Tag Archives: China
21 March 2014
The German government has requested federal prosecutors to investigate if German companies violated the law by exporting materials to Syria during the 1980s and early 1990s that may have enabled the country to develop a chemical weapons programme. Based on information given to it by Syria, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons has provided a list of companies to Germany, said a spokesman of the German ministry of economy on 19 March 2014. According to a report by the Süddeutsche Zeitung on 19 March 2014, Russia, France and China were also involved in providing Syria with materials that could be used to produce chemical weapons.
Source: Reuters | German prosecutors probe firms for Syria chemical weapons links
20 February 2014
The Guardian reports that Ecuador pursued a secret 1 billion US dollar deal with a Chinese bank to extract oil from under the Yasuni national park in the Amazon, while at the same time committing to a high-profile project to keep the ITT oil in the ground in exchange for international donations. The government of Ecuador abandoned the Yasuni-ITT Initiative last year, but according to a former ambassador of the initiative, Atossa Soltani, from NGO Amazon Watch, the negotiations with China raise doubts about whether Ecuador was ever truly committed to the plan to protect the Amazon.
An Ecuadorian government document, titled China Development Bank Credit Proposal, clarifies that the oil fields are meant to be explored by two state-run Chinese firms. Ecuador’s president Correa stated that Ecuador abandoned the Yasuni-ITT initiative due to a lack of donations – over 2 million US dollar in the government trust and slightly less than 10 million US dollar in a trust established and administered by the UN Development Programme, in spite of a final target of 3.6 billion US dollar. Others blame Ecuador’s relationship with China and pressure from the country’s oil sector, in which Chinese companies have a near monopoly.
Source: The Guardian | Ecuador pursued China oil deal while pledging to protect Yasuni, papers show
17 February 2014
The Australian Signals Directorate, Australia’s intelligence agency, informed the NSA that it was conducting surveillance of an American law firm, which was retained by the Indonesian government for help in trade talks, and offered to share the information. This information comes from a top-secret document obtained by Edward J. Snowden, former NSA contractor. Additionally, the Australians said that ‘information covered by attorney-client privilege may be included.’ Liaison officials for Australia asked the NSA for guidance about the spying and the Australian agency ‘has been able to continue to cover the talks, providing highly useful intelligence for interested US customers.’ The Australian surveillance of such talks shows the extent to which the NSA and its allies engage in economic espionage.
The NSA and the Australian government have declined to answer questions about the surveillance. However, the Australian Defense Force stated that information gathering is to support Australia’s national interests and that intelligence agencies obey their legal obligations, including when it involves foreign counterparts. Recently disclosed documents show the cooperation between the US and Australia, including the sharing of facilities and highly sensitive intelligence. The Australian and NSA eavesdropping services focus mainly on Asia, particularly Indonesia and China.
Source: The New York Times | Spying by N.S.A. Ally Entangled U.S. Law Firm
27 January 2014
China’s export industry is responsible for dirty emissions that are blowing across the Pacific Ocean and contributing to smog in the United States, a new scientific study says.
Scientists in the United States, China and the United Kingdom used data from 2006 to quantify how much of the air pollution reaching the US West Coast from China is from the production of goods for export to the United States and other countries. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, finds that about one-fifth of the pollution China emits into the atmosphere comes from producing goods for export to the United States and other countries.
The LA Times writes that while the United States has reaped some of the benefits of outsourcing – cheaper cellphones, televisions and appliances and big declines in air pollution – rising emissions in China have paralysed cities there with severe smog. One of the authors of the study is quoted as saying that US demand for cheap imports from China has a way of blowing those environmental problems back at the US: “It’s sort of a boomerang effect”.
Source: The Los Angeles Times | China's industry exporting air pollution to U.S., study says
14 January 2014
On 6 January 2014, six tonnes of confiscated ivory (ornaments, tusks and carvings) were publicly destroyed by Chinese authorities in the city of Dongguan, in an effort to combat the illegal trade in elephant tusks.
UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Achim Steiner said: “[t]he largest remaining land mammal on the planet is facing one of the greatest crises to hit the species in decades (…) Yet, there is reason for optimism. International cooperation is paving the way towards improved law enforcement and increased efforts to reduce demand. These efforts need to be stepped up and strengthened to produce the desired results (…) We have also seen the destruction of ivory stockpiles across range, transit and demand states: in the Philippines, the Gabon, the United States and China among others. As well as create critical public awareness, such actions send a clear message that wildlife crime will not be tolerated.” (more…)
Source: UN News Centre | UN agency praises China’s destruction of ivory stockpile
Source: UNEP News Centre | UN Applauds China Efforts to Combat Illegal Ivory Trade