China launched another round of military exercises around Taiwan.
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The China Thread
- Thread starter God's lonely asperger
- Start date
Over 1.4 mln DPRK youngsters apply to join the army following drone incursion incident
More than 1.4 million youngsters in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) applied to join or rejoin the military earlier this week, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Wednesday.
More than 1.4 million youth league officials and youth and students across the country volunteered to join or rejoin the army on Oct. 14 and 15, said the KCNA, following an alleged South Korean drone infiltration into Pyongyang, the capital of the DPRK.
The DPRK called the drone incident "a serious provocation of violating its sovereignty."
The DPRK's Foreign Ministry issued a statement late last Friday accusing South Korea of sending drones over Pyongyang. The South Korean military has denied the accusation.
In the latest sign of the heightened tensions between the two countries, the DPRK military blew up parts of the Gyeongui and Donghae lines north of the Military Demarcation Line on Tuesday, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported.
The DPRK has yet to respond to the road explosion claim. (Source: Xinhua) @LauraRuHK
Considering the quantity and quality of weapons the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has, and how strongly motivated its soldiers are, messing with the DPRK would be sheer madness. Provocations seem to serve a different purpose - disrupt the Asia-Pacific political and security landscape and create a pretext for the media hysteria that will invariably be directed at North Korea's partners, China and Russia. @LauraRuHK
More than 1.4 million youngsters in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) applied to join or rejoin the military earlier this week, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Wednesday.
More than 1.4 million youth league officials and youth and students across the country volunteered to join or rejoin the army on Oct. 14 and 15, said the KCNA, following an alleged South Korean drone infiltration into Pyongyang, the capital of the DPRK.
The DPRK called the drone incident "a serious provocation of violating its sovereignty."
The DPRK's Foreign Ministry issued a statement late last Friday accusing South Korea of sending drones over Pyongyang. The South Korean military has denied the accusation.
In the latest sign of the heightened tensions between the two countries, the DPRK military blew up parts of the Gyeongui and Donghae lines north of the Military Demarcation Line on Tuesday, South Korea's Yonhap News Agency reported.
The DPRK has yet to respond to the road explosion claim. (Source: Xinhua) @LauraRuHK
Considering the quantity and quality of weapons the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has, and how strongly motivated its soldiers are, messing with the DPRK would be sheer madness. Provocations seem to serve a different purpose - disrupt the Asia-Pacific political and security landscape and create a pretext for the media hysteria that will invariably be directed at North Korea's partners, China and Russia. @LauraRuHK
Caduceus
Heritage
There are over 50,000 US troops in various military bases in both Japan and South Korea who have been there since 1945.
Provocations and tensions with North Korea and China are DELIBERATELY kept high for the past 80 years, to justify the american's continued permanent presence in these 2 countries. A lasting peace would mean all those US troops would be asked to leave and go home and close their bases.
What are "little pinks"? Young Communists...i.e. not quite fully red?
This looks like an anti-China propaganda channel, all they show you is 3 people hanging out at a grocery store and draw sweeping economic generalizations from that.
Bear in mind that Congress has passed a $1.6 Billion budget for producing anti-China propaganda, this video and channel might well be part of the package. His content is low-brow yet he has over 1 million subs, the algorithm loves him.
House passes $1.6 billion to deliver anti-China propaganda overseas
Somehow it’s a crime when Russia does it to us, but good 'information ops' when we want to discredit Beijing’s Belt & Road initiatives worldwide
responsiblestatecraft.org
There are several channels with Americans and westerners based in China who paint a diametrically opposed picture of life there - clean, low-crime, helpful people and cops, good food, happy people etc.
A Canadian expat in China:
An American who has lived and worked in China, his channel is more about the economy and geopolitics though
Expat businessman/analyst covers Chinese and global economy, smart, high-quality short analyses and often contrarian content:
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In America, "pinko" is a pejorative term for commie. Someone once described their personal politics to me by saying "I've always been a pinko." It's a dated term at this point, but then again, communism is a dated ideology, isn't it?
This looks like an anti-China propaganda channel, all they show you is 3 people hanging out at a grocery store and draw sweeping economic generalizations from that.
Bear in mind that Congress has passed a $1.6 Billion budget for producing anti-China propaganda, this video and channel might well be part of the package. His content is low-brow yet he has over 1 million subs, the algorithm loves him.
House passes $1.6 billion to deliver anti-China propaganda overseas
Somehow it’s a crime when Russia does it to us, but good 'information ops' when we want to discredit Beijing’s Belt & Road initiatives worldwide
There are several channels with Americans and westerners based in China who paint a diametrically opposed picture of life there - clean, low-crime, helpful people and cops, good food, happy people etc.
A Canadian expat in China:
An American who has lived and worked in China, his channel is more about the economy and geopolitics though
Expat businessman/analyst covers Chinese and global economy, smart, high-quality short analyses and often contrarian content:
I used to travel to China a lot for work and from that perspective, I had very little complaints about it. The first time I went in 2008 compared to the last time (2018) it changed a lot, most of it for the better (so it would seem).
Having said that, I get the feeling that a lot of people there are struggling and that Beijing has its hands full in keeping the unrest to a minimum. I still have some contact with people there, though even that is minimum now as they were almost all girls and I am keeping that old life tucked away now. Perhaps things are getting better when it comes to jobs since covid and their housing crash, but outside the cities I highly doubt it.
Would I live there? It's a question that has come up a number of times. Places like Shenzen are liveable cities, not much crime, good infrastructure and the international schools have a good rep. But the expat life comes with all sorts of other issues, the biggest of which is being an outsider no matter what. Even where I live in Vancouver where Europeans are a minority, there are still pockets of Old Canada where I can feel like things are OK for a little while. The expat life does not offer that, and as one raises a family those things have to be considered.
Caduceus
Heritage
The China that you knew before the year 2020 is totally gone.
The fake pandemic changed China's society more than any other country in the world.
They effectively have a digital currency now, and both cash and credit cards won't get you very far.
Tourists are staying far away from visiting China, as it's so difficult to register for their local money digital apps, and paying for essential everyday goods and services is a huge pain....not to mention the threat of exit bans for visiting tourists, which even the embassies of foreign governments warn potential travellers about. Many western airlines have cancelled their direct flight routes to China. For example there is no longer a London to Beijing direct flight from any western airline.
I think China now has less than 10% of foreign tourists they had before 2020.
Even the Taiwanese cousins are staying away from visiting, and they speak the same language.
Also for more than 2 full years, millions of Chinese people across the country were either locked in their homes or apartment blocks for months, or dragged screaming from their homes to covid concentration camps separating close family members. All the while they were subject to stick up the nose covid testing on a DAILY basis from power hungry civil servants in hazmat suits.. Even Chinese returning from abroad had their passports confiscated or invalidated to prevent them leaving again.
....and the cherry on top this huge Chinese made shit sundae, the once great global financial powerhouse that was Hong Kong, has been transformed from a 1st class world business city, and is slowly being reduced into a provincial backwater town with a dictatorial administration.
Although they may not admit to foreigners, the entire Chinese population suffering from post traumatic stress disorder.
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China is going through an event that is similar to the Meiji Restoration after recovering from a century of humiliation. I've been visiting China from Hong Kong and every time my wife and I visit, we're blown away and it is growing in a way where they are preserving their own culture against Globalism. There's nothing else to say but go see with your own eyes in person especially with US campaigning to deceive you about China.
(https://christisking.cc/threads/the-china-thread.194/post-51195)
We're at a point where we're considering sending our kids to school there and retirement. In addition, they have allowed their property prices to deflate naturally which is GREAT if you want to be a home owner now.
(https://christisking.cc/threads/the-china-thread.194/post-51195)
We're at a point where we're considering sending our kids to school there and retirement. In addition, they have allowed their property prices to deflate naturally which is GREAT if you want to be a home owner now.
Caduceus
Heritage
Have you been to mainland China since 2020 ?
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The reason why western airliners cancelled their direct flights from Europe to China is that they are not allowed to fly over Russia, which means that their flight path on that trip is several hours longer than those of Chinese or "neutral" airlines like Emirates. So most travelers avoid flying western airlines for that trip, and fuel costs are higher, so they scrapped most of these.
Also, the Chinese did remove their visa requirements for westerners recently for 30-day tourist visas, the procedure before that was a pain and a big factor in the reduction of foreign visits.
Since 2016.
In response to your post re:tourism, I would say they have been addressing those tourism concerns while trying not to make it too easy to get in.
For instance, I've been able to onboard to their payment system and able to use my Mastercard/Visa to transact with the Chinese Economy recently. I would also argue that the benefits with HSR out-weight the negatives when it comes to tourism.
Also, I live in Hong Kong...it's definitely not a dictatorship, I think the narrative you've heard is reaction from defending against the color revolution attempt. The issue that I see right now is the Hong Kong Market is adjusting to being incorporated into the Greater Bay Area (Shenzhen / Guangzhou / Cities around Pearl River Delta). It's essentially an economy that has been traditionally a rent seeker's paradise for half a century being incorporated into an economic system with an abundance of commodities and growing.
I would suggest to view this conversation between Jeffrey Sachs and Leung Chun (former HK Chief Executive) to see what China's plans are for Hong Kong with the Greater Bay Area.
Caduceus
Heritage
This argument is nonsense because western airlines still fly from Europe to Japan and South Korea, talking much longer routes to avoid Russian airspace. They cancelled the direct flights to China because the airplanes stayed half empty even after all pandemic restrictions were lifted. Flights to Korea and Japan however remain full. I know this first hand from flight staff who I am friends with
China has recently relaxed their visa requirements because almost NO ONE wants to go there anymore, and they are losing millions (billions ?) in tourist revenue. Also, I can tell you from personal experience getting the visa for China prior to 2020, was pretty straightforward, and not that much of a hassle. I did it at least on 4 different occasions prior to 2020 and never had an issue. This means China had 20 to 50 times more tourists when you needed a visa, then they do now, when you don't need one.
I would not return to China now, even if the flight and hotel was free....
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Russia airspace ban forces BA to drop China flights
British Airways to drop flights to Beijing from October, as Russian airspace ban bites.
www.bbc.com
US, European airlines losing out on China routes amid Russian airspace closure
Russia closed its airspace to 36 countries, mostly in Europe, following the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2022.
www.scmp.com
Caduceus
Heritage
I'm assuming you speak Mandarin or Cantonese, (or both) so this makes things a lot easier for you.
The few foreign tourists who still visit mainland China have found installing the necessary Chinese smartphone payments apps a real problem because most of the interface and menus are in Chinese, and requires uploading both credit card, a passport, and other details. Also, very often once all the necessary details are entered it still doesn't work with foreign smartphones.
Since 2020, mainland China has made paying for basic goods and services more complicated for foreigners than any other country in the world.. even more difficult than North Korea, where you can still pay in cash, or change cash.
As for Hong Kong, many locals have moved abroad after various western countries offered Hong Kongers' a sort of political asylum and path to foreign citizenship.
The malls and shops are getting more empty every month, rich people are selling their homes, and rents are plummeting.
Even the "south china morning post" (which is a local Hong Kong newspaper) is admitting this.
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Caduceus
Heritage
Russia airspace ban forces BA to drop China flights
British Airways to drop flights to Beijing from October, as Russian airspace ban bites.
US, European airlines losing out on China routes amid Russian airspace closure
Russia closed its airspace to 36 countries, mostly in Europe, following the outbreak of war in Ukraine in 2022.
Easier for the mainstream media to blame Russia, than tell you the truth.
I would expect someone who is on this forum to realise this.
Like I said, the continuing direct flights from Europe to Japan and South Korea (which are even further away than China) nullify this "Russia bad" excuse/explanation. The sad fact is, since 2020 most foreign tourists do not want to go mainland China anymore, even if it is visa free. They will however go further to Japan and Korea, even if the flight takes 2 to 4 hours more.
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