https://www.voanews.com/z/600 asia https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com/z/600 en 2026 - VOA 60 Fri, 10 Apr 2026 17:18:12 -0400 Pangea CMS – VOA Relations between Russia and China are indeed closer than at any point since the 1950s, but they are shaped more by pragmatism, economic necessity and shared opposition to Western influence than by deep trust or historical affinity. https://www.voanews.com/a/russian-foreign-minister-exaggerates-russia-china-relations-ignores-nuances/8011464.html https://www.voanews.com/a/russian-foreign-minister-exaggerates-russia-china-relations-ignores-nuances/8011464.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 20:53:12 -0400 PolygraphEast AsiaEuropeChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Leonid Martynyuk) Washington — While some youth in China admit to spending an excessive amount of time on the internet, many are skeptical about new government proposals aimed at regulating the time young Chinese spend online and on social media sites. In conversations at China’s annual political meetings that wrapped up in Beijing this week, retired international basketball star Yao Ming, called for some limits on internet access for young people in China. Yao was advocating for a plan that would mandate children turn off all electronics for one full day every academic semester and get outside and exercise. Officials also called for tighter controls of online gaming and cited concerns about harmful online content, warning that excessive internet use is hurting the physical health and academic performance of Chinese minors under the age of 18. China already has some of the world’s tightest internet controls, with tens of thousands of websites, foreign social media sites and content blocked. It also has a massive online population. On social media in China some commenters praised the efforts, but many expressed frustrations with what they viewed to be an inherent contradiction within the policies. Some noted that children are already in school most of the day and rely on internet resources to complete assignments. “Schools should assign less homework that requires phone check-ins and online research,” wrote one user from northern Hebei Province. “Minors get home around 9 p.m. or 10 p.m. at night, so when do they even have time to use social media?” wrote another user from Beijing. A college student in Beijing, who spoke with VOA on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the topic, said she agreed with officials’ concerns, but added that policies like the one suggested by Yao are likely to have a limited impact. “Chinese teenagers and young people are absolutely addicted to the internet. You can find people walking on the streets looking at their phones everywhere and all the time. We use the internet to do almost everything,” the student told VOA. “I don’t really think proposals to limit internet accessibility for young people would be effective. The addiction is always hard to get rid of, so how can a ‘limit day’ alleviate the excessive internet use?” the student said, using the word “addiction” to describe the excessive use of the internet. According to the "2024 China Game Industry Minor Protection Report" released by the Game Working Committee of the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association, as of December 2023, the number of internet users in China under the age of 18 reached 196 million, with the percentage of minors who are on the internet and can access it reaching 97.3%. Will Wang, a Chinese student attending college in the United States, said when he returns home in Beijing during school break his impression is that the internet is used heavily in everyday life, and that teenagers are very active on social media platforms. “There’s definitely a significant increase in screen and internet usage across all ages in China…many Chinese teenagers are deeply engaged with TikTok, RedNote, Bilibili, and many internet platforms,” Wang said in a written response to VOA. Amid the busy academic and personal lives of young Chinese, the internet provides them with a rare space for privacy, which Wang said is fueling high levels of internet use. “Most Chinese teenagers don’t have a lot of private space for themselves at home or at school so [the] internet is the only option, especially with their busy schedules––nearly every kid has to attend some sort of classes or studying-related activities outside of school,” Wang said. “For teenagers, if anything, [the] internet makes them more connected with their friends and the world.” Xu Quan, a media commentator based in Hong Kong, said online spaces can have a positive effect on children, who are often overwhelmed with parental and educational expectations. "Contrary to what some might think, the internet helps them deal with stress to a certain extent. If you were to remove the internet from their lives, that would actually be harmful to their physical and mental well-being," Xu told VOA. The recent proposals to limit internet use build on previous regulations regarding youth internet use. In October 2020, China revised the “Law on the Protection of Minors,” adding an “internet protection” chapter requiring that social media, gaming and live streaming platforms implement tools to limit their excessive use. The law targeted gaming addictions in particular. A 2021 notice required strict limits on gaming time allotments for children under 18. The regulation banned gaming between the hours of 10 p.m. and 8 a.m., and limited minors to no more than one hour of gaming per day on weekdays or two hours per day on weekends. During Chinese New Year this year, Tencent Games issued a "limited play order" for minors. During the 32-day break from academics, teenagers were only permitted to play the company’s games for a total of 15 hours. However, all of these regulations can be circumvented through using or creating accounts belonging to adults, who are not subject to the restrictions. Despite previous momentum, A Qiang, who used to work in the Chinese media industry, thinks proposals from the recently concluded political meetings in Beijing are just talk and won’t lead to any concrete policy change. The real way forward, he argues, is by lessening burdens impacting the quality of minors’ lives offline such as intense academic pressure. The problem is not that they have too much freedom online but have too little freedom offline, he said. https://www.voanews.com/a/chinese-officials-look-to-limit-social-media-and-screen-time-in-china-/8010657.html https://www.voanews.com/a/chinese-officials-look-to-limit-social-media-and-screen-time-in-china-/8010657.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 11:10:21 -0400 China NewsEast Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Katherine Michaelson, Kelly Tang) WASHINGTON — A second Iranian ship that Western news reports have named as part of a scheme to import a missile propellant ingredient from China is heading to Iran with a major cargo load, an exclusive VOA analysis has found. Ship-tracking websites show the Iranian-flagged cargo ship Jairan departed China on Monday, a month later than the expected departure cited by one of the news reports. The Jairan was named in January and February articles by The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal and CNN as one of two Iranian cargo ships Tehran is using to import 1,000 metric tons of sodium perchlorate from China. The three news outlets cited unnamed Western intelligence sources as saying the purported shipment could be transformed into enough ammonium perchlorate — a key solid fuel propellant component — to produce 260 midrange Iranian missiles. The other Iranian cargo ship named in the news reports, the Golbon, completed a 19-day journey from eastern China to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas on Feb. 13. During the trip, it made a two-day stop at southern China's Zhuhai Gaolan port and delivered an unknown cargo to Iran, according to ship-tracking website MarineTraffic. Both the Golbon and the Jairan are sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury Department as vessels operated by the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines, which itself is sanctioned for being what the State Department has called "the preferred shipping line for Iranian proliferators and procurement agents." As the Golbon sailed from China to Iran in late January and early February, the Jairan’s automatic identification system transponder — a device that transmits positional and other data as part of an internationally mandated tracking system — reported the vessel as being docked at eastern China's Liuheng Island. In a joint review of the Jairan's AIS data on MarineTraffic and fellow ship-tracking website Seasearcher, VOA and Dubai-based intelligence analyst Martin Kelly of EOS Risk Group determined that the Jairan reported no significant draught change while docked at Liuheng Island through February and into early March. That meant the Iranian vessel was sitting at the almost same depth in the water as when it arrived in eastern China late last year, indicating it had not been loaded with any major cargo since then. The Jairan remained at Liuheng Island until March 3, when it headed south toward Zhuhai Gaolan and docked at the port on March 8. Two days later, the Jairan departed, reporting its destination as Bandar Abbas with an expected arrival of March 26. The Iranian ship also reported a significant draught change upon leaving Zhuhai Gaolan, transmitting data showing it was sitting more than 2 meters deeper in the water and indicating it had taken on a major cargo at the port, Kelly told VOA. As of Friday, local time, the Jairan was in the waters of Indonesia's Riau Archipelago, heading southwest toward the Singapore Strait. The U.S. State Department had no comment on the Jairan's departure from China when contacted by VOA. Iran's U.N. mission in New York did not respond to a similar VOA request for comment, emailed on Tuesday. Last month, the State Department told VOA it was aware of the January news reports by The Financial Times and Wall Street Journal regarding Iran's purported use of the Golbon and Jairan to import sodium perchlorate from China. A spokesperson said the State Department does not comment on intelligence matters but "remains focused on preventing the proliferation of items, equipment, and technology that could benefit Iran's missile or other weapons programs and continues to hold Iran accountable through sanctions." Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning responded to the news reports in a Jan. 23 press briefing, asserting that China abides by its own export controls and international obligations and rejects other countries' imposition of what Beijing considers illegal unilateral sanctions. In the past month, Chinese state media have made no reference to the Jairan, while China’s social media platforms also have had no observable discussion about the Iranian ship, according to a review by VOA’s Mandarin Service. In its Jan. 22 report, The Financial Times cited "security officials in two Western countries" as saying the Jairan would depart China in early February, but it did not leave until March 10. Gregory Brew, a senior Iran analyst at the Eurasia Group, a New York-based political risk consultancy, said Iran may have wanted to see if the Golbon could complete its voyage from China without being interdicted before sending the Jairan to follow it. "Ships carrying highly sensitive materials related to Iran's missile industry, which is under U.S. sanctions, are at risk of interception, and the Iranians likely are conscious of that," Brew said. Eight Republican U.S. senators led by Jim Risch and Pete Ricketts sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio about the purported Iran-China chemical scheme dated Feb. 4, urging him to work with global partners of the U.S. "to intercept and stop the shipments currently underway" if the press reports proved accurate. There was no sign of the Golbon being intercepted on its recent China to Iran voyage. Responding to VOA's query about the letter, a U.S. State Department press officer said: "We do not comment on Congressional correspondence." Ricketts' office also did not respond to a VOA inquiry about whether Rubio has responded to the senators' letter. VOA's Mandarin Service contributed to this report. https://www.voanews.com/a/exclusive-second-iranian-ship-suspected-of-carrying-missile-ingredient-leaves-china/8010476.html https://www.voanews.com/a/exclusive-second-iranian-ship-suspected-of-carrying-missile-ingredient-leaves-china/8010476.html Fri, 14 Mar 2025 01:05:35 -0400 Middle EastEast AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Michael Lipin) Three revised regulations that dictate everything from the Chinese military’s broad mandate to soldiers’ day-to-day life are slated to take effect on April 1. The revisions have placed an emphasis on the PLA’s combat readiness and wartime conduct, the latter of which appears 49 times. Analysts say the revised regulations show the priority of the PLA’s future reform and its challenges. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-china-revises-pla-regulations-prioritizing-war-readiness-/8010375.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-china-revises-pla-regulations-prioritizing-war-readiness-/8010375.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 22:50:12 -0400 East AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Meng-Li Yang) CHARLEVOIX, QUEBEC — Top diplomats from the Group of Seven leading industrial nations gathered Thursday in Charlevoix, Quebec, as host country Canada outlined its top agenda, focusing on achieving a “just and lasting peace in Ukraine” and strengthening security and defense partnerships as the G7 marks 50 years. During the opening remarks, Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said, “Peace and stability is on the top of our agenda, and I look forward to discussing how we can continue to support Ukraine in the face of Russia's illegal aggression.” Joly also emphasized the importance of addressing maritime security challenges, citing threats such as “growing the use of growing shadow fleets, dark vessels” and “sabotage of critical undersea infrastructure.” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said he hopes a ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine could take place within days if the Kremlin agrees. He also plans to urge G7 foreign ministers to focus on ending the Russia-Ukraine war. The G7 talks in Quebec follow U.S.-Ukraine talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, where Ukraine said it is ready to accept a U.S. proposal for "an immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire." "Ukraine is committed to moving quickly toward peace, and we are prepared to do our part in creating all of the conditions for a reliable, durable, and decent peace," Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote Wednesday in a post on social media platform X. He added that "Ukraine was ready for an air and sea ceasefire," and "welcomed" the U.S. proposal to extend it to land. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Russia supports the U.S. ceasefire proposal in principle, but key details still need to be worked out. “Ceasefire, they can't be coming with conditions, because all these conditions just blur the picture. Either you want to end this war, or you don't want to end this war, so we need to be very firm,” said European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas during an interview with CNN International. “What we need to keep in mind is that Russia has invested, like over 9% of its GDP on the military, so they would want to use it,” Kallas said, adding the European nations “are massively increasing” their “defense investments.” The G7 talks bring together ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.  Rubio has underscored the need for monitors if a ceasefire is implemented. He told reporters on Wednesday that “one of the things we'll have to determine is who do both sides trust to be on the ground to sort of monitor some of the small arms fire and exchanges that could happen.” Beyond Ukraine, G7 foreign ministers also discussed China’s role in global security, Indo-Pacific stability, and maritime security behind closed doors. Rubio is expected to have a pull-aside meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on Thursday. https://www.voanews.com/a/ukraine-peace-global-security-top-g7-agenda-as-diplomats-convene-in-canada-/8010030.html https://www.voanews.com/a/ukraine-peace-global-security-top-g7-agenda-as-diplomats-convene-in-canada-/8010030.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 17:46:06 -0400 UkraineUSAEast AsiaEuropeAmericaswebdesk@voanews.com (Nike Ching) Western politicians have repeatedly called on China to limit or cease tacit support for Russia’s bloody war against Ukraine. In response, China’s leadership insists it is committed to peace and respect for the territorial integrity of other nations. But unlike most United Nations member states, China has never condemned Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and their military-diplomatic partnership — from joint bomber flights near the U.S. state of Alaska to votes in the U.N. Security Council — has only helped the Kremlin overcome its international isolation. While President Donald Trump has said he has good personal relations with both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping, there is a consensus among experts in Washington that the China-Russia partnership poses a threat to U.S. interests, and that while Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, tried to establish a strategic dialogue with China, the Trump team appears to be prioritizing normalized ties with Russia while punishing China over trade. As the White House talks about the possibility of restoring economic cooperation with Russia, some of its officials are hinting at lifting or reducing the sanctions Washington has imposed on Moscow in recent years. Charles Hecker, an expert on Western-Russian economic ties and risks, and author of the book Zero Sum: The Arc of International Business in Russia, says some Western companies will quickly return to Russia if sanctions are lifted, particularly those involved in energy, metals and minerals. “There’s only so much oil in Norway, and there’s only so much oil in Canada; the rest of it is in some countries that have a very high-risk environment,” Hecker told VOA’s Russian Service. “And so, these kinds of companies are accustomed to business in these sorts of places, and they have the internal structures to help protect them. You know, there are energy companies doing business in Iraq right now. And I don’t want to compare Russia and Iraq, but they are high-risk environments.”  Still, Hecker cautions, their return to doing business in Russia wouldn’t signal an overall U.S.-Russian rapprochement — let alone a fracturing of Sino-Russian relations. “I think it will be very difficult for the West to pull Russia away from China,” he said. “Allowing Western companies back into Russia doesn’t necessarily change President Putin’s hostility towards the West. President Putin remains antagonistic towards a Western-dominated political and economic system, and he has said over and over again that he wants to create an alternative political and economic environment – an alternative to the West. “Part of that alternative includes China,” he added. “You have never heard President Putin say anything ideologically against China. And the two are now important energy partners.” Limited popular domestic appeal U.S.-based FilterLabs analyzes public sentiment in regions where polling is problematic. According to a recently published assessment of popular attitudes expressed on Russian and Chinese social media networks, Sino-Russian relations are “full of underlying tensions, mistrust, and diverging interests.” One of the report’s authors, Vasily Gatov, told VOA its research found that “the Chinese and Russian populations are far from happy with this alliance of their authorities.” "China does not perceive Russia as a reliable, safe and equal partner,” he said. “Russia annexed the Amur Region from China; Russia adopted a completely colonial policy towards China during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Therefore, in my opinion, it is entirely possible to consider historical frictions as a vulnerability.” A media analyst at the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, Gatov also noted that, despite the Kremlin’s expectations, China’s economic presence inside Russia today remains “several times smaller” than that of either Europe or the U.S. before Russia invaded Ukraine. Thus, while Russian and China have overlapping interests, they are not “marching in lockstep.” "They are very different, they have very different geopolitical focuses, very different political philosophies,” he said. Other experts, however, question the Filterlabs findings, warning that random Russian and Chinese opinions online are of limited value, especially as those casting the insights aren’t likely to influence policy. "People who have the time and desire to comment on things on social media do not have much influence on how state policy is conducted,” Alexander Gabuev, director of the Berlin-based Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, told VOA. “And these people certainly do not have much influence on whether China transfers components for Russia's weapons or takes certain military technologies from it, since the people who comment on this simply do not have real knowledge of what is actually happening.” Gabuev added that “the Chinese leadership has reasons to think that they have something to take from Russia in terms of military technology,” suggesting that China is extremely interested in gaining Russian experience in countering Western weapons during Russia's war in Ukraine. Does Trump see China as a threat? One critical question about whether Washington’s improved ties with Russia will loosen the Sino-Russian pact, say some analysts, is how Trump perceives China. Ali Wyne, senior research and advocacy advisor on the U.S. and China at the International Crisis Group, describes Trump as an anomaly for U.S. policy. “Widespread bipartisan agreement in Congress and from one administration to the next [is] that China is American’s foremost strategic competitor,” he said. But “President Trump, in many ways, is the most prominent dissenter from this alleged China consensus.” “He doesn’t view President Xi [Jinping] in adversarial terms,” Wyne said. “He actually calls President Xi a ‘dear friend’ of his. And he believes that his personal rapport with President Xi will be the decisive dynamic in setting — or resetting — the U.S.-China relationship over the next four years.” https://www.voanews.com/a/can-the-us-pry-russia-away-from-china/8009771.html https://www.voanews.com/a/can-the-us-pry-russia-away-from-china/8009771.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 14:26:15 -0400 USAEast AsiaEuropeChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Danila Galperovich) The state of Texas has the third-largest Asian American population in the United States, according to the U.S. census, and Chinese people, some whose families arrived more than 150 years ago, make up the largest group. Chinese Americans trace back for generations in the Lone Star State. Their story may not be as well known as that of their counterparts in California or New York City, but it is just as intertwined with America's history. At Rice University, the Houston Asian American Archive, or HAAA, is keeping their stories alive and sharing them with new generations. Launched in 2009, the archive now contains the oral histories of some 500 people in its database, providing a crucial window to the past. "Oral history gives you a sense of immediacy and maybe more informality. And it's also unfiltered," said Anne Chao, HAAA co-founder and program manager. The archive also preserves memorabilia and artifacts from Asian Americans in Houston — a city known for its oil and gas industry. It is also known for space exploration and is home to NASA's Johnson Space Center. Albert Gee One Chinese American who found success in 1960s and '70s Houston was Albert Gee, who at the time was considered the unofficial mayor of the Chinese community. Gee appeared with Hollywood celebrities in the society pages of local newspapers and was once invited to the White House of President Richard Nixon. Born in Detroit, Michigan, in 1920, Gee and his family moved to New Orleans, where they operated a laundry business. When his father died in 1927, Gee's mother, who did not speak English, decided to take her children back to their home in China, hoping that her three sons would return one by one to the U.S., which they did. "Albert found himself only around 11 years old, coming back to the United States," said his daughter Linda Wu. "He was just working — working and trying to send money back to his mother." Gee returned to the U.S. with his godfather, whom he lived with for a few years in San Francisco, California. Eventually, with the help of friends and relatives, Gee ended up in Houston. He eventually opened grocery stores and restaurants, which became a draw for Hollywood celebrities, who would stay at a nearby hotel when in town. Wu has photos of celebrities such as singer Elvis Presley and comedian Bob Hope posing at the restaurants, some next to her father. Helping newcomers Wu said her parents saw themselves as Americans but never forget their roots. Her mother, Jane Eng, the child of Chinese immigrants, was born and raised in Texas. "I always remember different people coming to live with us at the grocery store, family members who would start their roots here," she said. By assisting newcomers, the established Chinese Americans helped fuel the growth of the Gee family surname in Houston. Not all the Gees in Houston were related, however. Stories about some of the city's Gees can be found in the HAAA database and in the 1998 anthology "The Gees in Houston, Texas." "For the Gee family, it's been discerned that we've come from about three to four villages in China," said Rogene Gee Calvert, who contributed stories about her father, David Gee — no relation to Albert Gee — to the anthology. David Gee David Gee migrated from China to the U.S. in the late 1920s, during the Chinese Exclusion Act, which allowed Chinese merchants, diplomats and students into the country but banned laborers. Gee was 17 when he arrived, but his passport indicated he was four years younger. He was a so-called paper son. "'Paper sons' and 'paper daughters' are the names given to people who buy false papers," said Casey Dexter-Lee, an educator at Angel Island State Park in San Francisco Bay. Part of the island served as a major immigration station from 1910 to 1940. "It's about $100 for each year of life that the person claims," she said. "So a 10-year-old would cost about $1,000 to buy false papers." After arriving in the U.S., David Gee was detained at the Angel Island Immigration Station for almost a year. Eventually, he received permission to stay. David Gee worked in San Francisco with a relative. In 1938, he moved to Houston to join a family friend. He returned to San Francisco to get married, then brought his wife to Houston, where he worked in the grocery business. "There was discrimination and, of course, there were natural barriers of language and just knowing how to navigate … how to get around and what to do," Calvert said. "So, there were some elders who were well-spoken that were respected in the mainstream community that really helped our family." Houston and Jim Crow Chao said the first large group of Chinese immigrants arrived in Houston in the 1940s and '50s. At that time, racial segregation was legal in Texas and Southern states through a series of codes known as Jim Crow laws. "Even though Houston also was subject to Jim Crow law, the law wasn't applied the same way as [in] the other Southern states. And so, there's a sense of more equitable equity in Houston." Chao said, adding that people, including Chinese Americans, settled in Houston because there was a "sense of business opportunity." Being neither Black nor white, the Chinese Texans occupied a gray area under Jim Crow law. "They were just in between and just dependent upon how well the neighborhood or people accepted them," said Ted Gong, senior adviser to the Chinese American Museum in Washington. Albert Gee, as president of the Houston Restaurant Association, took part in the desegregation of the city's restaurants in the early 1960s. Decades later, his work in the community was immortalized in a web comic for Texas students in 2023. The comic is part of a free website called Adventures of Asia, developed by Asia Society Texas, which also collaborated with HAAA to create lesson guides for teachers called Asia in the Classroom. "Our Asian American students in particular said they want to see themselves represented in the curriculum," said Jennifer Kapral, director of education and outreach at Asia Society Texas Center. The Asian population in the U.S. nearly doubled from 2000 to 2019 and is expected to continue to grow, according to the Pew Research Center. But the history of the Asians who settled in the U.S. is missing from many textbooks, Kapral said. "There was a study that looked at 30 U.S. history textbooks from across the U.S., and they found that Asian American history was only mentioned in half of them. And of that half, it was an average of about one to two pages in the entire textbook. So, it's been a big gap." Asian American Houstonians are filling this void by sharing their stories, preserving artifacts from their past, and educating the next generation about how their forebears carved a place for themselves in Texas' largest city. https://www.voanews.com/a/the-story-of-chinese-americans-who-call-texas-home/8008697.html https://www.voanews.com/a/the-story-of-chinese-americans-who-call-texas-home/8008697.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 11:39:17 -0400 USAEast AsiaArts & CultureChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Elizabeth Lee) TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said on Thursday that China has deepened its influence campaigns and infiltration against the democratic island, pledging measures to tackle Beijing's efforts to "absorb" Taiwan. Taiwan has accused China of stepping up military drills, trade sanctions and influence campaigns against the island in recent years to force the island to accept Chinese sovereignty claims. Speaking to reporters after holding a meeting with senior security officials, Lai said Beijing had used Taiwan's democracy to "absorb" various members of society, including organized crime groups, media personalities, and current and former military and police officers. "They (China) are carrying out activities such as division, destruction, and subversion from within us," Lai told a news briefing broadcast live from the presidential office. China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Citing government data, Lai said 64 people were charged for Chinese espionage last year, three times more than in 2021. He said the majority of them were current or former military officials. "Many are worried that our country, hard-earned freedom and democracy and prosperity will be lost, bit by bit, due to these influence campaigns and manipulation," Lai said. By making these efforts, Lai said China constituted what Taiwan's Anti-Infiltration Act defined as "foreign hostile forces." The president proposed 17 legal and economic countermeasures, including the strict review of Taiwan visits or residency applications by Chinese citizens, and proposals to resume the work of the military court. Lai also said his government would make "necessary adjustments" to the flows of money, people and technology across the strait. He did not elaborate. In addition, he said the government would issue "reminders" to Taiwanese actors and singers performing in China on their "statements and actions," a response to what Taipei sees as an ongoing Chinese campaign to pressure pop stars to make pro-Beijing comments. "We have no choice but to take more active actions." China claims Taiwan as its own territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring the island under its control. Taiwan's government rejects Beijing's sovereignty claims and says only the island's people can decide their future. https://www.voanews.com/a/taiwan-president-warns-of-china-s-infiltration-effort-/8009149.html https://www.voanews.com/a/taiwan-president-warns-of-china-s-infiltration-effort-/8009149.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 05:03:43 -0400 TaiwanEast AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) BEIJING — China's embassy in New Zealand on Thursday accused Wellington's top spy of lying after the intelligence chief warned of security risks posed by Beijing's growing influence in the Pacific. In a speech in Wellington last week, New Zealand's Security Intelligence Service Director-General Andrew Hampton said the focus of Pacific nations on economic and transnational crime issues had opened the door for China to sign strategic deals with them that linked economic and security cooperation. "The relevant remarks are totally baseless, all fabrication, and amount to spreading false information," the Chinese Embassy in Wellington said. "For someone holding a hammer, everything looks like a nail." In recent years, Beijing has struck deals with a number of Pacific nations, worrying New Zealand, a member of the Five Eye intelligence alliance along with Britain, the U.S., Canada, and Australia. Hampton said last week that China wanted to “create competing regional architectures, and expand its influence with Pacific Island countries,” which posed foreign interference and espionage risks. The Cook Islands, a self-governing Pacific nation in free-association with New Zealand, is at the heart of recent tensions between China and New Zealand. Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown travelled to China in February, signing a comprehensive strategic partnership deal with Chinese Premier Li Qiang. That angered Wellington, which complained about the lack of consultation and transparency around Brown's visit. Relevant cooperation documents have been made public, the Chinese statement said, adding that there is no "secret agenda" in China's relations with the Cook Islands. China's embassy in Wellington also handles the country's diplomatic relations with the island nations of Niue and the Cook Islands. https://www.voanews.com/a/china-accuses-new-zealand-s-top-spy-of-spreading-false-information-/8009141.html https://www.voanews.com/a/china-accuses-new-zealand-s-top-spy-of-spreading-false-information-/8009141.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 04:23:41 -0400 China NewsEast Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) TOKYO — Japan wants to boost its rice exports almost eightfold by 2030, a ministry official said Thursday, despite currently suffering a domestic shortage of the grain. The country's rice consumption has more than halved over the past 60 years as diets have expanded to include more bread, noodles and other energy sources. The new target is part of a long-term national policy to boost overseas shipments of the staple, and make farming it more efficient, especially as the ageing population shrinks. "We plan to set a goal of 350,000 tons in 2030," an objective likely to be approved by the cabinet this month, Masakazu Kawaguchi, an agriculture ministry official in charge of the rice trade, told AFP. The target is 7.8 times the 2024 volume -- around 45,000 tons -- which was sold for 12 billion yen, or $81 million. However, rice is in short supply at the moment. This week the government began a rare auction of its emergency rice stockpiles in a bid to help drive down prices, which have nearly doubled over the past year. The shortages have been driven by various factors, including poor harvests caused by hot weather and panic-buying prompted by a "megaquake" warning last summer. Exacerbating the problem, some businesses are also thought to be keeping their inventories and waiting for the most opportune time to sell. https://www.voanews.com/a/japan-eyes-boosting-rice-exports-eightfold-by-2030/8009122.html https://www.voanews.com/a/japan-eyes-boosting-rice-exports-eightfold-by-2030/8009122.html Thu, 13 Mar 2025 03:04:32 -0400 East Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Agence France-Presse) WASHINGTON — The son of imprisoned pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai this week brought the campaign to secure his father’s release to the Trump administration in Washington. Nearly two months into President Donald Trump’s second term, Lai’s son Sebastien and their international legal team were in Washington this week to meet with Trump administration officials and lawmakers in hopes that the United States can help push for Lai’s release. Lai, a businessman and founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper in Hong Kong, stands accused of collusion with foreign forces and sedition under a Beijing-imposed national security law. He rejects the charges, but if convicted in an ongoing trial, he could face life in prison. "We were incredibly grateful that President Trump said that he will help release my father. It’s given us as a family a lot of hope," the younger Lai said at a Wednesday event at the Cato Institute think tank in Washington. In October 2024, Trump said he would "100%" be able to secure Lai’s release if he were reelected. "I’ll get him out. He’ll be easy to get out. But we don’t have people that even talk about it," Trump said in an interview with conservative podcast host Hugh Hewitt. The White House did not reply to VOA’s email requesting comment on whether the Trump administration had any specific plans to help secure Lai’s release. But a State Department spokesperson reaffirmed that the United States calls for Lai’s immediate release. "Lai’s lengthy trial and unjust detention are an example of how China uses vague national security laws to suppress fundamental freedoms and political discourse," the spokesperson added in a statement emailed to VOA on Wednesday. Lai, a 77-year-old British national, has been held in solitary confinement in Hong Kong since late 2020. His trial, which was originally estimated to last about 80 days, has been ongoing since December 2023 and is widely viewed as politically motivated. Hong Kong authorities have rejected accusations that Lai’s trial is unfair and maintain that press freedom and the rule of law are intact. Speaking at the Cato Institute event, Mark Clifford, president of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong, suggested that the U.S. government should use sanctions against Hong Kong officials as a way to push for Lai’s release. Clifford, who previously served on the board of Apple Daily’s parent company, also suggested the United States could shutter the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Offices in Washington, New York and San Francisco. "There’s a pretty good tool kit that the administration has," Clifford said. Even though the government-appointed judges are likely to find Lai guilty, Mark Simon, who worked with Lai for decades in Hong Kong, argued that releasing Lai may be in Beijing’s interest. "Your influence as a dissident is at the height when you’re in prison. The world is campaigning for you. If you’re China and you release him, his influence goes down," Simon said at the Cato Institute. "If he dies in prison, then you don’t control anything." Jimmy Lai’s international legal team has expressed concern about the conditions in which the publisher is being held, including prolonged solitary confinement and no access to specialized medical care for diabetes. Hong Kong authorities have rejected those claims. "Everybody realizes that the clock is ticking, and time is running out for my father," Sebastien Lai said. But even though his father’s physical health has become fragile, Sebastien Lai said his mind has stayed strong. "He’s still strong mentally, and he’s still fighting," the younger Lai said. "That’s something that should inspire all of us." Before concluding his cross-examination in Lai’s national security trial last week, Hong Kong prosecutor Anthony Chau read out the charges, alleged conspiracies and co-conspirators, and asked the elder Lai if he agreed with them. "Of course I disagree. Totally rubbish," Lai said. After 52 days in the witness box, Lai completed his testimony in the trial last week. Lawyers from both sides aren’t expected to return to court to deliver their closing statements until August, marking the trial’s latest months-long delay. Lai’s plight has received bipartisan support in Washington, according to Caoilfhionn Gallagher, the attorney leading Lai’s international legal team. She told VOA she hopes the United States and the United Kingdom can coordinate their efforts and work together to secure Lai’s release. "We’re extremely worried for his health and well-being, and indeed, his life," Gallagher said. "It’s in no one’s interest for this brilliant man to die in prison." https://www.voanews.com/a/advocates-for-jailed-publisher-lai-turn-to-trump-administration/8009044.html https://www.voanews.com/a/advocates-for-jailed-publisher-lai-turn-to-trump-administration/8009044.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 21:47:55 -0400 Press FreedomUSAEast AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Liam Scott) China’s Commerce Ministry reportedly held talks with Walmart on Tuesday after the U.S. retail giant had requested a 10% price cut from its Chinese suppliers to offset U.S. tariff costs, state media CCTV said. The report added that the ministry is believed to have expressed concern over Walmart’s “unfair” practice, which it believes may create the risk of supply chain disruption and harm the interests of Chinese and American companies and American consumers.” Click here for the full story in Mandarin. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-china-walmart-discuss-response-to-us-tariffs/8008731.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-china-walmart-discuss-response-to-us-tariffs/8008731.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 19:16:48 -0400 East AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Joyce Huang) TAIPEI, TAIWAN — About 12.2 million college graduates are expected to enter China’s shrinking labor market this summer, Wang Xiaoping, minister of the Human Resources and Social Security Ministry told the country's National People's Congress Sunday. It is believed that the Chinese government will encourage young people to accept gig work or vocational trainings so as not to hike up the youth unemployment rate. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-about-12-million-graduates-to-join-china-s-shrinking-job-market/8008713.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-about-12-million-graduates-to-join-china-s-shrinking-job-market/8008713.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 18:50:52 -0400 East AsiaChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Nai-chuan Lin) TEHRAN, IRAN — China, Iran and Russia conducted joint naval drills Tuesday in the Middle East, offering a show of force in a region still uneasy over Tehran's rapidly expanding nuclear program and as Yemen's Houthi rebels threaten new attacks on ships. The joint drills, called the Maritime Security Belt 2025, took place in the Gulf of Oman near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which a fifth of the world’s crude oil passes. The area around the strait has in the past seen Iran seize commercial ships and launch suspected attacks in the time since President Donald Trump first unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran's nuclear deal with world powers. The drill marked the fifth year the three countries took part in the drills. This year's drill likely sparked a warning late Monday from the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center, which said there was GPS interference in the strait, with disruptions lasting for several hours and forcing crews to rely on backup navigation methods. "This was likely GPS jamming to reduce the targeting capability of drones and missiles," wrote Shaun Robertson, an intelligence analyst at the EOS Risk Group. "However, electronic navigation system interference has been reported in this region previously during periods of increased tension and military exercises." US-patrolled waters Russia's Defense Ministry identified the vessels it sent to the drill as the corvettes Rezky and the Hero of the Russian Federation Aldar Tsydenzhapov, as well as the tanker Pechenega. China's Defense Ministry said it sent the guided-missile destroyer Baotou and the comprehensive supply ship Gaoyouhu. Neither offered a count of the personnel involved. Neither China nor Russia actively patrol the wider Middle East, whose waterways remain crucial for global energy supplies. Instead, they broadly cede that to Western nations largely led by the U.S. Navy's Bahrain-based 5th Fleet. Observers for the drill included Azerbaijan, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, South Africa, Sri Lanka and the United Arab Emirates — with the Americans likely keeping watch as well. However, China and Russia have deep interests in Iran. For China, it has continued to purchase Iranian crude oil despite facing Western sanctions, likely at a discount compared with global prices. Beijing also remains one of the top markets for Iranian imports. Russia, meanwhile, has relied on Iran for the supply of bomb-carrying drones it uses in its war on Ukraine. Iran highlights drills The drills marked a major moment for Iran's state-run television network. It has aired segments showing live fire during a night drill and sailors manning deck guns on a vessel. The exercises come after an Iranian monthslong drill that followed a direct Israeli attack on the country, targeting its air defenses and sites associated with its ballistic missile program. While Tehran sought to downplay the assault, it shook the wider populace and came as a campaign of Israeli assassinations and attacks have decimated Iran's self-described "Axis of Resistance" — a series of militant groups allied with the Islamic Republic. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was also overthrown in December, further weakening Iran's grip on the wider region. All the while, Iran has increasingly stockpiled more uranium enriched at near-weapons-grade levels, something done only by atomic-armed nations. Tehran has long maintained its program is for peaceful purposes, even as its officials increasingly threaten to pursue the bomb. Iran's nuclear program has drawn warnings from Israel and the U.S., signaling that military action against the program could happen. But just last week, Trump sent a letter to Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei seeking a new nuclear deal. Iran says it hasn't received any letter but still issued a flurry of pronouncements over it. Houthis renew threats As a shaky ceasefire holds in Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Yemen's Houthi rebels said they were resuming attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, as well as the Bab el-Mandeb Strait that connects the two waterways. The rebels' secretive leader, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, warned Friday that attacks against Israel-linked vessels would resume within four days if Israel didn't let aid into Gaza. As the deadline passed Tuesday, the Houthis said they were again banning Israeli vessels from the waters off Yemen. Although no attacks were reported, it has put shippers on edge. The rebels targeted over 100 merchant vessels with missiles and drones, sinking two vessels and killing four sailors, since November 2023. https://www.voanews.com/a/china-iran-russia-hold-joint-naval-drills-in-middle-east/8008597.html https://www.voanews.com/a/china-iran-russia-hold-joint-naval-drills-in-middle-east/8008597.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 16:55:19 -0400 Middle EastEast AsiaEuropeIranChina Newswebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) THE HAGUE — Former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte was turned over Wednesday to the custody of the International Criminal Court, following his arrest on a warrant accusing him of crimes against humanity over deadly anti-drugs crackdowns he oversaw while in office. The court said in a statement that "as a precautionary measure" medical assistance was made available at the airport for Duterte, in line with standard procedures when a suspect arrives. The 79-year-old former president arrived at Rotterdam The Hague Airport earlier Wednesday on a flight from Manila following his arrest there on an ICC warrant on Tuesday, as announced by current Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. Rights groups and families of victims hailed Duterte's arrest. Within days, he will face an initial appearance where the court will confirm his identity, check that he understands the charges against him, and set a date for a hearing to assess if prosecutors have sufficient evidence to send him to a full trial. If his case goes to trial and he is convicted, Duterte could face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment. The small jet carrying Duterte could be seen as it taxied into a hangar where two buses were waiting. An ambulance also drove close to the hangar, and medics wheeled a gurney inside. A police helicopter hovered close to the airport as the plane remained in the hangar, largely obscured from view by the buses and two fuel tanker trucks. "This is a monumental and long-overdue step for justice for thousands of victims and their families," said Jerrie Abella of Amnesty International. "It is therefore a hopeful sign for them, as well, in the Philippines and beyond, as it shows that suspected perpetrators of the worst crimes, including government leaders, will face justice wherever they are in the world," Abella added. Emily Soriano, the mother of a victim of the crackdowns, said she wanted more officials to face justice. "Duterte is lucky he has due process, but our children who were killed did not have due process," she said. While Duterte's plane was in the air, grieving relatives gathered in the Philippines to mourn his alleged victims, carrying the urns of their loved ones. "We are happy and we feel relieved," said 55-year-old Melinda Abion Lafuente, mother of 22-year-old Angelo Lafuente, who she says was tortured and killed in 2016. Duterte's supporters, however, criticized his arrest as illegal and sought to have him returned home. Small groups of Duterte supporters and people who backed his arrest demonstrated on Wednesday outside the court before his arrival. The ICC opened an inquiry in 2021 into mass killings linked to the so-called war on drugs overseen by Duterte when he served as mayor of the southern Philippine city of Davao and later as president. Estimates of the death toll during Duterte's presidential term vary, from the more than 6,000 that the national police have reported and up to 30,000 claimed by human rights groups. ICC judges who looked at prosecution evidence supporting their request for his arrest found "reasonable grounds to believe that Mr. Duterte is individually responsible for the crime against humanity of murder" as an "indirect co-perpetrator for having allegedly overseen the killings when he was mayor of Davao and later president of the Philippines," according to his warrant. Duterte could challenge the court's jurisdiction and the admissibility of the case. While the Philippines is no longer a member of the ICC, the alleged crimes happened before Manila withdrew from the court. That process will likely take months and if the case progresses to trial it could take years. Duterte will be able to apply for provisional release from the court's detention center while he waits, though it's up to judges to decide whether to grant such a request. Duterte's legal counsel, Salvador Panelo, told reporters in Manila that the Philippine Supreme Court "can compel the government to bring back the person arrested and detained without probable cause and compel the government bring him before the court and to explain to them why they (government) did what they did." Marcos said Tuesday that Duterte's arrest was "proper and correct" and not an act of political persecution. Duterte's daughter, Vice President Sara Duterte, criticized the Marcos administration for surrendering her father to a foreign court, which she said currently has no jurisdiction in the Philippines. She left the Philippines on Wednesday to arrange a meeting in The Hague with her detained father and talk to his lawyers, her office told reporters in Manila. Philippines no longer an ICC member state. Duterte withdrew the Philippines in 2019 from the ICC, in a move human rights activists say was aimed at escaping accountability. The Duterte administration moved to suspend the global court's investigation in late 2021 by arguing that Philippine authorities were already looking into the same allegations, arguing that the ICC — a court of last resort — therefore didn't have jurisdiction. Appeals judges at the ICC rejected those arguments and ruled in 2023 that the investigation could resume. The ICC judges who issued the warrant also said that the alleged crimes fall within the court's jurisdiction. They said Duterte's arrest was necessary because of what they called the "risk of interference with the investigations and the security of witnesses and victims." https://www.voanews.com/a/philippine-ex-president-duterte-faces-charges-linked-to-war-on-drugs-/8008270.html https://www.voanews.com/a/philippine-ex-president-duterte-faces-charges-linked-to-war-on-drugs-/8008270.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 13:14:01 -0400 East AsiaEuropewebdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press) HANOI, VIETNAM — Singapore and Vietnam on Wednesday agreed to enhance cooperation in subsea cables, finance, and energy, marking an upgrade in their relations to Vietnam's highest level, during a visit by its Communist Party Chief To Lam to the city-state. Singapore is the third Southeast Asian nation, after Malaysia and Indonesia, with which Vietnam has established a "comprehensive strategic relationship." In a joint statement released following the upgrade, Lam and Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong witnessed the exchange of six agreements and discussed cooperation in undersea cable development, digital connectivity, and cross-border data flows. Southeast Asian countries, a major junction for cables connecting Asia to Europe, aim to expand their networks to meet the surging demand for AI services and data centers. Vietnam alone plans to launch 10 new submarine cables by 2030. In December, Reuters reported that Singaporean asset manager Keppel and Vietnamese conglomerate Sovico Group were discussing plans for new undersea fiber-optic cables to boost the region's data center industry, according to sources familiar with the matter. In April last year, Vietnam's state-owned telecom company Viettel and Singapore's Singtel announced a preliminary agreement to develop an undersea cable linking Vietnam directly to Singapore, although no construction contract has been announced yet. The two leaders also discussed green development, industrial parks expansion, and peace and stability in the region. Singapore pledged to support Vietnam in developing international financial centers, the joint statement said. Singapore ranks among Vietnam's top foreign investors, having invested $10.21 billion last year, which accounted for 27% of Vietnam's total foreign investment, official data showed. https://www.voanews.com/a/vietnam-singapore-agree-to-boost-ties-cooperation-on-subsea-cables/8007800.html https://www.voanews.com/a/vietnam-singapore-agree-to-boost-ties-cooperation-on-subsea-cables/8007800.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 05:32:09 -0400 East Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) NEW DELHI — Encouraged by the enthusiastic reception to its DeepSeek artificial intelligence platform in January, China's leaders are going all out to encourage AI companies to harness the power of this technology to compete with the United States and other countries in business and military spheres. China considers AI an important tool to handle U.S. restrictions on Chinese business, particularly after DeepSeek shook up Wall Street, resulting in a loss of $589 billion for Nvidia stockholders in late January. "The government in China works directly with the private sector and universities in the advancement and deployment of AI technology and are reducing their dependence on imports of high-technology products," said Lourdes Casanova, director of Cornell University's Emerging Markets Institute. The past few weeks have seen China rolling out several new AI models, including Manus, which experts say can rival the latest model of ChatGPT. Industry experts were more than surprised to find that DeepSeek was equally efficient as ChatGPT, though it used older generation Nvidia chips. The U.S. has banned the supply of advanced chips. "China and the U.S. have pulled way out front in the AI race. China used to be one to two years behind the U.S. Now, it is likely two to three months," Jeffrey Towson, owner of Beijing-based TechMoat Consulting, told VOA. "Alibaba's Qwen is now a clear leader internationally in LLMs [large language models]. Chinese Kling AI and Minimax are arguably the global leaders in video generation," Towson said. Government involvement In 2017, China released an AI development program to make the country a world leader by 2030. The government's Next Generation Artificial Intelligence Development Plan said that AI would be adopted across different sectors and drive economic transformation. "China has the most elaborate AI strategy compared to any other country," Rogier Creemers, assistant professor in Modern Chinese Studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands, told VOA. China has established a National Computing Power Grid — somewhat like electricity grids — making it possible for Chinese AI companies to invest less in their own computing power. In the U.S., each company must fend for itself, Creemers said. Competition ChatGPT's updated GPT4 large language model has gotten the attention of several top-ranking CEOs of Chinese tech companies. Baidu chief Robin Li recently said his firm was under "huge pressure and a sense of crisis" after seeing the updated ChatGPT. Baidu, which has launched Ernie Bot, said "the gap [between China] and leading international levels [in the field] has widened." "AI plus robotics is likely where China will take a commanding lead over the U.S., just like in EVs,” Towson said. “Chinese companies like Unitree are already pulling ahead. Watch for China to surprise everyone in personalized robots, industrial robots and speciality robots,” he said. Communist Party control Chinese President Xi Jinping recently convened a meeting with heads of private companies, including tech firms, calling on them to "show your talent" in overcoming challenges such as an economic slowdown and U.S. restrictions on Chinese business. "There are discussions that the growth of large language models — the technology behind chatbots like DeepSeek and ChatGPT — may be hindered by media censorship, because the models will have less diverse data to work with," said Creemers. On the other hand, the government's control ensures industrial policy coordination, which is helpful in the growth of AI in China. China is focusing more on specialized software for health and other industries, which can largely tolerate political censorship. Chinese AI models are improving diagnostic accuracy in diverse areas from detecting rib fractures to cancer. US ban on advanced chips "It will take some time, but it would not be a surprise if China is also soon capable of building advanced chips for AI," Cornell’s Casanova said. Companies such as Huawei have shown that they can design and manufacture advanced chips successfully, thereby overcoming restrictions imposed by the U.S., she said. Towson said China is 100% dedicated to building an independent semiconductor supply chain. "It is advancing faster than anyone thought possible. But the frontier is always advancing, and it's unclear how this will play out over time," he said. "But you can do a lot with software,” Creemers said. “China can work with more chips with less computing power or with fewer sophisticated chips." The risk for China is not limited to chips, because the Trump administration could impose restrictions on the Chinese AI model. It could also react to China’s restriction on the use of ChatGPT, because it can violate its censorship rules. AI and the military China's air force is using AI-powered biometric tests to screen potential pilots as part of a rigorous hiring process, according to state broadcaster CCTV. "AI now plays a crucial role in interpreting candidates' biological signals, revealing underlying health risks that might not be immediately apparent to human evaluators," CCTV said. "This data-driven approach allows the air force to predict long-term risks, ultimately ensuring that only the most suitable candidates are chosen." Chinese researchers have also revealed that the Chinese army has been using Meta's publicly available Llama model to develop an AI tool for potential military applications. https://www.voanews.com/a/china-boosting-development-of-ai-for-use-in-trade-war-with-us/8007739.html https://www.voanews.com/a/china-boosting-development-of-ai-for-use-in-trade-war-with-us/8007739.html Wed, 12 Mar 2025 00:12:00 -0400 China NewsUSAEast AsiaTechnologywebdesk@voanews.com (Saibal Dasgupta) SYDNEY — Australia will not impose reciprocal tariffs on the United States, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Wednesday, after President Donald Trump ruled out exemptions or exceptions for all countries on steel and aluminum tariffs. Trump said in February he would "give great consideration" to exempting Australia from the tariffs in view of the U.S. annual trade surplus with the country, following a phone call with Albanese. However, on Tuesday the White House announced that the previously planned 25% tariffs on all imported steel and aluminum products into the U.S. from all countries would take effect on Wednesday. Albanese said the decision by the Trump administration was "entirely unjustified ... and against the spirit of our two nations' enduring friendship and fundamentally at odds with the benefit of our economic partnership." But he said imposing reciprocal tariffs on the U.S. would only push up prices for Australian consumers and spur inflation. "Tariffs and escalating trade tensions are a form of economic self-harm, and a recipe for slower growth and higher inflation. They are paid by the consumers," Albanese told reporters. During his first presidential term, Trump exempted Australia from U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum. Albanese said he would continue to lobby the U.S. administration for a reprieve. He said he had requested a phone call with Trump but would not travel to the United States to meet the president. "I'll be sorting out Australia's interests here," he said. Trump on Tuesday threatened to raise tariffs on Canadian aluminum and steel to 50%, but reversed course just hours later, in a rapid-fire move that scrambled financial markets. While the tariffs will directly affect Australian metal producers, they will indirectly hurt miners that produce the raw materials used in metals manufacturing, said Scott French, an economics professor at the University of New South Wales. "But due to the complexity of global supply chains, it's hard to predict precisely where the impact will be greatest, but the overall effect is going to be negative," French said. A key U.S. security ally in the Indo-Pacific, Australia is a small global exporter of steel although it is the world's largest exporter of the main steelmaking raw material iron ore. Australian steel and aluminum exports to the U.S. represent less than 0.2% of the total value of the country's annual exports and they are not in the top 10 products Australia sells to the United States, Albanese said. The U.S. trade surplus with Australia was $17.9 billion in 2024, a 1.6% increase over 2023, data from the U.S. Trade Representative's office showed. https://www.voanews.com/a/australia-rules-out-reciprocal-move-on-us-after-trump-proceeds-with-steel-tariffs/8007723.html https://www.voanews.com/a/australia-rules-out-reciprocal-move-on-us-after-trump-proceeds-with-steel-tariffs/8007723.html Tue, 11 Mar 2025 23:14:33 -0400 East AsiaUSAwebdesk@voanews.com (Reuters) The U.S. House of Representatives unanimously passed two bills involving China. One will restrict the Department of Homeland Security from purchasing batteries made by Chinese companies. The other will set up a working group in the Department of Homeland Security to monitor and respond to threats from China. The bills will now await consideration by the Senate. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-us-house-passes-bill-to-restrict-use-of-chinese-made-batteries-/8007296.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-us-house-passes-bill-to-restrict-use-of-chinese-made-batteries-/8007296.html Tue, 11 Mar 2025 17:22:12 -0400 China NewsUSAEast Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Yihua Lee) China wrapped up its week-long National Party Congress meetings on Tuesday, where its nearly 3,000 representatives cast votes to pass a total of seven bills in half an hour. Analysts called China’s two sessions a rubber-stamp political gathering, where many dissidents have been placed on “forced holidays” outside of Beijing so that their voice would not be heard. One dissident told VOA he will be sent home one day after the NPC’s closure on Tuesday. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-as-china-npc-closes-dissidents-on-forced-holidays-to-be-sent-home-/8007291.html https://www.voanews.com/a/voa-mandarin-as-china-npc-closes-dissidents-on-forced-holidays-to-be-sent-home-/8007291.html Tue, 11 Mar 2025 17:19:09 -0400 China NewsEast Asiawebdesk@voanews.com (Joyce Huang)