CiCM 6th July 2023

NEWS IN CHINA

China continues to face the wrath of extreme weather. A red alert was issued for Beijing and an announcement was also made regarding the prohibition of outdoor work as temperature is forecast to hit the 40 C mark. Consequently, government departments have come into action to protect the elderly and children. Forecasters are also speculating that China is likely to eclipse the previous year’s heatwave record. On the other hand, Southwest China, particularly Sichuan and Chongqing were inundated with rain on Wednesday, causing disruption and loss of property. President Xi Jinping has directed the concerned authorities to keep up the arrangements for the safety of people and property as the country is set to hit the annual flood season. However, the Ministry of Emergency Management through its statistical calculations has concluded that in the first half of 2023, the severity of natural calamities and the loss of resources have been significantly less than the average of last few years.
The International Conference on China and the World was held in Beijing. Politicians and intellectuals from around 40 countries received invitations from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences to share their views on global security, governance, geopolitical tensions, development and cooperation among countries. Li Shulei, head of the Publicity Department conveyed that challenges of world security and conflicts demand greater enforcement of peaceful methods, developmental problems command more cooperation and distrust requires more openness among all the countries.
The city of Shanghai witnessed the inauguration of the 2023 “World Artificial Intelligence Conference” on July 6th. Chen Jining, Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee said that Shanghai has been entrusted by the core leadership of the CPC to harness all the opportunities arising in artificial intelligence and to develop world class industrial clusters. There were at least 30 AI models on display, showcasing technological advancement and spurring the innovations and development of next generation AI. Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology Xi Xiaolan commented that the AI industry has taken off in China as the core industry is valued at 500 billion Yuan with more than 4300 AI enterprises. Tesla founder Elon Musk also virtually attended the conference and shared his views on robots and autonomous driving which are sustained by the developments in AI. This conference was organised by the Shanghai Municipal government and seven other central government agencies such as National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology.
Xi Jinping, as the chairman of the Central Military Commission and the general secretary of the party visited the headquarters of the PLA Eastern Theater Command in Jiangsu province. President Xi Jinping emphasised the 2027 centenary goal of the PLA. He also called for the war preparedness of the forces and the strengthening of the party committee in the PLA. He inspected Zijinshan Laboratory and NARI Group Co. Ltd. in Nanjing as well to observe the promotion of scientific and technological advancement.
A parliamentary delegation from Pakistan reached Beijing on July 5. The delegation is led by Senator Mushahid Hussain Sayed, chairman of the Pakistan senate Defence Committee and Founder Chairman of Pakistan-China institute. On this 9-day visit to China, the delegation will be engaged in meetings with foreign ministry of China, the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee and the China Institute for Innovation and Development Strategy. This would be the first parliamentary delegation from Pakistan to China after the Pandemic. The objective of the delegation as the senator discussed, is to reaffirm the friendship, learn from the Chinese experience of development and to exchange views on their neighbourhood policies. This delegation visit follows a recent and unexpected visit to Pakistan by Chinese entrepreneur and founder of Alibaba, Jack Ma.
Premier Li Qiang presided over a symposium on the performance of the economy on July 6^th. The symposium was attended by members of the standing Committee of the Politburo and the Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang. There was a consensus among experts and scholars that despite turbulent times, the Chinese economy has shown tremendous resilience. Li Qiang mentioned that the world is facing many economic problems and the predicament is to have good judgement to steer our economy. He also commented about the recovery of the Chinese economy and invited everybody to do their part in the betterment of the country and maintaining stability in the society.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER IN CHINA

A video of a woman using a rice cooker on a train is going viral on social media: The woman along with her husband are seen putting the rice cooker on a tray table and fetching out rice in plastic bowls. There is an outlet under the seat of trains for the electric output and there are speculations that the couple may have used the same for the electric cooker, as the smell of rice spread, passengers got uncomfortable and eventually the couple was stopped by the staff. This video has sparked a lot of criticism online. People were angry at the irresponsible behaviour of the couple, as using high powered appliances is prohibited on railways. This video has gone viral on Douyin and has garnered thousands of comments. It has also triggered a wider conversation on the frequency of such incidents among social media users.

INDIA WATCH

The virtual summit of SCO was concluded without any significant agreements among the member states. China has been at loggerheads with India for not signing the Economic Development Strategy 2030. China has accused India of unnecessary activism against China. India has responded to the criticism by arguing that the document is loaded with Chinese terms, therefore, it doesn’t reflect the common understanding of the group. However, India’s participation in the SCO and Quad at the same time reflects the more significant developments in Indian diplomacy. India’s restraint in signing the BRI declaration or the Economic Development strategy is well perceived. As India has ascended on such a stage, it can afford to have the luxury of being selective in its cooperation and still not facing any significant backlash. At this juncture, powers of world politics can not afford to corner India and this is the time where India has to manoeuvre its way to grab more and more concessions. India does not have to play second fiddle to any superpower and there is no contradiction in asserting its ideological discomfort in diplomatic groupings. Such instances signal that India is poised to tread the path of independent foreign policy in the future as well.

Prepared By

Rahul Kheswa

Rahul Kheswa has recently completed his MA in East Asian Studies with a specialisation in China from the University of Delhi. For his BA, he majored in History and Political Science. During his MA, he learnt elementary Mandarin Chinese through elective course. Rahul’s research interest lies in Chinese society and continental philosophy.