Special thanks to Eric for this post.
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**China**
The Chinese government is going to forcibly standardize ethnic names in Xinjiang
Xinjiang, also known as East Turkestan, is Muslim majority. The Uighurs there have always been somewhat restive, and the East Turkestan Islamic Front was blamed for the recent spate of terrorist attacks in Beijing after China began a campaign to move more Han – the ethnic majority in China – into the Autonomous Region.
US, South Korea begin deployment of THAAD to South Korea
THAAD – Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense – is a US Anti-Ballistic Missile system. We worked out a deal with Seoul to forward deploy the system to South Korea in light of increased aggression from Pyongyang. However, China is unhappy with us for deploying the system on the grounds it “upsets the strategic balance”. Why China thinks Seoul should be left vulnerable to a nuclear and chemical holocaust by Pyongyang is up to you to decide.
The Chinese Middle Class is a threat to the CCP
By 2020, the Chinese middle class is expected to outnumber the population of the United States. Were they a capitalist country, that would be a good thing from the government’s point of view. They aren’t, and the CCP should be terrified. A growing middle class tends to demand more political freedoms – South Korea in 1980, Taiwan in 1990 for examples in the Region – and while the Chinese middle class are prima facie content, there are issues…
Typhoon Nepartak moves from Taiwan to Fujian
Downgraded from a Category 4 to a Category 2, it’s expected to make landfall sometime this morning. Two were killed and 2,000,000 were displaced in Taiwan.
Xi Jinping has increased numbers of his guanxi in corporate offices
I’ve talked about Xi’s “anti-corruption” campaign before and how it is mysteriously targeting Xi’s rival guanxi – Chinese for clique or influence group – almost exclusively. Well, he’s now installing loyalist Party Members into the vacated managerial slots for State-Owned Enterprises. There’s also talks about cartelization if not outright monopolization as part of this de facto nationalization plan.
With Hague case coming soon, China warns US not to “threaten Chinese sovereignty”
With the case in The Hague on China’s violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas – UNCLOS – expected to be handed down soon, China is saber rattling and loudly proclaiming their ownership of the artificial islands they created for their imperialist ambitions. Chinese officials have called the court case in The Hague a farce, and have refused to abide by its decision regardless of the outcome.
Chinese fishing vessels are illegally wiping out Guinea’s oceans
In a completely unrelated story, Chinese fishing vessels are harvesting every fish they can find in the Gulf of Guinea and the West African coast of the Atlantic Ocean. Harvests for Guinea fishermen are down from between $700 and $1400 per day to less than $140 per day. Similar ventures off the Horn of Africa are blamed in part for the increase in piracy out of Somalia.
China has banned a controversial movie about Hong Kong
The film, “Ten Years”, is a dystopian warning of what China is up to in Hong Kong. The film is filled with scenes reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution and is highly critical of the Chinese government’s attempts to subvert the One Country, Two Systems policy.
**Russia**
Russia cuts off oil and natural gas to Belarus
How Belarus – normally Russia’s favorite client state – managed to piss off Putin enough for him to cut off the flow of oil and natural gas is unknown, but it is yet another demonstration of Russia’s willingness to use their control of other nation’s oil and gas supplies as weapons to force compliance. Currently, Europe gets a significant plurality of their oil and natural gas from Russia.
Russia encouraging ultranationalism in the population
How do you get a population which is shrinking and aging to fight a war? Ultra Nationalism and blind patriotism. And Putin is encouraging a Cult of the State through the machinery of the Russian Orthodox Christian Church, exactly following Aleksandr Dugin’s proposed path for Russian global dominance.
New Russian censorship law goes into effect
In a story certain to prove Sen. Cruz’s concerns over other nations having jurisdiction over the internet correct, Russia has signed a new law into effect which will grant the Russian government new tools for squashing dissent online. All of this in the name of “security”.
Russian FSB involved in harassment of diplomats
The Russian government has engaged in a prolonged and targeted harassment of US Diplomatic Personnel in Russia – including the use of the Militsiya to physically assault US officials.
Ukraine urges no concessions to Russia at NATO summit
Ukranian Observers at the NATO Summit in Warsaw have urged NATO to hold the line against Russian aggression.
Russia and Sweden engage in war of words
Russia has accused Sweden of engaging in a campaign of deliberate propaganda to make Russia appear a villain. Sweden has called Russia a divisive force trying to split up the EU as part of a campaign to divide and conquer Europe. Given Russia’s funding of the extremist wings of mainstream and fringe Eurosceptic movements, Sweden has the better case here…
**Europe**
Canada deploying troops to Baltic; link has autoplay video
Canada is deploying six F-18’s, the HMCS Charlottetown (FFH 339), and an unknown number of ground troops to the Baltic to assist NATO members there hold the line against Russian aggression.
European banks have serious issues
Between low interest rates, bad loans, and improved financial services technologies, and burdensome regulation, European banks are slowly creeping more and more into the red. Italy in particular is a source of concern.
Muslim migrants are now stacking up in Greece, causing increased issues
After Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Hungary erected border fences to halt or divert the flow of “migrants” into and through their countries, the flow out of Greece has been cut by 97%. 42,000 are currently stranded in Greece, with 8,000 scattered across the Greek Islands. Most of these camps are dirty, squalid, and unhygienic. Locals are demanding the invaders be expelled sooner, rather than later, due to the unrest this is causing.
Germany passes a “No Means No” law
Passed after the Cologne attacks and cover-up, Germany now has a law making it a crime to engage in sexual assault regardless of whether the victim was able to cry out or struggle to get away or not. Previously, German law required affirmative attempts to stop the assault for it to be classified as such.
Continuing calls for a German referendum on membership in the EU are growing. The latest voice calling for a referendum is MP Sahra Wagenknecht, Vice President for the leftist Die Linke party. Die Linke is the third largest political party in the Bundestag. Alternative for Germany, a rightist party which seeks to usurp the Christian Democratic Party as Germany’s dominant rightist party, has already pledged to call a referendum if granted a majority.
**Britain**
Britain’s next Prime Minister will be a woman
The Conservative Party leadership race has come down to Theresa May and Andrea Leadson. May is the current Home Secretary and quietly backed Remain in the referendum but has since stated she will respect the will of the people and pursue an Article 50 separation from the EU, while Leadson is the current Energy Minister and was a vocal advocate for the Leave campaign. May remains the favorite, not least for her high-profile position within the government and her Oxford education.
White House: We lied, UK won’t be at the back of the line for a new trade deal
Called it.
Britain belongs in a new NAFTA
Quite the contrary, there are calls to fold Britain into a new NAFTA agreement with the US, Canada, Mexico. Supporters point to NAFTA’s increased economic integration without dissolution and subjugation of sovereignty to a super-state.
**Pakistan**
Flood season begins again in Pakistan
Hundreds dead, millions evacuated from their homes in Pakistan and China during annual flooding.
Pakistani human rights lawyer goes into hiding
Having risen to fame for defending Christians from government coercion and mob vigilantism, Sardar Mushtaq Gill has gone into hiding following threats to his life from Pakistan’s extremists.
**Africa**
India and South Africa engage in trade talks
Good news for the world economy, India and South Africa are engaged in negotiations for a new trade deal. India also has plans to engage in talks with Kenya and Tanzania, opening more of Africa as a market to Indian goods and services.
Israeli influence on the rise in Africa
Bibi was treated like the head of a super-power during a recent trip to Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, and Rwanda. These nations have historically backed Palestine in the conflict and snubbed Israel. This was the first visit to the region by an Israeli Prime Minister in three decades.
East Asians dominate ivory smuggling rings
Chinese and Vietnamese nationals are the dominant actors in the illegal trade in ivory. Officials throughout Sub-Saharan Africa are blaming the increased involvement of Chinese firms in their countries for the increased levels of poaching.
Central African Republic once more torn by violence
Violence broke out once more in the Central African Republic, causing more refugees to flow into Chad and Cameroon. Battle lines in the CAR are primarily religious, with Christian and Muslim militias clashing in eye-for-an-eye attacks.
Pan African Solar signs customers in Nigeria
In a follow up from the first weekly debrief, Pan African Solar – one of the partners in the plan to create an African energy network – has signed a $146M deal with Nigeria to provide solar power.
