China’s disputed territories over Taiwan, the South China Sea, and its border with India

Here’s what else you need to know about China today:

Top story: Xǔ Zhìyǒng 许志永 and Dīng Jiāxǐ 丁家喜, two prominent Chinese activists, have each been sentenced to over a decade in prison, as the space for political dissent gets smaller and smaller under Xi Jinping. Click through for the whole thing.

China simulated a real attack on Taiwan with practice blockades and precision strikes during three days of military drills around the island. The military drills, which concluded today, began on Saturday in response to the meeting in Los Angeles between Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文 Cài Yīngwén) and U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Kevin McCarthy.

The U.S. and the Philippines are hosting their biggest joint military drills in over three decades across contested areas in the South China Sea and the Taiwan Strait. The annual exercises — known as Balikatan, or “shoulder-to-shoulder” in Tagalog — will run up to April 28 and bring together more than 17,600 military personnel, highlighting their bilateral alliance amid China’s increasing assertiveness in disputed waters.

Alibaba rolled out its rival version of ChatGPT, following similar moves by Baidu in the race to create a Chinese challenge to the generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot that has taken the world by storm. Alibaba said it will integrate its new AI model in all of the company’s technology, such as its Amazon Echo-like smart speakers as well as Slack-like company chat software, in the near future.

Content produced by generative AI “must reflect the core values of socialism, and must not contain subversion of state power,” according to draft measures issued by the Cyberspace Administration of China. Companies that offer generative AI will be held liable for both the output of such services as well as for the materials used to train the bots.

Tensions are rising along the eastern part of China and India’s disputed border: India’s home minister, Amit Shah, paid a visit to the state of Arunachal Pradesh — a move that Beijing claims “violates China’s territorial sovereignty.” “Due to the bravery of [India’s] soldiers…no one can challenge the borders of our country. The time is gone when anyone could encroach on our land,” Shah said during his trip, where he announced a 48 billion rupee ($585 million) development scheme just a few days after Beijing renamed 11 places in the region which China claims as Zàngangnan 藏南, or southern Tibet.

China and Australia took a large step toward repairing their yearslong bitter trade dispute. Canberra suspended a complaint against China with the World Trade Organization (WTO) as a “sign of goodwill” for the first time in three years, after Beijing agreed to review steep tariffs on Australian barley.

Pakistan arrested an anti-Chinese Baloch separatist militant commander amid heightened concern in China over the growing number of attacks on Chinese nationals and interests in the country. Resentment has been brewing against many of Beijing’s projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), part of its Belt and Road initiative in the region, with many locals claiming that they have not seen any of the benefits from the lucrative $65 billion investment.

China is controlling exports of critical green energy minerals, according to a new OECD report. The report highlights that restrictions on the free flow of the minerals increase the cost of developing clean energy, and shift power and influence to mineral-rich nations.

Beijing’s property market is rebounding, with housing turnover from January to March increasing compared with 2022. Official announcements also suggest a new pilot program may be coming for the city’s Nanshan District, which would decrease down payment requirements for families, and which could provide a guide for other cities hoping to revive property market sentiment. But second- and third-tier cities continue to struggle with unsold homes.

China’s consumer inflation hit an 18-month low, pointing to weak domestic demand despite Beijing’s emphasis on boosting consumption, and prompting some to predict monetary policy easing out of Beijing.