President Xi urges independent R&D for aviation engines, gas turbines

President Xi Jinping on Sunday called for acceleration of independent research, development and manufacturing of aircraft engines and gas turbines to make China an aviation industry power. His words came on the heels of the establishment of the Aero Engine Corporation of China (AECC) Sunday in Beijing. The founding of the firm is a strategic move that will help enhance national power as well as the capacity of the armed forces, Xi said in a written instruction. The move will also benefit the reform of state-owned enterprises and the restructuring of the aviation industry, he continued. Xi encouraged AECC employees to be bold in innovating to make the country an aviation power. The AECC received investment from the State Council, the Beijing Municipal Government, Aviation Industry Corporation of China and Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China, with a registered capital of 50 billion yuan (around 7.5 billion US dollars). The firm has 96,000 employees. Premier Li Keqiang said in his written instruction that aircraft engines are sophisticated products of the equipment manufacturing industry.Making breakthroughs in this area as soon as possible will have great value for improving China's economic and military power and national strength. Li urged indigenous innovation to make the AECC a world-class aircraft engine company. Vice Premier Ma Kai, who attended the opening ceremony, also stressed indigenous innovation and continued reforms to build the AECC into a modern enterprise full of vitality. He called for personnel training to cultivate scientific and skilled personnel as well as innovators. China will launch at least 100 key projects over the next 15 years to increase the country's technological capability and improve people's livelihoods, according to the 13th Five-Year Plan unveiled earlier this year. Aviation engines and gas turbines were listed among the top 10 of the 100 projects.

Ethnic peace talks test Suu Kyi

Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi faces what could be the toughest test of her leadership yet when she opens a major ethnic peace conference Wednesday aimed at ending wars that have blighted the country since its independence. The five-day talks will bring hundreds of ethnic minority rebel leaders to the capital, along with military top brass and international delegates such as UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon. The conference is Suu Kyi's flagship effort to quell the long-running rebellions rumbling across Myanmar's impoverished frontier states, fuelled in part by the illegal drugs, jade and timber trades. Myanmar is home to more than 100 ethnic groups and many minorities harbor deep seated historical suspicions of the Bamar majority group - which includes Suu Kyi - complaining that they have endured decades of discrimination. Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner, has made ending the nearly 70 years of fighting the first priority of her newly minted government, which took over from the military in March after sweeping the first free election in generations. "If you ask me what my most important aim is for my country, that is to achieve peace and unity among the different peoples of our union," she said during a recent visit to China. "Without peace, there can be no sustained development." The 71-year-old is hoping to expand a shaky ceasefire signed last year between some rebel armies and the military-backed government. This week's conference will include both signatories to the ceasefire agreement and non-signatories, although some groups are still locked in intense fighting with government forces and their role in the talks remains unclear. Success also depends heavily on the military, which controls key levers of government and whose leaders are thought to have made billions from the vast natural resources of Myanmar's borderlands. "Anyone who is suggesting there could be any sort of agreement in the coming days or weeks is dreaming," said Anthony Davis, a security analyst and writer for IHS-Jane's, predicting the negotiations could take "many years." The conference has nevertheless been hailed as an important first step and one loaded with symbolism in a nation emerging from a dark military past. It is dubbed the '21st Century Panglong' - a reference to a 1947 agreement signed by Suu Kyi's independence hero father that granted a level of autonomy to major ethnic groups.

N. Korea fires back at UN over missile tests

North Korea hit back on Sunday at a UN Security Council statement condemning its latest test-firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), and threatened to take further steps as "a full-fledged military power." The 15-member council issued the toughly-worded condemnation in a unanimous statement and agreed to "take further significant measures" against North Korea, just days after the SLBM launch. Council members agreed to "continue to closely monitor the situation and take further significant measures," according to the statement, without elaborating. North Korea is barred under UN resolutions from any use of ballistic missile technology, but has carried out several launches following its fourth nuclear test in January. A spokesman for the North's foreign ministry labeled the UN statement a "product of brigandish acts of the US" and said Washington had ignored a warning about "hurting its dignity." "Now that the US posed threats to the dignity and the right to existence of the North Korea defying its serious warning, it will continue to take a series of eventful action steps as a full-fledged military power," the spokesman said. "The DPRK has substantial means capable of reducing aggression troops in the US mainland and the operation theatre in the Pacific to ashes in a moment," the spokesman added in a statement carried by the North's official KCNA news agency. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on Thursday described the latest SLBM test as the "greatest success" and said it put the US mainland and the Pacific within striking range. The missile was fired from a submarine off the northeastern port of Sinpo on Wednesday. It flew 500 kilometers towards Japan, far exceeding the range of the North's previous sub-launched missiles. A proven SLBM system would take North Korea's nuclear strike threat to a new level, allowing deployment far beyond the Korean peninsula and a "second-strike" capability in the event of an attack on its military bases. While Pyongyang has made faster progress in its SLBM system than originally expected, it is still years away from deployment, analysts said. North Korea has been hit by five sets of UN sanctions since it first tested a nuclear device in 2006. In March, the council adopted the toughest sanctions resolution to date, targeting North Korea's trade in minerals as well as tightening banking restrictions. The council met behind closed doors on Wednesday after North Korea launched a missile from a submarine towards Japan, the latest provocation from Pyongyang.

Obstacles continue to stall China-Vatican ties: experts

Obstacles remain in the way of diplomatic ties between China and the Vatican, experts said, as the Vatican expressed its hope Saturday of establishing formal relations with China. "There is much hope and expectation that there will be new developments and a new season in relations between the Holy See and China," Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin was quoted by Reuters as saying on Saturday. "[This] will benefit not just Catholics in the land of Confucius, but the whole country," Parolin said, adding that it also serves world peace. China, however, is not eager to establish formal ties with the Vatican, the only European country that has not established such relations with China, because it is not an urgent issue which will affect China's international status if it is not dealt with immediately, Yan Kejia, director of the Institute of Religious Studies at the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday. Yan said formal Sino-Vatican ties could materialize if the Vatican cuts off official ties with Taiwan. "The Vatican should stop its political relations with Taiwan and focus on religious matters with the island," Yan noted. Taiwan's deputy leader Chen Chien-jen will visit the Vatican next month for a ceremony declaring Mother Teresa a saint, Reuters reported. China has said countries should be prudent when dealing with Taiwan-related issues, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang told a daily briefing on Thursday and stressed the one-China principle when asked whether China had lodged a protest with the Vatican over the visit of Taiwan's deputy leader. Another major dispute between China and the Vatican involves the appointment of bishops, Hu Benliang, an associate research fellow at the Institute of Taiwan Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Sunday. The Vatican expressed its deep regret to China after the latter consecrated several bishops in 2010 without its approval, saying that it was a "painful wound upon ecclesial communion and a grave violation of Catholic discipline." The situation improved when Zhang Yinlin, a coadjutor bishop in the Anyang diocese in Central China's Henan Province, became the first bishop recognized by both Beijing and the Holy See in August 2015.

Saudi prince visit eyes vast Chinese oil export market

China and Saudi Arabia are eyeing deeper energy cooperation as Saudi Arabia's Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman prepares to visit China. Prince Mohammed is scheduled to visit China from Monday to Wednesday and will co-chair a high-level meeting between Saudi and Chinese officials led by Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Gaoli, China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced last week. During his visit, Prince Mohammed will meet Chinese officials on further strengthening economic ties with a number of deals, including the signing of memorandums of understanding on cooperation in the power sector and one on cooperation on oil storage, Saudi Arabia's English-language newspaper Arab News reported on Thursday. Deals expected to be signed during Prince Mohammed's trip also include investments in Saudi Aramco, the country's largest state-run oil producer, the Arab News said. Aramco is reportedly planning to go public, issuing about 5 percent of its shares as part of the kingdom's economic reform plan. Though other areas such as security cooperation are expected to be discussed, the main focus of the prince's trip will be on further opening the Chinese market, as the country faces deteriorating global market conditions for its oil exports and as China moves to bolster its strategic inventory, experts noted. Saudi Arabia, one of the world's largest oil exporters, has been suffering from sluggish global demand, shrinking prices and rising competition from countries like Russia and Iran. "At a difficult time like this, it is natural for Saudi Arabia to turn to China, the world's second-largest oil importer," said Lin Boqiang, director of the Center for Energy Economics Research at Xiamen University. "I expect a relatively good deal for both sides during the visit." The potential deal would guarantee Saudi Arabia more access to the huge and expanding Chinese market, while helping China secure a steady oil supply at lower prices, according to Lin. China is already one of the largest importers of Saudi oil. In the first half of 2016, China imported about 1.07 million barrels of oil per day from Saudi Arabia, or 14 percent of China's foreign oil supply, according to Bloomberg. Strategic oil storage The potential for growth in Chinese oil imports is promising, as China needs to fill its strategic stock, according to Wang Jun, deputy director of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges' Department of Information. "Our strategic crude oil inventory only covers about 30 days, which is low, compared to other countries' 180-day stock. Furthermore, China's oil storage infrastructure has improved significantly and can store much more oil now, so there is a huge potential," Wang told the Global Times. Crude oil deals with Saudi Arabia would also diversify the supply channels for Chinese oil imports, which is conducive to the country's energy security, Lin noted. Prince Mohammed, who is scheduled to return to China after a visit to Japan to attend the G20, will present his country's economic reform plan, under which the Saudi government would spend $72 billion on projects aimed at diversifying the kingdom's economy.

Trump could feel sting from new Clinton ads depicting him as racist

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump could feel some pain from a new line of political ads from his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton's team depicting him as a racist, at a time when he is trying to catch up in the polls. Clinton's campaign this week put out a new TV advertisement claiming that among Trump's supporters are the Ku Klux Klan (KKK) -- a white supremacist group that has killed, terrorized and intimidated blacks and other minorities in the United States, although the group has very little power now compared to when it was in its heyday several decades ago. While Trump has no ties to white supremacists, the ad makes the case that they support him and that if he wins they will run the country. Experts said the ads could hurt Trump and damage his campaign, which is just three months from the November elections. "They are damaging for Trump because they draw on things he or his campaign have done to paint a picture of someone who is completely insensitive to the concerns of the minority community," Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies of the Brookings Institution, told Xinhua. The ads not only reinforce points already made that Trump is rude and impolite, but also take this critique several steps further by labeling him a racist, West said. For his part, Trump blasted the ads as untrue, while using social media to refute Clinton's attacks. But that move is risky for him, as experts say Trump must get the public eye off of his bombast and onto Clinton's perceived missteps and corruption while she was secretary of state. Experts also argued that the New York businessman should continue his message that law and order is declining in the United States, and that a Clinton presidency would only exacerbate this, as Clinton would be an extension of the current Obama administration. Trump has a few times tried to do this by making cogent and well-argued speeches on US foreign policy and the economy, only to later ruin any gains he might have made by reverting back to insults and bombast. In the past week Trump has resisted the temptation to make over-the-top statements that hurt him with the broader American electorate, but it remains unknown how long he can do this. "The risk for him is that he gets off his law and order message and has to defend himself from the racism charge. It never helps a candidate to have to give an 'I' m not a racist' defense," West said. Dan Mahaffee, an analyst with the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress, told Xinhua that Trump did avoid the temptation to go off script and has been more effective in message discipline recently. If Trump continues to focus on hitting backon Clinton and avoiding collateral damage, he may turn the corner and start to close some of the polling gap that has him behind Clinton in key states, Mahaffee said. US media has exposed that Clinton has in the past closely associated with known racists, as shown in her statements in 2010 when she referred to former Senator Robert Byrd, a KKK member, as a mentor and friend.

Activist jailed for subversion, harming national security

Activist Zhai Yanmin, who had posted online statements and comments that harmed national security and social stability, has been sentenced to three years in prison with a four-year reprieve for trying to subvert State power. Tianjin No 2 Intermediate People's Court announced the verdict about three hours after it publicly heard Zhai's case on Tuesday morning. The verdict said that Zhai began publishing statements and comments online in 2012. He also manipulated public opinion and organized several protests to disturb public order with lawyer Zhou Shifeng after joining an unregistered organization led by another man named Hu Shigen, the statement said. Zhou and Hu are being prosecuted in separate cases. The court ruled that Zhai committed the crime of subversion, damaging national security and social stability. Zhai pleaded guilty and cooperated with judicial organs following his arrest, which could be regarded as the reason for the reprieve and his lighter punishment, the court said. Zhai said he accepted the judgment and would not appeal.

Activist Hu Shigen jailed for subverting state power

Tianjin No 2 Intermediate People's Court sentenced activist Hu Shigen to seven years and six months in prison for subverting state power on Wednesday, following a three-hour hearing. Hu, 61, who used to be a teacher at a Beijing university, said after the announcement: "It is a fair judgment and I accept it. I will not appeal to a higher court." The verdict said that Hu had asked another man named Gou Hongguo to attend anti-China forums overseas. He also worked with lawyer Zhou Shifeng and activists Zhai Yanmin and Li Heping to protest the government by making use of hot topics to manipulate public opinion and petitions, according to the verdict. All these activities were illegal and were carried out under an unregistered organization, which claimed to be a religious body led by Hu, the verdict said. Hu confirmed that he broadcast subversive ideas to other members of the organization, saying that he aimed to overthrow the government, the court said. He was previously sentenced to 20 years in prison for counter-revolution in 1994, but was released in 2008 following a sentence reduction. Zhai was sentenced to three years in prison with a four-year reprieve for subversion on Tuesday. Zhou, Li and Gou are being prosecuted in separate cases.

Activist Hu Shigen pleads guilty to subversion

An activist accused of subversion, damaging national security and harming social stability pleaded guilty at Tianjin No 2 Intermediate People's Court on Wednesday. Prosecutors said that Hu Shigen led an "underground organization", which claimed to be a religious body, but in fact taught its members how to take advantage of hot topics and sensitive issues to protest the government. The organization, which was unregistered, is alleged to have "built a systematic ideology, method and steps" to achieve its goals, the municipal No 2 People's Procuratorate said in a statement. Hu had allegedly, since 2009, instructed a member of the organization named Gou Hongguo to attend forums overseas that were against the country and the government, while also working with lawyer Zhou Shifeng and activists Li Heping and Zhai Yanmin to organize activities that manipulated public opinion and disturbed public order, the prosecutors said. Hu, a native of Jiangxi province, was previously sentenced to 20 years in prison for counter-revolution in 1994. After a sentence reduction, he was freed in 2008. "Hu's ideology and his behaviors have seriously harmed the country and social stability," the prosecutors said during the trial. Zhai was sentenced to three years in prison with a four-year reprieve for subverting State power on Tuesday. Zhou, Gou and Li are being prosecuted in separated cases. Hu's case is still being heard in court.

Ludovic Trarieux was refused by #Wangyu of Beijing Fengrui Law Firm

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