NOTE: The news reports below are not in chronological order. There is often a time lag in their reaching the US and in gaining our attention. These reports reflect the opinions of a variety of news sources.
China's City of the Future / March 31, 2022
Dubbed China's youngest city and a "city of the future," Xiong'an New Area marks its fifth anniversary on Friday, April 1. China announced plans to establish Xiong'an New Area on April 1, 2017, to relieve Beijing of functions non-essential to its role as the national capital and advance the coordinated development of the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region.
NATO warns China / March 24, 2022
Western leaders have had enough of China’s comradeship with Russia during the war in Ukraine.
At a meeting of NATO heads of state and government in Brussels on March 24, the leaders warned China against enabling of the Kremlin’s war with Ukraine by providing arms, trade lifelines and disinformation.
Shanghai starts China's biggest COVID-19 lockdown in 2 years / March 28, 2022
China began its most extensive coronavirus lockdown in two years Monday to conduct mass testing and control a growing outbreak in Shanghai, China's financial capital and largest city with 26 million people. Shanghai's Pudong financial district and nearby areas will be locked down from Monday to Friday as mass testing gets underway, the local government said. In the second phase of the lockdown, the vast downtown area west of the Huangpu River that divides the city will start its own five-day lockdown Friday.
China is struggling to deal with all mild Covid cases / March 23, 2022
Across China, many medical workers are being overwhelmed – not by a wave of seriously ill Covid-19 patients, but by a wave of not very ill ones. China’s the longstanding exercise in the country’s bid to eradicate new infections as quickly as possible has been to hospitalize every Covid case and quarantine all “close contacts” – including doctors and nurses.
China’s Population may peak in 2022 / March 20, 2022
Cai Fang, a member of the People’s Bank of China’s monetary policy committee, says it’s “entirely possible” that the world’s largest population will peak in 2022. Seven out of China’s 16 provinces that have disclosed birth data indicating negative population growth in 2021. A contracting population will create a declining labor force.
Can ‘brain-dead’ NATO prolong its life by exploiting China? / March 25, 2022
This Global Times editorial claims, NATO, which has long been considered "brain dead," needs to find a life-saving ventilator, as relying on the oxygen brought about by creating a "Russophobia" is increasingly insufficient. It fears it will expire at any time without being "intubated."
Beijing Tells Chinese in Russia to Help Fill Economic Void / March 22, 2099
China’s top Russia envoy urged Chinese businesspeople in Moscow to seize economic opportunities created by the Ukrainian crisis. This could help soften the blow from international sanctions on Russia.
China-India talks / March 24, 2022
China and India have been locked in a border dispute near Ladakh since 2020. Troops are positioned on both sides of a high mountain pass between the two countries. Today Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, who is in India, is expected to meet National Security Agency Ajit Doval and External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar with the intention of taking steps to resolve the situation.
China says it can develop South China Sea islands / March 22, 2022
China on Tuesday said it has the right to develop South China Sea islands as it sees fit in the wake of U.S. accusations that it has fully militarized at least three of several islands it built in the disputed waterway in violation of a previous commitment.
Ukraine calls on Chinese drone maker to stop use by Russia / March 22, 2022
Ukraine is appealing to a Chinese maker of civilian drones to block what the Ukrainian government says is their use by the Russian army to target missile attacks.
Chinese airliner crash / March 21, 2022
A China Eastern Boeing 737-800 with 132 people on board crashed in the southern province of Guangxi on Monday, officials said. Chinese President Xi Jinping called for an “all-out effort” to be made in the rescue operation.
Update / March 22, 2022
China’s first Covid deaths in 14 months / March 20, 2022
Two COVID-19 deaths on Saturday became China’s first since January 2021. The deaths, both in northeastern China’s Jilin province, bring the country’s coronavirus death toll to 4,638.
1+ million Covid cases in HK / March 18, 2022
Health officials reported more than 20,000 confirmed cases and more than 200 deaths Friday. The city's morgues are also running out of space, with total deaths surpassing 5,000.
China’s blueprint for national computing network / March 11, 2022
China plans to build a national computing network to facilitate the country’s development in cloud computing and big data. The new network will channel computing resources from the country’s eastern regions to more impoverished western regions.
China sticks with zero-Covid strategy / March 17, 2022
Chinese President Xi Jinping has said his country will “stick with” its zero-Covid strategy in the face of growing numbers of Covid infections. China had been reporting 100 infections a day; now it reports over 1,000. More than 2,400 cases were reported on March 17. Xi said the country should “continue to put people and life at the forefront, stick with scientific accuracy and dynamic-zero, and curb the spread of the epidemic as soon as possible.”
China's highest-altitude hydropower plant now operational / March 18, 2022
Constructed in Tibet, China’s newest hydropower plant is also its highest at 3,000 meters in altitude. The plant generates 500,000-kW of power. Tap the link for photos.
Biden and Xi talk about Ukraine War / March 18, 2022
President Joe Biden spoke to Chinese President Xi Jinping for nearly two hours on March 18, largely about the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Sources familiar with the call said Biden’s goal was to spell out for Xi the negative consequences awaiting China if Xi agrees to Moscow’s request.Moscow for assistance in its war. Also, Biden and Xi both agreed to work for peace in Ukraine, but deeply disagreed on who is responsible for the Russian invasion. Finally, Xi suggested the United States had forced Putin’s hand -- echoing one of Moscow’s favorite talking points.
US expels another Chinese phone carrier on security grounds / March 19, 2022
Washington has expelled another state-owned Chinese phone carrier from the U.S. market over national security concerns amid rising tension with Beijing. The FCC cited “significant national security and law enforcement risks” that Pacific Networks could monitor or disrupt U.S. communications. It said there were no steps that could eliminate those risks while the company operated in the United States.
China says Taiwan 'taking advantage' of Ukraine as island sends more aid / March 16, 2022
China's government on Wednesday lambasted Taiwan's humanitarian aid for Ukraine and sanctions on Russia as "taking advantage of other's difficulties" after the island announced it was sending more funds donated by the public for refugees.
China’s Home Sales Plunge 22.1% / March 15, 2022
Residential apartment sales in 31 Chinese provincial-level areas sank 22.1 percent in January and February from the same period last year as demand remains strained despite many efforts by municipal governments to help home buyers.
Chinese virus cases climb, raise threat of trade disruption / March 15, 2022
Chinese authorities on Tuesday tightened anti-virus controls at ports, raising the risk of trade disruptions after some auto and electronics factories shut down as the government fights coronavirus outbreaks. Stock prices in China and Hong Kong sank for a second day following the shutdown on Monday of Shenzhen, a tech and finance hub adjacent to Hong Kong in the south, and Changchun, an auto center in the northeast. Bus service to Shanghai, China’s business capital and biggest city, was suspended.
China leads the world in top scientific papers / March 12, 2022
According to a recent study by researchers from the US, China, and Europe, China overtook the United States in top scientific studies in 2019, four years after it reached the same milestone against the European Union.
US, China aides to meet as tensions mount over Russia/March 13, 2022
The U.S. and China are sending top aides to meet in Rome on Monday amid mounting tensions between the two countries over the Russia-Ukraine war and as a U.S. official reports that Russia in recent days has asked China for military equipment to help press its campaign.
China denies Russia asked for military aid / March 14, 2022
A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday assertions from U.S. officials that Russia asked Beijing for military equipment for its campaign in Ukraine were "disinformation" from the United States.
China won’t supply plane parts to Russia/March 10, 2022
China has refused to supply Russian airlines with aircraft parts, an official at Russia's aviation authority was quoted by Russian news agencies as saying on Thursday, after Boeing and Airbus halted supply of components.
Covid shuts down Chinese schools, including in Shanghai/March 12, 2022 (GMA, Philippines)
Shanghai on March 11 ordered its schools to close and shift to online instruction for the foreseeable future after dozens of cases emerged in the eastern economic hub in recent days. Changchun, a city of nine million, has ordered residents to stay at home, allowing one person out every two days to buy "daily necessities.”
South Korean election tilts toward the U.S. and away from China / March 10, 2022
“I’ll rebuild the South Korea-US alliance. I’ll (make) it a strategic comprehensive alliance while sharing key values like liberal democracy, a market economy, and human rights,” President-elect Yoon.
China tiptoes on Russia/Ukraine war / March 7, 2022
China continues to offer support to both Ukraine and Russia. On Monday, China’s Foreign Minister Wáng Yì 王毅, promised humanitarian aid to Ukraine from China’s Red Cross, and further offered Chinese assistance to provide “necessary mediation.” Meanwhile he asked Western nations to understand and respect Russia’s “legitimate security concerns” and censored all mention of the war from Winter Paralympics coverage.
Beijing will pay a price if it helps Russia evade sanctions / March 4, 2022
State Department counselor Derek Chollet warned, “China, if it were to seek to evade the sanctions or somehow dividing the sanctions, they would be vulnerable…. Any country that tries to evade these sanctions will also face the consequences of its actions. I don’t want to speculate with that would be.” He noted that the allied nations that have joined in sanctioning Russia represent a combined 50 percent of the global economy; China accounts for around 15 percent.
Ukraine is nightmare for Xi (Foreign Policy) / March 4, 2022
Chinese President Xi Jinping’s worst nightmare is playing out in Ukraine. Regardless of whether he possessed detailed or advance knowledge of Russia’s invasion plans, two things are almost certain: Xi expected Russia’s battle-hardened military to quickly rout the Ukrainians, and the international community’s response would be muted. Neither came to pass.
Xi Jinping: China will plot its own path on human rights / February 26, 2022
President Xi Jinping has pledged to promote China’s own path in human rights development. In an address to the Communist Party’s inner circle on February 26, Xi said China had blazed a path of human rights development consistent with the trend of the times and the nation’s conditions, state news agency Xinhua reported. China has also developed a “Report on Human Rights Violations in the United States in 2021.” The report takes aim at the US death tolls from Covid-19 and gun violence. Read China’s human rights report here.
Asteroid crater in China / March 1, 2022
Late last year, a NASA satellite imaged an impact crater from space in China’s Heilongjiang Province. According to the researchers who described it in 2019, it‘s the second confirmed impact structure in China. The site has long been known to locals, who call it “Quanshan,” or “circular mountain ridge,” according to a NASA Earth Observatory release.
Is Taiwan Next? (The Atlantic) / March 1, 2022
“The Ukraine game is not over. Now the world—and especially Xi Jinping—will be watching to see how much pain and cost the U.S. and its allies can and will inflict on Russia. The U.S. has projected its power not merely with aircraft carriers, but with its technology, its currency, and its talent for organizing collective action. Putin’s assault on Ukraine is a test for all of these many tools.”