Tag: China

Increasing number of foreigners avoid travel to China due to fear of detention: Report
13Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

Increasing number of foreigners avoid travel to China due to fear of detention: Report

Academics, NGO workers and media professionals have said that they are unwilling to travel to China after the detention of foreigners in the country.China’s President Xi Jinping forges increasingly hostile relations with Western governments and hence, some fear being a target of a possible diplomatic spat between their government and Beijing.Several people pointed to the detention of two Canadians in China in December 2018 – Micheal Kovrig, an NGO worker and Michael Spavor, who organised trips to North Korea – after Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou was arrested in Vancouver on charges filed in the US.Last year, Chinese-Australian TV anchor Cheng Lei, who worked for the state media channel CGTN, was also detained amid worsening ties between Beijing and Australia.Gordon Matthews, a professor of...
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Chinese cyber-espionage unit on US hacking spree: Expert
8Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

Chinese cyber-espionage unit on US hacking spree: Expert

A cyber security specialist has said that approximately 30,000 organizations in the United States, including local governments, have been hacked in recent days by an "unusually aggressive" Chinese cyber-espionage campaign.According to a post by Brian Krebs on his cyber security news website, the campaign has exploited recently discovered flaws in Microsoft Exchange software, stealing email and infecting computer servers with tools that let attackers take control remotely."This is an active threat," White House spokeswoman Jennifer Psaki said when asked about the situation during a press briefing. "Everyone running these servers needs to act now to patch them. We are concerned that there are a large number of victims," she added.After Microsoft released patches for the vulnerabilities, atta...
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US has obligation to address genocide in Xinjiang by China: Nancy Pelosi
5Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

US has obligation to address genocide in Xinjiang by China: Nancy Pelosi

The United States Speaker Nancy Pelosi has expressed solidarity with the Uyghur community amid the ongoing human rights abuse in China and affirmed her view that the United States has an “obligation to address the genocide”.“If we don’t speak out clearly for human rights in China because of commercial interests, we lose all moral authority to speak out for human rights any place in the world,” she said after a meeting through video conference with the representatives of Campaign for Uyghurs.During the meeting, held on March 1, the Campaign for Uyghurs informed the Speaker about the updates and legislative priorities relating to stopping the Uyghur genocide, according to an official statement.Dr Rishat Abbas, Senior Advisor to CFU and the World Uyghur Congress, said, “Uyghurs are facing unp...
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New York Stock Exchange to delist major Chinese oil company on March 9
4Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

New York Stock Exchange to delist major Chinese oil company on March 9

In compliance with an executive order by former US President Donald Trump, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) will move to delist CNOOC Ltd., the Chinese oil major“Trading in American depository shares of CNOOC will be suspended at 4 am ET on March 9,” the NYSE said in a statement.It’s the fourth Chinese company to be slapped with such a punishment.The exchange said in January that it would end trading of shares in China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom to comply with Trump’s order targeting companies that the previous administration said had links to the Chinese military.CNOOC’s Hong Kong-listed shares dropped 1.1 per cent on Monday.The Big Board’s regulatory arm determined that CNOOC was ‘no longer suitable for listing’ in light of the executive order, which Trump signed in Novembe...
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Microsoft alleges China-based cyber attackers of having accessed its email service servers
3Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

Microsoft alleges China-based cyber attackers of having accessed its email service servers

A sophisticated group of hackers operating from China hacked into Microsoft’s email service that allowed them to gain access to computers, according to media reports.In a blog post on Tuesday, Microsoft said that four vulnerabilities in its software allowed hackers to access servers for Microsoft Exchange, “which enabled access to email accounts, and allowed installation of additional malware to facilitate long-term access to victim environments”.It further said the online platform for Exchange was not affected in the cyberattack. Meanwhile, Microsoft (MSFT) is now urging users to download software patches, or fixes, for the four different vulnerabilities that were found.The company also said it believes the attacks were carried out by Hafnium, “a group assessed to be state-sponsored and o...
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China refutes reports on cyber-attacks against India’s power grid
2Mar By Joe RodriguezNo Comments
Asia

China refutes reports on cyber-attacks against India’s power grid

China on Monday refuted claims that it had initiated cyber-attacks against India’s power grid resulting in massive power outages and said that it is ‘firmly opposed’ to such irresponsible and ill-intentioned practices.“As a staunch defender of cyber security, China firmly opposes and cracks down on all forms of cyber-attacks,” Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin said at a press briefing.“Speculation and fabrication have no role to play on the issue of cyber-attacks, as it is very difficult to trace the origin of a cyber-attack. It is highly irresponsible to accuse a particular party when there is no sufficient evidence around, China is firmly opposed to such irresponsible and ill-intentioned practice,” Wang added.A report by a US-based cybersecurity firm claimed that Chinese-...
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China asks Australia to abandon its interference in Hong Kong’s affairs
2Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

China asks Australia to abandon its interference in Hong Kong’s affairs

China’s Foreign Ministry has urged Australia to abandon its interference in Hong Kong’s affairs and lashed out at the country for granting protection visas to Hong Kong passport holders in December.“Hong Kong affairs fall entirely within China’s internal affairs. No foreign country has the right to interfere,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said on Monday.“China urges Australia to stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs and China’s internal affairs in any way, to avoid further damage to China-Australia relations,” Wang said.A report from Australia’s Department of Home Affairs on the processing of Subclass 866 onshore protection visas indicated that fewer than five Hong Kong passport holders had their applications approved in December.The allocation marked the first time that ...
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China’s ‘gray zone’ warfare against Taiwan at highest level: Experts
1Mar By Mike TrudellNo Comments
World

China’s ‘gray zone’ warfare against Taiwan at highest level: Experts

Military experts have warned that China’s ‘gray zone’ warfare against Taiwan is now at the highest level, which could mean that Beijing is preparing for a full-scale invasion.Shu Hsiao-huang, an analyst at the government-funded Institute for National Defense and Security Research (INDSR), said that in gray-zone conflicts, the participants rely on unconventional tools, tactics and the use of non-state entities that do not cross over into formal state-level aggression.“Due to ambiguity of the enemy’s actions, the targets of ‘gray-zone’ warfare are often uncertain how to immediately respond,” he said.Gray zone conflicts are activities by a state that are harmful to another state and are sometimes considered to be acts of war, but are not legally acts of war.“Beijing has been conducting “gray-...
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Amid rising tensions, China suspends pineapples import from Taiwan
28Feb By Mike TrudellNo Comments
China, World

Amid rising tensions, China suspends pineapples import from Taiwan

China has abruptly suspended imports of pineapples from Taiwan to step up its economic pressure against the Taiwanese government.The Chinese General Administration of customs reported that from Monday, China will stop importing pineapples from Taiwan.“This move was a normal precaution to protect biosecurity and prevent the import of plant diseases,” said the spokesperson for China’s Taiwan Affairs Office.Presidential Office spokesman Xavier Chang said that China’s action is “unfriendly.”Taiwan produces nearly 420,000 tonnes of pineapples every year. It had exported 6,200 batches to China since last year, with only 13 batches, totalling 141 tonnes, failing tests, meaning the qualification rate was 99.79 per cent.“Taiwan’s Council of Agriculture (COA) announced that it would spend NT$1 billi...
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US-China tensions over South China Sea to continue under Biden administration: Report
28Feb By Mike TrudellNo Comments
China, World

US-China tensions over South China Sea to continue under Biden administration: Report

With Chinese military conducting a live-fire drill to test its response to repeated missile attacks in a “far sea” and US stepping up reconnaissance activities, it seems that tensions between Beijing and Washington over the South China Sea will continue under the new Joe Biden administration.There are fresh signs from the Chinese and the American armed forces that tensions over the South China Sea will continue, according to media reports.The Chinese military’s Southern Theatre Command conducted a live-fire drill to test its response to repeated missile attacks in a “far sea”, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Saturday without saying when or where the exercise took place.The drill involved the guided-missile destroyer Yinchuan, guided-missile frigate Hengyang, the amphibious dock landing ...
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