Daily Briefs


Photo : Global Times / cnsphoto

24 March 2022 | Thursday | China Reader Evening Brief | Vol.1, No. 148

US Court ends five-year probation on ZTE

Chinese tech giant ZTE removed from probation to pursue trade in the US. The firm sees opportunities while US imparts lessons for trade practices.

IN BRIEF
By Avishka Ashok and Dincy Adlakha 

INTERNATIONAL
The US: Court ends five-year probation on ZTE
On 23 March, a US court released a verdict to end the five-year-long probation imposed on Chinese telecom giant ZTE. The firm was facing trade bans and increased tariffs due to illegal exports to Iran and North Korea. The firm had pleaded guilty to the allegations and agreed to pay a fine of USD 1.2 billion in 2017. After the verdict, ZTE released a statement that accepted the good news and noted that no penalties were added to the decision. The company’s shares also resumed trading on the Shenzhen stock market on the same day. Experts have seen this as a lesson to other tech giants like Huawei for their dealings. (Xie Jun and Zhang Hui, “ZTE’s 5-year US probation ends, offers Chinese firms a lesson to use legal means to fight against US crackdown,” Global Times, 23 March 2022)

The US: Commerce secretary warns Chinese firms of violating export controls on Russia
On 23 March, US Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo warned Chinese forms of violating the export controls imposed on Russia. She said that the US will “absolutely hit” Chinese companies if they export semiconductors to Russia as they were constructed with US technology. She also said that the US will “essentially shut these firms down” if the firms attempted to share US technology chips with rogue Russia. She said: “I'm sure that China takes notice that America is strong and that our relationship with our partners is stronger than it's been in a long time.” (Andrea Shalal, “U.S. will 'absolutely' hit Chinese firms if they violate export controls on Russia, says Raimondo,” Reuters, 23 March 2022) 

Ukraine: NATO Secretary-General calls on China to condemn Russia 
On 23 March, the NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg called on China to reprimand Russia’s “Special Military Operation” in Ukraine. He addressed the press briefing and said: “For NATO, it is of particular concern that China now, for the first time, has questioned some of the key principles for security, including the right for every nation in Europe to choose his own path.” He also said that he would expect NATO to join in on the decision to make China condemn the Russian invasion. (“NATO calls on China to condemn Russia's war in Ukraine,” Reuters, 23 March 2022)

Palestine: Chinese Foreign Minister reaffirms support at OIC 
On 23 March, China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Palestine’s Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki met in Islamabad and exchanged their views with each other. The meeting took place as the leaders met in Pakistan for the 48th Session of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation. Wang Yi promised that China would support the Palestinian people and agreed with the calls made at the meeting regarding the Palestinian issue. He said: “China will not cease its support for the just cause of the Palestinian people until the Palestinian issue is resolved. China will stick to the four-point proposal it has made on resolving the Palestinian issue and reiterated the specific approaches China has put forward to the issue.” (“Chinese FM reiterates China's consistent stance on Palestinian issue,” Xinhua Net, 24 March 2022)

Pakistan: Ambassador leans towards Chinese position on Ukraine
On 23 March, the Pakistani Ambassador to China said in an interview to Global Times that China and Pakistan share a common position on Ukraine. He said that both China and Pakistan call for de-escalation of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy initiatives by the relevant parties. The comments were a continuation of the Chinese-Pakistani Foreign Ministry joint conference that emphasized greater cooperation and stronger coordination on international issues such as Afghanistan and Ukraine. He also said that the two countries are “very closely coordinating” on the Russia-Ukraine war and displayed his concern for the suffering people. (Wan Lin, “China, Pakistan share ‘common position’ on Ukraine crisis: ambassador,” Global Times, 23 March 2022

INTERNAL
Environment: China inspects enforcement of environment protection law
On 23 March, the legislation team from the National Peoples Congress Standing Committee met to inspect the enforcement of the environment protection law. The Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee presided over the meeting. He said that China has made progress in its position on legislation for ecological and environmental protection. The legislations have improved the quality and quantity of ecological environment in the country and are especially helpful in reducing the pollution in the country. The meeting was also essential as it decided that four teams be sent to eight provincial-level regions to inspect further progress. (“Chinese legislators inspect enforcement of environmental protection law,” Xinhua Net, 23 March 2022)

Flight Accident: Search and rescue teams find one black box from crashed flight
On 23 March, the Civil Aviation Administration of China announced that the search and rescue team had found one of the two in-flight black boxes from the China Eastern Airlines plane crash site. Along with the black box, human remains were also found, confirming the death of the passengers in the flight. The Director of the Aviation authorities said: “The black box has since been sent to be decrypted in Beijing… it will take some time, longer if there is damage inside. After it is decrypted, it will provide valuable information to the investigation.” (“One black box from China Eastern plane found, along with some human remains,” The Strait Times, 24 March 2022)

REGIONAL
Taiwan and Japan: China opposes call between Japanese-Taiwanese leaders
On 23 March, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Wenbin opposed the recent phone call between Japanese Prime Minister and Taiwanese leader Tsai Ing-wen. He said: “Taiwan is China’s business, not Japan’s.” He also viewed the phone call as a secessionist and finger-pointing attempt. The two leaders recently announced their phone call discussing bilateral relations and “objection to any attempt to change the status quo.” He also said that China is firmly opposed to any kind of formal exchanges between Taiwan and the countries that diplomatically recognize China. (“‘Taiwan is not Japan’s business.’ Chinese FM protests Abe’s call with Tsai Ing-wen,” Global Times, 23 March 2022)

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