Advertisement Political legitimacy has always been of paramount concern for rulers of authoritarian regimes. In the case of China, Xi Jinping as the undisputed leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is cognizant of the fact that coercion and repression alone are not sufficient to ensure his political survival. Xi needs to prioritize the procurement of political legitimacy with hopes of gaining societal support from China’s populations that will help to perpetuate his long-term political stability. However, Xi’s quest to attain legitimacy does not seem to be a smooth journey.…
Author: china@strategy
China-Africa trade rises in first quarter, though coming months may see a flattening
An artisanal miner works at Tilwizembe, a former industrial copper-cobalt mine, near Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Trade between China and Africa was robust in the first quarter, mainly because of African exports of minerals and rare earth metals. Photo: Reuters South China Morning Post
Shanghai moves to impose tightest restrictions yet
In some cases, people who have been removed from their homes and taken into central quarantine have been told to leave a key to their home, usually in the door, so officials can come in and disinfect the space. Some legal figures have questioned if this move is “constitutional”. BBC
Lifting zero-Covid policies in China could risk 1.6m deaths, says study
The lifting of zero-Covid policies in China would see a “tsunami” of infections and almost 1.6 million deaths, a study claims, citing in part China’s low vaccination rate of elderly residents. China’s government remains committed to a zero-Covid policy, employing resource intensive mass testing and case surveillance, and enforcing lockdowns, strict quarantine and isolation. A speech last week by the president, Xi Jinping, reaffirmed the commitment, despite the challenge posed by the Omicron variant which has already overwhelmed other countries’ zero-Covid policies. The peer reviewed study by Shanghai’s Fudan University,…
Can We Still Be Optimistic About America?
This is a season — an age, really — of American pessimism. The pessimism comes in many flavors. There is progressive pessimism: The country is tilting toward MAGA-hatted fascism or a new version of “The Handmaid’s Tale.” There is conservative pessimism: The institutions, from primary schools to the Pentagon, are all being captured by wokeness. There is Afropessimism: Black people have always been excluded by systemic, ineradicable racism. There is the pessimism of the white middle and working classes: The country and the values they’ve known for generations are being…
China’s zero-Covid policy is not sustainable, WHO director general says
The head of the World Health Organization has voiced concerns over China’s effort to eliminate the Covid virus, in a rare rebuke to Xi Jinping’s pledge to achieve “dynamic zero-Covid”. The WHO’s director general, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, told a media briefing on Tuesday that his organisation does not think China’s Covid policy is “sustainable considering the behaviour of the virus”. “We have discussed about this issue with Chinese experts and we indicated that the approach will not be sustainable … I think a shift would be very important,” he…
Wary of Policy Shift, China Reaches out to South Korea’s New President
Advertisement On May 10, Yoon Suk-yeol was inaugurated as president of the Republic of Korea (ROK). There were a number of foreign guests in attendance, with one of the highest profile being China’s vice president, Wang Qishan. Wang is the highest-ranking Chinese official to attend any South Korean presidential inauguration, a sign of Beijing’s eagerness to persuade Yoon not to follow through on campaign promises to take a harder line on relations with China. Wang has little formal power as China’s vice president, but he is influential due to his…
Beijing accuses US of ‘political manipulation’ in latest Taiwan row
Beijing has accused Washington of “political manipulation” and attempting to change the status quo after the US state department quietly amended its website to remove a line stating it did not support Taiwanese independence. In a delicate geopolitical balancing act, the US has long acknowledged, but not supported, China’s claim to Taiwan under its version of the “one China principle”. However, experts say that policy has been eroded as Beijing has become more assertive. In an updated page on the state department’s online “fact sheet” Washington last week removed some…
As Shanghai’s Covid Cases Fall, China’s Restrictions Tighten
The Chinese authorities are tightening coronavirus restrictions in Shanghai and Beijing, heeding a message from the country’s top leader to double down on the zero-Covid strategy. In Shanghai, where residents have been under lockdown since April 1, private food delivery services were being suspended in some neighborhoods despite cases falling to a six-week low. Some residents were told not to step outside their homes, and that the government would help deliver groceries. In Beijing, where the daily case count rose to 74 on Monday, officials announced that schools would be…
China’s Tianzhou 4 cargo spacecraft docks with space station ahead of next crewed mission
The Long March 7 Y5 rocket, carrying Tianzhou 4, blasts off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China’s Hainan Province on May 10, 2022. China launched cargo spacecraft Tianzhou 4 on Tuesday to deliver supplies for its space station which is scheduled to wrap up construction this year. Photo: Xinhua South China Morning Post