Latest news with #China-GlobalSouthProject
Newsweek
19-06-2025
- Business
- Newsweek
China Goes on Diplomatic Offensive as Israel-Iran War Distracts America
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. As Israel and Iran exchanged missile fire on Tuesday, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on Central Asian countries to deepen cooperation under China's "Belt and Road" infrastructure initiative—marking the latest step in what analysts call Beijing's diplomatic offensive—and highlighted in a recent podcast by the China-Global South Project (CGSP). Newsweek reached out to the Chinese embassy via email with a request for comment. Why It Matters China's global influence continues to expand, particularly in the developing world—often at the expense of the United States. This trend has accelerated under U.S. President Donald Trump's second administration, which has withdrawn from a range of traditional U.S. leadership initiatives and soft power programs, including the World Health Organization, USAID and PEPFAR. What To Know The summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, saw Xi announce a dozen cooperation agreements spanning green mining, trade, connectivity, personnel exchanges and customs, according to Chinese state media. The previous week, China secured $11.4 billion in deals during the fourth China-Africa trade expo, hosted by the foreign minister in Changsha, Hunan Province. The two powers are "going in very divergent directions," said Eric Olander, editor-in-chief of CGSP. The podcast discussion turned to China's vocal support for Iran, as Xi spoke out Tuesday to rebuke Israel for sparking the conflict with its surprise attack last week. Uzbekistani President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for a photo during their meeting on the sidelines of the China-Central Asia Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 17. Uzbekistani President Shavkat Mirziyoyev, left, and Chinese President Xi Jinping pose for a photo during their meeting on the sidelines of the China-Central Asia Summit in Astana, Kazakhstan, on June 17. Uzbekistan's Presidential Press Service via AP "This conflict—China came out very quickly and did not pretend to try and be a neutral arbiter, did not pretend to be kind of nonpartisan at all," Olander said. "They came out very quickly, backed Iran in this, framed the Israelis as the aggressor, and then also positioned the United States as manipulating all of this, which is par for the course in a lot of these types of incidents." CGSP Managing Editor Cobus van Staden added, "So not only in the diplomatic realm where China is coming out so strongly in favor of Iran, but also there are very steep economic consequences for the Chinese." Iran received diplomatic support from China—a longtime strategic partner and major export market—during previous, smaller exchanges of missile fire with Israel in April and October last year. The latest crisis began Friday with Israel's surprise strikes on a range of Iranian targets, including nuclear facilities, missile batteries, senior military leaders and nuclear scientists. Iran responded with retaliatory missile and drone attacks. What's Next The U.S. response remains uncertain. Trump has signaled that the U.S. will be involved in Israel's bombing raids against Iran in some capacity, demanding Tehran's "unconditional surrender" in a Truth Social post earlier this week. It remains to be seen whether Washington will order direct military action or limit its role to support.
Yahoo
13-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
China commits about $10 billion in credit lines to Latin America
By Liz Lee and Joe Cash BEIJING (Reuters) -China will commit credit lines of just under $10 billion to Latin American countries to support development, but in yuan, its top leader said when addressing a summit of Latin American and Caribbean officials in Beijing on Tuesday. President Xi Jinping delivered a speech to kick off a ministerial meeting of the China-CELAC Forum, a platform for cooperation between China and Latin American and Caribbean nations. The credit line, denominated in yuan, appears a push to further internationalise the Chinese currency, as China doubles down on deepening strategic and economic ties with the Latin American region. During the inaugural China-CELAC Forum in 2015, Beijing offered $20 billion in credit to be used to help Chinese enterprises invest in infrastructure projects across the continent. "China is doing a lot more yuan-based deals like this, particularly credit swap agreements that make it easier for the borrowing country to transact in RMB rather than USD," said Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. China will also implement a visa-free policy for five Latin American and Caribbean countries, Xi said without detailing which countries they were. The visa-free policy will be expanded to cover more countries in due course. Trade between China and Latin America exceeded $500 billion for the first time last year, Xi said. That was up from the $450 billion in 2023, and China's trade with Latin America has surged multifold from $12 billion in 2000. Xi told Latin American and Caribbean officials it was a great pleasure to have "old and new" friends gather, and reinforced that China supports Latin America and the Caribbean nations to expand their influence in the multilateral arena. The China-CELAC forum has been a vehicle to deepen dialogue between China and the bloc over trade, investment and infrastructure cooperation under China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Straits Times
06-05-2025
- Business
- Straits Times
Chinese fighter jets soar over Egypt in first joint exercises
BEIJING - The sound of Chinese fighter jets roared over the Egyptian pyramids and could echo across the Middle East, as Beijing wrapped up military drills with Cairo aimed at chipping away at US strategic influence in the volatile region. China's military on May 5 released videos of its fast jets, helicopters and transport planes flying high above the Sahara and hailing inaugural joint air force exercises with Egypt as 'a signal of deepening military ties and shifting alliances'. The joint exercises with one of the United States' biggest security partners come as Washington increasingly turns inward under President Donald Trump, allowing China to deepen ties across North Africa and invest billions in security projects. 'As Egypt looks beyond its traditional US partnership, a new era of cooperation is taking flight over Cairo's skies,' said a video released by the international division of state broadcaster CCTV, as a jet plane takes off into the night. Global Times, a tabloid owned by the newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, People's Daily, said the 'Eagles of Civilisation 2025' drills had established a foundation for various potential cooperation between the two countries' militaries at a time when Egypt is trying to upgrade its combat equipment, citing experts. Analysts say the 18-day drills also help Egypt assert itself as a major regional power among the Arab nations and North Africa amid growing regional turbulence. 'It's great public diplomacy for (China), particularly in the Middle East,' said Mr Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. 'It's what brings people in the door for them to sell drones, SAMs, light arms, transports, et cetera. A major regional power needs an Air Force, right?' he said, referring to surface-to-air missiles. Mr Orlander cautioned that switching jet fighter systems is very expensive, and Washington could choose to withhold financial military support from Cairo if it upped its purchases of Chinese technologies. But the US – the primary security partner to Egypt, neighbouring Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states since the late seventies – has made large foreign cuts under Mr Trump that have been keenly felt across the region. And with the Gaza crisis unfolding to its north-east, ethnic violence in Sudan to the south, and political instability in Libya to its west, Egypt finds itself squeezed on three fronts. China has since pledged billions in fresh investment for projects such as satellite manufacturing facilities in Egypt capable of producing military-grade surveillance equipment. Beijing's air force said the drills represented 'a new starting point and a significant milestone in military cooperation between the two countries', in a statement marking their conclusion. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Chinese fighter jets soar over Egypt in first joint exercises
By Joe Cash BEIJING (Reuters) - The sound of Chinese fighter jets roared over the Egyptian pyramids and could echo across the Middle East, as Beijing wrapped up military drills with Cairo aimed at chipping away at U.S. strategic influence in the volatile region. China's military on Monday released videos of its fast jets, helicopters and transport planes flying high above the Sahara and hailing inaugural joint air force exercises with Egypt as "a signal of deepening military ties and shifting alliances". The joint exercises with one of the United States' biggest security partners come as Washington increasingly turns inward under President Donald Trump, allowing China to deepen ties across North Africa and invest billions in security projects. "As Egypt looks beyond its traditional U.S. partnership, a new era of cooperation is taking flight over Cairo's skies," said a video released by the international division of state broadcaster CCTV, as a jet plane takes off into the night. Global Times, a tabloid owned by the newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, People's Daily, said the "Eagles of Civilisation 2025" drills had established a foundation for various potential cooperation between the two countries' militaries at a time when Egypt is trying to upgrade its combat equipment, citing experts. Analysts say the 18-day drills also help Egypt assert itself as a major regional power among the Arab nations and North Africa amid growing regional turbulence. "It's great public diplomacy for (China), particularly in the Middle East," said Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. "It's what brings people in the door for them to sell drones, SAMs, light arms, transports, et cetera." "A major regional power needs an Air Force, right?" he added. Orlander cautioned that switching jet fighter systems is very expensive, and Washington could choose to withhold financial military support from Cairo if it upped its purchases of Chinese technologies. But the United States - the primary security partner to Egypt, neighbouring Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states since the late seventies - has made large foreign cuts under Trump that have been keenly felt across the region. And with the Gaza crisis unfolding to its north-east, ethnic violence in Sudan to the south, and political instability in Libya to its west, Egypt finds itself squeezed on three fronts. China has since pledged billions in fresh investment for projects such as satellite manufacturing facilities in Egypt capable of producing military-grade surveillance equipment. Beijing's air force said the drills represented "a new starting point and a significant milestone in military cooperation between the two countries," in a statement marking their conclusion. (Reporting by Joe Cash; Editing by Saad Sayeed)
Al Arabiya
06-05-2025
- Business
- Al Arabiya
Chinese fighter jets roar over Egypt in first joint exercises
The sound of Chinese fighter jets roared over the Egyptian pyramids and could echo across the Middle East, as Beijing wrapped up military drills with Cairo aimed at chipping away at US strategic influence in the volatile region. China's military on Monday released videos of its fast jets, helicopters and transport planes flying high above the Sahara and hailing inaugural joint air force exercises with Egypt as 'a signal of deepening military ties and shifting alliances.' The joint exercises with one of the United States' biggest security partners come as Washington increasingly turns inward under President Donald Trump, allowing China to deepen ties across North Africa and invest billions in security projects. 'As Egypt looks beyond its traditional US partnership, a new era of cooperation is taking flight over Cairo's skies,' said a video released by the international division of state broadcaster CCTV, as a jet plane takes off into the night. Global Times, a tabloid owned by the newspaper of the ruling Communist Party, People's Daily, said the 'Eagles of Civilization 2025' drills had established a foundation for various potential cooperation between the two countries' militaries at a time when Egypt is trying to upgrade its combat equipment, citing experts. Analysts say the 18-day drills also help Egypt assert itself as a major regional power amid growing turbulence in the region. 'It's great public diplomacy for (China), particularly in the Middle East,' said Eric Orlander, co-founder of the China-Global South Project. 'It's what brings people in the door for them to sell drones, SAMs, light arms, transports, et cetera.' 'A major regional power needs an Air Force, right?' he added. Orlander cautioned that switching jet fighter systems is very expensive, and Washington could choose to withhold financial military support from Cairo if it upped its purchases of Chinese technologies. But the United States - the primary security partner to Egypt, neighboring Israel, and Jordan since the late seventies - has made large foreign cuts under Trump that have been keenly felt across the region. And with the Gaza crisis unfolding to its north-east, ethnic violence in Sudan to the south, and political instability in Libya to its west, Egypt finds itself squeezed on three fronts. China has since pledged billions in fresh investment for projects such as satellite manufacturing facilities in Egypt capable of producing military-grade surveillance equipment. Beijing's air force said the drills represented 'a new starting point and a significant milestone in military cooperation between the two countries,' in a statement marking their conclusion.
