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China: Biden Pushing Ukraine Crisis Into ‘Nuclear War’; US Skeptical of Russian Claims It’s Scaling Back the War in Ukraine

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By Breitbart. China’s state-run Global Times on Monday accused President Joe Biden of pushing the world closer to nuclear war by declaring Russian leader Vladimir Putin “cannot remain in power” after invading Ukraine.

The Global Times was unimpressed by White House efforts to spin Biden’s remarks away as a gaffe, or later as a personal expression of his deep “moral outrage” that has no bearing on U.S. foreign policy.

“No matter how well Biden’s propaganda machine works, it cannot downplay the fact that such a blunt statement at a sensitive time could further inflame the situation. This was unwise and irresponsible, reflecting a dire problem within U.S. policy-making: some politicians are taking their personal grievances to the national level,” the Chinese Communist paper wrote.

No additional examples of such grievance-nationalizing were provided, but one suspects the editors were thinking about stern criticism of China’s actions from American politicians.

The Global Times and its correspondents mocked Biden for talking tough after his debacle in Afghanistan, which brought a 20-year effort to change the regime in a far smaller and poorer nation than Russia to a mournful conclusion. (Read more from “China: Biden Pushing Ukraine Crisis Into ‘Nuclear War’” HERE)

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US Skeptical of Russian Claims It’s Scaling Back the War in Ukraine

By Breitbart. President Joe Biden and other American officials voiced extreme caution Tuesday at signals Russia is scaling back its military operations near Kyiv, suggesting they were waiting to see stronger signs of de-escalation before making an assessment of Moscow’s intentions.

“We’ll see. I don’t read anything into it until I see what their actions are. We’ll see if they follow through what they’re suggesting,” Biden said at the White House, where officials were busy digesting intelligence and reports from the ground that Russian troops were moving their focus away from Ukraine’s capital toward other areas of the country.

Biden’s don’t-trust-but-verify approach reflects deep American skepticism at Russian President Vladimir Putin’s motives amid his monthlong invasion of Ukraine. While the US has observed movements of Russian forces away from Kyiv, there remains doubt the Russian assault on Ukraine will end soon.

Some Western officials viewed Russia’s moves as a mere tactical exercise amid a stalled campaign in Ukraine. US officials also said Russia could always reverse itself if the battle conditions allow. (Read more from “US Skeptical of Russian Claims It’s Scaling Back the War in Ukraine” HERE)

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Expert: Chinese Boeing 737 Brought Down by Missile or Pilot Suicide

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It was unlikely that a technical issue caused the China Eastern’s horrific passenger jet crash Monday, an Australian aviation expert has said.

The aircraft, which was en route to Guangzhou after taking off from Kunming, in the southwest, was carrying 132 people. The Boeing 737-800 plunged into a mountain near the southern Chinese city of Wuzhou. . .

Aviation expert Neil Hansford raised doubts about the cause of the crash, saying there could be four likely scenarios that led to the catastrophe. However, he ruled out technical issues.

“Even with total loss of power, no aircraft plummets to the ground from 20,000 feet in two minutes with an event at 8,000 feet,” Hansford explained to News.com.au. “I think aircraft technical failure can be ruled out and it will be an external event… I would get on a Boeing 737-800 in an instant with an Australian carrier, so my suggestion would be it won’t be Boeing or aircraft technical related.” . . .

“My tipping is a human-induced event or bought down by rogue missile. Debris looks like MH117 over Ukraine, and the Chinese are providing too much information this time which is uncharacteristic,” he was quoted as saying by News.com.au. (Read more from “Expert: Chinese Boeing 737 Brought Down by Missile or Pilot Suicide” HERE)

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Is China About to Send Military Aid to Putin?; Xi Jinping Calls for Cooperation, Biden Warns of Consequences in Two-Hour Call

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By Townhall. . .[A]ccording to European Union officials, China is looking to deepen its ties to Russia and further link the two nations against the United States and other NATO countries:

“EU leaders are in possession of ‘very reliable evidence’ that China is considering military assistance to Russia, a senior EU official told POLITICO, threatening potential trade measures if weapons’ deliveries go ahead.” . . .

This news of China’s apparent intention to provide military assistance to Russia, much in the same way the United States has been providing — and just approved an additional $800 million — in aid to Ukraine came at the same time President Biden was conducting a nearly two-hour meeting with President Xi Jinping.

Prior to the bilateral call between Biden and Jinping, Secretary of State Blinken admitted on Thursday that the Biden administration was “concerned that [China is] considering directly assisting Russia with military equipment to use in Ukraine.” As the EU officials claim, China is indeed taking Putin’s request seriously. (Read more from “Is China About to Send Military Aid to Putin?” HERE)

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Xi Jinping Calls for Cooperation, Biden Warns of Consequences in Two-Hour Call

By South China Morning Post. Chinese President Xi Jinping and his US counterpart Joe Biden spoke on Friday for about two hours in a virtual meeting called to address the conflict in Ukraine, with Xi appealing for negotiations to bring the crisis to a halt and Biden stressing that consequences await Beijing for any support it provides to Moscow.

“The Ukraine crisis is something we don’t want to see,” Xi said, according to a government readout. “Events once again show that state-to-state relations cannot go to the stage of confrontation, conflict and confrontation are not in the interests of anyone.”

“As permanent members of the UN Security Council and the world’s two largest economies, we must not only lead the development of China-US relations on the right track, but also shoulder our due international responsibilities and make efforts for world peace and tranquillity,” the readout said.

Calling the exchange “constructive”, Beijing said the two sides agreed “to follow up in a timely manner, take practical actions, strive for the return of China-US relations to the track of stable development, and make their own efforts to properly resolve the Ukraine crisis”.

The Chinese government account added that the US and Nato “should also conduct dialogue with Russia to solve the crux of the Ukraine crisis”. (Read more from “Xi Jinping Calls for Cooperation, Biden Warns of Consequences in Two-Hour Call” HERE)

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Chinese Charged With Trying to Fix a US Congressional Race

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Unsealed files have revealed a plot by five people working on behalf of Chinese secret police to stalk and harass a US military veteran running for Congress, and to spy on an artist. . .

The perpetrators went to “outrageous and dangerous” lengths to do so, the Department of Justice said. . .

The co-conspirators allegedly tried to “interfere with federal elections” by orchestrating a campaign to undermine the US congressional candidacy of a military veteran who was once a leader of the 1989 pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing. . .

The details of the allegations revealed on Wednesday, allege [Chinese PRC agent] Mr Lin hired a private investigator in New York to disrupt the Brooklyn man’s congressional campaign, including “by physically attacking” him.

The man had been a student leader of the pro-democracy demonstrations in Tiananmen Square in 1989, who had escaped to America, become a citizen and served in the US military. (Read more from “Chinese Charged With Trying to Fix a US Congressional Race” HERE)

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The Ukraine Crisis Is A Wake-up Call For Taiwan And Japan

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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has raised the concern that China’s leader Xi Jinping may be emboldened to invade Taiwan soon. Such fear has shifted attitudes and strategic thinking in Taiwan and its ally Japan.

The last time Taiwan faced military assault by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) was in 1958. On August 23, under Chairman Mao Zedong’s directive, the PLA heavily bombed Quemoy, Matsu, and other surrounding offshore islands. The PLA’s bombardment of Taiwan only stopped after the United States demonstrated its will to defend Taiwan by sending six aircraft carriers, three heavy cruisers, 40 destroyers, and two air force divisions to Taiwan strait.

Since then, the Taiwanese people have enjoyed several decades of peace and prosperity. The Chinese Communist Party changed tactics and had hoped that deepening economic ties between Taiwan and mainland China would eventually “reunite” Taiwan with the motherland peacefully. To the CCP’s disappointment, a poll shows that most Taiwanese don’t identify as Chinese.

China’s Xi Jinping vowed never to rule out taking Taiwan by force. The PLA has increased both the frequency and the number of fighter jets it sent near Taiwan’s air defense identification zone (ADIZ), hoping to intimidate the Taiwanese people. Still, most Taiwanese didn’t take Beijing’s military threat seriously until Russia invaded Ukraine. (Read more from “The Ukraine Crisis Is a Wake-up Call for Taiwan and Japan” HERE)

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Third Wave Coming? China’s New COVID Lockdown Could Determine Fed’s Interest Rate Hike

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China’s COVID lockdown of Shenzhen, the southern financial and manufacturing hub that neighbors Hong Kong, came as a shock.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index plunged five percent to its lowest level since 2016. The Hang Seng tech index crashed 11 percent. Chinese stocks that trade in New York fell sharply, with videogame maker NetEase, e-commerce giant JD.com, search and AI giant Baidu.com, farm-tech firm Pinduoduo among the worst performing stocks in the Nasdaq composite.

No market is an island, especially when China is involved, so the closing of Shenzhen sent a shockwave rippling through U.S. stocks. The Nasdaq Composite dropped 262.59 points, or 2 percent, to its lowest level since December 2020. Shares of Apple fell 2.7 percent, Amazon declined 2.5 percent, and Google shares tumbled three percent. Nothing calamitous, however. The S&P 500 was down just seven-tenths of a point, and the Dow Jones Industrial Average actually rose on the day. (Read more from “Third Wave Coming? China’s New COVID Lockdown Could Determine Fed’s Interest Rate Hike” HERE)

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China Changed Supply Chain Strategy With Russia 3 Months Ahead of Ukraine Invasion, Suggesting It Had Foreknowledge: Analyst

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Around three months ago, China changed how it ordered goods from Russia in a way that would insulate Beijing in the event of Western sanctions on Moscow, according to a supply chain analyst citing insider information.

This move suggested that China had foreknowledge of Russia’s plan to invade Ukraine, and had made contingencies to ensure it could still import Russian commodities amid sanctions, he said.

In about November or December, China began buying all of their Russia-origin cargoes—grains, crude oil, and petrochemical products—on a “free on board origin” basis, meaning that China would hold claim to the goods as soon as they were loaded onto the ship, said Ross Kennedy, founder of Fortis Analysis. . .

In large shipments by sea, sellers, rather than buyers, would commonly assume responsibility for the goods until they are delivered to the purchaser, he said. They also typically cover the cost of shipping and insurance, and warrant that the goods will safely reach the destination. . .

“And the reason you would see that happening is because there is a fear that sanctions on products coming from a certain country, in this case, Russia, would impact those country’s ability to buy those products.” (Read more from “China Changed Supply Chain Strategy With Russia 3 Months Ahead of Ukraine Invasion, Suggesting It Had Foreknowledge: Analyst” HERE)

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Former US Defense Contractor CEO, Israeli Brother Charged With Allegedly Exporting Military Technology to China

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The former CEO of a San Diego-based company that manufactures tungsten components for the U.S. military has been charged alongside his brother on accusations of violating arms export laws, according to an indictment unsealed Friday.

Joe Sery, 77, who used to own and run Tungsten Heavy Powder & Parts, and his brother, Dror Sery, 70, have been indicted on charges relating to a conspiracy to export sensitive information about defense systems to China and India without a license. Joe Sery was arrested Friday, while Dror Sery remains a fugitive, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The company specializes in providing fragments and weapon-grade components made of tungsten, a rare metal, for the military.

According to the indictment, from 2016 to 2019, Joe Sery contracted with various aerospace and defense firms for military projects, including the construction of an Advanced Rapid Response Weapon, a 155-millimeter Bi-Modal Warhead, a R9E Warhead and an 81-millimeter Cowling Cone. (Read more from “Former US Defense Contractor CEO, Israeli Brother Charged With Allegedly Exporting Military Technology to China” HERE)

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China Largely Ignores Biden’s State of the Union Speech

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President Joe Biden had very little to say about China in his first State of the Union (SOTU) address on Tuesday night, and Chinese media returned the favor by saying very little about Biden’s speech.

China’s state-run Global Times counted only two mentions of China in the speech, neither of them terribly confrontational (Biden added a third in the remarks as delivered). The Chinese paper dismissed Biden’s address as a weak imitation of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s famed “Iron Curtain” speech that unsuccessfully sought to use Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to rally the divided American political parties behind Biden’s presidency.

The Global Times quoted Fudan University professor Shen Yi mocking Biden’s claims of leadership against Russia:

“If the US has been prepared for Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, why is Washington still discussing with other countries on how to sanction Russia on SWIFT? If US intelligence agencies can make correct early-warnings about Russia’s operation, but the White House failed to fully prepare for sanctions, the US’ capability and national strength are in trouble,” Shen said.

Biden said in his speech that “Our forces are not going to Europe to fight in Ukraine, but to defend our NATO Allies.” But Shen said this is another pointless line that shows Biden’s weakness. “This means the US will leave Ukraine alone even though Kiev pinned high hopes on Washington. To defend NATO? Did Russia say it wants to invade NATO?”

(Read more from “China Largely Ignores Biden’s State of the Union Speech” HERE)

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DOJ Shutting Down China-Focused Anti-Espionage Program Due Racism Concerns

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The Biden administration is shutting down a Justice Department program that focused on countering Chinese espionage, following stumbles in a series of criminal cases and accusations that it amounted to racial profiling.

Officials said Wednesday that the three-year-old effort, known as the China Initiative, was being cast aside largely because of perceptions that it unfairly painted Chinese Americans and U.S. residents of Chinese origin as disloyal.

“By grouping cases under the China Initiative rubric, we helped give rise to a harmful perception that the department applies a lower standard to investigate and prosecute criminal conduct related to that country or that we in some way view people with racial, ethnic or familial ties to China differently,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security Matthew Olsen said in remarks prepared for delivery at George Mason University in Virginia.

However, Justice’s top national security official insisted that the decision amounted to a reframing and recalibration — not an abandonment — of a muscular law enforcement response to the national security threat posed by the People’s Republic of China. (Read more from “DOJ Shutting Down China-Focused Anti-Espionage Program Due Racism Concerns” HERE)

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