Analysis: Renewal of landmark China-Vatican pact all but assured; mutual benefits gained despite friction

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Dr Reyes noted that the improvements reflect the” major development” between both parties, perhaps as both do not promote formal relationships.

After China’s Communist Party (CCP ) took control and expelled foreign priests, Beijing cut diplomatic ties with the Holy See in 1951. Otherwise, the Vatican maintains formal ties to Taiwan, one of only a few states doing so.

Mr. Yeo made a point of mentioning that Cardinal Chow, who was in the Vatican in May, had invited Pope Francis to explore Hong Kong. He views the movement as important, aimed at reinforcing the state’s responsibility as a gate between China and the world Catholic area.

Pope Paul VI is the only pope to have traveled to Hong Kong. He stopped for three hours there in 1970, when it was a British settlement, and celebrated mass at Happy Valley racecourse.

The Hong Kong priest would not have issued this proposal on his own, without China’s approval, Mr. Yeo said in an appointment with CNA late last month.” It was an unofficial invitation, but several brow were raised.

MORE THAN MATTERS OF FAITH

According to experts interviewed by CNA, China has taken a favorable position toward enhancing relationships with the Vatican because it aligns with its wider strategic objectives of strengthening its worldwide reputation and preventing adverse representations from the West.

Dr. Reyes from HKU cited the Beijing’s invitation to Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, the priest’s specific minister for peace in Ukraine, in September. The minister also met with Mr Li Hui, China’s special minister for European affairs, marking a “rare and prominent diplomatic sign”. &nbsp,

” Beijing was notably gratified, one might even say chuffed by the Vatican sending a special emissary on Ukraine ( to the country ) … ( as ) this signifies the Holy See’s recognition of China’s potential role in facilitating peace in Ukraine”, he said.

Cardinal Zuppi made visits to Kyiv, Moscow, and Washington in July as part of the Holy See’s efforts to bring Ukraine and Russia to the table of negotiations.

China has resisted calling for a ceasefire and a political solution since Russian troops invaded Ukraine in February 2022. This approach, however, has prompted American complaints that Beijing is enabling Russia’s anger.

In July, North Atlantic Treaty Organization ( NATO ) members convened in Washington, DC, and signed a declaration designating China as a “decisive enabler” of the invasion. They demanded that Beijing stop providing Moscow with “every material and social support,” including the use of dual-use materials for both civil and military purposes.

In reply, China dismissed these statements as “groundless” and asserted that it has “always been a force for peace and security”.

The Vatican’s decision to send a harmony minister to Beijing therefore serves as a counter-narrative to Western reproval, said Dr Reyes.

It does demonstrate how the Vatican is trying to function in a more rational earth. And by logical, one was, by expansion, think of it as a so-called unipolar world in which we live”, he added.

” The US does not seem to understand that the world has changed and that it’s no more a US-dominant earth, that it’s … then multi-civilisational, international.

” I think it’s exciting to me that the Vatican, to some extent, has been operating that means ( with China ).”

Mr. Yeo, Singapore’s foreign affairs minister from 2004 to 2011, asserts that China’s attempts to bolster its understanding and engagement with the West are a part of its wider plan. &nbsp,

Without mentioning the Catholic Church, the participation of bishops, and the Vatican, both for great and for bad, European and American history is unfathomable.

” I believe China’s political relations with the West will ( also hinge ) on its relationship with the Vatican”.

Dr. Michel Chambon, a research fellow with the Asia Research Institute’s faith and globalization group, believes that strengthening relations with the Vatican is in line with China’s desire to become a world power.

“( China ) cannot, for too long, treat the Catholic Church as just an enemy. Only China has formal diplomatic relations with the Vatican, and only North Korea and Afghanistan have diplomatic relations with the Vatican, which makes things extremely unpleasant. What does ( that say ) about China itself”?

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‘Matter of national pride’: Analysts say nationalism, not population concerns, behind China ending foreign adoptions

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While Ms. Sun from the Stimson Center made an observation about how international adoptions have previously promoted criminal behavior, such as human trafficking.

The Washington Post reported on a smuggling ring in Hunan in 2006 that raised concerns about child trafficking in China. Children were purchased from Guangdong province for US$ 400 to US$ 538 and then sold to orphans in Hunan.

However, kidnapping-related smuggling has decreased tremendously, Dr Huang from the Council on Foreign Relations noted.

” Most recruited children are sold by their families, and the majority are bought by people, not happiness establishments”, he added.

The Global Times newspaper that addressed the policy change also highlighted the responsibility to child protection by the Chinese government.

Any policy alterations regarding child rights are made in accordance with the best interests of children and will help safeguard orphans ‘ legal rights in new circumstances, according to the editor.

Additionally, the article noted that as living standards and the social security system rise, more Taiwanese citizens are willing to adopt internally, making it reasonable for the authorities to change cross-border adoption policies.

However, based on statistics released by the Ministry of Civil Affairs, there has been a upward trend in home implementation licenses. The matter was 15, 143 in 2018, 34 per cent of the 44, 260 logged in 2009.

Mr. Wang Jinhua, chairman of the ministry’s social affairs office, attributed the decline to the ministry’s rapid economic growth and the adjustment of the two-child policy, which has resulted in fewer child abandonment cases.

According to experts, the enduring tradition of the decades-long one-child legislation also continues to play a role in reducing China’s child abuse rate.

The global community preparing initiative in China, which lasted from 1980 to 2016, only allowed the majority of families to have one kid each. According to reports, many young girls were left behind during that day because their parents valued boys more highly.

The outcome- a sex imbalance. In 2022, there were 32.3 million more men than women in China, according to established statistics. &nbsp,

Official data show that the sex ratios at birth in 2022 was 111.1, but about 111 boys were born for every 100 girls, against a world average of 101. This is an advancement from 118 in 2013.

” As long as children are favoured over girls, abandoned women will continue to face an ambiguous upcoming”, said Ms Yun.

” How the Chinese government handles these abandoned women may be a question.”

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North Korea shows first photos of banned uranium enrichment site

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There are rumor websites that North Korea has uranium enrichment sites. According to analysts, professional satellite imagery has shown building at the major Yongbyon Nuclear Scientific Research Center, including its uranium enrichment plant, suggesting potential growth. A naturally occurring radioactive factor, uranium, exists. Natural uranium goes through processes that produceContinue Reading

China will ‘crush’ foreign encroachment on South China Sea: Military official

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China’s assertiveness in disputed seafaring areas, including the South China Sea, has caused verbal conflict between Washington and Beijing. Taiwanese ships have recently engaged in a number of well-known territorial disputes with Spanish ships, which Beijing almost exclusively denies, despite a ruling from an intercontinental court that it believes hasContinue Reading

Race to become Japan’s next PM kicks off

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Hard-right financial security secretary Sanae Takaichi, 63, frequently visits Tokyo’s Yasukuni battle temple, which will likely enrage China and South Korea if she wins. And although her assistance within the group is limited, sitting foreign secretary Yoko Kamikawa, 71, is seen as a clever president who aspires to coach youngerContinue Reading

Beijing Xiangshan Forum: China to host annual show of military diplomacy this week

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But, the desire to be a mediator arises from internal disagreements with nations closer to home. &nbsp,

In recent months, Beijing and Manila have been blaming one another for provocative actions taken at ocean, with frequent clashes between Chinese and Asian vessels making headlines on a nearly daily basis in the contested South China Sea.

Analysts believe that using the Xiangshan website as a platform to resolve differences and get a resolution is appropriate given the current state of tensions.

” More than playing to the gallery, China and the Philippines should try to find a balance,” Lye said.

The website will give the claim states an opportunity to learn about each country’s position on this issue, which is not novel, but there might be some differences that can be discovered as well.

CHINA-US Relations

Victor Gao, head teacher at China’s Soochow University, said China-US relationships are at the lowest level since relations were normalised in 1979.

Given both places ‘ regular clashes over a slew of issues, he noted that in-person communication through local communities like Xiangshan is crucial.

He claimed the website is a good place to hear and hear the voices of major nations, but that the US must “walk the right stroll” when it comes to issues like the” One China” policy.

This also applies to refraining from immediately involving in territorial disputes between China and the Philippines, and refrain from actually trying to entice India into the US’s geopolitical conflict with China.

However, according to experts, it’s unlikely that there will be any significant opportunities shifts in both parties, especially as the US elections in November determine who will be president.

THE XIANGSHAN Conference

In light of the two nations ‘ bubbling conflict, the China-hosted accumulating has grown in popularity in recent years.

In its first iteration, the conference began with only 14 nations in 2006. More than 70 people participated in it in 2018, and more than 90 are now a century afterwards.

This week’s version is set to be its biggest.

Ian Chong, an associate professor of social science at National University of Singapore, noted that the website was “one among the many” in the past.

” Now, given that there’s been reduced contact between ( China ) and in particular, the US and some of its allies, it has become one of the few available conduits for some level of exchange to happen”, he added.

More than 500 members are expected to attend the event, and Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun is scheduled to give a statement at the occasion.

The website is returning for a second time after a three-year break over the COVID-19 crisis. Following the dismissal of Dong’s president Li Shangfu, China held the event last year in China without a defense minister.

CHINA’S ANSWER TO SHANGRI-LA DIALOGUE?

Since 2015, the Xiangshan website has become a yearly event.

It is styled as China’s response to the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia’s top safety meeting in Singapore.

It has been viewed as a platform for China to listen to opinions aired during the Shangri-la Dialogue, which China continues to criticize as being westernized, and is scheduled to take place months after the Singapore speech, which typically takes place in June.

” At the Shangri-La Dialogue, ( China ) criticises as much as it receives criticism. China may prefer a more controlled environment that allows them to make their place known, according to Chong.

Compared to the Singapore discourse, which is commonly led by its defense chief, the US usually sends a lower-level committee to the Xiangshan forum.

In the midst of a freezing military ties, China’s Dong met US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Singapore in June, with Chase’s expected attendance coming after that event.

” Simply a year ago, there was no military-to-military interaction between the US and China”, said Yun Sun, co-director of the East Asia Program at the DC-based think tank Stimson Center.

” But today, these connections have been resumed or re-established. I’m interested to see how the US-China connection will go and what China’s location will be on this specific subject at the Xiangshan forum.

The US sent a delegation to the Office of Undersecretary of Defense led by Xanthi Carras, its chairman of China last season.

Other European nations have sent little, low-level representatives that have either shunned or sent.

However, there will be many participants at the website who will represent the World South, which China has been focusing its efforts on.

Russia, which has been subject to widespread foreign attention for its invasion of Ukraine, received unusual but well-known billing from the forum most recently.

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