Symphony

Cadence of Conflict: Asia, May 17, 2021

Asia produced two shining lamps on two hills this week. One is Ming Yang, CFO of the Daqo solar manufacturer in Xinjiang. The other is Taiwan.

Yang, who has a Taiwanese heritage, leads a company in China that is completely controlled by foreign investment. He insists that the company does not employ any Uighurs, thus arguing that using Uighurs as forced labor wouldn’t be possible. He also insists on full transparency with outside groups that would seek to confirm the situation in his company—he wants the truth to convince them through transparency. He also insists that he is not aware of Uighur abuse in Xinjiang, but that if it were true, it would be a very bad thing.

Taiwan shines its light of hope from the season of darkness it now enters. An outbreak of COVID in the greater Taipei area has put the entire island on near lockdown. Customers must list name, phone number, and time when entering many stores. Many avoid public places, wear masks among friends, and carry spray bottles of sanitizer. The calm solidarity in Taiwan is almost unnerving, but it is very encouraging. And, we need encouragement in these times.

Both shining lights cast a pleasant light upon the Taiwanese people. While many will be encouraged throughout the world, there will always be someone who finds a way to be jealous.

China

Shining lamp on a hill
A Xinjiang Solar Giant Breaks Ranks to Try and Woo the West // Bloomberg

Western powers clash with China over Xinjiang at UN virtual meet // Aljazeera

Xinjiang births plummeted after crackdown on Uyghurs, says report // Guardian

China’s ambitions in space: national pride or taking on the Americans? // Financial Times

Taiwan

Minister urges care as local cases grow // Taipei Times

Military Faceoff

Amphibious Exercise ARC 21 Underway with Australia, France, Japan, United States // Naval News

Italian carrier returns home after completing F-35 trials // UK Defense Journal

MV-22B Osprey aircraft land on HMS Queen Elizabeth // UK Defense Journal

USS Harry S. Truman Departs Norfolk Naval Shipyard // US Navy

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Symphony

Cadence of Conflict: Asia, October 5, 2020

The world is entering a realization phase: China doesn’t care what the world thinks or how the world responds. Beijing has become that annoying kid at school who has no friends, and his solution is to be more annoying. The sad part is how the West allowed us to get here. Coupon-clipping consumers buying cheap products are just as much to blame as governments who believed giving money to the Confucian Communists who control China wouldn’t feed their narcissist outlook.

But, China has been warned. And, we each hold the greater responsibility for our choices and actions.

While China makes its choices, Taiwan deals with its own demons of the past. China is not the only society in the Far East self-chained by Confucianism. Taiwan’s Confucian culture empowered them to adopt xenophobic laws, keeping foreigners limited and weak and unable to contribute to the Taiwan economy. Confucianism also indoctrinates students to hate questions in the classroom and at home, while touting parroted answers as “wisdom”. That runs contrary to innovation and the inquiring mind needed to invent new technology. As a result, Taiwan is much weaker than it could have been without Confucianism, making it appetizingly vulnerable to predatorial China. Taiwan now faces a choice of whether to correct its self-imposed, Confucian-born limits of the past.

In some sense, the China-Taiwan conflict is an internal matter, but not purely. China plans to retake Taiwan with Western money and American dollars, after all. The world cannot sit by and watch two self-crippled societies cannibalize each other. The world won’t sit by and watch, not any longer. And, that is something the Confucian Communists of China don’t understand because, at this point anyway, they are not so capable.

China

Trump has repeatedly blamed China for a virus that now threatens his health. This will make Beijing nervous // CNN

China owes America over $1 Trillion in sovereign debt: Sovereign debt never expires // American Bondholders Foundation

China’s yuan records best performance against dollar since 2008 // MarketWatch

Flashback
US dollar rises as Trump hints at China decoupling // FX Street

China’s US dollar debt defaults climb as coronavirus, US tensions hit firms’ bottom lines // SCMP

South China Sea news: Beijing issued threat on disputed claim to waters amid WW3 fears // Express

Does this US military uniform suggest it is preparing for war with China? // SCMP

Tiny Muslim community in China’s Hainan becomes latest target for religious crackdown // SCMP

Taiwan

Canadian warship sails near Taiwan amid heightened China tensions // Aljazeera

China, Taiwan tensions could result in all-out war with the US // NZ Herald

After Hong Kong: China sets sights on solving ‘the Taiwan problem’ // Guardian

Why Taiwan Has Become The ‘Geographical Pivot Of History’ In The Pacific Age // Forbes

With international recognition, even when Taiwan wins, it loses // CNN

Sharing headlines
What the recognition fights over Israel and Taiwan have in common. // Slate

China will start war if US troops return to Taiwan // News.com.au

Taiwan protests against global mayor group’s designation of its cities // Focus Taiwan

Japanese VTubers banned for mentioning Taiwan during livestream // Taiwan News

Hong Kong

American diplomats in Hong Kong want to meet local officials or politicians? Get permission from Beijing’s foreign ministry, new directive demands // SCMP

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