2 h. ago China’s National People’s Congress Releases Draft Foreign Trade Law With IP Articles

China’s National People’s Congress Releases Draft Foreign Trade Law With IP Articles  The National Law Review

Politics

2 h. ago Confucius Institute decline signals China’s soft power shift

Confucius Institute decline signals China’s soft power shift  East Asia Forum

Politics

8 h. ago US farmers to visit China officials, import expo as trade tensions linger

The US government is set to dispatch a group of American growers and exporters of agricultural products to China in the coming fall for exchanges with Chinese officials in Beijing, followed by a high-profile presence at a key import fair in Shanghai. This will mark the third year that the US Department of Agriculture has organised an annual trip to China, the largest overseas market for American farmers. But this year’s journey, likely in November, will take on extra significance and urgency, as...

Politics

10 h. ago Hong Kong to update railway standards with national measures to help cut costs

Hong Kong is seeking to incorporate national railway standards into local benchmarks in a bid to greatly cut costs and raise efficiency, paving the way for standardised rules and their wider application in future government projects. The move will also help facilitate the export of mainland Chinese building technology, such as modular integrated construction (MiC), to other countries, according to a railway engineering veteran. The Highways Department on Friday announced the move to update the...

Politics

13 h. ago In New Report, Walberg and Moolenar Identify More University Partnerships Threatening National Security

In New Report, Walberg and Moolenar Identify More University Partnerships Threatening National Security  Congressman Tim Walberg | (.gov)

Events

15 h. ago China tipped to boost routine patrols after Scarborough nature reserve is set up

Beijing is likely to boost its routine patrol presence near Scarborough Shoal after setting up its planned nature reserve in the disputed waters, according to observers in China. Zhang Yancang, director of the Yellow Sea and Bohai Sea Research Institute at Dalian Maritime University, said this would mean daily patrols not only by coastguard vessels but also aircraft, drones and even uncrewed boats. “Unlike previous patrols, the patrols from now on will focus more on being routine and regular,”...

Politics

15 h. ago Lions that killed zookeeper at Thai safari park to be retrained

Thailand’s Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) has ordered the retraining of five lions that fatally mauled a veteran zookeeper at Safari World in Bangkok. The case has since prompted the closure of the park’s predator zone and sparked a review of safety practices at wildlife attractions across Thailand. Jian Rangkharasamee, a 58-year-old keeper who had worked with lions and tigers for two decades, was killed on Wednesday after reportedly stepping out of his...

Events

16 h. ago Church’s bid to replace HKIS with new school put on hold by Education Bureau

Hong Kong education authorities will not process “at this stage” an application by a US-based church to set up a new international school to replace a top institution being sued for allegedly only serving the “rich”, due to the ongoing legal proceedings. The Education Bureau on Friday told the Post that it had already received the application from the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod (LCMS) to establish a new school. The church has threatened to evict Hong Kong International School (HKIS), which...

Politics

17 h. ago Hong Kong’s procurement scandals a reminder constant vigilance is needed

Counterfeit bricks in MTR’s Tung Chung East station project, improperly sourced bottled water for government departments, substandard trainers for lifeguards – recent scandals in Hong Kong have aroused controversies rooted in the government’s public procurement process. Few Hongkongers have the vaguest idea of the scale of government procurement, even though it is everywhere around us. The Government Transparency Institute, which tries to monitor government procurement worldwide, estimates it...

Science

17 h. ago Big bucks in government procurement makes it a honeypot for corruption

Counterfeit bricks in MTR’s Tung Chung East station project, improperly sourced bottled water for government departments, substandard trainers for lifeguards – recent scandals in Hong Kong have aroused controversies rooted in the government’s public procurement process. Few Hongkongers have the vaguest idea of the scale of government procurement, even though it is everywhere around us. The Government Transparency Institute, which tries to monitor government procurement worldwide, estimates it...

Politics

18 h. ago Want to relive the Chinese military parade? Try this cuddly missile plushie

A week has passed since China held its Victory Day parade but fans have kept up the national pride momentum by buying missile toys and creating trend videos. Toymakers across Taobao, the country’s biggest e-commerce site, are busy making plush toy versions of the DF-61 and DF-5C domestically made intercontinental ballistic missiles that were unveiled in the September 3 parade. In one shop, a pillow replica of the DF-5C comes in green, brown and white, and in three sizes up to 160cm (61 inches)....

Events

20 h. ago US military fired on Venezuelan boat as it headed back to shore: sources

The US military strike on what the Trump administration says was a drug-carrying speedboat from Venezuela came after the vessel had turned around and was heading back to shore, raising fresh questions as members of Congress are demanding more information about the provocative attack. National security officials acknowledged during a closed briefing this week on Capitol Hill that the boat carrying 11 people, described by the Trump administration as Tren de Aragua gang members, was fired on...

Events

21 h. ago Daughter sues Japan hospital over triple billing for Chinese mum’s treatment

A woman filed a lawsuit on Wednesday against a hospital in Japan that diagnosed and treated her Chinese mother with a brain tumour in 2022, claiming it illegally billed her mother three times the rate applied to uninsured Japanese patients. In the suit filed at the Osaka District Court, the woman is seeking confirmation that she is not liable for around 4.5 million yen (US$30,506) in medical fees charged by the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Centre in Suita, Osaka prefecture. According to...

Economics

23 h. ago NASA bans Chinese nationals from all space programs amid rising US

NASA bans Chinese nationals from all space programs amid rising US-China Moon race tensions  Times of India

Technology

24 h. ago Why China’s new plan to bolster its South China Sea claims has Manila worried

China’s designation of a national nature reserve in the contested Scarborough Shoal – and its punitive measures for unauthorised entry – have prompted strong pushback from the Philippines, with analysts warning the move could escalate tensions in the strategically important waterway. Beijing’s announcement of the decision on Wednesday marked its latest efforts to consolidate its claims in the contested area that is now a focal point of intense confrontations between the two countries and could...

Politics

24 h. ago Why Beijing’s new plan to bolster its South China Sea claims has Manila worried

China’s designation of a national nature reserve in the contested Scarborough Shoal – and its punitive measures for unauthorised entry – have prompted strong pushback from the Philippines, with analysts warning the move could escalate tensions in the strategically important waterway. Beijing’s announcement of the decision on Wednesday marked its latest efforts to consolidate its claims in the contested area that is now a focal point of intense confrontations between the two countries and could...

Politics

26 h. ago China’s bull run tests Beijing as it aims to guide US$12 trillion stock market

Stunning gains in Chinese stocks are testing regulators’ ability to manage the ascent, as Beijing seeks to fulfil its long-standing goal of positioning the nation’s US$12 trillion equity market as a steady source of household income that can support consumer spending and economic growth. As the property market remains in the doldrums, eroding the wealth of Chinese investors who are sitting on a record 160 trillion yuan (US$22.5 trillion) in bank savings, the stock market has become a focus of...

Economics

29 h. ago ‘Just hiccups’: Trump’s India nominee pledges to pull New Delhi away from Beijing

US President Donald Trump’s nominee for ambassador to India on Thursday pushed back on fears that New Delhi was drifting towards China, pledging to draw India closer to the US, open its markets to American goods and end Russian oil purchases, while telling senators that India and China had little in common and were unlikely to forge closer ties. “While we might have our moments of hiccups right now, we are on the track of resolving that. Our relationship with the Indian government is much...

Politics

31 h. ago Brazil’s Bolsonaro convicted by top court in historic coup trial

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was convicted by a Supreme Court majority on Thursday of plotting a coup to remain in power after losing the 2022 election, a powerful blow to the populist far-right movement he created. The presumptive ruling by a majority of a panel of five justices in Brazil’s Supreme Court makes Bolsonaro the first former president in the country’s history to be convicted for attacking democracy. Three judges so far have voted to convict, one acquitted, and one...

Events

31 h. ago Brazil’s Bolsonaro sentenced to 27 years after landmark coup plot conviction

Former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro was sentenced on Thursday to 27 years and three months in prison hours after being convicted of plotting a coup to remain in power after losing the 2022 election, dealing a powerful rebuke to one of the world’s most prominent far-right populist leaders. The conviction ruling by a panel of five justices on Brazil’s Supreme Court, who also agreed on the sentence, made the 70-year-old Bolsonaro the first former president in the country’s history to be...

Politics