Apr 9th 2022 EACH NEW Russian atrocity in Ukraine prompts a question about China. Surely, foreign governments wonder, China’s leader, Xi Jinping, must distance himself from Vladimir Putin soon—if only to avoid harming his own national interests? Listen to this story.Enjoy more audio and podcasts on iOS or Android. Your browser does not support the <audio> element. Listen to this story Save time by listening to our audio articles as you multitask OK Alas, the history of outsiders telling leaders in Beijing how to judge China’s interests is long, and…
Day: April 8, 2022
When China worries about food, the world pays
Apr 9th 2022 BEIJING THE COMMUNIST PARTY has a way with words. Take the prosaic topic of food security. The pandemic, geopolitical tensions and heavy rainfall last year (which may lead to a wretched wheat crop) threaten China’s grain supply. Lately officials have been echoing the exhortation of President Xi Jinping that “the people’s rice bowl must be firmly held in their own hands at all times.” In non-party-speak, the government is thinking hard about how to keep the world’s most populous country fed. Listen to this story.Enjoy more audio…
John Lee, a tough former policeman, looks set to lead Hong Kong
Apr 9th 2022 LESS THAN three years ago, news of her imminent departure would have been greeted with joy on the streets of Hong Kong. Carrie Lam, the territory’s leader (pictured, right), was reviled by the pro-democracy protesters whose demonstrations in 2019 snowballed into the biggest unrest of its kind in the territory’s history. But Mrs Lam’s announcement on April 4th that she would not seek another term in office—meaning she has less than three months to serve—stirred little cheer. The central government plans to replace her with a tough…
A clumsy lockdown of Shanghai is testing the “zero-covid” strategy
Apr 9th 2022 SHANGHAI THE EFFORT to stamp out covid-19 in Shanghai has taken on the characteristics of a military campaign. The army has published photos of planes offloading personnel and supplies. Tens of thousands of medical workers have marched into the city. At least as many covid patients will be spirited out—bused to field hospitals in neighbouring areas, sometimes hundreds of kilometres away. The rest of the city’s 25m residents will remain locked down as the fight against the virus drags on. Listen to this story.Enjoy more audio and…
Shanghai’s Covid Lockdown Has Caused Food Shortages, Residents Say
Before Guan Zejun’s apartment block was locked down on March 27, he bought enough noodles and bread to last a week. He figured that if he ran out, he could always order in. After all, this was Shanghai. Soon afterward, however, the authorities locked down the whole city of 26 million in a bid to contain China’s worst coronavirus outbreak since the pandemic began. On Friday, Mr. Guan, a 31-year-old programmer, posted a picture on the social media platform Weibo of his nearly empty box of supplies and pleaded for…
Supply Chains Tainted by Forced Labor in China, Panel Told
WASHINGTON — Human rights activists, labor leaders and others urged the Biden administration on Friday to put its weight behind a coming ban on products made with forced labor in the Xinjiang region of China, saying slavery and coercion taint company supply chains that run through the region and China more broadly. The law, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, was signed by President Biden in December and is set to go into effect in June. It bans all goods made in Xinjiang or with ties to certain entities or…
How Lockdowns in China Have Further Bogged Down the Supply Chain
BEIJING — China’s mounting Covid-19 restrictions are creating further disruptions to global supply chains for consumer electronics, car parts and other goods. A growing number of Chinese cities are requiring truck drivers to take daily Covid P.C.R. tests before allowing them to cross municipal borders or are quarantining drivers deemed to be at risk of infection. The measures have limited how quickly drivers can move components among factories and goods from plants to ports. Shanghai and other major Chinese cities have imposed lengthy, stringent lockdowns to try to control Covid…
China’s Choice for Hong Kong’s Chief Executive Reveals Its Own Insecurity
Advertisement John Lee, chief secretary of Hong Kong and its second-highest ranking official, resigned on April 6 to prepare to stand for the chief executive election in the territory. Lee, a career police officer and former deputy police commissioner, only began his civilian government service in 2012, when he was appointed the undersecretary for security. He became the secretary for security in 2017, in the cabinet of the current Chief Executive Carrie Lam. When he was promoted to the chief secretary role last year, it was the highest government position…
Desperation amid food shortages in Shanghai as Covid lockdown bites
Stories of desperation are emerging in Shanghai as the city enters its third day of strict lockdown, with increasingly widespread reports of residents being unable to access food, medicine and other essentials. The city’s Covid lockdown was extended indefinitely earlier this week after staggered restrictions failed to contain infections. City officials had promised the staggered lockdown would end on 5 April, leaving many residents of the Chinese megacity unprepared to be indefinitely housebound. Despite the severe measures, Shanghai’s cases continue to rise as mandatory testing continues. The city reported 20,398…
Globalization Is Over. The Global Culture Wars Have Begun.
Next, I’m describing a world in which divergence turns into conflict, especially as great powers compete for resources and dominance. China and Russia clearly want to establish regional zones that they dominate. Some of this is the kind of conflict that historically exists between opposing political systems, similar to what we saw during the Cold War. This is the global struggle between the forces of authoritarianism and the forces of democratization. Illiberal regimes are building closer alliances with one another. They are investing more in one another’s economies. At the…