Foreign Policy

• NBA boss Adam Silver says Chinese government asked him to fire Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey (SCMP)
• US$1.5 billion China-funded rail line opens in Kenya amid criticism over its economic feasibility (SCMP)
• U.S. urged not to set obstacles for Chinese diplomats (Xinhua)
• Chinese premier meets U.S. business delegation (Xinhua)
• China, Mauritius sign free trade agreement (Xinhua)
• Germany's proposal on 5G network security leaves door open for China's Huawei, sparking criticism (SCMP)
• China warns of countermeasures to US bill on HK (Global Times)
• Xi returns to Beijing after informal meeting with Indian PM, visit to Nepal (Xinhua)

Domestic Policy

• China's top court reaffirms strict control of death penalty (Xinhua)
• China makes final sprint in battle to end poverty (Global Times)
• Action plan released for pollution control (China Daily)
• J-20 jets showcase missiles (Global Times)
• Vice president discusses China's history, present, future with Tsinghua advisors (Xinhua)
• China orders winter emissions cuts, with tougher targets for cities that failed last year (SCMP)
• White Paper expounds on food security, global supply (Global Times)

Beijing 

Shanghai 

Guangdong 

Tibet 

Xinjiang

• China subsidising Xinjiang companies' use of forced labour, US lawmakers told (SCMP)
• Xinjiang to offer over half million vocational training sessions each year (Global Times)

Hongkong

• Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam takes to Facebook to reach out to public, while strongly defending police force and questioning 'puzzling' calls for its disbandment (SCMP)
• Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Hong Kong is 'foreign interference', China claims (HKFP)
• HK details housing scheme (Global Times)
• Hong Kong protesters' five demands meant to 'humiliate' government but won't solve city's issues, Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong says (SCMP)

Macau

• Plans for 'offshore renminbi Nasdaq' in Macau submitted to Beijing (SCMP)

Taiwan

• Taiwan urges Hong Kong to keep murder suspect who sparked extradition crisis in custody (HKFP)

Economy

• China to further alleviate burdens on companies, improve business environment (Xinhua)
• CPI hits 3.0% in Sept, fired by pork prices (Global Times)

DPRK

• Why is Kim Jong-un riding a horse up a sacred mountain? Some clues from North Korean history (SCMP)
• South Korea vs North Korea World Cup Qualifier will not be screened live from Pyongyang: statement (SCMP)

Mongolia

• Cabinet introduces its 2020-2024 plan of action (Montsame)
• Mongolia expresses position at First committee general debate (Montsame)
• Chinese, Mongolian leaders exchange congratulations on 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties (Xinhua)

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NBA boss Adam Silver says Chinese government asked him to fire Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey (SCMP)
2019-10-18
NBA commissioner Adam Silver revealed in his first interview since returning to the United States that Chinese government officials tried to pressure him into firing Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey after he tweeted support for the Hong Kong protesters. "We were being asked to fire him by the Chinese government," said Silver, while being interviewed for the TIME 100 Health Summit in New York. "We said there's no chance that's happening. There's no chance we'll even discipline him." Silver also clarified that they did not intend for people to misinterpret the NBA's statement that Morey's tweet was "regrettable" which was widely publicised, but that the word was in relation to their Chinese fans and China in general in response to the tweet and the damage it could do. Hong Kong has been rocked by more than four months of increasingly violent anti-government protests, sparked by a now-withdrawn extradition bill. Silver added the NBA is "not only willing" to cope with expected losses of millions in revenues, "but we are. The losses have already been substantial. Our games are not back on the air in China as we speak, and we'll see what happens next". The issue hit fever pitch last week in China when the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers were in Shanghai for a scheduled preseason game and various league activities. The Chinese government cancelled a number of events and in turn the NBA shut down media access to its players, which extended to a game last Saturday in Shenzhen. Lakers superstar LeBron James further inflamed the row after returning home to the US when he called Morey's initial tweet "uneducated". James later clarified his position on Twitter and on Wednesday night Hong Kong protesters held a rally at Southorn Playground in Wan Chai where they burned James' various jerseys. James has also received significant backlash stateside for his stance as some have viewed his words as supporting the Chinese government because of his many business interests in the country. "I don't know where we go from here," said Silver during the TIME conference. "The financial consequences have been and may continue to be fairly dramatic." ^ top ^

US$1.5 billion China-funded rail line opens in Kenya amid criticism over its economic feasibility (SCMP)
2019-10-18
The second phase of a multibillion-dollar railway in Kenya funded and built by China opened to passenger traffic on Thursday to little fanfare but amid growing concerns about its financial viability. The 120km (75-mile) section was built at a cost of US$1.5 billion and runs from the capital Nairobi to Naivasha, a town in the Central Rift Valley. When the US$3.2 billion first phase of the line, which runs 470km from the seaport of Mombasa to Nairobi, opened in 2017, Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta was joined at an official launch ceremony by Chinese President Xi Jinping 's special envoy State Councillor Wang Yong. But there was no such pomp on Wednesday when Kenyatta and other local officials were joined only by Wu Peng, China's ambassador to Kenya, for a maiden ride on the Standard Gauge Railway (SGR), as it is formally known. The president did use the opportunity, however, to hit back at those who have described the project as a white elephant, insisting it would bring huge economic benefits to the country. "Without infrastructure, there will be no investors. Without investors, there will be no jobs for our youth," he said. His comments came after the publication of several reports claiming the railway, which currently ends in Naivasha, is not commercially viable. A third phase of the line – linking Naivasha to Malaba on the Kenya-Uganda border – is in the pipeline but Beijing has asked for a new feasibility study to be carried before it will release any funding for it. "We will not be discouraged by baseless claims," Kenyatta said of the reports. "We know where we want to take the country and we will not allow visionless people to discourage us." Projects such as roads and railways should not be viewed as profit-making investments but as ways to spur socioeconomic growth, he said. Despite the apparent reservations regarding the funding for phase three, Wu said that Beijing was still keen to partner Kenya on infrastructure development. "We kept our promise to deliver phase one of the Nairobi-Malaba SGR project on time, and we encouraged Chinese enterprises to invest in the Naivasha inland container depot and special economic zone," he said. "China will continue to support Kenya in development projects as it aims to complete the SGR." Wu did not make any specific references to phase three of the project but said that "other countries neighbouring Kenya have expressed their interest in similar projects" and China was ready to "offer advice, expertise and technology". Wednesday's event also saw Kenyatta breaking ground on the new container depot. He said the government had secured US$69 million of funding for the project, which would also include a railway marshalling yard and a logistics zone. The depot would open before the end of the year, at the same time as cargo trains began using the Naivasha extension, he said. Analysts, meanwhile, have said that for the railway to make economic sense it must be extended to Uganda, from where it can link to South Sudan, Rwanda and possibly the mineral-rich Democratic Republic of Congo and attract more cargo. Kenyatta said that the extension to Malaba would be built but he admitted there were obstacles to overcome. "We will ensure this project gets to its destination," he said. "There will be challenges along the way but that does not mean we will not do it." He said also that before phase three was completed an interchange would be built between the SGR and the old metre-gauge railway in Naivasha to ease the flow of cargo. China's reservations about funding the final phase may be linked to accusations that through the Belt and Road Initiative – its multibillion-dollar infrastructure development plan – it has pushed several African nations into debt traps. Speaking at the second Belt and Road Forum in April, Xi said Beijing would push for sustainable financing to remove such debt burdens and commit to "transparency and clean governance" in its cooperation with African countries. Meanwhile, the state-owned China Road and Bridge Corporation has won a contract to build a 27km expressway in Nairobi to help ease congestion in the city. The project is set to cost US$599 million and is scheduled for completion in December 2021. Under the deal, the Chinese firm will have the right to operate the road for 30 years before handing it back to the government. ^ top ^

U.S. urged not to set obstacles for Chinese diplomats (Xinhua)
2019-10-18
China on Thursday urged the U.S. side not to set obstacles for Chinese diplomats in the United States to do their normal jobs. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Geng Shuang made the remarks in response to reports that the United States ordered Chinese diplomats to notify the State Department before meeting with local officials, claiming this is a reciprocal measure against China's practices. "The U.S. Department of State has made additional demands on and deliberately set obstacles for Chinese diplomats in the U.S. to carry out normal official activities in the country. China opposes this move and has made stern representations to the U.S. side," Geng told a press briefing. Noting that China has consistently supported and provided necessary convenience for the normal work-related activities of the U.S. diplomats in China, Geng said the United States' claim of restrictions on the U.S. diplomats' activities in China was simply not true. "We urge the U.S. side to correct its mistake, withdraw the decision, and provide support and convenience for Chinese diplomats in the United States to carry out activities, instead of setting up barriers," Geng said. ^ top ^

Chinese premier meets U.S. business delegation (Xinhua)
2019-10-18
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang met with a business delegation from the United States on Thursday, which was led by Chairman of the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC) Evan Greenberg. Li said that as China and the United States are respectively the world's largest developing country and the largest developed country, the healthy and stable development of the Sino-U.S. relations will benefit the two sides and the world. Li called on the two sides to focus on coordination, cooperation and stability, take a long-term perspective and remain down-to-earth, and resolve relevant issues through dialogue and consultation on the basis of equality and mutual respect, so as to advance bilateral economic and trade ties on the right track. Li expressed the hope that people of U.S. industrial and commercial circles, including those from the USCBC, will continue to play a positive role in promoting the development of bilateral relations and enhancing mutual understanding between the two peoples, he said. China's door of opening-up will not be closed, but will only open wider, Li said. Enterprises from all countries, including the United States, are welcome to expand investment in and cooperation with China to achieve mutual benefit, said Li. The U.S. delegates said the U.S. business community hopes to maintain contacts with China, does not want to see decoupling between the two countries, and also does not want to see trade wars or imposition of additional tariffs. They expressed the hope that both sides will seize the opportunities and reach a substantive agreement through negotiations and consultations, so that enterprises from both countries can engage in healthy competition and achieve common development in a fair and determined environment. ^ top ^

China, Mauritius sign free trade agreement (Xinhua)
2019-10-17
China and Mauritius signed a free trade agreement (FTA) here Thursday, the first FTA between China and an African country, according to the Ministry of Commerce (MOC). The China-Mauritius FTA is the 17th FTA signed by China. The agreement covers trade in goods and services and investment and economic cooperation. The FTA will not only provide a more powerful institutional guarantee to deepen bilateral economic and trade relations, but also boost China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, according to the MOC. Negotiations on the China-Mauritius FTA were officially launched in December 2017. The two sides formally concluded the negotiations on Sept. 2, 2018, after four rounds of intensive negotiations. In the area of trade in goods, China and Mauritius will eventually achieve zero tariffs on 96.3 percent and 94.2 percent of product tariff items, respectively, involving 92.8 percent of import volume for both countries from each other. For the remaining tariff items of Mauritius, the tariffs will also be greatly cut, and the maximum tariffs for most of the involved products will not exceed 15 percent. China's main exports to Mauritius, such as iron and steel products, textiles and other light industrial products, will benefit from it. Special sugar produced in Mauritius will also enter the Chinese market gradually. The two sides also agreed on rules of origin, trade remedies, technical barriers to trade and sanitary and phytosanitary issues. In the area of trade in services, China and Mauritius both promised to open up more than 100 sub-sectors. Mauritius will open up more than 130 sub-sectors in important service fields such as communications, education, finance, tourism, culture, transportation and traditional Chinese medicine to China. This is the highest level of opening up in the field of services in Mauritius so far. In the field of investment, the agreement has been greatly upgraded from the 1996 China-Mauritius bilateral investment protection agreement in terms of protection scope, protection level and dispute settlement mechanism. This is the first time that China has upgraded the previous investment protection agreement with an African country, which will not only provide stronger protection for Chinese enterprises to go to Mauritius, but also help them further boost investment cooperation in Africa through the platform of Mauritius, according to the MOC. Meanwhile, the two sides also agreed to further deepen economic and technical cooperation in agriculture, finance, medical care, tourism and other fields. The two sides will undergo respective domestic procedures for the agreement to take effect. ^ top ^

Germany's proposal on 5G network security leaves door open for China's Huawei, sparking criticism (SCMP)
2019-10-17
A draft proposal on Germany's new security requirements for 5G network suppliers that does not preclude the involvement of Chinese telecoms giant Huawei Technologies has drawn criticism from lawmakers and diplomats in Berlin and Washington. According to the paper, which is now undergoing a consultation process, telecoms providers will be obliged to obtain "proof of trustworthiness" of the equipment manufacturers and suppliers they work with. But while there had been suggestions that Huawei, which has been accused of building "back doors" into its products that can be exploited by Beijing, might be excluded from bidding for Germany's 5G contracts, leading business newspaper Handelsblatt reported that German Chancellor Angela Merkel personally intervened to prevent such a ban. Speaking about the proposals on Monday, government spokesman Steffen Seibert said: "We are not taking a pre-emptive decision to ban any actor, or any company." The news was not well received at the German foreign ministry, which had been arguing for the need to better protect national security. "Some in the foreign ministry are unhappy about it," a European diplomatic source said. The decision was also met with criticism in Washington. "German security testing is insufficient by itself," said US deputy assistant secretary of state for cyber and international communications policy Rob Strayer. "[They] need to evaluate government influence and whether a rule of law system is in place." The White House had earlier warned Berlin that intelligence sharing with the US could be affected if Huawei, which has been banned in the US on national security grounds, was allowed to build its 5G infrastructure. Japan, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan have also introduced similar restrictions on the use of Huawei's equipment and technology. Though wary of the possible risks associated with partnering the tech giant, many European countries also fear retaliation from Beijing if they ban it altogether. Germany's telecoms operators, all of which are already Huawei customers, have warned that banning the Chinese company would delay the launch of 5G networks for several years and add billions of dollars to their costs. Jan Weidenfeld, head of European affairs at the Mercator Institute for China Studies, a think tank in Berlin, said the timing of the German government's decision was unfortunate as it came just days after the European Commission warned of "state-backed" cyberattacks on 5G networks. "Having said that, it has been clear for some time that Germany was not going to have an outright ban on Huawei," he said. "How those criteria put forward by the German government will be interpreted by telecoms service providers is not so much technical as political." Weidenfeld said that the wording of the proposal – which includes the need for a safety monitoring mechanism – suggested the government was trying to gauge the sentiment in the Bundestag, the lower house of parliament. "Don't underestimate the level of resistance," he said. "The Bundestag is not really convinced of this draft law at all. This is not a foregone conclusion." The government's proposal also drew criticism from Norbert Röttgen, chairman of the Bundestag's Foreign Affairs Committee, who called for the creation of an administrative body to oversee 5G policy. Officials in the United States have said in the past that under China's national intelligence law, all Chinese citizens and companies are required to collaborate in espionage efforts. Both Beijing and Huawei have dismissed such allegations. ^ top ^

China warns of countermeasures to US bill on HK (Global Times)
2019-10-16
China warned of effective countermeasures after the US House of Representatives approved legislation that authorizes the US government to launch diplomatic action and economic sanctions against officials and law-enforcement personnel from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). The House on Tuesday backed the so-called Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act of 2019, moving it one step closer to becoming law. Aside from being condemned by authorities of China, the US move was also criticized by Hong Kong lawmakers, legal professionals and scholars from the mainland and Hong Kong. Some experts suggested that China should prepare for countermeasures if the bill eventually becomes law, including sanctions against institutions and US officials who act inappropriately on Hong Kong-related issues, as well as a ban on US politicians who back the bill from traveling Hong Kong and the mainland, and an investigation of their business interests in China. National People's Congress Foreign Affairs Committee strongly condemned and firmly opposed the US House of Representatives after the later passed the act, for serving its real intent of containing China and inciting troubles in Hong Kong, on the pretext of "human rights and democracy." It also slammed the lower house of the US Congress for paying a blind eye to the acts of criminality inflicted by radical anti-government activists and rioters. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said at a press conference on Wednesday after she delivered the 2019 policy address that "We don't need other countries to tell us what human rights, democracy or freedom is. These are core values of Hong Kong that we are making efforts to safeguard." Stanley Ng Chau-pei, chairman of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, said that passing the act shows that some US politicians want to use human rights and democracy as tools to indulge violence, encourage separatism and create hatred in Hong Kong. Hong Kong legislator Junius Ho Kwan-yiu on Wednesday blasted the US House for passing the bill, calling the move a double standard and flagrant interference in Hong Kong affairs, and that it supports violence and is in contempt of HK laws and courts. Tian Feilong, an associate professor at Beihang University in Beijing and a Hong Kong studies expert, said that this is not a surprise to China, and whether the act is passed or not, it has no international legal basis because it is a long-arm jurisdiction move based on US hegemony. "What US politicians want is to keep the fire burning, and further meddle with the upcoming 2019 Hong Kong District Council elections, to support pro-US anti-government forces to gain political power in the city," he said. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a statement on Wednesday, saying, the top issue for Hong Kong right now has nothing to do with human rights or democracy, but to stop violence and restore public order and safeguard the rule of law The US ignored the fact that the violence committed by the anti-government protesters is escalating, Gu Min-kang, director of the Chinese Association Hong Kong and Macao Studies and former deputy president of the School of Law of the City University of Hong Kong, told the Global Times on Wednesday. The move shows that the US is increasing its support for the opposition in Hong Kong in an attempt to further cause chaos in Hong Kong, Gu said. Lawrence Ma, a barrister and chairman of the Hong Kong Legal Exchange Foundation, told the Global Times that it is just a political red herring. "No legal significance to be concerned about," he added. "Regarding the wrong decision of the US, China will surely take effective countermeasures to firmly safeguard its sovereignty, security, and development interests," the foreign ministry said. "The US also has interests in Hong Kong. If the bill becomes law, it would not only hurt China's interests and China-US relations, but US interests as well," the ministry warned. Gu called on the HKSAR government to implement more draconian measures, such as banning some foreign officials and politicians who support or even create turmoils in Hong Kong from entering the city. Tian said the Central Government of China and the HKSAR government can act jointly to ban US politicians and officials who back the bill from entering Hong Kong and the mainland, and to sanction and investigate their business interests in China. In October, US Senators, including Josh Hawley and Ted Cruz, visited Hong Kong and met anti-government forces to support the lengthy turmoil which is hurting the city. Other US politicians like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Marco Rubio have frequently voiced support for the radical protests and protesters. Tian noted that the Chinese government also needs to provide protection and assistance to HKSAR officials affected by the US bill. "We urge the relevant US politicians to immediately stop advancing the bill and stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs," and "playing the 'Hong Kong card' will not succeed as it only means lifting a rock only to drop it on one's own feet," said the Commissioner's Office of China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong on its website on Wednesday. "What makes you [US lawmakers] think you are qualified to lecture a region that ranked higher than the US, whether on the level of freedom or the rule of law? US police shot and killed about 1,000 people in 2017, but you never questioned this, and now, you dare criticize and accuse the Hong Kong Police Force's restrained law-enforcement," said the statement released on the office website, adding "if this is not double standard, then what is it?" Kennedy Wong Ying-ho, solicitor of the Supreme Court of Hong Kong, told the Global Times that the US is unqualified to interfere in Hong Kong affairs, and it is playing an old trick to interfere in other countries' internal affairs with excuses like "democracy," "human rights" and "freedom." The political elites of the US have reached a consensus to contain China and interfere in China's internal affairs, so the US Senate will likely pass the act as well, and the US President will sign it, Wong noted. Ma suggested that if the act becomes law, people affected by it could challenge the act's validity and constitutionality in a US court. ^ top ^

Xi returns to Beijing after informal meeting with Indian PM, visit to Nepal (Xinhua)
2019-10-14
Chinese President Xi Jinping returned to Beijing Sunday evening after his second informal meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in India and a state visit to Nepal. Xi's entourage, including Ding Xuexiang, member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee; Yang Jiechi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee; State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi; and He Lifeng, vice chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and head of the National Development and Reform Commission, also returned to Beijing on the same plane. As Xi and his entourage were leaving Kathmandu on Sunday noon local time, people of Nepal flocked to both sides of a road leading to the airport, waving flags and playing music to see the Chinese guests off. Nepali President Bidya Devi Bhandari hosted a grand farewell ceremony for Xi at the airport. Nepali Vice President Nanda Bahadur Pun, Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli, Chairman of the National Assembly Ganesh Prasad Timilsina, cabinet members and senior army generals also attended the ceremony, which featured a 21-gun salute and the playing of national anthems of China and Nepal. Calling his visit to Nepal a "very successful" one, Xi told Bhandari that upon his arrival, he had been warmly welcomed by the Nepali government and people. Xi said he was convinced that the China-Nepal friendship enjoyed lasting popularity among the two peoples and will be unbreakable. Expressing his appreciation for the arrangements made by the Nepali president, government and people, Xi said he was very satisfied with the visit that had resulted in the upgrading of bilateral relations. He called for joint efforts to further develop the friendly relations between the two countries. Bhandari said Xi's successful and fruitful visit has become a milestone in the history of bilateral ties. The Nepal-China relationship has entered a new era and stepped on a new height, Bhandari said, adding that Nepal will resolutely work with China to promote friendly and good neighborly relations and strategic cooperative partnership. ^ top ^

China's top court reaffirms strict control of death penalty (Xinhua)
2019-10-18
Supreme People's Court (SPC) on Thursday asked courts at various levels to strictly observe China's policy of strictly controlling and prudently applying the death penalty. Courts should make sure the death penalty is only administered for an extremely small number of convicted criminals of extremely severe offenses, said the SPC at a work conference on criminal justice. The SPC has the duty to review all death penalty decisions handed out by lower courts. In handling drug-related cases, both strict punishment and targeted crackdowns should be continued, according to the SPC. Criminal trials should not be indifferent to public opinion, nor should they be dictated by public opinion, according to the SPC, which also said criminal judgments should ensure justice is delivered in each case. ^ top ^

China makes final sprint in battle to end poverty (Global Times)
2019-10-17
Government efforts to rid China of extreme poverty by 2020 makes 2019 a crucial year, according to Chinese experts and officials interviewed Thursday who expressed optimism that the ambitious goal will be achieved based on the nation's proven track record in tackling the issue. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, hailed the progress made in poverty relief under the leadership of the CPC on Thursday, the Xinhua News Agency reported. Xi's instructions were conveyed at a commendation meeting and awards ceremony on poverty alleviation held Thursday morning in Beijing, which honored 140 national pioneers and advanced workers and institutions for their efforts in reducing poverty. By the end of June, more than 770 people had lost their lives in poverty alleviation jobs nationwide, according to China's State Council Leading Group Office of Poverty Reduction and Development. The year 2019 marks a significant year for winning the tough battle against extreme poverty as China has set the target to reduce the rural poor by more than 10 million this year, said the experts. "It is a year that governments at all levels attach great importance to, because we have entered the final sprint to achieve our goals, which are also the foundation project for completing the building of a moderately prosperous society in all respects," Song Guiwu, a professor at Gansu's Provincial Party School, told the Global Times. China lifted 740 million people in rural areas out of extreme poverty between 1978 and 2017, or about 19 million people a year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The country has lifted another 30 million people out of abject poverty, according to the figures. Exporters noted that poverty relief work was focused on the nation's western and ethnic minority groups, who mainly dwell in mountainous regions with an adverse natural environment and backward infrastructure. In recent years, governments in poor regions have promoted innovative and environmentally friendly ideas to help residents shake off poverty, developing industries such as tourism and e-commerce, Yu Shaoxiang, an expert on social security and poverty relief legislation at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times. Chinese short video app Douyin reported in 2018 that 25 percent of the top 100 most-clicked short videos was shot in ethnic minority places, where economic development lags behind other parts of the country. As tourists poured to places with beautiful scenery and exotic characteristics, they became hits on short video platforms and brought job opportunities, said Yu. Many individuals in those places use the internet to sell home crafts and specialties. Xinhua reported that more than 5 million people from nationally designated poor counties benefited from promoting and selling their products on Kuaishou, another short video app. A celebrity nicknamed "Taipingge" never dreamed of one day earning 4.5 million yuan ($0.67 million) a year on the Kuaishou app. Taipingge grew up in a large family in Inner Mongolia where he used to work odd jobs that earned him about 300 yuan a day. But when Taipingge posted videos of hometown barbecues on Kuaishou, they went viral. He began selling beef nationwide in 2017 and now his whole family and even neighbors are participating in the successful business.Big data and artificial intelligence have also played a role in China's poverty relief. Southwest China's Guizhou Province started using big data for precise poverty-relief in 2015. A cloud computing platform was developed which tracks and manages the financial status of more than 6 million poor residents across 9,000 villages, Xinhua said. Some schools in Xichang, capital of Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture of Southwest China's Sichuan Province have installed an "intelligence campus" system, where students can attend online classes, noted Hou Xuan, a primary school teacher from the city of Xichang. They share libraries and other teaching resources with top-notch schools in Sichuan, Hou said. The impoverished population of eight ethnic minority provinces and autonomous regions dropped from 31.21 million in 2012 to 6.03 million in 2018, and the poverty incidence dropped from 20.8 percent to 4 percent, Xinhua reported. All regions and departments must stick to poverty relief goals and make continuous efforts to tackle extreme poverty, improve weak links in compulsory education, basic medical care, housing and drinking-water safety for the impoverished population, and ensure that all rural poor can be lifted out of poverty and step into a moderately prosperous society by next year, Xi said. Yu noted that China's poverty alleviation efforts will not halt after the goal set for 2020 is reached. The population in poverty will still exist in China and the Chinese government will continue the work, Yu said. Even as basic extreme poverty is eradicated, there will be relative poverty in different sections of society, which will need to be addressed, he said. Some scholars are discussing social relief and aid projects to help those who still can't shake off poverty after 2020. The government will focus on those extreme poor groups which for example have lost the ability to work or are suffering from serious diseases, Yu explained. In the long run, "We (Chinese officials) need to be alert to prevent the problem of those who were relieved of poverty returning to poverty caused by policy reasons," said Luo Zhijun, a standing committee member and director of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference's Committee for Agriculture and Rural Affairs. Song, the Party School professor, said poverty alleviation was a worldwide struggle. "If China, the world's most populous country, can lift itself out of poverty, its approach will certainly serve as a great model for other developing countries," he said. ^ top ^

Action plan released for pollution control (China Daily)
2019-10-17
An action plan for air pollution control was released on Wednesday, setting specific targets to control air quality in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region and nearby areas during autumn and winter. The number of days with severe pollution should fall by 6 percent from Oct 1 to March 31, according to a plan released by several government agencies including the Ministry of Ecology and Environment and the National Development and Reform Commission. The average density of PM2.5-fine, breathable particles with diameters 2.5 micrometers or smaller-should drop by 4 percent compared with the same period last year, according to the plan. The plan also sets a deadline to close down some outdated production facilities and suspend some highly polluted industry capacities in Tianjin as well as Hebei, Shanxi and Shandong provinces by the end of this year. In Shanxi, for example, 1.75 million metric tons of steel capacity will be reduced, and outdated facilities that could produce 10 million tons of coke will also be shut down. By the end of this month, local authorities and enterprises in those regions are expected to have drafted a specific plan, setting a clear target and timeline to improve production quality and enhance pollutant emission standards to meet pollution control standards. According to the plan, pollutant discharging licenses for construction material and furniture enterprises should be released by December. Steel manufacturers in Hebei are required to achieve an extra-low emission transformation of 100 million tons by the end of the year, while the target in Shanxi over the same time frame is 15 million tons. Moreover, the plan also required those cities and provinces to conduct further environmental assessments on big factories and logistics companies within this month. Thanks to joint efforts from multiple sectors, air quality over the country has been stable, Liu Youbin, a spokesman for the Ministry of Ecology and Environment, said during a recent news conference. From January to August, the average density of PM2.5 in 337 major cities across the country stood at 35 micrograms per cubic meter, the same as last year. According to Liu, autumn and winter are the worst air quality periods in China, especially in the north, largely because of coal consumption for heating. During the cool and cold seasons from 2017 to 2018, steel manufacturers in four major cities in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region were asked to suspend half their capacity. ^ top ^

J-20 jets showcase missiles (Global Times)
2019-10-17
China's most advanced fighter jet, J-20, once again revealed its missiles at the Chinese Air Force's "open day" event on Thursday, which also showcased the outstanding flight performances of a number of the PLA's warplanes. The open day, which runs from Thursday to Monday in Changchun, Northeast China's Jilin Province, is part of celebrations to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force. A pair of J-20 stealth fighter jets flew during the event's flight performance on Thursday morning. Each of them showcased two short-range combat missiles, which rotated out from their side missile bays, where they were usually stored to maintain the aircraft's stealth capability. This is only the second time the J-20 has showcased its missiles. The first was at the 2018 edition of Airshow China in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province. The aircraft did not open its main weapon bay on Thursday. A series of aerobatic maneuvers, including high-speed dives, climbs and rolls from the country's most advanced fighter jets marveled the crowd. The maneuvers were combat-oriented, as each one had a tactical meaning and were used in actual combat scenarios to gain a superior position or avoid an attack, analysts said. The performance by the Y-20 large transport plane also attracted attention, as it showed its agility despite its size. The J-16 multipurpose fighter jet shot flares during its performance, as visitors enjoyed the "fireworks." Other performances featured J-11 fighter jets, J-10 fighter jets, training aircraft and parachute drops. Military enthusiasts unable to attend the open day on Thursday watched the flight performances live on the internet, and reposted and commented on the event. While some of them only said "cool" or "awesome," others wondered how the Air Force managed to progress so much in the past 70 years. The PLA Air Force also put 46 types of weapons and equipment on ground display, including the J-10B fighter jet, JH-7 fighter bomber, H-6K bomber, GJ-2 drone, Z-10K attack helicopter, Y-9 and Y-20 transport planes, KJ-200 and KJ-500 early warning aircraft, and HQ-9B, HQ-22 surface-to-air missiles and multiple types of early warning radars. All weapons and equipment on display show that the PLA Air Force has formed a complete system for aerial combat, strategic lifting, early warning, information support, anti-air and training, analysts noted. ^ top ^

Vice president discusses China's history, present, future with Tsinghua advisors (Xinhua)
2019-10-17
Vice President Wang Qishan discussed the history, the present and the future of China with members of the advisory board of the elite Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management in Beijing on Thursday. "History is the fountainhead of the present and the future," Wang said during his meeting with the advisors. The struggle of the People's Republic of China (PRC) over the past 70 years was closely connected to the modern history of China since the year 1840 as well as the history of Chinese civilization stretching over 5,000 years, according to the vice president. Only under the leadership of the Communist Party of China did the Chinese people stand up and grow rich through their hard work and wisdom, even costing many of their lives, said Wang. "It will be a long and arduous process from consolidating and increasing this wealth to becoming truly strong," the vice president said. China must stay calm and level-headed while strengthening national confidence, and must notice the problems and challenges while recognizing the achievements and opportunities, Wang said, stressing that the country will unswervingly follow the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The advisors, led by Jim Breyer, chairman of the advisory board and Breyer Capital's founder and CEO, extended congratulations on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the PRC, and expressed willingness to further deepen cooperation with China and contribute to Chinese education and economic growth. Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan attended the meeting. The advisory board was founded in 2000 and consists of scholars and entrepreneurs from multinationals, as well as Chinese officials. ^ top ^

China orders winter emissions cuts, with tougher targets for cities that failed last year (SCMP)
2019-10-16
China's northern cities will be required to cut emissions of dangerous PM2.5 particles by an average of 4 per cent this winter, according to a document issued by the Ministry of Ecology and Environment on Wednesday outlining its annual anti-pollution plan for winter. The target for average concentration of PM2.5 – lung-damaging particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns – applies to a group of 26 smog-prone cities in the north and the municipalities of Beijing and Tianjin. But the mandated reduction is lower than the 5.5 per cent cut proposed in an earlier draft of the plan circulated on industry websites last month. The plan comes as China enters its sixth year of an aggressive clampdown on pollution in a bid to cut smog that envelops many cities during the winter months, when homes and businesses crank up heating. As part of China's efforts to put an end to what it calls "one-size-fits-all" anti-pollution measures, cities that performed well in last year's campaign received preferential treatment. Capital Beijing, for instance, is not required to make any cut from the previous year's PM2.5 levels, while Tianjin is only required to cut PM2.5 by 1 per cent. But cities that did not meet last year's directive had much higher targets, confirming the ministry's warning last month. Anyang in Henan province must cut PM2.5 levels by 6.5 per cent, according to the document. Handan and Xingtai in Hebei province, along with Zhengzhou, Puyang and Kaifeng in Henan, and Heze in Shandong province must all cut levels of the particulate matter by 6 per cent. The ministry also said that 5.24 million households in the cities would switch off coal heating and change to gas or electricity systems by the end of this month – the highest yet since Beijing started its drive to cut use of coal heating. The ministry also said it would strengthen assessment and supervision of steel industry compliance on ultra-low emission standards. It has drafted guidelines for monitoring of ultra-low emission engineering in the steel industry. If a company is confirmed to have met ultra-low emission requirements, it will be eligible to receive certain financial incentives. It added that 100 million tonnes of steelmaking capacity in Hebei province – roughly half of the total in the nation's major producing region – and 15 million tonnes of steel capacity in Shanxi province would meet ultra-low emissions standards by the end of this year. ^ top ^

White Paper expounds on food security, global supply (Global Times)
2019-10-15
China on Monday issued a white paper on its efforts to improve food safety and expand global cooperation, which experts said showed the country's determination and confidence to guarantee food supply and security. The white paper, titled "Food Security in China," was the second white paper on food issue released by the Chinese government since the first one on grain was released in 1996. The white paper came on the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. In the past 70 years, great changes have taken place in China, but the importance of food security has never changed, Zhang Wufeng, head of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration (NFSRA), said at a press conference in Beijing. Zhang noted that the Chinese government has been making sure that "the bowls of the Chinese must rest soundly in our own hands." The white paper elaborated on China's food security, which is important to explain China's stance and policy on the issue and improve understanding on China's food safety, experts noted. The 1996 white paper on China's grain issues was aimed at answering the question, "who will feed China?" And after more than 20 years, facts prove that the country has fulfilled its promise, Li Guanglu, an expert at a committee on national food security policy under the NFSRA, told the Global Times on Monday. China has basically achieved self-sufficiency in grain supply. In 2018, China's grain output reached 610 million tons, accounting for more than 90 percent of the total food output, an increase of 160 million tons since 1996, the white paper said. China's per capita share of food remains above the world average. China's per capita food possession stands at about 470 kilograms, an increase of 14 percent from 1996 and 126 percent in 1949, higher than the global average, the white paper noted. China is able to guarantee its food supply, including provisions or forage, thanks to the country's relatively strong production ability and ample, qualified and safe reserves, said Su Wei, an official at the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), China's top economic planner. Food security is essential in people's daily lives and China has attached great importance to this, as the newly released white paper unveiled the achievements and prospects of China's efforts, which helps dispel some Chinese concerns, Li said. In the past 70 years, China's food market had seen continuous changes in consumer demand, grain structure and food quality, said Jiang Changyun, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Macroeconomic Research, a government think tank. With the steady improvement of China's comprehensive grain production capacity, domestic consumers' needs have shifted from "having enough food" to "having quality food," Li said. As to changes in food structure, corn, the third-largest grain crop in terms of production has become the largest in recent years, while rice has become the second largest in the country, Jiang said, noting the changes can be reflected in Chinese people's pursuit of qualified food. Chinese officials said at the press conference that rice and wheat can become self-sufficient in China as there is a surplus in production and demand of these two types of grains. China's imports of some grain, such as soybean, aim to "adjust deficiency of varieties," said Su. China's soybean demand is more than 100 million tons per year and more than 80 percent of the market supply is imported, China Economic Net reported on Monday, citing expert Li Jun from China Agricultural University. China's soybean supply has long been dependent on imports, and this will continue in the future, Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Monday. The ongoing trade war initiated by the US will not affect China's supply of soybean as China has increased efforts to diversify import sources from the likes of Brazil and Russia, Li said, noting that some domestic efforts would likely help. For instance, China is moving to improve the yield of soybean, to achieve a 9.3 million hectare plantation area by 2020, with an average output of 2,025 kilograms per hectare, according to the NDRC. To drive the sustainable development of China's food market and increase global cooperation, the country is expected to further deepen agricultural supply-side reform by lowering production costs and improving infrastructure, Jiang told the Global Times on Monday. China's food market emphasizes wider opening-up as foreign companies are grabbing a greater share in edible vegetable oil and grain processing, the white paper said. China will continue to participate in global cooperation in food security by investing in countries and regions that have such needs, and promote technology and experience in food production, processing, storage, logistics and trade, Su said. Since 2013, China has advanced cooperation in the food industry with countries and regions along the Belt and Road Initiative routes, Su said. ^ top ^

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China subsidising Xinjiang companies' use of forced labour, US lawmakers told (SCMP)
2019-10-18
Forced labour is increasingly forming an integral part of Beijing's efforts to "re-educate" Muslim minorities in China's far west, according to a new report by a major US think tank and testimony by experts delivered on Thursday on Capitol Hill. According to United Nations estimates from last year, around 1 million Uygurs and other largely Muslim ethnic minority groups are being forcibly held and subject to political indoctrination in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. Government officials in China maintain the detention centres are "vocational training centres" and claimed in July that most of the inmates have been released. But the camps form "only one piece of the whole puzzle", said US-based scholar Adrian Zenz, who told lawmakers on Thursday that Beijing was simultaneously pursuing a strategy "to place the vast majority of minority adults into different forms of coercive or at least involuntary labour". Testifying before legislators on the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), Zenz said that camp detainees were being put to work in factory jobs located in or near to camp compounds in a "grand scheme" of coercive labour. The employing companies would receive government subsidies of up to 6,800 yuan (US$961) for each individual trained and employed, as well as a shipping cost subsidy of 4 per cent of their sales volume, said Zenz, whose research is based largely on public records, often originating from the government itself. Cheap minority labour combined with state subsidies meant that companies would be able to undercut global prices and "turn 'made-in-Xinjiang' into a multibillion-dollar business model", said the scholar. A report by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) released on Thursday, based on an examination of public research and interviews with former detainees, found that apparel was the primary sector affected, and identified the US as a major recipient of such exports. Cotton production in Xinjiang forms around 84 per cent of nationwide production of the crop, while US imports of Chinese apparel take up over 30 per cent of the American market, the report noted. And while only a small fraction of imports to the US arrived directly from Xinjiang, many other products may contain textiles "tainted by Xinjiang's forced labour". Growing scrutiny over allegations of forced labour in Xinjiang has already caused some multinational companies to sever links with suppliers in the region. On Wednesday, ABC News in Australia reported that two retailers, Target Australia and Cotton On, had stopped buying cotton from their Xinjiang-based suppliers following their own internal investigations into their supply chains. And earlier this month, citing concerns over forced labour, US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued an order to halt all imports of garments from one Xinjiang-based clothing manufacturer. The company, Hetian Taida Apparel, supplied pyjamas to wholesale retailer Costco and shipped over 135 tonnes of clothing to the US in 2018, according to figures from Panjiva, a global supply chain tracker. In a statement on Thursday, the American Apparel and Footwear Association (AAFA) said it was "deeply concerned" by reports of forced labour within the supply chains of US companies, and called on the Chinese government to "facilitate all due diligence measures to assure a clear understanding of the facts". "We have been working closely with our members to educate them with available information about labour practices in Xinjiang province," said the AAFA, which represents over 1,000 companies. US-based Target Corporation, a member of AAFA, did not respond to requests to clarify its position on sourcing products from Xinjiang and confirm whether it had taken – or planned to take – similar action to its Australian outfit. Experts told lawmakers on Thursday that the burden of proof should be shifted to companies to confirm that their products were not made by those working against their will, but warned that due diligence was difficult given the limited access that authorities in Xinjiang give to outside officials or inspection teams. In light of recent "potemkin" tours for foreign journalists and officials in Xinjiang, where access is closely controlled, "it is inconceivable that any worker would tell the true side of the story", said Nury Turkel, chair of the Washington-based Uygur Human Rights Project (UHRP). Lawmakers are currently considering whether to introduce new legislation focused specifically on a policy response to the forced labour issue in Xinjiang, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the deliberations. One State Department official said that absent of new legislation, the onus was on the White House to take executive action. "If [US President Donald Trump] wanted to show leadership, he could make an executive order that he signed declaring that if Xinjiang is going to be a forced labour zone, it should not be trading with the rest of the world," said a State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity. "If we had a normal president, it's not that hard and we could do this overnight," the official said. Last week, the departments of State and Commerce unveiled a suite of sanctions targeting Chinese officials, government bodies and private companies over their involvement in Beijing's mass internment and surveillance programmes in China's far west. Action taken by the State Department to deny US visas to Chinese officials deemed responsible for or complicit in Beijing's "campaign of repression in Xinjiang", was applauded by human rights advocates, but was enacted outside the Global Magnitsky Act, which would publicly identify the individuals and also subject them to economic sanctions. "We need to name names," Michael Posner, who served as assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labour under Barack Obama, told lawmakers on Thursday. Welcoming the administration's recent action, Posner, now director of New York University's centre for business and human rights, said that the impact of such moves was nonetheless undermined by US President Donald Trump's silence on Xinjiang. "The commander-in-chief is the primary spokesperson for the United States," said Posner. "And if he's not echoing or even leading in the same direction as Secretary [of State Mike] Pompeo … it allows somebody like Xi Jinping to say 'I'll listen to the guy I'm talking to – the president – and I can ignore the rest'." ^ top ^

Xinjiang to offer over half million vocational training sessions each year (Global Times)
2019-10-16
Northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region has vowed to offer at least 500,000 vocational and other training sessions to help improve the lives of local residents each year between 2019 and 2021. By the end of 2021, skilled laborers in the region are to account for 25 percent of the total number of employed workers, of which 30 percent will be highly skilled, according to a regional action plan on improving vocational skills recently released by the Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Xinjiang, the Xinjiang Daily reported on Tuesday. Vocational training is key to maintaining stable employment and alleviating structural employment conflicts. The plan also calls for large-scale vocational skills training of employees and people from poor families. The local government will offer free vocational skills training to children from poor families, high school graduates, unemployed workers, veterans and disabled people. The regional government will also improve vocational training available to entrepreneurs who want to start a business, and will establish 10 regional business incubators for startups by 2021, according to the plan. According to the Department of Human Resources and Social Security of Xinjiang, the action plan will also support enterprises that set up vocational training centers, and encourage enterprises to cooperate with vocational colleges to jointly establish teaching and training centers, the Xinjiang Daily reported on Tuesday. ^ top ^

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam takes to Facebook to reach out to public, while strongly defending police force and questioning 'puzzling' calls for its disbandment (SCMP)
2019-10-18
Hong Kong's leader put up a strong defence of the city's beleaguered police force on Thursday, questioning "puzzling" demands by anti-government protesters for its disbandment and saying the protesters would still have to seek its help in times of trouble. Reaching out to the public in the second Facebook live session of her leadership, and the first in more than a year, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor expressed hope that the violence would end soon and the city would return to normal. She insisted that while the government had the responsibility to restore order and bring about reconciliation, Hongkongers would also have to support the police and say "no" to lawlessness. Lam spent an hour on the Facebook live session, responding to internet users' comments on her governance and her latest policy address. The chief executive touched on various areas, including housing, land supply, health care, education and security, using social media for the first time since August last year to engage the public. She was forced to unveil her policy blueprint on Wednesday by way of an unprecedented, pre-recorded video as opposition lawmakers blocked her from presenting it live in the Legislative Council. On Thursday morning, Lam also faced a barrage of insults from opposition politicians for the second consecutive day, and 13 pan-democratic lawmakers were thrown out the chamber for disorderly conduct. At its peak, more than 7,600 concurrent users were watching the live session. When it ended at 9pm, more than 11,600 users had reacted – 9,000 posted "angry-face" emojis, 2,000 "liked" what she had to say, and 600 expressed "love". The session racked up 49,000 comments, many of which reiterated the protesters' favourite slogan: "Five demands, not one less!" While Lam insisted that she could not back down on those demands, including the setting up of an independent inquiry into police conduct against protesters and amnesty for all those arrested so far, she made it a point to address a sixth demand – the disbandment of the police force. "I'm puzzled when I hear this, because when there are public order and safety issues, such as theft or unfortunate attacks, people say they must ask police to follow up seriously," she said. "So police are playing a very important role, and we must support them in law enforcement." Lam also weighed in on the recent attack on Civil Human Rights Front convener Jimmy Sham Tsz-kit, who has been organising the biggest anti-government rallies, saying her administration condemned all forms of violence, regardless of the background of the victim. The chief executive expressed hope the public would not lose faith in the police force because of confrontations between officers and protesters or journalists. In her policy blueprint, Lam put the focus firmly on housing as a root cause of public grievances, promising to find more land and improve livelihoods amid a worsening economy. But she offered no political solutions to restore order in a city rocked by more than four months of protest chaos. "I also hope that Hong Kong can soon move on from this crisis … but we need everyone's effort. If we show sympathy to violence, attackers will only act without hesitation," Lam said when asked if Hong Kong would return to normal in the foreseeable future. "The biggest responsibility is on the government, because we have the ability to enforce the law, prosecute and reconcile. If there are better ways to work on these aspects, I'm willing to take up the mission." There were chaotic scenes earlier in Legco when the chief executive arrived for the traditional question and answer session on her policy address. Only three pro-establishment lawmakers were able to ask questions because of frequent interruptions by pan-democratic legislators, more than a dozen of whom were kicked out of the chamber. People Power lawmaker Raymond Chan Chi-chuen was removed after he chanted: "Hong Kong Hitler! No one will call you Carrie anymore! Blood all over your hands!" Speaking in a so-called citizens' press conference on Thursday, two masked protesters said the policy address showed Lam had diagnosed the city's situation wrongly. "Lam and her cabinet still want to buy us off. That shows Lam is totally out of touch," a protester said. "The root cause of our resistance is injustice. It is a political issue." ^ top ^

Nobel Peace Prize nomination for Hong Kong is 'foreign interference', China claims (HKFP)
2019-10-18
China called for foreign governments not to interfere in its affairs Thursday, after a Norwegian politician nominated the "people of Hong Kong" for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize. Semi-autonomous Hong Kong has been hit by months of pro-democracy protests, which Beijing has portrayed as riots fuelled by foreign forces. "Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs and no foreign government or individuals have the right to interfere," foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a press briefing. Geng called for the "relevant people to be objective and just" as well as "cautious." Activists say freedoms in the city are being eroded by Beijing — contrary to a 50-year deal that outlined Hong Kong's return to China from British rule. "I have nominated the people of Hong Kong, who risk their lives and security every day to stand up for freedom of speech and basic democracy, to the Nobel Peace Prize for 2020," Guri Melby, a member of Norway's parliament for the liberal party, said in a Twitter post on Tuesday. In an interview published by the newspaper Aftenposten on Wednesday, Melby added that "what they do has an impact far beyond Hong Kong, both in the region and in the rest of the world". Millions have taken to the streets of Hong Kong over the last four months in the worst political crisis since the 1997 handover. Protests were initially against a now-dropped bid by its leaders to allow extraditions to the Chinese mainland, but snowballed into a broader push for democracy. Beijing has had a tense relationship with the Nobel Committee. In 2010 the award was given to imprisoned Chinese dissident Liu Xiaobo, a writer, philosopher and veteran of the Tiananmen protests, who died of cancer in 2017. Although the Nobel Committee is independent of the government in Norway, Beijing froze its relations with the Scandinavian country in response to the award, suspended negotiations for a free trade agreement and blocked imports of Norwegian salmon. Relations between the countries did not normalise until December 2016, after Oslo committed to not "support actions that undermine" Chinese interests. In 1989, the coveted peace prize was given to Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, who Beijing accuses of trying to split China. ^ top ^

HK details housing scheme (Global Times)
2019-10-17
Hong Kong housing and development officials on Thursday discussed details on a housing plan announced by Chief Executive Carrier Lam in her third policy address on housing, which many believed is the most pressing challenge for Hong Kong, while experts noted that new measures could solve some problems in the long run, but that the government needs a stable environment to implement those measures. Lam on Wednesday said the government will expedite its planning work and resume three types of private land to develop public housing and starter homes. The three types of land to be resumed include privately owned brownfield sites in the New Territories that may have development potential; private land which has been zoned for high-density housing development in statutory outline zoning plans, but without any development plans yet; and urban private land located in Cha Kwo Ling, Ngau Chi Wan and Chuk Yuen United Villages suitable for high density housing development. At a press conference on Thursday, Frank Chan Fan, Secretary of Transport and Housing of Hong Kong, said the imbalance between housing supply and demand has caused grievances. "The way to address the problem is to seek land and build houses," Chan said, adding that as part of Lam's policy initiative, the government will resume more land and allocate more funds for public housing. Responding to criticism that raising the ceiling on mortgages could drive up property prices, Chan said the move was simply to give a chance to first-time home buyers and will not significantly increase demand and prices. Lam said about 700 hectares of private land will be resumed, of which some 400 hectares are expected to be resumed in the next five years, significantly more than the 20 hectares resumed in the past five years. Residents of Hong Kong remain suspicious about the housing measures. "I have seen the housing measures, but they won't help," a Hong Kong resident, who preferred to be called by his surname Law, told the Global Times on Thursday, noting that housing prices will still be too high and would be hard to meet what's known as a stress test - an applicability test for mortgages. Law, who is in his early 30s, is renting a 30-square-meter apartment in the Mong Kok area with his wife for HK$18,000 ($2,290) per month, almost one-third of their combined salaries. The couple is trying to buy an apartment but sees no hope in the short-term. Law and his wife are among tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents living under extremely poor housing conditions. Officials and experts have called housing one of the reasons that have caused persistent unrest in the city. While Law and his wife can afford to rent an apartment, many simply can't afford one but have to apply for public housing, which could take as long as five-and-a-half years, some residents said. Boosting supply through land resumption could resolve some problems in the long run, on one condition: A stable political and social environment, said Tian Feilong, an associate professor at Beihang University in Beijing and a Hong Kong studies expert. "Aside from land and housing measures and other measures that try to encourage start-up and innovation, the government needs a stable and peaceful environment to implement them, but the government doesn't have such a condition," Tian noted. The forthcoming district council elections could also lead to some changes, and if the opposition camp gains control in more districts, then the government wouldn't get too much support from society, he warned. Lam said more than 300 government, institution or community sites with a total area of some 300 hectares currently earmarked for standalone public facilities will be reviewed for development under the single site, multiple use model. To assist non-governmental organizations in optimizing their underutilized sites, the government will facilitate the redevelopment of low-rise buildings on these sites by providing support and introducing mixed residential, education and welfare uses. This will not only provide modern facilities, but will also increase the supply of various types of housing, including elderly housing, youth hostels or transitional housing, Lam said. On criticism of the government's plan to resume land from private owners to build public housing, Michael Wong, Secretary for Development of Hong Kong, said that while there have been some legal challenges, the government has won the cases because "after all, we are talking about public housing, not commercial [projects]." He said the government will strictly follow the legal process in resuming the land. The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce also welcomed the policy initiatives laid out in Lam's policy address. "Our president Jonathan Choi Koon-shum agrees that housing is the most pressing livelihood issue in Hong Kong and part of the reasons for social public grievances. And he is happy to see that the policy address is pushing to increase transitional housing [and other measures]," said a statement given to the Global Times on Thursday. What's more, Carrie Lam noted that the Development Bureau will soon announce details of the Land Sharing Pilot Scheme aimed at accepting applications early next year. Unlike other development modes of government-led planning and government-initiated land resumption, the scheme will tap market forces in planning and construction. The government will facilitate infrastructure enhancement to allow higher development intensity and require that at least 70 percent of the additional gross floor area gained be allocated to public housing or starter homes as intended by the government. Shares of major real estate developers in the city rallied on expectations that the government's support for homebuyers will lift demand and drive up property prices. The stock rally lifted the market value of the six largest developers by as much as $3 billion, Bloomberg reported. However, Frank Chan Fan, Hong Kong Secretary of Transport and Housing, pushed back such speculations, saying that the move was simply giving "avenue" for first-time home buyers and will not significantly increase demand and prices. "I do not see the raising of the mortgage a determining factor for property prices," Chan said. ^ top ^

Hong Kong protesters' five demands meant to 'humiliate' government but won't solve city's issues, Singapore PM Lee Hsien Loong says (SCMP)
2019-10-17
The five main demands of Hong Kong's anti-government protesters are intended to "humiliate" the city's administration, and acceding to them is unlikely to solve the deep-seated issues linked to "one country, two systems", Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said on Wednesday. The veteran politician said he found it "hard to imagine" that the unique governance model in place since the city's return to Chinese rule in 1997 could last until 2047, when the system is meant to expire. Speaking during a dialogue at the Forbes Global CEO Conference, Lee also stressed that Singapore was unlikely to benefit from Hong Kong's woes because it depended heavily on investors having confidence in the entire region. The comments were the Singaporean leader's most extensive yet on the protests that have engulfed Hong Kong for 19 straight weeks. "I don't see any easy way forward because the demonstrators, they say they have five major demands, and not one can be compromised," the 67-year-old leader said in response to questions about Hong Kong from Steve Forbes, the chairman and editor-in-chief of Forbes Media. The protesters are seeking an inquiry into alleged police brutality during the protests; withdrawal of a controversial extradition bill; full amnesty for all those arrested during the protests; the retraction of the classification of protesters as "rioters"; and the implementation of full universal suffrage in the autonomous Chinese city. "But those are not demands which are meant to be a programme to solve Hong Kong's problems," Lee said. "Those are demands which are intended to humiliate and bring down the government." During the hour-long dialogue, Lee spent a considerable amount of time addressing the Hong Kong protests, and also touched on a range of other issues including the trade war and geopolitical stand-off between the United States and China, as well as Singapore's impending general election. Lee described Wednesday's events in Hong Kong – which saw Lam heckled by pro-democracy lawmakers in the Legislative Council, forcing her to deliver her address via video link – as "very sad for Hong Kong". There was no upside for Singapore from the protests, the prime minister added, because the trade-reliant island nation thrived only when other countries were prospering and doing business with it. "It's just the confidence in the region, so that investors can come and not think that [they are] in a dangerous part of the world," Lee said. He said the one country, two systems model was a key cause of unhappiness for Hong Kong and the government in Beijing. The system requires China to think not only of "one country" but also pay heed to the "two systems", Lee said, and in Hong Kong's case, the city's residents need to think of themselves as part of one country. Both sides needed to exercise restraint, Lee said, adding that Hong Kong also had "issues of governance". The question of universal suffrage – giving the people of Hong Kong free choice to pick their chief executive – was "something which needs to be dealt with". Lee added, however, that there was no simple solution, as Hong Kong exists as a special administrative region (SAR) – not a country – and that it has to "live and work within" that framework. "I think it's very difficult to imagine that one country, two systems can continue for another [28 years] until 2047," he said. The city's deep rooted social issues such as its infamous housing crunch required political courage from its leaders, Lee said. "So far, the SAR government has gone for conservative approaches and problems have not really significantly improved." Even though solutions could be advanced, this would take time, and it was necessary for "temperatures to come down", the prime minister said. During the dialogue, Lee also spoke about the Singapore economy, which has been reeling as a result of the trade war between the world's two largest economies. He said: "Our growth rate has come down. This year, we will be well under 1 per cent. If we are lucky, we should be above zero." Flash data for the third quarter released this week showed the city state's economy – a regional bellwether – grew 0.6 per cent compared to the last three months, beating earlier expectations of a contraction. A former finance minister, Lee also addressed the strain in US-China ties that stretches beyond trade issues. The trade war has "hardened" attitudes among Americans and the Chinese, Lee said, adding that it was not just US President Donald Trump or his Republican allies who had hawkish views about China, but a "whole layer of [the] establishment" that now feels that Beijing has done "bad things" such as cyber theft and unfair trade. China, too, had hardened itself in response to this stance from Washington, Lee said. "Since the last few decades, you will find it very difficult to find somebody in America who speaks up and says we should not demonise China." He said things could change if everyone concerned kept an "open mind". Lee, who became prime minister in 2004, also addressed a question on his succession plan. He has said he will step down and hand over the leadership role to his named successor, Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, some time after the next general elections, which he must call by April 2021. Speculation is mounting that Lee will call a snap vote in months. Still tight-lipped on when he will call the vote, Lee said it was important to have "an orderly political succession". He quipped that the election could be called any time in the next 18 months – around the same time period before his government term ends. "Time waits for no man … Every year, you are one year older. And as one year more, one year less in which you have time to prepare somebody to take over from you," Lee said. "After the next general election, I hope, within a not too long time, I'll be able to hand over." The premier also addressed domestic policies that he has sought to influence in his 15 years as premier – the country's stance on immigration, and its lagging birth rate. "It is a big challenge for any country, especially so for one with a small population," he said. He said the government was continuing to encourage couples to get married and become parents while also keeping open its doors to migrants at levels that will "not be too enormous and not overpower us". ^ top ^

Plans for 'offshore renminbi Nasdaq' in Macau submitted to Beijing (SCMP)
2019-10-13
A proposal to set up an offshore yuan-denominated "Nasdaq" in Macau has been submitted to Beijing for consideration, according to a senior official from neighbouring Guangdong province. He Xiaojun, director of Guangdong's Local Financial Supervision and Administration Bureau, said he hoped China's central government might give its blessing to the plan by mid-December, which marks the 20th anniversary of the city's return to Chinese administration, the Sina Finance news portal reported on Sunday. Guangdong, a hi-tech hub, is seeking to tap more capital for the sector. The Monetary Authority of Macau said that a feasibility study was continuing into the establishment of a securities exchange. It reiterated it would "differentiate [itself] from incumbent financial centres nearby" and "serve the country's needs". Beijing tasked Macau with carrying out a feasibility study on establishing a securities market – denominated and settled in yuan – in February when it revealed its outline development plan for the Greater Bay Area – a scheme to create an economic and innovation hub incorporating the cities of Hong Kong, Macau, Guangzhou and eight others in Guangdong. A yuan-based stock market could help Macau diversify away from gaming, its main revenue source. The city has begun to develop its financial services sector, but its scale is dwarfed by that of neighbouring Hong Kong, which is the region's primary centre for offshore deals and trades denominated in yuan. "We helped the Macau government to make a plan for [setting up] the stock exchange, with the aspiration to make it an offshore renminbi Nasdaq," He, the Guangdong official, was quoted as saying at a forum on Saturday, using the formal name for the Chinese currency. "[The plan] has been submitted for the central government's consideration. We hope a new exchange is on [Beijing's] gift list for the 20th anniversary." He did not say what Beijing's response to the proposal had been. He said the province has 45,000 hi-tech firms but only 600 Guangdong companies – not all of which are hi-tech – are listed, underscoring that the existing exchanges in Shanghai and Shenzhen could not meet the sector's needs. In June, the Monetary Authority of Macau said it had commissioned a consultancy to carry out the study. However, its chairman, Chan Sau San, said at the time that the authority would consider only the "long-term development" of a stock exchange in the city as there were already several mature financial centres in the region, such as Hong Kong and Shenzhen. The idea for an exchange would be considered as part of the wider development of the Greater Bay Area, he said. Tom Chan Pak-lam, chairman of Hong Kong's Institute of Securities Dealers, said Macau was unlikely to pose an immediate challenge to Hong Kong's leading position in offshore yuan financial services. "I can't see Macau's advantage in being a securities trading centre given Hong Kong has already established itself as a proven offshore securities centres for Chinese firms," Chan said. "Macau will need to start from scratch on a listing approval and regulatory system. "As to the idea of being an offshore yuan-based securities exchange, even Singapore, not to mention Hong Kong, has a much bigger pool of offshore yuan to facilitate such trading." Macau's legal system is mostly based on Portuguese and continental European law – but common law, the basis for Hong Kong's legal system, is far more widely accepted for international trading. "In case of disputes, how many companies or international fund managers are comfortable in resolving them using Macau's legal system?" Chan asked. Gordon Tsui Luen-on, managing director at Hantec Pacific, said Macau's aspiration to become a financial centre depends on how it can truly differentiate itself from Hong Kong and Shenzhen and offer something different. "After all, it takes decades to build up the necessary talent pool and regulatory policy regime for such a centre to come about," Tsui said. ^ top ^

Taiwan urges Hong Kong to keep murder suspect who sparked extradition crisis in custody (HKFP)
2019-10-18
Taiwan's Ministry of Justice has urged the Hong Kong authorities to continue to keep murder suspect Chan Tong-kai in custody. The case of the 20-year-old Hongkonger sparked the extradition bill crisis earlier this year. Whilst under police caution, Chan admitted to killing his 20-year-old Hong Kong girlfriend Poon Hiu-wing in Taiwan last February. Chan fled back to Hong Kong after the incident, but authorities were unable to charge him with murder in local courts and there was no extradition agreement with Taiwan. Chan was sentenced to 29 months in jail in April for money laundering in relation to cash and valuables he took from his deceased girlfriend. However, he could be released next week owing to time in custody and good behaviour. The Hong Kong government proposed a new extradition law in order to send Chan to Taiwan for trial, but the bill controversially included provisions to send suspects to mainland China, sparking mass protests. The demonstrations, now in their 19th week, have evolved into a wider movement seeking democracy and accountability for alleged police brutality. On Thursday, the Taiwan Ministry of Justice said it understood that the Hong Kong authorities had gathered evidence in Hong Kong which was not passed on to their Taiwan counterpart. The ministry said the Hong Kong authorities suspected Chan had planned the murder in Hong Kong before arriving in Taiwan. "It is not the case that Hong Kong has no jurisdiction," the ministry said. It said Hong Kong authorities should continue to hold Chan in custody and continue pursuing the case: "We will quickly provide the relevant evidence in Taiwan on an equal, dignified and mutually beneficial basis, so that the Hong Kong side will have the full evidence from Taiwan and Hong Kong, in order to investigate the truth and seek criminal liability for justice," the ministry said. The ministry said the relevant prosecutors had offered to help the Hong Kong authorities gather evidence in Taiwan last March and April, but they received no response. The Hong Kong government also rejected alternative proposals to extradition tabled by several pro-democracy lawmakers. ^ top ^

China to further alleviate burdens on companies, improve business environment (Xinhua)
2019-10-17
The State Council, China's cabinet, on Wednesday called for enhanced efforts to further alleviate burdens on companies to increase the momentum of development and provide foreign investors with a better business environment. The policies of cutting taxes and fees should be implemented carefully, and efforts should be made to solve difficulties for enterprises, to ensure that taxes on manufacturing and other major industries will drop significantly, according to a statement released after a State Council executive meeting chaired by Premier Li Keqiang. In the first eight months, tax and fee cuts exceeded 1.5 trillion yuan (about 212.03 billion U.S. dollars), further easing the burden on enterprises, increasing incomes and employment, and effectively stimulating market vitality, according to the meeting. It estimated that the total tax and fee cuts will surpass 2 trillion yuan by the end of this year. Also, the cuts played a significant role in counteracting downward pressure, stabilizing the country's economy and maintaining the economic operation within a reasonable range. The meeting urged local governments to intensify the management of fiscal budgets and maintain strict control of general expenditures. The country should unveil more measures to create jobs, encourage entrepreneurship and innovation and reduce fee burdens on the manufacturing industry in research and development to generate endogenous growth impetus. Meanwhile, the meeting underscored foreign investment's unique and vital role in boosting China's economic growth, calling for continuing efforts to streamline administrative procedures and enhance services to create a more attractive business environment for foreign investors. In this regard, the country will open up wider by removing the restrictive measures not included in the foreign investment negative lists for market access both nationwide and in free trade zones, scrapping business restrictions for foreign banks, securities firms and fund management firms, and implementing the amendment to the management regulations for foreign banks and insurance companies. While optimizing the foreign investment policies for vehicle manufacturing, the country should ensure equal market access for new energy vehicles produced by both domestic and overseas carmakers. The meeting also urged efforts to promote investment facilitation, provide equal protection of foreign investors' lawful rights and interests, and support local authorities to attract investment. ^ top ^

CPI hits 3.0% in Sept, fired by pork prices (Global Times)
2019-10-15
The consumer price index (CPI) in China, a main gauge of inflation, rose 3 percent year-on-year in September - the fastest rate in nearly six years - and that pace is likely to continue, industry observers said. However, the nation is unlikely to experience an inflationary spiral, they said. The figure, announced on Tuesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), reached 3 percent for the first time since November 2013 mainly due to rising food prices - in particular pork prices, which soared 69.3 percent on a yearly basis. The CPI was up 0.9 percent month-on-month, which was 0.2 percentage points higher than in August. China doesn't have the basis of one-way inflation or deflation, but will follow market changes, said Sun Guofeng, head of the monetary policy department of the People's Bank of China (PBC), China's central bank, on Tuesday. The CPI is likely to rise about 3 percent in the fourth quarter, based on the hefty increase in pork prices, which is forecast to last until next year, analysts said. However, the trend does not signal an inflationary spiral, they added. Wang Jun, the Beijing-based chief economist at Zhongyuan Bank, told the Global Times on Tuesday that surging pork prices have resulted in a structural price hike instead of a general rise in inflation. "Prices of consumer goods except for pork and oil haven't risen much. Besides, higher pork prices mainly reflect tighter supplies due to African swine fever (ASF) rather than higher demand, so it is structural," Wang said. Data from the NBS showed that non-food prices went up 1.0 percent year-on-year in September. "Non-food prices have been subdued, so there is limited space for the CPI to rise further simply because of soaring pork prices," said Liu Xuezhi, an analyst at the Bank of Communications. He estimated that the CPI will rise no more than 3 percent for the full year of 2019. The average level of CPI growth in the first nine months was 2.5 percent, according to the NBS. "For the moment, it is urgent to tackle the imbalance of pork supply and demand by encouraging hog feeding, increasing frozen pork reserves and expanding imports," Liu told the Global Times on Tuesday. China imported about 1.33 million tons of pork from January to September, up 43.6 percent year-on-year, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Monday. Policies have been implemented in China to combat the impact of ASF. A total of 30,000 tons of pork reserves had been released into the market by the end of September. Wang also said that "one key factor is that money supply is steady." Growth in M2, a broad measure of money supply, was 8.2 percent in August, kept at a "mild and controllable" level, according to Wang. The NBS also announced the Producer Price Index (PPI), which measures costs for manufacturing goods at the factory gate. The September PPI dropped 1.2 percent year-on-year, marking the third straight month of contraction. "What we should also notice is that last month's PPI rebounded slightly by 0.1 percentage points on a monthly basis, ending the contractions that were seen from June to August and showing the gradual, positive effect of increasing domestic demand," Liu noted. Both the CPI and PPI figures fell within expectations. Monetary policy will not be affected, while it is key to holding economic growth steady, said Li Daxiao, chief economist at Shenzhen-based Yingda Securities. China is scheduled to release the GDP growth rate for the first three quarters on Friday. Analysts forecast the figure will come in at about 6.1 percent. Premier Li Keqiang said in a meeting with local officials on Monday that China will persist in its efforts to stabilize employment and prices to weather economic downward pressure, making sure the full-year's main targets are achieved, including yearly GDP growth of 6-6.5 percent. ^ top ^

Why is Kim Jong-un riding a horse up a sacred mountain? Some clues from North Korean history (SCMP)
2019-10-18
Whatever Westerners thought about images of Kim Jong-un trekking through mountain snows astride a white stallion, the subliminal message sent to North Koreans was to instil confidence that they have a man of strength and destiny holding the reins of power. The internet was flooded with online jokes and memes after North Korea's state media released the photographs. But for North Koreans steeped in years of tightly controlled messaging from the government, the imagery would have been familiar and full of cultural and political cues. "The main thing to keep in mind is that while we might think Kim looks goofy, he doesn't think that," Jeffrey Lewis, a North Korea expert at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California, said on Twitter. "And we won't always like what he does to make us take him seriously." North Korea's ruling party newspaper Rodong Sinmun devoted its front page on Thursday to making sure Kim's impoverished people understood the significance of his ride up Mt Paektu, saying it symbolised their leader's resolve to protect the country in the face of outside pressure. North Korea is under a number of international economic sanctions, imposed because of its development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, and a record of human rights abuses. Many ordinary North Koreans are facing food shortages, international aid agencies say, due in part to government failures, poor weather, and the international sanctions. To reassure North Koreans, Rodong Sinmun said Kim's ride showed his "unwavering resolve and willpower to defend the dignity and destiny of the nation and the people without vacillating under any threat or temptation". Earlier this month, North Korea test fired a submarine-launched ballistic missile and also walked away from denuclearisation talks with US officials in Stockholm. Kim has said he will wait until the end of the year for the United States to show more flexibility. "In this acute battle against enemies, the slightest concession or retreat means a path to self-destruction," the newspaper said in the front-page commentary. Familiar with Korean mythology, and educated in the state approved history of Kim's dynasty, North Koreans would have easily recognised the loaded symbolism contained in Kim's mountain ride. Mt Paektu, a volcano straddling North Korea's border with China, is sacred to many Koreans, both in the North and South, who revere it as the mythical birthplace of a unified and independent peninsula. Kim has often visited the sacred mountain around the time of major developments in North Korea, including missile launches. According to North Korean history, the leader's grandfather, Kim Il-sung, based his anti-Japanese military campaign on the mountain. North Korea says Kim Jong-un's father, Kim Jong-il, was born at Mt Paektu, though historians believe his actual birthplace was in Russia. "Mt Paektu is the location of Kim Il-sung's mythical guerilla base," said Joshua Pollack, another North Korea researcher at Middlebury. "The location and the clothes are meant to evoke the founder's legacy." In another front-page article published by Rodong Sinmun on Thursday, a North Korean man was quoted as saying the images of Kim on horseback wearing a fur-trimmed military greatcoat reminded him of "legendary guerilla fighter" Kim Il-sung. "It was as if the voice of our dear marshal making a solemn declaration of history was echoed loudly," the article said. And the handsome white horse Kim rode evoked Korean legends of steeds with superpowers, like the winged horse Chollima, and another named Mallima, that was blessed with great speed and stamina to run for thousands of kilometres. North Korea named its economic effort to recover from the 1950-53 Korean war after Chollima, and more recently the state has taken to exhorting people to work with the "speed of Mallima". Rodong Sinmun called for the nation to move forward at "full speed, like the swift horse of Mt Paektu, toward a new victory", and quoted Kim calling for progress on economic projects. "North Korea apparently wants to send the message that US sanctions don't work," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean studies in Seoul. "But in the longer term, they aim to achieve balanced economic development." ^ top ^

South Korea vs North Korea World Cup Qualifier will not be screened live from Pyongyang: statement (SCMP)
2019-10-14
The upcoming Fifa 2022 World Cup Qualifier between South Korea and North Korea in Pyongyang will not be screened live, it has been confirmed by South Korean broadcasters. A joint statement on Monday from South Korea's biggest terrestrial television broadcasters KBS, MBC and SBS announced that the fears the game would not be beamed from the capital of their northern neighbours were accurate. KBS reported on their website that the three broadcasters had not received a response from Pyongyang until Monday, a day before the first meeting between the men's national teams in North Korea since 1990. The report also confirmed that no South Korean reporters were permitted to travel to the North Korean capital. South Korean players and staff were to travel to their northern neighbour via Beijing after being refused their request to travel direct. While there will be no away fans at the 50,000 capacity Kim Il-sung Stadium, the Seoul-based English language newspaper Korea Times reports that local fans are willing to pay to see South Korean stars Son Heung-min and Lee Kang-in. Tickets from touts were said to cost US$6, the equivalent to buying 10 kilograms of rice, according to Korea Times. It was unclear whether foreign tourists or diplomats would be allowed to purchase tickets for the game, or if rumours were true that it will be played behind closed doors. Neither Fifa nor the AFC had made a statement on the situation. It is not unusual for games played in North Korea involving foreign opponents to not be broadcast live overseas. While the men's team have not played in Pyongyang since their 1990 friendly match, South Korea's women played there in 2017. The two countries competed under a unified flag for a number of events at the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. It had also been reported that Seoul and Pyongyang are considering a joint bid for the 2032 Summer Games. Earlier this month South Korean president Moon Jae-in told the public to back the proposal, after receiving support from IOC president Thomas Bach. ^ top ^

Cabinet introduces its 2020-2024 plan of action (Montsame)
2019-10-17
The Cabinet held its extended meeting on October 15 and discussed its 2020-2024 plan of action. Activities to be carried out by each ministry were defined. Some of the actions to be done in 2020-2024 by the ministries include expansion of infrastructure, development of tourism, improvement of agricultural product quality, export and industrialization, liberalization of financial markets, establishment of satellite cities, increase of housing supply and the types of transparent digital public service, establishment of heating supply system in Ulaanbaatar's remote areas in coherence with construction works in ger areas, construction of thermal power plant in centers of 10 aimags and expansion of Amgalan Thermal Power Plant and 3rd Thermal Power Plant. More works such as construction of 1800km paved roads across the country in four years, approval of the National Program on free legal assistance to target groups of the society, implementation of the National Program on the reduction of unemployment and poverty, inauguration of newly established Wastewater Treatment Plant, construction of buildings of 'Chinggis Khaan' Museum, Natural History Museum, Grand Theatre of National Arts, Children's Culture and Development Center, realization of National Program 'Healthy Food-Healthy Mongolian', commencement of operations of Asgat and Salkhit silver deposits as well as others were stated in the plan of action. ^ top ^

Mongolia expresses position at First committee general debate (Montsame)
2019-10-16
P.Baasankhuu, Deputy Permanent Representative of Mongolia to the United Nations, attended the meeting of First committee general debate of the 74th United Nations General Assembly and expressed Mongolian government's position on the disarmament and international security. In his speech, P.Baasankhuu affirmed that Mongolia is fulfilling its duty given by 'Treaty on the Non-proliferation of Nuclear Weapon,' 'Chemical Weapons Convention,' 'Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty' and 'Biological Weapons Convention' and aims to contribute to the global efforts for disarmament and non-proliferation. He informed Mongolia's intent to join Nuclear Weapon Test-Ban Treaty in the near future. Mongolia acts as a coordinator of the Fourth Conference 'Nuclear weapon-free zones and Mongolia' to be organized in New York in 2020. ^ top ^

Chinese, Mongolian leaders exchange congratulations on 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties (Xinhua)
2019-10-16
Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged congratulatory messages on Wednesday with his Mongolian counterpart, Khaltmaa Battulga, on the 70th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic ties. In his message, Xi said China and Mongolia are friendly neighbors linked by mountains and rivers, and Mongolia was among the first to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. In the 70 years since the establishment of ties, the two countries have firmly held the general direction of friendly cooperation and jointly deepened the development of good-neighborly and friendly cooperation, bringing tangible benefits to the two countries and peoples, Xi said. With joint efforts of both sides in recent years, China-Mongolia relations have entered a fast lane of development and showed a gratifying new look. Xi said he attaches great importance to the development of China-Mongolia relations, and is willing to work with President Battulga to promote the two countries' comprehensive strategic partnership, which stands at a new starting point as their diplomatic ties mark the 70th anniversary, to constantly achieve new and greater improvements. In his congratulatory message, Battulga said that at this important historical moment of the 70th anniversary of China-Mongolia ties, both sides have summarized the achievements of the 70-year exchanges, and made high-level discussion and plans about future cooperation in a long-term direction. The Mongolian side feels happy about this, he added. At present, China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership has achieved good development in various fields, met the interests of the two peoples, and made important contributions to peace and development in the region, Battulga said. Battulga expressed his willingness to continue making joint efforts with President Xi to further consolidate and develop the friendly relations of the two countries as well as cooperation in various fields. On the same day, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang also exchanged congratulatory messages with Mongolian Prime Minister Ukhnaa Khurelsukh. In his message, Li said that under the new circumstances, China is ready to work with Mongolia to jointly lead bilateral ties to keep marching forward, so as to bring more benefits to the two countries and peoples. Khurelsukh, for his part, said in his message that the Mongolian side is willing to constantly enrich the contents of bilateral ties with China, strengthen bilateral cooperation in international and regional affairs, and enhance the friendly relations between peoples of the two countries. ^ top ^

Jennia Jin
Embassy of Switzerland