China’s Big Businesses Risk Trump’s Punishment Over North Korea - August 25, 2017

Media Report

August 25 , 2017

Bloomberg：China's Big Businesses Risk Trump's Punishment Over North Korea
Bloomberg reports: "President Donald Trump's administration is looking for ways to pressure North Korea to stop developing a nuclear-weapons program, and some American analysts warn that the search may end on the doorsteps of China's biggest oil companies and banks. China is North Korea's largest trading partner, playing a vital role in keeping Kim Jong Un's regime afloat... The U.S. successfully lobbied for stricter UN sanctions against North Korea this month, and the Treasury Department on Aug. 22 sanctioned Chinese and Russian entities it accused of assisting Kim's development of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. U.S. prosecutors also want to recover $11 million from companies based in China and Singapore that they accused of conspiring with North Korea to evade sanctions. So far, the U.S. is seeking to punish relatively minor companies such as Dandong Chengtai Trading Ltd... But there's reason for Chinese officials to worry that the America may go after major state-owned enterprises and banks, such as China National Petroleum Corp. and Bank of China... That coercion might unleash a trade war between the two biggest economies that would affect everything from soybeans to smartphones. China is the U.S.'s largest trading partner, with $578.6 billion in two-way trade last year, according to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative."
Foreign Policy：The State Department Is Tilting Dangerously Toward China
Foreign Policy comments: "The first time it happened was bewildering. Rex Tillerson, on his maiden voyage to Beijing as secretary of state, with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi at his side, parroted a series of Communist Party slogans that are well-known shorthand for U.S. accommodation to China. Less than two months into the Trump administration, this could have been forgiven as a rookie move, rather than an intentional decision by the State Department to be submissive toward Beijing. But then it happened again. And again. And again. Away from the limelight of North Korea and trade policy, the State Department has persisted throughout the summer with inexplicable deference to China... This pattern of capitulation is deeply troubling because things like statements by the secretary (or lack thereof) and official press guidance result from a clearance process in the State Department where all of the relevant offices should have the opportunity to offer edits and suggestions. What we have seen over the last several months is not just a series of random, off the cuff remarks, but instead a State Department deliberately unwilling to criticize China."
Financial Times：Drone swarms vs conventional arms: China's military debate
Financial Times comments: "With their tiny propellers buzzing, the fleet of Chinese aircraft, little larger than model planes, are flung into the air one at a time by huge rubber bands. Soon the sky is full of toylike drones flying in formations over unidentified mountains in China. This unlikely spectacle could represent a revolution in military affairs. The June 11 demonstration of 'swarm' technology by China Electronics Technology Group, a state-owned high-tech company, included 119 drones. That made it the world's largest-ever swarm, according to CETC, breaking a US-held record. Each tiny aircraft — bought online for a few hundred dollars — is loaded with software and sensors capable of communicating with the other drones in the swarm. Developers are working towards a future where thousands could operate in sync, identifying and attacking targets. In theory, such swarms could feature drones fitted with missiles or warheads capable of sophisticated attacks designed to overwhelm defences with their sheer numbers. 'This goes all the way back to the tactics of Attila the Hun,' says Randall Steeb, senior engineer at the Rand Corporation in the US. 'A light attack force that can defeat more powerful and sophisticated opponents. They come out of nowhere, attack from all sides and then disappear, over and over.' China's two-decade effort to modernise its military has seen it develop stealth fighters, guided missile destroyers and ballistic 'carrier killer' missiles, while also reducing troop numbers. It will spend at least $152bn this year on its military, but only in a few areas has it come close to surpassing US technology. Beijing is now betting that swarms of drones, low-tech hardware knitted together with high-tech artificial intelligence, will become a weapon of the future."

Calendar

2017-08-24 China to use ‘all means necessary’ to defend itself against Trump ‘protectionism’
2017-08-23 China demands U.S. immediately withdraw N. Korea sanctions, warns will hit ties
2017-08-22 US targets Chinese, Russian entities funding North Korea's nukes
2017-08-21 Bannon exit provides only temporary relief to China
2017-08-20 China has more to lose in US trade showdown, says report
2017-08-18 China Steps Up Warnings Over Debt-Fueled Overseas Acquisitions
2017-08-17 Steve Bannon, Unrepentant
2017-08-16 U.S. and China Ink Military Agreements; Mattis And His Troop Talk
2017-08-15 Trump administration goes after China over intellectual property, advanced technology
2017-08-14 We're Holding Pyongyang to Account

News

Commentary

Foreign Policy The State Department Is Tilting Dangerously Toward China
Financial Times Drone swarms vs conventional arms: China's military debate
The National Interest The Secret Way China and Russia Would Crush America in a War
Lawfare Water Wars: Two Collisions in Two Months; China Prods U.S. While Navy Investigates
The Hill US must not get lapped in innovation race with China
Lawfare Forcing China to Accept that International Law Restricts Cyber Warfare May Not Actually Benefit the U.S.
Financial Times Chinese conglomerate HNA's coffers swell from shadow finance