China's treatment of the Uyghur community, Tibet, Taiwan and Hong Kong.His posts and comments have caused

China surprises climate summit with pledge to work with US, but doesn't budge on climate goals

The US and China surprised the COP26 climate summit on Wednesday when representatives of the countries announced an agreement to ramp up their climate ambitions, just days before the end of the conference in Glasgow."There is more agreement between the US and China than divergence, making it an area of huge potential for cooperation," China climate envoy Xie Zhenhua said at a news conference. "

COP26: Cautious welcome for unexpected US-China climate agreement

Activists and politicians have cautiously welcomed an unexpected US-China declaration that vowed to boost climate co-operation. The EU and UN described the move as encouraging and an important step, but Greenpeace said both countries needed to show more commitment. The US and China are the world's two biggest CO2 emitters.They said they would work together to achieve the 1.5C temperature goal set

Japan seeks good ties with China, calls for ‘responsible behavior,’ new foreign minister says

Japan’s new foreign minister said on Thursday it was important to build constructive and stable ties with China while calling for responsible behavior from its giant neighbor.Staunch U.S. ally Japan has recently been more outspoken on questioning China’s assertiveness on issues such as the disputed South China Sea and self-ruled Taiwan, which China claims as its territory.At the same time,

Hong Kong prosecutors cite Dominic Raab comments in bid to deny bail for Apple Daily boss

A Hong Kong newspaper executive on trial for national security offences had his bail denied in part because of comments made by Dominic Raab after his arrest, which prosecutors cited as evidence of a “close association” with foreign political groups.The ruling handed down on 5 November against Cheung Kim-hung, the former chief executive of Apple Daily’s parent company Next Digital Media, also

An Answer To The U.S. Navy’s Ship Shortfall Is Staring It In The Face—A New Frigate

China now possesses the biggest navy in the world by number of hulls, the U.S. Defense Department confirmed in its recent report on Beijing’s armed forces. If U.S. leaders choose to catch up, there’s a ship class just waiting for a boost in funding. The fleet’s new missile frigate, which could meet America’s requirement for bigger ships while also being cheap enough to buy in large numbers.But if

The State Department is urging China to release Zhang Zhan, a jailed journalist who reported on the pandemic in Wuhan and who is reportedly close to death

The US State Department is urging the Chinese government to release jailed citizen journalist Zhang Zhan, who is known for her reporting in Wuhan during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.  "We have repeatedly expressed our serious concerns about the arbitrary nature of her detention and her mistreatment during it," State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters, per The New York Times.

Taiwan says China can blockade its key harbours, warns of 'grave' threat

China's armed forces are capable of blockading Taiwan's key harbours and airports, the island's defence ministry said on Tuesday, offering its latest assessment of what it describes as a "grave" military threat posed by its giant neighbour.China has never renounced the use of force to bring democratic Taiwan under its control and has been ramping up military activity around the island, including

China Wants to Take Taiwan 'Without a Fight,' Says Defense Report

China is continuing an expansive military buildup as part of a multifaceted campaign to frighten Taiwan into submission and capture the island without firing a single shot. That was the assessment Taiwan provided on Tuesday in publishing its 2021 National Defense Report, a biennial government document that has been tracking the shifting power balance across the Taiwan Strait for the last three