China&#39;s rubber-stamp parliament - National People&#39;s Congress (NPC) - unanimously re-appointed President Xi Jinping to a second five-year term on Saturday, days after paving the way for him to stay in power beyond 2023.

Xi won all 2,970 votes at the annual session of the National People&#39;s Congress. In 2013, Xi had received 2,952 votes, with one against and three abstentions, a 99.86 per cent share.

Xi&nbsp;will also unveil a new government on Saturday in which except for Premier Li Keqiang, all top posts including the entire Cabinet beside Governor of the central bank will be occupied by a new set of officials.

While the amendment empowered 64-year-old Xi to remain in power for life, his power base is expected to be further reinforced by his close associate Wang Qishan who carried out the dreaded anti-corruption campaign in the last five years in which over one-and-a-half million people including over 100 ministerial-level officials were punished.

The National People&#39;s Congress has widely expanded Xi&#39;s already considerable authority during its annual session, adding his name to the Constitution and lifting the two five-year term limit for the presidency and vice presidency.

As part of the package of constitutional amendments, the president and other government officials will for the first time take the oath of office by pledging allegiance to the Constitution.

Elevating Wang would allow Xi to keep a formidable ally by his side as China&#39;s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong cements his authority and sets his sights on a possible lifelong tenure.

Wang, 69, stepped down from the Communist Party&#39;s ruling council in October under informal retirement rules. But he has kept a prominent profile, sitting at the same table as the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee during the public sessions of the National People`s Congress.

Known internationally in his previous role as China&#39;s pointman on trade, analysts say Wang could help Xi handle increasingly tense relations with the United States amid fears of a looming trade war.

Wang was at the frontline of Xi&#39;s anti-corruption crusade, heading the party&#39;s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, which punished 1.5 million officials in the past five years, from low-level cadres to regional leaders and generals.

Xi`s most important title is general secretary of the Communist Party, but by putting a retired party loyalist in the vice presidency, he would again be breaking with party norms and unwritten rules of succession.

Xi is keeping Wang by his side because of his &quot;talent and ability,&quot; according to Hua Po, an independent Chinese political commentator.

&quot;Choosing Wang as vice president is certainly to consolidate his power,&quot; Hua told AFP.

&quot;Xi is already a very powerful man. The problem is that he has too few people who are loyal and competent for his use, so he has to retain Wang and give himself more time to cultivate more talented people.&quot;

Wang would replace Li Yuanchao, a relatively low-profile politician who has represented Xi on trips abroad.

When he was vice premier, Wang periodically travelled to the United States, where President Barack Obama once gave the Chinese delegation a signed basketball that the official held up at a press conference.

An &quot;amazing&quot; economist, Wang could now form a &quot;dream team&quot; with another member of the party leadership, Wang Yang, to deal with US President Donald Trump&#39;s trade threats, said Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute at King`s College London.

Xi won all 2,970 votes at the annual session of the National People's Congress. In 2013, Xi had received 2,952 votes, with one against and three abstentions, a 99.86 per cent share

China's rubber-stamp parliament - National People's Congress (NPC) - unanimously re-appointed President Xi Jinping to a second five-year term on Saturday, days after paving the way for him to stay in power beyond 2023. Xi won all 2,970 votes at the annual session of the National People's Congress. In 2013, Xi had received 2,952 votes, with one against and three abstentions, a 99.86 per cent share. Xi will also unveil a new government on Saturday in which except for Premier Li Keqiang, all top posts including the entire Cabinet beside Governor of the central bank will be occupied by a new set of officials. While the amendment empowered 64-year-old Xi to remain in power for life, his power base is expected to be further reinforced by his close associate Wang Qishan who carried out the dreaded anti-corruption campaign in the last five years in which over one-and-a-half million people including over 100 ministerial-level officials were punished. The National People's Congress has widely expanded Xi's already considerable authority during its annual session, adding his name to the Constitution and lifting the two five-year term limit for the presidency and vice presidency. As part of the package of constitutional amendments, the president and other government officials will for the first time take the oath of office by pledging allegiance to the Constitution. Elevating Wang would allow Xi to keep a formidable ally by his side as China's most powerful leader since Mao Zedong cements his authority and sets his sights on a possible lifelong tenure. Wang, 69, stepped down from the Communist Party's ruling council in October under informal retirement rules. But he has kept a prominent profile, sitting at the same table as the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee during the public sessions of the National People`s Congress. Known internationally in his previous role as China's pointman on trade, analysts say Wang could help Xi handle increasingly tense relations with the United States amid fears of a looming trade war. Wang was at the frontline of Xi's anti-corruption crusade, heading the party's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, which punished 1.5 million officials in the past five years, from low-level cadres to regional leaders and generals. Xi`s most important title is general secretary of the Communist Party, but by putting a retired party loyalist in the vice presidency, he would again be breaking with party norms and unwritten rules of succession. Xi is keeping Wang by his side because of his "talent and ability," according to Hua Po, an independent Chinese political commentator. "Choosing Wang as vice president is certainly to consolidate his power," Hua told AFP. "Xi is already a very powerful man. The problem is that he has too few people who are loyal and competent for his use, so he has to retain Wang and give himself more time to cultivate more talented people." Wang would replace Li Yuanchao, a relatively low-profile politician who has represented Xi on trips abroad. When he was vice premier, Wang periodically travelled to the United States, where President Barack Obama once gave the Chinese delegation a signed basketball that the official held up at a press conference. An "amazing" economist, Wang could now form a "dream team" with another member of the party leadership, Wang Yang, to deal with US President Donald Trump's trade threats, said Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute at King`s College London.

China's parliament unanimously gives Xi second term

Xi Jinping&#39;s pet Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) can pose a &quot;major challenge&quot; in resetting China&#39;s ties with India, analysts here have said, days after the Chinese parliament backed his plan to rule indefinitely amid Sino-India rapprochement following the Dokalam standoff.

The BRI, a multi-billion-dollar initiative launched by Xi when he came to power in 2013, has become a major sticking point in the bilateral ties. The BRI also includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which India opposed as it goes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

India had also boycotted last year&#39;s Belt and Road Forum organised by China.

The BRI, aimed at promoting a network of roads, ports and rail networks all over the world to spread China&#39;s influence, is now expected to vigorously push by Xi after the National People&#39;s Congress on March 11 removed the two-term limit for the president.

The historic mandate for Xi to continue in office for life came just as India and China began a high-level dialogue to put the ties back on track after the relations were bogged down by a host of issues including, the CPEC and the 73-day long standoff at Dokalam last year.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will visit China next month which officials say will send a very strong message to the international community about efforts by both countries to improve relations.

&quot;There are very serious efforts are being made by both countries to improve relations and China attaches a lot of importance to its ties with India in the region,&quot; Hu Shisheng, Director of the official China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations told.

As the two countries seek to address a number of issues like China blocking India&#39;s efforts to list JeM leader Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN as well as India&#39;s entry to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) besides Dokalam, they need to come up with a creative solution to address differences on the BRI, Hu said.

&quot;Now Xi is set to be at the helm for a long term and he is going to pursue the BRI very seriously&quot; as this is his project, he said.

China, which has been maintaining that the BRI will not have any impact on its stand that Kashmir issue should be resolved between India and Pakistan, has also offered initiatives like renaming the CPEC to address India&#39;s reservations.

Officials say Chinese investment flows into India have been affected as China has been routing all its external investments in recent years only under the BRI. India is also a part of the Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) corridor which is also part of the BRI but has made little progress.

Officials say China&#39;s investments in India were just about $3.5 billion far less than $20 billion promised by Xi during his visit to India in 2015.

He said both countries need to show flexibility. While China should be flexible by not pressing India to cooperate under the BRI framework for investments in India, New Delhi could make reciprocal gestures to get the investments for infrastructure projects.

Rong Ying, the vice president of China Institute of International Studies, which is affiliated to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said both the countries need to address the trust deficit.

&quot;Equally important is for both countries to find a way to address differences in a constructive and forward-looking manner,&quot; he told.

He also said there was no need to worry about the long-term rule by Xi.

&quot;I don&#39;t see any reason for worry. I only want to see that the two sides draw correct lessons (out of Dokalam standoff). Then we can work hard for a stable relationship,&quot; he said.

&quot;No one wants an incident like Dong Long (Dokalam). We are able to solve it through peaceful way through talks shows the maturity of the relationship,&quot; Rong, who formerly worked as a Chinese diplomat in India, said.

About what effect Xi&#39;s long-term rule will have on the boundary dispute, he said, &quot;the boundary dispute has to be better managed. I don&#39;t see in the near future the possibility of an early settlement in sight,&quot; he said.

The annual border talks by special representatives and other mechanisms would&nbsp;help to develop the trust, he said.

The two sides have held 20 rounds of border talks to resolve differences over the 3,488 long Line of Actual Control (LAC).

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will visit China next month which officials say will send a very strong message to the international community about efforts by both countries to improve relations

Xi Jinping's pet Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) can pose a "major challenge" in resetting China's ties with India, analysts here have said, days after the Chinese parliament backed his plan to rule indefinitely amid Sino-India rapprochement following the Dokalam standoff. The BRI, a multi-billion-dollar initiative launched by Xi when he came to power in 2013, has become a major sticking point in the bilateral ties. The BRI also includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which India opposed as it goes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. India had also boycotted last year's Belt and Road Forum organised by China. The BRI, aimed at promoting a network of roads, ports and rail networks all over the world to spread China's influence, is now expected to vigorously push by Xi after the National People's Congress on March 11 removed the two-term limit for the president. The historic mandate for Xi to continue in office for life came just as India and China began a high-level dialogue to put the ties back on track after the relations were bogged down by a host of issues including, the CPEC and the 73-day long standoff at Dokalam last year. Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will visit China next month which officials say will send a very strong message to the international community about efforts by both countries to improve relations. "There are very serious efforts are being made by both countries to improve relations and China attaches a lot of importance to its ties with India in the region," Hu Shisheng, Director of the official China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations told. As the two countries seek to address a number of issues like China blocking India's efforts to list JeM leader Masood Azhar as a global terrorist by the UN as well as India's entry to the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) besides Dokalam, they need to come up with a creative solution to address differences on the BRI, Hu said. "Now Xi is set to be at the helm for a long term and he is going to pursue the BRI very seriously" as this is his project, he said. China, which has been maintaining that the BRI will not have any impact on its stand that Kashmir issue should be resolved between India and Pakistan, has also offered initiatives like renaming the CPEC to address India's reservations. Officials say Chinese investment flows into India have been affected as China has been routing all its external investments in recent years only under the BRI. India is also a part of the Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) corridor which is also part of the BRI but has made little progress. Officials say China's investments in India were just about $3.5 billion far less than $20 billion promised by Xi during his visit to India in 2015. He said both countries need to show flexibility. While China should be flexible by not pressing India to cooperate under the BRI framework for investments in India, New Delhi could make reciprocal gestures to get the investments for infrastructure projects. Rong Ying, the vice president of China Institute of International Studies, which is affiliated to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said both the countries need to address the trust deficit. "Equally important is for both countries to find a way to address differences in a constructive and forward-looking manner," he told. He also said there was no need to worry about the long-term rule by Xi. "I don't see any reason for worry. I only want to see that the two sides draw correct lessons (out of Dokalam standoff). Then we can work hard for a stable relationship," he said. "No one wants an incident like Dong Long (Dokalam). We are able to solve it through peaceful way through talks shows the maturity of the relationship," Rong, who formerly worked as a Chinese diplomat in India, said. About what effect Xi's long-term rule will have on the boundary dispute, he said, "the boundary dispute has to be better managed. I don't see in the near future the possibility of an early settlement in sight," he said. The annual border talks by special representatives and other mechanisms would help to develop the trust, he said. The two sides have held 20 rounds of border talks to resolve differences over the 3,488 long Line of Actual Control (LAC).

BRI could be sticking point in India-China ties: Experts

China&#39;s Xi Jinping on Sunday secured a path to rule indefinitely as parliament abolished presidential term limits, handing him almost total authority to pursue a vision of transforming the nation into an economic and military superpower.

The move reverses the era of &quot;collective&quot; leadership and orderly succession that was promoted by late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping to ensure stability following the turbulent one-man rule of Communist China&#39;s founder Mao Zedong.

The historic constitutional amendment breezed through the rubber-stamp parliament with 2,958 in favour, two against and three abstentions despite an unusual bout of online criticism that censors have scrambled to extinguish.

Xi stood up first at the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing to cast his paper ballot in a red box, as delegates of the National People&#39;s Congress applauded after each vote on the constitutional amendment to lift the two five-year term limit for the presidency.

The first constitutional amendment in 14 years had been expected to breeze through the legislature, which has never rejected a Communist Party diktat in its half-century of existence.

&quot;This is the urgent wish of the common people,&quot; Ju Xiuqin, a delegate from northeastern Heilongjiang province, told AFP, echoing party claims that the amendment had the unanimous support of &quot;the masses&quot;.

Xi, 64, has consolidated power since 2012 when he was appointed to the country&#39;s top office: general secretary of the Communist Party.

While the position has no term limits, his two predecessors both gave it up after two terms as part of an orderly process established by Deng.

Soft coup

The country&#39;s presidency is a largely ceremonial office, but the constitutional limits meant Xi would have had to give it up in 2023.

But with the new amendments, he could now have a lifetime to push his goal of turning China into global economic powerhouse with a &quot;world-class&quot; military by mid-century.

His rise has been accompanied by tighter restrictions on civil society, with the detention of activists and lawyers, and stricter limits on the already heavily controlled internet.

At the same time, he gained a measure of popularity among Chinese people through a relentless crackdown on corruption that has punished more than a million party officials, and sidelined potential rivals.

&quot;I think that during the past five years, he has been carrying out a soft coup, including making the Politburo a mere figurehead,&quot; Chinese political commentator Wu Qiang told AFP, referring to the 25-member Communist Party body one level under the ruling council.

&quot;He wants to prevent power from falling into the hands of technocrats like Jiang (Zemin) and Hu (Jintao),&quot; Wu said, referring to Xi&#39;s two predecessors.

While attention has focused on the term limits, the amendments also include major provisions that will engrave Xi&#39;s eponymous political mantra in the constitution and hand the Communist Party an even larger role in the country&#39;s affairs.

In a written report, the head of the parliament&#39;s Standing Committee, Zhang Dejiang, said the amendments &quot;will ensure the constitution improves and develops in step with the times and provide a firm constitutional guarantee for upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era&quot;.

Secret path

The Communist Party says the move merely aligns the presidency with the limit-free titles of party secretary and military chief, claiming &quot;the masses&quot; unanimously called for the removal of term limits.

But the proposal was kept secret until it was revealed in a state media report on February 25, a week before the legislature&#39;s opening session.

The party later disclosed that Xi had presided over a meeting of the Politburo in September during which the leadership decided to revise the constitution.

The party then sought proposals and opinions, culminating in a decision in late January to introduce constitutional amendments at the NPC.

&quot;Xi Jinping has presided over so many important projects such as economic reforms and the fight against corruption. There was a consensus that we supported him having more time to finish his work,&quot; said Dou Yanli, a delegate from eastern Shandong province.

The surprise move triggered a backlash online, prompting censors to block phrases and words such as &quot;I disagree&quot; and &quot;emperor&quot; and the image of Winnie the Pooh, the cartoon bear to which Xi has been compared.

Activists fear that removing term limits may lead to a further tightening of already strict controls on media, civil society and religion, as Xi tries to impose his highly ideological vision of socialism on every aspect of society.

Beijing-based activist Hu Jia, who says authorities forced him to leave the capital during the congress, called the amendment &quot;illegal&quot;.

&quot;Xi asked all people to obey the constitution, and then used the amendment to place himself above it. He used the constitution as the ultimate legal weapon that binds officials and all citizens.&quot;

The almost 3,000 delegates to the country`s rubber-stamp legislature passed the measure

China's Xi Jinping on Sunday secured a path to rule indefinitely as parliament abolished presidential term limits, handing him almost total authority to pursue a vision of transforming the nation into an economic and military superpower. The move reverses the era of "collective" leadership and orderly succession that was promoted by late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping to ensure stability following the turbulent one-man rule of Communist China's founder Mao Zedong. The historic constitutional amendment breezed through the rubber-stamp parliament with 2,958 in favour, two against and three abstentions despite an unusual bout of online criticism that censors have scrambled to extinguish. Xi stood up first at the imposing Great Hall of the People in Beijing to cast his paper ballot in a red box, as delegates of the National People's Congress applauded after each vote on the constitutional amendment to lift the two five-year term limit for the presidency. The first constitutional amendment in 14 years had been expected to breeze through the legislature, which has never rejected a Communist Party diktat in its half-century of existence. "This is the urgent wish of the common people," Ju Xiuqin, a delegate from northeastern Heilongjiang province, told AFP, echoing party claims that the amendment had the unanimous support of "the masses". Xi, 64, has consolidated power since 2012 when he was appointed to the country's top office: general secretary of the Communist Party. While the position has no term limits, his two predecessors both gave it up after two terms as part of an orderly process established by Deng. Soft coup The country's presidency is a largely ceremonial office, but the constitutional limits meant Xi would have had to give it up in 2023. But with the new amendments, he could now have a lifetime to push his goal of turning China into global economic powerhouse with a "world-class" military by mid-century. His rise has been accompanied by tighter restrictions on civil society, with the detention of activists and lawyers, and stricter limits on the already heavily controlled internet. At the same time, he gained a measure of popularity among Chinese people through a relentless crackdown on corruption that has punished more than a million party officials, and sidelined potential rivals. "I think that during the past five years, he has been carrying out a soft coup, including making the Politburo a mere figurehead," Chinese political commentator Wu Qiang told AFP, referring to the 25-member Communist Party body one level under the ruling council. "He wants to prevent power from falling into the hands of technocrats like Jiang (Zemin) and Hu (Jintao)," Wu said, referring to Xi's two predecessors. While attention has focused on the term limits, the amendments also include major provisions that will engrave Xi's eponymous political mantra in the constitution and hand the Communist Party an even larger role in the country's affairs. In a written report, the head of the parliament's Standing Committee, Zhang Dejiang, said the amendments "will ensure the constitution improves and develops in step with the times and provide a firm constitutional guarantee for upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era". Secret path The Communist Party says the move merely aligns the presidency with the limit-free titles of party secretary and military chief, claiming "the masses" unanimously called for the removal of term limits. But the proposal was kept secret until it was revealed in a state media report on February 25, a week before the legislature's opening session. The party later disclosed that Xi had presided over a meeting of the Politburo in September during which the leadership decided to revise the constitution. The party then sought proposals and opinions, culminating in a decision in late January to introduce constitutional amendments at the NPC. "Xi Jinping has presided over so many important projects such as economic reforms and the fight against corruption. There was a consensus that we supported him having more time to finish his work," said Dou Yanli, a delegate from eastern Shandong province. The surprise move triggered a backlash online, prompting censors to block phrases and words such as "I disagree" and "emperor" and the image of Winnie the Pooh, the cartoon bear to which Xi has been compared. Activists fear that removing term limits may lead to a further tightening of already strict controls on media, civil society and religion, as Xi tries to impose his highly ideological vision of socialism on every aspect of society. Beijing-based activist Hu Jia, who says authorities forced him to leave the capital during the congress, called the amendment "illegal". "Xi asked all people to obey the constitution, and then used the amendment to place himself above it. He used the constitution as the ultimate legal weapon that binds officials and all citizens."

China's parliament abolishes presidential term limit, Xi Jinping could stay in power for life

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/macron-takes-dig-at-trump-hails-indias-efforts-35402" target="_blank">French President Macron takes dig at Trump, hails India&#39;s efforts at making International Solar Alliance a reality</a>

Taking a swipe at US President Donald Trump for backing out of Paris climate agreement, French President Emmanuel Macron lauded the efforts of India, along with other nations, for making International Solar Alliance (ISA) a reality.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/35000-farmers-reach-mumbai-to-stage-protest-against-maharashtra-govt-35389" target="_blank">35,000 farmers reach Mumbai demanding loan waiver</a>

Over&nbsp;<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/over-30000-farmers-marching-from-nashik-demanding-farm-loan-waiver-to-reach-mumbai-today-35356" target="_blank">35,000 farmers have reached Mumbai on Sunday&nbsp;</a>to stage protest against the Maharashtra government demanding a complete loan waiver.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/vandals-attack-muslim-owned-restaurant-in-sri-lanka-35395" target="_blank">Vandals attack Muslim-owned restaurant in Sri Lanka</a>

In an alleged case of &quot;hate crime&quot;, police said vandals attacked a Muslim-owned restaurant in Sri Lanka on Sunday.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/uttar-pradesh-bypolls-gorakhpur-voter-turnout-reaches-43-phulpur-38-by-5-pm-35404" target="_blank">Uttar Pradesh Bypolls: Gorakhpur voter turnout reaches 43%, Phulpur 38% by 5 pm</a>

Gorakhpur Lok Sabha constituency witnessed a polling percentage of around 43 per cent while Phulpur saw a turnout of around 38 per cent till 5 pm today, Election Commission sources said.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/chinas-parliament-abolishes-presidential-term-limits-35382" target="_blank">China&#39;s parliament abolishes presidential term limit, Xi Jinping could stay in power for life</a>

China&#39;s Xi Jinping on Sunday secured a path to rule indefinitely as parliament abolished presidential term limits, handing him almost total authority to pursue a vision of transforming the nation into an economic and military superpower.

&nbsp;

French President Macron takes dig at Trump, hails India's efforts at making International Solar Alliance a reality Taking a swipe at US President Donald Trump for backing out of Paris climate agreement, French President Emmanuel Macron lauded the efforts of India, along with other nations, for making International Solar Alliance (ISA) a reality. 35,000 farmers reach Mumbai demanding loan waiver Over 35,000 farmers have reached Mumbai on Sunday to stage protest against the Maharashtra government demanding a complete loan waiver. Vandals attack Muslim-owned restaurant in Sri Lanka In an alleged case of "hate crime", police said vandals attacked a Muslim-owned restaurant in Sri Lanka on Sunday. Uttar Pradesh Bypolls: Gorakhpur voter turnout reaches 43%, Phulpur 38% by 5 pm Gorakhpur Lok Sabha constituency witnessed a polling percentage of around 43 per cent while Phulpur saw a turnout of around 38 per cent till 5 pm today, Election Commission sources said. China's parliament abolishes presidential term limit, Xi Jinping could stay in power for life China's Xi Jinping on Sunday secured a path to rule indefinitely as parliament abolished presidential term limits, handing him almost total authority to pursue a vision of transforming the nation into an economic and military superpower.

WION Evening News brief, March 11, 2018

US&nbsp;President Donald Trump will not meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un unless Pyongyang takes &quot;concrete actions,&quot; the White House said on Friday as it faced criticism for agreeing to talks that would give North Korea international legitimacy.

&quot;The president will not have the meeting without seeing concrete steps and concrete actions take place by North Korea, so the president will actually be getting something,&quot; White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told a news briefing.

Sanders did not specify what actions North Korea needed to take, and a White House official later said she was not intending to set new conditions for talks with Kim.

But the comments were a sign that an end to a standoff between the two countries over North Korea&#39;s nuclear weapon program is not imminent.

The United States has long said it wants any talks to aim at Pyongyang abandoning its nuclear weapons and missile programs.

Hopes for a breakthrough with North Korea rose on Thursday when Trump said he was prepared to hold an unprecedented meeting with Kim.

The two leaders prompted jitters around the world last year as they exchanged bellicose insults over the North&#39;s attempts to develop a nuclear weapon capable of hitting the United States. Pyongyang has pursued its nuclear program in defiance of United Nations Security Council resolutions.

But tension eased around last month&#39;s Winter Olympics in South Korea, laying the groundwork for what would be the first meeting between leaders from North Korea and the United States, and the biggest foreign policy gamble for Trump since he took office in January last year.

The head of South Korea&#39;s National Security Office, Chung Eui-yong, speaking in Washington on Thursday after briefing Trump about a meeting South Korean officials held with Kim this week, said the US&nbsp;president had agreed to meet the North Korean leader by May in response to an invitation from Kim.

Kim had &quot;committed to denuclearization&quot; and to suspending nuclear and missile tests, Chung said.

Buying time?

A senior State Department official said the talks would likely only be a preliminary discussion about holding future negotiations.

&quot;The expectation is that the talks would lead to a discussion around a conclusion that we&#39;re ready to engage in negotiations,&quot; the official said.

Trump&#39;s sudden decision to meet with Kim stunned even people in his own administration.

Sanders&#39; comments seemed aimed at criticism in the United States that Trump took a misstep by agreeing to talks - thus giving Pyongyang the international legitimacy it seeks - but without earning any big concessions from the North.

&quot;The Administration must go into any meeting with a plan to ensure that negotiations with Kim Jong-un produce real results, not a photo op that lends legitimacy to North Korea&rsquo;s murderous regime,&rdquo; US&nbsp;Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat who is vice chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, said in a statement.

Some US&nbsp;officials and experts worry North Korea could buy time to build up and refine its nuclear arsenal if it drags out talks with Washington.

A White House official said Trump remained committed to a meeting with Kim based on the conditions laid out by South Korea on Thursday: that Kim is committed to denuclearization, will refrain from any further nuclear or missile tests, and understands that US-South Korean military exercises must continue.

&ldquo;(The North Koreans) are saying the right things and we&rsquo;re going to listen to them at the table and we&rsquo;re going to see where this leads,&rdquo; the official said.

No venue or date has been announced for the summit, which is expected to be held in May. Neutral Switzerland, which often hosts summits, said it was ready to facilitate the meeting.

China welcomes talks

A Trump-Kim summit would be a major turnaround after a year in which North Korea has carried out a battery of missile tests that Washington sees as provocative and after a barrage of insults between the two leaders.

US-based experts say North Korea appeared to show last November that it has succeeded in developing a missile capable of delivering a nuclear weapon anywhere in the United States.

Trump has derided Kim as a &quot;maniac,&quot; referred to him as &quot;little rocket man&quot; and threatened in a speech last year to &quot;totally destroy&quot; North Korea, a country of 26 million people, if it attacked the United States or one of its allies.

Kim responded by calling Trump a &quot;mentally deranged US&nbsp;dotard.&quot;

The Trump administration has led a worldwide push to tighten international sanctions on North Korea to choke off resources needed for its weapons programs.

World leaders welcomed prospects for a possible thaw in the Korea standoff including China, which is North Korea&#39;s largest trading partner and its sole major ally.

President Xi Jinping told Trump in a phone call on Friday that he appreciates his desire to resolve the North Korea issue politically, Chinese state media said.

Xi &quot;hopes the United States and North Korea start contacts and dialogue as soon as possible and strive to reach positive results,&quot; the report added.

Sarah Sanders did not specify what actions North Korea needed to take, and a White House official later said she was not intending to set new conditions for talks with Kim

US President Donald Trump will not meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un unless Pyongyang takes "concrete actions," the White House said on Friday as it faced criticism for agreeing to talks that would give North Korea international legitimacy. "The president will not have the meeting without seeing concrete steps and concrete actions take place by North Korea, so the president will actually be getting something," White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders told a news briefing. Sanders did not specify what actions North Korea needed to take, and a White House official later said she was not intending to set new conditions for talks with Kim. But the comments were a sign that an end to a standoff between the two countries over North Korea's nuclear weapon program is not imminent. The United States has long said it wants any talks to aim at Pyongyang abandoning its nuclear weapons and missile programs. Hopes for a breakthrough with North Korea rose on Thursday when Trump said he was prepared to hold an unprecedented meeting with Kim. The two leaders prompted jitters around the world last year as they exchanged bellicose insults over the North's attempts to develop a nuclear weapon capable of hitting the United States. Pyongyang has pursued its nuclear program in defiance of United Nations Security Council resolutions. But tension eased around last month's Winter Olympics in South Korea, laying the groundwork for what would be the first meeting between leaders from North Korea and the United States, and the biggest foreign policy gamble for Trump since he took office in January last year. The head of South Korea's National Security Office, Chung Eui-yong, speaking in Washington on Thursday after briefing Trump about a meeting South Korean officials held with Kim this week, said the US president had agreed to meet the North Korean leader by May in response to an invitation from Kim. Kim had "committed to denuclearization" and to suspending nuclear and missile tests, Chung said. Buying time? A senior State Department official said the talks would likely only be a preliminary discussion about holding future negotiations. "The expectation is that the talks would lead to a discussion around a conclusion that we're ready to engage in negotiations," the official said. Trump's sudden decision to meet with Kim stunned even people in his own administration. Sanders' comments seemed aimed at criticism in the United States that Trump took a misstep by agreeing to talks - thus giving Pyongyang the international legitimacy it seeks - but without earning any big concessions from the North. "The Administration must go into any meeting with a plan to ensure that negotiations with Kim Jong-un produce real results, not a photo op that lends legitimacy to North Korea’s murderous regime,” US Senator Mark Warner, a Democrat who is vice chairman of the Senate intelligence committee, said in a statement. Some US officials and experts worry North Korea could buy time to build up and refine its nuclear arsenal if it drags out talks with Washington. A White House official said Trump remained committed to a meeting with Kim based on the conditions laid out by South Korea on Thursday: that Kim is committed to denuclearization, will refrain from any further nuclear or missile tests, and understands that US-South Korean military exercises must continue. “(The North Koreans) are saying the right things and we’re going to listen to them at the table and we’re going to see where this leads,” the official said. No venue or date has been announced for the summit, which is expected to be held in May. Neutral Switzerland, which often hosts summits, said it was ready to facilitate the meeting. China welcomes talks A Trump-Kim summit would be a major turnaround after a year in which North Korea has carried out a battery of missile tests that Washington sees as provocative and after a barrage of insults between the two leaders. US-based experts say North Korea appeared to show last November that it has succeeded in developing a missile capable of delivering a nuclear weapon anywhere in the United States. Trump has derided Kim as a "maniac," referred to him as "little rocket man" and threatened in a speech last year to "totally destroy" North Korea, a country of 26 million people, if it attacked the United States or one of its allies. Kim responded by calling Trump a "mentally deranged US dotard." The Trump administration has led a worldwide push to tighten international sanctions on North Korea to choke off resources needed for its weapons programs. World leaders welcomed prospects for a possible thaw in the Korea standoff including China, which is North Korea's largest trading partner and its sole major ally. President Xi Jinping told Trump in a phone call on Friday that he appreciates his desire to resolve the North Korea issue politically, Chinese state media said. Xi "hopes the United States and North Korea start contacts and dialogue as soon as possible and strive to reach positive results," the report added.

US seeks 'concrete actions' from North Korea before planned talks

As Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to solidify his rule with an unlimited tenure, he was all praise for the one-party system furthered by the ruling Communist Party saying that it prevented rotation of power and &quot;nasty competition&quot; among political parties in a multi-party democracy.

The system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) is &quot;a great contribution to the political civilisation of humanity,&quot; Xi told delegates from some of the small political parties which functioned in a low key manner under the shadows of the CPC.

The Chinese system is new, Xi said, because it unites all political parties and people without party affiliation toward a common goal, effectively preventing the flaws of the absence of oversight in one-party rule, or &quot;power rotation and nasty competition among multiple political parties,&quot; state-run Xinhua news agency reported today.

It steers away from another weakness of the old-fashioned party system, in which decision making and governance, confined by interests of different political parties, classes, regions and groups, tears the society apart, he said. 
Chinese leaders in the past have vowed not to ape the western political systems.

Xi was speaking at a joint panel discussion yesterday with &quot;political advisors&quot; from the China Democratic League and the China Zhi Gong Party, those without party affiliation and those from the sector of returned overseas Chinese, at the first session of the advisory body the Chinese People&#39;s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the Xinhua report said.

His comments came as the Chinese Parliament, the National People?s Congress (NPC), began its two-week long annual session today with a legislative agenda which included ratifying a constitutional amendment removing the two-term rule for the President and Vice President.

The rule followed by the CPC for over two decades to prevent dictatorial ruler emerging from the ranks as well as to promote collective leadership effectively removes the last hurdle for 64-year-old Xi to continue beyond the end of his second term in 2023 and possibly for life.

Xi is already regarded as the most powerful leader of China after Chairman Mao Zedong as he held the posts of head of the CPC, the military and the Presidency.

The NPC was also expected to endorse another draft constitutional amendment to enshrine Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era in the fundamental law.

This would ensure that Xi&#39;s name is written into the Constitution making him on par with Mao.

The draft suggests Xi Jinping thought be juxtaposed with Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, and the Theory of Three Represents as a new guiding theory in the preamble of the Constitution, Xinhua said.

The name of Xi and his thought figured numerous times in the annual work report read out Premier Li Keqiang today at the opening session of the NPC, which observers said conferred to Xi the status and authority which was enjoyed by Mao during the heydays of China?s revolution which brought CPC to power in 1949.

Since then CPC remained the only ruling party. In the subsequent years, it permitted eight non-Communist parties which functioned under the shadows and authority of CPC.

Xi said the Chinese system is new because it combines Marxist political party theories with China&#39;s reality, and truly, extensively and in the long term represents fundamental interests of all people and all ethnic groups and fulfills their aspiration, avoiding the defects of the old-fashioned party system which represents only a selective few or the vested interest.

The system also pools ideas and suggestions through institutional, procedural and develops a scientific and democratic decision-making mechanism, he said.

Fitting China&#39;s reality and fine traditional culture, it is &quot;a great contribution to the political civilisation of humanity,&quot; he said.

Xi said upholding the CPC leadership was not meant to do away with democracy. Instead, it aims to create a form of democracy that is broader and more effective, he said.

The CPC-led system of multiparty cooperation and political consultation stresses both the CPC leadership and socialist democracy which features political consultation, participation in the deliberation of state affairs, and democratic supervision, he said.

Acknowledging their contribution to achievements made in the past five years, Xi called on non-communist parties and people without party affiliation to enhance confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with

Chinese characteristics, consolidate political orientation and actively offer their suggestions.

Non-communist parties and people without party affiliation should act as good consultants, aides, and co-workers of the CPC while improving their capability of consultation, he said.

He urged intellectuals to set the example of upholding socialist core values and organisations of returned overseas Chinese to unite and mobilise overseas Chinese.

Nearly 3,000 legislators from around the country will attend the two-week gathering of NPC in Beijing.

Xi is already regarded as the most powerful leader of China after Chairman Mao Zedong as he held the posts of head of the CPC, the military and the Presidency

As Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to solidify his rule with an unlimited tenure, he was all praise for the one-party system furthered by the ruling Communist Party saying that it prevented rotation of power and "nasty competition" among political parties in a multi-party democracy. The system of multi-party cooperation and political consultation led by the Communist Party of China (CPC) is "a great contribution to the political civilisation of humanity," Xi told delegates from some of the small political parties which functioned in a low key manner under the shadows of the CPC. The Chinese system is new, Xi said, because it unites all political parties and people without party affiliation toward a common goal, effectively preventing the flaws of the absence of oversight in one-party rule, or "power rotation and nasty competition among multiple political parties," state-run Xinhua news agency reported today. It steers away from another weakness of the old-fashioned party system, in which decision making and governance, confined by interests of different political parties, classes, regions and groups, tears the society apart, he said. Chinese leaders in the past have vowed not to ape the western political systems. Xi was speaking at a joint panel discussion yesterday with "political advisors" from the China Democratic League and the China Zhi Gong Party, those without party affiliation and those from the sector of returned overseas Chinese, at the first session of the advisory body the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the Xinhua report said. His comments came as the Chinese Parliament, the National People?s Congress (NPC), began its two-week long annual session today with a legislative agenda which included ratifying a constitutional amendment removing the two-term rule for the President and Vice President. The rule followed by the CPC for over two decades to prevent dictatorial ruler emerging from the ranks as well as to promote collective leadership effectively removes the last hurdle for 64-year-old Xi to continue beyond the end of his second term in 2023 and possibly for life. Xi is already regarded as the most powerful leader of China after Chairman Mao Zedong as he held the posts of head of the CPC, the military and the Presidency. The NPC was also expected to endorse another draft constitutional amendment to enshrine Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era in the fundamental law. This would ensure that Xi's name is written into the Constitution making him on par with Mao. The draft suggests Xi Jinping thought be juxtaposed with Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory, and the Theory of Three Represents as a new guiding theory in the preamble of the Constitution, Xinhua said. The name of Xi and his thought figured numerous times in the annual work report read out Premier Li Keqiang today at the opening session of the NPC, which observers said conferred to Xi the status and authority which was enjoyed by Mao during the heydays of China?s revolution which brought CPC to power in 1949. Since then CPC remained the only ruling party. In the subsequent years, it permitted eight non-Communist parties which functioned under the shadows and authority of CPC. Xi said the Chinese system is new because it combines Marxist political party theories with China's reality, and truly, extensively and in the long term represents fundamental interests of all people and all ethnic groups and fulfills their aspiration, avoiding the defects of the old-fashioned party system which represents only a selective few or the vested interest. The system also pools ideas and suggestions through institutional, procedural and develops a scientific and democratic decision-making mechanism, he said. Fitting China's reality and fine traditional culture, it is "a great contribution to the political civilisation of humanity," he said. Xi said upholding the CPC leadership was not meant to do away with democracy. Instead, it aims to create a form of democracy that is broader and more effective, he said. The CPC-led system of multiparty cooperation and political consultation stresses both the CPC leadership and socialist democracy which features political consultation, participation in the deliberation of state affairs, and democratic supervision, he said. Acknowledging their contribution to achievements made in the past five years, Xi called on non-communist parties and people without party affiliation to enhance confidence in the path, theory, system, and culture of socialism with Chinese characteristics, consolidate political orientation and actively offer their suggestions. Non-communist parties and people without party affiliation should act as good consultants, aides, and co-workers of the CPC while improving their capability of consultation, he said. He urged intellectuals to set the example of upholding socialist core values and organisations of returned overseas Chinese to unite and mobilise overseas Chinese. Nearly 3,000 legislators from around the country will attend the two-week gathering of NPC in Beijing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping praises Communist Party rule, says multi-party democracy promotes nasty competition

I&#39;m sorry but I don&#39;t want to be an emperor. That&#39;s not my business. I don&#39;t want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone! - Charlie Chaplin in the 1940 film The Great Dictator

We&#39;ve heard those disclaimers from Indian politicians, seen it in Africa where at the last count, there are at least 10 presidents who have been ruling for 25 years if not more. &nbsp;

China&#39;s is a different case where the national leadership decided sometime after the death of its founder leader Chairman Mao in 1976, that it did not want any more disasters like the Great Leap Forward or upheavals like the Cultural Revolution. &nbsp;So one man running the country was out. &nbsp;It accounted for the two-term limit set for the President and Vice-President.

At the National People&#39;s Congress which opened in Beijing today, the key item on the agenda is an amendment which will turn the clock back. &nbsp;So it&#39;s not for nothing that the Internet is buzzing with many Chinese referring to President Xi Jinping as Xi Zedong, likening him to the late Chairman who while swearing by communism, behaved like an emperor.

Maybe it stems deep down from Xi Jinping&#39;s &#39;princeling&#39; roots, descendants of the founders of People&#39;s China, who believe it is their destiny to rule. &nbsp;But in the public mind, it is synonymous with nepotism and cronyism, reflecting the fact that the princelings have an advantage in belonging to families entrenched in the country&#39;s politics and by extension, business.&nbsp;

This is not to suggest President Xi is personally corrupt: He has fostered a reputation for clean government and there&#39;s no evidence of any great personal fortune. &nbsp;But here&#39;s the rub:&nbsp;

A Bloomberg investigation in 2012 showed he had a daughter studying at Harvard University where tuition fees averaged around $60,000. &nbsp;&nbsp;

Bloomberg says he had a $28 mn stake in a property investment company Shenzhen Yuanwei

The probe revealed that other investments in the same group, owned wholly by the family, amounted to 539.3 million Yuan (about $8.4 mn)

The family also had an 18% indirect stake in Jiangxi Rare Earth worth about $13.8 mn&nbsp;

Investments made in the Beijing Hiconics Drive Technology Company is valued at around $200,000

The investigations included the caveat that the liabilities are unknown, so there&#39;s a lack of clarity about the family&#39;s net worth&nbsp;

Add to that a villa &nbsp;and six other properties in Hong Kong

Given that Chinese government salaries are not lavish, the public often wonders at the lifestyles of their leaders. &nbsp;The results of a poll published by the People&#39;s Daily and carried by The Telegraph of London in 2012, showed 91% of respondents saying all rich families in China had political backgrounds.

This is the subtext to Xi Jinping&#39;s rise to power. &nbsp;He holds 13 posts, including President, party General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. &nbsp;In the case of the last, he&#39;s also made himself armed forces commander, a new post which gives him the power to appoint top military officers. &nbsp;

Along the way, he&#39;s made himself head of the Group for Internet Security, Leader of the Group for Finance and Economic Affairs and Leader of the Group for Deepening Reforms and so on. &nbsp;Reform in the Chinese thinking means centralisation.&nbsp;

Is Xi Jinping working towards a broader plan? &nbsp;Some China watchers in India believe the amendments to the constitution is only a smokescreen. &nbsp;They suspect Xi is trying to gauge the strength of the opposition to him in the party. &nbsp;It is well known that former presidents Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao will oppose him. &nbsp;

Xi may not be sure that all the members of the Politburo Standing Committee are behind him. &nbsp;But many are due to retire in 2021, so the hint being thrown that if the posts of president and vice-president can be extended, why not others. &nbsp;The only requirement is loyalty to the president.

Looking ahead, he may want to drop the tenure limits to the posts of party General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. This is where real political power in China lies. &nbsp;Expect the National People&#39;s Congress to rubber stamp Xi&#39;s amendments. &nbsp;But it could also galvanise and unite his opponents.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)&nbsp;

Xi Jinping has 'princeling' roots, he is descendant of the founders of People's China, who believe it is their destiny to rule.

I'm sorry but I don't want to be an emperor. That's not my business. I don't want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone! - Charlie Chaplin in the 1940 film The Great Dictator We've heard those disclaimers from Indian politicians, seen it in Africa where at the last count, there are at least 10 presidents who have been ruling for 25 years if not more. China's is a different case where the national leadership decided sometime after the death of its founder leader Chairman Mao in 1976, that it did not want any more disasters like the Great Leap Forward or upheavals like the Cultural Revolution. So one man running the country was out. It accounted for the two-term limit set for the President and Vice-President. At the National People's Congress which opened in Beijing today, the key item on the agenda is an amendment which will turn the clock back. So it's not for nothing that the Internet is buzzing with many Chinese referring to President Xi Jinping as Xi Zedong, likening him to the late Chairman who while swearing by communism, behaved like an emperor. Maybe it stems deep down from Xi Jinping's 'princeling' roots, descendants of the founders of People's China, who believe it is their destiny to rule. But in the public mind, it is synonymous with nepotism and cronyism, reflecting the fact that the princelings have an advantage in belonging to families entrenched in the country's politics and by extension, business. This is not to suggest President Xi is personally corrupt: He has fostered a reputation for clean government and there's no evidence of any great personal fortune. But here's the rub: A Bloomberg investigation in 2012 showed he had a daughter studying at Harvard University where tuition fees averaged around $60,000. Bloomberg says he had a $28 mn stake in a property investment company Shenzhen Yuanwei The probe revealed that other investments in the same group, owned wholly by the family, amounted to 539.3 million Yuan (about $8.4 mn) The family also had an 18% indirect stake in Jiangxi Rare Earth worth about $13.8 mn Investments made in the Beijing Hiconics Drive Technology Company is valued at around $200,000 The investigations included the caveat that the liabilities are unknown, so there's a lack of clarity about the family's net worth Add to that a villa and six other properties in Hong Kong Given that Chinese government salaries are not lavish, the public often wonders at the lifestyles of their leaders. The results of a poll published by the People's Daily and carried by The Telegraph of London in 2012, showed 91% of respondents saying all rich families in China had political backgrounds. This is the subtext to Xi Jinping's rise to power. He holds 13 posts, including President, party General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. In the case of the last, he's also made himself armed forces commander, a new post which gives him the power to appoint top military officers. Along the way, he's made himself head of the Group for Internet Security, Leader of the Group for Finance and Economic Affairs and Leader of the Group for Deepening Reforms and so on. Reform in the Chinese thinking means centralisation. Is Xi Jinping working towards a broader plan? Some China watchers in India believe the amendments to the constitution is only a smokescreen. They suspect Xi is trying to gauge the strength of the opposition to him in the party. It is well known that former presidents Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao will oppose him. Xi may not be sure that all the members of the Politburo Standing Committee are behind him. But many are due to retire in 2021, so the hint being thrown that if the posts of president and vice-president can be extended, why not others. The only requirement is loyalty to the president. Looking ahead, he may want to drop the tenure limits to the posts of party General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission. This is where real political power in China lies. Expect the National People's Congress to rubber stamp Xi's amendments. But it could also galvanise and unite his opponents. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: President Xi Jinping aims to be the emperor of communist China

China today defended its move to remove the two-term limit for President Xi Jinping, saying it is important to uphold the authority of the ruling Communist Party and unity of the state leadership.

The Communist Party of China&#39;s Central Committee has proposed to remove the two-term limit for the post of president and vice president through a constitutional amendment.

The proposal sparked off concern and speculation at home and abroad that Xi, heading the CPC and military besides the presidency, who recently began his second five-year term would continue for an unprecedented third term and beyond, wielding unquestionable power exercised by the party founder, Mao Zedong, in the heydays of Chinas revolution.

Explaining for the first time why the CPC opted for such a move, spokesman of the National Peoples Congress Zhang Yesui told media that the president has the term-limit while there were no term limits for the head of the party and the military.

Well according to the constitution of the CPC there is no such provision that there shall be no more than two successive terms for the General Secretary or Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) in the constitution of China.

The CMC is the overall high command of the 2.3 million strong Chinese military.

So for the Constitution, it follows the same practice regarding the term of the President. It is conducive to uphold the authority of the Central Committee of the party with Xi Jinping at the core and also unified leadership. It is also conducive to the unified state leadership system, he said.

Xi, who took over power in 2012, heads the party, the military and the presidency. While the posts of head of the party and military are powerful, the presidency is largely ceremonial. The five-term for the presidency starts this month.

Xi began second five-year term as the leader of the CPC and the military in last October after a key congress of the party.

The NPC, which has 2,980 deputies is expected ratify the constitutional amendments removing the term limit which would enable Xi to continue to head China possibly for life.

It is customary that the spokesman of the NPC, often regarded as the rubber stamp Parliament to address a nationally televised press conference answering select questions from the local and foreign media.

Zhang said the Constitution, which reflects the common will of the CPC and Chinese people is Chinas fundamental law and the general chapter for governing the country well and ensuring national security.

The current Constitution has been proven a good law that fits in Chinas reality and meets the demand of the times, Zhang said.

&quot;The Constitution can only ensure its lasting vitality by constantly adapting to new situations, drawing on new experiences, confirming new achievements and setting down new norms,&quot; he said.

It is necessary to appropriately amend the Constitution to incorporate major theoretical, practical and institutional achievements made by the Party and the people in order to give better play to the Constitutions critical role in upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in a new era, he said.

Amending the Constitution is a big event in the countrys political life and a major legislative activity with wide-ranging implications, he said.

Upholding the partys leadership and reflecting the will of the people should be the principles for amending the Constitution, he said.&nbsp;

The Communist Party of China's Central Committee has proposed to remove the two-term limit for the post of president and vice president through a constitutional amendment

China today defended its move to remove the two-term limit for President Xi Jinping, saying it is important to uphold the authority of the ruling Communist Party and unity of the state leadership. The Communist Party of China's Central Committee has proposed to remove the two-term limit for the post of president and vice president through a constitutional amendment. The proposal sparked off concern and speculation at home and abroad that Xi, heading the CPC and military besides the presidency, who recently began his second five-year term would continue for an unprecedented third term and beyond, wielding unquestionable power exercised by the party founder, Mao Zedong, in the heydays of Chinas revolution. Explaining for the first time why the CPC opted for such a move, spokesman of the National Peoples Congress Zhang Yesui told media that the president has the term-limit while there were no term limits for the head of the party and the military. Well according to the constitution of the CPC there is no such provision that there shall be no more than two successive terms for the General Secretary or Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) in the constitution of China. The CMC is the overall high command of the 2.3 million strong Chinese military. So for the Constitution, it follows the same practice regarding the term of the President. It is conducive to uphold the authority of the Central Committee of the party with Xi Jinping at the core and also unified leadership. It is also conducive to the unified state leadership system, he said. Xi, who took over power in 2012, heads the party, the military and the presidency. While the posts of head of the party and military are powerful, the presidency is largely ceremonial. The five-term for the presidency starts this month. Xi began second five-year term as the leader of the CPC and the military in last October after a key congress of the party. The NPC, which has 2,980 deputies is expected ratify the constitutional amendments removing the term limit which would enable Xi to continue to head China possibly for life. It is customary that the spokesman of the NPC, often regarded as the rubber stamp Parliament to address a nationally televised press conference answering select questions from the local and foreign media. Zhang said the Constitution, which reflects the common will of the CPC and Chinese people is Chinas fundamental law and the general chapter for governing the country well and ensuring national security. The current Constitution has been proven a good law that fits in Chinas reality and meets the demand of the times, Zhang said. "The Constitution can only ensure its lasting vitality by constantly adapting to new situations, drawing on new experiences, confirming new achievements and setting down new norms," he said. It is necessary to appropriately amend the Constitution to incorporate major theoretical, practical and institutional achievements made by the Party and the people in order to give better play to the Constitutions critical role in upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in a new era, he said. Amending the Constitution is a big event in the countrys political life and a major legislative activity with wide-ranging implications, he said. Upholding the partys leadership and reflecting the will of the people should be the principles for amending the Constitution, he said.

Removal of two-term limit for Xi Jinping important to uphold CPC unity: China 

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/npps-conrad-sangma-to-be-next-chief-minister-of-meghalaya-says-bjp-34635">NPP&#39;s Conrad Sangma to be next chief minister of </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/npps-conrad-sangma-to-be-next-chief-minister-of-meghalaya-says-bjp-34635">Meghalaya,</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/npps-conrad-sangma-to-be-next-chief-minister-of-meghalaya-says-bjp-34635"> says BJP</a>

National People&#39;s Party&#39;s (NPP) Conrad Sangma Sunday met Meghalaya Governor to stake claim to form the next government in the Northeast state.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/india-news/bsp-sp-alliance-rumours-for-2019-lok-sabha-elections-false-mayawati-34623">BSP-SP alliance rumours for 2019 Lok Sabha elections false: Mayawati</a>

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati Sunday denied all the rumours floating around that the party will join hands with rival Samajwadi Party (SP) for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.&nbsp;

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/fiorentina-captain-astori-dies-suddenly-club-says-34631">Fiorentina captain Astori dies suddenly, </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/fiorentina-captain-astori-dies-suddenly-club-says-34631">club</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/fiorentina-captain-astori-dies-suddenly-club-says-34631"> says</a>

Fiorentina captain and defender Davide Astori died of a sudden illness on Sunday morning, the Serie A club said on Twitter.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/removal-of-two-term-limit-for-xi-jinping-important-to-uphold-cpc-unity-china-34624">Removal of </a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/removal-of-two-term-limit-for-xi-jinping-important-to-uphold-cpc-unity-china-34624">two-term</a><a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/removal-of-two-term-limit-for-xi-jinping-important-to-uphold-cpc-unity-china-34624"> limit for Xi Jinping important to uphold CPC unity: China&nbsp;</a>

China today defended its move to remove the two-term limit for President Xi Jinping, saying it is important to uphold the authority of the ruling Communist Party and unity of the state leadership.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/once-a-bonded-labourer-krishna-kumari-kolhi-is-now-pakistans-first-dalit-hindu-woman-senator-34616">Once a bonded labourer, Krishna Kumari Kolhi is now Pakistan&#39;s first Dalit Hindu woman senator</a>

Krishna Kumari Kolhi from Pakistan&#39;s Sindh province has become the first-ever Hindu Dalit woman Senator in the Muslim-majority country, the Pakistan People&#39;s Party has said.

 
&nbsp;

NPP's Conrad Sangma to be next chief minister of Meghalaya, says BJP National People's Party's (NPP) Conrad Sangma Sunday met Meghalaya Governor to stake claim to form the next government in the Northeast state. BSP-SP alliance rumours for 2019 Lok Sabha elections false: Mayawati Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati Sunday denied all the rumours floating around that the party will join hands with rival Samajwadi Party (SP) for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Fiorentina captain Astori dies suddenly, club says Fiorentina captain and defender Davide Astori died of a sudden illness on Sunday morning, the Serie A club said on Twitter. Removal of two-term limit for Xi Jinping important to uphold CPC unity: China China today defended its move to remove the two-term limit for President Xi Jinping, saying it is important to uphold the authority of the ruling Communist Party and unity of the state leadership. Once a bonded labourer, Krishna Kumari Kolhi is now Pakistan's first Dalit Hindu woman senator Krishna Kumari Kolhi from Pakistan's Sindh province has become the first-ever Hindu Dalit woman Senator in the Muslim-majority country, the Pakistan People's Party has said.

WION Evening News Brief, March 4, 2018

The Chinese regime is infamous for clamping down and crushing anything that goes against the authority. Not to mention, the ghost of the tragic Tiananmen Square massacre lives on even today. Every year, the Chinese authorities brace up to censor all things associated with the horrific tragedy, including online searches that would lead to any information remotely associated with the 1989 event.&nbsp;

The Chinese kingpins, who now seek to get rid of the presidential term limit for General Secretary and President Xi Jinping, made headlines for reportedly banning the English alphabet &#39;N&#39; and recently the world-famous cartoon character, the honey-loving bear Winnie the Pooh from its online territories.&nbsp;

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Could&#39;ve expected this, but still pretty creative. First images of &quot;king Winnie&quot; surfacing on Weibo in response to Xi&#39;s potential indefinite rule: <a href="https://t.co/u9kL5OYGwq">https://t.co/u9kL5OYGwq</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/XiJinping?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#XiJinping</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/kingwinnie?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#kingwinnie</a> <a href="https://t.co/Bb6Dmy46xH">pic.twitter.com/Bb6Dmy46xH</a>
&mdash; Manya Koetse (@manyapan) <a href="https://twitter.com/manyapan/status/967729594093785088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 25, 2018</a></blockquote>
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Chinese authorities get into work to brace criticisms directed toward the Chinese regime as well against President Xi Jinping. The same results into the phasing out relevant content from the face of Chinese online and social media.&nbsp;

Shortly after the Chinese Communist Party announced its plans of getting rid of presidential term limits on Sunday, many took to social media posting images of Winnie the Pooh alluding to the Chinese President.&nbsp;

<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/5D8z_VqVJUw" width="560"></iframe>

Many likened the bear&#39;s appearance to that of President Xi, a trend that has been in existence on social media ever since Xi assumed power in the year 2013. An image of Pooh with his beloved friend Tigger placed right next to Xi&#39;s image with Obama also raked much controversy previously.

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China banned Winnie the Pooh after Xi was compared to him ???? 
Chinese depend on overt display of strength coz they know they&#39;re hollow within. <a href="https://t.co/5Fp3JVoLSx">pic.twitter.com/5Fp3JVoLSx</a>
&mdash; Vinayak Jain (@vinayak_jain) <a href="https://twitter.com/vinayak_jain/status/899886641157783553?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
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Reportedly, Chinese censors are going way beyond and taking down messages and all media linked to describing Xi as a dictator or any negative discussions relating to him or the possibility of him serving for life.&nbsp;

A popular Chinese social media platform noted several phrases and words to have been temporarily banned on its site. The list included words and phrases like &#39;incapable ruler&#39;, &#39;emperor&#39; among others.&nbsp;

Letter &#39;N&#39; was temporarily banned. Many suggested Chinese censors targetted the mathematical expression of disapproval -- as the expression &ldquo;N &gt; 2&rdquo; in mathematics has &#39;N&#39;&nbsp;as an unknown signifier for an unknown quantity, here referring to Xi&rsquo;s possible presidential tenure.&nbsp;

Shortly after the Chinese Communist Party announced its plans of getting rid of presidential term limits on Sunday, many took to social media posting images of Winnie the Pooh alluding to the Chinese President

The Chinese regime is infamous for clamping down and crushing anything that goes against the authority. Not to mention, the ghost of the tragic Tiananmen Square massacre lives on even today. Every year, the Chinese authorities brace up to censor all things associated with the horrific tragedy, including online searches that would lead to any information remotely associated with the 1989 event. The Chinese kingpins, who now seek to get rid of the presidential term limit for General Secretary and President Xi Jinping, made headlines for reportedly banning the English alphabet 'N' and recently the world-famous cartoon character, the honey-loving bear Winnie the Pooh from its online territories. Could've expected this, but still pretty creative. First images of "king Winnie" surfacing on Weibo in response to Xi's potential indefinite rule: https://t.co/u9kL5OYGwq #XiJinping #kingwinnie pic.twitter.com/Bb6Dmy46xH — Manya Koetse (@manyapan) February 25, 2018 × Chinese authorities get into work to brace criticisms directed toward the Chinese regime as well against President Xi Jinping. The same results into the phasing out relevant content from the face of Chinese online and social media. Shortly after the Chinese Communist Party announced its plans of getting rid of presidential term limits on Sunday, many took to social media posting images of Winnie the Pooh alluding to the Chinese President. Many likened the bear's appearance to that of President Xi, a trend that has been in existence on social media ever since Xi assumed power in the year 2013. An image of Pooh with his beloved friend Tigger placed right next to Xi's image with Obama also raked much controversy previously. China banned Winnie the Pooh after Xi was compared to him ???? Chinese depend on overt display of strength coz they know they're hollow within. pic.twitter.com/5Fp3JVoLSx — Vinayak Jain (@vinayak_jain) August 22, 2017 × Reportedly, Chinese censors are going way beyond and taking down messages and all media linked to describing Xi as a dictator or any negative discussions relating to him or the possibility of him serving for life. A popular Chinese social media platform noted several phrases and words to have been temporarily banned on its site. The list included words and phrases like 'incapable ruler', 'emperor' among others. Letter 'N' was temporarily banned. Many suggested Chinese censors targetted the mathematical expression of disapproval -- as the expression “N > 2” in mathematics has 'N' as an unknown signifier for an unknown quantity, here referring to Xi’s possible presidential tenure.

After temporarily banning 'N', China clamps down on 'Winnie the Pooh'

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks in Beijing with Tongan King Tupou VI Thursday, both agreeing to deepen the strategic partnership between China and Tonga.

Xi welcomed King Tupou VI&#39;s state visit on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He also extended sincere condolences to the country which suffered serious devastation due to a serious storm.

Xi said King Tupou VI signed a joint communique with China 20 years ago when he visited China as foreign minister and defense minister. Xi said he hopes that the Tongan royal family continues to play a positive role in promoting China-Tonga relationship.

China and Pacific Ocean countries including Tonga are good friends that breathe the same breath, share the same future and mutual development, said the Chinese president. Xi said that the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) proposed to promote a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness and justice and win-win cooperation, as well as promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. He added that the guidance will open up a broader prospect for China-Tonga relationship and their cooperation.

Xi also said the two countries should enhance high-level exchanges and cooperation at different levels, enhance political mutual trust and continue to understand and support each other on issues involving sovereignty, territorial integrity and national dignity.

On his part, King Tupou VI praised the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping as well as the assistance from China when his country was hit by the storm. He said Tonga agrees with China on its concept of building a new type of international relations. Tonga would like to enhance cooperation in various fields with China under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of cooperative documents in various fields including economic and technological cooperation, human resource development and education. The two sides also issued a joint press communique.

King Tupou VI&#39;s visit to China was at the invitation of Xi.

Prior to the meeting, Xi held a ceremony to welcome the king, with a military band playing the national anthems of the two countries, and a 21-gun salute.

Xi&#39;s wife Peng Liyuan and State Councilor Yang Jiechi also attended the ceremony.

On Thursday afternoon, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with King Tupou VI in the Great Hall of the People.

Li said Tonga is a good friend and partner of China in the Pacific island region. The fruitful meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and King Tupou VI has strongly stimulated the progress of bilateral relations, Li said.

China appreciates Tonga for firmly following the one-China policy, Li said, adding that China would like to take the opportunity of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties to further enhance the Sino-Tongan pragmatic cooperation in various fields.

King Tupou VI said the bilateral relationship of the two countries has maintained a steady and healthy development progress. Tonga firmly adheres to the one-China policy and would like to deepen political mutual trusts and expand cooperation with China, said the king.

Chinese President Xi Jinping welcomed King Tupou VI's state visit on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He also extended sincere condolences to the country which suffered serious devastation due to a serious storm

Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks in Beijing with Tongan King Tupou VI Thursday, both agreeing to deepen the strategic partnership between China and Tonga. Xi welcomed King Tupou VI's state visit on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. He also extended sincere condolences to the country which suffered serious devastation due to a serious storm. Xi said King Tupou VI signed a joint communique with China 20 years ago when he visited China as foreign minister and defense minister. Xi said he hopes that the Tongan royal family continues to play a positive role in promoting China-Tonga relationship. China and Pacific Ocean countries including Tonga are good friends that breathe the same breath, share the same future and mutual development, said the Chinese president. Xi said that the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) proposed to promote a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness and justice and win-win cooperation, as well as promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind. He added that the guidance will open up a broader prospect for China-Tonga relationship and their cooperation. Xi also said the two countries should enhance high-level exchanges and cooperation at different levels, enhance political mutual trust and continue to understand and support each other on issues involving sovereignty, territorial integrity and national dignity. On his part, King Tupou VI praised the leadership of Chinese President Xi Jinping as well as the assistance from China when his country was hit by the storm. He said Tonga agrees with China on its concept of building a new type of international relations. Tonga would like to enhance cooperation in various fields with China under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. The two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of cooperative documents in various fields including economic and technological cooperation, human resource development and education. The two sides also issued a joint press communique. King Tupou VI's visit to China was at the invitation of Xi. Prior to the meeting, Xi held a ceremony to welcome the king, with a military band playing the national anthems of the two countries, and a 21-gun salute. Xi's wife Peng Liyuan and State Councilor Yang Jiechi also attended the ceremony. On Thursday afternoon, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with King Tupou VI in the Great Hall of the People. Li said Tonga is a good friend and partner of China in the Pacific island region. The fruitful meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and King Tupou VI has strongly stimulated the progress of bilateral relations, Li said. China appreciates Tonga for firmly following the one-China policy, Li said, adding that China would like to take the opportunity of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties to further enhance the Sino-Tongan pragmatic cooperation in various fields. King Tupou VI said the bilateral relationship of the two countries has maintained a steady and healthy development progress. Tonga firmly adheres to the one-China policy and would like to deepen political mutual trusts and expand cooperation with China, said the king.

China, Tonga agree to promote strategic partnership

In today&rsquo;s time, blogs, forums and the likes are the breakthroughs in citizen development. Social media platforms through the access of the Internet has become a way for people to engage in issues they wish to express their opinion on, influence the government and maintain their anonymity as well.

But not all is well with the governments supporting this citizen development. People are facing penalties and getting arrested for sharing and publishing content in the name of cybersecurity or as the critics call it cyber sovereignty. According to a report from freedom house, a pro-democracy think tank, Internet freedom around the world declined in 2016 for the sixth consecutive year. It listed China dead last out of all nations surveyed.

The Great Firewall of China, not a physical barrier but a virtual one, prevents harmful information from entering the country. Apparently, it seems it was not enough as China&rsquo;s cyber administration has recently released a new cybersecurity law to tighten control and strengthen the oversight mechanism over Internet discussion.&nbsp;

These regulations demand that all social media users register accounts only with proper identification; a prior censorship for all Internet comments in the form of first approve then post system; Internet companies to assist public security organisations in protecting national security, and allowing the state to establish undefined systems for cybersecurity monitoring.

In addition to the above mentioned monitoring requirements, the law mandates that personal information and other important data collected in China must be stored on servers physically located within mainland China. The law also requires firms that operate critical information infrastructure to comply with all other obligations created by law or administrative regulation.&nbsp;

Moreover, local and overseas firms are required to submit to security checks and their business licenses can be revoked for serious violations.

The sad part about these restrictions is the lack of definitional detail present in them. There is no precise enumeration of which sectors constitute critical information infrastructure that requires enhanced cybersecurity measures. The guidelines mentioned in the law are written in vague terminology and absent official guidance, increasing the scope of state authority in an ambiguous manner.

The requirement for the companies to verify an individual&rsquo;s real identity before providing Internet services nullifies the blessing of being anonymous to users. The extensive terms and conditions of the law also present huge problems for foreign corporations attempting to comply with it. International law firms are worried that companies could be asked to provide source code, encryption, or other crucial information for review by the authorities, increasing the risk of this information being lost, passed on to local competitors, or used by the authorities themselves.&nbsp;

Moreover, these companies now face at least four separate security audits by different Chinese government agencies with unclear jurisdictions. This new cybersecurity law is not only curbing freedom of expression but can also be used for political purposes to delay or block market access. It can damage global trade in services and disrupt cross-border transfers of information that are routine in the ordinary course of business. The law has also raised concerns among foreign companies over greater data controls as well as increased risks of intellectual property theft.

Government-backed Internet commentators can flood the web in China with pro-regime propaganda. It can also threaten to shut down foreign technology companies out of various sectors considered critical. The Economist has warned that the new law could well constitute &lsquo;a Trojan horse designed to promote China&rsquo;s aggressive policy of indigenous innovation. &nbsp;Also, the substantial investment by Chinese technology firms in recent years to establish domestic data centres is believed to bolster the domestic Chinese data management and telecommunications industry against global competitors.

Moreover, China&rsquo;s refusal to accede to the Budapest Convention on Cyber Crime reflects its developing state-centric approach to international agreements on cyberspace. The Convention is a multilateral agreement that serves as a framework for international cooperation on cybercrime and a guide for the development of national cybercrime legislation

The proponents of this law have called it an information security policy. It is linked with Xi Jinping&rsquo;s dictum that without cyber security there is no national security. It can be used to counter threats of hacking, terrorism and other cyber crimes. Though, the reality for the critics is far from the objective. China hopes to reap the economic benefits of cyber-development while actively shaping and constraining the ideas available to the country&rsquo;s citizens. It is moving its model of Internet sovereignty for the world by making it a legal reality at home.

Internet censorship in this information age is hard to gulp in seeing the overwhelming presence of real-time news and data availability. Cyber powers all around the world need to talk about in practical technological and human terms. If China calls its cybersecurity policy as an information security policy, then international information security and the peace in cyberspace is highly questioned. For the people of China, living in a society where speech and expression can be freely exchanged is becoming a distant reality. 
&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

People are facing penalties and getting arrested for sharing and publishing content in the name of cybersecurity or as the critics call it cyber sovereignty.

In today’s time, blogs, forums and the likes are the breakthroughs in citizen development. Social media platforms through the access of the Internet has become a way for people to engage in issues they wish to express their opinion on, influence the government and maintain their anonymity as well. But not all is well with the governments supporting this citizen development. People are facing penalties and getting arrested for sharing and publishing content in the name of cybersecurity or as the critics call it cyber sovereignty. According to a report from freedom house, a pro-democracy think tank, Internet freedom around the world declined in 2016 for the sixth consecutive year. It listed China dead last out of all nations surveyed. The Great Firewall of China, not a physical barrier but a virtual one, prevents harmful information from entering the country. Apparently, it seems it was not enough as China’s cyber administration has recently released a new cybersecurity law to tighten control and strengthen the oversight mechanism over Internet discussion. These regulations demand that all social media users register accounts only with proper identification; a prior censorship for all Internet comments in the form of first approve then post system; Internet companies to assist public security organisations in protecting national security, and allowing the state to establish undefined systems for cybersecurity monitoring. In addition to the above mentioned monitoring requirements, the law mandates that personal information and other important data collected in China must be stored on servers physically located within mainland China. The law also requires firms that operate critical information infrastructure to comply with all other obligations created by law or administrative regulation. Moreover, local and overseas firms are required to submit to security checks and their business licenses can be revoked for serious violations. The sad part about these restrictions is the lack of definitional detail present in them. There is no precise enumeration of which sectors constitute critical information infrastructure that requires enhanced cybersecurity measures. The guidelines mentioned in the law are written in vague terminology and absent official guidance, increasing the scope of state authority in an ambiguous manner. The requirement for the companies to verify an individual’s real identity before providing Internet services nullifies the blessing of being anonymous to users. The extensive terms and conditions of the law also present huge problems for foreign corporations attempting to comply with it. International law firms are worried that companies could be asked to provide source code, encryption, or other crucial information for review by the authorities, increasing the risk of this information being lost, passed on to local competitors, or used by the authorities themselves. Moreover, these companies now face at least four separate security audits by different Chinese government agencies with unclear jurisdictions. This new cybersecurity law is not only curbing freedom of expression but can also be used for political purposes to delay or block market access. It can damage global trade in services and disrupt cross-border transfers of information that are routine in the ordinary course of business. The law has also raised concerns among foreign companies over greater data controls as well as increased risks of intellectual property theft. Government-backed Internet commentators can flood the web in China with pro-regime propaganda. It can also threaten to shut down foreign technology companies out of various sectors considered critical. The Economist has warned that the new law could well constitute ‘a Trojan horse designed to promote China’s aggressive policy of indigenous innovation. Also, the substantial investment by Chinese technology firms in recent years to establish domestic data centres is believed to bolster the domestic Chinese data management and telecommunications industry against global competitors. Moreover, China’s refusal to accede to the Budapest Convention on Cyber Crime reflects its developing state-centric approach to international agreements on cyberspace. The Convention is a multilateral agreement that serves as a framework for international cooperation on cybercrime and a guide for the development of national cybercrime legislation The proponents of this law have called it an information security policy. It is linked with Xi Jinping’s dictum that without cyber security there is no national security. It can be used to counter threats of hacking, terrorism and other cyber crimes. Though, the reality for the critics is far from the objective. China hopes to reap the economic benefits of cyber-development while actively shaping and constraining the ideas available to the country’s citizens. It is moving its model of Internet sovereignty for the world by making it a legal reality at home. Internet censorship in this information age is hard to gulp in seeing the overwhelming presence of real-time news and data availability. Cyber powers all around the world need to talk about in practical technological and human terms. If China calls its cybersecurity policy as an information security policy, then international information security and the peace in cyberspace is highly questioned. For the people of China, living in a society where speech and expression can be freely exchanged is becoming a distant reality. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Is China curtailing freedom in the name of cybersecurity?

The Xinhua news agency has just issued a long, unprecedented statement about directions from the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee to the National People&rsquo;s Congress regarding revisions to China&rsquo;s national constitution.

The People&rsquo;s Congress is now required to propose these revisions at its annual meeting next month.

If there was any doubt that China&rsquo;s national legislature is anything but a toothless rubber stamp for the secretive machinations of the Communist Politburo, there isn&rsquo;t anymore.

Hidden well inside the turgid text, at the end of Section 14, is the removal of a phrase limiting China&rsquo;s president and vice-president to two terms in office.

So it looks like President Xi Jinping, aged 64, and his proposed VP, Wang Qishan, 69, are in office for life. (Expect an approving tweet from Donald Trump, who must feel ever more resentful that he&rsquo;s buckled down by the United States&rsquo; comparable constitutional restriction.)

China&rsquo;s term limit was enacted in 1982 following a reassessment of the later years of Chairman Mao Zedong&rsquo;s, who was the supreme leader from 1935 until his death in 1976.

The overwhelming consensus in China is that he stayed in power 20 years too long, with things going horribly wrong from 1957 with the large-scale purge of &ldquo;rightists.&rdquo; This was followed by the disastrous Great Leap Forward economic campaign, which resulted in more than 30 million people dying of starvation. Then came a decade of the massive destruction, upheaval and political purges of the Cultural Revolution.

But at least Mao&rsquo;s power was somewhat constrained by colleagues like Zhou Enlai and Liu Shaoqi, who retained their own currency as leaders from the revolutionary wars.&nbsp;

Rivals vanquished

By comparison, Xi Jinping has no such checks or balances, having already methodically purged potential rivals like Sun Zhengcai and Bo Xilai through anti-corruption campaigns. Xi has now assumed absolute control of the party, army, and state.

Only violence would dislodge him from power &mdash; some sort of extreme right-wing nationalist military coup that could bring a xenophobic expansionist r&eacute;gime even more hostile to Canadian interests than what we&rsquo;re facing now.

Any naive hopes for a peaceful evolution to democracy are shattered against the reality that China is now a one-man dictatorship yearning to restore the archaic political norms of China&rsquo;s imperial past: Subjects instead of citizens, the destiny of the nation instead of individuals&rsquo; rights and protection of minority rights.

What&rsquo;s more, another of the constitutional revisions adds &ldquo;Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era&rdquo; as the party&rsquo;s ideological guide. In other words, whatever Xi says or does has the authority of supreme law in China.&nbsp;

As a onetime advisor in the Canadian embassy in Beijing, I believe the problem for Canada is that Xi has a fervent commitment to a meta-ideology that threatens the current, fraying liberal world order.

His &ldquo;Chinese dream of national restoration&rdquo; demands that Canada and all Western nations become subsidiary participants in the Chinese-dominated &ldquo;community of the common destiny of humankind&rdquo; linked by the massive &ldquo;One Belt One Road&rdquo; global infrastructure program.

Under a previous empire, all roads led to Rome. Under &ldquo;Emperor&rdquo; Xi, all high-speed rail lines under heaven, shipping routes (including via the Canadian Arctic) and air transport will pass through Beijing.

China is already aggressively rallying support from pro-mainland ethnic Chinese in Canada, as well China-friendly business lobbyists and politicians, through its United Front Work Department initiatives in Canada.

If the political consensus in Canada is not to comply, expect China to retaliate. Britain, Australia and New Zealand have already refused to support the One Belt One Road plan. They will certainly incur Beijing&rsquo;s wrath, starting with economic punishment as the stick and promise of trade and investment benefits for compliance with China&rsquo;s demands as the carrot.

The constitutional amendments also include new language about &ldquo;the great revival of the Chinese race.&rdquo;

The threat to Chinese-Canadians is that there is a much enhanced blood-and-belonging aspect to Xi&rsquo;s constitutionally endorsed rhetoric. This overarching vision sees all ethnic Chinese &mdash; regardless of citizenship or number of generations abroad, including even children adopted from China &mdash; as obligated to respond to Chinese Embassy pressures to facilitate China&rsquo;s rise through political support for Beijing and even treasonous espionage.

Canadians with family in China are pressured to demonstrate their loyalty to China&rsquo;s People&rsquo;s Republic. Canada must do much more to protect our countrymen of ethnic Chinese origin from foreign interference.&nbsp;

Under Xi Jinping&rsquo;s now unchallengeable dictatorship, the world is becoming more and more Chinese.

It&rsquo;s important that we make sure this doesn&rsquo;t mean that Canada has to become less and less Canadian.

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Any naive hopes for a peaceful evolution to democracy in China are shattered against the reality that it's now a one-man dictatorship. What does it mean for the West?

The Xinhua news agency has just issued a long, unprecedented statement about directions from the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee to the National People’s Congress regarding revisions to China’s national constitution. The People’s Congress is now required to propose these revisions at its annual meeting next month. If there was any doubt that China’s national legislature is anything but a toothless rubber stamp for the secretive machinations of the Communist Politburo, there isn’t anymore. Hidden well inside the turgid text, at the end of Section 14, is the removal of a phrase limiting China’s president and vice-president to two terms in office. So it looks like President Xi Jinping, aged 64, and his proposed VP, Wang Qishan, 69, are in office for life. (Expect an approving tweet from Donald Trump, who must feel ever more resentful that he’s buckled down by the United States’ comparable constitutional restriction.) China’s term limit was enacted in 1982 following a reassessment of the later years of Chairman Mao Zedong’s, who was the supreme leader from 1935 until his death in 1976. The overwhelming consensus in China is that he stayed in power 20 years too long, with things going horribly wrong from 1957 with the large-scale purge of “rightists.” This was followed by the disastrous Great Leap Forward economic campaign, which resulted in more than 30 million people dying of starvation. Then came a decade of the massive destruction, upheaval and political purges of the Cultural Revolution. But at least Mao’s power was somewhat constrained by colleagues like Zhou Enlai and Liu Shaoqi, who retained their own currency as leaders from the revolutionary wars. Rivals vanquished By comparison, Xi Jinping has no such checks or balances, having already methodically purged potential rivals like Sun Zhengcai and Bo Xilai through anti-corruption campaigns. Xi has now assumed absolute control of the party, army, and state. Only violence would dislodge him from power — some sort of extreme right-wing nationalist military coup that could bring a xenophobic expansionist régime even more hostile to Canadian interests than what we’re facing now. Any naive hopes for a peaceful evolution to democracy are shattered against the reality that China is now a one-man dictatorship yearning to restore the archaic political norms of China’s imperial past: Subjects instead of citizens, the destiny of the nation instead of individuals’ rights and protection of minority rights. What’s more, another of the constitutional revisions adds “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” as the party’s ideological guide. In other words, whatever Xi says or does has the authority of supreme law in China. As a onetime advisor in the Canadian embassy in Beijing, I believe the problem for Canada is that Xi has a fervent commitment to a meta-ideology that threatens the current, fraying liberal world order. His “Chinese dream of national restoration” demands that Canada and all Western nations become subsidiary participants in the Chinese-dominated “community of the common destiny of humankind” linked by the massive “One Belt One Road” global infrastructure program. Under a previous empire, all roads led to Rome. Under “Emperor” Xi, all high-speed rail lines under heaven, shipping routes (including via the Canadian Arctic) and air transport will pass through Beijing. China is already aggressively rallying support from pro-mainland ethnic Chinese in Canada, as well China-friendly business lobbyists and politicians, through its United Front Work Department initiatives in Canada. If the political consensus in Canada is not to comply, expect China to retaliate. Britain, Australia and New Zealand have already refused to support the One Belt One Road plan. They will certainly incur Beijing’s wrath, starting with economic punishment as the stick and promise of trade and investment benefits for compliance with China’s demands as the carrot. The constitutional amendments also include new language about “the great revival of the Chinese race.” The threat to Chinese-Canadians is that there is a much enhanced blood-and-belonging aspect to Xi’s constitutionally endorsed rhetoric. This overarching vision sees all ethnic Chinese — regardless of citizenship or number of generations abroad, including even children adopted from China — as obligated to respond to Chinese Embassy pressures to facilitate China’s rise through political support for Beijing and even treasonous espionage. Canadians with family in China are pressured to demonstrate their loyalty to China’s People’s Republic. Canada must do much more to protect our countrymen of ethnic Chinese origin from foreign interference. Under Xi Jinping’s now unchallengeable dictatorship, the world is becoming more and more Chinese. It’s important that we make sure this doesn’t mean that Canada has to become less and less Canadian. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL)

Opinion: Xi Jinping's grab for absolute power in China is dangerous for the world

The US on Wednesday said it was closely watching China&#39;s ruling Communist Party&#39;s plans to abolish presidential term limits while asserting that strong institutions were more important than individual leaders.

&quot;We have been following very closely what has happened in China and the response to Communist Party seeking to abolish term limits there,&quot; State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert told reporters at her daily news conference.

&quot;Strong institutions &mdash; and this is another fundamental freedom of the US &mdash; we believe that strong institutions are more important than individual leaders,&quot; she said.

The Communist Party of China, which is in power since the founding of the People&#39;s Republic in 1949, had proposed on Sunday to amend the country&#39;s Constitution to remove the two-term limits for the President and Vice President, potentially allowing Xi Jinping to rule for life.

Nauert said promoting human rights and democratic governance was a core element of the US foreign policy

&quot;Its an essential foundation of a stable, secure and functioning society,&quot; she said, adding that the United States remains &quot;unwavering&quot; in its commitment to advance personal liberty, human dignity and prosperity globally.

Nauert said promoting human rights and democratic governance was a core element of the US foreign policy

The US on Wednesday said it was closely watching China's ruling Communist Party's plans to abolish presidential term limits while asserting that strong institutions were more important than individual leaders. "We have been following very closely what has happened in China and the response to Communist Party seeking to abolish term limits there," State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert told reporters at her daily news conference. "Strong institutions — and this is another fundamental freedom of the US — we believe that strong institutions are more important than individual leaders," she said. The Communist Party of China, which is in power since the founding of the People's Republic in 1949, had proposed on Sunday to amend the country's Constitution to remove the two-term limits for the President and Vice President, potentially allowing Xi Jinping to rule for life. Nauert said promoting human rights and democratic governance was a core element of the US foreign policy "Its an essential foundation of a stable, secure and functioning society," she said, adding that the United States remains "unwavering" in its commitment to advance personal liberty, human dignity and prosperity globally.

Closely following China's presidential term limit move: US

A vice minister of public security, a close confidant of President Xi Jinping, is tipped to take over as China&#39;s spymaster, five sources said, as the country looks to clean up its security apparatus and plug intelligence gaps.

China has poured billions of yuan into domestic security, but the secretive Ministry of State Security and the Ministry of Public Security in recent years have been hit with high-level corruption scandals and intelligence failings.

Wang Xiaohong, 60, a vice minister of public security, will replace Chen Wenqing as minister of state security during the session of parliament which begins on March 5, three sources with ties to the leadership and two foreign diplomats said.

Chen, 58, will become the country&#39;s top prosecutor after a little more than a year as minister of state security, three of the sources said. The ministry is responsible for counter-intelligence, foreign intelligence and national security.

The change of guard is part of a broader cabinet reshuffle during the two-week parliamentary session.

Wang and President Xi have long-standing ties. Wang is a native of the southeastern province of Fujian, where Xi spent 17 years cutting his teeth from 1985 to 2002.

Wang was deputy director of the Public Security Bureau of Fuzhou, the provincial capital of Fujian, from 1993 to 1998 and the city&#39;s top police official from 1998 to 2002. Xi was Fuzhou party boss from 1990 to 1996 and provincial deputy party secretary until 2002.

&quot;They are very close,&quot; a source with leadership ties said. &quot;Wang Xiaohong used to help look after Xi Jinping&#39;s daughter.&quot;

A second source with leadership ties said Wang&#39;s rise had been fast-tracked in the same vein as other allies whose careers had overlapped with Xi in Fujian, most notably the Beijing party secretary Cai Qi, and Huang Kunming, who was promoted to head the central propaganda department late last year.&nbsp;

Wang, a one-time fan factory worker joined the police force in Minhou county in Fujian in 1979.

Neither the Communist Party&#39;s Organisation Department, which oversees personnel decisions, nor the State Council Information Office, which doubles as the party spokesman&#39;s office, responded to a request for comment.&nbsp;

The Ministry of State Security does not have publicly listed contacts.

Xi has made bolstering security, both domestic and overseas, a priority.

In 2013, a year after Xi assumed power, China set up a new national security commission, which Xi also heads. While details of exactly how it operates and what it does are sketchy, the government has implied it has more of a domestic focus.

Experts say it is based on the National Security Council in the United States and would increase coordination among the various wings of China&#39;s security bureaucracy, split now among the police, military, intelligence and diplomatic services.

Possible international flashpoints for China include North Korea, Taiwan and the South China Sea.

The Ministry of State Security is also still recovering from a graft scandal.

In 2015, Ma Jian, then counter-intelligence chief at the ministry, was put under investigation for corruption and expelled from the party the following year. There has been no official update on his case since February last year, when China&#39;s judiciary said it would prosecute him for suspected bribery.&nbsp;

A video confession surfaced on Chinese websites and social media in April in which Ma admitted to accepting bribes. He also said he abused his position to help China&#39;s highest profile fugitive, Guo Wengui, an exiled US-based billionaire who has made incendiary claims of corruption at the highest levels of the Chinese government.

Guo has denied Ma&#39;s allegations.

Ma, once a vice minister of state security, is the most senior security official to be investigated since the former domestic security tsar Zhou Yongkang was ensnared in a graft scandal and jailed for life in 2015.

The government announced in February last year that Ma would be prosecuted, but has given no other information since.

&quot;He&#39;s coming in to sort out the mess Ma left behind,&quot; said one Asian diplomat, speaking of Wang, the likely new minister.

While China&#39;s domestic security spending outstrips defence spending, though the government stopped providing exact figures four years ago, it has also struggled with some pointed intelligence failures.

One of those has been to prevent Uighurs, a Muslim people from China&#39;s far western region of Xinjiang, from travelling clandestinely to Turkey via Southeast Asia, where China says some of them have joined militant groups in Syria and Iraq.

&quot;China has poor intelligence on their movements and has been unable to produce much evidence&quot; that they are indeed involved in militancy, said another diplomatic source, who is familiar with Chinese efforts to prevent the Uighurs from leaving and then trying and get them deported back to China. 
&nbsp;

A vice minister of public security, a close confidant of President Xi Jinping, is tipped to take over as China's spymaster

A vice minister of public security, a close confidant of President Xi Jinping, is tipped to take over as China's spymaster, five sources said, as the country looks to clean up its security apparatus and plug intelligence gaps. China has poured billions of yuan into domestic security, but the secretive Ministry of State Security and the Ministry of Public Security in recent years have been hit with high-level corruption scandals and intelligence failings. Wang Xiaohong, 60, a vice minister of public security, will replace Chen Wenqing as minister of state security during the session of parliament which begins on March 5, three sources with ties to the leadership and two foreign diplomats said. Chen, 58, will become the country's top prosecutor after a little more than a year as minister of state security, three of the sources said. The ministry is responsible for counter-intelligence, foreign intelligence and national security. The change of guard is part of a broader cabinet reshuffle during the two-week parliamentary session. Wang and President Xi have long-standing ties. Wang is a native of the southeastern province of Fujian, where Xi spent 17 years cutting his teeth from 1985 to 2002. Wang was deputy director of the Public Security Bureau of Fuzhou, the provincial capital of Fujian, from 1993 to 1998 and the city's top police official from 1998 to 2002. Xi was Fuzhou party boss from 1990 to 1996 and provincial deputy party secretary until 2002. "They are very close," a source with leadership ties said. "Wang Xiaohong used to help look after Xi Jinping's daughter." A second source with leadership ties said Wang's rise had been fast-tracked in the same vein as other allies whose careers had overlapped with Xi in Fujian, most notably the Beijing party secretary Cai Qi, and Huang Kunming, who was promoted to head the central propaganda department late last year. Wang, a one-time fan factory worker joined the police force in Minhou county in Fujian in 1979. Neither the Communist Party's Organisation Department, which oversees personnel decisions, nor the State Council Information Office, which doubles as the party spokesman's office, responded to a request for comment. The Ministry of State Security does not have publicly listed contacts. Xi has made bolstering security, both domestic and overseas, a priority. In 2013, a year after Xi assumed power, China set up a new national security commission, which Xi also heads. While details of exactly how it operates and what it does are sketchy, the government has implied it has more of a domestic focus. Experts say it is based on the National Security Council in the United States and would increase coordination among the various wings of China's security bureaucracy, split now among the police, military, intelligence and diplomatic services. Possible international flashpoints for China include North Korea, Taiwan and the South China Sea. The Ministry of State Security is also still recovering from a graft scandal. In 2015, Ma Jian, then counter-intelligence chief at the ministry, was put under investigation for corruption and expelled from the party the following year. There has been no official update on his case since February last year, when China's judiciary said it would prosecute him for suspected bribery. A video confession surfaced on Chinese websites and social media in April in which Ma admitted to accepting bribes. He also said he abused his position to help China's highest profile fugitive, Guo Wengui, an exiled US-based billionaire who has made incendiary claims of corruption at the highest levels of the Chinese government. Guo has denied Ma's allegations. Ma, once a vice minister of state security, is the most senior security official to be investigated since the former domestic security tsar Zhou Yongkang was ensnared in a graft scandal and jailed for life in 2015. The government announced in February last year that Ma would be prosecuted, but has given no other information since. "He's coming in to sort out the mess Ma left behind," said one Asian diplomat, speaking of Wang, the likely new minister. While China's domestic security spending outstrips defence spending, though the government stopped providing exact figures four years ago, it has also struggled with some pointed intelligence failures. One of those has been to prevent Uighurs, a Muslim people from China's far western region of Xinjiang, from travelling clandestinely to Turkey via Southeast Asia, where China says some of them have joined militant groups in Syria and Iraq. "China has poor intelligence on their movements and has been unable to produce much evidence" that they are indeed involved in militancy, said another diplomatic source, who is familiar with Chinese efforts to prevent the Uighurs from leaving and then trying and get them deported back to China.

Xi confidant set to become China's new spymaster

China`s plan for President Xi Jinping to <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/china-proposes-removal-of-two-term-limit-for-president-reports-34002" target="_blank">remain in office indefinitely</a> has sparked social media opposition, drawing comparisons to North Korea`s ruling dynasty and charges of creating a dictator by a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist.

The social media reaction late on Sunday quickly saw China swing into a concerted propaganda push by Monday, blocking some articles and publishing pieces praising the party.

The ruling Communist Party on Sunday proposed to remove a constitutional clause limiting presidential service to just two terms in office, meaning Xi, who also heads the party and the military, might never have to retire.

The proposal, which will be passed by delegates loyal to the party at next month`s annual meeting of China`s largely rubber stamp parliament, is part of a package of amendments to the country`s constitution.

It will also add Xi`s political thought to the constitution, already added to the party constitution last year, and set a legal framework for a super anti-corruption superbody, as well as more broadly strengthen the party`s tight grip on power.

But it seems the party will have its work cut out trying to convince some in China, where Xi is actually very popular thanks in part to his war on graft, that the move will not end up giving Xi too much power.

&quot;Argh, we`re going to become North Korea,&quot; wrote one Weibo user, where the Kim dynasty has ruled since the late 1940s. Kim Il Sung founded North Korea in 1948 and his family has ruled it ever since.

&quot;We`re following the example of our neighbour,` wrote another user.

The comments were removed late on Sunday after Weibo, China`s answer to Twitter, began blocking the search term &quot;two term limit&quot;.

Widely read state-run newspaper the Global Times said in an editorial the change did not mean the president will stay in office for ever, though it did not offer much explanation.

&quot;Since reform and opening up, China, led by the Communist Party, has successfully resolved and will continue to effectively resolve the issue of party and national leadership replacement in a law-abiding and orderly manner,&quot; it said, referring to landmark economic reforms that began four decades ago.

The party`s official People`s Daily reprinted a long article by Xinhua news agency saying most people supported the constitutional amendments, quoting a variety of people proffering support.

&quot;The broad part of officials and the masses say that they hoped this constitutional reform is passed,&quot; it wrote.

The WeChat account of the People`s Daily, after initially posting a flurry of positive comments under its article, then disabled the comments section completely late on Sunday. It was back again by Monday, complete with remarks lauding the party.

The overseas edition of the same paper`s WeChat account removed entirely an article focusing on the term limits, replacing it with the lengthy Xinhua report summing up all the amendment proposals.

In one confusing moment for many Chinese, Xinhua initially only reported the news in English.

Jokes have also circulated on social media. One shows a picture of a condom in its wrapper under the words &quot;doing it twice is not enough&quot;.

Others shared pictures of Winnie the Pooh, an internet meme that plays on Xi`s supposed likeness to the rotund cartoon bear, an image censors have repeatedly tried to remove.&nbsp;

Parts of the stock market took heart from the news. Chinese speculators pounced on stocks with &quot;emperor&quot; in their name on Monday.

The decision has also unsettled some in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong, where authorities have been trying to rein in a pro-democracy movement.

&quot;This move, which would allow for a single individual to amass and accumulate political power, means that China would again have a dictator as her head of state - Xi Jinping,&quot; said Joshua Wong, one of the movement`s leaders.

&quot;The law may exist in China in form, but this just proves that the Chinese law exists to serve the individual and the party`s purposes.&quot;

China is likely though to see any such criticism as a plot against the party.

&quot;Every time China deliberates on reforms and key decisions, effect on public opinion is worth pondering,&quot; the Global Times wrote. &quot;Misinformation and external forces` meddling will affect public opinion in China.&quot;

The social media reaction late on Sunday quickly saw China swing into a concerted propaganda push by Monday, blocking some articles and publishing pieces praising the party

China`s plan for President Xi Jinping to remain in office indefinitely has sparked social media opposition, drawing comparisons to North Korea`s ruling dynasty and charges of creating a dictator by a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist. The social media reaction late on Sunday quickly saw China swing into a concerted propaganda push by Monday, blocking some articles and publishing pieces praising the party. The ruling Communist Party on Sunday proposed to remove a constitutional clause limiting presidential service to just two terms in office, meaning Xi, who also heads the party and the military, might never have to retire. The proposal, which will be passed by delegates loyal to the party at next month`s annual meeting of China`s largely rubber stamp parliament, is part of a package of amendments to the country`s constitution. It will also add Xi`s political thought to the constitution, already added to the party constitution last year, and set a legal framework for a super anti-corruption superbody, as well as more broadly strengthen the party`s tight grip on power. But it seems the party will have its work cut out trying to convince some in China, where Xi is actually very popular thanks in part to his war on graft, that the move will not end up giving Xi too much power. "Argh, we`re going to become North Korea," wrote one Weibo user, where the Kim dynasty has ruled since the late 1940s. Kim Il Sung founded North Korea in 1948 and his family has ruled it ever since. "We`re following the example of our neighbour,` wrote another user. The comments were removed late on Sunday after Weibo, China`s answer to Twitter, began blocking the search term "two term limit". Widely read state-run newspaper the Global Times said in an editorial the change did not mean the president will stay in office for ever, though it did not offer much explanation. "Since reform and opening up, China, led by the Communist Party, has successfully resolved and will continue to effectively resolve the issue of party and national leadership replacement in a law-abiding and orderly manner," it said, referring to landmark economic reforms that began four decades ago. The party`s official People`s Daily reprinted a long article by Xinhua news agency saying most people supported the constitutional amendments, quoting a variety of people proffering support. "The broad part of officials and the masses say that they hoped this constitutional reform is passed," it wrote. The WeChat account of the People`s Daily, after initially posting a flurry of positive comments under its article, then disabled the comments section completely late on Sunday. It was back again by Monday, complete with remarks lauding the party. The overseas edition of the same paper`s WeChat account removed entirely an article focusing on the term limits, replacing it with the lengthy Xinhua report summing up all the amendment proposals. In one confusing moment for many Chinese, Xinhua initially only reported the news in English. Jokes have also circulated on social media. One shows a picture of a condom in its wrapper under the words "doing it twice is not enough". Others shared pictures of Winnie the Pooh, an internet meme that plays on Xi`s supposed likeness to the rotund cartoon bear, an image censors have repeatedly tried to remove. Parts of the stock market took heart from the news. Chinese speculators pounced on stocks with "emperor" in their name on Monday. The decision has also unsettled some in the Chinese territory of Hong Kong, where authorities have been trying to rein in a pro-democracy movement. "This move, which would allow for a single individual to amass and accumulate political power, means that China would again have a dictator as her head of state - Xi Jinping," said Joshua Wong, one of the movement`s leaders. "The law may exist in China in form, but this just proves that the Chinese law exists to serve the individual and the party`s purposes." China is likely though to see any such criticism as a plot against the party. "Every time China deliberates on reforms and key decisions, effect on public opinion is worth pondering," the Global Times wrote. "Misinformation and external forces` meddling will affect public opinion in China."

China pushes back against criticism of plan for Xi to stay in power

China&#39;s Central Committee proposed on Sunday to remove a limit of two consecutive terms for the president and vice president, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

The committee proposed removing the clause &quot;shall serve no more than two consecutive terms&quot; from the constitution, Xinhua reported.

The Central Committee also proposed inserting &quot;Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era&quot; into the constitution, Xinhua said in a separate statement, referring to President Xi.

The committee proposed removing the clause 'shall serve no more than two consecutive terms' from the constitution

China's Central Committee proposed on Sunday to remove a limit of two consecutive terms for the president and vice president, the official Xinhua news agency reported. The committee proposed removing the clause "shall serve no more than two consecutive terms" from the constitution, Xinhua reported. The Central Committee also proposed inserting "Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era" into the constitution, Xinhua said in a separate statement, referring to President Xi.

China proposes removal of two-term limit for president: Reports

Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed military modernisation and technological advances during meetings with servicemen and women ahead of the Lunar New Year, state media said.

Chinese leaders generally use the time around the festival to make inspection trips around the country where they flag important policy initiatives or areas of concern for the year ahead.

The week-long holiday starts on Thursday, the eve of the new year. It is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar, when millions of people travel to their home towns, many for the only time in the year.

Xi has made the upgrading of China`s armed forces a key policy plank, investing in a range of new technologies including stealth fighters, aircraft carriers and missiles.

On a visit to a satellite launch site in southwestern China`s Sichuan province on Saturday, Xi told senior officers they should work with more commitment and be steadfast in building China`s strength in aerospace to create more &quot;Chinese miracles&quot;, state news agency Xinhua said late on Monday.

Xi stressed &quot;military training under combat conditions to build the country`s military into a world-class one and improve the country`s strength in aerospace&quot;, the report added.

&quot;Noting that technology was a core combat capability, Xi called for intensified work to make breakthroughs in core and key technologies so that China could take the initiative in international competition,&quot; the news agency said.

Xi also chatted by video conference with soldiers stationed at an island in the Paracels, in the disputed South China Sea, asking them how they were preparing to celebrate the new year, Xinhua said.

China claims a large swathe of the South China Sea and has been ramping up its military deployments there, including reclaiming land on reefs and atolls to build military infrastructure such as air bases.

Xi is expected to visit to other parts of the country before and possibly during the holiday.

It is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar

Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed military modernisation and technological advances during meetings with servicemen and women ahead of the Lunar New Year, state media said. Chinese leaders generally use the time around the festival to make inspection trips around the country where they flag important policy initiatives or areas of concern for the year ahead. The week-long holiday starts on Thursday, the eve of the new year. It is the most important holiday in the Chinese calendar, when millions of people travel to their home towns, many for the only time in the year. Xi has made the upgrading of China`s armed forces a key policy plank, investing in a range of new technologies including stealth fighters, aircraft carriers and missiles. On a visit to a satellite launch site in southwestern China`s Sichuan province on Saturday, Xi told senior officers they should work with more commitment and be steadfast in building China`s strength in aerospace to create more "Chinese miracles", state news agency Xinhua said late on Monday. Xi stressed "military training under combat conditions to build the country`s military into a world-class one and improve the country`s strength in aerospace", the report added. "Noting that technology was a core combat capability, Xi called for intensified work to make breakthroughs in core and key technologies so that China could take the initiative in international competition," the news agency said. Xi also chatted by video conference with soldiers stationed at an island in the Paracels, in the disputed South China Sea, asking them how they were preparing to celebrate the new year, Xinhua said. China claims a large swathe of the South China Sea and has been ramping up its military deployments there, including reclaiming land on reefs and atolls to build military infrastructure such as air bases. Xi is expected to visit to other parts of the country before and possibly during the holiday.

China's Xi Jinping stresses military modernisation in pre-new year visit

Chinese President Xi Jinping today said he pays &quot;high attention&quot; to strengthening strategic ties with Sri Lanka, as Beijing beefed up plans to build a Maritime Silk Road project in India&#39;s backyard -- the Indian Ocean.

In a message to congratulate Sri Lanka on its 70th anniversary of Independence from British rule, Xi told his counterpart Maithripala Sirisena that China is willing to work with it for better development of strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries.

&quot;I pay high attention to the development of China-Sri Lanka relations, and I am willing to make concerted efforts with President Sirisena to push the China-Sri Lanka strategic cooperative partnership of sincere mutual assistance and long-standing friendship to keep achieving greater development in the better interest of the two countries and its people,&quot; he said. 
 
Xi also said that China and Sri Lanka have achieved &quot;fruitful results&quot; by their display of &quot;pragmatic cooperation&quot; within the framework of the joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (MSR).

India has expressed reservations over MSR as it has security implications for it in Indian Ocean. MSR is part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Proposed by China in 2013, the BRI aims to build trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa based on ancient land and maritime trade routes enhancing China&#39;s global influence.

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang too congratulated his Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickramasinghe on the occasion.

Within the framework of the initiative on construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the MSR, China wishes to consolidate the traditional friendship with Sri Lanka, strengthen mutual political trust, deepen practical cooperation and push bilateral relations to a new level, he said in the message.

China has invested over USD eight billion in Sri Lanka over the years for various projects, including Hambantota port which it acquired on 99 years lease as a debt swap. It is also building?the Colombo port city project, where Sri Lanka plans to establish an international financial city.

China is in the process of firming up its presence in the Indian Ocean with a string of ports which included Hambantota and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa.

Beijing is also watching warily the developments in Maldives since it recently plunged into a crisis following a Supreme Court ruling which ordered the release of opposition leaders including former President Mohamed Nasheed.

The Supreme Court&#39;s decision has put a question mark on incumbent President Abdulla Yameen who is widely regarded as pro-China and signed several key deals including a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Beijing.

Xi Jinping told his counterpart Maithripala Sirisena that China is willing to work with it for better development of the strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries

Chinese President Xi Jinping today said he pays "high attention" to strengthening strategic ties with Sri Lanka, as Beijing beefed up plans to build a Maritime Silk Road project in India's backyard -- the Indian Ocean. In a message to congratulate Sri Lanka on its 70th anniversary of Independence from British rule, Xi told his counterpart Maithripala Sirisena that China is willing to work with it for better development of strategic cooperative partnership between the two countries. "I pay high attention to the development of China-Sri Lanka relations, and I am willing to make concerted efforts with President Sirisena to push the China-Sri Lanka strategic cooperative partnership of sincere mutual assistance and long-standing friendship to keep achieving greater development in the better interest of the two countries and its people," he said. Xi also said that China and Sri Lanka have achieved "fruitful results" by their display of "pragmatic cooperation" within the framework of the joint construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road (MSR). India has expressed reservations over MSR as it has security implications for it in Indian Ocean. MSR is part of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Proposed by China in 2013, the BRI aims to build trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa based on ancient land and maritime trade routes enhancing China's global influence. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang too congratulated his Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil Wickramasinghe on the occasion. Within the framework of the initiative on construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the MSR, China wishes to consolidate the traditional friendship with Sri Lanka, strengthen mutual political trust, deepen practical cooperation and push bilateral relations to a new level, he said in the message. China has invested over USD eight billion in Sri Lanka over the years for various projects, including Hambantota port which it acquired on 99 years lease as a debt swap. It is also building?the Colombo port city project, where Sri Lanka plans to establish an international financial city. China is in the process of firming up its presence in the Indian Ocean with a string of ports which included Hambantota and Djibouti in the Horn of Africa. Beijing is also watching warily the developments in Maldives since it recently plunged into a crisis following a Supreme Court ruling which ordered the release of opposition leaders including former President Mohamed Nasheed. The Supreme Court's decision has put a question mark on incumbent President Abdulla Yameen who is widely regarded as pro-China and signed several key deals including a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Beijing.

Xi says improving China-Lanka ties have his 'high attention'

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and wife Sara &mdash; in his home state Gujarat today. &nbsp;

Both the Prime Ministers&nbsp;will start off the day by paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Ashram.

Modi and&nbsp;Netanyahu developed cordial connect after Modi&#39;s visit to Israel in July last year - first ever by an Indian Prime Minister.&nbsp;

The Israeli PM will be the third international leader to be hosted in Ahmedabad in a span of over three years ever since Modi became PM in May 2014. &nbsp;

Modi hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping on his birthday on September 17, 2014, followed by Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe on September 13 last year.&nbsp;

On the itinerary of the Israeli PM is a visit to Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, where he would reach after conducting a roadshow with his Indian counterpart Prime Minister Modi.&nbsp;

Security deployments are all in place ahead of the roadshow.

Prime Minister Modi and Netanyahu will inaugurate the iCreate Center at Deo Dholera Village in Ahmedabad.&nbsp;

They will visit a Startup Exhibition and interact with innovators and Startup CEOs.&nbsp;

The two Prime Ministers will dedicate a mobile water desalination van to Suigam Taluka, of Sabarkantha district, through a video link. Both leaders will also address the gathering.&nbsp;

Later in the day, the duo will visit a centre of excellence (CoE) for vegetables in Vadrad near Prantij in Sabarkantha district, set up under the Indo-Israel Agriculture Work Plan for exchange of advanced farming technology. &nbsp;

They will inaugurate the Centre of Excellence for Date Palms at Kukama, Kutch District, through a video link. The two Prime Ministers will also interact with farmers.&nbsp;

Prime Minister Netanyahu will later depart for Mumbai.&nbsp;

(With inputs from ANI)&nbsp;

PM Narendra Modi's home state is all geared up to welcome Israeli PM as he arrives on a day-long visit to Gujarat today

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu and wife Sara — in his home state Gujarat today. Both the Prime Ministers will start off the day by paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at the Sabarmati Ashram. Modi and Netanyahu developed cordial connect after Modi's visit to Israel in July last year - first ever by an Indian Prime Minister. The Israeli PM will be the third international leader to be hosted in Ahmedabad in a span of over three years ever since Modi became PM in May 2014. Modi hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping on his birthday on September 17, 2014, followed by Japanese Premier Shinzo Abe on September 13 last year. On the itinerary of the Israeli PM is a visit to Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, where he would reach after conducting a roadshow with his Indian counterpart Prime Minister Modi. Security deployments are all in place ahead of the roadshow. Prime Minister Modi and Netanyahu will inaugurate the iCreate Center at Deo Dholera Village in Ahmedabad. They will visit a Startup Exhibition and interact with innovators and Startup CEOs. The two Prime Ministers will dedicate a mobile water desalination van to Suigam Taluka, of Sabarkantha district, through a video link. Both leaders will also address the gathering. Later in the day, the duo will visit a centre of excellence (CoE) for vegetables in Vadrad near Prantij in Sabarkantha district, set up under the Indo-Israel Agriculture Work Plan for exchange of advanced farming technology. They will inaugurate the Centre of Excellence for Date Palms at Kukama, Kutch District, through a video link. The two Prime Ministers will also interact with farmers. Prime Minister Netanyahu will later depart for Mumbai. (With inputs from ANI)

Modi, Netanyahu on a day's visit to Gujarat today

In 2017, we saw the consolidation of China&rsquo;s power and influence globally, and of Communist Party leader Xi Jinping&rsquo;s power nationally. This year, the party will try to use this to tackle some of its biggest economic hurdles such as financial risk, environmental pollution and maintaining social cohesion.

A first and overriding priority will be managing and preventing major financial risks within the Chinese economy. China will continue to clean up and tighten controls over its financial sector.

Beijing has already banned risk-laden Bitcoin from its financial system, and the government says it will maintain a &ldquo;proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy&rdquo; for 2018.

This is in line with moves earlier in 2017 to curb credit growth and consolidate the country&rsquo;s 100 trillion yuan (US$15 trillion) financial services asset-management industry under a single regulatory umbrella.

Regulators have also issued a 36-point code of conduct for the country&rsquo;s private enterprises to follow when investing overseas. This is part of a move to clip the wings of China&rsquo;s most aggressive global deal makers, firms like HNA Group and Fosun International. These businesses responded enthusiastically to the government&rsquo;s &ldquo;going out&rdquo; policy to link China to the rest of the global economy, launched at the beginning of the century.

On the one hand, China has banned investments in gambling and &ldquo;sensitive&rdquo; industries and restricted investments in property, hotel, film and sports. But projects linked to China&rsquo;s ambitious Belt and Road initiative are actively encouraged. So 2018 should see a continuation of China&rsquo;s expanding economic influence globally through infrastructure and other major projects.

<figure class="align-center zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201458/original/file-20180110-48505-14mg7t0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/201458/original/file-20180110-48505-14mg7t0.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip" /></a>

<figcaption>
Beijing&rsquo;s agenda is clear and the message from the centre is tightly controlled. How Hwee Young/AAP

&nbsp;
</figcaption>
</figure>

Tackling pollution, of all kinds

In line with the party&rsquo;s focus on stability and risk minimisation is a clear determination to move away from high-speed growth to high-quality growth. &ldquo;Quality&rdquo; here means an economy that is cleaner and more user friendly.

The government is trying to reduce pollution. Measures to close down polluting factories and make local officials more accountable for environmental damage are starting to make a difference.

A major component of the shift to a cleaner economy is China&rsquo;s determination to free itself from any reliance upon carbon imports. This has potentially major implications for the Australian economy, which has done so well over the past few decades largely because of its commodity exports to China.

China is also no longer willing to accept imports of Australian waste, leaving Australia with the question of how else to deal with its accumulating stockpiles.

Social stability for economic and political stability

In an unusual move during last year&rsquo;s annual end-of-year economic convention, the government detailed concerns from the wider public on issues such as online scams, sex discrimination in the workplace and a lack of kindergarten services in certain regions. This reflects the party&rsquo;s concern with social cohesion.

Maintaining a harmonious society has long been a concern of China&rsquo;s leaders. In 2018, the anti-poverty campaign - one of Xi Jinping&rsquo;s pet projects - will accelerate, with millions of rural poor being relocated to new housing with water and power. This will not only boost GDP and economic growth figures, it&rsquo;s also aimed at promoting support for the party and its leaders.

Chinese leadership&rsquo;s emphasis on social harmony extends to supporting the party in its policy endeavours. A series of recent measures have been aimed at strengthening party organisations in business and civil society organisations.

In line with existing provisions in China&rsquo;s Company Law, these measures seek to ensure that all organisations in China (local and foreign, commercial and non-profit) make room within the organisation for the operations of a Communist Party cell. This allows the party to monitor and influence the operations of any organisation.

The rolling out of a social credit system is also aimed at monitoring and influencing the behaviour of both organisations and individuals. It operates by awarding social credit points for good social behaviour, whether it be corporate philanthropy or an individual picking up rubbish on the kerbside. It also deducts points for bad behaviour, such as traffic law violations, failing to pay bills on time or domestic violence. There are even &ldquo;blacklists&rdquo; for the worst offenders.

Beijing&rsquo;s agenda is clear and the message from the centre is tightly controlled. But the messiness and the unknowns will lie in its local implementation.

China has always struggled, and always will struggle, with the question of how to balance direction from a central government with local implementation for local circumstances.

For example, a recent decree requiring all local areas to move away from coal fired heating, towards natural gas, hit a snag when thousands of houses and schools were left without heating in freezing conditions in northern China. It forced authorities to back-track on implementing the policy.

The key for the government will be to strike a balance between reform and preserving stability. Aggressive reforms will be duly countered by other policies if they are seen as posing risks to economic stability.

If successful, China&rsquo;s reforms will allow its economy to take the lead in adapting to a dynamic world. But the sheer size of its ambitions (both global and local) also contains the risk that failures, if they occur, could have devastating impacts.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/what-we-can-expect-from-chinas-economy-in-2018-89911" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

&nbsp;

In China, aggressive reforms will be duly countered by other policies if they are seen as posing risks to economic stability.

In 2017, we saw the consolidation of China’s power and influence globally, and of Communist Party leader Xi Jinping’s power nationally. This year, the party will try to use this to tackle some of its biggest economic hurdles such as financial risk, environmental pollution and maintaining social cohesion. A first and overriding priority will be managing and preventing major financial risks within the Chinese economy. China will continue to clean up and tighten controls over its financial sector. Beijing has already banned risk-laden Bitcoin from its financial system, and the government says it will maintain a “proactive fiscal policy and prudent monetary policy” for 2018. This is in line with moves earlier in 2017 to curb credit growth and consolidate the country’s 100 trillion yuan (US$15 trillion) financial services asset-management industry under a single regulatory umbrella. Regulators have also issued a 36-point code of conduct for the country’s private enterprises to follow when investing overseas. This is part of a move to clip the wings of China’s most aggressive global deal makers, firms like HNA Group and Fosun International. These businesses responded enthusiastically to the government’s “going out” policy to link China to the rest of the global economy, launched at the beginning of the century. On the one hand, China has banned investments in gambling and “sensitive” industries and restricted investments in property, hotel, film and sports. But projects linked to China’s ambitious Belt and Road initiative are actively encouraged. So 2018 should see a continuation of China’s expanding economic influence globally through infrastructure and other major projects. Beijing’s agenda is clear and the message from the centre is tightly controlled. How Hwee Young/AAP Tackling pollution, of all kinds In line with the party’s focus on stability and risk minimisation is a clear determination to move away from high-speed growth to high-quality growth. “Quality” here means an economy that is cleaner and more user friendly. The government is trying to reduce pollution. Measures to close down polluting factories and make local officials more accountable for environmental damage are starting to make a difference. A major component of the shift to a cleaner economy is China’s determination to free itself from any reliance upon carbon imports. This has potentially major implications for the Australian economy, which has done so well over the past few decades largely because of its commodity exports to China. China is also no longer willing to accept imports of Australian waste, leaving Australia with the question of how else to deal with its accumulating stockpiles. Social stability for economic and political stability In an unusual move during last year’s annual end-of-year economic convention, the government detailed concerns from the wider public on issues such as online scams, sex discrimination in the workplace and a lack of kindergarten services in certain regions. This reflects the party’s concern with social cohesion. Maintaining a harmonious society has long been a concern of China’s leaders. In 2018, the anti-poverty campaign - one of Xi Jinping’s pet projects - will accelerate, with millions of rural poor being relocated to new housing with water and power. This will not only boost GDP and economic growth figures, it’s also aimed at promoting support for the party and its leaders. Chinese leadership’s emphasis on social harmony extends to supporting the party in its policy endeavours. A series of recent measures have been aimed at strengthening party organisations in business and civil society organisations. In line with existing provisions in China’s Company Law, these measures seek to ensure that all organisations in China (local and foreign, commercial and non-profit) make room within the organisation for the operations of a Communist Party cell. This allows the party to monitor and influence the operations of any organisation. The rolling out of a social credit system is also aimed at monitoring and influencing the behaviour of both organisations and individuals. It operates by awarding social credit points for good social behaviour, whether it be corporate philanthropy or an individual picking up rubbish on the kerbside. It also deducts points for bad behaviour, such as traffic law violations, failing to pay bills on time or domestic violence. There are even “blacklists” for the worst offenders. Beijing’s agenda is clear and the message from the centre is tightly controlled. But the messiness and the unknowns will lie in its local implementation. China has always struggled, and always will struggle, with the question of how to balance direction from a central government with local implementation for local circumstances. For example, a recent decree requiring all local areas to move away from coal fired heating, towards natural gas, hit a snag when thousands of houses and schools were left without heating in freezing conditions in northern China. It forced authorities to back-track on implementing the policy. The key for the government will be to strike a balance between reform and preserving stability. Aggressive reforms will be duly countered by other policies if they are seen as posing risks to economic stability. If successful, China’s reforms will allow its economy to take the lead in adapting to a dynamic world. But the sheer size of its ambitions (both global and local) also contains the risk that failures, if they occur, could have devastating impacts. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Opinion: China needs to balance aggressive reforms with economic stability

The United States and Germany called on China to immediately release a prominent human rights activist who was jailed for eight years on Tuesday for subversion, the harshest sentence passed in a recent crackdown on activism.

Wu Gan, a blogger better known by his online name &quot;Super Vulgar Butcher&quot;, regularly championed sensitive cases of government abuses of power, both online and in street protests. He was detained in May 2015 and charged with subversion.

In a separate case, also on Tuesday, rights lawyer Xie Yang avoided criminal punishment despite being found guilty of inciting subversion, because he admitted his crimes.

&quot;We call on the Chinese authorities to release Wu immediately,&quot; the US&nbsp;and Germany embassies in China said in a joint statement.

&quot;As Xie has been exempted from punishment, we urge China to allow Xie to resume his professional activities without preconditions and be free of any restrictions.&quot;

China&#39;s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Beijing frequently denounces foreign concern about rights cases as an interference in China&#39;s internal affairs and says China is a country with rule of law.

Wu&#39;s sentence was the most severe in what rights groups have called an unprecedented attack on China&#39;s rights activists and lawyers, known as the 709 crackdown, which began in full force on July 9, 2015.

The hardline approach has shown no sign of softening as Chinese President Xi Jinping enters his second five-year term in office. 
&nbsp;

The United States and Germany called on China to immediately release a prominent human rights activist who was jailed for eight years on Tuesday for subversion, the harshest sentence passed in a recent crackdown on activism

The United States and Germany called on China to immediately release a prominent human rights activist who was jailed for eight years on Tuesday for subversion, the harshest sentence passed in a recent crackdown on activism. Wu Gan, a blogger better known by his online name "Super Vulgar Butcher", regularly championed sensitive cases of government abuses of power, both online and in street protests. He was detained in May 2015 and charged with subversion. In a separate case, also on Tuesday, rights lawyer Xie Yang avoided criminal punishment despite being found guilty of inciting subversion, because he admitted his crimes. "We call on the Chinese authorities to release Wu immediately," the US and Germany embassies in China said in a joint statement. "As Xie has been exempted from punishment, we urge China to allow Xie to resume his professional activities without preconditions and be free of any restrictions." China's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Beijing frequently denounces foreign concern about rights cases as an interference in China's internal affairs and says China is a country with rule of law. Wu's sentence was the most severe in what rights groups have called an unprecedented attack on China's rights activists and lawyers, known as the 709 crackdown, which began in full force on July 9, 2015. The hardline approach has shown no sign of softening as Chinese President Xi Jinping enters his second five-year term in office.

US, Germany urge China to release jailed activist

Not many relationships in international politics make headlines like China-India relations often do. The chronicle of the transient year 2017 suggests that China-India relations continued to struggle to thrive, even though this relationship commanded plenty of promises and pledges. Best remembered as the &ldquo;year of Doklam&rdquo;, 2017 witnessed Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping pledging a &ldquo;forward-looking constructive&rdquo; bilateral relationship.

&nbsp;

During the September Xiamen BRICS summit, both the leaders tried to overcome the setback that the relationship has faced in recent times. How will this envisioned &ldquo;constructive&rdquo; China-India relationship that aims to have a &ldquo;forward-looking&rdquo; spirit unfold in 2018?&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Fundamentally speaking, a &ldquo;forward-looking constructive&rdquo; relationship would imply that the two countries manage to handle their differences, including the age-old boundary dispute while fostering an engaging economic partnership that will enhance their bilateral and global relationship.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The official media transcript after the Xiamen BRICS summit stated that the established intergovernmental mechanisms between China and India are supposed to play a stronger role to this effect. Their common pledge to scrutinise neoliberal ideas, uphold the structure of a multipolar world order, and reform the global order in favour of the developing world are all indicators of a constructive forward-looking relationship.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The pledge to have a &ldquo;forward-looking&rdquo; and &ldquo;constructive&rdquo; relationship is, however, not entirely a new proposition. Both sides have used similar phrasing in the past to offer a &ldquo;political&rdquo; guidance to their relationship, which is often marred by a range of conflicts &ndash; boundary to geopolitics. Indeed, the proposition to have a &ldquo;constructive&rdquo; relationship is part and parcel of their &ldquo;developmental partnership&rdquo;, which was officially instituted during President Xi Jinping&rsquo;s visit to India in September 2014.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The core essence of this &ldquo;developmental partnership&rdquo; was to guide China-India relations through a stronger economic engagement. The economic engagement has been nurtured under a number of bilateral mechanisms, such as the Joint Economic Group (JEG), Strategic Economic Dialogue and Financial Dialogue to name just a few. These have acted as stabilisers, preventing the relationship from going on a conflict path.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Consequently, bilateral trade, seen often as a &lsquo;stable variable&rsquo; in China-India relations, witnessed a steady rise over the last one decade amidst the rising border tensions and mutual mistrust. From a meagre US$10 billion in 2004, the bilateral trade has expanded to reach around $71 billion by 2017.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

in the recent past, however, a subtle change is noticed in the pattern of relationship. Bilateral trade and institutional dialogue have become extraneous to a stable bilateral relationship.&nbsp; In fact, bilateral trade has been constant around $70 billion for last few years without showing much improvement. The trade imbalance between the two sides is expanding, much to China&rsquo;s favour, creating an increasing discord among the Indian business community.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Additionally, the institutional mechanisms look obsolete to address the rising differences between the two countries. Even frequent leadership meetings have offered little to push ahead their envisioned &ldquo;developmental partnership&rdquo;. For example, before their meeting at the Xiamen BRICS summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping met during the SCO summit in Astana and the G-20 summit in Hamburg in 2017. These meetings, however, could not generate necessary maturity on both sides so as not to engage in an episode like the Doklam stand-off.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Besides, India&rsquo;s decision not to participate in China&rsquo;s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) meeting held in Beijing in May 2017 spiralled their geopolitical differences into the international limelight. The two and a half months&rsquo; long Doklam stand-off damaged further the residual goodwill that their relationship had accomplished over the years, making 2017 the defining year for China-India relations.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

This changing treatise in China-India relations sufficiently indicates that the relationship would be thorny in 2018 and ahead. The official longing might be to carve out an &ldquo;upward trajectory&rdquo; in China-India relations, but fostering such a relationship in the current practical circumstances would be difficult to foresee. Three specific developments explain why China-India relations might continue to struggle to thrive even though there might be a temporary improvement in their overall relationship.

&nbsp;

First, foreign policy passages in both China and India are witnessing constant changes which might point to a more &ldquo;state-centric&rdquo; non-accommodative approach towards each other. After the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China aims to push ahead it&rsquo;s national security ambitions, in terms of exploiting resource opportunities, expand the country&rsquo;s power base, and exhibit China&rsquo;s leadership both in Asia and beyond.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Xi Jinping sees the next few years as a &ldquo;period of strategic opportunities&rdquo; for China and India as a &lsquo;limited Asian power&rsquo; only.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

On the other hand, New Delhi&rsquo;s foreign policy, under an &ldquo;India first&rdquo; approach,&nbsp; seeks to engage more with big powers while having a focus on Asia and Asian neighbours. Currently, India&rsquo;s prime targets are resource exploration and increasing India&rsquo;s outreach in Asia. This would bring the Chinese and Indian foreign policy into a point of contestation than engagement.

&nbsp;

Second, even though the scope and potential of greater China-India economic engagement are bigger today, still the differing approaches in the promotion of a &ldquo;developmental partnership&rdquo; would be the main barrier between them. China wants to pursue a more purposeful international economic engagement which will facilitate Chinese economic growth. The induction of the BRI into the revised CPC Constitution at the 19th National Congress points to that. This might create friction in the Sino-Indian relations since India is yet to endorse China&rsquo;s BRI.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The usual China-India &ldquo;sister-city&rdquo; and &ldquo;sister-province&rdquo; level engagements have been one of the most promising aspects of their bilateral relationship over the last one decade. But from Beijing&rsquo;s perspective, the &ldquo;sister-city&rdquo; and &ldquo;sister-province&rdquo; level engagements are today seen as an integral part of China&rsquo;s BRI scheme, which India may see as antithetical to its national interest. Besides, it is not clear how China would like to address India&rsquo;s economic concerns on the rising trade imbalance and would situate it in the overall relationship framework.

&nbsp;

Third, China-India differences in the Asia-Pacific region is another new complicated chapter that would not be supportive of their bilateral relations. Beijing seems to be keen on following an intensive maritime strategy not only to protect its interests but also to expedite overseas maritime presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Many democratic countries, including the United States, Japan and India are not in favour of China&#39;s expansion in the IOR.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

Beijing under Xi Jinping is emerging fast as a &ldquo;trading nation&rdquo; and the new focus is to expedite its maritime trading routes in the IOR. That would bring Indian maritime interests into contestation. India&rsquo;s S-A-G-A-R (Security and Growth for All Region) initiative under Prime Minister Narendra Modi equally emphasises on the maritime economy and marine resources which would emerge as a matter of contest between the Chinese and Indian interests in the IOR.

&nbsp;

China aims to configure a bipolar world, sharing the &quot;major&quot; power platform with the United States. China wants to shun the existing &ldquo;status quo&rdquo;&nbsp; and emerge as a &ldquo;revisionist&rdquo; power. This would significantly influence China-India relations.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

&nbsp;Contrasting bilateral perspectives come as a major impediment to a working relationship between India and China today. Just like 2017, the year 2018, therefore, might equally witness conflicting trends between India and China, overriding their cooperative trends.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

(Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

China wants to shun the existing ?status quo? and emerge as a ?revisionist? power which would significantly influence China-India relations.

Not many relationships in international politics make headlines like China-India relations often do. The chronicle of the transient year 2017 suggests that China-India relations continued to struggle to thrive, even though this relationship commanded plenty of promises and pledges. Best remembered as the “year of Doklam”, 2017 witnessed Narendra Modi and Xi Jinping pledging a “forward-looking constructive” bilateral relationship. During the September Xiamen BRICS summit, both the leaders tried to overcome the setback that the relationship has faced in recent times. How will this envisioned “constructive” China-India relationship that aims to have a “forward-looking” spirit unfold in 2018? Fundamentally speaking, a “forward-looking constructive” relationship would imply that the two countries manage to handle their differences, including the age-old boundary dispute while fostering an engaging economic partnership that will enhance their bilateral and global relationship. The official media transcript after the Xiamen BRICS summit stated that the established intergovernmental mechanisms between China and India are supposed to play a stronger role to this effect. Their common pledge to scrutinise neoliberal ideas, uphold the structure of a multipolar world order, and reform the global order in favour of the developing world are all indicators of a constructive forward-looking relationship. The pledge to have a “forward-looking” and “constructive” relationship is, however, not entirely a new proposition. Both sides have used similar phrasing in the past to offer a “political” guidance to their relationship, which is often marred by a range of conflicts – boundary to geopolitics. Indeed, the proposition to have a “constructive” relationship is part and parcel of their “developmental partnership”, which was officially instituted during President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in September 2014. The core essence of this “developmental partnership” was to guide China-India relations through a stronger economic engagement. The economic engagement has been nurtured under a number of bilateral mechanisms, such as the Joint Economic Group (JEG), Strategic Economic Dialogue and Financial Dialogue to name just a few. These have acted as stabilisers, preventing the relationship from going on a conflict path. Consequently, bilateral trade, seen often as a ‘stable variable’ in China-India relations, witnessed a steady rise over the last one decade amidst the rising border tensions and mutual mistrust. From a meagre US$10 billion in 2004, the bilateral trade has expanded to reach around $71 billion by 2017. in the recent past, however, a subtle change is noticed in the pattern of relationship. Bilateral trade and institutional dialogue have become extraneous to a stable bilateral relationship. In fact, bilateral trade has been constant around $70 billion for last few years without showing much improvement. The trade imbalance between the two sides is expanding, much to China’s favour, creating an increasing discord among the Indian business community. Additionally, the institutional mechanisms look obsolete to address the rising differences between the two countries. Even frequent leadership meetings have offered little to push ahead their envisioned “developmental partnership”. For example, before their meeting at the Xiamen BRICS summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Xi Jinping met during the SCO summit in Astana and the G-20 summit in Hamburg in 2017. These meetings, however, could not generate necessary maturity on both sides so as not to engage in an episode like the Doklam stand-off. Besides, India’s decision not to participate in China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) meeting held in Beijing in May 2017 spiralled their geopolitical differences into the international limelight. The two and a half months’ long Doklam stand-off damaged further the residual goodwill that their relationship had accomplished over the years, making 2017 the defining year for China-India relations. This changing treatise in China-India relations sufficiently indicates that the relationship would be thorny in 2018 and ahead. The official longing might be to carve out an “upward trajectory” in China-India relations, but fostering such a relationship in the current practical circumstances would be difficult to foresee. Three specific developments explain why China-India relations might continue to struggle to thrive even though there might be a temporary improvement in their overall relationship. First, foreign policy passages in both China and India are witnessing constant changes which might point to a more “state-centric” non-accommodative approach towards each other. After the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China aims to push ahead it’s national security ambitions, in terms of exploiting resource opportunities, expand the country’s power base, and exhibit China’s leadership both in Asia and beyond. Xi Jinping sees the next few years as a “period of strategic opportunities” for China and India as a ‘limited Asian power’ only. On the other hand, New Delhi’s foreign policy, under an “India first” approach, seeks to engage more with big powers while having a focus on Asia and Asian neighbours. Currently, India’s prime targets are resource exploration and increasing India’s outreach in Asia. This would bring the Chinese and Indian foreign policy into a point of contestation than engagement. Second, even though the scope and potential of greater China-India economic engagement are bigger today, still the differing approaches in the promotion of a “developmental partnership” would be the main barrier between them. China wants to pursue a more purposeful international economic engagement which will facilitate Chinese economic growth. The induction of the BRI into the revised CPC Constitution at the 19th National Congress points to that. This might create friction in the Sino-Indian relations since India is yet to endorse China’s BRI. The usual China-India “sister-city” and “sister-province” level engagements have been one of the most promising aspects of their bilateral relationship over the last one decade. But from Beijing’s perspective, the “sister-city” and “sister-province” level engagements are today seen as an integral part of China’s BRI scheme, which India may see as antithetical to its national interest. Besides, it is not clear how China would like to address India’s economic concerns on the rising trade imbalance and would situate it in the overall relationship framework. Third, China-India differences in the Asia-Pacific region is another new complicated chapter that would not be supportive of their bilateral relations. Beijing seems to be keen on following an intensive maritime strategy not only to protect its interests but also to expedite overseas maritime presence in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR). Many democratic countries, including the United States, Japan and India are not in favour of China's expansion in the IOR. Beijing under Xi Jinping is emerging fast as a “trading nation” and the new focus is to expedite its maritime trading routes in the IOR. That would bring Indian maritime interests into contestation. India’s S-A-G-A-R (Security and Growth for All Region) initiative under Prime Minister Narendra Modi equally emphasises on the maritime economy and marine resources which would emerge as a matter of contest between the Chinese and Indian interests in the IOR. China aims to configure a bipolar world, sharing the "major" power platform with the United States. China wants to shun the existing “status quo” and emerge as a “revisionist” power. This would significantly influence China-India relations. Contrasting bilateral perspectives come as a major impediment to a working relationship between India and China today. Just like 2017, the year 2018, therefore, might equally witness conflicting trends between India and China, overriding their cooperative trends. (Disclaimer: The opinions expressed above are the personal views of the author and do not reflect the views of ZMCL).

Opinion: 'Year of Doklam' points to a conflicting China-India relation in 2018

China on Tuesday decried US President Donald Trump&#39;s first National Security Strategy, which described Beijing as a challenge to American power, as a &quot;Cold War mentality&quot; that will only harm Washington.

&quot;Any country, or any report, which distorts the facts, or maliciously slanders will only do so in vain,&quot; foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular news briefing.

The two countries have been locked in an increasingly acrimonious battle over trade issues, with Washington taking unprecedented steps to investigate and add tariffs to Chinese-made goods.

Trump&#39;s security strategy -- 11 months in the making -- takes a step further, pillorying China as a &quot;revisionist power&quot; seeking to displace the United States in Asia.

&quot;We urge the United States to stop intentionally distorting China&#39;s strategic intentions and to abandon outdated notions such as the Cold War mentality and zero-sum game, otherwise it will only harm itself or others,&quot; Hua said.

Hua launched a vigorous defence of Beijing&#39;s foreign policy.&nbsp;

&quot;China will never pursue its own development at the expense of other countries&#39; interests.&quot;&nbsp;

Hua added: &quot;At the same time we will never give up our legitimate rights and interests.&quot;

The security strategy contrasts with the friendly nature of Trump&#39;s first state visit to Beijing in November, when he received a lavish welcome and repeatedly praised President Xi Jinping.

Trump's security strategy -- 11 months in the making -- takes a step further, pillorying China as a 'revisionist power' seeking to displace the United States in Asia

China on Tuesday decried US President Donald Trump's first National Security Strategy, which described Beijing as a challenge to American power, as a "Cold War mentality" that will only harm Washington. "Any country, or any report, which distorts the facts, or maliciously slanders will only do so in vain," foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a regular news briefing. The two countries have been locked in an increasingly acrimonious battle over trade issues, with Washington taking unprecedented steps to investigate and add tariffs to Chinese-made goods. Trump's security strategy -- 11 months in the making -- takes a step further, pillorying China as a "revisionist power" seeking to displace the United States in Asia. "We urge the United States to stop intentionally distorting China's strategic intentions and to abandon outdated notions such as the Cold War mentality and zero-sum game, otherwise it will only harm itself or others," Hua said. Hua launched a vigorous defence of Beijing's foreign policy. "China will never pursue its own development at the expense of other countries' interests." Hua added: "At the same time we will never give up our legitimate rights and interests." The security strategy contrasts with the friendly nature of Trump's first state visit to Beijing in November, when he received a lavish welcome and repeatedly praised President Xi Jinping.

China slams US security strategy as 'Cold War mentality'

War must not be allowed to break out on the Korean peninsula and the issue must be resolved through talks, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday, while U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of the danger of &quot;sleepwalking&quot; into conflict.

Xi made his comments to visiting South Korean President Moon Jae-in just days after U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson offered to begin direct talks with North Korea without pre-conditions.

But the White House said on Wednesday that no negotiations could be held until North Korea improved its behaviour. The White House has declined to say whether President Donald Trump, who has taken a tougher rhetorical line toward North Korea, approved Tillerson&#39;s overture.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tillerson&#39;s offer of direct contacts with North Korea was &quot;a very good signal&quot;, while warning that a U.S. strike on the North would have catastrophic consequences.

North Korea tested its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile on Nov. 29, which it said could put all of the United States within range, in defiance of international pressure and U.N. sanctions.

The United States has said all options were on the table in dealing with North Korea, including military action.

While South Korea and China share the goal of getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and stop testing increasingly sophisticated long-range missiles, the two have not seen eye-to-eye on how to achieve this.

Meeting in Beijing&#39;s Great Hall of the People, Xi told Moon that the goal of denuclearising the Korean peninsula must be stuck to, and war and chaos cannot be allowed, Chinese state media said.

&quot;The peninsula issue must, in the end, be resolved via dialogue and consultation,&quot; Xi was cited as saying.

China and South Korea have an important shared interest in maintaining peace, and China was willing to work with South Korea to promote talks and support North and South to improve relations, Xi said.

South Korea&#39;s Yonhap news agency said Xi and Moon agreed war on the peninsula would not be tolerated and they would cooperate in applying sanctions and pressure on North Korea.

The apparently warm tone of their talks followed nearly a year of tense relations between the two countries.

&#39;Dramatic circumstances&#39;

China has been furious about the deployment of the U.S.-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) anti-missile system in South Korea, saying its powerful radar can see far into China and will do nothing to ease tension with North Korea.

China and South Korea agreed in October to normalise exchanges and move past the dispute, which froze trade and business exchanges.

Xi reiterated China&#39;s position on THAAD and said he hoped South Korea would continue to &quot;appropriately handle&quot; the issue.

Guterres, speaking to reporters in Tokyo after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, said Security Council resolutions on North Korea&#39;s nuclear and missile programmes must be fully implemented by Pyongyang and other countries.

&quot;Security Council resolutions must be fully implemented, first of all by North Korea, but by all other countries whose role is crucial,&quot; Guterres said.

He said he expected a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Friday would deliver a strong expression of unity and the need for diplomacy to resolve the issue.

&quot;The worst possible thing that could happen is for us all to sleepwalk into a war.&quot;

Japan says now is the time to keep up pressure on North Korea, not start talks on its missile and nuclear programmes.

China and Russia, however, have welcomed Tillerson&#39;s overture.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said a U.S. strike on North Korea by the United States would have catastrophic consequences and he hoped to work with Washington eventually to resolve the crisis on the Korean peninsula.

Russia does not accept North Korea&#39;s nuclear status, Putin told a news conference. But he also said some U.S. actions had provoked North Korea.

&quot;We believe the two sides should now stop aggravating the situation,&quot; Putin said.

North Korea justifies its weapons programmes as necessary defence against U.S. plans to invade. The United States, which has 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean war, denies any such intention.

The North&#39;s state news agency KCNA said Trump was taking a big step towards nuclear war in seeking a naval blockade and North Korea would take &quot;merciless self-defence&quot; measures if the United States tried to impose one.

North Korea would regard a naval blockade as &quot;an act of war&quot; and a &quot;wanton violation&quot; of its sovereignty and dignity, the agency cited a foreign ministry spokesman as saying, adding that North Korea was a responsible nuclear power.

White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said in September that even military options short of a preventative strike, such as a naval blockade meant to enforce sanctions, carried risks of military escalation.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned Thursday of the danger of 'sleepwalking' into conflict

War must not be allowed to break out on the Korean peninsula and the issue must be resolved through talks, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Thursday, while U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned of the danger of "sleepwalking" into conflict. Xi made his comments to visiting South Korean President Moon Jae-in just days after U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson offered to begin direct talks with North Korea without pre-conditions. But the White House said on Wednesday that no negotiations could be held until North Korea improved its behaviour. The White House has declined to say whether President Donald Trump, who has taken a tougher rhetorical line toward North Korea, approved Tillerson's overture. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tillerson's offer of direct contacts with North Korea was "a very good signal", while warning that a U.S. strike on the North would have catastrophic consequences. North Korea tested its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile on Nov. 29, which it said could put all of the United States within range, in defiance of international pressure and U.N. sanctions. The United States has said all options were on the table in dealing with North Korea, including military action. While South Korea and China share the goal of getting North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons and stop testing increasingly sophisticated long-range missiles, the two have not seen eye-to-eye on how to achieve this. Meeting in Beijing's Great Hall of the People, Xi told Moon that the goal of denuclearising the Korean peninsula must be stuck to, and war and chaos cannot be allowed, Chinese state media said. "The peninsula issue must, in the end, be resolved via dialogue and consultation," Xi was cited as saying. China and South Korea have an important shared interest in maintaining peace, and China was willing to work with South Korea to promote talks and support North and South to improve relations, Xi said. South Korea's Yonhap news agency said Xi and Moon agreed war on the peninsula would not be tolerated and they would cooperate in applying sanctions and pressure on North Korea. The apparently warm tone of their talks followed nearly a year of tense relations between the two countries. 'Dramatic circumstances' China has been furious about the deployment of the U.S.-made Terminal High Altitude Area Defence (THAAD) anti-missile system in South Korea, saying its powerful radar can see far into China and will do nothing to ease tension with North Korea. China and South Korea agreed in October to normalise exchanges and move past the dispute, which froze trade and business exchanges. Xi reiterated China's position on THAAD and said he hoped South Korea would continue to "appropriately handle" the issue. Guterres, speaking to reporters in Tokyo after meeting Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, said Security Council resolutions on North Korea's nuclear and missile programmes must be fully implemented by Pyongyang and other countries. "Security Council resolutions must be fully implemented, first of all by North Korea, but by all other countries whose role is crucial," Guterres said. He said he expected a meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Friday would deliver a strong expression of unity and the need for diplomacy to resolve the issue. "The worst possible thing that could happen is for us all to sleepwalk into a war." Japan says now is the time to keep up pressure on North Korea, not start talks on its missile and nuclear programmes. China and Russia, however, have welcomed Tillerson's overture. Russian President Vladimir Putin said a U.S. strike on North Korea by the United States would have catastrophic consequences and he hoped to work with Washington eventually to resolve the crisis on the Korean peninsula. Russia does not accept North Korea's nuclear status, Putin told a news conference. But he also said some U.S. actions had provoked North Korea. "We believe the two sides should now stop aggravating the situation," Putin said. North Korea justifies its weapons programmes as necessary defence against U.S. plans to invade. The United States, which has 28,500 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean war, denies any such intention. The North's state news agency KCNA said Trump was taking a big step towards nuclear war in seeking a naval blockade and North Korea would take "merciless self-defence" measures if the United States tried to impose one. North Korea would regard a naval blockade as "an act of war" and a "wanton violation" of its sovereignty and dignity, the agency cited a foreign ministry spokesman as saying, adding that North Korea was a responsible nuclear power. White House National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster said in September that even military options short of a preventative strike, such as a naval blockade meant to enforce sanctions, carried risks of military escalation.

China's Xi says war must not be allowed to break out on Korean peninsula

Many observers of China&rsquo;s escalating global program of foreign investment and infrastructure development are crossing their fingers and hoping for the best. In an ideal world, China&rsquo;s unbridled ambitions will improve economic growth, food security and social development in many poor nations, as well as enrich itself.

Such hopes are certainly timely, given the isolationism of the US Trump administration, which has created an international leadership vacuum that China is eager to fill.

But a close look reveals that China&rsquo;s international agenda is far more exploitative than many realise, especially for the global environment. And the Chinese leadership&rsquo;s claims to be embracing &ldquo;green development&rdquo; are in many cases more propaganda than fact.

To help steer through the maze, I provide here a snapshot of China&rsquo;s present environmental impacts. Are China&rsquo;s assertions reasoned and defensible, or something else altogether?

Predatory force?

For a start, China is overwhelmingly the world&rsquo;s biggest consumer of illegally poached wildlife and wildlife products. From rhino horn&nbsp;to pangolins, to shark fins, to a menagerie of wild bird species, Chinese consumption drives much of the global trade in wildlife exploitation and smuggling.

Over the past 15 years, China&rsquo;s rapacious appetite for ivory has largely driven a global collapse of elephant populations. In response to growing international criticism, China promised to shut down its domestic ivory trade by the end of 2017.

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The author examining a Forest Elephant gunned down by ivory poachers in central Africa. (Others)
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But even before China&rsquo;s ban has taken full force, a black market for ivory is developing in neighbouring Laos. There, Chinese entrepreneurs are churning out great quantities of carved ivory products, specifically designed for Chinese tastes and openly sold to Chinese visitors.

China is also the world&rsquo;s biggest importer of illegal timber, a trade that imperils forests while defrauding developing nations of billions of dollars each year in timber royalties.

China claims to be working to reduce its illegal timber imports, but its efforts are half-hearted at best, judging by the amount of illegal timber still flowing across its border with Myanmar.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/terrorism-fashion-and-illegal-animal-trafficking-20996">Also read: Terrorism, fashion and Illegal animal trafficking</a>

Infrastructure tsunami

More damaging still are China&rsquo;s plans for infrastructure expansion that will irreparably degrade much of the natural world.

China&rsquo;s One Belt One Road initiative alone will carve massive arrays of new roads, railroads, ports, and extractive industries such as mining, logging, and oil and gas projects into at least 70 nations across Asia, Europe, and Africa.

Chinese President Xi Jinping promises that the Belt and Road initiative will be &ldquo;green, low-carbon, circular and sustainable&rdquo;, but such a claim is profoundly divorced from reality.

As my colleagues and I recently argued in Science and Current Biology, the modern infrastructure tsunami that is largely being driven by China will open a Pandora&rsquo;s box of environmental crises, including large-scale deforestation, habitat fragmentation, wildlife poaching, water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

China&rsquo;s pursuit of natural resources is also escalating across Latin America. In the Amazon, for example, big mining projects &ndash; many of which are feeding Chinese industries &ndash; don&rsquo;t just cause serious local degradation, but also promote widespread deforestation from the networks of roads bulldosed into remote areas to access the mines.

<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/the-first-ladies-of-conservation-how-the-black-mambas-are-protecting-wildlife-in-south-africa-13178">Also read: How women are protecting wildlife in South Africa</a>

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Overall, China is the most aggressive consumer of minerals on the planet and the biggest driver of tropical deforestation.

Beyond this, China is pushing to build a 5,000km railroad across South America, to make it cheaper for China to import timber, minerals, soy and other natural resources from ports along South America&rsquo;s Pacific coast. If it proceeds, the number of critical ecosystems that would be impacted by this project is staggering.

A World Bank study of more than 3,000 overseas projects funded or operated by China revealed how it often treats poor nations as &ldquo;pollution havens&rdquo; &ndash; transferring its own environmental degradation to developing nations that are desperate for foreign investment.

Finally, much has been made of the fact that China is beginning to temper its appetite for domestic fossil-fuelled energy. It is now a leading investor in solar and wind energy, and recently delayed construction of more than 150 coal-fired electricity plants in China.

These are unquestionably pluses, but they need to be seen in their broad context. In terms of greenhouse-gas emissions, China has exploded past every other nation. It now produces more than twice the carbon emissions of the United States, the second-biggest polluter, following the greatest building spree of coal, nuclear, and large-scale hydro projects in human history.

Despite its new post-Trump role as the world&rsquo;s de facto climate leader, China&rsquo;s overall agenda could scarcely be described as green.

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Iceberg ahead

Some would say it&rsquo;s unfair to criticise China like this. They would argue that China is merely following a well-trodden path of exploitative development previously forged by other nations and colonial powers.

But China is not the same as any other nation. The astounding growth and size of its economy, its dangerously single-minded vision for exploiting natural resources and land internationally, its intolerance of internal and external criticism, and its increasingly closed media and official myopia all combine to make it unique.

President Xi admits that many Chinese corporations, investors and lenders operating overseas have often acted aggressively and even illegally. But he says his government is powerless to do much about it. The most notable government response to date is a series of &ldquo;green papers&rdquo; containing guidelines that sound good in theory but are almost universally ignored by Chinese interests overseas.

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Indigenous forest people in the Congo Basin become increasingly poor and marginalised as foreign miners, loggers and poachers invade their lands. (Others)
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Are Xi&rsquo;s assertions of powerlessness believable? He increasingly rules China with an iron hand. Is it really impossible for China to guide and control its overseas industries, or are they simply so profitable that the government doesn&rsquo;t want to?

Of course, China&rsquo;s huge international ambitions will have some positive effects, and could even be economically transformative for certain nations. But many other elements will benefit China while profoundly damaging our planet.
</figcaption>
</figure>

This article was originally published on <a href="http://theconversation.com" rel="nofollow" target="blank">The Conversation</a>. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/chinas-growing-footprint-on-the-globe-threatens-to-trample-the-natural-world-88312" rel="nofollow" target="blank">original article</a>.

(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Image Credit:&nbsp;Bill Laurance and&nbsp;Mahmoud

Chinese investment is driving an unprecedented investment boom in global infrastructure. But despite its claims to be pursuing green development, China's building bonanza is harming the planet

Many observers of China’s escalating global program of foreign investment and infrastructure development are crossing their fingers and hoping for the best. In an ideal world, China’s unbridled ambitions will improve economic growth, food security and social development in many poor nations, as well as enrich itself. Such hopes are certainly timely, given the isolationism of the US Trump administration, which has created an international leadership vacuum that China is eager to fill. But a close look reveals that China’s international agenda is far more exploitative than many realise, especially for the global environment. And the Chinese leadership’s claims to be embracing “green development” are in many cases more propaganda than fact. To help steer through the maze, I provide here a snapshot of China’s present environmental impacts. Are China’s assertions reasoned and defensible, or something else altogether? Predatory force? For a start, China is overwhelmingly the world’s biggest consumer of illegally poached wildlife and wildlife products. From rhino horn to pangolins, to shark fins, to a menagerie of wild bird species, Chinese consumption drives much of the global trade in wildlife exploitation and smuggling. Over the past 15 years, China’s rapacious appetite for ivory has largely driven a global collapse of elephant populations. In response to growing international criticism, China promised to shut down its domestic ivory trade by the end of 2017. The author examining a Forest Elephant gunned down by ivory poachers in central Africa. (Others) × But even before China’s ban has taken full force, a black market for ivory is developing in neighbouring Laos. There, Chinese entrepreneurs are churning out great quantities of carved ivory products, specifically designed for Chinese tastes and openly sold to Chinese visitors. China is also the world’s biggest importer of illegal timber, a trade that imperils forests while defrauding developing nations of billions of dollars each year in timber royalties. China claims to be working to reduce its illegal timber imports, but its efforts are half-hearted at best, judging by the amount of illegal timber still flowing across its border with Myanmar. Also read: Terrorism, fashion and Illegal animal trafficking Infrastructure tsunami More damaging still are China’s plans for infrastructure expansion that will irreparably degrade much of the natural world. China’s One Belt One Road initiative alone will carve massive arrays of new roads, railroads, ports, and extractive industries such as mining, logging, and oil and gas projects into at least 70 nations across Asia, Europe, and Africa. Chinese President Xi Jinping promises that the Belt and Road initiative will be “green, low-carbon, circular and sustainable”, but such a claim is profoundly divorced from reality. As my colleagues and I recently argued in Science and Current Biology, the modern infrastructure tsunami that is largely being driven by China will open a Pandora’s box of environmental crises, including large-scale deforestation, habitat fragmentation, wildlife poaching, water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. China’s pursuit of natural resources is also escalating across Latin America. In the Amazon, for example, big mining projects – many of which are feeding Chinese industries – don’t just cause serious local degradation, but also promote widespread deforestation from the networks of roads bulldosed into remote areas to access the mines. Also read: How women are protecting wildlife in South Africa × Overall, China is the most aggressive consumer of minerals on the planet and the biggest driver of tropical deforestation. Beyond this, China is pushing to build a 5,000km railroad across South America, to make it cheaper for China to import timber, minerals, soy and other natural resources from ports along South America’s Pacific coast. If it proceeds, the number of critical ecosystems that would be impacted by this project is staggering. A World Bank study of more than 3,000 overseas projects funded or operated by China revealed how it often treats poor nations as “pollution havens” – transferring its own environmental degradation to developing nations that are desperate for foreign investment. Finally, much has been made of the fact that China is beginning to temper its appetite for domestic fossil-fuelled energy. It is now a leading investor in solar and wind energy, and recently delayed construction of more than 150 coal-fired electricity plants in China. These are unquestionably pluses, but they need to be seen in their broad context. In terms of greenhouse-gas emissions, China has exploded past every other nation. It now produces more than twice the carbon emissions of the United States, the second-biggest polluter, following the greatest building spree of coal, nuclear, and large-scale hydro projects in human history. Despite its new post-Trump role as the world’s de facto climate leader, China’s overall agenda could scarcely be described as green. Iceberg ahead Some would say it’s unfair to criticise China like this. They would argue that China is merely following a well-trodden path of exploitative development previously forged by other nations and colonial powers. But China is not the same as any other nation. The astounding growth and size of its economy, its dangerously single-minded vision for exploiting natural resources and land internationally, its intolerance of internal and external criticism, and its increasingly closed media and official myopia all combine to make it unique. President Xi admits that many Chinese corporations, investors and lenders operating overseas have often acted aggressively and even illegally. But he says his government is powerless to do much about it. The most notable government response to date is a series of “green papers” containing guidelines that sound good in theory but are almost universally ignored by Chinese interests overseas. Indigenous forest people in the Congo Basin become increasingly poor and marginalised as foreign miners, loggers and poachers invade their lands. (Others) × Are Xi’s assertions of powerlessness believable? He increasingly rules China with an iron hand. Is it really impossible for China to guide and control its overseas industries, or are they simply so profitable that the government doesn’t want to? Of course, China’s huge international ambitions will have some positive effects, and could even be economically transformative for certain nations. But many other elements will benefit China while profoundly damaging our planet. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article. (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity). Image Credit: Bill Laurance and Mahmoud

Opinion: China's growth is harming the planet

President Xi Jinping&rsquo;s position before and after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has a very little direct impact on India. Notwithstanding Xi&#39;s boastful speeches to his captive audience&nbsp;at the conference, there is not much change in the stance and drivers steering China &ndash; India relations.

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<h5>India is unlikely to join&nbsp;BRI or CPEC, even if he has included it in the Chinese constitution.</h5>
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Evidently, there is no appreciable change in the areas of convergence and divergence in the national interest of two countries. India is unlikely to join&nbsp;Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) or China&ndash;Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) even if Xi has included these in the Chinese constitution. These initiatives are seen as no worth to India and clearly as violating Indian sovereignty.

Rather, indirect factors may cause a major difference for India. For instance, some of our common neighbours may give in to the more aggressive &lsquo;Purse diplomacy&rsquo; of China or may even get coerced into accepting it. Maldives signing free-trade agreement (FTA) with China, land grabbing efforts of China in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan are few such examples affecting Indian security adversely, which India needs to work on.

With a greater possibility of facing an aggressive, unchecked Xi Jinping, India needs to work on enhancing hard as well as soft power. China&rsquo;s strategic leveraging of water sources by diverting it or flooding it (being upper riparian country) is a new threat to South Asia, which India needs to be prepared for.

When President Trump indicated his enthusiasm to work with India to improve capabilities of Indian military on the sidelines of the&nbsp;ASEAN summit, it has some positive message for India, because no nation has ever become a recognisable power in global history without a strong military. Besides ongoing efforts to strengthen Indian military, we also need to increase the pace of infrastructure development on the borders and Northeastern region.

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<h5>India is better located to be the hub of global sea lanes with lesser choke points.</h5>
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On the diplomatic side, we need to not only &lsquo;Act East&rsquo; but &lsquo;Act West&rsquo; also. India is better located to be the hub of global sea lanes with lesser choke points on either side, and is working towards this capability to provide an alternate model of global connectivity like Asia- Africa Growth Corridor connecting further West.

The inauguration of Chabahar port in Iran, with an opportunity to connect with Afghanistan, CAR, and further West carries the message that determined nations will find its way even if blocked by adversarial designs. If India could stand up to China to protect its strategic choices during Doklam episode, I am sure that it can do the same in future as well, on its own strength. Any leverage we derive from friendly countries/groupings/strategic partnerships/alliances should be treated as a bonus.

(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

If India could stand up to China to protect its strategic choices during Doklam issue then it can do the same in future as well, on its own strength

President Xi Jinping’s position before and after the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has a very little direct impact on India. Notwithstanding Xi's boastful speeches to his captive audience at the conference, there is not much change in the stance and drivers steering China – India relations. India is unlikely to join BRI or CPEC, even if he has included it in the Chinese constitution. × Evidently, there is no appreciable change in the areas of convergence and divergence in the national interest of two countries. India is unlikely to join Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) or China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) even if Xi has included these in the Chinese constitution. These initiatives are seen as no worth to India and clearly as violating Indian sovereignty. Rather, indirect factors may cause a major difference for India. For instance, some of our common neighbours may give in to the more aggressive ‘Purse diplomacy’ of China or may even get coerced into accepting it. Maldives signing free-trade agreement (FTA) with China, land grabbing efforts of China in Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan are few such examples affecting Indian security adversely, which India needs to work on. With a greater possibility of facing an aggressive, unchecked Xi Jinping, India needs to work on enhancing hard as well as soft power. China’s strategic leveraging of water sources by diverting it or flooding it (being upper riparian country) is a new threat to South Asia, which India needs to be prepared for. When President Trump indicated his enthusiasm to work with India to improve capabilities of Indian military on the sidelines of the ASEAN summit, it has some positive message for India, because no nation has ever become a recognisable power in global history without a strong military. Besides ongoing efforts to strengthen Indian military, we also need to increase the pace of infrastructure development on the borders and Northeastern region. India is better located to be the hub of global sea lanes with lesser choke points. × On the diplomatic side, we need to not only ‘Act East’ but ‘Act West’ also. India is better located to be the hub of global sea lanes with lesser choke points on either side, and is working towards this capability to provide an alternate model of global connectivity like Asia- Africa Growth Corridor connecting further West. The inauguration of Chabahar port in Iran, with an opportunity to connect with Afghanistan, CAR, and further West carries the message that determined nations will find its way even if blocked by adversarial designs. If India could stand up to China to protect its strategic choices during Doklam episode, I am sure that it can do the same in future as well, on its own strength. Any leverage we derive from friendly countries/groupings/strategic partnerships/alliances should be treated as a bonus. (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Opinion: What does Xi's autocratic position mean for India?

China will not export its political system, President Xi Jinping told a forum for foreign political groups on Friday, as the ruling Communist Party seeks to boost its global image and take a more assertive international role.

China&#39;s state media has this year touted the annual inter-party meeting as a &quot;high-level dialogue&quot; with Xi speaking at it for the first time.

Xi told the forum&#39;s opening session China was &quot;struggling for the cause of human progress&quot; and it would bring benefits to every country in the world, according to state television.

&quot;We will not import other countries&#39;&nbsp;models, and will not export the China model,&quot; Xi said.

&quot;We will provide more opportunities for the world through our development,&quot; he said.

The official Xinhua news agency has said that representatives from hundreds of political parties in more than 120 countries have registered for the four-day meeting, though it has not provided a full list.

Myanmar&#39;s leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Tony Parker, treasurer of the U.S. Republican National Committee, were among attendees who spoke at the forum&#39;s opening.

At a Chinese Communist Party (CPP) congress in October, where Xi cemented his power, he laid out a confident vision for a proud and prosperous China in a &quot;new era&quot; under his leadership.

At the time, he also called on the Communist Party, as the world&#39;s biggest political party with 89 million members, to have a &quot;big image&quot;.

China has expanded the reach of its foreign policy and military under Xi, whose &quot;diplomatic thought&quot; has been credited domestically with transcending 300 years of Western international relations theory and serving as a marker of China`s growing soft power.

But concern abroad about China using its influence to sway foreign business, academic, and political institutions have grown in tandem.

Some foreign business has been alarmed by the increased push for influence by Communist Party units in their operations and joint ventures, and international publishers have sparked academic freedom controversies by pulling content that offends Beijing.&nbsp;

Jude Blanchette, an expert on China&#39;s Communist Party at The Conference Board&#39;s China Center for Economics and Business in Beijing, said Xi and the party had been re-articulating the idea of a &quot;China solution&quot; for governments around the world.

&quot;In isolation, the meeting will be forgotten by next week, but it`s a small piece in a much larger strategy to rebrand the CCP from a reactive organization on the wrong side of history into a political force at the centre of the global conversation,&quot; Blanchette said.

Xi told the forum's opening session China was "struggling for the cause of human progress" and it would bring benefits to every country in the world, according to state television

China will not export its political system, President Xi Jinping told a forum for foreign political groups on Friday, as the ruling Communist Party seeks to boost its global image and take a more assertive international role. China's state media has this year touted the annual inter-party meeting as a "high-level dialogue" with Xi speaking at it for the first time. Xi told the forum's opening session China was "struggling for the cause of human progress" and it would bring benefits to every country in the world, according to state television. "We will not import other countries' models, and will not export the China model," Xi said. "We will provide more opportunities for the world through our development," he said. The official Xinhua news agency has said that representatives from hundreds of political parties in more than 120 countries have registered for the four-day meeting, though it has not provided a full list. Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen and Tony Parker, treasurer of the U.S. Republican National Committee, were among attendees who spoke at the forum's opening. At a Chinese Communist Party (CPP) congress in October, where Xi cemented his power, he laid out a confident vision for a proud and prosperous China in a "new era" under his leadership. At the time, he also called on the Communist Party, as the world's biggest political party with 89 million members, to have a "big image". China has expanded the reach of its foreign policy and military under Xi, whose "diplomatic thought" has been credited domestically with transcending 300 years of Western international relations theory and serving as a marker of China`s growing soft power. But concern abroad about China using its influence to sway foreign business, academic, and political institutions have grown in tandem. Some foreign business has been alarmed by the increased push for influence by Communist Party units in their operations and joint ventures, and international publishers have sparked academic freedom controversies by pulling content that offends Beijing. Jude Blanchette, an expert on China's Communist Party at The Conference Board's China Center for Economics and Business in Beijing, said Xi and the party had been re-articulating the idea of a "China solution" for governments around the world. "In isolation, the meeting will be forgotten by next week, but it`s a small piece in a much larger strategy to rebrand the CCP from a reactive organization on the wrong side of history into a political force at the centre of the global conversation," Blanchette said.

President Xi Jinping says China will not export its political system

President Donald Trump&rsquo;s &nbsp;first official trip to Asia covering Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines concluded on a note that sent mixed messages to his allies and partners. During the trip, he participated in several meetings including the APEC, ASEAN &ndash; US summit and the East Asia Summit.

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Carefully avoiding to touch on controversial issues, like Senkaku Islands and the&nbsp;South China Sea, Trump reiterated American preference for bilateralism and made a public declaration on his &lsquo;America first&rsquo; policies as against globalisation. His first so-called vision statement on Asia did not adequately reassure the Asian allies and partners on Washington&rsquo;s commitment to the security of the region. It fell far short of their expectations.

For instance, in his summit meeting with the ASEAN countries, there was a great expectation that he would make a categorical commitment to his allies and partners against China&rsquo;s constructing and militarising artificial islands in the disputed region. As widely reported in the media, in his summit meeting with the ASEAN countries, there was no specific reference either to the UN arbitral court&rsquo;s verdict or to China&rsquo;s illegal construction of artificial islands. During his visit to Vietnam, Trump&rsquo;s offer to &ldquo;mediate&rdquo; in the South China Sea dispute deeply disappointed the Vietnamese hosts.

The ASEAN-China summit held in Manila also witnessed a similar scene. China is reported to have dominated the discussions which were centered on the drawing up of a code of conduct in the disputed waters. Though there was a provisional agreement to start the negotiations sometime during early 2018, participants could not come to an agreement on whether to make the code of conduct binding legally as claimed by countries like Vietnam.

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<h5>China&rsquo;s increasing economic clout due to its bulging trade and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has sharply divided the ASEAN and brought about a basic change in the attitudes of countries like the Philippines.</h5>
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On the other hand, the Philippines and Malaysia were inclined to pursue a more pro-China stance. China&rsquo;s increasing economic clout due to its bulging trade and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has sharply divided the ASEAN and brought about a basic change in the attitudes of countries like the Philippines. The Philippines, the present ASEAN chair, took a soft position on the South China Sea issue and thereby weakened the ASEAN cause. President Rodrigo Duterte showed great inclination to build &ldquo;friendship&rdquo; with China and &ldquo;toned down&rdquo; the South China Sea issue.

It is against this backdrop, one has to examine the meeting that took place between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the top two Chinese leaders in quick succession. The meeting between Abe and Chinese President Xi Jing pin on the sidelines of the APEC conference surprisingly generated a great deal of hope for better relations between the two.

Similar such meetings on the sidelines of international gatherings in the past were marked by a lack of warmth on the part of President Xi. But this time, the bilateral dynamics had somewhat changed. Both Abe and Xi had emerged stronger politically in their respective countries - the former having won the lower house election with a massive majority and the latter having emerged more powerful following the 19th Party Congress. When Xi expressed a desire to make &ldquo; a new start&rdquo; in the bilateral relations, it came as a pleasant surprise to Abe.

Abe&rsquo;s next meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Manila on 13 November, within a couple of days after the Abe-Xi meeting, reinforced the optimism for improved relations. Li told Abe that both countries &ldquo;must work together to make the momentum of improvement of bilateral relations into something solid.&rdquo; Both Li and Abe agreed to make arrangements for holding a trilateral summit with South Korean President in Tokyo soon. Since the advent of Abe as prime minister, neither Li nor Xi has made an official visit to Japan. In 2018 both countries are set to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the bilateral peace treaty, and Abe would look forward to Xi &lsquo;s visit to Japan on the occasion.

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<h5>Trump&#39;s insistence that Tokyo purchases &ldquo;massive amounts of military equipment&rdquo; from the US to reduce its trade surplus dismayed the Japanese leaders.</h5>
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As many analysts point out, the unpredictable style of President Trump has also created some new space for possible cooperation between Japan and China. The need to keep North Korea under control is a strong binding factor between the US, China and Japan. In his talks with Abe, Trump did not seriously discuss Japan&rsquo;s post-election constitutional and defence policies. His insistence that Tokyo purchases &ldquo;massive amounts of military equipment&rdquo; from the US to reduce its trade surplus dismayed the Japanese leaders.

From the Japanese side, it was pointed out that Japan was already spending a great deal on purchasing US weapons and equipment. But what disappointed Tokyo most was that at a time when Abe is trying to create a favourable climate for constitutional amendments, it was hardly the time for Trump even to appear to be forcing huge military expenditures on Japan.

Trump&rsquo;s &ldquo;toned down&rdquo; stance on the South China Sea issue, his emphasis on &ldquo;America first&rdquo; policy and his soft attitude towards China have made many Japanese leaders suspect that the US is retreating from Asia. They are also worried that given the warmth that Trump showed to Xi during his visit, both the US and China could develop a stronger rapport to the exclusion of Japan. From the Chinese viewpoint, if the US retreats, it would be an advantage for Beijing to exert its influence with Japan as less of the hostile power.

(Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Japanese leaders are worried because of the warmth that Trump showed to Xi during his visit. It is suspected that US and China could develop a stronger bond that may harm Japan

President Donald Trump’s first official trip to Asia covering Japan, South Korea, China, Vietnam and the Philippines concluded on a note that sent mixed messages to his allies and partners. During the trip, he participated in several meetings including the APEC, ASEAN – US summit and the East Asia Summit. In his summit meeting with the ASEAN countries, there was a great expectation that he would make a categorical commitment to his allies and partners against China’s constructing and militarising artificial islands in the disputed region. × Carefully avoiding to touch on controversial issues, like Senkaku Islands and the South China Sea, Trump reiterated American preference for bilateralism and made a public declaration on his ‘America first’ policies as against globalisation. His first so-called vision statement on Asia did not adequately reassure the Asian allies and partners on Washington’s commitment to the security of the region. It fell far short of their expectations. For instance, in his summit meeting with the ASEAN countries, there was a great expectation that he would make a categorical commitment to his allies and partners against China’s constructing and militarising artificial islands in the disputed region. As widely reported in the media, in his summit meeting with the ASEAN countries, there was no specific reference either to the UN arbitral court’s verdict or to China’s illegal construction of artificial islands. During his visit to Vietnam, Trump’s offer to “mediate” in the South China Sea dispute deeply disappointed the Vietnamese hosts. The ASEAN-China summit held in Manila also witnessed a similar scene. China is reported to have dominated the discussions which were centered on the drawing up of a code of conduct in the disputed waters. Though there was a provisional agreement to start the negotiations sometime during early 2018, participants could not come to an agreement on whether to make the code of conduct binding legally as claimed by countries like Vietnam. China’s increasing economic clout due to its bulging trade and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has sharply divided the ASEAN and brought about a basic change in the attitudes of countries like the Philippines. × On the other hand, the Philippines and Malaysia were inclined to pursue a more pro-China stance. China’s increasing economic clout due to its bulging trade and its Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has sharply divided the ASEAN and brought about a basic change in the attitudes of countries like the Philippines. The Philippines, the present ASEAN chair, took a soft position on the South China Sea issue and thereby weakened the ASEAN cause. President Rodrigo Duterte showed great inclination to build “friendship” with China and “toned down” the South China Sea issue. It is against this backdrop, one has to examine the meeting that took place between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the top two Chinese leaders in quick succession. The meeting between Abe and Chinese President Xi Jing pin on the sidelines of the APEC conference surprisingly generated a great deal of hope for better relations between the two. Similar such meetings on the sidelines of international gatherings in the past were marked by a lack of warmth on the part of President Xi. But this time, the bilateral dynamics had somewhat changed. Both Abe and Xi had emerged stronger politically in their respective countries - the former having won the lower house election with a massive majority and the latter having emerged more powerful following the 19th Party Congress. When Xi expressed a desire to make “ a new start” in the bilateral relations, it came as a pleasant surprise to Abe. Abe’s next meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang in Manila on 13 November, within a couple of days after the Abe-Xi meeting, reinforced the optimism for improved relations. Li told Abe that both countries “must work together to make the momentum of improvement of bilateral relations into something solid.” Both Li and Abe agreed to make arrangements for holding a trilateral summit with South Korean President in Tokyo soon. Since the advent of Abe as prime minister, neither Li nor Xi has made an official visit to Japan. In 2018 both countries are set to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the bilateral peace treaty, and Abe would look forward to Xi ‘s visit to Japan on the occasion. Trump's insistence that Tokyo purchases “massive amounts of military equipment” from the US to reduce its trade surplus dismayed the Japanese leaders. × As many analysts point out, the unpredictable style of President Trump has also created some new space for possible cooperation between Japan and China. The need to keep North Korea under control is a strong binding factor between the US, China and Japan. In his talks with Abe, Trump did not seriously discuss Japan’s post-election constitutional and defence policies. His insistence that Tokyo purchases “massive amounts of military equipment” from the US to reduce its trade surplus dismayed the Japanese leaders. From the Japanese side, it was pointed out that Japan was already spending a great deal on purchasing US weapons and equipment. But what disappointed Tokyo most was that at a time when Abe is trying to create a favourable climate for constitutional amendments, it was hardly the time for Trump even to appear to be forcing huge military expenditures on Japan. Trump’s “toned down” stance on the South China Sea issue, his emphasis on “America first” policy and his soft attitude towards China have made many Japanese leaders suspect that the US is retreating from Asia. They are also worried that given the warmth that Trump showed to Xi during his visit, both the US and China could develop a stronger rapport to the exclusion of Japan. From the Chinese viewpoint, if the US retreats, it would be an advantage for Beijing to exert its influence with Japan as less of the hostile power. (Disclaimer: The author writes here in a personal capacity).

Opinion: Is the US retreating from Asia, giving way to China?

China&#39;s president has ordered the country to march on in its &quot;revolution&quot; to clean up notoriously dirty and foul-smelling public bathrooms in a bid to improve quality of life and boost tourism.

The so-dubbed &quot;toilet revolution&quot; was launched in 2015 as part of efforts to make restrooms - often squat toilets with no paper - more tourist-friendly.

President Xi Jinping said the toilet problem &quot;is not a small thing&quot; and cleaning up is necessary to create a &quot;civilised&quot; urban and rural environment, China&#39;s state news agency Xinhua reported Monday.

The country expects to have added or upgraded more than 70,000 toilets by the end of this year.

Another 64,000 will be built or enhanced between 2018 and 2020, the National Tourism Administration has said in an action plan.

According to Xinhua, since taking office in 2012, Xi has made a point on rural tours to ask villagers whether they did their business in flushable toilets or pits dug into the ground.

&quot;In rural areas, some toilets were little more than makeshift shelters surrounded by bunches of corn stalks, and some were open pits next to pigsties,&quot; the agency said.

&quot;Local authorities are now more aware of the important role toilets play, believing better toilets are not only beneficial for tourism, but can also... enhance the overall level of civilisation of society.&quot;

China&#39;s infamous &quot;squatty potties&quot; arouse fear in some would-be tourists, with several tourism blog posts dedicated to the subject.&nbsp;

While studies have indicated that squatting may have health benefits over sitting, the position is still hard to accept for those accustomed to porcelain thrones.

Public bathrooms in China have also been known to be bereft of toilet paper thanks to enterprising crooks sneaking out entire rolls for their personal use. Facial recognition is now employed in some places to limit individual toilet paper portions.

Internet commenters applauded the restroom remodelling movement on Chinese microblogging site Weibo on Monday.

&quot;Support the toilet revolution,&quot; one user wrote. &quot;Seriously, whether it&#39;s in a city or the countryside when nature calls, it&#39;s always a hassle to find a decent bathroom.&quot;

China's president has ordered the country to march on in its "revolution" to clean up notoriously dirty and foul-smelling public bathrooms in a bid to improve quality of life and boost tourism

China's president has ordered the country to march on in its "revolution" to clean up notoriously dirty and foul-smelling public bathrooms in a bid to improve quality of life and boost tourism. The so-dubbed "toilet revolution" was launched in 2015 as part of efforts to make restrooms - often squat toilets with no paper - more tourist-friendly. President Xi Jinping said the toilet problem "is not a small thing" and cleaning up is necessary to create a "civilised" urban and rural environment, China's state news agency Xinhua reported Monday. The country expects to have added or upgraded more than 70,000 toilets by the end of this year. Another 64,000 will be built or enhanced between 2018 and 2020, the National Tourism Administration has said in an action plan. According to Xinhua, since taking office in 2012, Xi has made a point on rural tours to ask villagers whether they did their business in flushable toilets or pits dug into the ground. "In rural areas, some toilets were little more than makeshift shelters surrounded by bunches of corn stalks, and some were open pits next to pigsties," the agency said. "Local authorities are now more aware of the important role toilets play, believing better toilets are not only beneficial for tourism, but can also... enhance the overall level of civilisation of society." China's infamous "squatty potties" arouse fear in some would-be tourists, with several tourism blog posts dedicated to the subject. While studies have indicated that squatting may have health benefits over sitting, the position is still hard to accept for those accustomed to porcelain thrones. Public bathrooms in China have also been known to be bereft of toilet paper thanks to enterprising crooks sneaking out entire rolls for their personal use. Facial recognition is now employed in some places to limit individual toilet paper portions. Internet commenters applauded the restroom remodelling movement on Chinese microblogging site Weibo on Monday. "Support the toilet revolution," one user wrote. "Seriously, whether it's in a city or the countryside when nature calls, it's always a hassle to find a decent bathroom."

President Xi orders China's 'toilet revolution' to march on

China&#39;s military on Sunday launched a website inviting the public to report leaks and fake news, as well as illegal online activities by military personnel, the latest step in a push to ensure Communist Party control over the internet.

Beijing has been ramping up measures to secure the internet and maintain strict censorship, a process that accelerated ahead of the party&#39;s five-yearly National Congress that took place in October.

The new website is an effort to implement the guiding spirit of the Congress and will help maintain a &quot;clear internet space&quot; surrounding the military, according to 81.cn, the military&#39;s official news portal.

Citizens are encouraged to use the platform to report online content that attacks the military&#39;s absolute leadership and distorts the history of the military and the Communist Party, the website said.

Cases of military personnel illegally opening online social accounts and publishing unauthorized information should also be reported, it said.

President Xi Jinping has made China&#39;s &quot;cyber sovereignty&quot; a top priority in his sweeping campaign to bolster security. He has also reasserted the ruling Communist Party&#39;s role in limiting and guiding the online discussion.

China's military on Sunday launched a website inviting the public to report leaks and fake news, as well as illegal online activities by military personnel

China's military on Sunday launched a website inviting the public to report leaks and fake news, as well as illegal online activities by military personnel, the latest step in a push to ensure Communist Party control over the internet. Beijing has been ramping up measures to secure the internet and maintain strict censorship, a process that accelerated ahead of the party's five-yearly National Congress that took place in October. The new website is an effort to implement the guiding spirit of the Congress and will help maintain a "clear internet space" surrounding the military, according to 81.cn, the military's official news portal. Citizens are encouraged to use the platform to report online content that attacks the military's absolute leadership and distorts the history of the military and the Communist Party, the website said. Cases of military personnel illegally opening online social accounts and publishing unauthorized information should also be reported, it said. President Xi Jinping has made China's "cyber sovereignty" a top priority in his sweeping campaign to bolster security. He has also reasserted the ruling Communist Party's role in limiting and guiding the online discussion.

China military sets up website to report leaks, fake news

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