Links for Friday, October 9, 2020

WORTH THINKING ABOUT

Pieces of news or analysis that caught our eye:

“The U.S. and China must take steps back if history is not to repeat itself,” the Financial Times editorial board writes today. “While hawks in Washington and Beijing might accept or even embrace this rivalry, a new cold war is neither inevitable nor desirable.” The FT gives unsolicited advice for both sides:

• For Beijing: “If China wants to dial down tensions with the U.S., it should pursue less aggressive policies abroad, and more open policies at home. Above all, Beijing should understand that any military assault on Taiwan would end normal commercial relations with the West.”
• For Washington: “For its part, the U.S. should rein in any instinctive desire to block the rise of China purely for reasons of power politics. China has a legitimate right to development and prosperity.”

The FT published four articles and a video about the stakes in U.S.-China rivalry this week, in a series titled “New Cold War.” Those pieces:

• A new cold war: Trump, Xi and the escalating U.S.-China confrontation, by Gideon Rachman.
• The great uncoupling: one supply chain for China, one for everywhere else, by Kathrin Hille.
• Will China and the U.S. go to war over Taiwan?, a 10-minute video featuring global China editor James Kynge and Taiwan-based greater China correspondent Kathrin Hille.
• From AI to facial recognition: how China is setting the rules in new tech, by James Kynge and Nian Liu.
• ‘This is a guy who is a thug’: how the U.S. elite became hawks on Xi’s China, by Demetri Sevastopulo.

On the subject of supply chain decoupling, the Nikkei Asian Review also published an in-depth report this week: Inside the U.S. campaign to cut China out of the tech supply chain.

On the subject of Taiwan, a few more important pieces of news and analysis from this week:

• U.S. warns China against Taiwan attack, stresses U.S. ‘ambiguity’ / Reuters
• Strait shooting – Defending Taiwan is growing costlier and deadlier / The Economist (porous paywall)
• Here’s what could happen if China invaded Taiwan / Bloomberg (porous paywall)

And on U.S.-China relations in general, two prominent Republican voices in Washington agreed this week that Trump’s policies aren’t working:

• John Bolton says U.S. policy isn’t deterring China / WSJ (paywall)
  Asked which candidate in the 2020 presidential election Beijing would prefer, Mr. Bolton said: “I think they’d probably vote for Biden, not because they think he’d be softer on China but because he’d be more predictable,” Mr. Bolton said.
• Trump is losing his new ‘Cold War’ with China / Washington Post
  Robert B. Zoellick, former deputy secretary of state: “President Trump’s China policy, which always prized posturing over success, has been a total failure.”

MORE NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

BUSINESS AND TECHNOLOGY:

• TikTok banned in Pakistan, but global position strong
  Pakistan bans TikTok over ‘indecent’ content / Al Jazeera
  TikTok is world’s highest-earning non-game app despite U.S. and India headwinds / Caixin
  U.S. appeals injunction against TikTok ban / NYT (porous paywall)
• Chinese exports to U.S. are up
  Chinese exports to the U.S. get a lifeline from coronavirus-related demand / WSJ (paywall)
  “In July, exports to the U.S. jumped by 13% from a year earlier, followed by a 20% rise in August. September figures aren’t out yet.”
• Chinese firms have raised $9.1 billion through American listings this year
  China Inc. set for biggest U.S. IPO year since 2014 despite spat / Caixin (paywall)
• Shenzhen hands out 50,000 coupons for digital currency
  China gives away $1.5 million to test digital currency / Caixin (paywall)
• “More than 10” provinces submit rural credit union reform plans
  China takes another step toward fixing its corruption-plagued rural credit unions / Caixin (paywall)
• Oil theft in Shaanxi Province
  Dozens probed at China’s largest oilfield over alleged theft / Caixin (paywall)
• Solar stocks soar
  China solar stocks are surging after Xi’s 2060 carbon pledge / Caixin

SCIENCE, HEALTH, AND THE ENVIRONMENT:

• COVID-19 in Hong Kong
  Around 300 Hong Kong hotel staff quarantined following outbreak; ‘party room’ guests rebuff infection fears / HKFP

POLITICS AND CURRENT AFFAIRS:

• Chopping off the heads of state-owned companies
  Beijing Yanjing Beer chairman detained by Chinese authorities / Nikkei Asian Review (porous paywall)
  Corruption probe topples former chief of state-run oil company / Caixin
• Hong Kong updates
  Hong Kong legislative house committee re-elects pro-Beijing lawmaker as chair despite filibustering effort by democrats / HKFP
  Hongkongers living in China could be allowed to vote in HK elections as democrats voice concern over ‘vote-rigging’ / HKFP
• Xinjiang and Uyghurs
  How global demand for hair products is linked to forced labor / CNN
  Parliament to debate sanctions on China after Uyghur petition / Times of Israel
  Thousands of articles restored from downed website of jailed Uyghur scholar Ilham Tohti / Radio Free Asia
  Rian Thum on Twitter: “Most of Nobel Peace Prize nominee Ilham Tohti’s website, previously erased by the Chinese government, has been restored and made available by Ilham Tohti Institute. This recovers a significant aspect of Ilham’s work and the voices of numerous contributors.”
• U.S. illegal lobbying case
  Ex-Trump fundraiser Elliott Broidy charged with illicit lobbying on China and 1MDB scandal / SCMP
• Influence in Southeast Asia
  China starts diplomatic drive to win over Southeast Asian countries / SCMP
• Fishing boats near Chile
  Chile keeps eye on Chinese fishing fleet along South American coast / Reuters
• Sri Lanka denies “debt trap”
  Sri Lanka port deal not a ‘debt trap’ set up by China, President Rajapaksa says / Reuters via SCMP
• India, Japan, Mongolia, and Myanmar  
  Japan, Mongolia to cooperate on ‘Free and Open Indo-Pacific’ / AP News
  India responds to Myanmar’s call for closer ties to balance out Chinese influence / SCMP

SOCIETY AND CULTURE:

• The end of hard drinking at government banquets?
  China’s civil servant booze bans creep into private time / Sixth Tone
  “Several Chinese cities had previously issued their own prohibitions on weekday drinking, though experts question whether there is legal basis for such measures.”
• Lack of tourists riding Hong Kong junk boat
  Hong Kong’s last authentic junk in troubled waters / BBC
• High-quality highway rest areas in Jiangsu Province
  It’s not the destination, it’s the journey — China’s famous roadside rest stops / Caixin