Page 5 - Beijing

Novak Djokovic confirmed for Paris Games, says Serbian Olympic Committee

Novak Djokovic will compete in the upcoming Paris Games, the Serbian Olympic Committee confirmed. Djokovic had knee surgery after withdrawing from the French Open ahead of the quarterfinals and said he hoped to return to competition as soon as possible. The Serbian committee said in its announcement that Djokovic had confirmed he will play in Paris. It will be his fifth Olympics. The 37-year-old Djokovic had said surgery on his right knee went well. The tennis events for the Paris Olympics start on July 27 at Roland Garros, the site of the French Open. It was unclear if Djokovic will be ready to play at Wimbledon, where he has won seven of his 24 Grand Slam titles. That grass-court major begins on July 1. Djokovic has only won a bronze medal at the Olympics. That came in his first games Beijing in 2008.

No CPEC 2.0? China gives Pakistan cold shoulder on new major investments

Ahead of Pakistani PM Shehbaz Sharif's China trip, officials in Islamabad had claimed that an upgraded version of CPEC would be formally launched in Beijing

China's action against Philippine vessels threatens global security: Sweden

Sweden's defense chief has expressed alarm over Beijing's repeated dangerous maneuvers against Philippine vessels in the South China Sea, saying such actions threaten security, undermine stability and underscore the need to invest for our security and freedom. Defense Minister Pl Jonson spoke Thursday night in a diplomatic reception in Manila for Sweden's national day after meeting his Philippine counterpart, Gilberto Teodoro Jr., on expanding defense relations. Sweden is one of the possible sources of supersonic fighter jets that the Philippines plans to acquire as its military shifts focus from decades of fighting communist and Muslim insurgencies to territorial defense. Let me express my deep concern on the repeated dangerous maneuvers against Philippines vessels that have been taking place in the West Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, Jonson said. He did not mention China in his speech but drew applause from an audience that included top Philippine military and security ...

S Korea to nullify peace deal to punish N Korea over balloon launches

South Korea announced Monday it'll suspend a rapprochement deal with North Korea to punish it over its launches of trash-carrying balloons, even after the North said it would halt its balloon campaign. Over several days, North Korea flew hundreds of balloons to drop trash and manure on South Korea in an angry reaction against previous South Korean civilian leafleting campaigns. On Sunday, South Korea said it would take unbearable retaliatory steps in response, before North Korea abruptly announced it would stop flying balloons across the border. On Monday, South Korea's presidential national security council said it has decided to suspend a 2018 inter-Korean agreement aimed at easing frontline animosities, until mutual trust between the two Koreas is restored, according to the presidential office. The security council said the suspension would allow South Korea to resume military drills near the border with North Korea and take effective, immediate responses to provocations by North

Hong Kong court convicts 14 pro-democracy activists under China imposed law

A Hong Kong court on Thursday convicted 14 pro-democracy activists in the city's biggest national security case under a law imposed by Beijing that has all but wiped out public dissent. Those who were found guilty included former lawmakers Leung Kwok-hung, Lam Cheuk-ting, Helena Wong and Raymond Chan. But the three judges approved by the government to oversee the case acquitted two former district councilors Lee Yue-shun and Lawrence Lau. They were among 47 democracy advocates who were prosecuted in 2021 for their involvement in an unofficial primary election. Prosecutors had accused them of attempting to paralyse Hong Kong's government and topple the city's leader by securing the legislative majority necessary to indiscriminately veto budgets. Some of Hong Kong's best-known pro-democracy activists charged in the city's biggest national security case will begin to hear their verdicts as early as Thursday, facing up to life in prison if convicted under a law imposed by Beijing that h

Taiwan detects 27 Chinese aircraft, seven vessels around island nation

Taiwan has long been a point of contention for Beijing, which considers the island a renegade province

US cites misuse of AI by China, Beijing protests Washington's restrictions

US officials raised concerns about China's misuse of AI while Beijing's representatives rebuked Washington over "restrictions and pressure" on artificial intelligence, the governments said separately on Wednesday, a day after a meeting in Geneva on the technology. Summaries of the closed-door talks between high-level envoys, which covered AI's risks and ways to manage it, hinted at the tension between Beijing and Washington over the rapidly advancing technology that has become another flashpoint in bilateral relations. China and the United States exchanged perspectives on their respective approaches to AI safety and risk management in the candid and constructive discussions a day earlier, National Security Council spokesperson Adrienne Watson said in a statement. Beijing said the two sides exchanged views in-depth, professionally, and constructively. The first such US-China talks on AI were the product of a November meeting between Presidents Joe Biden and Xi Jinping in San Francisc

Defying west, President Putin scheduled to meet Xi Jinping in Beijing

Blinken said Beijing's supply of dual-use goods was 'powering Russia's brutal war of aggression against Ukraine'

Pakistan's Dy PM Ishaq Dar in Beijing; set to meet top Chinese leaders

Pakistan's newly-appointed Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar on Monday reached here for a four-day official visit during which he will meet top Chinese leaders and co-chair a bilateral strategic dialogue between the two all-weather friends. Dar, who is also the foreign minister, was received by Director General Ambassador Wang Fu Kang and Pakistan's Ambassador to China Khalil Hashmi, state-run Associated Press of Pakistan reported. Dar will meet top Chinese leaders and comprehensively review bilateral relations, including the upgradation of the multi-billion dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project, Pakistan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement before his visit. He will co-chair the 5th Pakistan-China Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, it said. "The two sides will comprehensively review Pakistan-China bilateral relations including economic and trade cooperation; high-level exchanges and visits; upgradation of ...

Ready to work with India to find solutions to issues: China's new envoy

China is ready to work with India to "accommodate" each other's concerns and find a mutually acceptable solution to "specific issues" through dialogue at an early date, Beijing's new envoy to New Delhi Xu Feihong has said, remarks that came against the backdrop of the prolonged military standoff in eastern Ladakh. An Assistant Minister ranked official, Xu, 60, appointed by Chinese President Xi Jinping for the sensitive job, said he regards his posting in New Delhi as an honourable mission and a sacred duty to improve and advance the bilateral ties. "It is an honourable mission and a sacred duty. I will do my best to deepen understanding and friendship between the two peoples, expand exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and improve and advance the bilateral relationship," Xu told PTI and China's state-run CGTN-TV in a media interaction here before leaving for New Delhi to take up his posting. "China is ready to work with India to accommodate each other's concerns, find a ...

China will never treat India as equal partner: USISPF President Aghi

China will never treat India as an equal partner and by amassing troops on the border, Beijing is forcing New Delhi to spend more money on defence than capital investment, Mukesh Aghi, the head of a top US-based India-centric business and strategic group has said. The militaries of India and China have been locked in a standoff since May 2020 and a full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved though the two sides have had several rounds of talks at the diplomatic and military levels. What we are witnessing today is for the first time in a human race, a democratic nation of 1.4 billion people has shown exponential growth in the economic arena," Aghi, the president of the US-India Strategic and Partnership Forum (USISPF), said. Growing at seven-eight per cent, India's economy is now touching USD 4 trillion. "It is still very small when you compare it to the global GDP, which is around USD 105 trillion. We are still around 3 to 3.5 per cent of the global GDP, he told ..

Beijing eases rules on multiple home purchases to fight property slump

Families who have reached the existing ownership limits will now be permitted to buy an additional home in the region beyond Beijing's fifth ring road

Electric cars, digital connectivity dominate at Beijing auto show

Global automakers and EV startups unveiled new models and concept cars at China's largest auto show on Thursday, with a focus on the nation's transformation into a major market and production base for digitally connected, new-energy vehicles. Toyota and Nissan both announced tie-ups with major Chinese technology companies as they strive to meet customer demand for AI-enabled online connectivity in cars, from social media apps to autonomous driving features. Electric vehicles accounted for about a quarter of all auto sales in China last year. Hybrids, which have trailed EVs, are expected to be a growing segment going forward. China's largest EV maker, BYD, showed off two dual-mode plug-in cars that can run either solely on electricity or as hybrids. The other is a hybrid off-road SUV from its luxury Yangwang brand in the 1 million Yuan-plus (USD 1,40,000) range. China's EVs, represented by (BYD's) Qin and Han series, have successfully realized the large-scale replacement of traditio

China should have confidence to talk to us, says Taiwan's president-elect

Lai, who won election in January and takes office on May 20, is particularly disliked by Beijing, which views him as a dangerous separatist

Tensions between Beijing, Washington biggest worry for US firms in China

Simmering tensions between Beijing and Washington remain the top worry for American companies operating in China, according to a report by the American Chamber of Commerce in China released Tuesday. The survey of US companies said inconsistent and unclear policies and enforcement, rising labour costs and data security issues were other top concerns. It also said that, despite the insistence of Chinese leaders that Beijing welcomes foreign businesses, many still are hindered from free competition. The Chinese government has stated that it encourages foreign direct investment, but many of our members continue to encounter barriers to investment and operations including policies that discriminate against them and public relations campaigns that create suspicion of foreigners, the report said. The report welcomed an improvement in relations in 2023 that was capped by summit meetings of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and President Joe Biden, but said the US presidential election in November w

China runner allowed to win: Match-fixing claim hits Beijing Half Marathon

Investigation is currently underway after a video showing three African runners 'allowing' Chinese runner He Jie to win the race

China tells telecom firms to phase out foreign chips, says report

The move would impact U.S. chip giants Intel and Advanced Micro Devices, according to the report. Their shares were down more than 1.5% in premarket trading

Beijing may repeat 'baseless claims', Arunachal integral part of India: MEA

India on Thursday said Beijing may "repeat its baseless claims" as many times as it wants but that is not going to change New Delhi's position that Arunachal Pradesh "was, is and will always remain" an integral and inalienable part of the country. MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said this during his weekly press briefing, in response to a query on China continuing to harp on its claim over Arunachal Pradesh. His comments came days after Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian on Monday reiterated China's claim. "Our position on the matter, Arunachal Pradesh, has been made very clear, time and again. Recently also, we issued a statement in this regard. China may repeat its baseless claims as many times as they want, that is not going to change our position. Arunachal Pradesh was, is and will always remain an integral and inalienable part of India," he said. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on March 19 it had noted the comments made by the spokesperson of the Chinese

China to promote currency swaps, reinforce cooperation with Asian economies

Bilateral currency swaps can facilitate trade and investment and are a useful addition to the global financial safety net, Governor Pan Gongsheng told the annual gathering of the Boao Forum for Asia

US CEOs extend China stay after last-minute invite to meet Prez Xi Jinping

Late on Friday, China relaxed its rules governing cross-border data flows. The move was seen as a response to complaints by foreign businesses that the restrictions were disruptive