There was once a city in Asia known as the “Outpost of Freedom”. I remember it so well. When evening fell and its millions of lights came on, we journalists would gather at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club to discuss everything under the sun—not least the latest news from China.That outpost of freedom has long since died. Only the place name remains: Hong Kong.
When the British handed Hong Kong over to the People’s Republic of China in 1997, China’s leaders promised that the territory would be allowed to retain its economic and political system for another fifty years. But it was not long before Beijing began interfering in matters large and small. Independent voices were silenced, stringent security laws were introduced, and political activities once regarded as normal were gradually outlawed.
lørdag 19. september 2026
Oil prices are high but could be much worse. Trump has China’s Xi to thank for that
When President Donald Trump launched his war against Iran in late February, energy analysts issued dire warnings that oil prices could more than double during a protracted conflict and urged investors and motorists to buckle up for a bumpy ride.
The war grinds on and oil prices certainly remain volatile. But the most dire projections have not yet come to pass six months into a conflict that has no end in sight. Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is making a much-anticipated state visit to Washington next week, could make a credible argument that the world has his country’s energy strategy to thank for that.
The war grinds on and oil prices certainly remain volatile. But the most dire projections have not yet come to pass six months into a conflict that has no end in sight. Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is making a much-anticipated state visit to Washington next week, could make a credible argument that the world has his country’s energy strategy to thank for that.
Major study finds human induced climate change a factor in the Aug 26 Tibet-Nepal flash flood devastation
Climate change, including Human induced factors and industrial emissions, was a key factor in preconditioning the devastating glacier-avalanche triggered flash floods of ice, rock, mud, and water which swept through the Tibet-Nepal border on Aug 26 morning, killing or leaving missing thousands of people without any prior warning, reported Reuters and other news agencies Sep 17, citing the World Weather Attribution (WWA) group of researchers.
As of Aug 26, the flash floods have resulted in at least 1,410 deaths and 6,145 missing in Nepal, alongside 43 deaths and 519 missing in the Tibet. However, the numbers of the dead and missing in Tibet are feared to be much more than these bald officially cited figures in view of China’s denial of access to independent journalists and other witnesses and strict control on information about the disaster there.
As of Aug 26, the flash floods have resulted in at least 1,410 deaths and 6,145 missing in Nepal, alongside 43 deaths and 519 missing in the Tibet. However, the numbers of the dead and missing in Tibet are feared to be much more than these bald officially cited figures in view of China’s denial of access to independent journalists and other witnesses and strict control on information about the disaster there.
Who Is to Blame for the Massive Death Toll in the Nepal Floods?
When a massive flood hit Nepal on August 26, Nepali social media split almost immediately into two camps of grief and anger. One camp blamed the government of China, saying hundreds of Nepalis – over 1,400 as of the last count – died because the warning had simply failed. Commentators accused China of sitting on satellite and disaster monitoring data that could have bought Nepal precious minutes of warning.
A second, more painful narrative came from survivors and local officials themselves: yes, the word had reached them that flood was coming down. There simply wasn’t enough time to react before the disaster arrived.
China’s embassy in Kathmandu called the claims that it had withheld information “completely false and misleading,” insisting Beijing shared information with the Nepali side in time. But the strongest pushback on the blame narrative didn’t come from Beijing at all, but from Nepal’s own disaster authority, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA).
A second, more painful narrative came from survivors and local officials themselves: yes, the word had reached them that flood was coming down. There simply wasn’t enough time to react before the disaster arrived.
China’s embassy in Kathmandu called the claims that it had withheld information “completely false and misleading,” insisting Beijing shared information with the Nepali side in time. But the strongest pushback on the blame narrative didn’t come from Beijing at all, but from Nepal’s own disaster authority, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA).
‘China Shock 2.0’ fuels EU push for united response to Beijing
Beijing has called for communication and pragmatism after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned of a second “China Shock” that’s damaging key manufacturing industries in the bloc.
The term “China shock” originally described the wave of cheap toys, textiles and basic electronics that flooded European markets after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, hollowing out low-end manufacturing. European industry escaped by moving up the value chain into higher-end goods.
The term “China shock” originally described the wave of cheap toys, textiles and basic electronics that flooded European markets after China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, hollowing out low-end manufacturing. European industry escaped by moving up the value chain into higher-end goods.
“China Shock 2.0” describes a newer wave of exports, this time electric vehicles, chemicals, machinery and power-generation equipment. Unlike the situation two decades ago, Chinese manufacturing has now followed European industry up the value chain, leaving little higher ground for European companies to retreat to.
Besides, tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have narrowed Beijing’s access to the United States market, making Europe the largest remaining open destination for the surplus.
Besides, tariffs imposed by the Trump administration have narrowed Beijing’s access to the United States market, making Europe the largest remaining open destination for the surplus.
If AI really could kill us all, why give any ground to China?
China isn’t messing around.
The government recently unveiled a comprehensive strategy to make China the world’s AI leader by the end of this decade — a roadmap that includes massive, coordinated funding and resources on a scale that one-party rule makes significantly easier. Sure, the Chinese Communist Party is prone to hyperbole, but the country’s leaders view AI as an existential threat to their power, and they’re throwing the kitchen sink at the problem. They’re already catching up to the United States.
Meanwhile, the American AI industry says it wants to tap the brakes on its own development. Their fear is a different one: Silicon Valley is building a technology that could outstrip its makers’ control and eventually destroy humanity.
The government recently unveiled a comprehensive strategy to make China the world’s AI leader by the end of this decade — a roadmap that includes massive, coordinated funding and resources on a scale that one-party rule makes significantly easier. Sure, the Chinese Communist Party is prone to hyperbole, but the country’s leaders view AI as an existential threat to their power, and they’re throwing the kitchen sink at the problem. They’re already catching up to the United States.
Meanwhile, the American AI industry says it wants to tap the brakes on its own development. Their fear is a different one: Silicon Valley is building a technology that could outstrip its makers’ control and eventually destroy humanity.
A Chinese woman crossed the border for a concert. It could cost her family their welfare
A woman from a low-income family in China crossed over into Hong Kong to get to a concert she had spent months saving up for. It was a trip that Beijing’s vast surveillance apparatus didn’t miss. Now her family face the prospect of losing their government benefits for splurging on “high-end consumption.”
The incident has sparked massive debate across Chinese social media over whether those receiving benefits are also entitled to small luxuries. It’s also a reminder of the staggering extent of the Chinese government’s surveillance system, one turbocharged by advances in AI and the embrace of digital payments.
The incident has sparked massive debate across Chinese social media over whether those receiving benefits are also entitled to small luxuries. It’s also a reminder of the staggering extent of the Chinese government’s surveillance system, one turbocharged by advances in AI and the embrace of digital payments.
This country is paying its people to read. Can it stop brain rot?
Whether it’s while waiting for the train or chilling solo at a cafe, a tiny nation in Southeast Asia is nudging its people toward an increasingly elusive habit: reading. Singapore this month launched a novel five-year national campaign to nurture reading habits, with incentives including small payments to citizens who log their reading minutes on a government website.
Officials are betting, the gamification strategy – using a points system to track the habit for a modest reward – and a sense of public participation can help to restore a habit being fast replaced by brain rot-inducing doomscrolling.
“While short-form content helps us stay informed, long-form reading strengthens attention, critical thinking and imagination,” the National Library Board’s chief Melissa Tam said in a statement.
Officials are betting, the gamification strategy – using a points system to track the habit for a modest reward – and a sense of public participation can help to restore a habit being fast replaced by brain rot-inducing doomscrolling.
“While short-form content helps us stay informed, long-form reading strengthens attention, critical thinking and imagination,” the National Library Board’s chief Melissa Tam said in a statement.
US officials make rare trip to Myanmar to free former marine as isolated regime seeks greater recognition
US officials made a rare visit to Myanmar this week to secure the release of an American businessman who had been detained in the war-torn country since June. The delegation met with officials of Myanmar’s military-backed government in the capital Naypyidaw on Tuesday, according to a US State Department spokesperson.
The meeting was the among the most significant engagements between the US and Myanmar since the military launched a coup in 2021, overturning the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and plunging the country into civil war and economic ruin.
The meeting was the among the most significant engagements between the US and Myanmar since the military launched a coup in 2021, overturning the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and plunging the country into civil war and economic ruin.
onsdag 16. september 2026
Why a fresh wave of North Korean soldiers may fight in Russia's war in Ukraine
An enemy that swarmed the battlefield in large groups while under fire, seemingly oblivious to the dangers of drones and fire from automatic weapons. An elite corps of ghost soldiers who chose suicide over surrender. They fought and died in their thousands, then apparently vanished from the battlefield.
North Korea's soldiers were sent to fight by Pyongyang alongside Russian forces as they sought to repel a Ukrainian offensive on Moscow's territory at the end of 2024. They paid a heavy price, as many as 3,000 killed in action from the 13,000 deployed.
Ultimately, they would adapt their tactics, and with Russia would drive Ukrainian forces from its Kursk region. In combat terms, little has been heard of them since, but according to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, North Korean forces, and their weaponry, are soon to make a dramatic return to Russia's war in Ukraine.
North Korea's soldiers were sent to fight by Pyongyang alongside Russian forces as they sought to repel a Ukrainian offensive on Moscow's territory at the end of 2024. They paid a heavy price, as many as 3,000 killed in action from the 13,000 deployed.
Ultimately, they would adapt their tactics, and with Russia would drive Ukrainian forces from its Kursk region. In combat terms, little has been heard of them since, but according to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, North Korean forces, and their weaponry, are soon to make a dramatic return to Russia's war in Ukraine.
The Himalayas are melting faster - and India's economy is 'at risk'
The Himalayas are approaching a dangerous threshold as glaciers melt faster, glacial lakes grow more unstable and the mountains face a widening gap in monitoring, according to new research.The findings come in the aftermath of devastating floods in Nepal and Tibet, which killed more than 1,300 people and caused widespread destruction, highlighting the growing risks from a rapidly changing Himalayan environment.
Himalayan glaciers are now losing mass 65% faster than they were a decade ago, the report by global consultancy Systemiq, produced with the Integrated Mountain Initiative and with technical contributions from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, says.
Yet only about 21 of the estimated 40,000 glaciers across the Himalaya-Karakoram region are being monitored in detail and on a sustained basis, according to the report.
Himalayan glaciers are now losing mass 65% faster than they were a decade ago, the report by global consultancy Systemiq, produced with the Integrated Mountain Initiative and with technical contributions from the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD) and GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment, says.
Yet only about 21 of the estimated 40,000 glaciers across the Himalaya-Karakoram region are being monitored in detail and on a sustained basis, according to the report.
China bristles at Anthropic CEO’s ‘fearmongering’ about its AI development
China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday bristled at the Anthropic CEO’s call for the U.S. to curb China’s artificial intelligence capabilities as part of a wider argument for a global slowdown on AI development.
In a lengthy essay published Saturday, Dario Amodei warned that a “Chinese lead in AI would pose grave danger for the United States and the world.” To enable the U.S. to keep its technological edge, Amodei called for maintaining restrictions on sales to China of the most advanced AI chips and chipmaking equipment. A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Amodei’s dire warnings about China were counterproductive and that all parties should work together on AI.
“Fearmongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only disrupt the process of global AI governance -- which serves no one’s interest,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a press conference in response to a question about Amodei’s essay.
In a lengthy essay published Saturday, Dario Amodei warned that a “Chinese lead in AI would pose grave danger for the United States and the world.” To enable the U.S. to keep its technological edge, Amodei called for maintaining restrictions on sales to China of the most advanced AI chips and chipmaking equipment. A spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Amodei’s dire warnings about China were counterproductive and that all parties should work together on AI.
“Fearmongering, confrontation and vicious competition will only disrupt the process of global AI governance -- which serves no one’s interest,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a press conference in response to a question about Amodei’s essay.
As the world debates the risks of AI, China closes the technology gap with the US
As the rapid development of artificial intelligence triggers a renewed debate about its risks, the United States and China keep racing to develop increasingly powerful models.
The U.S. has outpaced China and other countries in AI model capabilities, research, citations and other areas. China has been rapidly catching up as an AI superpower even as U.S.-led restrictions have blocked China from accessing some of the most advanced technologies, including the cutting-edge chips and the machines to make them.
Experts and recent reports, like one by the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, said China has emerged as an AI counterweight to the U.S. and this year appears to be erasing the U.S. lead.
The U.S. has outpaced China and other countries in AI model capabilities, research, citations and other areas. China has been rapidly catching up as an AI superpower even as U.S.-led restrictions have blocked China from accessing some of the most advanced technologies, including the cutting-edge chips and the machines to make them.
Experts and recent reports, like one by the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, said China has emerged as an AI counterweight to the U.S. and this year appears to be erasing the U.S. lead.
Will AI really destroy humanity? Pioneers who created the tech weigh in
As researchers warn that artificial intelligence could pose catastrophic risks, some of the pioneers who helped develop the technology are weighing in with additional warnings on the dangers of unfettered advances in capability. A series of stark AI safety warnings has emerged over the past week, with researchers from major AI labs like Anthropic, OpenAI and GoogleDeepMind all sounding the alarm about potentially catastrophic risks from developing the technology.
AI bosses including Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, Demis Hassabis and Elon Musk have shown rare agreement in calling for a slowdown and regulatory oversight. Meanwhile, concerns have also intensified debate in Washington. While some members of Congress from both the Democratic and Republican parties have advocated for bills to check the progress of AI, U.S. President Donald Trumpon Monday raged against growing calls for AI regulation.
AI bosses including Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, Demis Hassabis and Elon Musk have shown rare agreement in calling for a slowdown and regulatory oversight. Meanwhile, concerns have also intensified debate in Washington. While some members of Congress from both the Democratic and Republican parties have advocated for bills to check the progress of AI, U.S. President Donald Trumpon Monday raged against growing calls for AI regulation.
China’s AI leaders keep quiet despite U.S. ‘publicity’ on tech risks
While frontier U.S. labs have sounded the alarm on artificial intelligence in recent high-profile speeches, Chinese companies have largely kept quiet. Z.ai, Moonshot, MiniMax, Alibaba and Tencent have not made similar comments, and did not provide any statements when contacted by CNBC about the warnings from Silicon Valley.
It’s important to be prudent about AI, but the publicity is “a little bit oversold,” said Ray Von, founder, CEO and chairman of Tencent-backed OpenPie, a startup building devices for companies to use AI securely on internal data. “That’s why in China, we don’t pay too much attention to that, because that’s not the first time [the U.S. execs] say these things,” he said in a phone interview Tuesday. “They should just do it.”
It’s important to be prudent about AI, but the publicity is “a little bit oversold,” said Ray Von, founder, CEO and chairman of Tencent-backed OpenPie, a startup building devices for companies to use AI securely on internal data. “That’s why in China, we don’t pay too much attention to that, because that’s not the first time [the U.S. execs] say these things,” he said in a phone interview Tuesday. “They should just do it.”
Despite troop reduction in Tibet border, China alleged to advance into contested Arunachal territory
China significantly reduced the size of its People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces deployment along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in occupied Tibet last year, said Indian media reports Sep 14, citing the country’s Defence Ministry annual report. Ten combined Arms Brigade-size forces are now stated to remain deployed in areas along the LAC and in traditional training areas. However, while this report covers the period up to Mar 31, 2026, recent report from Arunachal Pradesh and other sources speak of the Chinese military pursuing aggressive and expansionist activities that have reportedly been confirmed by satellite imagery.
“The year 2025 witnessed a significant reduction in the deployment of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces opposite the northern borders,” hindustantimes.com Sep 14 quoted the ministry as saying in its latest annual report. Apart from the 10 combined arms brigades positioned along the LAC, another 10 are stationed in traditional training areas away from the frontier, the 2025-26 report was cited as saying.
“The year 2025 witnessed a significant reduction in the deployment of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) forces opposite the northern borders,” hindustantimes.com Sep 14 quoted the ministry as saying in its latest annual report. Apart from the 10 combined arms brigades positioned along the LAC, another 10 are stationed in traditional training areas away from the frontier, the 2025-26 report was cited as saying.
China tightens restrictions on citizens’ foreign travels, targeting those with money, talent, as well as activists
China has begun implementing on Sep 15 new border-control regulations designed to keep two of its most valuable assets from leaving the country: money and talent. It also seen to target human rights and other kinds of activists, for citizens deemed to have “harmed” China’s national security or interests while overseas can also be barred from leaving the country.
The rules give authorities the power to impose exit bans of six months to three years on Chinese citizens who commit certain violations.
The rules, issued by the State Council, give authorities explicit legal power to block people from leaving the country – turning a patchwork of ad hoc travel bans into a permanent regulatory tool for stemming capital and talent flight as well as restricting the movement of activists who are in the bad book of the Party-state.
The rules give authorities the power to impose exit bans of six months to three years on Chinese citizens who commit certain violations.
The rules, issued by the State Council, give authorities explicit legal power to block people from leaving the country – turning a patchwork of ad hoc travel bans into a permanent regulatory tool for stemming capital and talent flight as well as restricting the movement of activists who are in the bad book of the Party-state.
All Tibet protesters against President Xi Jinping at BRICS summit in New Delhi released without charges
All the activist of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) and Tibetan Youth Congress (TYC), totalling around 70, have been released without criminal charges on Sep14, a day after the BRICS Summit in New Delhi ended and long after Chinese President Xi Jinping had flown back to Beijing.
After being held for 37 hours in Tihar Jail under preventive detention orders, Karma Dolma, Tenzin Nordon and Tenzin Tsephel were released, said SFT India on Istagram Sep 14. The trio had climbed poles to hang two protest banners and a Tibetan national flag in a tunnel area near the site of the BRICS Summit – the Bharat Mandapam in the Pragati Maidan complex – on Sep 11.
The group also said one SFT-Delhi member and one Tibetan journalist, who were detained separately, were also released after nearly two and a half days.
After being held for 37 hours in Tihar Jail under preventive detention orders, Karma Dolma, Tenzin Nordon and Tenzin Tsephel were released, said SFT India on Istagram Sep 14. The trio had climbed poles to hang two protest banners and a Tibetan national flag in a tunnel area near the site of the BRICS Summit – the Bharat Mandapam in the Pragati Maidan complex – on Sep 11.
The group also said one SFT-Delhi member and one Tibetan journalist, who were detained separately, were also released after nearly two and a half days.
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