Emanuele Scimia

Noted military expert James R. Holmes says the outbreak of a conflict between the US and China is more likely than ever. Economic and demographic problems could push the Chinese to attempt operations against Taiwan and in the South China Sea. Beijing aims for a short war; the US will try to prolong it, as it did with Japan in World War II.

The measure is contained in the draft budget for 2021. China responds: Washington is violating our sovereignty; the "reincarnation" of the Dalai Lama must take place in compliance with our laws. Ban on China opening new consulates in the US until it allows Washington to establish a diplomatic mission in Tibet.

For military analyst Collin Koh, greater naval presence in the Western Pacific increases the danger of “accidental” clashes, but the countries involved will not go so far as to fight a “hot” war. Any military confrontation would plunge China into potential “socioeconomic chaos”. The Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea remains the major flashpoints.

Compliance with international norms against forced labour a prerequisite. A European Parliament resolution condemns China's work in Xinjiang, where the Muslim population is interned and forced to work in the cotton fields. The signing of the pact could damage future relations with the new US president.

Xinjiang Jin is accused of blocking at least four online seminars at the request of the Chinese government. The US company distances itself and fires its employee. Artist Ai Weiwei talks about the repression of democratic protesters in Hong Kong. Democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai moved to a maximum security prison.

Washington is moving to counter Beijing's “expansionist” approach. The South China Sea is the hottest frontline. For US experts, the US is trying to prevent China from gaining immediate benefits while preparing to fight a long-term conflict. The Chinese are training to invade Taiwan, which is boosting its own defences. Japan is also hard at protecting itself from the Asian juggernaut.

The constitutional judges offer to mediate. The farmers refuse the proposed changes and demand the government repeal the law: they want a fixed minimum price. The union presents an application for its annulment in court.

The 12 are accused of illegally crossing the Chinese border. The two underage prisoners are still waiting for their formal indictment. The popularity of Hong Kong’s chief executive drops by 5 per cent in less than a month. Public satisfaction with the rule of law is also decreasing. People feel uncomfortable with the handling of the pandemic and the effects of the security law.

The spacecraft made landfall in Inner Mongolia. 2-4 kg of rocks and lunar debris dating back to about 1.2-1.3 billion years ago collected. The find will add new information on the origin of the Earth's satellite and the solar system. Xi Jinping: There will be more space explorations.

Arbitration by the World Trade Organisation arbitration would centre on China’s 80 per cent tariff on Australian barley. China is angry over Australia’s call for an international investigation into the origin of the COVID-19 pandemic. China also wants to prevent the emergence of an Indo-Pacific NATO formed by Australia, United States, Japan, and India.

The Chinese leader wants a "healthy and stable" dialogue with the new president of the United States, but he is also getting China militarily ready for actual war. The duties and sanctions imposed by Trump will remain. The US strategy of "encirclement" faces China’s “counter-containment”. Technological decoupling is a risk while Taiwan and Hong Kong remain thorny issues.

They are housed in a city dormitory in the south of the country. Cases on the rise: 1,078 more infections in the last 24 hours. The government evaluates new limits on gatherings. Hostels for foreign students and workers are also a problem in Singapore and Hong Kong.