Calvin Woodward, Associated Press Updated 10:31 pm, Wednesday, April 4, 2018 window._taboola = window._taboola || []; _taboola.push({ mode: 'thumbnails-c', container: 'taboola-interstitial-gallery-thumbnails-5', placement: 'Interstitial Gallery Thumbnails 5', target_type: 'mix' }); _taboola.push({flush: true}); Photo: Susan Walsh, AP Image 1of/5 CaptionClose Image 1 of 5 In this April 3, 2018, photo, President Donald Trump speaks during a news conference in the East Room of the White House in Washington. For more than a year, Wall Street has largely ignored the unpredictability and chaos that has plagued Trump’s administration, confident that the businessman-turned-president’s policies would juice the economy and that a team of mainstream advisers would keep more controversial proposals at bay. Now the financial markets are showing that their patience with Trump has its limits. … [Read more...] about AP FACT CHECK: Trump is $163B off on trade gap with China
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AP News Guide: What’s behind the US-China trade fight
WASHINGTON (AP) — The United States and China, the world’s two largest economies, have roiled financial markets and fueled fears of a protracted trade war by threatening tariffs this week on each other’s goods. The United States on Tuesday said it would impose 25 percent duties on $50 billion of imports from China, and China quickly retaliated by listing $50 billion of products that it could hit with its own 25 percent tariffs. Earlier in the week, Beijing announced separate import duties on $3 billion of U.S. goods in response to the Trump administration’s duties on all steel and aluminum imports, including from China. U.S. officials sought to downplay the threat of a broader trade dispute, saying a negotiated outcome is still possible. Even so, economists warned that the tit-for-tat moves bear the hallmarks of a classic trade rift that could escalate. “The seeds of a more serious conflict are there,” said Adam Slater, lead economist at Oxford … [Read more...] about AP News Guide: What’s behind the US-China trade fight
VINAFIS opposes China’s unilateral fishing ban in East Sea
China’s Ministry of Agriculture has published an announcement on its official website that unilaterally makes adjustments to the country’s fishing ban in the East Sea, including Vietnam’s territorial waters. The ban will come into force from May 1 to August 16, 2018. Vietnamese fishing boats The VINAFIS held that the unilateral fishing ban of China hampers fishing activities of Vietnamese fishermen and violates Vietnam’s sovereignty over Hoang Sa (Paracel) archipelago and the Tonkin Gulf territorial waters as well as its legitimate rights and interests. It also infringes international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and related international legal documents, and runs counter to the spirit and wording of the Declaration on the Conduct of the Parties in the East Sea (DOC) signed between ASEAN and China in 2002, the VINAFIS said. China’s unilateral action is not in line with the development … [Read more...] about VINAFIS opposes China’s unilateral fishing ban in East Sea
The China-Philippines dispute in the East Sea
Aside from Vietnam, with its greedy U-shaped or nine-dotted line that covers over 80 percent of the South China Sea (East Sea), China also has maritime disputes with the Philippines, Taiwan, Indonesia, Brunei and Malaysia. To further understand China's ambition and plot in the East Sea, VietNamNet give you a panorama of the dispute between this country and the Philippines. China’s territorial claims China claims to have discovered the islands in the Han Dynasty in 2 BC. The islands were claimed to have been marked on maps compiled during the time of Eastern Han dynasty and Eastern Wu (one of the Three Kingdoms). Since the Yuan dynasty in the 12th century, several islands that may be the Spratlys have been labeled as Chinese territory, followed by the Ming Dynasty and the Qing dynasty from the 13th to 19th Century. In 1755, archaeological surveys the remains of Chinese pottery and coins have been found in the islands and are cited as proof for the PRC claim. Chinese … [Read more...] about The China-Philippines dispute in the East Sea
China human rights lawyer arrested after urging for democratic reform
[JURIST] Human rights lawyer Yu Wensheng was reportedly charged [HKFP report] Saturday with "inciting subversion of state officials" after writing a letter calling for reform to China's constitution. Yu was arrested outside his home in Beijing nearly two weeks ago for "disrupting a public service," just hours after he wrote an open letter urging for democratic changes, including multi-party presidential election. His wife was summoned on Saturday, at which time she learned of the more serious incitement charge now against him. Authorities searched Yu's office and residence, and seized documents and data related to his more recent cases. Yu is reportedly being held under Residential Surveillance in a Designated Location (RSDL) [text, PDF, in Chinese] and is out of communication with his family and attorney. Those detained a a RSDL can be detained for six months with no outside communication. In addition, the current charge carries a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. Since July 2015, … [Read more...] about China human rights lawyer arrested after urging for democratic reform