China’s role in the Russia-Ukraine war
The China Letter: March 4, 2022
The latest roundup of news you need to know about China touches on its connections with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, a new looming lockdown in Hong Kong, evidence that Turkey is turning down Uyghurs, and suspicious real estate links in Toronto. Plus, the Beijing Winter Paralympics are now underway.
Questions of timing
An inevitably denied report from the New York Times cited reliable sources saying that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was asked to wait until the end of the Beijing Winter Olympics. It was there that Vladimir Putin visited Xi Jinping for an ominous meeting. And while China has called for de-escalation, the crisis has complicated its relationship with Moscow.
A suspicious peacemaker
State media reported Ukraine’s foreign minister asked China to diplomatically help end the conflict with Russia on its sixth day. In turn, Beijing is asking Kyiv to protect Chinese people stranded there, after reports of several being harassed due to their ethnicity. But there’s no sign of Xi wanting to break ties with Putin.
The coronavirus revival
Panic buying is back in Hong Kong two years after a global wave brought on by COVID-19. This time, it relates to the government mulling new lockdowns due to a spike in coronavirus cases, although it also follows orders from Beijing to control it before a July visit by President Xi. The fight has been suspiciously increasing Hong Kong’s reliance on China.
Talking about Turkey
China’s growing ability to extend repression beyond its own borders was cited by the Uyghur Human Rights Project toward explaining why Turkey rejected citizenship applications. An elementary school for Uyghurs was also closed in Istanbul due to an alleged request from Beijing, out of fear students were receiving instruction critical of China.
Missing a meta-mystery
A paper trail of real estate holdings tied to Xiao Jianhua was uncovered in Toronto, even though the oligarch hasn’t been seen in five years. Among the properties owned by his companies is a glamourous mansion, among a web of other investments of the kind that have stoked housing prices. But the whereabouts of Xiao remain a mystery despite thorough inquiries.
Paralympics are next
“Sports is one of the few ways a person with disabilities can receive resources from the state,” says Chen Bo, a Macau law professor who specializes in disability access. Read more about the scene in which Paralympic Winter Games are now underway. (Russia and Belarus have now been banned from competition.)
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