Category: China

Tweet of the Day: Contributor to Deadly Tianjin Blast

| August 22, 2015

Tweet of the Day: PLA’s New Reconnaissance Vehicle

| August 9, 2015

Tweet of the Day: Plane Nearly Runs Out of Fuel Avoiding Chinese Military Exercise

| August 4, 2015

China May Next Begin Building Islands in the Indian Ocean

| July 31, 2015

This would be real provocative towards India if China does in fact try and build islands in the Indian Ocean:

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There are growing fears, particularly in India, that China may soon launch an island reclamation project in the Indian Ocean.

The fears stem from a constitutional amendment passed by the small archipelagic nation of Maldives last week, which for the first time allows foreign ownership of Maldives territory. Specifically, the constitutional amendment allows foreigners who invest over $1 billion to own land, provided that at least 70 percent of the land is reclaimed from the sea.

Since July 2013, China has launched a massive reclamation project in the South China Sea that has created 2,000 acres of artificial landmass in five Spratly island outposts. Some 75 percent of this been dredged this year alone.

Unnamed Indian officials have told local media outlets that they are “concerned” that China now plans to do the same in some of the Maldives’ 1,200 islands, which are located strategically in the Indian Ocean.

They are not alone; domestic opponents of the amendment have expressed similar concerns. For example, Eva Abdullah, one of just 14 parliamentarians to vote against the amendment, told The Diplomat “this will make the country a Chinese colony.”  [The National Interest]

You can read the rest at the link, but it seems it would easier for them just to continue to use bases in Pakistan instead of building their own island.

Tweet of the Day: Interesting Read on PRC-DPRK Relations

| July 25, 2015

China Demands that Japan Apologize for Historical Wrongs, Should China Apologize for Korean War Aggression as Well?

| July 25, 2015

It will be interesting to see what terms the Japanese government agrees to, but I would love to see South Korea makes the same demands of the Chinese government to apologize for their aggression during the Korean War and continued division of the peninsula:

Beijing has reportedly demanded the government and ruling party of Japan include the words “colonialism,” “aggression” and apology” in the so-called “Abe statement,” set to be released next month.

The Japanese daily Sankei Shimbun reported on Tuesday that Chinese foreign ministry officials are trying to persuade Japanese officials regarding Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s planned statement marking the 70th anniversary of the end of World War II.

The newspaper said that Chinese officials are also demanding Tokyo inherit the apologetic Murayama statement that included the words “colonial rule,” “aggression,” “apology” and “remorse.”  [KBS World Radio]

Satellite Imagery Shows North Korea Still Receiving Oil Imports from China

| July 11, 2015

I always figured the Chinese would just reduce their oil exports to North Korea to make them feel a little pain and show their displeasure with North Korea.  I never believed they would cut off the exports entirely because of the effect it would have on regime stability:

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WASHINGTON, July 10 (Yonhap) — North Korea’s sole-operating oil refinery has been up and running despite a series of media reports that China halted crude exports to the impoverished communist neighbor amid strained relations last year, a U.S. expert said Friday.

Joseph S. Bermudez Jr., chief analytics officer of AllSource Analysis, said in a report carried by the website 38 North of the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies that the North’s Ponghwa Chemical Factory would not have been running if Beijing had halted crude exports.

Bermudez cited satellite imagery showing the refinery operational.

“Numerous reports during 2014-2015 have stated that China, North Korea’s largest crude oil supplier, did not sell it crude oil during 2014, a development that would force North Korea’s single operating oil refinery into caretaker status,” Bermudez said in the report.

“Satellite imagery from 2014 and 2015, however, reveals that the facility has remained operational, though perhaps at somewhat lower levels than in the immediately preceding years, calling into question media reports of an oil cutoff from China,” he said.

Imagery indicates activity at the factory’s rail loading and unloading facility, and construction activity within the factory, such as the building and maintenance of storage tanks and additions to several buildings, provides another indication that the facility remained operational, the expert said.  [Yonhap]

You can read the rest at the link.

State Department Says Nuclear and Economic Development in North Korea is A Fantasy

| June 22, 2015

I think it depends on what one defines economic development as meaning.  If making enough money to keep the ruling elites in power is the goal of the Kim regime they are doing a good job of that along with developing their nuclear weapons:

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The United States and China will use next week’s high-level strategic talks to discuss ways to get North Korea out of the “fantasy” that it can revive its broken economy without having to give up its nuclear program, a senior U.S. diplomat said Thursday.

Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Russel made the remark during a Foreign Press Center briefing previewing the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) to be held in Washington from Monday through Wednesday, saying Washington and Beijing share the same goal of ending Pyongyang’s nuclear program.

“North Korea harbors the fantasy that it can have its cake and eat it too,” Russel said. “North Korea is hoping to be able to rescue itself from the economic failure of its system through external aid while simultaneously and brazenly carrying forward on its nuclear and missile program. That’s just not going to happen.”  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but as I have long said there is right now no good reason why the North Koreans should stop their pursuit of nuclear weapons.  Promises of “economic development” only matter if the Kim regime cared about the welfare of all their citizens.  Right now they are doing enough to keep the elites in power by getting enough aid from China and managing their global illicit operations.

Tweet of the Day: All’s Quiet On the Eastern Front

| June 16, 2015

Chinese Border Guards Shoot North Korean Trying to Cross the Border

| June 13, 2015

This could just be China cracking down on North Korean soldiers coming across the border and murdering Chinese citizens:

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Chinese border guards shot and killed one person who was allegedly trying to illegally cross from North Korea on Thursday, authorities said.

The incident took place shortly before 4:00 p.m. (0800 GMT) after the suspect attempted to evade arrest by border guards, according to a brief statement from the Helong city government in Jilin province. It said the shooting is under investigation.

China’s 1,416-kilometer (880-mile) border with North Korea is a key crossing point for refugees from the impoverished hard-line communist state.  [Stars & Stripes]

You can read more at the link.