CiCM 6th October 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

Afghanistan Pledged Elimination of Growing Terror Attacks on Chinese Nationals: Afghanistan’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi spoke with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Nyingchi, Tibet on the terrorist attacks targeting Chinese citizens in Afghanistan. He made this statement on the sidelines of the Trans-Himalaya Forum for International Cooperation being held in China. Muttaqi stated that the Taliban would not tolerate attacks that harm the security and stability of China and that “we have done a lot of work to combat terrorism and we take security threats against China like a challenge to our own.” He provided an “effective guarantee” of Chinese nationals’ safety without much detail. Taliban has often made such pledges but continued to tolerate the existence of the terrorist groups nonetheless. There have been repeated terrorist attacks recently including the attack on five Chinese nationals in a Chinese-owned hotel in Kabul and the attack on the Afghan foreign ministry building while a Chinese diplomatic delegation was holding talks inside. Wang expressed hope for the complete elimination of the terrorist forces of the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, a UN blacklisted Uygur separatist organisation from China’s far western Xinjiang region with aims for an independent Islamic state. This is the first time such direct statements have been made.

Chinese Expedition Conducting Research on Mount Cho Oyu: A research team from China recently conducted an expedition in the vicinity of Mount Cho Oyu, the sixth-highest mountain in the world situated on the border between China and Nepal. Their primary objective was to investigate the consequences of glacier recession on the local ecosystem, carbon cycling processes, and broader ecological dynamics on the Gyalpolha Glacier which has the greatest retreat. To achieve this, comprehensive air sampling was conducted in the vicinity of six lakes for the first time to assess methane and carbon dioxide concentrations. Notably, the preliminary findings indicated an unusually substantial ice layer at the summit of the mountain, exceeding 70 meters in thickness. This expedition marked the inaugural collection of snow and ice samples at this high-altitude location, which will substantially contribute to understanding the transformations occurring within the "Asian water tower" cryosphere. This region plays a pivotal role in furnishing vital freshwater resources for a sizable populace and, concurrently, supports efforts for ecological preservation and disaster mitigation in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

China Adds Finance and Social Affairs Bureaus to Top Hong Kong-Macau Body: The top Beijing body overseeing Hong Kong and Macau affairs is undergoing significant changes. Two new bureaus will be added to enhance coordination of economic, financial, and social matters. This is part of a broader upgrade, with the office now reporting directly to the central leadership of the Communist Party of China. One of the new bureaus will focus on economic and financial affairs, aiming to improve management of economic development and reduce financial risks between special administrative regions and the mainland, especially in the Greater Bay Area. The second addition, a social work bureau, will act as a bridge of communication between the central government and the people of Hong Kong and Macau. Its role involves gathering feedback and suggestions from these regions to inform Beijing's leadership. Additionally, the newly formed Central Hong Kong and Macau Works Office (CHKMWO) will absorb all nine existing departments from the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO) of the State Council, restructuring them into new bureaus.

China’s Remarks at the 78th UN DISEC Assembly: At the 78th UN General Assembly Disarmament and International Security Committee, Sun Xiaobo represented China at the forum. He holds the position of the head of the Chinese delegation and director-general of the department of arms control of the Foreign Ministry. In his remarks, he pointed out that certain nations were pursuing hegemonic policies through advancing their combat capabilities, and constructing a 'technological iron curtain' leading to unprecedented security dilemmas. Furthermore, the globalised nature of the world today means that everyone thrives or suffers together. He praised China's Global Security Initiative as a different approach with the goal of establishing long-lasting world peace, that supports the spirit of unity and holds a win-win mindset to address security challenges. He went on to speak on nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, enshrining the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons, and principles of fairness, reasonableness, gradual reduction, universal implementation of the "no-first-use" nuclear weapons policy to be promoted in a phased manner. Numerous issues were covered including governance of emerging technology, Iranian nuclear issue, Korean Peninsula nuclear issue, the trilateral Australia-UK-US cooperation (AUKUS), and Japan's release of nuclear-contaminated wastewater from Fukushima.

Highest Sponsorship Revenue for Hangzhou Asian Games: The Hangzhou Asian Games and Asian Para Games have achieved a significant market development revenue of 5.316 billion yuan. This edition has seen the highest-ever sponsorship revenue and the largest number of sponsors with total of 176 companies contributing to a sponsorship amount of 4.4178 billion yuan, a remarkable 83.1% of the overall market development revenue. Several noteworthy sponsorship initiatives have been undertaken, such as Loong Airlines’ Asian Games-themed painted flights brought the colors of the Hangzhou Asian Games to the north and south of the country. Collaborative efforts with Hikvision have resulted in an intelligent and efficient command platform system for the games. Additionally, more than 100 million people participated in the "digital torchbearers" program during the opening ceremony, thanks to Alipay's involvement. The mascots of these Asian Games have also been well-received, with licensed product sales amounting to 760 million yuan. These mascot-related products account for approximately 70% of the overall merchandise sales, reflecting strong public support for the event.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

Carbon-Neutral Weddings Gaining Popularity in China: Carbon-neutral weddings, driven by awareness among youth about climate change, are recently gaining popularity in China. They include eco-friendly and cost-saving choices, like e-invites, second-hand decor from Xianyu, and durable metal candy boxes instead of paper versions. Liu Junjie, a social media user chose a bike ride over the expected luxury car as part of a customary groom entrance. He states that the idea behind it for people is “a ‘low-carbon’ wedding also symbolizes enduring commitment — making love both pure and timeless.” These weddings aim to minimize carbon emissions, offsetting them through carbon quotas or credits. China's "dual carbon" goal, aiming for carbon emissions peak by 2030 and neutrality by 2060, along with Ministry of Civil Affairs' reforms for simpler weddings, has curtailed this phenomenon with some reports of reduced wedding costs by over 90%. Comments made to the Sixth Tone on eco-friendly weddings have included “Such a wedding can contribute to an environmentally friendly life and reduce our financial burden, so why not do it?” “Going completely carbon neutral for weddings is challenging, but I hope couples can embrace eco-friendly approaches for the big day,”

INDIA WATCH

The Trans-Himalaya Forum for International Cooperation forum emerged in 2018 under China to enhance cooperation among countries in the Himalayan belt. It lists Pakistan, Mongolia and Afghanistan among the member nations and was held in Tibet this year. While China made comments emphasising respecting the sovereignty of states, the location of the meetings held is in the contentious border region with India - 160 km away from Arunachal Pradesh. In August of this year, China released an official ‘standard map’ showing the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh and to be part of China, in its renewed cartographic aggression measures. China also recently refused to grant separate visas in for travellers from Arunachal Pradesh and it keeps pushing infrastructure projects in disputed territories. All of these actions put both the Asian powers head-to-head for confrontation to maintain national sovereignty. India has struck back through joining hands with similarly aggrieved regional members like Vietnam, Philippines etc in the South China Sea disputed territory as well as Nepal at its border. It seeks out external alliances to balance against Chinese aggression through partnering with the US and European nations as well as agreements like QUAD. In India’s neighbourhood first approach, India has been a strong proponent of regional organisations such as the SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) and BBIN Initiative (Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal). BBIN, specifically focuses on similar matters such as energy and transportation cooperation that benefits all members and can act as a counter to the Chinese Trans-Himalaya Forum.

Prepared By

Ananya Singh

Ananya Singh is a student of International Studies and Public Policy at FLAME University. She is actively involved in research pursuits such as taking on corporate risk analysis internships, publishing articles on the conflict and politics in Asia; undertaking research on economic policy; engaging in various national-level youth G20/policy-making/leadership conferences and debates; and creating webinars/media on sociopolitical issues. Her research interests in the field currently include political risk analysis, defence studies, maritime security and international law with a regional focus on West Asia. She has also supplemented her portfolio with proficiency in French and an understanding of German and Persian.