Innholdsfortegnelse for Vol. 61/No. 18 i Beijing Review

Opposing Protectionism Several members of the World Trade Organization (WTO) on April 23 expressed their concern and disappointment with the recent decision by the United States to impose tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum products, during a meeting of WTO Safeguards Committee. Seven WTO members—including Russia, India, Venezuela, Turkey, Norway, Switzerland, and Singapore—joined China, which raised the matter, in expressing their respective concerns over the U.S. tariff decision under Section 232. China warned that the Section 232 actions severely damage the stability of the multilateral trading system and distort international supply chains, with considerable negative effects. China said the U.S. decision to exempt certain exporters from the tariffs, including some of the largest suppliers to the U.S. market, clearly violated the WTO’s most favored nation principle. Russia noted that…

A mid already fierce trade frictions between China and the U.S. are signs of a technology war between the world’s two largest economies, with a leading Chinese telecom equipment maker caught in the crossfire. On April 16, the U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) imposed a seven-year ban on ZTE’s purchase of crucial U.S. technologies, commodities, components and parts, including chips, for its alleged violation of the terms of a sanctions settlement. Given that the ban is to last until March 2025, the full duration of the Made in China 2025 plan, some believe that the United States’ real intention is to throttle China’s hi-tech development. On April 20, ZTE’s Chairman Yin Yimin said at a news conference in Shenzhen, south China’s Guangdong Province, that the DOC is playing up subtle…

Zhang Danyang, a 28-year-old purchasing agent in Shenzhen, usually starts her day by checking the news and browsing her friends’ social media posts on her smartphone in bed after she wakes up. She eats breakfast while streaming TV shows in the background, and goes to work by bus which she pays for via a QR code on a payment app. She rarely brings cash with her anymore since she can pay for almost everything by using her phone. At work, Zhang contacts customers by e-mail and sometimes attends video conferences. On the weekend, she often plays online games with her friends, some of whom live in different cities in China. When she gets hungry, she orders food via delivery apps, which is usually cheaper than going to restaurants. From time…

With global players gearing up to boost their presence in the market, China has been seeing signs of recovery in its business aviation industry. “More frequent business activities stimulate the buying of business aircraft or the use of charter services thanks to the country’s economic growth,” said Jenny Lau, Chairperson of the Asian Business Aviation Association (ASBAA). “Healthier and more rational development in the industry is on track following multiple years of slowing growth beginning in 2013, after the previous round of market expansion.” Lau made the remarks at the 2018 Asian Business Aviation Conference and Exhibition (ABACE), the largest annual business aviation expo in Asia, which runs from April 17 to 19 in Shanghai. ABACE 2018 attracted 170 exhibitors, including almost all of the world’s major business aircraft manufacturers…

Dear Readers, Forum is a column that provides a space for varying perspectives on contemporary Chinese society. We invite you to submit personal viewpoints on past and current topics (in either English or Chinese). yanwei@bjreview.com Please provide your name and address along with your comments Fearing that they will lose their best, a number of cities around China, second- and third-tier cities in particular, are rushing to provide an array of favorable policies to attract top talent. Wuhan, capital city of central China’s Hubei Province, announced last year that it will try to retain 1 million college graduates in the next five years with such policies. Chengdu, in southwest China’s Sichuan Province, is granting permanent residence registration to young people with a bachelor’s degree or above. It has built public…

A military band from Kyrgyzstan takes part in a parade held at the Beijing Olympic Park during the Fifth Military Band Festival of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on April 25. The event followed the 15th Meeting of SCO Defense Ministers in the Chinese capital from April 23 to 24, during which participants vowed to strengthen military cooperation and expressed their readiness to conduct joint military counterterrorism exercises in Russia this August. Military bands from eight countries including China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India and Belarus took part in the festival.…

NORTH KOREA The Third Plenary Meeting of the Seventh Central Committee of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea convenes in Pyongyang on April 20, during which the party’s leader Kim Jong Un announced the decision to discontinue nuclear tests and intercontinental ballistic missile launches BRITAIN Prince William and his wife Catherine carry their newborn son as they leave St. Mary’s Hospital in London on April 23. The baby is the couple’s third child CANADA A police officer stands guard near the site where a van struck pedestrians in Toronto on April 23. At least nine people were killed and 16 others injured in the incident ITALY Performers dressed as ancient Romans commemorate the founding of Rome near the Colosseum on April 21. The performance depicted Rome’s legendary foundation by Romulus…

Beijing Review: How is Turkey working to increase the number of Chinese tourists traveling to Turkey? What challenges do you think Turkey will face? Abdulkadir Emin Onen: We aim to become among the top five countries in the world in terms of attracting tourists. Turkey’s tourism revenue rose to $26.3 billion in 2017, with 77.4 percent of this earned from foreign visitors. Statistics show that tourists coming to Turkey mostly hail from Russia, Europe, the Middle East, Caucasia and the United States. Due to the fact that 130 million Chinese tourists traveled abroad last year, they will undoubtedly contribute to boosting Turkey’s tourism sector. In 2017, 240,000 Chinese tourists visited Turkey. There is indeed untapped potential. We are working hard to boost this number. The 2018 Turkey Tourism Year in…

Mei Lixia’s first acquaintance with a MOOC—massive open online course—occurred in 2013 when she registered for courses on Coursera, the California-based course provider regarded as one of the biggest of its kind in the world. The associate professor at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law in Wuhan City in central China enrolled for several courses and found Taiwan-based history professor Lu Shih-Hao’s lectures on Qin Shihuang (259-210 B.C.), the first emperor of a unified China, and The Records of the Grand Historian, an encyclopedic history of ancient China completed around 94 B.C., the most impressive. Inspired by Lu’s lectures, Mei made up her mind to start an online course herself to spread knowledge and ideas to more people. In 2014, she attended a training session on MOOCs at Tsinghua University…

Immersed in Knowledge People read books at a 24-hour self-service library at the Sanxia Square in southwest China’s Chongqing Municipality on April 19. About 8,000 books are available for readers at the library. Internet Addiction Chinese primary and middle schools were asked to take action to prevent students from becoming addicted to the Internet, the Ministry of Education said on April 24. Schools were urged to enhance students’ awareness of violent and vulgar online content and the negative impact of online games, as well as to provide assistance and guidance for students who show signs of addiction to such content or games, the ministry said in a press release. The management of Internet access within schools should be tightened and the use of mobile phones by students should be regulated,…

A new area built from scratch—unlike the packed skylines of other metropolises in that a height restriction limits the stature of its buildings. Seventy percent of this embryonic settlement will be covered by vegetation and water, and people, no matter where in the city, will be within just a few minutes walk of the nearest park. Leading universities, hospitals, corporate headquarters, financial entities and public institutions currently located in Beijing will all set up branches here in the coming years. China’s Internet giants Alibaba and Baidu have both announced plans to open offices, making it another center for the research of cutting-edge technologies in the country. Xiongan New Area, 100 km southwest of Beijing, is currently under construction, with cranes and excavators rumbling everywhere on the site. It is expected…

Wang Ziyi, a 14-year-old middle school student who lives in Yichang, central China’s Hubei Province, can hardly conceal his excitement at laying his hand on the forehead of a Chinese sturgeon in a large temporary plastic fishpond. “It is the first time that I have seen a Chinese sturgeon, and they are gentler and meeker than I originally imagined,” said Wang. In spite of his fondness for animals, Wang’s parents have consistently refused his appeals to keep one at home due to his tight study schedule. “The observation of Chinese sturgeons helps me to more deeply feel the charm of nature,” said Wang, while participating as a volunteer in the release of 500 Chinese sturgeons, an event designed and organized by the China Three Gorges Corporation (CTG) and local government…

The glitz and glamor of the movie industry came to the Chinese capital on April 15-22 for the Eighth Beijing International Film Festival. A total of 15 films made the cut from 659 hopefuls, spanning 71 countries and regions, all in the hunt for the top 10 awards of 2018. Scary Mother, produced in Georgia and Estonia, won Best Feature Film, while Mariam Khatchvani walked away with the Best Director award for the film Dede. While much of the dazzle centered on the film awards, recent Chinese box office figures are also something to celebrate. China has now become the world’s second largest film market. According to statistics released at the film festival, a total of 970 films were produced on the Chinese mainland in 2017, and the annual box…