The #PacificIslands summit has ended in drama after #China’s regional envoy demanded scrapping the language about #Taiwan. The communique was republished without the offending para. Only 3 of the 16 countries still have diplomatic relations with Taiwan. gettr.com/post/p3ay6p179…

#Japan expressed “strong concern” after a Chinese survey ship was confirmed to have briefly intruded into Japanese territorial waters near southwestern Kagoshima Prefecture. A Japanese military vessel and aircraft were tracking the vessel. gettr.com/post/p3ay6mu6f…

#Japan's #Defense Ministry requested a record budget of ¥8.5tn ($59bn) for fiscal Y2025. The request is aiming to enhance remote island security by deploying unmanned vehicles amid #China's growing military assertiveness. gettr.com/post/p3azvj48c…

#SiliconValleyBank's Chinese JV will become a wholly owned unit of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank. #China’s financial regulator has agreed SPD to adjust its shareholder ratios so as to hold 100% of the shares, effectively approving SVB exiting the JV. gettr.com/post/p3b1b4pe0…

If the #CCP truly believes it has a territorial claim to #Taiwan, it should also try to take back land from Russia. Beijing’s different approaches to 2 similar historical territorial losses show that its plans to invade Taiwan are geopolitically driven. gettr.com/post/p3b1nqmb9…

#US researchers have identified the probable deployment site in #Russia of the 9M370 Burevestnik, a new #nuclear-powered-&-armed cruise #missile touted by Putin as "invincible". The missile has only 2 partial successes out of 13 known tests since 2016. gettr.com/post/p3b1lxzcb…

#China’s state-linked influence operation #Spamouflage has become more aggressive in an effort to influence #US political conversations ahead of the 2024 presidential #election. 15 Spamouflage accounts were identified on X & one on TikTok. gettr.com/post/p3b2xpv48…

#China remains a complex #intelligence concern in #NewZealand. Beijing carries out #ForeignInterference activities against NZ’s diverse Chinese communities. A NZ-based Chinese language news outlet is almost certainly responsive to Beijing’s direction. gettr.com/post/p3b2ylz77…

#Malaysia said it would carry out an investigation into the leak of a classified diplomatic note sent by #China in Feb. In the note, China reportedly asserted that Malaysia's oil & gas exploration in the #SouthChinaSea infringed on China's sovereignty. gettr.com/post/p3b4mzl18…

The rapid rise of #China’s homegrown #EV makers is upending the largest passenger car market on the planet and leaving the world’s biggest automakers on the losing end. Volkswagen warned it could close plants in #Germany for the first time in its history. gettr.com/post/p3b4og13a…

#Indonesia will deport to the #Philippines dismissed Bamban Mayor Alice Guo who is accused of ties to #criminal syndicates & #moneylaundering. Guo was arrested along with a Chinese monk & was helped by a former Chinese police officer during her escape. gettr.com/post/p3b4o7839…

#China’s #ConsulGeneral in #NewYork has been expelled after Linda Sun, a former aide for NY governors Kathy Hochul & Andrew Cuomo, was charged for acting as an #agent for the Chinese govt. Sun & her husband’s bonds are set respectively at $1.5mn & $500K. gettr.com/post/p3b4oi732…

5 current & former employees of UK drugmaker AstraZeneca have been detained by police in #China for investigation. One probe is related to the company’s collection of patient data. The other concerns importing an unapproved drug. gettr.com/post/p3b6d063c…

Reed Smith is closing its Beijing office, becoming the latest in a string of #US #LawFirms to scale back its footprint in #China, amid economic uncertainty, increasing regulatory pressure and fraught US-China relations. gettr.com/post/p3b6eo8b0…

The #Pentagon will launch military repair hubs in the #IndoPacific countries of Japan, South Korea, Australia, Singapore & the Philippines. The program stems from an understanding that the U.S. alone cannot compete with #China’s ship-building prowess. gettr.com/post/p3b6fwk82…