CiCM 10th-11th June 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

On Sunday, the two-day Arab-China Business Conference kickstarted in Riyadh, with around 3000 business and government representatives attending the conference, from over 23 countries and regions, including China and Hong Kong. This is the tenth edition of the conference, with the first one being held in 2005, and according to the Chinese Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Chen Weiqing, this edition is expected to be the biggest one ever held. This conference is being jointly organised by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Investment, the Arab League Secretary-General, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, and the Union of Arab Chambers. During the conference, there will be panels on cooperation, on themes like food security, global trade, supply chains, and the Belt and Road Initiative.
China’s Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development recently issued the ‘Notice on Further Strengthening the Safety Management of Urban House Interior Decoration.’ The aim of this notice is to combat irregular practices in interior decoration in urban homes, and standardise decoration activities, the quality and security of decoration, as well as living safety. This notice has been issued in the light of rising incidents of tenants and owners demolishing walls for decoration purposes without obtaining the necessary permits, in places like Harbin and Zhaoqing. The notice focuses on eight aspects of decoration activity: decorator responsibility in ensuring that activities affecting the main body of the building are avoided; quality checking of design units; ensuring decoration enterprises do not undertake unauthorised construction; property service companies to ensure compliance with relevant regulations; management of immediate territorial vicinity; dealing with rule violations; improving the management of the industry; and spreading awareness on decoration safety.
The Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, located in southern China, launched the Level-IV emergency response for meteorological disasters, as heavy rains continue to wreak havoc across many parts of the region. China has a four-tier emergency response system in place for dealing with abnormally heavy rainstorms, with Level I being the most severe. Over hundreds of townships across Guangxi have been adversely affected by rain, with Xinggang Town in Beihai City registering a 6-hour precipitation of 440.5 mm, a record amount for a single town in Guangxi. Torrential rainfall has been predicted in southern Guangxi for the weekend by the regional meteorological bureau, with the Beibu Gulf experiencing rainstorms and gusts clocking around 17.2-20.7 m/s. The meteorologists have also urged for paying attention towards offshore vessels and disaster prevention.
Construction work began on the Ningxia-Hunan UHV DC transmission project on Sunday, at the Shagehuang Wind Power Base. The project has a rated voltage of 800 kV and a capacity of 8 million kW, and comprises of two converter stations at Zhongning in Ningxia, and Hengyang in Hunan. The transmitting station at Zhongning will gather the photovoltaic, wind power, and supporting coal power, and the receiving station at Hengyang will be connected to the Hunan power grid at 500 kV. The total length of the DC line is 1634 km, passing through the provinces of Ningxia, Gansu, Shaanxi, Chongqing, Hubei, and Hunan, with total investment worth 28.1 billion yuan. This project is the first UHV DC project in the Gobi Desert area, and it will lead to supporting photovoltaic power generation of 9 million kW, 4 million kW wind power, and 4.64 million kW coal power, which would go a long way in helping China achieve the ‘double carbon’ goal. According to Xin Baoan, Chairman of the State Grid, “The Ningxia-Hunan UHV project is a key project to promote the transformation of Ningxia's resource advantages and ensure Hunan's power supply.”
The Shanghai International Carbon Expo kicked off at the National Convention and Exhibition Centre in Shanghai. For the first time, China is witnessing a major exhibition or event which is themed on carbon neutrality, and this expo is a visible display of Beijing’s intent towards achieving the ‘double carbon’ goal. In the backdrop of increasing CO2 emissions, which has adverse consequences for the planet and humankind, Chinese President Xi Jinping has emphasised that “achieving carbon neutrality at the peak of carbon emissions is an inherent requirement for implementing new development concepts, building a new development pattern, and promoting high-quality development.” The Shanghai International Carbon Expo will witness around 600 domestic and foreign enterprises take part in a variety of exhibitions and forums, focusing on energy transformation, conservation and efficiency enhancement, low-carbon services, exploration, and other aspects.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

“10 years of Shenzhou 10” trends on Weibo: Ten years ago, on 11 June, 2013, the, Shenzhou 10 crewed spaceflight, part of the Shenzhou program, was launched. The astronauts who took part in this mission include Nie Haisheng, who was the mission commander, Zhang Xiaoguang, former PLAAF squadron commander, and Wang Yaping, the second female Chinese astronaut. During the mission, the Shenzhou 10 attempted docking with the Tiangong-1 trial space laboratory, which was a success. Following this, the astronauts on board performed numerous physical, technological, and scientific experiments on board, which were also telecasted to students in China. The mission gained a lot of plaudits for making giant strides in space exploration, and images of Wang Yaping demonstrating to elementary school students scientific experiments while being in space were much celebrated. This space mission was among the top trending topics on Weibo, as it completed its 10-year anniversary this weekend.

INDIA WATCH

In recent times, China has begun to display a keen interest in the Middle East, beginning with the China-Arab Countries Summit and the China-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in late 2022. Early this year, China played a crucial mediatory role in reviving diplomatic ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which caught worldwide attention. The Arab-China Business Conference in Riyadh is another step in the positive direction for Sino-Middle East relations. China has had good trading relations with the countries from the region, with Saudi Arabia being the top source for imports and destination for Chinese exports since 2018. Beijing has also been stepping up its collaborations with the likes of Qatar and the UAE, and cooperation has grown in sectors like energy, defence, and space exploration. On the other hand, India has some vital interests in the Middle East, as Indian workers in the region send remittances back to India, which play a useful role in the economy. The Indian diaspora is a major influential lobby, which has played an instrumental role in developing business relations. Also, the Islamic politics of the Middle East have implications for the position of Muslims in India, as well as South Asia. Overall, India’s soft power potential in the Middle East is immense. For quite a while, New Delhi had taken a backseat in the affairs of the Middle East, but gradually, it began to gain lost ground. India has cultivated positive relations with the likes of Israel and the UAE, and has welcomed the rise of moderate Islamists in the region. The I2U2 coalition formed with the United States, Israel and the UAE, signifies India’s intent towards taking part in the security politics of the region. India is observing China’s moves in the Middle East very closely, and according to experts, it would not be in New Delhi’s interest to see Beijing gain an upper hand in the region. However, it should also be noted that there are some foreign policy experts who believe that China would only be able to make a limited foray into the Middle East. While there is growing potential for China-Middle East economic relations, it would not have huge political implications. Therefore, it can be surmised that the Middle East offers an enticing prospect for India and China, since both countries have crucial economic and political interests over there, and they want to make full use of the opportunities on offer.

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.