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Arab States Urge China to ‘Take Greater Role’ in Promoting Middle East Peace

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China has been urged to “play a greater role” in promoting peace in the Middle East, with over 20 Arab diplomatic envoys meeting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. According to a Chinese foreign ministry statement released after the meeting on Thursday, the envoys expressed their concern over the “sudden” changes in the Middle Eastern situation and the suffering of the people in the region. They emphasized their expectation for China to help ease the tensions.

Wang Yi highlighted that the Middle East belongs to its people and should not become a stage for major powers to engage in power games. He warned against the region falling victim to geopolitical rivalries.

Addressing the Palestine issue, Wang called for a “comprehensive ceasefire,” the permanent withdrawal of troops from Gaza, and a resolution based on the “two-state solution.” On Syria, he urged all parties to consider the long-term interests of the country and its people by engaging in an open and inclusive political process to prevent the resurgence of terrorism.

Meanwhile, the United States has disclosed that it has 2,000 troops in Syria, more than double the previously reported number, while Israeli airstrikes continue in Gaza, Syria, and Yemen. In Syria, where Bashar al-Assad’s regime collapsed earlier this month, rebel leader Ahmed al-Sharaa, told the BBC that the country was exhausted by war and posed no threat to its neighbors or the West.

China on Tuesday warned the new Syrian government against supporting terrorism after a Syria-based Islamic militant group Turkistan Islamic Party sent a message to Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region, urging them to wage jihad in China. 

Earlier, China stressed the importance of maintaining Lebanon’s sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity. In September, Wang condemned the “indiscriminate attacks against civilians” by Israeli forces, which had launched several deadly attacks on Lebanon targeting the militant group Hezbollah. “We will always stand on the side of justice and our Arab brothers, including Lebanon,” Wang told his Lebanese counterpart during the annual United Nations General Assembly in New York, attributing the situation to the spillover from the war in Gaza. 

“China and Arab countries are good friends and partners who share the same ideals and work together for development,” Wang said, adding that China would continue to support Arab nations in achieving strategic independence and unity. He pledged efforts to create a peaceful and stable Middle East.

Witnessing the shifting alliances, it is important to recall the previous Chinese-Israeli partnership which was marked by the signing of an “Innovative Comprehensive Partnership” in 2017, making China Israel’s largest trading partner. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu once called this relationship “a marriage made in heaven.”

Financial incentives remain strong for maintaining the relationship. Israel’s ongoing conflict has hurt its GDP and credit rating, complicating fundraising efforts for Israeli firms. China, Israel’s third-largest trading partner before October 7, remains essential to Israel’s economy.

Amidst China’s shifting attitudes towards Israel, some Israeli private sector leaders have even suggested financial repercussions, such as banning Chinese companies from operating in Israel’s ports.

On October 14, 2024, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi, spoke with Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz at Katz’s request. Katz reaffirmed that developing relations with China is a long-standing policy of Israel and serves the mutual interests of both nations. He also reiterated the Israeli government’s consistent stance on the Taiwan issue. Wang Yi emphasized that China remains committed to a stable and continuous policy towards Israel and is prepared to resume comprehensive exchanges as soon as the situation improves.

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Warsaw Chopin Airport to Phase Out Nuctech Scanners Over Security Issues

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Warsaw Chopin Airport has made the pivotal decision to phase out the security scanners manufactured by the Chinese company Nuctech, a move that was confirmed by an official from the airport on Wednesday. This decision arises from growing security concerns that were highlighted in an assessment conducted by Poland’s Civil Aviation Authority.

Piotr Rudzki, the airport’s communications chief, explained the situation, stating, “Just like the later position of the Ministry of Infrastructure, the recommendation was that these devices may not be safe and therefore it is recommended to refrain from using them.” He shared this information with Reuters but noted that Nuctech did not respond to requests for comment about the decision.

Currently, the airport operates four large Nuctech scanners that are employed for screening checked luggage. However, plans are already in place to replace these machines with new models from a Polish consortium named Dimark-Anglosec, with the transition expected to be completed by March 2025.

Nuctech, known for its production of body and luggage scanners used in airports and ports worldwide, has faced significant scrutiny. In 2020, the company was blacklisted by the U.S. government, which cited national security concerns as the reason for this action. The scrutiny over Nuctech doesn’t stop there. In 2022, European lawmakers in Strasbourg expressed alarm over a proposed deal to purchase Nuctech’s baggage scanners. They advocated for an independent investigation to explore possible spying risks linked to the technology before any commitment to the deal was made.

This development at Warsaw Chopin Airport reflects not only a growing awareness regarding security in air travel but also highlights the critical importance of carefully evaluating the technological partnerships that are fundamental to maintaining safety in the aviation industry.

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European Commission Investigates TikTok for Alleged Interference in Romanian Election

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The European Commission has launched a formal investigation under its robust digital laws to examine TikTok’s alleged involvement in undermining the integrity of Romania’s recent presidential election. The electoral process in this EU and NATO member state was disrupted amid claims of “aggressive hybrid action” by Russia, aimed at subverting the first round of voting in November.

Romania’s constitutional court recently annulled the first round of the election just before the scheduled run-off. The initial round had unexpectedly been won by far-right candidate Calin Georgescu. Authorities have focused on TikTok, a Chinese-owned social media platform with growing influence in Europe, as a central figure in the controversy.

Georgescu’s unexpected rise to prominence was largely credited to a viral campaign on TikTok, which brought him into the limelight. Romanian officials promptly noted that this campaign did not adhere to electoral regulations. The European Commission now suspects that TikTok’s “recommender systems” may have been vulnerable to “coordinated inauthentic manipulation or automated exploitation.”

Additionally, the Commission is scrutinizing TikTok’s policies on political advertising and paid content, following reports that influencers were compensated to promote Georgescu without proper disclosure of sponsorship or political motivation.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen commented, “Following serious indications that foreign actors interfered in the Romanian presidential elections by using TikTok, we are now thoroughly investigating whether TikTok has violated the Digital Services Act by failing to tackle such risks. It should be crystal clear that in the EU all online platforms, including TikTok, must be held accountable.”

This investigation is part of the Digital Services Act, a comprehensive regulation aimed at overseeing the operations of online platforms, which came into effect last year. TikTok has previously faced several investigations under this legislation and has made efforts to comply with its requirements. Last week, the Commission ordered TikTok to retain data related to the election collected between November this year and March next year for potential future investigations.

During a European Parliament hearing on December 3, TikTok representatives defended their practices. Brie Pegum, TikTok’s global head of product, authenticity, and transparency, stated that in the three months leading up to the Romanian election, the platform had removed over 66,000 fake accounts, 7 million fake likes, and prevented an additional 40 million fake likes. TikTok also removed 10 million fake followers, blocked 216,000 spam accounts, and eliminated 1,000 accounts impersonating Romanian political candidates.

Pegum also mentioned that TikTok had shut down two clusters of accounts supporting candidates, including Georgescu, for not complying with rules that require political content to be clearly labeled. Caroline Greer, TikTok’s top lobbyist in Europe, addressed concerns about user data potentially being transmitted to China. She highlighted TikTok’s Project Clover, which ensures that European user data is stored within Europe and monitored by a third-party cybersecurity firm 24/7.

Declassified intelligence from outgoing President Klaus Iohannis revealed that paid support for Georgescu on TikTok was not marked as election-related content, unlike the content for other candidates. One TikTok account reportedly spent $381,000 in a single month from October 24 to pay influencers supporting Georgescu.

Authorities also reported over 85,000 attempts to hack electoral data systems before and on the day of the first round, attributing these efforts to “state-sponsored actors.” 

Since the election’s annulment, media reports indicate that influencers allegedly involved in the manipulation fled Romania as tax authorities began to pursue them. According to Politico, some influencers posted farewell messages near land borders or on airplanes, signaling their departure before financial investigations began.

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Chinese National with Ties to British Prince Suspected of Espionage

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A Chinese national with close ties to Prince Andrew has denied any wrongdoing and rejected claims that he is a spy after being named in court as a suspected Chinese agent by British authorities. Yang Tengbo, identified in a recent ruling by the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC) as a “close confidant” of Andrew, waived his right to anonymity on Monday to address the allegations. 

“I have done nothing wrong or unlawful, and the concerns raised by the Home Office against me are ill-founded,” said Tengbo in the statement, that his lawyer released. He also mentioned that a very common description of him – “spy”- is “entirely untrue.”

In a letter from July 2023, cited in the SIAC ruling, the UK’s Home Office informed Yang that they had reason to believe he was “engaging, or had previously engaged, in covert and deceptive activities on behalf of the United Front Work Department (UFWD), a branch of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) state apparatus.” The ruling indicated that evidence from Yang’s phone showed Prince Andrew had authorized him to establish an international financial initiative aimed at engaging potential partners and investors in China. However, the ruling did not clarify the specific purpose of the fund.

British intelligence agency MI5 has been investigating the money Andrew has been receiving from China, while The Times has stated that Prince Andrew has previously invited Yang Tengbo to several monarchic belongings, such as Buckingham Palace, St James’s Palace, and Windsor Castle.

Yang, who lived between the UK and China for nearly 20 years, ran the Duke of York’s PitchatPalace in China. Court documents show he was also authorized to act on Prince Andrew’s behalf in business dealings in China. He has been pictured with two former Conservative prime ministers, Theresa May and David Cameron, and is known to have met other politicians, including former deputy prime minister John Prescott.

Security Minister Dan Jarvis has said that a planned overhaul of security laws, which would require individuals working for foreign governments to disclose this or face criminal charges, won’t be ready until the summer of 2025. His Conservative predecessor, Tom Tugendhat, added that MI5 had warned the government the new law would be ineffective unless China was identified as the top security threat.

On Monday, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry stated that China had always been transparent and never engaged in deception or interference. The spokesperson dismissed the accusations as “groundless speculation” not worth addressing.

 In an early Tuesday statement, the Chinese embassy in London urged the UK to “immediately cease creating trouble, stop anti-China political manipulation, and refrain from undermining normal personnel exchanges between China and the UK.”

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EU Imposes Sweeping Sanctions on Russia and China

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On December 16, the European Union adopted a new package of sanctions against Russia. This is the 15th package of sanctions that the EU has adopted since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This package focuses on suppressing Russia’s shadow fleet and actions to circumvent sanctions. This new sanctions package includes lists of people and entities linked to the Russian military-industrial complex. The main goal is to legally protect EU Central Securities Depositories.

The significance of this particular package lies in the fact that the European Union, for the first time in its existence, has imposed comprehensive, full-fledged sanctions on several Chinese actors, including a travel ban, asset freezes, and a ban on access to economic resources.

The 15th package of sanctions added 52 more ships to the existing 27, which were trying to bypass Western sanctions to transport weapons, oil, and grain.  

Moreover, 84 new individuals and entities were added to the already sanctioned individuals, “responsible for actions undermining the territorial integrity, sovereignty, and independence of Ukraine”. 7 of these sanctioned people are Chinese, „namely one individual and two entities facilitating the circumvention of EU sanctions, and four entities supplying sensitive drone components and microelectronic component to the Russian military“ industry to support Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, said the statement EU has released.   

As the EU diplomat announced, this is a clear message to China that the EU takes the current situation very seriously.

This package also adds 32 new companies to the list of those supporting Russia’s military and industrial complex during the war in Ukraine. Seven of those companies are under Chinese/ Hong Kong jurisdiction.

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Navarro Warns China: Currency Manipulation Could Lead to Escalating Tariffs

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In response to a Reuters report that suggested Chinese officials were thinking about letting the yuan depreciate next year, a senior trade adviser to President-elect Donald Trump told Reuters on Thursday that the next government would not look “fondly” on any attempt by China to manipulate its currency. 

As stated by Peter Navarro, Trump’s incoming senior adviser for manufacturing and trade, the White House will not obstruct the Treasury Department’s biennial review investigating currency manipulation by foreign trading partners. “But I don’t think the Trump Treasury Department would be very fond of Chinese currency manipulation,” he continued. China’s currency manipulation history is widely recognized. 

For the first time since 1994, the U.S. government declared China a currency manipulator in 2019, during Trump’s administration. The following year, the decision was annulled.  

While this move is more symbolic than substantive, it would nevertheless demonstrate that Trump plans on launching an unprecedented trade war with the second-largest economy in the world, as he frequently promised throughout the campaign.  The 2019 action came at a time when the Chinese government allowed the value of its currency to decline in relation to the US dollar. 

Instead of waiting for the biannual Treasury report, Navarro, who was also an economic adviser during Trump’s first term, stated that if China devalues its currency, Trump may decide to further increase tariffs.  

As Navarro said, “There’s appropriate remedies there,” “If (Trump) didn’t want to wait for any report, he could just raise tariffs higher.”

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China Considers Weaker Currency to Combat US Tariff Risks 

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China’s top leaders and policymakers are considering allowing the yuan to weaken in 2025, anticipating higher U.S. trade tariffs as Donald Trump returns to the White House. The contemplated move reflects China’s need for a larger economic stimulus to counter Trump’s threats of punitive trade measures, according to sources familiar with the matter. Trump has announced plans to impose a “10% universal import tariff” and a “60% tariff on Chinese imports into the United States.”

Allowing the yuan to depreciate could make Chinese exports cheaper, mitigating the impact of tariffs and creating looser monetary settings in mainland China. This strategy is not new; China has a history of competitive devaluation to offset tariff impacts. In 2019, the U.S. Department of the Treasury labeled the country a “currency manipulator.”

Financial News, the PBOC’s (People’s Bank of China) publication, released an article stating that the foundation for a “basically stable” yuan exchange rate remains “solid,” and the yuan is likely to stabilize and strengthen towards the end of this year. Allowing the yuan to depreciate next year would deviate from the usual practice of maintaining a stable foreign exchange rate, according to the sources. 

While the central bank is unlikely to state it will no longer uphold the currency, it will emphasize giving markets more power in deciding the yuan’s value, one source said. 

During Trump’s first term, the yuan weakened more than 12% against the dollar amid tit-for-tat tariff announcements between March 2018 and May 2020. A weaker yuan could help China’s economy achieve its challenging 5% growth target and relieve deflationary pressures by boosting export earnings and making imported goods more expensive.

“To be fair, it is a policy option. Currency adjustments are on the table as a tool to mitigate the effects of tariffs,” said economist Fred Neumann. However, he cautioned that aggressive currency devaluation could lead to a “tariff cascade” as other nations impose import restrictions on Chinese goods in response.

Analysts forecast the yuan to fall to 7.37 per dollar by the end of next year, though much depends on the extent and speed of Trump’s tariff increases. The currency has lost nearly 4% of its value against the dollar since the end of September as investors prepare for a Trump presidency.

China Considers Weaker Currency to Combat US Tariff Risks  Read More »

Russian official Medvedev visits China

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Dimitry Medvedev, a senior Russian security official, arrived in Beijing for a two-day visit to engage in discussions with Chinese leaders, Russian news agencies reported late Tuesday.

Medvedev, who serves as the deputy chairman of Russia’s influential Security Council, is visiting as part of the growing relationship between Moscow and Beijing. Both nations have committed to strengthening their “no limits” partnership, which was declared in February 2022, shortly before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In October, Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov also visited Beijing. Both parties described his meetings as focusing on “substantive” defense and military discussions aimed at enhancing bilateral ties.

Medvedev, a former Russian president, has become one of the most outspoken defenders of Moscow’s actions in Ukraine. Last month, he cautioned the United States to take President Vladimir Putin’s adjustment to Russia’s military doctrine seriously, given Ukraine’s use of Western missiles to target sites within Russian territory.

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New Challenges for China’s Economy Amid Rising U.S. Tariffs

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China, the world’s second-largest economy, is facing new challenges. Weeks before the Trump administration returns to the White House and implements new trade tariffs, Chinese exports grew at a slower pace in November than in the previous month, while imports also fell.

Outbound shipments grew by just 6.7% last month, below the 8.5% increase expected by economists and down from 12.7% in October. More worryingly, imports dropped by 3.9%, the worst performance in nine months and far worse than the expected 0.3% rise. This has fueled calls for more government action to support domestic demand.

Donald Trump, the US President-elect, announced on November 26 that he would impose an additional 10% tariff on products imported from China because Beijing had not fulfilled its promise to severely punish anyone who facilitated the smuggling of fentanyl and drugs from China into the United States through Mexico. Trump has also said he might impose tariffs of over 60% on Chinese goods.

China is also facing the threat of opening a second front in the trade war due to the 45.3% tariffs imposed by the European Union on Chinese-made electric cars.

Xu Tianchen, senior economist at the Economist Intelligence Unit, stated, that  “Early signs of trade frontloading in anticipation of Trump’s tariffs next year have started to emerge, but the full impact will not be felt until the coming months, especially December and January“.

U.S. tariffs are becoming an even bigger challenge for China now compared to during Donald Trump’s first term. The Chinese economy, worth $19 trillion, relies heavily on exports, but with the ongoing property crisis hurting household and business confidence, exports are under pressure. While manufacturers reported better business conditions in November, indicating some effect from government stimulus, they also noted a drop in export orders.

This has led experts to urge China to move away from an over-reliance on manufacturing and exports. Some government advisors suggest maintaining a growth target of around 5% for next year, with more aggressive stimulus measures aimed at boosting domestic consumption to offset the impact of U.S. tariffs.

In response to these challenges, the central bank launched its largest monetary easing since the pandemic in September, cutting interest rates and injecting $140 billion into the economy. China also saw a drop in imports of commodities like vegetable oils and rare earths, though prices for some, like crude oil and copper, rose.

 Key policymakers are set to meet soon to discuss priorities for 2025, and investors are keen to see if Beijing will shift its focus towards strengthening the consumer sector, which could drive future growth. Economists expect imports to pick up in the coming months as fiscal policies are likely to stimulate demand for industrial commodities.

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Donald Trump named David Perdue as the next US ambassador to China

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The newly-elected president, Donald Trump, named past Georgia Senator David Perdue as the next US ambassador to China.

Chinese think tanks described Perdue’s work in Congress as „anti-China.” One of the ambassador’s main concerns was the strengthening of the U.S. Navy, partly caused by the constant development of Chinese military capabilities.  Apart from this, Perdue talked about China in his essay published in the Washington Examiner, saying that, for protection, “Americans first have to realize the CCP [Chinese Communist Party] actually is at war with us.”

It should be mentioned that his position toward China was not always this strict: at first since he was business-friendly, the former Senator advocated for the reduction of the Chinese trade deficit. Additionally, Perdue, as a businessman, was especially in favor of moving certain jobs from the U.S. to Asia to save on manufacturing costs. However, for a lot of people, such activities went against Trump’s America First policy, which aimed to bring job positions back to America.

On social media website TRUTH. Donald Trump wrote about the new position of Perdue and said that the work of the ambassador would play a crucial part in „implementing [his] strategy to maintain Peace in the region and a productive working relationship with China’s leaders.“ Despite this,  considering Perdue’s past work in Congress, Trump’s choice looks to be a more aggressive approach than Biden’s administration.

Politico writes on account of an anonymous source that Perdue is not perceived as a partner for China and he „will be lucky if he can see [Chinese Foreign Minister] Wang Yi. “ Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson has not commented on the subject but has „noted the report“ about the decision. 

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