Day: June 23, 2023

British MPs warn Israel anti-boycott law could also stifle criticism of China

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Receive free UK politics & policy updates We’ll send you a myFT Daily Digest email rounding up the latest UK politics & policy news every morning. New legislation designed to stop UK councils boycotting Israel will prevent public bodies from taking action against other countries such as China, senior MPs have warned. Lisa Nandy, shadow levelling-up secretary, has written to her Tory opposite number in government, Michael Gove, to warn him the bill could “have significant effects on support for the Uyghur minority in China”. Meanwhile, former Conservative leader Sir…

Declassified US Intelligence Answers Few Questions on COVID-19 Origins

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WASHINGTON —  Newly declassified intelligence on the origins of the coronavirus pandemic appears to cast doubt on theories that the outbreak that killed millions around the world began at a research laboratory in Wuhan, China. A report issued late Friday by U.S. intelligence agencies and shared with members of Congress said that despite concerns about biosafety measures at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), and despite its history of work with coronaviruses, there is no intelligence that indicates COVID-19 was present in the lab before the outbreak. “We continue to…

No direct proof Covid-19 stemmed from Wuhan lab leak, US intelligence says

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US intelligence agencies found no direct evidence that the Covid-19 pandemic stemmed from an incident at China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology, a report declassified on Friday said. The four-page report by the office of the director of national intelligence (ODNI) said the US intelligence community still could not rule out the possibility that the virus came from a laboratory, however, and had not been able to discover the origins of the pandemic. “The Central Intelligence Agency and another agency remain unable to determine the precise origin of the Covid-19 pandemic,…

Intelligence Agencies Remain Divided Over Covid Lab Leak Theory

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Intelligence agencies do not believe the case of three workers from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, who became ill in 2019 can help shed light on whether the Covid-19 pandemic originated from an accidental lab leak, according to a report made public Friday. The Office of the Director of National Intelligence released a long-awaited declassified report, which included spy agencies’ findings on the so-called lab leak theory, but the material is unlikely to satisfy many people who have been wrestling with the unanswered questions on the origins of the Covid…

No Questions, ‘Burner’ Phones: Behind the Scenes of Blinken’s China Trip  

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state department —  How reporters were expected to behave while in China covering U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s trip was spelled out in advance: The Chinese side did not want anyone shouting questions. Ahead of covering the camera sprays of Blinken’s meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang on Sunday, U.S. journalists were told that if any member of the U.S. traveling press decided to shout questions, they would be kicked out of the media availability immediately. They could also end up being denied a visa for future reporting…

Palestinian Leader’s Endorsement of China’s Xinjiang Policy Sparks Backlash

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washington —  Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas recently visited Beijing, where he met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and expressed support for China’s treatment of Muslim Uyghurs in Xinjiang. His endorsement of China’s policies and denial of the mistreatment of Muslims in Xinjiang drew criticism from politicians and rights activists. During their meeting Wednesday, in which Abbas sought economic aid, he and Xi issued a joint statement in which Abbas endorsed China’s domestic and foreign policies while dismissing the human rights concerns in Xinjiang as Western concepts. The United States…

Romanian Man Pleads Guilty in Deaths of 39 Vietnamese Migrants

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A Romanian man accused of being a ringleader of a people-smuggling operation pleaded guilty on Friday to manslaughter in the deaths of 39 Vietnamese migrants who were found dead in a semi-trailer truck in southeast England. Marius Mihai Draghici, 50, was detained by police in Romania in August 2022 and charged by British prosecutors with 39 counts of manslaughter and conspiracy to assist unlawful immigration.Draghici pleaded guilty to the charges at London’s Old Bailey court and will be sentenced at a later date. The victims, the youngest of whom were…

Mutual China challenges discussed between US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi

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More than 18 rounds of bilateral military and diplomatic talks have taken place over the past two years. In March, Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar described the situation at the border as “quite dangerous”. However, a Chinese foreign ministry read-out in April called the situation “generally stable”. In December, the US for the first time shared with India advanced intelligence, including satellite imagery, about Chinese positions before a border clash between the Asian countries’ troops. Advertisement Kirby on Friday said Washington and New Delhi sought to improve their defence cooperation,…

US Files First-Ever Charges Against Chinese Fentanyl Manufacturers

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washington/new york —  The U.S. Justice Department on Friday filed criminal charges against four Chinese chemical manufacturing companies and eight individuals over allegations they illegally trafficked the chemicals used to make fentanyl, a highly addictive painkiller that has fueled the opioid crisis in the United States. The indictments mark the first time the United States has sought to prosecute any of the Chinese companies responsible for manufacturing the precursor chemicals used to make the painkiller. Antony Blinken, who earlier this week made the first visit to China by a U.S.…

In Blinken meetings China’s signals new point man on US relations is vice-foreign minister Ma Zhaoxu

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His new role is in keeping with Chinese diplomatic tradition, where a vice-foreign minister is usually assigned to oversee US ties. In guiding dealings with Washington, the incumbent will generally work closely with the foreign minister, the ambassador to the United States, as well as the ministry’s North American and Oceanian affairs chief. Ma’s role will be especially crucial in the present climate, amid attempts to maintain dialogue as tensions reach unprecedented heights. Bilateral fence-mending meetings have revealed the same grievances that have rocked relations for years, such as the…