Taiwan on Wednesday called on China to halt its ongoing military operations in waters near the island, accusing Beijing of unilaterally disrupting peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait while also impacting international shipping and trade routes, reports AP. In a statement published on its website, Taiwan's Foreign Ministry criticised the presence of numerous Chinese naval and coast guard vessels operating in the first-island chain. This Pacific archipelago, which stretches along the Asian mainland, encompasses Japan, Taiwan, and parts of the Philippines. Taiwan President visits Hawaii Think Tank amid Chinese criticism "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs solemnly urges Beijing to immediately end its military intimidation and all unreasonable actions that jeopardise regional peace and stability," the statement declared. According to Taiwan’s defence officials, Chinese vessels have been observed since Monday both in proximity to Taiwan and farther along the first-island chain. These formations were described as "two walls," allegedly intended to assert Chinese control over the waters. China imposed airspace restrictions off its southeast coast from Monday to Wednesday, indicating potential drills. However, the People’s Liberation Army has yet to confirm any such exercises. Taiwan’s government had anticipated military drills following President Lai Ching-te's recent stopovers in Hawaii and Guam during an overseas trip. China, which claims Taiwan as part of its territory, strongly opposes any formal interactions between Taipei and foreign governments, particularly the United States. A Chinese government spokesperson did not directly address reports of military exercises. However, in an online statement issued Wednesday, Zhu Fenglian, spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office, said Beijing would not tolerate provocations from Taiwan in coordination with foreign forces. “We will take all necessary steps to firmly uphold national sovereignty and territorial integrity, ensure peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and safeguard the core interests of people on both sides of the strait,” Zhu stated. The Taiwan Strait, spanning approximately 160 kilometres (100 miles), separates China from Taiwan. China has conducted significant military drills around Taiwan following various political events, including Lai’s inauguration in May, his National Day speech in October, and the 2022 visit by then-U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

China announced Tuesday it is banning exports to the United States of gallium, germanium, antimony and other key high-tech materials with potential military applications. The Chinese Commerce Ministry announced the move after the Washington expanded its list of Chinese companies subject to export controls on computer chip-making equipment, software and high-bandwidth memory chips. Such chips are needed for advanced applications. The ratcheting up of trade restrictions comes at a time when President-elect Donald Trump has been threatening to sharply raise tariffs on imports from China and other countries, potentially adding to simmering tensions over trade and technology. In July 2023, China said that it would require exporters to apply for licenses to send to the US the strategically important materials such as gallium and germanium. In August, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said it would restrict exports of antimony, which is used in a wide range of products from batteries to weapons. China is the biggest global source of gallium and germanium, which are produced in small amounts but are needed to make computer chips for mobile phones, cars and other products, as well as solar panels and military technology. UN court hears landmark climate case as island nations fear rising seas China’s Commerce Ministry protested and said it would act to protect China’s “rights and interests” after the US side announced it was adding 140 companies to a so-called “entity list” subject to strict export controls. Nearly all are based in China, though some are Chinese-owned businesses in Japan, South Korea and Singapore. Both governments said their respective export controls were needed for “national security.” In hitting back at the latest move by Washington to slow China's progress in developing advanced technology with potential military applications, China is tightening controls announced in July 2023. China's government has been frustrated by US curbs on access to advanced processor chips and other technology on security grounds but was cautious in retaliating, possibly to avoid disrupting China’s fledgling developers of chips, artificial intelligence and other technology. The US gets about half its supply of both gallium and germanium metals directly from China, according to the US Geological Survey. China exported about 23 metric tons (25 tons) of gallium last year and produces about 600 metric tons (660 tons) of germanium per year.  

By June 2024, the user base of generative artificial intelligence (AI) products in China had grown to 230 million, demonstrating the country's broad adoption of AI-driven innovations across various sectors, according to a report released on December 1. China has developed a robust AI industry ecosystem, with over 4,500 companies involved in the sector, as outlined in a report from the China Internet Network Information Center (CNNIC). The generative AI industry in China is thriving, with the core sector valued at nearly 600 billion yuan (approximately 82.84 billion U.S. dollars). The ecosystem covers critical areas such as chips, algorithms, data, platforms, and applications. Australia imposes world’s first ban on social media for under-16 As of July 2024, more than 190 generative AI models were operational and available online, providing users with a wide array of options and personalized experiences. In July 2023, China introduced a set of provisional regulations for generative AI services, the first of its kind globally. Additionally, a key policy resolution adopted in July 2024 highlighted the country’s plans to enhance mechanisms for the development and management of generative AI.  

A court in Beijing on Friday sentenced a prominent Chinese journalist to seven in years in prison for espionage, his family said. Dong Yuyu, a commentator and editor, was taken away by police while meeting a Japanese diplomat at a restaurant in February 2022. He has been in police custody since then. The Beijing Number 2 Intermediate People's Court read the verdict but did not share a copy with Dong's lawyers or family. No announcement was available on the court's website or its Weibo account. The verdict named then-Japanese ambassador Hideo Tarumi and Shanghai-based chief diplomat Masaru Okada as agents belonging to an espionage organization, according the family's statement. Dong had served as the deputy head of the editorial department at Guangming Daily, one of the five major state-owned papers in China. The paper was once considered more liberal than other state-backed papers. Dong also contributed to the Chinese edition of the New York Times. In his published writings, including essays as well as opinion articles, Dong had voiced his support for constitutional democracy and political reform, which later were considered to be against the stance of the Communist Party. He had contacts with foreign diplomats, scholars and other journalists as part of his decades-long career and counted Tarumi, the ambassador, as a friend. Still, his family said he knew he was always watched by state security, and therefore sought to be as open as possible while meeting his Japanese or American contacts. What to know about sudden rebel gains in Syria's long war “With Yuyu’s conviction, every Chinese citizen, when dealing with the Japanese embassy — or perhaps any other foreign embassy and diplomat — will be expected to know that the Chinese government may consider those embassies to be ‘espionage organizations,’” said the family in a statement. “Every sensible Chinese citizen should be appalled by this reasoning.” The U.S. Ambassador to China, Nicholas Burns, condemned Dong's conviction. “Punishing Dong for exercising his freedom of speech and the press, guaranteed by the PRC’s constitution for all its citizens, is unjust.”  

China announced Friday that it would expand visa-free entry to nine more countries as it seeks to boost tourism and business travel to help revive a sluggish economy. Starting Nov. 30, travelers from Bulgaria, Romania, Malta, Croatia, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Estonia, Latvia and Japan will be able to enter China for up to 30 days without a visa, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said. That will bring to 38 the number of countries that have been granted visa-free access since last year. Only three countries had visa-free access previously, and theirs had been eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic. The addition of Japan appears to reflect a recent willingness on China's part to improve ties, which have soured in part over more strident talk from Tokyo on the Taiwan issue. The two countries reached a deal in September in their dispute over the release into the sea of treated but still radioactive water from the destroyed Fukushima nuclear power plant. Japan was one of the three countries with visa-free entry before the pandemic, and the government had repeatedly requested an early resumption, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters in Tokyo. “We hope the visa exemption measure announced by the Chinese side will contribute to further smooth our exchanges between Japan and China,” he said. The permitted length of stay for visa-free entry is being increased from the previous 15 days, Lin said, and people participating in exchanges will be eligible for the first time. China has been pushing people-to-people exchange between students, academics and others to try to improve its sometimes strained relations with other countries. China strictly restricted entry during the pandemic and ended its restrictions much later than most other countries. It restored the previous visa-free access for citizens of Brunei and Singapore in July 2023, and then expanded visa-free entry to six more countries — France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia — on Dec. 1 of last year. The program has since been expanded in tranches. Some countries have announced visa-free entry for Chinese citizens, notably Thailand, which wants to bring back Chinese tourists. For the three months from July through September this year, China recorded 8.2 million entries by foreigners, of which 4.9 million were visa-free, the official Xinhua News Agency said, quoting a Foreign Ministry consular official.  

Japanese officials said Wednesday they are closely watching to see if China keeps its promise to prevent further violations of Japan's airspace after explaining that an incursion by a Chinese military aircraft nearly three months ago was unintentional and caused by turbulence. Tokyo protested and sought an explanation from Beijing after a Chinese Y-9 reconnaissance plane briefly entered Japanese airspace off the southern main island of Kyushu on Aug. 26, prompting Japan's military to scramble fighter jets and warn the plane. Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said China acknowledged the airspace violation and assured Japan that it would make efforts to prevent a recurrence. “We take note of China's explanation, and we will closely watch Chinese military activity from now on,” Hayashi said. China said the airspace violation occurred when the plane's pilot took emergency measures in response to turbulence in the area and was not intentional, Japan's Foreign Ministry said. Japanese officials did not disclose further details, such as when China provided the explanation, citing the protocol of diplomatic exchanges. Even though aircraft can encounter turbulence, such a significant deviation from a flight route is unthinkable, Japanese officials said. NHK public television reported that Japanese defense officials said they still find the airspace violation unacceptable because it was a serious breach of territorial sovereignty. A suicide car bombing at a security post in northwestern Pakistan has killed 12 troops Japanese officials are concerned about China's growing military activity around Japan's southwestern waters and airspace. It has led Tokyo to significantly reinforce its defenses in the area, which includes remote islands that are considered key to Japan's defense strategy. Japan is also worried about joint military activities between China and Russia. A Chinese survey ship violated Japanese territorial waters off a southern island in August. In September, the Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning and two destroyers sailed between Japan’s westernmost island of Yonaguni — just east of Taiwan — and nearby Iriomote, entering Japan's “contiguous zone,” an area just outside of a country’s territorial waters in which it can still exercise some control over maritime traffic.  

A stabbing spree at a vocational school in Wuxi, located in eastern China, on Saturday resulted in eight deaths and 17 injuries, according to local authorities. The incident occurred at the Wuxi Vocational Institute of Arts and Technology in Yixing, a smaller city within Wuxi, around 6:30 p.m. local time, the Yixing police reported. The suspect, 21-year-old Xu, a student at the school, was arrested at the scene. Authorities revealed that Xu had failed his exams and was upset about not graduating, as well as being dissatisfied with his internship pay. They said he chose to express his frustrations through the violent attack. Videos shared on Western platforms like X showed the aftermath, with victims lying on the street and bystanders trying to assist. Meanwhile, Chinese social media platforms, such as Weibo, show only the police statement, with no images or footage of the event. This is likely due to the Chinese government’s censorship of content deemed sensitive or political. Additionally, Western social media and search engines, like Google, are often inaccessible in China due to the country’s strict internet regulations, known as the Great Firewall. Read: Islamic State group claims responsibility for knife attack that killed 3 in Solingen, Germany This marks the second deadly attack in less than a week. Earlier, a man rammed his car into people at a sports facility in Zhuhai, in southern China, killing 35 and injuring 43. Random public attacks have been a growing concern in China. In October, a man was arrested for stabbing children at a school in Beijing, injuring five. In September, three people died in a knife attack at a supermarket in Shanghai, and 15 others were injured. The suspect in the Shanghai attack had financial disputes and reportedly went to the city to “vent his anger.” That same month, a Japanese schoolboy was fatally stabbed while on his way to school in Shenzhen. Sources: agency

China is holding live-fire drills off the coast of its southern Fujian province facing Taiwan, just a week after a massive air-and-sea drill it called punishment for Taiwan's president rejecting Beijing's claims of sovereignty. The live fire drills were being held near the Pingtan islands off Fujian province from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to a notice from the Maritime Safety Administration. It warned ships to avoid the area. It did not offer additional details. China, EU, Africa seek green cooperation using bamboo instead of plastic Taiwan's Defense Ministry said China's drills were part of an annual exercise and was tracking them. “It cannot be ruled out that it is one of the ways to expand the deterrent effect in line with the dynamics in the Taiwan Strait,” the statement added. Taiwan is a self-ruled island that Beijing claims is part of China. Tensions around the issue has flared in recent years. China has increased its presence in the waters and skies around Taiwan. It now increasingly sends large amounts of warplanes and navy vessels in military exercises near Taiwan and its coast guard carries out patrols. Last week, China held a one-day military exercise aimed at practicing the “sealing off of key ports and key areas.” Taiwan counted a record one-day total of 153 aircraft, 14 navy vessels, and 12 Chinese government ships. In response to Chinese moves, the U.S. has continued to host what it calls “freedom of navigation” transits through the Taiwan Strait. On Sunday, the destroyer USS Higgins and the Canadian frigate HMCS Vancouver transited the narrow band of ocean that separates China and Taiwan. Germany sent two warships through the Taiwan Strait last month as it seeks to increase its defense engagement in the Asia-Pacific region.

The 6th World Media Summit officially opened on October 14, drawing over 500 representatives from 208 media organizations, government bodies, and international institutions across 106 countries. The summit, centered on the theme “AI and Media Transformation,” is co-hosted by Xinhua News Agency and the People's Government of Xinjiang. The summit brings together key voices from the global media industry, including representatives from United Nations agencies and international organizations, to explore the profound impact artificial intelligence is having on the rapidly evolving media landscape. At the opening session on Monday, Fu Hua, President of Xinhua News Agency, highlighted Xinhua’s leadership in media AI technology, citing the agency’s development of AI tools that have increased efficiency by 70%. Participating at the Summit, Nahar Khan, Executive Editor of United News of Bangladesh (UNB), emphasized the critical role of AI in shaping the future of media. “As we stand at the crossroads of this transformation, it’s essential to consider how AI is reshaping the global media landscape—and how Bangladesh can evolve within it,” Khan remarked. She highlighted the importance of transnational collaboration and innovation, adding, “The World Media Summit provides a platform to have exchanges in areas of news and information sharing, cultural collaborations, technology transfer, and joint coverage and initiatives in an increasingly interconnected world.” Masud Jamil Khan, Deputy Managing Director of Cosmos Group, attending the summit, said, “I am honored to be part of the World Media Summit and extend my thanks to UNB's partner, Xinhua, for organizing such a pivotal event that brings together voices from all continents. China plays a crucial role in the advancement of AI technology, and I believe Bangladesh and China can work closely together to drive progress and innovation in this field.” Read: UNB Editor-in-Chief Enayetullah Khan invited to World Media Summit Hosted by Yuan Bingzhong, Vice President of Xinhua News Agency, the opening session of the 6th World Media Summit featured speeches by Ma Xingrui, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Secretary of the CPC Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Regional Committee; Chen Wenjun, Deputy Secretary-General of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee; Erkin Tuniyaz, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Regional Committee and Governor of the People's Government of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region; Pierre Krähenbühl, Director-General of the International Committee of the Red Cross; Siddharth Chatterjee, UN Development System Resident Coordinator in China; Andrey Kondrashov, Director General of Russian news agency TASS; Mostefa Souag, Acting Director General of Al Jazeera Media Network; Gan Ling-Sze, Special Representative of President of Reuters, Reuters APAC VP; Hu Jinjun, Vice President of China Media Group; and Suresh Nambath, Editor of The Hindu.  

China held large-scale military exercises surrounding Taiwan and its outlying islands Monday in what it called a warning against Taiwan independence. China’s Defense Ministry said the drills were a response to Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te’s refusal to concede to Beijing’s demands that Taiwan acknowledge itself as a part of the People’s Republic of China under the rule of the Communist Party. Taiwan’s Defense Ministry called the drills a provocation and said its forces were prepared to respond. The PLA’s Eastern Theater Command spokesperson Navy Senior Captain Li Xi said the navy, army air force, missile corps were all mobilized for the drills. “This is a major warning to those who back Taiwan independence and a signifier of our determination to safeguard our national sovereignty," Li said in a statement on the service’s public media channel. Read: China announces sanctions on US companies selling arms to self-ruled Taiwan Taiwan was a Japanese colony before being unified with China at the end of World War II. It split away in 1949 when Chiang Kai-shek's Nationalists fled to the island as Mao Zedong's Communists swept to power on the mainland. Lai took office in May, continuing the eight-year rule of the Democratic Progressive Party that rejects China’s demand that it recognize Taiwan is a part of China. China routinely states that Taiwan independence is a “dead end” and that annexation by Beijing is a historical inevitability.