Abel Kiyondo Sino-African relations have existed since ancient times, but were first formalized in 1956 when Egypt established diplomatic relations with China. This move paved the way for China to strike up relations with the rest of Africa. Over the subsequent half century, China has emerged as Africa’s largest trading partner
Asia
China hopes to beat America’s armed forces by copying them
•Xi Jinping wants China’s armed forces to be “world-class” by 2050 •He has done more to achieve this than any of his predecessors •But Xi Jinping’s reforms may stumble over his authoritarianism Over the past decade, the People’s Liberation Army (pla) has been lavished with money and arms. China’s military spending rose by 83%
Six big moments from Donald Trump’s historic visit to North Korea
Kate Sullivan and Devan Cole President Donald Trump made history Sunday when he became the first sitting US president to enter North Korea. During the brief visit to the hermit nation, which came after the end of the G20 summit in Japan, Trump shook hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un before the
The Escalating US Trade Wars: Beyond China, Part III
William Tucker “Whatsoever therefore is consequent to a time of War, where everyman is Enemy to every man; the same is consequent to the time, wherein men live without other security, than what their own strength, and their own invention shall furnish them withall. In such condition, there is no place
North Korea urges South to stop mediating between North, US
North Korea said Thursday that South Korea must stop trying to mediate between Pyongyang and Washington, as it stepped up its pressure on the United States to work out new proposals to salvage deadlocked nuclear diplomacy. The North Korean statement was an apparent continuation of its displeasure with Seoul and Washington
What exactly is the story with China’s rare earths?
Paul Haenle and Scott Kennedy On May 29, the Communist Party newspaper the People’s Dailywarned of the United States’ “uncomfortable” dependence on Chinese rare earths. “Will rare earths become a counter weapon for China . . ? The answer is no mystery,” it wrote. And on May 20, China’s Chairman Xi Jinping visited a rare
Asian countries fear China, but many won’t side with America
Editor's note: Although they dislike Xi Jinping’s hectoring, they have qualms about Donald Trump, too. WHAT DO YOU buy the Asian defence minister who has everything? How about a “beautiful” photo-book of North Korean ships illegally transferring oil at sea? Patrick Shanahan, America’s acting defence secretary, presented the collection of grainy
Why the US needs rare-earth elements for homeland security
Dr. Brian Blodgett “Rare-earth minerals are essential to everything from cellphones to hybrid cars. China’s got them and could use them as leverage in the trade war with the U.S.,” NPR’s Meghna Chakrabarti succinctly explained. Despite their name, rare-earth elements are not very rare. In fact, the 17 known rare-earth elements, all metals,
Xi Jinping in Russia for talks with Putin with cooperation against US expected
China ready to weaponize rare earths in trade war
JT Crowe China is the world leader when it comes to supplying rare-earth materials, and Beijing is ramping up the rhetoric and looks to be ready to weaponize that dominance in the ongoing trade war with the United States. Chinese state-run media outlets published reports Wednesday, including an editorial in the top newspaper of