CiCM 3rd-4th June 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

At the Shangri-La Dialogue being held in Singapore, the Chinese delegation gave a firm response to the United States during a media briefing, after the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin warned that any potential conflict in the Taiwan Strait would be ‘devastating’ and damage the global economy in unimaginable ways. China’s rebuttal, led by Lt. Gen. Jing Jianfeng, Deputy Chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Central Military Commission, denounced the US’s Indo-Pacific Strategy as a form of self-interested hegemony and using other countries as mere pawns. With regards to Taiwan and South China Sea, Jing blamed the US for violating the One China principle and causing trouble in the region, and that Chinese military initiatives in the area were necessitated by the threat of provocations. While Jing did emphasise on the importance of sound Sino-US military relations, while also urged the US to respect China’s core interests and remove the major roadblocks in the relationship. A major highlight of Jing’s press briefing was his statement: “Leadership is not hegemony, status depends on actions, and actions speak louder than words."
Recently, the Guangdong Dapeng Liquefied Natural Gas Company Limited became the first gas supply in mainland China to receive LNG imports of more than 100 million tons. It has capacity to fulfil around 38% of China’s annual natural gas consumption. The salience of LNG lies in that its usage can reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 350 million tons, sulphur dioxide emissions by 3.2 million tons, and smoke and dust emissions by 1.67 million tons, which is the same as planting around 700 million trees. Dapeng LNG, operational since 2006, is the first pilot project to import LNG into China, and it supplies the cities of Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Foshan, Dongguan, Huizhou, and the city-state of Hong Kong, thereby providing electricity and gas to about 70 million people. At present, there are about 24 LNG importing stations in China, and 30 more under construction, which would increase the country’s importing capacity to around 210 million tons per year after their completion.
On Saturday, Gong Zheng, the Mayor of Shanghai, met with a delegation of the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, led by its Chairman, Cai Guanshen. The two parties affirmed that Shanghai and Hong Kong will continue to engage in resource sharing, mutual learning, and cooperative action, in order to make greater contributions to China’s overall development. Both parties hoped to become a gateway for business enterprises from both cities, with Hong Kong businesses investing in Shanghai and vice versa. Further, the Shanghai Mayor also invited the Hong Kong side to participate in the 6th edition of the China International Import Expo, being held in Ireland. On the other hand, Chairman Cai Guanshen lauded Shanghai’s economic infrastructure, and affirmed that the HK Chinese General Chamber of Commerce will play a key role in the overall development of the Greater Bay Area region, as well as of China.
On Sunday, the Wuxi Tunnel, the longest tunnel on the Chongqing Wuxi-Shaanxi Zhenping Expressway (Wuzhen Expressway), was completed after 4 years. This was the last of the 11 tunnels which along the Zhenping Expressway. The Wuxi Tunnel has a total length of 6.4 km, passing through unfavourable terrain. The Wuzhen Expressway is the first highway to directly connect Chongqing to Shaanxi, and will reduce the travel time from Wuxi to Zhenping, from 3.5 hours to 1 hour. Hence, this route is of utmost economic significance, for it will improve inter-regional trade between Chongqing and Shaanxi.
The China Association for Science and Technology, in partnership with the Beijing Municipal Government, recently inaugurated the country’s first cluster of headquarters for international science and technology organisations. Located in Chaoyang district, this cluster aims to promote international cooperation in the field of science and technology, with foreign scientists and academic institutions working together with their Chinese counterparts. “The cluster would grant more opportunities for Chinese scientists and engineers to contribute their knowledge to the world, thus facilitating a global scientific community built on openness, trust and cooperation,” said Shu Wei, Vice-President of the China Association for Science and Technology. According to Muhammad Fahad Baqa, a member of the International Society for Digital Earth, “the new cluster of headquarters will promote academic exchange, open science and global collaboration that are crucial for achieving the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.” These developments will help not only China but the whole world in tackling several natural disasters.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

Furore online over BlacPink using the term ‘Macanese’: The famous South Korean K-pop girl band BlackPink recently came under fire for referring to its fans in Macau as Macanese, attracting the ire of the nationalist Chinese on social media. Following its shows in Macau on May 20 and 21 as part of the ‘Born Pink’ global tour, the band, in a thank you post on Weibo, wrote: “We were deeply touched by our Macanese BLINKs this week. Thank you for all the heartfelt support. We are truly blessed to have you guys.” While the post went unnoticed for some time, later the word ‘Macanese’ came into limelight, which angered the mainland Chinese fans of the band. Many netizens criticised their laxity of using words like Macanese instead of Chinese, while some questioned their education level. There were also comments which called for a boycott of the band, and even went to the extent of unequivocally emphasising that Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau are part of China without any shred of doubt. Following the backlash, the band edited its post, replacing ‘Macanese’ with ‘Macau fans.’ This incident can be placed in the context of the tense political climate in Macau, with the recently amended National Security Law stifling public dissent in the city.

INDIA WATCH

While China’s response to the United States in Singapore did not have any direct implications for India, one of the topics that was touched upon, i.e., the Indo-Pacific, will continue to remain relevant, considering ongoing talks of the US Secretary of Defence with his counterpart Rajnath Singh. During this meeting, both sides will look to strengthen their defence partnership, and advance a shared vision for the Indo-Pacific. India officially joined the Indo-Pacific bandwagon from 2018 onwards, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s address in the Shangri La Dialogue in Singapore, wherein he called for “an open and inclusive order in Indo-Pacific based on respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity of all nations.” India’s interests in the Indo-Pacific converge with many other like-minded powers in the region like Australia, Japan along with ASEAN countries. In 2019, the Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative was launched, wherein India announced cooperation with other Indo-Pacific countries in fields like maritime security, ecology and resources, disaster management, science and technology, and trade, as its main objective. India’s active participation in regional groupings like the Quad also indicate that New Delhi is willing to play a leading role in the Indo-Pacific. There is a major scope for India in advancing bilateral cooperation with the Indo-Pacific states in areas like cyber security and supply chain resilience. Lastly, India should also look to utilise the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework, launched by US President Joe Biden, in order to enhance its engagement with the Indo-Pacific states.

Prepared By

Debendra Sanyal

Debendra Sanyal graduated with a BA (Hons.) degree in Political Science from Ashoka University in Sonepat, and is currently pursuing his Master’s in Political Science with International Relations at Jadavpur University, Kolkata. His main research interest is in the field of Sino-Indian relations, and he has professional experience in doing research on China.