Daily Archives: August 22, 2020

2020-08-22: News Headlines

sputniknews (2020-08-22). Photo: China's Final Type 055 Destroyer Spotted Preparing for Possible Launch. sputniknews.com New reports from Chinese social media platforms Weibo and WeChat reveal that Beijing's eighth and final Type 055 destroyer may be ready for launch soon, as the stealth guided-missile destroyer was spotted receiving a new paint job at a Dalian shipyard.

Conn Hallinan (2020-08-22). China & the US: 21st Century's "Great Game" zcomm.org The U.S. has dominated the Pacific Ocean—sometimes called an "American lake"—since the end of World War II. Suddenly Americans have a competitor, although it is a rivalry that routinely gets overblown.

RT (2020-08-21). US ready 'to block Russia & China' if they disregard Iran sanctions, Pompeo warns, as Washington pushes for UN 'snapback'. rt.com Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on Friday that the United States is prepared to block Russia and China if they refuse to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran. | The statement came a day after Britain, France and Germany — who are still party to the Iranian nuclear agreement — joined Beijing and Moscow in Speaking to Fox News, Pompeo said Washington was disappointed its allies did not support the US effort to trigger a "snapback" of U…

RT (2020-08-21). Philippines mounts diplomatic protest over China's seizure of fishing equipment in ongoing row over disputed shoal. rt.com The Philippines foreign ministry has accused China's coastguard of illegally seizing fishing equipment near a disputed shoal in the South China Sea. The move has sparked a fresh row with Beijing. | Manila lodged a diplomatic protest on Friday over the "illegal confiscation" in May of floating devices used to catch fish. The ministry also "resolutely objected" to China issuing radio challenges to Philippines aircraft conducting maritime patrols in areas of the sea claimed by Manila, AFP reported. | Beijing said the coastguard's actions "are understandable" as they carried out law enforcement activities. China's…

yenisafak (2020-08-21). What you need to know about the coronavirus right now. yenisafak.com Here's what you need to know about the coronavirus right now: New, milder, virus variant foundResearchers in Singapore have discovered a new variant of the COVID-19 coronavirus that causes milder infections, a study published in The Lancet medical journal found.The study showed that COVID-19 patients infected with the variant of SARS-CoV-2 had better clinical outcomes, with a lower proportion developing low blood oxygen or requiring intensive care.The study also showed the variant elicited a more robust immune response.The variant, which likely came from Wuhan, China, was detected in a cluster of infections from J…

Juan Cole (2020-08-21). Former US Allies Britain, France, Germany join Russia and China in Forcefully Rejecting Trump Iran Sanctions. commondreams.org The "Trump administration is perfectly capable of maintaining publicly that international UNSC sanctions on Iran have been restored even if no one goes along with Washington," writes Cole. (Photo: Brendan Smialowski / AFP) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/trump_alone.jpg

Conn Hallinan (2020-08-21). China and the US: the 21st Century's "Great Game" counterpunch.org From 1830 to 1895, the British and Russian empires schemed and plotted over control of Central and South Asia. At the heart of the "Great Game" was England's certainty that the Russians had designs on India. So wars were fought, borders drawn, and generations of young met death in desolate passes and lonely outposts. In

Peoples Dispatch (2020-08-21). How does China plan to counter US sanctions? peoplesdispatch.org In the second part of the conversation on the US tech war on China, Charles Xu from Qiao Collective talks about the short and medium-term strategy of Huawei and China in general to deal with the US sanctions.

_____ (2020-08-21). Whose Century Is It? Don't Ask Donald Trump. strategic-culture.org Dilip HIRO | For the Trump administration's senior officials, it's been open season on bashing China. If you need an example, think of the president's blame game about " When it comes to China, in fact, the ever more virulent criticism never seems to stop. | Between the end of June and the end of July, four members of his cabinet vied with each other in spewing anti-Ch…

Andrew Korybko (2020-08-20). The Geopolitics Of The Belarusian Crisis: Anti-Russian, Neutral To China, Pro-Polish. thealtworld.com The Belarusian Crisis is an American Hybrid War against Russian interests in support of Poland's US-backed regional ones related to the "Three Seas Initiative", which won't harm China's interests even in the worst-case scenario despite Beijing's plans for the Eurasian Land Bridge to transit through the Color Revolution-beleaguered former Soviet Republic since the People's Republic has already pioneered several complementary East-West corridors that it could rely on instead. | Geopolitical Basics | The "

yenisafak (2020-08-20). Fourteen missing amid ship collision off Shanghai, China. yenisafak.com At least 14 crew members remain missing after two ships collided near the mouth of the Yangtze River early on Thursday, local media reports said.According to the Beijing-based daily Global Times, an oil tanker carrying 3,000 tons of gasoline collided with a gravel boat 1.5 nautical miles southeast of the estuary's lightvessel.The collision, which occurred near Shanghai, caused a major fire on the deck of the patrol tanker, while gravel boat sank.Rescue teams have so far saved three crew members of 17 who were onboard, while 14 are still missing, the newspaper reported.This was the first collision between ships ne…

Dilip Hiro (2020-08-20). Donald Trump is Losing His Tech War with China and Doesn't Even Know It. counterpunch.org For the Trump administration's senior officials, it's been open season on bashing China. If you need an example, think of the president's blame game about "the invisible Chinese virus" as it spreads wildly across the U.S. When it comes to China, in fact, the ever more virulent criticism never seems to stop. Between the end

Stephen Lendman (2020-08-20). The Hariri Assassination: Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) Verdict. Fake Justice on Behalf of Israel. globalresearch.ca In May 2007, Security Council Resolution 1757 established the STL "on the outskirts of the Hague." | Ten SC members voted "yes," none "no," Russia, China, South Africa, Indonesia, and Qatar abstaining. | Five judges were involved in proceedings, Judge David Re…

Stephen Lendman (2020-08-20). Trump Regime Further Escalates War on China's Huawei. globalresearch.ca Chinese tech giant Huawei calls itself "an independent, privately-held company that provides information and communication technology (ICT)…connect(ing) over three billion people in (over) 170 countries." | The company is leading the race to roll out 5G technology, its market potential worth …

Finian Cunningham (2020-08-20). As US stalls on extension of New Start treaty seeking to gain control over China, the world is on verge of dangerous arms race. thealtworld.com After three rounds of talks with Russia wrapped up this summer, the US is still equivocating on …

Peoples Dispatch (2020-08-20). What's behind the US attack on China's tech sector. peoplesdispatch.org Charles Xu of the Qiao Collective talks about the context behind the US assault on China's technological sector, especially Huawei. He talks about the strategies of development deployed by China over the past few decades…

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-20). No right for US to request snapback of UN sanctions on Iran. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 20 (MNA) — China says the US has no right to request snapback of UN sanctions on Iran after pulling out from the JCPOA.

RT (2020-08-19). Trump demands full restoration of UN sanctions on Iran, as Pompeo warns Russia & China not to meddle. rt.com US President Donald Trump said the State Department will soon attempt to trigger a "snapback" of UN sanctions on Iran, as the top American diplomat threatened consequences for Moscow and Beijing if they try to block the effort. | "Today I'm directing the Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to notify the United Nations Security Council that the United States intends to restore virtually all of the United Nations sanctions on Iran — it's a snap back, not uncommon," Trump told reporters during a White House press conference on Wednesday. | When the United States entered into the Iran deal, it was clear the United…

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-08-19). Trade Wars Threaten Post-pandemic Global Economic Recovery. globalresearch.ca The COVID-19 pandemic did not stop U.S. protectionism and its trade disputes with the rest of the world, especially with China and the European Union. In actual fact, it deepened the conflict. This behaviour anticipates very complicated post-pandemic international trade, …

Dilip Hiro (2020-08-19). Trump Is Losing the Tech War Against China. thenation.com Trump Is Losing the Tech War Against China…

Paddy Colligan (2020-08-19). Le Kha Phieu °presente! workers.org On Aug. 7, another of the heroic and determined generation of revolutionaries who guided Vietnam's liberation movement passed away. Le Kha Phieu was born in 1931 in Thanh Hoa province in the northern part of Vietnam (then French Indochina). At 15, he joined the revolutionary struggle to gain independence from . . . |

Karin Leukefeld (2020-08-19). After explosion, imperialists pressure Lebanon; Iran, China send aid. workers.org From jungewelt.de, Aug. 18. The author has been covering Syrian, Lebanon and Palestine for progressive German-language publications for decades. Translation by John Catalinotto. It was only last January — in response to the street protests — that the technocratic government of the engineer and former university professor Hassan Diab was . . . |

Dilip Hiro (2020-08-19). China vs. America, Whose Century Is It? Don't Ask Donald Trump: "The Invisible Chinese Virus" globalresearch.ca For the Trump administration's senior officials, it's been open season on bashing China. If you need an example, think of the president's blame game about " When it …

teleSUR (2020-08-19). China: Thousands Evacuated Due to Flooding in Sichuan Province. telesurenglish.net Over 100,000 people Tuesday were evacuated from their homes in the Sichuan province due to floods hitting the region, which has triggered the highest level of emergency response. | RELATED: | Continued rains caused 22 major rivers to exceed their flood alert threshold, flooding urban areas in cities such as Ya'an and Leshan. | In Yibin city, where 26,000 people have also been evacuated, it is feared that the rains will overflow the Min Riv…

WSWS (2020-08-19). Chinese prime minister: 600 million people earn less than $145 a month. wsws.org While almost half of its population earns less than $145 a month, China recorded 373 billionaires in 2020, the second highest figure in the world.

yenisafak (2020-08-19). Brent oil price down with halt in US-China trade talks. yenisafak.com Oil prices eased on Wednesday after stagnant US economic stimulus talks, and with US President Donald Trump postponing US-China trade talks.International benchmark Brent crude was trading at $45.05 per barrel at 0614GMT for a 0.9% decrease after closing Tuesday at $45.46 a barrel.American benchmark West Texas Intermediate was at $42.56 per barrel at the same time, down 1.3% after ending the previous session at $43.12 a barrel.Trump on Tuesday said he postponed trade negotiations with China, commenting that he does not want to talk to China "right now."Scheduled talks between representatives from the US and China…

_____ (2020-08-18). Jimmy Lai Arrested, And Long Live Hong Kong. popularresistance.org The 71-year-old Lai, originally from Mainland China, owns a right-wing tabloid Apple Daily. He is known for dutifully echoing media salvos that are being fired by Western governments and media outlets, salvos against Beijing, and SAR administration, which in turn gained him, in the West, of course, various flattering and unreal titles such as 'an outspoken pro-democracy figure in Hong Kong who regularly criticizes China's authoritarian rule' (CBS News). Lies, of course. Obvious lies.

Anand Naidoo (2020-08-18). The Heat: U.S.-China Trade. america.cgtn.com Despite escalating diplomatic and political tensions between the United States and China, both sides remain committed to a trade deal. At the beginning of 2020 the U.S. and China signed Phase One of a bilateral trade agreement. It signaled a truce in their bruising dispute …

Larry Wilkerson (2020-08-18). The Danger of War With China is Real and Insane. zcomm.org China and the U.S. must work together to solve the climate crisis, but the power of the militaries and national security states on both sides is making that impossible…