VATICAN CITY: The Vatican said Saturday (Oct 22) it had renewed a secretive 2018 deal with Beijing allowing China to choose bishops on the mainland and then have Rome approve them.

It said the deal had, as widely expected, been renewed for two years.

“After appropriate consultation and assessment, the Holy See and the People’s Republic of China have agreed to extend for another two years the Provisional Agreement regarding the appointment of Bishops,” read a statement from the Vatican press office.

The agreement, signed in September 2018, was previously extended in October 2020.

The accord is designed to bring closer together Catholics caught between the official state-backed church in China and an underground movement loyal to Rome and the pontiff as the church’s supreme leader.

It also provides for greater cooperation between the Vatican and Beijing, while affording the pope the final say in the appointment of Chinese bishops.

Opponents of the deal, who have highlighted restrictions on religion in China, point to the fact that only six new bishops have been appointed since the deal was first struck.

Diplomatic sources say the renewal of the accord had been called into doubt by the arrest in early May in Hong Kong of 90-year-old Cardinal Joseph Zen, one of Asia’s highest-ranking Catholic clerics.

Originally detained earlier this year under a national security law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong to quell dissent, he went on trial last month alongside five fellow democracy supporters over their role in running a fund to help defend people arrested in anti-government protests.

Zen was arrested for “colluding with foreign forces”.

The People’s Bank of China did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The looming reshuffle comes as the PBOC seeks to bolster the COVID-19 ravaged economy while avoiding aggressive loosening that could fuel capital flight, as the Federal Reserve and other central banks raise interest rates to fight soaring inflation.

Yin Yong, deputy party chief in the capital Beijing who worked as a deputy central bank governor from 2016 to 2018, is a leading candidate to replace Yi, sources close to the central bank said.

Yin, 53, who holds a doctorate in engineering from Tsinghua University and a master’s degree in public administration from Harvard University, was elected as a full member of the Central Committee during the party congress.

“Yin Yong is likely to replace Yi Gang,” said a source close to the PBOC who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Other sources described Yin as well-positioned to replace Yi, given his status as a rising star and his previous experience at the central bank, the foreign exchange regulator and Beijing government.

Yi has been PBOC governor since 2018 and is one of China’s highest-ranking “sea turtles” – a term for Chinese returning from overseas. He has a doctorate in economics from the University of Illinois.

The PBOC has been overhauling its top management team in recent weeks. Xuan Changneng was named deputy central bank governor on Thursday.

China faces the biggest overhaul of its economic leadership in a decade, with a generation of reform-minded policymakers expected to step down amid worsening growth prospects.

BEIJING: China’s Communist Party on Saturday (Oct 22) unanimously approved a series of amendments to its constitution, further strengthening the control of Xi Jinping who now appears set for a historic third term in power.

The party constitution, or charter, is a document of ultimate authority by which all 96 million party members must abide, and amendments remain effective indefinitely.

Here’s a guide to what has – and hasn’t – changed.

XI’S “CORE POSITION”

China’s Communist Party endorsed Xi’s “core position” on the Party Central Committee – a group of about 200 senior officials – as well as his rarefied status “in the Party as a whole”.

All party members will have to “acquire a deep understanding” of Xi’s unassailable role and work to uphold it, the document says.

While the 69-year-old has long been referred to as the “core” of the party, the resolution uses the designation more often and in more reverent terms than the previous charter.

That may indicate a further consolidation of his untrammelled power at the top of the party and state.

NO “XI JINPING THOUGHT”

Many analysts were waiting to see whether the party would enshrine the term “Xi Jinping Thought” as its guiding doctrine, a move that would have placed Xi on a par with the likes of the country’s founding leader Mao Zedong.

The lengthier “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” was first woven into the charter in 2017, and argues that the party must take a commanding role in Chinese society while pushing further reform, national security and internal discipline.

The resolution Saturday referred to the ideology by its longer name, indicating that its status had not been significantly elevated.

However, it lauded the creed as “the Marxism of contemporary China and of the 21st century”.

It “embodies the best Chinese culture and ethos of this era”, the resolution said.

TAIWAN INCLUSION

For the first time, the party’s charter will say explicitly that it opposes Taiwanese independence, according to the resolution.

The constitution will be changed to include “statements on … resolutely opposing and deterring separatists seeking ‘Taiwan independence'”.

The existing charter says only that the party will “work continuously to strengthen the unity of all the Chinese people, including compatriots … in Taiwan” as part of efforts to achieve the “reunification of the motherland”.

Beijing views self-ruled Taiwan as part of its own territory and has vowed to one day take it – by force if necessary.

Tensions ratcheted up in the summer when US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island, prompting Beijing to launch huge military drills.

During the congress opening ceremony, Xi reiterated that China would never renounce the option of using force to impose its rule on Taiwan.

Xi, 69, is widely expected to be confirmed on Sunday to a third five-year leadership term as party general secretary.
 

BEIJING: China’s five-yearly Communist Party Congress wrapped up on Saturday (Oct 22) with delegates endorsing President Xi Jinping’s “core position” in the country’s leadership, all but assuring he will be handed an unprecedented third term in power.

At the end of the week-long gathering in Beijing, China’s ruling party approved a sweeping reshuffle that saw a number of top officials – including Premier Li Keqiang – step down, allowing Xi to appoint new allies.

The largely rubber-stamp meeting among 2,300 party delegates was meticulously choreographed, with Xi determined to avoid any surprises as he enshrined his leadership for the next five years.

But in an unexpected move that punctured the proceedings at the Great Hall of the People, former leader Hu Jintao was led out of the closing ceremony. No official explanation was given.

Delegates then approved a call obliging all party members to “uphold Comrade Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the party as a whole”, according to a unanimously passed resolution on changes to the party charter.

Xi is now all but certain to be unveiled as general secretary on Sunday, shortly after the first meeting of the new Central Committee.

This will allow Xi to sail through to a third term as China’s president, due to be announced during the government’s annual legislative sessions in March.

NEW CENTRAL COMMITTEE MEMBERS

A new Central Committee of around 200 senior party officials was elected shortly before the closing ceremony.

A list of officials of the newly elected group revealed that four out of seven members of the Party’s Standing Committee – the apex of power – would retire.

Among them was current Premier Li Keqiang, as well as fellow Politburo Standing Committee members Wang Yang – who was touted as a possible successor to Li – Han Zheng, and Li Zhanshu.

Han and Li Zhanshu were widely expected to step down, having surpassed the informal age limit of 68 for Politburo-level officials – a requirement not extended to 69-year-old Xi.

Wang and Li Keqiang, both 67, could still have continued in the Standing Committee or 25-member Politburo for another five-year term.

Other high-profile Communist Party top brass absent from the new Central Committee include high-ranking diplomat Yang Jiechi and economic tsar Liu He.

“HARD TO DRAW SOLID CONCLUSIONS”

Hu’s exit came just before the 2,300 delegates at the Congress voted unanimously to endorse Xi’s “core” leadership position.

“We still don’t know what caused Hu’s actions, such as whether it was opposition to Xi’s power or simply an unfortunately timed senior moment,” said Neil Thomas, a senior China analyst at the Eurasia Group consultancy.

“So without more information, it’s hard to draw solid conclusions about how this incident relates to Chinese politics.”

Analyst Alex White tweeted: “Whether it was deliberate, or he was unwell, the effect is the same. Complete humiliation for the last generation of pre-Xi leadership.”

Search results for “Hu Jintao” on the Twitter-like Weibo platform appeared to be heavily censored Saturday afternoon, with the most recent result dated Friday and posts limited to those of official accounts.

Xi is all but assured of being formally announced on Sunday as the party’s general secretary for another five years.

This will allow Xi to sail through to a third term as China’s president, due to be announced during the government’s annual legislative sessions in March.

BEIJING: China’s ultra-strict COVID-19 curbs are taking a toll on businesses and jobseekers as Beijing stresses again and again the need to maintain its zero-tolerance approach to the virus, to save lives, if not livelihoods.

Since 2020, China has reported 5,226 COVID-19 fatalities among its population of 1.4 billion. In contrast, more than 1 million people have died of the disease in the United States.

Keeping a lid on China’s COVID-19 death toll has come at a cost to its economy.

Beijinger Cai Xu, 36, has shut four of his five bars in Beijing and Chengdu in three years. Business was disrupted at first by temporary closures to comply with COVID-19 policies. Now, hardly a customer walks through the door.

“Since the epidemic, I’ve become anxious, flustered and lost, and then the bars started to close down one by one,” said Cai, who in 2016 gave up his job as an architect at a state-owned enterprise to open his first establishment.

To offset the drop in walk-in customers, Cai has started live-streaming music performances at his bar to people quarantined at home, in what has been a surprise hit. For now, that will do, while Cai finds other ways to keep his remaining bar in Beijing afloat.

This eventually compelled the generals to look further afield for new arms suppliers. Myanmar approached Russia, other East European countries and even North Korea.

Myanmar generals purchased Russian MiG-29s after a border clash with Thailand in February 2001 showed up the inadequacy of Myanmar’s China-made aircraft, such as the F-7 IIK, against Thailand’s US-made F-16 fighters.

Shortly after the border clash, the Tatmadaw purchased 12 MiG-29s in 2001. In 2009 it negotiated a further purchase of 20 MiG-29s. Then, the acquisition was reportedly Russia’s biggest fighter deal since Algeria scrapped an agreement to buy 34 MiG-29s.

The Tatmadaw also turned to Russia for military modernisation and training. This started before Min Aung Hlaing became Commander-in-Chief in 2011. Vice Senior-General Maung Aye, the second-in-command of the State Peace and Development Council (SPDC), made the overture with the consent of SPDC supremo Senior General Than Shwe, according to military and related sources.

The same retired major-general who divulged the Tatmadaw’s dissatisfaction with China also shared that both Tatmadaw generals – Than Shwe and Maung Aye – fought against the China-backed Communist Party of Burma. He added that they both understood “where the real external threat lay”.

AWKWARDNESS IN MYANMAR-CHINA RELATIONS

There has also been an awkwardness in the junta’s relations with China after the 2021 coup, underscored by China’s concerns to safeguard its economic interests in Myanmar. This may have persuaded the current crop of generals to recall their mentor Maung Aye’s idea of seeking a new partner and arms supplier in Russia.

Unlike other generals who had visited China since taking power, Min Aung Hlaing has not been to China since the coup. The junta has also rebuffed a Chinese request for Sun Guoxiang, its special envoy for Asian Affairs, to meet Aung San Suu Kyi.

“Being labelled as China’s ‘strongman’ after Mao Zedong, Xi has proven himself as a different kind of Chinese leader. 

“Through his constant consolidation of power within the party and the country’s political system, he has showcased his ambition and growing confidence by pursuing the BRI at the world stage – which none of his predecessors or other countries have embarked on,” she said. 

For China, the BRI marked a departure from Deng Xiaoping’s “taoguang yanghui (keeping a low-profile)” strategy to “yousuo zuowei (accomplish something)” strategy, Dr Nur Shahadah said.

“Thus, one may notice that Xi’s style is more proactive and confident,” she said. 

However, there has been scepticism about Beijing’s motives. 

“Why is China so nice to us?” is a common question posed to the Chinese hosts during academic exchanges, shared Professor Cheng Ming Yu, chairperson of the Belt and Road Strategic Research Centre at Malaysia’s Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR). 

And China’s reply is simply, “For win-win development.”    

“‘Only when you grow, then we can grow. We have to grow together,’” Prof Cheng said. 

“China cannot prosper if people cannot buy what they produce. It’s better to make other countries develop at the same time, then China can transfer its technology and continue to sell its products.” 

CONTROVERSIES AND CRITICISMS

With an emphasis on infrastructure connectivity and unimpeded trade, the BRI has the potential to substantially improve trade, foreign investment and living conditions for people in participating countries, a World Bank study in 2019 suggested. 

With the infrastructures in place, travel times could reduce by up to 12 per cent along the economic corridors, while that with the rest of the world was estimated to decrease by an average of 3 per cent. 

Trade would also increase between 2.8 and 9.7 per cent for Belt and Road corridor economies and between 1.7 and 6.2 per cent for the world, the study added. 

The caveat, though, was that China and the countries have to adopt policy reforms that increase transparency, expand trade, improve debt sustainability as well as mitigate environmental, social and corruption risks. 

According to the report, one-quarter of the Belt and Road economies already have high debt levels, and medium-term vulnerabilities could increase for a handful of them. 

China critics have long described the initiative as a debt trap that drowns countries in unsustainable debt as Beijing wields undue influence over them, not to mention sovereignty and security concerns.

BEIJING: Beijing authorities removed rare banners of political protest from an overpass in the Chinese capital, according to images circulated widely on social media on Thursday (Oct 13), just days before the start of a twice-in-a-decade Communist Party congress.

The banners bore several slogans, including a call for President Xi Jinping’s ouster and an end to strict COVID-19 policies, according to numerous images and videos circulated on Twitter, which is blocked in China.

Smoke could be seen emanating from the roadway above where the banners were hung in Beijing’s northwestern Haidian district, according to the images. Haidian is home to several prestigious universities.

The incident comes at a very sensitive time in the Chinese capital, with authorities on high alert in the run-up to the 20th congress of the ruling Communist Party, where Xi is expected to secure a third leadership term.

“Let us strike from schools and from work and remove the dictatorial traitor Xi Jinping,” one of the slogans read.

It is highly unusual for Xi to be specifically named in protests in China, where residents use euphemisms and oblique phrasing and images in efforts to evade censorship.

“We don’t want COVID-19 tests, we want to eat; we don’t want lockdowns, we want to be free,” another message on the red-lettered banners read.

China’s zero-COVID policy, which has led to frequent lockdowns and caused heavy economic damage, has fuelled widespread frustration in Chinese cities.

WASHINGTON: The United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is set to ban approvals of new telecommunications equipment from China’s Huawei Technologies and ZTE in the US on national security grounds, according to a document posted by the agency.

FCC chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel last week circulated the proposed ban to the other three commissioners for final approval. The companies would not be able to sell new equipment in the United States without equipment authorisations.

In June 2021, the FCC voted to advance the plan to ban approvals for equipment in US telecommunications networks from Chinese companies deemed national security threats, including Huawei and ZTE.

That came after a March 2021 designation of five Chinese companies on the so-called “covered list” as posing a threat to national security under a 2019 law aimed at protecting US communications networks: Huawei Technologies, ZTE, Hytera Communications, Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology and Zhejiang Dahua Technology.

The FCC said in June 2021 it was considering banning all equipment authorisations for all companies on the covered list.

This year, the FCC added Russia’s AO Kaspersky Lab, China Telecom (Americas), China Mobile International USA, Pacific Networks and China Unicom (Americas) to the covered list.

Rosenworcel said last year that the new measures would “exclude untrustworthy equipment from (US) communications networks.

“We have left open opportunities for (Huawei and other Chinese equipment) use in the United States through our equipment authorisation process. So here we propose to close that door,” she said.

FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr said in 2021 that the FCC had approved more than 3,000 applications from Huawei since 2018.

The FCC action would prohibit all future authorisations for communications equipment deemed to pose an unacceptable risk to national security.

In 2019, the United States placed Huawei, Hikvision and other firms on its economic blacklist.

Also in 2020, the FCC designated Huawei and ZTE as national security threats to communications networks – a declaration that barred US companies from tapping a US$8.3 billion government fund to purchase equipment from the companies.

Earlier this year, the Chinese embassy in Washington said the FCC “abused state power and maliciously attacked Chinese telecom operators again without factual basis”.