A little bit dated post. Maybe two weeks old. I’m finally getting around to it.

So there was a meeting between Blinkin and Xi Peng inside of China. China remained firm and resolute, but the over all tone of the meeting was positive.

US-China pledge to stabilise ties after Xi-Blinken meeting

Earlier on Monday, Mr Blinken met for three hours with China's top foreign policy official, Wang Yi. Mr Wang presented an ultimatum on Monday, saying the US must choose between “cooperation or conflict”.

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That feeling lasted for a good four hours, and then all HELL broke lose when President Biden starts to make fun of Xi Peng, calling him names, and generally being quite provocative…. and insulting.

As we can see plainly here…

Resulting in a very fierce Chinese response…

China hits back after Biden calls Xi a ‘dictator’

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KENTFIELD, California/BEIJING, June 21 (Reuters) – China hit back on Wednesday after U.S. President Joe Biden referred to President Xi Jinping as a “dictator”, saying the remarks were absurd and a provocation, an unexpected flare-up following attempts by both sides to reduce friction.

Biden made his comments just a day after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken completed a visit to China aimed at stabilizing relations that Beijing says are at their lowest point since formal ties were established in 1979.

At a fundraiser in California, Biden said Xi was very embarrassed when a suspected Chinese spy balloon was blown off course over U.S. airspace early this year. Blinken had said on Monday the chapter should be closed.

“The reason why Xi Jinping got very upset in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two box cars full of spy equipment in it was he didn’t know it was there,” Biden said.

“That’s a great embarrassment for dictators. When they didn’t know what happened. That wasn’t supposed to be going where it was. It was blown off course,” Biden said.

Xi became China’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong after securing a precedent-breaking third term as president in March and head of the Communist Party in October.

He presides over a one-party system that many human rights groups, Western leaders and academics call a dictatorship because it lacks an independent judiciary, free media, or universal suffrage for national office.

Critics of Xi and his party are censored online and risk detention off line.

Biden also said China “has real economic difficulties”.

Biden as president has previously referred to China as “essentially” a dictatorship and “a place for the autocrat, the dictator,” while saying no other world leader wants to be Xi.

But Tuesday’s remarks about the Chinese leader were some of his most direct.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning called the remarks “extremely absurd” and “irresponsible” and said they seriously violated facts, diplomatic protocol and China’s political dignity.

“They’re an open political provocation,” she told a regular briefing.

U.S. State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel, asked if Biden’s comments would affect future visits by U.S. and Chinese officials, said Washington continued to expect engagements “in due course, when the time is appropriate.”

“The president believes that diplomacy … is a responsible way to manage tensions, clear up misperceptions, avoid miscalculations and all of this in our interests to do that,” Patel said. “That does not mean of course we will not be blunt and forthright about our differences.”

LASTING DAMAGE UNLIKELY

AMERICAN Political analysts played down the likely damage to U.S.-China engagement.

“Biden’s big mouth is a loose cannon,” said Wu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Fudan University in Shanghai. He said the remarks would affect mutual trust, including in communications between the leaders, but would not erase what Blinken had achieved on his China visit.

Yun Sun, head of the China program at Washington’s Stimson Center, said she thought the U.S. side “wants to let this quietly go away.”

“And the Chinese will not want to blow this out of proportion, ruining the prospect of a process leading to Xi’s bilateral summit with Biden in November,” referring to a possible meeting when the United States hosts the APEC forum.

Blinken and Xi agreed in their meeting on Monday to stabilize the U.S.-China rivalry so it did not veer into conflict. While the visit did not yield breakthroughs, both sides agreed to continue diplomatic engagement with more visits by U.S. officials in the coming weeks and months.

Biden said later on Tuesday that U.S. climate envoy John Kerry may go to China soon. On Monday, he said he thought relations were on the right path and indicated that progress was made during Blinken’s trip.

Biden has often defined the current state of global politics as a battle between democracy and autocracy, and said democratically-led countries should establish economic ties to balance autocratic-led countries, aiming at Russia and China.

Beijing in the past has bristled at that definition. Xi told Biden during a November 2022 meeting that China has “Chinese-style democracy,” Chinese state news reported then.

Chiming in from Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday that Biden’s comments contradicted Blinken’s efforts to ease tensions with Beijing, describing the remarks as “incomprehensible”.

“However, that’s their business,” Peskov said. “We’ve our own bad relations with the United States of America and our very good relations with the People’s Republic of China.”

Other world leaders seemed reluctant to get involved. Asked repeatedly about the situation, the spokesperson of German chancellor Olaf Scholz said only: “The Federal Government has taken note of the American President’s statement.”

So you have to wonder, what is going on?

Perhaps this will provide some insight…

US Coast Guard ship transited Taiwan Strait after Blinken’s China visit -US Navy

Nope. Same bullshit. All the time.

Reuters

June 22, 20233:16 PM GMT+8

TAIPEI, June 22 (Reuters) – A U.S. Coast Guard ship sailed through the Taiwan Strait on Tuesday in a transit that China described as “public hype”, after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken having wrapped up a high-profile, widely watched visit to Beijing a day earlier.

The national security cutter Stratton made a “routine” Taiwan Strait transit on Tuesday “through waters where high-seas freedoms of navigation and overflight apply in accordance with international law”, the U.S. Navy’s 7th Fleet said on Thursday.

The politically sensitive strait, which separates China from the democratically governed island of Taiwan, is a frequent source of tension as Beijing steps up its political and military pressure to try to force Taipei to accept Chinese sovereignty.

“Stratton’s transit through the Taiwan Strait demonstrates the United States’ commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific. The United States military flies, sails and operates anywhere international law allows,” the 7th Fleet added in its statement.

The mission happened the day after Blinken ended a visit to Beijing, in which the two countries agreed to stabilise their intense rivalry so it does not veer into conflict, but failed to produce any major breakthrough.

Taiwan’s defence ministry said the ship sailed in a northerly direction, and its forces monitored the situation which it described as “normal”.

The Chinese coast guard described the ship’s transit as “public hype”.

Chinese vessels tailed the U.S. ship “all the way”, a spokesperson at China’s coast guard said in a statement, adding that China will “resolutely” safeguard its sovereignty and security and maritime rights and interests.

A security source told Reuters the U.S. ship left the strait in the early hours of Thursday morning.

U.S. military vessels, and on occasion those of its allies, have routinely sailed through the strait in recent years, to the anger of China, which views such missions as provocation.

This month the U.S. Navy released a video of an “unsafe interaction” in the strait, in which a Chinese warship crossed in front of a U.S. destroyer operating with a Canadian warship.

Taiwan’s military reports almost daily Chinese incursions in the strait, mostly warplanes that cross the waterway’s median line, which once served as an unofficial barrier between the two.

On Wednesday, Taiwan said Chinese warships led by the aircraft carrier Shandong sailed through the strait.

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US Troops Are in Peru to Counter Chinese and Russian Influence in Latin America, Reports Peruvian News Outlet

By Nick Corbishley

Peruvian troops’ “training alongside US forces will help to improve their capabilities and strengthen the operational performance of [Peruvian] Special Forces, boosting their interoperability with NATO systems and doctrine.”

As Peru descends even deeper into political chaos and ungovernability, the main priority for its unelected President Dina Boluarte is basic survival. So says a piece in the Peruvian daily La Republica, adding that Boluarte’s dire approval rating (14%-17%) is a result not just of the 60 protesters’ deaths on her watch but also her abject lack of management ability. As vice president, Boluarte helped to topple and replace her former boss, Peru’s elected President Pedro Castillo, now languishing in jail, sparking riots throughout the country. But since then (December 7), her short-lived presidency has brought nothing but bloodshed, chaos and division.

Peru is currently in the grip of its worst ever Dengue outbreak, which is hitting poor communities — many of the same communities that voted for Castillo — particularly hard. Five days ago, the Health Minister Rosa Gutiérrez resigned over criticism of her management of the crisis. Gutiérrez’s replacement, César Vásquez, faces allegations  in Peru’s Congress of influence peddling in early 2021. It is against this febrile backdrop that Boluarte chose to break the news five days ago that she will not be calling general elections until 2026 — despite the fact she has repeatedly pledged to call new elections some time this year, has zero democratic legitimacy, is broadly despised by the public and is under investigation for numerous human rights violations.

But Boluarte still enjoys the support of the US Embassy*, and for the moment that is what counts. In fact, there are 1,172 US soldiers on Peruvian soil right now or at least on their way there. As I reported in my May 26 post, Why Are US Military Personnel Heading to Peru?, the Boluarte government and Peru’s Congress — which ranks even lower in the public’s estimation than Boluarte — have authorised the entry of US troops onto Peruvian soil between June 1 and August 29. They also authorised the entry of 11 US military aircraft, two boats, two trucks, rockets, grenades, detonators, satellite communication equipment, machine guns, pistols and ammunition.

War Games in the New Cold War

Since that article, more details have seeped out about the US military’s presence in Peru, which is certainly out of the ordinary. US troops have entered Peru periodically for decades, but never for periods as long as this. “Juegos de Guerra”(War Games), an in-depth report published by the weekly newspaper Hildebrandt en sus trece, wagers that the main reason for the US troops’ mobilisation is as a show of force to Washington’s main strategic rivals, Russia and China, which are “eroding” US influence in the region.

“There is a global political confrontation between the United States and China and Russia. Peru is key because we are located at a strategic point in the Pacific basin, a gateway for China and access point to Brazil’s huge market on the Atlantic seaboard. We are a hinge”, Wilson Barrantes, former director of Peru’s National Intelligence Directorate (DINI), told the weekly newspaper.

Most of the US military personnel will be taking part in Resolute Sentinel 2023, a military exercise that will be staged across a number of regions of Peru between June and August. The 12th Air Force-led U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) exercise was first held in 2021 when the US deployed 129 military personnel to Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala. A year later, the military contingent was multiplied by seven and Belize joined the list of participating countries. The third edition will be held for the first time in South America, in a single nation: Peru.

Before the exercise begins, a contingent of 42 members of the US Special Forces will participate in training with Peru’s Joint Intelligence and Special Operations Command, the Joint Special Force and the FAP Special Forces Group. An additional 160 US soldiers, manning nine aircraft, will train with personnel from the Peruvian Air Force, Special Forces (GRUFE), the Space Operations Centre (Copes), and the National Satellite Image Centre (Cnois). Then, a total of 970 members of the US Air Force (USAF), Space Force (USSF) and the US Special Forces will participate in Resolute Sentinel 2023. An additional 65 US military personnel will be staying put until the end of the year to oversee ongoing training programs.

Preparations for the exercise were thrashed out between the US Embassy in Lima and Ana Cecilia Gervasi Diaz, Peru’s Minister of Foreign Affairs. Gervasi Diaz was appointed to the role by Boluarte on December 10, just three days after Castillo’s impeachment and imprisonment.

NATO’s Moves in Latin America

In late December, shortly after Castillo’s fall, the Mexican geopolitical analyst Alfredo Jalife-Rahme warned in one of his video conferences (which we covered here ) that the United States and China are “in a war for Peru’s soul”. As I noted at the time, this “war” of which Jalife speaks is rather one-sided, given that China, unlike the US, does not tend to meddle in internal politics in the region, or at least hasn’t until now. Now, six months later, Hildebrandt en sus trece, a widely respected Peruvian news outlet, has reached a similar conclusion by tracing some of the steps that led to the US military’s current presence in Peru (text, including the excerpts of Admiral Craig Faller’s document, translated from the Spanish by yours truly):

“In May 2019 Admiral Craig Faller, then head of Southern Command, presented an internal document called “Enduring Promise for the Americas.” It was about a plan for winning allies in Latin America and the Caribbean up to 2027 with the goal of “improving security, protecting the US homeland and our national interests,” says the report.

In the document SOUTHCOM singles out two threats in the US’ “backyard”: Chinese influence and the growth of organised crime. On the spectre of Xi Jinping, Faller paints a bleak picture: “In many areas around the world, including this hemisphere, our competitive advantage is eroding (…) China has expanded its ‘One Belt, One Road’ initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean at a pace that could one day eclipse its expansion in South East Asia and Africa. Its trade and investments are increasing rapidly and it is now the biggest creditor to the region. Chinese control of deep water ports and infrastructure connected to the Panama Canal bolsters its operational position. Its investments in telecommunications and access to space tracking facilities put at risk military operations, intellectual property and data privacy, says the report.

Faller proposes three lines of action to counter US rivals. The first strategy consists of “increasing” US presence in the region by strengthening its alliances. “We will take advantage of our bilateral security assistance programs to enhance regional cooperation.”

As if to confirm this, the documents presented to the Peruvian Congress requesting authorisation for the entry of US troops and military equipment argue that (emphasis my own) “training alongside US forces will help to improve the capabilities and strengthen the operational performance of [Peruvian] Special Forces, boosting their interoperability with NATO systems and doctrine.”

Since as far back as 2019 the Peruvian Army — one of the last remaining institutional backbones in Peru, according to Jalife — has made no bones about its aspirations to join the North Atlantic Treaty Association at some point in the future, despite Peru’s geographic position perched on South America’s Pacific coastline.

NATO already has three partner countries in South America and is on the lookout for more. In 2017, Colombia became one of NATO’s eight global partners, along with Australia, Iraq, Japan, Mongolia, New Zealand, Pakistan and the Republic of Korea. The apparent benefits of membership include interoperability with NATO forces as well as the opportunity to participate in NATO-led operations and missions around the world. Like Colombia, both Brazil and Argentina are also “major non-NATO allies,” a designation awarded by Washington to close allies that have strategic working relationships with the US Armed Forces but are not members of NATO.

NATO is certainly keen to expand its influence in Latin America, especially in the context of the current conflict in Ukraine. In 2019, the US State Department even suggested  that Mexico should join the military alliance, despite the country’s long, albeit interrupted, history of neutrality. In 2020, the Atlantic Council even argued that securing Mexico’s membership could be key to keeping the United States, then under Trump’s presidency, “committed” to the Alliance. Between them Brazil (334,000 active military personnel) and Colombia (200,000) alone would contribute more assets to NATO than the European members annexed in the 1990s, according to the the Latin American Strategic Center for Geopolitics (also known as CELAG).

At an event on the sidelines of the 2022 NATO summit in Madrid, King of Spain Felipe VI proposed that Spain could serve as both a bridge and a nexus between NATO and the former Spanish colonies of Latin America — an idea that will no doubt have met with the approval of EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell.

A month ago, Colombia’s first left-wing President Gustavo Petro dismayed many of his supporters by committing  to strengthen Colombia’s cooperation with NATO in areas such as climate change, human rights, integrity building and cyber defence. As I’ve noted in a previous article

, Petro has his hands largely tied when it comes to dealing with the US military, given that Colombia is one of the biggest recipients of US military aid, is home to seven or eight official US military bases and has suffered through a decades-long civil war that is not nearly resolved. But even I was surprised by the extent to which Petro appears to have caved in.

Peru: “The Most Chinese Country in South America,” Until Now

Peru’s Ambassador to China during Pedro Castillo’s government, Luis Quesada, described China as the “most Chinese country in South America.” That was in July last year. At the time, there was even talk of upgrading China’s free trade agreement (FTA) with Peru. China is already Peru’s largest trading partner on both the exports and imports side while Peru is the second largest destination for Chinese investment in Latin America, behind only Brazil. A whopping 32% of Peru’s exports go to China, compared with just 12% to the US.

But according to the report in Hildebrandt en sus trece, citing other documents by Craig Faller, Washington’s soft-power arm USAID will also be playing a part in the US’ counter-offensive against China and Russia in Peru. The notes that USAID is investigating “foreign agents” in Peru, with a particular focus on “unethical” practices by Asian (read: Chinese) multinationals.

The companies that have so far been targeted allegedly include  China Railway Tunnel Group ― with whom the Ministry of Transport and Communications recently cancelled an $87 million contract ― and Cosco Shipping, which is under investigation by the Prosecutor’s Office for a landslide at one of the company’s tunnel construction sites at the $3.6 billion Chancay mega-port it is helping to build. Located 50 miles north of Lima, the port is expected to become (in the words of Mercopress news agency) “a colossal infrastructure that will transform the 65,000 people former fishing village into a milestone of China’s increasing trade and influence in Latin America.”

Chinese companies have also invested huge sums in Peru’s mining sector over the past decade and a half. But US and European interest in Latin America’s strategic resources is also on the rise as the race for lithium, copper, cobalt and other elements essential for the so-called “clean” energy transition heats up. In recent months the region’s largest economies have received state visits from both Germany’s Chancellor Olaf Scholtz and EU Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen, who last week unveiled €10 billion of Global Gateway investments in Latin America and the Caribbean.

As readers may recall, Craig Faller’s successor at the helm of SOUTHCOM, General Laura Richardson, has been explicit about the US government’s intentions to “box out” China and Russia from strategic resources in Latin America. And while Peru may not form part of the Lithium Triangle (Bolivia, Argentina and Chile), it does boast significant deposits of the white metal. By one estimate , it is home to the sixth largest deposits of hard-rock lithium in the world. It is also the world’s second largest producer of copper, zinc and silver, three metals that are also expected to play a major role in supporting renewable energy technologies.

The problem is that Peru’s economy is hugely dependent on Chinese money for its mining industry and infrastructure projects, and that economy is — as Jalife put it — one of the few “fractals” that continue to provide some degree of stability. And while the US and NATO may offer guns and war, they cannot compete with China on investment or trade.

* The US Ambassador to Peru, Lisa Kenna, is a former adviser to former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and a nine-year veteran at the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). She almost certainly gave the green light for Castillo’s toppling during a meeting with Peru’s Defense Minister Gustavo Bobbio Rosas the day before (December 6). A retired brigadier general, Bobbio Rosas was appointed defence minister just one day before his meeting with Kenna and was replaced a couple of days later by Jorge Chavez Cresta , a graduate of the West Virginia National Guard and the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies in Washington. According to a tweet by Peru’s Ministry of Defence, the meeting between Kenna and Bobbio was meant to tackle “issues of bilateral interest”.

So what is really going on?

Now you see why these days, the Chinese government prefers dealing with American oligarchs over any of their politicians?

You simply cannot treat a western democracy (especially one as polarised and unhinged as the US) like a normal state, because their politicians/political parties are more fixated on winning votes than any sort of long-term planning in domestic or foreign policies. Winning votes means staying in power, staying in power means receiving more bribes/”lobbying funds”.

Their promises and assurances are therefore meaningless. They can act friendly to your face, and then behave in a completely different way the very next day, with no chances of being held accountable.

So what China is beginning to do, is skip the middle man, and talk directly to the people in charge, the ones who own all the politicians.

Oligarchs care about business and profits. China can provide both. They can be reasoned with, and they don’t have to look “tough on China”.

The real owners of America are accountable not to childish voters who think they’re free, but to amoral shareholders and the rules of the “free market”. American businessmen, rather than diplomats, will be taking up a more important role in shaping the future of Sino-US diplomacy.

Not saying it’s necessarily a good thing, but it will restore some much needed maturity, gravitas and dignity to US foreign policy.

New Academy Awards Rules Exclude Movies That Aren’t “Woke” Enough!

Pennsylvania Dutch Banana Bread

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached regular flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup soft margarine
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup oil
• 2 cups mashed ripe bananas
• 1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
• Dash of cinnamon (optional)
• Dash of nutmeg (optional)

Instructions

1. Cream sugar and margarine; add eggs and mix well.
2. Stir in baking soda, baking powder and salt.
3. Add oil and stir again.
4. Add bananas and mix.
5. Add flour, 1 cup at a time, and stir well after each addition.
6. Grease and flour 4 to 5 bread tins.
7. Bake at 350 degrees F for 1 hour. Test for doneness with wooden pick until it comes out clean.
8. When cool, wrap in plastic.

Loaves may be frozen.

US tampering with political commitments on one-China policy: Chinese FM

By Global Times Published: Jun 21, 2023 03:35 PM

Photo: CFP

The approach from the US that connects the peaceful resolution of the Taiwan question to its one-China policy is not reiteration and insistence of its commitment to China, but a tampering of its policy, Yang Tao, director-general of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on Monday, as he briefed Chinese and foreign media about US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to China.

In an address on Monday as Blinken wrapped up his visit to China, he reiterated the US’ one-China policy, which he said was guided by the Taiwan Relations Act, the three Joint Communiqués, and the Six Assurances. While Blinken said “We do not support ‘Taiwan independence,'” he also said “We remain opposed to any unilateral changes to the status quo by either side. We continue to expect the peaceful resolution of cross-Strait differences.”

Yang said that the Taiwan question has always been the most important issue in China-US relations. The US has made a clear commitment on one-China by acknowledging there is but one China in the world, Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China.

“These commitments are clearly reflected in the three China-US Joint Communiqués, which also means that the US recognizes the real status quo in the Taiwan Straits, that is, there is only one China in the world, and both sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to one China. The US calls it the ‘one-China policy,'” said Yang.

However, the US has unilaterally attached the Taiwan Relations Act and the Six Assurances to its one-China policy, Yang pointed out, adding that these are not consensus reached by both China and the US and are opposed and not recognized by the Chinese side.

“The US’ characterization of the peaceful resolution of the Taiwan question as the core content of its one-China policy is a tampering of its political commitment,” said Yang.

When meeting with Blinken on Monday, Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, said China has no room for compromise or concession on the Taiwan question.

He urged the US to earnestly abide by the one-China principle set out in the three China-US Joint Communiqués, respect China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and unequivocally oppose “Taiwan independence.”

Global Times

Chinese premier calls for more cooperation between China, Germany

Visiting Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Tuesday said China and Germany should work more closely, make more contributions to world peace and development, play the role of stabilizer in the midst of changes, and speed up building a community with a shared future for mankind.

Premier Li remarked when co-chairing the seventh China-Germany inter-governmental consultation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

They heard reports on the progress of China-Germany cooperation in relevant fields from the heads of 22 departments, including foreign affairs, economy and trade, industry, finance, justice, transport, education, science and technology, health, environmental protection, and development.

Li said that the consultation was efficient and pragmatic and achieved fruitful results. Under the current circumstances, the two sides should seize the opportunity of green transformation and promote the upgrading of cooperation.

Li proposed that China and Germany should partner in green development, strengthen communication and coordination on green and environmental issues, promote green energy technology development and industrial technology upgrading, and deepen cooperation in new energy vehicles, green finance and third-party markets.

China and Germany should adhere to a pragmatic and open attitude to better achieve mutual benefit and win-win results, Li said, adding the two countries should also strengthen cooperation in global economic governance, ensure the stability of international industrial and supply chains, and promote an early recovery of the world economy.

Scholz said the inter-governmental consultation mechanism reflects the special significance of the relations between the two countries.

The German side is willing to maintain close communication with China on all issues between the two countries and to jointly address global challenges such as climate change, food security and debt problems, he said.

Scholz said Germany has no intention to decouple from China and is ready to strengthen bilateral and multilateral cooperation with China to promote world development and prosperity.

The two sides agreed that bilateral cooperation is solidly based and dynamic and that it is in the interests of both sides to deepen cooperation at a higher level, with higher standards and higher quality, and to jointly maintain the stability of the global production and supply chains, which is also of great global significance.

The two sides also agreed to set up a dialogue and cooperation mechanism on climate change and a green transition, hold the third China-Germany High-Level Financial Dialogue as well as new editions of the Sino-German Environmental Forum and health dialogue, and continue to deepen cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, investment, automobile manufacturing, high-tech, new energy, digital economy, and humanities.

After the consultation, Li and Scholz witnessed the signing of a number of bilateral cooperation documents in the fields of climate change response, innovation, advanced manufacturing, and vocational education and met with the press together.

Before the consultation, Li held a meeting with Scholz.

Li pointed out that the economic and trade cooperation between China and Germany has been developed for more than half a century, and it is not easy for the two sides to achieve today’s results, which have brought real benefits to the two peoples.

He hopes the German side will continue to keep an open mind, uphold the independent policy and properly handle relevant issues on the basis of international rules and in the principle of the spirit of contract.

He said the two sides should vigorously promote the facilitation of personnel exchanges and strengthen people-to-people exchanges.

Li proposed tackling climate change as one of the guiding visions for China-Germany cooperation in the future, adding that the two countries should promote cooperation in green technology and industry, and explore the establishment of a rational and orderly division of labor in the green energy industry chain.

Scholz said the German side welcomes China’s development and prosperity, noting that Germany rejects all forms of decoupling and “de-risking” is not “de-sinicization.”

Germany is committed to developing stable relations with China and is willing to strengthen bilateral exchanges further, deepen mutually beneficial cooperation and reach more cooperation consensus in addressing climate change and green development, he said, adding that Germany supports two-way investment and will provide a sound business environment for Chinese enterprises to invest in Germany.

The two sides also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.

Before the meeting, Scholz held a grand welcome ceremony for Li at the square in front of the Federal Chancellery. With a military band playing the national anthems of both countries and Chinese and German flags flying high, Li, accompanied by Scholz, reviewed the guard of honor.

It’s time to test US’ credibility again: Global Times editorial

By Global Times Published: Jun 20, 2023 12:42 AM

Chinese President Xi Jinping (center) meets with visiting US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Beijing on June 19, 2023. Blooming lotus ffowers are seen placed in the middle of the meeting table. The Chinese word for “lotus” has similar pronunciation with the word of “peace” and “harmony.” Photo: Xinhua

On June 19, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Beijing, which was the most important and highly anticipated part of Blinken’s China visit. Until the last moment, whether Blinken would secure a meeting with President Xi was a topic of great interest in the US media, carrying significant indicators to measure the achievements of Blinken’s visit and the level of easing in China-US relations. Therefore, once the meeting was confirmed and the scene of the meeting was released, it immediately became one of the most significant international events of the day. Against the backdrop of the international community’s widespread concern over the downward spiral of China-US relations, this meeting has released the expected signal of relief.

Though the meeting was not long, it carried substantial information. President Xi expounded on the principled stance for stabilizing and developing China-US relations, providing strategic and guiding suggestions. President Xi emphasized that the world needs a generally stable China-US relationship, and whether the two countries can find the right way to get along bears on the future and destiny of humanity. The vast expanse of the Earth is big enough to accommodate the respective development and common prosperity of China and the US, Xi pointed out. The Chinese, like the Americans, are dignified, confident and self-reliant people, Xi said, adding that they both have the right to pursue a better life, and the common interests of the two countries should be valued, and their respective success is an opportunity instead of a threat to each other.

These words are full of sincerity and goodwill, while also targeted. Some people in the US view China’s development with a narrow mindset of zero-sum game or even negative-sum game, perceiving it as a threat rather than an opportunity. Their biases toward China, catalyzed by the complex political and diplomatic environment in Washington, have become the crux of the twists and turns in China-US relations. In other words, the US’ own problems have turned into problems in bilateral relations, which need to be resolved by the US side.

China has consistently demonstrated its strategic clarity to the US, which is a sharp contrast with US side’s strategic ambiguity. The three most commonly used adjectives by both sides for their high-level communication are “frank, in-depth and constructive.” Clarity represents frankness. We believe that Blinken deeply understands this during his visit. China has thoroughly explained the root causes of the low point in China-US relations, the urgent tasks for both sides, China’s intentions and goals for development and revitalization, and the most prominent risks in the bilateral relationship. China does not harbor ill intentions toward the US, but it will definitely counteract any suppressive actions. If the US still has any misunderstandings about China’s strategic intentions, then we can only assume that they are deliberate and pretending to be ignorant.

Overall, in a situation with low expectations from various parties and having experienced twists and turns, Blinken’s visit to China has achieved some specific consensus, and the communication has been efficient and in-depth. It is worth noting that during the talks, Blinken made some statements that moved toward China’s position. For example, he said that the US is committed to returning to the agenda set at the summit between the heads of state in Bali and reiterated US President Joe Biden’s commitment of “five noes.” Some of Blinken’s statements during the press conference held on Monday evening also reflected this point. However, it should be pointed out that the “stability” of China-US relations requires both sides meeting each other halfway, especially for the US to be consistent in both words and deeds.

Even though it is still too early to determine if it was a successful visit, China-US relations made positive progress because of the trip. This is in the interests of the US, China, and even the world, which is also what the international community hopes to see. The world once had unprecedentedly low confidence in the turnaround of China-US relations, but now there are more expectations for the stability of China-US relations.

China and the US have taken a step forward, but it is still far from enough. The key lies in the next steps. It goes without saying that there are still differences between the two countries on many issues. No one expects Blinken’s trip to resolve these divergences. Its greater significance lies in the possibility of reversing the highly unhealthy and tense atmosphere in bilateral relations and thus creating conditions for managing and resolving the differences. China’s reception of Blinken also showcases China’s demeanor as a major power and its sincerity in stabilizing China-US relations and strengthen communication. Previously, the US gave the world the impression that China was unwilling to communicate, but it is clearly not the case.

Some media outlets noticed that the blooming lotus placed at the center of the meeting table between President Xi and Blinken was particularly eye-catching. It is currently the season of lotus blooms, and “lotus” has the same pronunciation in Chinese as “harmony,” conveying the expectation of peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation between China and the US. We hope that after returning to the US, Blinken will comprehensively and objectively convey the information received in China, generating new momentum for stabilizing China-US relations, and never again leaving the impression that the US says one thing and does another.

Funny, but so very true…

World Hal Turner 20 June 2023

SHOCKING! Letter Exposes Top-Secret UFO Programs Involving Canada and Five Eyes Alliance

Chinese FM clarifies position on US-claimed ‘rules-based intl order’

By Global Times Published: Jun 21, 2023 04:48 PM

World Hal Turner 21 June 2023 

watch this video, trust me

https://youtu.be/9bT2KLaPuE0

I drove back to NJ today because I have this absurd notion that I had to get my wife away from New York City for this weekend with the NATO exercise coming to an end.  I sincerely believe NATO will either find an excuse – or MAKE one – to go into direct warfare with Russia.  NYC is a major nuke target and I want my wife out of here.  Well, it didn’t take ten friggin minutes before I realized why I walked away three months ago . . .

Traffic; nightmarish.   Filthy, dirty, roads in bad repair – everywhere.   Graffiti on the highway overpass pilings . . . . ahhh yes, “Diversity” from all the little savages brought here by Democrat political scum.

Then, my wife . . . . Oh I have to be back here on the 27th for some window repair appointment for the sliding glass door in our condo.

Then she starts with her bullshit “I’m not even going to Pennsylvania, I’m staying home.”  So this time, I said “Good.  Stay home.  Now it’s off my conscience whatever happens to you.”

I don’t think she expected that, at all.   So a few minutes later, she came around and said she’ll go.   But I can already see it’s not something she wants to do and if I know her at all after 31 years being married to her, I can look forward to a whiney, complaining, aggravating time up there.

That’s my first fifteen minutes home after three months.

How’s yours?

How will the United States respond to China’s effective ban on Micron Technology memory chips?

Do not think they have any good option since they started the chip war. Only doing to the United States what the United States did to China. They could take it to the World Trade Organization but considering that the US started it, not sure it would get the judgement it wants since probable the WTO would tell the US and China to both stop trade restrictions.

The US has so many disputes compared to China

Sort of astounding to see how little problem China has with the world and vis versa compared to the Untied States.

US seems to hate everyone.

Pennsylvania Dutch Chicken and Flat Dumplings

Ingredients

• 1 large (5 pound) washed chicken
• 1 large onion, quartered
• 3 stalks celery, cut into large chunks
• 1 teaspoon whole peppercorn
• 2 1/2 teaspoons salt

Instructions

1. Place chicken in a 6- to 8-quart stockpot. Add remaining ingredients. Bring to boil. Simmer until chicken is done, about 2 hours.
2. When cool, remove bones and fat from chicken. Cut into pieces, and return to pot.
3. Noodles: In a bowl, mix together 2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Make a well in the center, and gradually work 4 eggs into the flour until stiff dough is formed, adding water a little at a time if necessary. Knead until smooth. Divide dough in half. Roll each half as thin as possible then cut into thin 1-2 inch squares.
4. Bring the broth back to rolling boil. Drop noodle squares one at a time, making sure each are drenched in broth. Reduce heat, cover and continue to cook until noodles are done, about 8 minutes. DON’T PEEK!
5. Serve in large bowl and ladle onto plates at the table. Serve with chopped onion.

NATO’s secret TERROR armies exposed in newly declassified documents by The Grayzone | Redacted News

Biden Blows Up Blinken’s Diplomatic Mission to China

21 June 2023 by Larry Johnson

Dementia Joe does it again. Less than 24 hours after Secretary of State Blinken genuflected before the Chinese, assuring them that the United States really, really, really is sincere in supporting the One China policy and eschews calling for Taiwan’s independence, Biden opened his yap and called Xi Jinping a dictator. While this garnered applause from the American financial donors, it destroyed Blinken’s credibility with the Chinese and confirmed their worst suspicions about U.S. intentions.

When it comes to the art of diplomacy, saying what you really think or believe is not an acceptable practice. While many Americans believe that China’s Xi is a dictator and are wondering what the fuss is surrounding Biden’s intemperate, off-the-cuff remark, saying this in public stiffens Chinese doubts about U.S. intentions and makes it virtually impossible for the United States to have any kind of productive working relationship with China going forward.

Just a day after Blinken’s weekend visit to China, U.S. President Joe Biden called Chinese President Xi Jinping in a move that has infuriated Beijing and left U.S. officials perplexed. Biden said the comments in front of donors at a California event.

Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning called the comments a “provocation” and “irresponsible.” U.S. officials have privately sought to inform the Chinese that this doesn’t represent a shift in tone or mood since the Blinken visit.

https://t.me/UkraineHumanRightsAbuses/27593

I suspect there were some of Xi Jinping’s foreign policy advisors who warned that receiving Blinken was a mistake and that the U.S. could not be trusted to live up to its promises. Guess what? They are serving up a big load of crow to those in the Chinese Government who advocated for the meeting with Blinken. Those advocates have lost face; big time.

American political leaders, including those in the Biden Administration and Republicans, need to make a choice — cool the bombastic, threatening rhetorical comments or prepare for deteriorating relations with China that will inflict enormous damage on the U.S. economy for the foreseeable future. There is no middle ground.

Many of the so-called American China mavens advocate more deterrence (i.e., more cowbell). CSIS published the results of a China/America war game in January:

CSIS developed a wargame for a Chinese amphibious invasion of Taiwan and ran it 24 times. In most scenarios, the United States/Taiwan/Japan defeated a conventional amphibious invasion by China and maintained an autonomous Taiwan. However, this defense came at high cost. The United States and its allies lost dozens of ships, hundreds of aircraft, and tens of thousands of service members. Taiwan saw its economy devastated. Further, the high losses damaged the U.S. global position for many years. China also lost heavily, and failure to occupy Taiwan might destabilize Chinese Communist Party rule. Victory is therefore not enough. The United States needs to strengthen deterrence immediately.

The proposal to “strengthen U.S. deterrence”, which is academic jargon for building up U.S. military capability in the Pacific, is a non-starter. The U.S. already is bogged down in Ukraine, has depleted critical weapon supplies and lacks the industrial capability to rapidly replace weapons and build tanks, combat aircraft and ships required, in theory at least, to deter China.

China is likely to become more firm in defining its territorial waters and air space and will make normal commerce with Taiwan more difficult for the United States, but it sees war as a last resort. China has a number of other cards to play. The most important of these is the January 13, 2024 election in Taiwan where the party that wants a closer relationship with the mainland appears to have a chance to win the Presidency. If the Kuomintang prevails then the door is open for a peaceful reconciliation between the mainland and Taiwan. This will be a punch to the gut for the United States and will upend Western plans to foment a rift in the Communist Party.

You can be sure that Western and Chinese intelligence agencies will be actively interfering in this election to secure their respective interests. Hypocrisy alert — don’t be surprised that many of the American politicians who decried alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. Presidential election will be enthusiastic supporters of the U.S. Government and its subsidiary agencies meddling aggressively in the Taiwan election. We can do it to you but don’t do it to us.

If you’re holding your breath in hopes of a peaceful resolution to this conflict you will pass out from lack of oxygen. I fear that the American political dynamics are so toxic and twisted that we are setting ourselves up for an inevitable war with China. I also worry that the Chinese leaders have reached this same conclusion and will ramp up their efforts to work more closely with Russia in building a new world order that will weaken American influence and will bolster its naval, air and hypersonic missile capabilities.

The “chart”

World Hal Turner 20 June 2023

Americans are fighting against Russia on the battlefield of Ukraine as proved by the brief videos below.  Why are Americans fighting in a place where our government claims “We are not party to the conflict?”

Video #1:

Video #2:

The US Government and NATO are almost constantly telling the world “we are not party to the conflict.”

Yet New Jersey Congressman Tom Kean, Jr. sponsored a Resolution in Congress just the other day, calling for LONG RANGE MISSILES to be given to Ukraine:

Even other members of Congress are pointing out how insane the US Gov’t is acting:

How long will it be before Russia decides that the USA and NATO  **** are, in fact *** parties to the conflict, and starts bombing us?

Six US Citizens Indicted in Venezuela on Conspiracy Charges and Related Crimes (+Operation Gideon)

US mercenary Airan Berry after being captured by Venezuelan authorities in 2020, following the failure of the coup plot known as Operation Gideon. Photo: Screenshot of VTV video/File photo.

According to a report by news outlet Últimas Noticias

, “seven men and one woman of US nationality are being criminally prosecuted in Venezuela,” according to records from the Ministry for the Penitentiary Service published this Tuesday, June 20.

It is worth noting that six of the eight Americans detained are being prosecuted for conspiracy and related offenses. Two of the prosecuted have already sentenced to 24 years in prison each: Airan Berry and Luke Alexander Denman. According to the investigation of the Public Prosecutor’s Office, both were captured on May 3, 2020, in Chuao (Aragua state), when they came to execute US-backed Operation Gideon, aimed at the overthrow of President Nicolás Maduro.

It should be further noted that Berry and Denman are former US soldiers and were hired by mercenary contractor Silvercorp USA—owned by former Green Beret Jordan Goudreau—to carry out mercenary operations in Venezuelan territory, under a contract signed by Juan Guaidó, who had presented himself to the world as the so-called “interim president” of Venezuela.

Últimas Noticias reports that both US nationals “admitted their participation in the mercenary plot, and consequently the Fourth Anti-Terrorist Court sentenced them on May 3, 2021, for conspiracy, criminal association, illicit trafficking of weapons of war, and terrorism.”

The other defendants charged with conspiracy and criminal association are Jerrel Lloyd Kenemore and Eylin Alexis Hernández, captured in San Antonio del Táchira for entering Venezuela illegally in November 2022.

Jason George Saab, captured in Zulia, is being “prosecuted for conspiracy, resistance to authority, and criminal association,” while Joseph Ryan Cristella, also captured in Táchira in October 2022, is being prosecuted for conspiracy against the Venezuelan state.

New World Order w/ Ambassador Chas Freeman, Alexander Mercouris and Glenn Diesen

And Then Biden Blew It …

The talks Secretary of State Anthony Blinken had in China were somewhat useful. On his way out he at least used the right words on Taiwan:

'We do not support Taiwan independence,' America's top diplomat said in Beijing after meeting with Chinese president Xi Jingping.

The U.S. had practically begged for the meeting and that it took place is itself a small success:

To stabilise their relations, China and the United States must first arrest a downward spiral. That may turn out to be the achievement of US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s talks with Chinese leaders in Beijing. It was unrealistic to expect any more just now. The negative fundamentals of the relationship remain the same. Both sides described Blinken’s talks with Foreign Minister Qin Gang and top diplomat Wang Yi as “candid” – meaning very frank. But they paved the way for a meeting between Blinken and President Xi Jinping, which did no harm to hopes for a Xi- Joe Biden summit.

Along with Qin’s acceptance of an invitation to Washington, that suggests the two sides found some common ground – particularly the need for more stable ties and to reduce the risk of military conflict.

Then, within just 24 hours, President Biden blew it:

US President Joe Biden has called Chinese President Xi Jinping a dictator at a fundraising event in California.

His remarks came a day after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met Mr Xi for talks in Beijing, which were aimed at easing tensions between the two superpowers.

Mr Biden also said Mr Xi was embarrassed after an alleged Chinese spy balloon was shot down by the US. 
..
"The reason why Xi Jinping got very upset, in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two box cars full of spy equipment in it, was he didn't know it was there," Mr Biden said at the event on Tuesday.

"That's a great embarrassment for dictators. When they didn't know what happened," he added.

The Chinese government was not amused:

China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning called Mr Biden's remarks "extremely absurd and irresponsible". Speaking at a regularly scheduled press conference on Wednesday, she said that the comments were "an open political provocation" that violated diplomatic etiquette.

The whole Biden remarks with regards to China from the White House website:

And so, things are changing. We put together in Southeast Asia — and, by the way, I promise you we’re going to — don’t worry about China. I mean, worry about China, but don’t worry about China. (Laughter.)

No, but I really mean it. China is real — has real economic difficulties. And the reason why Xi Jinping got very upset in terms of when I shot that balloon down with two boxcars full of spy equipment in it is he didn’t know it was there. No, I’m serious. That’s what’s a great embarrassment for dictators, when they didn’t know what happened. That wasn’t supposed to be going where it was. It was blown off course up through Alaska and then down through the United States. And he didn’t know about it. When it got shot down, he was very embarrassed. He denied it was even there.

But the fo- — did — the very important point is he’s in a situation now where he wants to have a relationship again. Tony Blinken just went over there — our Secretary of State; did a good job. And it’s going to take time.

But what he was really upset about was that I insisted that we — we reunite the Qu- — so-called Quad. He called me and told me not to do that because it was putting him in a bind. I said, “All we’re doing — we’re not trying to surround you, we’re just trying to make sure the international rules with air and sea lanes remain open. And we’re not going to yield to that — on that.”

There are several issues in there that need some clarifying.

China has no real economic difficulties, just minor issues:

The Chinese economy this year is expected to grow faster than previously forecast and exceed the government's target of "around 5%," according to a survey of local economists.

A survey of 28 economists in March revealed that, on average, they expect the Chinese economy to grow 5.4% in 2023, up from 4.7% they forecast in December. The survey was jointly conducted by Nikkei and Nikkei Quick News.

The hope for China this year was 6% GDP growth. China’s central bank just lowered a key interest rate by a small margin to achieve that.

Biden acknowledges that the weather balloon was ‘blow off course’ and thereby debunks previous claims that it was steerable. China had no intent to let the balloon cross Canada and the United States. And if there had really been ‘two boxcars full of spy equipment’ on the balloon why hasn’t the U.S. shown any of it?

Why would or should a president of the U.S. or China know of some weather balloon floating somewhere?

Xi was embarrassed by the circus the U.S. made over that affair?

Xi is a dictator? The man came to his post by merits (scroll down) and through a complex representational election system. He can even be dismissed.

Xi denied that the ballon was where it was to whom? And the U.S. would know about that how?

Then comes the tale over the Quad. Biden claims that Xi called him over a quad meeting which is most likely a blatant lie. There are typically read-outs of phone calls between leaders at that level but I do not find any of a Xi-Biden call during the relevant months on the White House website. Nor was there any news of one.

The Biden talk, made official by posting it on the White House site, is an insult to China. Whatever Blinken has said or done to smooth the relations is no gone. It was already known that the U.S. can not be trusted with anything that it says. What counts is what the U.S. does and there it has so far shown no positive move towards China.

I am not sure that Biden intentionally talked about the balloon incident or was selective with his words on China. But even if it was somewhat accidentally it would not change anything. What matters is the effect. He has sabotaged the results of Blinken’s talks in China and the U.S. will rightly be blamed for again worsening the relations.

As Yves Smith summarizes:

I wouldn’t bet on the minimal commitments from the meetings, like a return to pre-zero Covid levels of passenger flights, to be implemented.

The worst is that this insult does not simply demonstrate that the US is incapable of diplomacy. It shows we are so interested in dominance that we’ve lost sight of what our interests our. So institutionally, we are engaging in the same sort of self-destructive behavior that Trump practices personally. Perhaps that is the real reason Democrats hate him. Despite decorating in gold, the essence of his behavior is not all that different than theirs.

Posted by b on June 21, 2023 at 15:40 UTC | Permalink

.

The two leaders also discussed the future of Laos-Chongqing relations and agreed to explore cooperation in a variety of areas, including development in rural areas and the transportation of goods

between Laos and Chongqing through the Laos-China railway, which will open up the Laos market to export its goods to the central-western part of China.

The Lao president asked Mr. Yuan to urge Chinese investors and businesses to invest in Laos and for Chinese tourists to visit the country more frequently.

Mr. Yuan expressed his gratitude for the participation of the Lao delegations in a recent international conference held in Chongqing City. He was pleased to observe that the top leadership of both countries made significant efforts to enhance bilateral cooperation.

Additionally, the Lao president visited the Hongyan Revolutionary Memorial Hall, an important historical site as well as an important industrial production base in Chongqing.

Mr. Thongloun’s official trip to China also included visits to Yunnan Province

and the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region.

BREAKING! WE’RE GOING TO WAR, RUSSIA COUNTERS, MEDIA CRACKDOWN, CRIMEA NUCLEAR COUNTDOWN BEGINS

I’m not offended; I am just confused.

If the US were a human it would be doing this:

This isn’t about whether Xi is or isn’t a “dictator”, it’s about how the US President actively, repeatedly, and cartoonishly undermines his own foreign policy. With one hand he’s sending out Blinken to repair ties with China, and with the other he’s slapping China in the face.

It’s a matter of diplomatic protocol that world leaders do not insult other world leaders. The US isn’t supposed to call Xi a “dictator” in the same way China isn’t supposed to call Biden a dementia-addled, fundamentally corrupt tool of the corporate state.

This is not a lone incident. Biden has a habit of promising to defend Taiwan only to be vetoed by his own White House the next day:

Biden “misspoke” on this same topic four times, and was “clarified” by his own White House four times.

All of these incidents give the perception that “no one is flying the plane” in Washington DC. Say what you will of Trump, but the man was definitely flying the plane, even if he was crashing it into a mountain.

Biden blows up China rapprochement, calls Xi Jinping a dictator