Tokyo denies that it was asked to participate in an alliance seeking to counter China Japan has received unofficial offers to become part of the AUKUS military bloc, which was formed last year by Australia, the UK, and the US, the Sankei Shimbun newspaper reported on Tuesday. Several unnamed Japanese …
Read More »Shanghai eases 2-week shutdown, letting some residents out
Some residents of Shanghai were allowed out of their homes as the city of 25 million eased a two-week-old shut down Tuesday after a video posted online showed what was said to be people who ran out of food breaking into a supermarket. About 6.6 million people can go outdoors, …
Read More »US issues new China Covid-19 warning
Non-emergency staffers were evacuated due to a spike in Covid cases and related government restrictions The US State Department has ordered diplomatic workers to vacate a consulate in China, citing a rise in coronavirus infections and new draconian containment measures. All American citizens have also been urged against traveling to …
Read More »China slams US over Russia sanctions
Beijing has urged the US to take practical steps to promote peace instead of trying to capitalize on the Ukraine conflict. China has criticized the harsh sanctions imposed by Washington on Moscow over the conflict in Ukraine, saying that the restrictions were the wrong tool to defuse the ongoing crisis. …
Read More »Japan, Philippines seek pact to further defense cooperation
Japan and the Philippines agreed Saturday to start talks toward a possible defense agreement that would allow closer cooperation between their militaries amid regional tensions with China and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi and their Philippine counterparts, Teodoro Locsin and Delfin …
Read More »President Xi defends China’s ‘zero-COVID’ policy as cases soar in Shanghai
China’s President Xi Jinping commended the country’s “tested Zero-Covid” strategy on Friday even as Shanghai prepared nearly 130,000 beds for new coronavirus patients. At an event to honor Olympic athletes, Xi lauded the country’s efforts to hold the recent Winter Games which he said showed the country’s virus policy “once …
Read More »China: UNHRC’s suspension of Russia sets a ‘dangerous precedent’
The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)’s suspension of Russia’s membership will set a dangerous precedent, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday. The UN General Assembly on Thursday adopted a resolution suspending Russia’s membership in the Geneva-based UNHRC over reports of “gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights” …
Read More »UN suspends Russia from human rights body, Moscow quits
The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday suspended Russia from the U.N. Human Rights Council over reports of “gross and systematic violations and abuses of human rights” in Ukraine, prompting Moscow to announce it was quitting the body. The U.S.-led push garnered 93 votes in favor, while 24 countries voted …
Read More »Oil rises from 3-week low as supply concerns linger
Oil prices rose on Thursday from a three-week low touched in the previous session after consuming nations announced a huge release of oil from emergency reserves, as worries over tight supplies still clouded the market outlook. Brent crude futures climbed $1.42 or 1.4%, to $102.52 a barrel at 0651 GMT, …
Read More »China warns of strong measures if U.S. Speaker Pelosi visits Taiwan
China warned on Thursday it would take strong measures if U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan and said such a visit would severely impact Chinese-U.S. relations, following media reports she would go next week. China considers democratically ruled Taiwan its own territory and the subject is a …
Read More »China says it warned away U.S. warship in South China Sea
Chinese forces followed and warned away a U.S. warship that entered waters near the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea, the country’s military said on Thursday, but the U.S. Navy denied the ship had been warned off. The Southern Theatre Command of the People’s Liberation Army said the USS …
Read More »China warns of “drastic measures” if Taiwan provokes on independence
China will take “drastic measures” if Taiwan makes moves towards independence, a Beijing official warned on Wednesday, adding that Taiwan’s provocations and outside meddling could intensify next year. China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and in the past two years has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure …
Read More »Japan holds drills in case ‘foreign forces’ invade disputed islands
The two-day military exercise involving Japan’s self-defense forces, coast guard, and police was conducted in late November on a remote uninhabited island. According to Kyodo news agency, citing unnamed Japanese government sources, the island was chosen specifically because its landscape closely resembles that of the disputed Senkaku Islands, which have …
Read More »China sees highest surge in COVID-19 cases in 21 months, Xian as hotspot
A surge in new coronavirus infections in the northwestern Chinese city of Xian has prompted local authorities to announce stringent measures to contain further spread of the disease. The city of 13 million, which entered its fifth day of lockdown on Monday, identified 150 new domestically transmitted cases with confirmed symptoms …
Read More »New evidence shows Saudi Arabia building ballistic missiles with China’s help
A CNN investigation found evidence of burn pits that point to the kingdom manufacturing its own ballistic weapons A new investigation has found that Saudi Arabia is building its own ballistic missiles with the help of China, according to satellite images and US intelligence. The CNN exclusive on Saudi Arabia’s …
Read More »South Korea holds talks with China amid spat with Taiwan
Senior South Korean diplomats held talks with Chinese counterparts on Thursday after a diplomatic spat with Taiwan over Seoul’s cancellation of an invitation to a senior Taipei official to take part in a business forum last week. Vice Foreign Minister Choi Jong-Kun and aides conducted an online meeting on Thursday …
Read More »China’s Xi hails Hong Kong election, says situation improved from ‘chaos’
Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday the situation in Hong Kong had improved in the past year from “chaos,” and hailed recent legislative elections in the city as a manifestation of the people’s democratic rights. Xi’s remarks, carried by state media, were made during a meeting in Beijing with …
Read More »China fires up its ‘Artificial Sun’
A new round of nuclear fusion experiments for an advanced superconducting tokamak (EAST), or “Chinese artificial sun,” kicked off at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science this month, Xinhua News Agency reported on Tuesday. According to the institute’s vice director, Song Yuntao, the experiment is aimed at upgrading the EAST …
Read More »A dinosaur embryo has been found inside a fossilized egg. Here’s what that means.
A well-preserved dinosaur embryo has been found inside a fossilized egg. The fossilized dinosaur embryo came from Ganzhou, Jiangxi Province in southern China and was acquired by researchers in 2000. Researchers at Yingliang Group, a company that mines stones, suspected it contained egg fossils, but put it in storage for …
Read More »China Says It Does Not Fear Confrontation With the United States
China will not shy away from confrontation with the United States and would “fight to the end,” the country’s senior diplomat said in a keynote speech on Monday. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Beijing would welcome cooperation with Washington, as long as it’s mutually beneficial, according to a transcript …
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