China news roundup / Nachrichten 2024-08-24/25

24 days ago

Chinese coast guard ships fire water cannons and block Philippine fisheries vessel in disputed sea

"The Chinese coast guard said that it took action against a Philippine vessel, which entered waters in the vicinity of Sabina and ignored warnings, leading to a minor collision.
Chinese coast guard spokesperson Gan Yu said that the Philippine ship sailed toward the Chinese coast guard ship “unprofessionally” and “dangerously,” causing the two vessels to brush against each other. The Philippine vessel had journalists onboard to take pictures to “distort facts,” he said"

--- Oh, yeah, those evil journalists. How dare they document Chinese actions!? People might be able to make up their own minds about those. The audacity!
If you want to make up your mind, here is some of the related video.

China, Philippines clash in South China Sea despite efforts to rebuild trust

"The Philippines and China agreed to "restore trust" and "rebuild confidence" to manage maritime disputes in a high-level meeting last month."

--- Must be restoring trust & rebuilding confidence with Chinese characteristics.

"On Saturday, Manila accused Beijing of "unjustifiably" deploying flares from the China-occupied Subi Reef on Thursday while a Manila aircraft was conducting patrols.
The same aircraft had "faced harassment" from a Chinese jet fighter while it was conducting a surveillance flight near the Scarborough Shoal on Monday, the Philippines said."

--- That's what you get for trusting the CCP.

s.a.: In Beijing’s Quest for Control of the South China Sea, a New Flashpoint Emerges

NSC: China’s claim it rescued Filipinos near Escoda is ‘fake news’

"Claims suggesting that our personnel fell overboard and were subsequently rescued by the Chinese Coast Guard are completely unfounded. This fake news and misinformation serves as a clear illustration of the PRC’s (People’s Republic of China) willingness to distort the truth and engage in disinformation to bolster its public image"

--- You have to wonder, though, why China would claim this in the 1st place...

China’s deadly divide-and-rule tactics in Myanmar risk shock waves across region

"Like the vanquished British imperialists it so reviles, Beijing is playing a duplicitous game of divide-and-rule, covertly backing ethnic groups where they control border areas in order to secure its investments and geostrategic interests.
[...] Far from acting as honest broker, China is likely to persist with divide-and-rule tactics while looking for advantage. “China is continuing its long-term strategy of hedging its bets, which means that it will engage with a number of stakeholders and try to retain influence over as many factions in Myanmar as possible,”"

--- Never expect China to be an honest broker. The CCP has only one aim: power. To stay in power & to gain power.

China's piano market is collapsing, reflecting the concerns of the middle class

""[In 2023], it was already tough, but this year, sales are truly terrible. Our neighbor went out of business, like so many others in Luoshe." By their estimates, several dozen manufacturers have ceased operations.
Once a status symbol for middle-class families, making China the world’s largest piano market, the prestigious instrument has fallen out of favor, victim to the prevailing economic gloom."

--- Le Monde, paywalled. But I link it, because it actually signifies the current economic situation in China. The people buying pianos were not only from the elite, even working class or lower middle class were spending lots of their precious money on pianos & piano lessons. Nowadays, they can't or don't want to afford that anymore.

China slams US for adding firms to export control list, vows action

--- China Uncensored: "China Can't Afford This Protest Now"

--- WION: The mysterious 'Chinese spy' who became a mayor in Philippines

--- ABS-CBN: Chinese Coast Guard vessels ram, fires water cannon at BFAR ship in Escoda Shoal

--- Telegraph: Moment Chinese vessel rams Philippine fishing boat in South China Sea

Philippinen: China soll «provokative Handlungen einstellen»

"Am Donnerstag soll es nun zu einem neuen Vorfall gekommen sein: China soll Leuchtraketen gegen ein philippinisches Flugzeug auf Patrouillenflug eingesetzt haben."

--- China zeigt mal wieder, wie friedliebend & zuverlässig es doch ist. & es geht weiter so:

Neue Schiffskollision zwischen China und den Philippinen

"Auf Videoaufnahmen eines philippinischen Journalisten ist zu sehen, wie ein Schiff der chinesischen Küstenwache und ein philippinisches Patrouillenschiff auf hoher See zusammenstossen. Zu grösseren Schäden ist es dabei offensichtlich nicht gekommen.
Im Streit um die Region hatten die Philippinen und China erst im Juli eine Vereinbarung getroffen, um weitere Konfrontationen zu vermeiden."

--- Was deutlich zeigt, daß Vereinbarungen mit China nicht das Papier wert sind, auf dem sie geschrieben wurden. Scheint fast so, als ob China in diesem Fall nach der Deeskalationsvereinbarung noch mal extra eskaliert.