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China’s president arrives as EU anti-subsidy investigations and tensions over espionage, Ukraine and Taiwan continueChina’s president, Xi Jinping, is to visit Europe next week for the first time in five years, in a tour that will take in the unlikely trifecta of France, Hungary and Serbia.The visit comes as China pushes to avoid a trade war with the EU, while attitudes towards Beijing in...

Freedom to Write index says there are 107 people in prison for published content in China, with many accused of ‘picking quarrels’The number of writers jailed in China has surpassed 100, with nearly half imprisoned for online expression.The grim milestone is revealed in the 2023 Freedom to Write index, a report compiled by Pen America, published on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Zhang Yongzhen stages protest, as government attempts to avoid scrutiny over handling of outbreakThe first scientist to publish a sequence of the Covid-19 virus in China was staging a sit-in protest after authorities locked him out of his laboratory.Zhang Yongzhen, a virologist, wrote in an online post on Monday that he and his team were suddenly notified they were being evicted from their lab,...

Deal to use mapping data from web search giant Baidu is a big step towards launching driver assistance tech in world’s biggest car marketElon Musk’s visit to China has reportedly reaped immediate rewards with a deal for Tesla to use mapping data provided by web search company Baidu, a big step in introducing driver assistance technology in the world’s largest car market.Musk made an...

Tim Loughton had sanctions imposed on him in 2021 by Beijing, which has close ties to east African countryA former government minister who has had sanctions imposed on him by China has said he was detained and deported by Djibouti as a “direct consequence” of the east African country’s close ties with Beijing.Tim Loughton, the Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham since 1997,...

Tesla boss reportedly meets Premier Li Qiang in visit aimed at sealing rollout of Autopilot software and transferring data overseasTesla among electric carmakers forced to cut prices as market stallsThe Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, arrived on an unannounced visit to Beijing on Sunday where he is expected to meet senior officials to discuss the rollout of full self-driving software and permission to transfer data...

End of secretary of state Antony Blinken’s three-day visit marks upsurge in military activity after period of relative calmTaiwan has reported that a dozen Chinese warplanes flew sorties close to the island on Saturday, in a sudden surge of military activity just hours after the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, left Beijing following talks with President Xi Jinping and top Chinese officials.Before Blinken’s...

Wang Yi tells Antony Blinken ‘disruptions’ could arise amid threat of sanctions over China’s support for Russia’s defence industryChina’s foreign minister, Wang Yi, has warned the US that the recent improvements in the two countries’ relations were being jeopardised by “disruptions” that could take them back to a “downward spiral” leading to rivalry, confrontation and even conflict.Wang was speaking at the start of a...

Arrests as Chinese authorities working with UK police and international trademark agencies seize millions of parcels bound for customers worldwideChinese authorities have targeted a major online sales platform accused of supplying counterfeit goods, raiding warehouses holding millions of packages destined for overseas buyers.Earlier this month police raided the Hangzhou office and several warehouses of Pandabuy after reported legal action by 16 brands over copyright...

US secretary of state to hold talks with Chinese counterpart and most likely with President Xi JinpingAntony Blinken has landed in China amid a worsening rift between the world’s two most powerful countries that threatens to overshadow otherwise improving relations.The US secretary of state arrives with a warning that the US and its European allies are no longer prepared to tolerate China’s sale of...

Man worked as assistant to Maximilian Krah, top candidate in European parliament elections, say prosecutorsAn aide to a German far-right politician standing in the European elections in June has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China, German prosecutors have said.The man, named only as Jian G, was accused of sharing information about negotiations at the European parliament with a Chinese intelligence service and...

In move seen by the opposition as an attempt to de-sinocise Taiwan, the ruling party is pushing ahead with plans to rid the island of monuments to the dictatorTaiwan’s government has pledged to remove almost 800 statues of Chiang Kai-shek, the Chinese military dictator who ruled the island for decades under martial law, but whose legacy remains a point of contentious debate.In 2018 the...

Prosecutors say trio are accused of passing on technical military knowledge and export of a laser without permissionsThree German citizens, a married couple from Düsseldorf and a man from Bad Homburg, have been arrested on suspicion of spying on behalf of China, prosecutors have said, in the second high-profile alleged espionage case reported in the country in days.The three are accused of passing on...

Voters back President Mohamed Muizzu’s tilt towards China and away from traditional ally IndiaMaldives voters have backed President Mohamed Muizzu’s tilt towards China and away from traditional benefactor India, with his party winning control of parliament in an election landslide.Muizzu’s People’s National Congress (PNC) won 66 of the first 86 seats declared, according to the Elections Commission of Maldives, already more than enough for...

For the first time, government military spending increased in all five geographical regions, Sipri thinktank findsGlobal military expenditure has reached a record high of $2440bn (£1970bn) after the largest annual rise in government spending on arms in over a decade, according to a report.The 6.8% increase between 2022 and 2023 was the steepest since 2009, pushing spending to the highest recorded by the Stockholm...

Officials urge municipalities to begin emergency planning after major rivers and reservoirs threaten to overflowMajor rivers, waterways and reservoirs in China’s Guangdong province are threatening to unleash dangerous floods, forcing the government to enact emergency response plans to protect more than 127 million people.Calling the situation “grim”, local weather officials said sections of rivers and tributaries at the Xijiang and Beijiang river basins are...

Bill – with updated language that extends deadline to a year for ByteDance to divest of TikTok – to go before Senate next weekThe House of Representatives voted 360 to 58 on the updated divest-or-ban bill that could lead to the first time ever that the US government has passed a law to shut down an entire social media platform.The Senate is expected to...

Apple says Chinese government ordered it to remove two Meta-owned apps for ‘national security’ reasonsApple has removed WhatsApp and Threads from its Chinese App Store after the Chinese government ordered it to do so for “national security” reasons.Apple confirmed it had withdrawn the two apps – both owned by Meta, also the owner of Facebook – under instruction from the Cyberspace Administration of China,...

The US talks of Aukus as ‘binding’ the allies for decades to come, but Richard Marles says Australia must become more ‘self-reliant’Australia’s defence overhaul has accelerated some projects and cut others and has already prompted a plea from China to abandon a “cold war mentality”.But as the dust settles on a plan to increase overall military spending, the Albanese government has also sent some...

Exercises starting on Monday will be the first to be held outside Philippines’ territorial waters, and come amid a rise in tensions in the South China SeaPhilippine and US forces will carry out their first ever military exercises outside the south-east Asian country’s territorial waters, in a move China has said will only lead to greater insecurity in the South China Sea.The annual Balikatan...

Bill Nelson told Capitol Hill lawmakers that China has been ‘very, very secretive’ about its space progress, warning ‘we are in a race’The head of Nasa has warned of China bolstering its space capabilities by using civilian programs to mask military objectives, cautioning that Washington must remain vigilant.“China has made extraordinary strides especially in the last 10 years, but they are very, very secretive,”...

Election closely watched for any impact on Pacific country’s relationship with Beijing, while voters focus on struggling health and other servicesSolomon Islanders have voted in a national election, the first since the prime minister, Manasseh Sogavare, struck a security pact with China in 2022 and drew the Pacific Islands nation closer to Beijing.The outcome of Wednesday’s election will be closely watched by the US,...

Underwater infrastructure vulnerable to Russian threats, says V Adm Didier Maleterre, after suspected sabotage of gas pipelinesThe security of nearly 1 billion people across Europe and North America is under threat from Russian attempts to target the extensive vulnerabilities of underwater infrastructure including windfarms, pipelines and power cables, a Nato commander has warned.V Adm Didier Maleterre, the deputy commander of Nato’s Allied Maritime Command...

Olaf Scholz says European cars should have equal access to Chinese customersEurope live – latest updatesThe chancellor of Germany has urged industry bosses in China to play fair by not overproducing cheap goods or infringing copyright rules.Speaking on a three-day visit to China, where he is travelling with leading business representatives and three government ministers, Olaf Scholz said he, in turn, would encourage the...