China picks ex-navy chief as new defense minister – POLITICO

China picked former navy chief Dong Jun as its new defense minister on Friday, roughly four months after the last occupant of the post disappeared. Chinese state media reported the move Friday, citing a decision from the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress. Dong Jun, who moves from heading up the People’s Liberation Army … Read more

Xi reveals China’s push for global power after secret meeting on foreign policy

He said Beijing would continue to “hold the international moral high ground and unite and rally the overwhelming majority in our world”, “carry forward our fighting spirit”, reject “all acts of power politics and bullying” and “leverage our institutional strengths” amid external uncertainties. “An equal and orderly multipolar world is one in which all countries, … Read more

POLITICO Europe’s most-read stories of 2023 – POLITICO

Well, here we are folks, at the end of another turbulent year. When we put this list together at the end of 2022, its contents largely covered something many of us thought we would not see again in our lifetime: a major war in Europe. Now, we are grappling with two wars in our immediate … Read more

Chinese leader Xi Jinping leads tributes to Mao Zedong on chairman’s 130th birthday

Xi led the Politburo Standing Committee, the country’s most powerful decision-making body, in “remembering Mao Zedong’s achievements” at Mao’s mausoleum in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, where his embalmed body is on display. Xi and his delegation bowed three times in front of Mao’s marble statue to honour the day, the report added. Xi also delivered a … Read more

Force of nature: China’s top climate envoy Xie Zhenhua steps down after more than 15 years in environment diplomacy

A Tianjin native, Xie was trained as an engineering physicist at Tsinghua University in the 1970s and started his career in various government agencies responsible for environmental affairs. While he rose through the ranks, he earned a master’s degree in environmental law from Wuhan University in 1993. Xie was made the head of the State … Read more

China’s Christian groups told to ensure ‘strict’ oversight of religion as Communist Party controls tighten

The National Committee of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement of the Protestant Churches in China and the China Christian Council run state-approved churches and carry out pastoral work. They aim also to address the needs of faith within a socialist society, by balancing religious belief with allegiance to the party and country. Wang Huning (centre) is … Read more

As China prepares to commemorate Mao Zedong, hints of what Xi Jinping may have planned

Every 10 years, Chinese leaders hold events to commemorate the birth of the late chairman Mao Zedong, who was born on December 26, 1893. The events are an opportunity for the leadership to call for solidarity and rally the nation to address challenges, while reflecting on the legacy of the Great Helmsman. Authorities across China … Read more

Tencent loses over $43 billion in market value after China proposes new online gaming rules

Tencent lost about $43.5 billion in market value on Friday after China surprised financial markets with a fresh set of rules aimed at curbing excessive gaming and spending. The draft guidelines from China’s National Press and Publication Administration sank the Hong Kong-listed shares of Tencent, NetEase and Bilibili — among the largest online gaming-related counters … Read more

Chinese police highlight crime crackdown in strategically important finance, tech sectors

Police in Shanghai have said a string of arrests in connection with the theft of hi-tech trade secrets was the result of a stepped up effort to protect the strategically important sector, as well as a renewed crackdown on financial crimes. Fourteen suspects were detained and seven servers confiscated after police were tipped off that … Read more

What explains the changes to Hong Kong leader’s annual duty visit to Beijing? They signal Chinese President Xi Jinping’s bigger, more direct role in city affairs, observers say

For Hong Kong, led by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, the changes could result in improved execution of policies in matters of national security and district administration, policy pundits said after analysing remarks from Xi and Lee. President Xi Jinping presides over Monday’s meeting with John Lee sitting to his right and Premier Li Qiang … Read more