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Japan Times
22-07-2025
- Business
- Japan Times
Trump, Xi aides discussed autumn U.S.-China leaders' meeting
Aides to Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have discussed a potential meeting between the leaders during a trip by the U.S. president to Asia later this year, according to two people familiar with the plans. While plans for a meeting have not been finalized, discussions on both sides of the Pacific have included a possible Trump stopover around the time of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in South Korea or talks on the sidelines of the Oct. 30-Nov. 1 event, the people said. Trump has sought to lower tensions with Beijing in recent weeks after pausing a tit-for-tat tariff war that has upended global trade and supply chains. China has also sought the attendance of international guests, including some from the United States, for a Sept. 3 Beijing ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, a spokesperson for China's Embassy in Washington told a briefing last week for reporters. The Kremlin said on Monday it did not rule out the possibility of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump meeting in Beijing in September if Trump decides to attend that ceremony. Putin has confirmed his attendance. "Diplomacy between heads of state plays an irreplaceable strategic leading role in Sino-U.S. relations," Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said Monday, declining to comment on a possible Trump-Xi meeting. The White House also declined to comment. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Monday there would be "talks in the very near future" between the countries. "Trade is in a good place, and I think now we can start talking about other things. The Chinese, unfortunately ... are very large purchasers of sanctioned Iranian oil, sanctioned Russian oil," he told CNBC. He added: "We could also discuss the elephant in the room, which is this great rebalancing that the Chinese need to do." Trump has sought to impose tariffs on virtually all foreign goods, which he says will stimulate domestic manufacturing and which critics say will make many consumer goods more expensive for Americans. He has called for a universal base tariff rate of 10% on goods imported from all countries, with higher rates for imports from some, including China. Imports from China have the highest tariff rate of 55%. Trump has set a deadline of Aug. 12 for the U.S. and China to reach a durable tariff agreement. Other points of friction between the countries include China's support for Russia, trade in fentanyl-related chemicals, regional security worries, and exit bans on some American residents. The most recent high-level U.S.-China meeting was on July 11, when U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi had what both described as a productive and positive meeting in Malaysia about how trade negotiations should proceed. Rubio said then that Trump had been invited to China to meet with Xi, and said that both leaders "want it to happen." On Friday, China Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said China wants to bring its trade ties with the U.S. back to a stable footing and that recent talks in Europe showed there was no need for a tariff war.
Korea Herald
17-06-2025
- Business
- Korea Herald
Lee discusses clean energy supply chain cooperation with Australian PM
CALGARY, Canada — President Lee Jae-myung and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese discussed closer cooperation in clean energy supply chains during bilateral talks in Canada on Monday. The meeting, held in Calgary, Alberta, also looked at "resource diplomacy," Lee's spokesperson Kang Yu-jung told reporters Monday local time, adding that Lee invited Albanese to the upcoming Economic Leaders' Meeting of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. The two leaders also discussed room for cooperation in the defense industry and peace on the Korean Peninsula, according to Lee's office. Lee's meeting with Albanese came shortly after the two leaders held a phone conversation on Thursday before Lee's trip to Canada. South Korea and Australia signed the comprehensive strategic partnership in 2021, marking the 60th anniversary of ties then.
Yahoo
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Two foreign nationals charged with stalking a Los Angeles artist who criticized Xi Jinping
Two foreign nationals were charged with stalking a Los Angeles-based artist who has criticized Chinese President Xi Jinping, federal officials said. Cui Guanghai, 43, of China, and John Miller, 63, of the U.K. and a U.S. lawful permanent resident, were charged with interstate stalking, conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, smuggling and violating the Arms Export Control Act, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office Central District of California. 'The defendants allegedly plotted to harass and interfere with an individual who criticized the actions of the People's Republic of China while exercising their constitutionally protected free speech rights within the United States of America,' said FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino in the release. 'The same individuals also are charged with trying to obtain and export sensitive U.S. military technology to China." Read more: Dating apps used in Mexico to lure and kidnap U.S. citizens, officials warn If convicted, Cui and Miller face up to five years in prison for conspiracy, five years for interstate stalking, 20 for violating the Arms Export Control Act and 10 years for smuggling. According to court documents, Cui and Miller allegedly employed two people, who they didn't know were acting on the direction of the FBI, to carry out a plot to stop someone from protesting Xi's appearance at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The victim, who wasn't named in the release, had previously publicly criticized Xi and China's government. Cui and Miller had the alleged victim surveiled, had a tracking device installed on their car, slashed the tires on the car and bought and destroyed statues created by the victim showing Xi and Xi's wife, according to the release. In the spring of 2025, the victim announced that he planned to publicize an online feed showing the two statues; Cui and Miller allegedly paid two other people $36,500 to convince the victim not to display the statues, officials wrote. Those two people were also working with the FBI. Starting in November 2023, Miller and Cui allegedly procured U.S. defense articles, including air defense radar, drones, missiles and cryptographic devices in order to unlawfully export them from the U.S. to China. They talked with two other people about how to export the device, including hiding it in a blender, motor starter, small electronics or shipping it to Hong Kong. Cui and Miller allegedly paid about $10,000 as a deposit for the cryptographic device through a courier in the U.S. and wire transfer to a U.S. bank account, officials said. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Two foreign nationals charged with stalking a Los Angeles artist who criticized Xi Jinping
Two foreign nationals were charged with stalking a Los Angeles-based artist who has criticized Chines President Xi Jinping, federal officials said. Cui Guanghai, 43, of China, and John Miller, 63, of the U.K. and a U.S. lawful permanent resident, were charged with interstate stalking, conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, smuggling and violating the Arms Export Control Act, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney's Office Central District of California. 'The defendants allegedly plotted to harass and interfere with an individual who criticized the actions of the People's Republic of China while exercising their constitutionally protected free speech rights within the United States of America,' said FBI Deputy Director Dan Bongino in the release. 'The same individuals also are charged with trying to obtain and export sensitive U.S. military technology to China.' If convicted, Cui and Miller face up to five years in prison for conspiracy, five years for interstate stalking, 20 for violating the Arms Export Control Act and 10 years for smuggling. According to court documents, Cui and Miller allegedly employed two people, who they didn't know were acting on the direction of the FBI, to carry out a plot to stop someone from protesting Xi's appearance at the the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit. The victim, who wasn't named in the release, had previously publicly criticized Xi and China's government. Cui and Miller had the alleged victim surveiled, had a tracking device installed on their car, slashed the tires on the car and bought and destroyed statues created by the victim showing Xi and Xi's wife, according to the release. In the spring of 2025, the victim announced that he planned to publicize an online feed showing the two statues; Cui and Miller allegedly paid two other people $36,500 to convince the victim not to display the statues, officials wrote. Those two people were also working with the FBI. Starting in November 2023, Miller and Cui allegedly procured U.S. defense articles, including air defense radar, drones, missiles and cryptographic devices in order to unlawfully export them from the U.S. to China. They talked with two other people how to export the device, including hiding it in a blender, motor starter, small electronics or shipping it to Hong Kong. Cui and Miller allegedly paid about $10,000 as a deposit for the cryptographic device through a courier in the U.S. and wire transfer to a U.S. bank account, officials said.
Yahoo
02-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Foreign nationals charged amid Trump visa crackdown for scheme to smuggle US military equipment into China
Two foreign nationals have been charged for their role in a scheme to smuggle U.S. military equipment and technology — including missiles — into China, according to the U.S. Justice Department. The charges come as President Donald Trump and his administration have launched multiple efforts to beef up the vetting process for foreigners seeking visas in the U.S., particularly those from China. Cui Guanghai, 43, of China, and John Miller, 63, of the United Kingdom, were charged with interstate stalking and conspiracy to commit interstate stalking, conspiracy, smuggling and violating the Arms Export Control Act, the Justice Department announced Friday. Prosecutors believe that Cui was working on behalf of the Chinese government, according to court documents. China Targets Us Military Members In Overseas Spy Operations, Former Cia Station Chief Warns Court documents allege that Cui, who is based in China, and Miller, who is a permanent resident in the U.S., sought to procure military equipment including missiles, an air defense radar, drones and cryptographic devices starting in November 2023. The two allegedly coordinated with two other individuals, who, unbeknownst to Cui and Miller, were working on behalf of the FBI, on ways to export the cryptographic device to China. Read On The Fox News App Cui and Miller allegedly discussed how to hide the cryptographic device in a blender, other small electronics or a motor starter — or ship the device to Hong Kong first — to avoid detection. They paid $10,000 as part of a deposit for the cryptographic device, court documents say. Additionally, Cui and Miller allegedly recruited two people to help them conduct a scheme that sought to silence an unnamed U.S. citizen from speaking out against Chinese President Xi Jinping's appearance at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in November 2023, court documents say. Specifically, both Cui and Miller allegedly orchestrated a plot to surveil the U.S. citizen, install a tracking device on his or her car, slash the car's tires, and purchase and destroy a pair of statues the U.S. citizen created of Xi and Xi's wife. However, the individuals that Cui and Miller allegedly recruited were actually working in coordination with the FBI, according to court documents. Us Investigating Whether Chinese Citizen Charged With Flying Drone Over Base Committed 'More Serious Offenses' "The defendants targeted a U.S. resident for exercising his constitutional right to free speech and conspired to traffic sensitive American military technology to the Chinese regime," Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement Friday. "This is a blatant assault on both our national security and our democratic values. This Justice Department will not tolerate foreign repression on U.S. soil, nor will we allow hostile nations to infiltrate or exploit our defense systems." Cui and Miller were arrested by Serbian law enforcement officials in April at the request of the U.S. government and are currently detained in Serbia. The Justice Department said it is working with the Serbian government regarding their pending extraditions. If convicted, Cui and Miller face up to five years in a U.S. prison for conspiracy, up to five years for interstate stalking, up to 10 years for smuggling, and up to 20 years for violating the Arms Export Control Act. The Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the U.S. did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the U.K.'s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told Fox News Digital that it is providing consular assistance to Miller following his arrest and "are in touch with the local authorities and his family." Separately, the State Department has unveiled a series of initiatives aimed at bolstering the screening process for various visa applicants seeking to come to the U.S. For example, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced in May that the agency was planning to "revise visa criteria to enhance scrutiny of all future visa applications" for those originating from China and Hong Kong. Illegal Immigrant From China Shipped Weapons To North Korea From California: DojOriginal article source: Foreign nationals charged amid Trump visa crackdown for scheme to smuggle US military equipment into China
