bEijing plans to build new highways along the LAC. The FBI is investigating Huawei for overhearing America’s most secure government communications. Xi Jinping asked European leaders to go to China, but the foreign ministry says they did not. Didi Chuxing was fined $1.2 billion after a year-long investigation. chinascope brings you the top news and expert views from China for this week.
China in a week
China has cited concerns over India’s infrastructure projects as a reason behind its military build-up in Ladakh. Now, the Beijing government has announced the construction of a new highway through Aksai Chin to boost economic productivity. On July 1, Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang announced the plan under which Beijing would build 461,000 kilometers of highways and motorways by 2035.
Last week, Beijing released the new description Areas where National Highways will be constructed. Two newly planned highways will cause concern in New Delhi – G695 and G684.
The proposed highway G695 will connect Lunzhe County in Tibet with Mazha in Xinjiang. However, we do not have the exact route of the planned highway. But a popular science blogger claims the G-695 will withdrawal Depsang Plain, Galwan Valley, Kongka Pass and Pangong Tso. The new highway will pass closer to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) than the existing G-219 highway, which connects Tibet with Xinjiang.
The bridge under construction over Pangong Tso will be part of G695, with more than two million according to science blogger followers on Weibo.
“Priority should be given to opening of border national highways like G219 and G331 to achieve basic elimination of out-of-class and pending routes; Continually promote the construction of the strategic backbone in Xinjiang and Tibet, and improve the quality of the Sichuan-Tibet Highway G318.” Told The ‘National Highway Network Planning’ document of the Beijing government.
Another new highway that will pass through the strategic area is the G684. This highway will connect Majha city of Xinjiang with the Khunjerab Pass on the border of China and Pakistan.
The G219 is the current Chinese highway that passes through Aksai Chin. When completed, the G219, G695 and G684 will connect large areas of Tibet and Xinjiang with the highlands of the Karakoram Plateau on the border with Pakistan. The proposed highways would connect the existing network to strategic locations, allowing greater connectivity between those locations through a network of connecting road systems.
Beijing has always had concerns about relying on the G219 as the only artery connecting Tibet to Xinjiang.
China’s construction plan has major implications for India as the current impasse is likely to continue and raises questions about the possibility of a negotiated solution through the ongoing talks.
Despite 16 rounds of talks between India and China to resolve their border standoff, there is no indication that Beijing plans to vacate PLA-held territory in 2020. A day after talks ended at the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point, the PLA conducted an air exercise over Pangong Tso – sending a clear Signal to New Delhi.
At present, there are massive military Practice in process From Eastern Ladakh – in the Tibet Military District and Xinjiang Military Districts.
Last Monday, we learned that top European leaders were invited to meet with President Xi Jinping in China, according to a report south china morning post, Invitations were sent to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez. Source whom did you talk to SCMP,
Chinese Foreign Ministry denied The story, saying, “I wonder where they got the information. I can tell you it’s fake news.”
a senior diplomat described “He wants, I think, something like a coronation ceremony where world leaders come to Beijing to pay tribute to Xi, like the third Napoleon,” as an invitation. Xi Jinping is likely to seek a third term later this year, and an unnamed senior diplomat has suggested that the Chinese side wanted European leaders to be in Beijing when that happens.
Once a thriving Chinese company, Didi Chuxing found itself in trouble when Beijing decided to investigate the company over its decision to list on the New York Stock Exchange.
Ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing was fined $1.2 billion for a data breach. The hashtag “Didi fined 8.026 billion yuan” was the second search trend on the search engine Baidu and was viewed 27 million times on Sina Weibo.
“Didi has failed to perform its duty to maintain cyberspace security, data security, and personal information security … posing serious risks to national cyberspace security and data security,”
Read also: The Russo-Ukraine war has brought Putin to the negotiating table. China’s new plans for BRI
China in world news
The UK government has banned the sale of vision-sensing technology to a Chinese company, citing security concerns. The planned deal was to be signed between Beijing Infinite Vision Technology Company and the University of Manchester.
sunday TimesQuoting Business Secretary Quasi Quarteng, informed of that “there was the possibility that the technology could be used to build defense or technical capabilities that could present a national security risk to the United Kingdom”. According to the report, the sensors named SCAMP-5 and SCAMP-7 use high-speed processors, which can be used in virtual reality, robotics and other surveillance technologies.
Chinese telecom company Huawei has come under the grip of fresh controversy. This time on the presence of Huawei cellular towers near the US Strategic Missile Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming. We learn that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is investigating Huawei’s return to the Barack Obama administration to get to the bottom of Chinese land purchases near strategic sites.
“But when US counterintelligence officials began digging into the details, they found several red flags. He noted that the pagoda would have been strategically placed on one of the highest points in Washington DC, just two miles from the US Capitol, an ideal location for signals intelligence collection. CNN Is informed of,
before CNN Disclosure of extent of investigation Reuters was the first report good About the existence of an investigation by the US Department of Commerce.
After delaying her original plan to visit Taiwan in April, Nancy Pelosi is now planning to visit Taipei, a move that has put Beijing on high alert. China has expressed its “personal warning” to Joe Biden administration officials, according to financial Times,
“Six people familiar with the Chinese warnings said they were much stronger than threats that Beijing has made in the past when it was unhappy with US action or policy on Taiwan.” informed of financial Times,
Although Taiwan’s foreign ministry has yet to confirm the details of the trip, Nancy Pelosi has declined to reveal the dates of her visit, citing security concerns. experts have sharp That Pelosi’s visit could lead to a crisis such as the 1995-6 cross-strait military crackdown by Beijing, when then-Taiwan President Lee Teng-hui was granted a visa to visit his alma mater, Cornell University.
Meanwhile, US Joint Chief of Staff Mark Milley has commented on China’s increasing coercive activities.
“The number of Chinese obstructions at sea and in the air has increased significantly in five years,” Milne Told On the way to Jakarta.
Read also: Don’t be surprised by China ignoring the LAC at the G20 meeting. This is a feature, not a bug
experts this week
“Soon after Russia launched a special military operation against Ukraine in February 2022, we could see some limitations of India’s diplomatic strategy. America and the West were competing to pressure India to ‘stand on the right side of history’. India has not agreed, and certainly has not compromised. Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar has repeatedly criticized America and the hypocrisy of America and the West. With such a counterattack, it seems that we can see the side of India’s diplomatic independence. But how far can India go in this quest for Asian unity? Actually, we’re not sure.” Told Lin Minwang, Researcher at the Institute of International Studies, Fudan University during his special event Conversation With Fudan University Distinguished Professor Zhang Weiwei on Dragon TV.
Zhang said during the same conversation, “Now I find it quite interesting. Look at India’s neutral attitude after the Russo-Ukrainian conflict. Some of them think we can keep our distance from the United States. Russia So, these forces are going up a little bit, and I think we’ll see how that develops going forward.”
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upcoming watch
Indonesian President Joko Widodo will meet with Xi Jinping during his visit to Beijing on Tuesday, July 26. President Jokowi will become the second foreign leader to meet with Xi since the pandemic began in 2020. Putin is the only other foreign leader he has met since then.
The author is a columnist and a freelance journalist, currently pursuing an MSc in International Politics with a focus on China from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London. He was previously a Chinese media reporter for the BBC World Service. He tweeted @aadilbrar. Thoughts are personal.
This is a weekly round-up called Adil Brar writes about what’s going on in China. It will soon be available as a product only available to the customers.
(edited by Prashant)