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China has deployed troops along the border with North Korea, it confirmed yesterday, in a sign of growing concern over its neighbour's social and economic breakdown. A brief statement issued by the foreign ministry in Beijing said the People's Liberation Army had taken over patrolling the north-eastern border zone from the People's Armed Police. Reports from Hong Kong newspapers that 150,000 troops had flooded the area were neither confirmed nor denied. The deployment is a response not only to the problem of refugees from Pyongyang's Stalinist regime, but to growing reports of crime against local Chinese by North Koreans scavenging...

How telling is it that critics (and even some advocates) of the Bush administration's foreign policy routinely refer to "the American empire" and Washington's "imperial burden"--while ignoring the fact that the People's Republic of China is the sole major multicultural empire left in the world? More than a third of China's territory is populated by non-Chinese. Its three largest provinces--Tibet, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang--are home to non-Chinese civilizations. And, throughout the People's Republic, a cacophony of languages are spoken, many of which are as far from Chinese as English is. What's more, China openly expects to expand its rule to...

<p>XIONGQIAO, China -- Xiong Jinglun was lying in bed on the night of the raid, resting his frail, AIDS-weakened body when the shouting outside jarred him awake. The 51-year-old farmer struggled to his feet and shuffled out of his shack to investigate, but someone had cut off the electricity in the village, and it was difficult to see in the pitch dark.</p>

SYDNEY - China has brazenly defied the United States' latest attempts to isolate the military leadership in Myanmar, as Beijing moves to reclaim the talks initiative with its own unique blend of coercion and economic leverage. In the latest of a series of high-level exchanges since January, Beijing is hosting a visit by 32 top junta leaders this week that underscores China's unrivaled clout with the reclusive generals in Yangon. Ramming this message home, Beijing agreed on Saturday to advance a US$200 million loan for a power project near Myanmar's second city of Mandalay, and diplomats said China was discussing...

Taiwan yesterday threatened to scrap a 10-aircraft order that government-controlled China Airlines (CAL) had placed with Boeing after the US aircraft-maker cancelled a visit by the island's vice-president to a company plant. Taiwan Transport Minister Lin Ling-san, who chairs a foundation which controls the carrier, said he would ask CAL to weigh the feasibility of ending the contract it awarded Boeing. "National interest should also be taken into consideration, although the deal was commercial in nature," Mr Lin said. "What Boeing has done to Vice-President [Annette] Lu [Hsiu-lien] was really too much and impolite." CAL said that it would "immediately...

CAPTION: But former Clinton adviser warns trade frictions are mounting as American firms demand yuan be revalued Despite the continuing spat between the US and China over the valuation of the yuan, relations between the two nations are at their "best in years", former Clinton administration Asia adviser Kenneth Lieberthal said yesterday. "Both sides will tell you that Sino-US relations are the best they've ever been," Mr Lieberthal, a political science professor at the University of Michigan Business School, said. "They are co-operating in countering terrorism globally and on many other fronts." But Mr Lieberthal, who was a special assistant...

By tapping officials with air and coastal warfare experience, it is positioning itself for any battle over Taiwan Strait - CHINA has stepped up preparations for any battle over the Taiwan Strait by moving several generals with experience in air and coastal operations to key positions. According to reports, Lieutenant-General Zheng Shenxia, 61, chief of staff of the air force, was recently appointed president of the Academy of Military Sciences, the top think-tank on military strategy. He is the first airman to head the academy since it was founded in 1958 by the late Marshal Ye Jianying. Analysts believe this...

Caption: July's fall in foreign direct investment and export growth is blamed on the delayed effect of the Sars outbreak Foreign investment in China plummeted 38 per cent in July from a year earlier and export growth eased slightly as delayed effects from the Sars outbreak hit the twin engines of the booming economy. There was also little sign of a feared overheating. Price data showed that rises in food and petrol sales offset falls in cars, travel and mobile telephone sales. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in the first seven months was US$33.4 billion, up 26.6 per cent from a...

http://newsmax.com/archives/articles/2003/8/12/161533.shtml DF-15 data and snip from 2003 DOD report on the PLA http://www.softwar.net/df15.html Chinese Missiles Target Okinawa Charles R. Smith Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2003 New Red Missile Armed With U.S. Technology The Pentagon reports that China has improved its missile force with U.S technology. The improvements enable Chinese missiles to now accurately strike the U.S. base at Okinawa with "satellite-aided guidance" navigation technology obtained from America during the Clinton administration. The Chinese army has (People's Liberation Army, or PLA) developed a new version of its DF-15 missile - also known as the CSS-6. The new version is reported to be...

Caption: Making them state-funded may curb graft and improve inmates' labour conditions The mainland is experimenting with reform of its controversial penal system by severing prisons from their business arms. The aim is to curb corruption and improve prisoners' living conditions. Prisons chosen for the experiment, which starts next month, will be state-funded, freeing them of the need to run profit-driven businesses in which inmates often work long hours in dangerous conditions - frequently without pay. Prisons in Heilongjiang, Jiangxi, Hubei and Shaanxi provinces and the Shanghai and Chongqing municipalities will begin the experiment on September 1. They will no...

Thomas Christensen is Professor of Political Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.CHINAThomas J. ChristensenSeptember 11 provided an opportunity for increasing cooperation between the People’s Re-publicof China (PRC) and the United States because of the shared threat from militant Is-lamists.Beijing took several steps to assist the U.S. war on terrorism. Although the impor-tanceof those efforts should not be exaggerated, the spirit behind them is quite meaningful, atleast for the near term. How long that spirit of cooperation will last will depend in large parton relations across the Taiwan Strait and on economic and social developments in China.China Provided Support for...

JAPAN AND THE ENGAGEMENT OF CHINA:CHALLENGES FOR U.S. POLICY COORDINATIONMichael H. Armacost and Kenneth B. Pyle  Relations among the United States, Japan, and China are the key to the balance of power in East Asia. Since the disappearance of the Soviet threat, no substitute has been found to provide a stable basis for the triangular relationship in the post-Cold War environment. With rapid expansion of its economy, modernization of its defense capabilities, and the resolve to arrest Taiwan's drift toward independence, China is the "change agent" in the Sino-Japanese-U.S. triangle at the outset of the twenty-first century. The United States...

<p>What is China's position on space-based weapons (search) ? Considering the gap between what officials in Beijing say and what they do on the issue, it's hard to get a straight answer. But let's look at the facts.</p> <p>For some time now, China (search) has spearheaded an international movement to ban conventional weapons from space. More than a year ago, the Asian superpower--joined by Russia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Belarus, Zimbabwe and Syria--introduced a draft treaty at the United Nations to outlaw the deployment of space-based weapons (search) .</p>

These are pictures of house church members in Henan province being tortured by People's Armed Police and Public security squad. See link for all pictures Pictures were provided by a Chinese group in New York. They are giving them to the UN's Human Rights committee -- a lot of good that will do them.

For Whom Does Jackie Chan Feel Pity and Shed Tears?   Tears trickled down the cheeks of Jackie Chan. For Jackie, this doesn't mean to join in for fun on occasion. In the realistic life, this internationally famous movie star really shed his heart-aching tears. Why and for what? For the ugly show of a handful of people in Hong Kong. A few days ago, the world-renowned football team - the British Liverpool was invited to put on a performing match in Hong Kong. This was one of the measures taken by the Hong Kong SAR Government to "boost the...

China Getting Ready for Severe Blitzkrieg 08/01/2003 17:47 Many experts say that the North Korean conflict is not a conflict between Pyongyang and Washington, but a large-scale diplomatic game between China and the USA with a view of gaining control over the Korean PeninsulaAnalysts from the Pentagon think that Chinese are getting ready for a military operation against Taiwan. Beijing is speedily increasing the missile potential of its armed forces and increases the army budget. The Pentagon says the main factor of this alleged operation must be "unexpectedness, cunning and shock". They also add that Chinese may use their...

A visit to Beijing by a leading US Catholic leader has fuelled speculation on the prospects of greater religious freedom in China. Theodore Cardinal McCarrick, the Catholic Archbishop of Washington, spent three days in Beijing earlier this week on what was ostensibly a private visit. He became the first cardinal from a western country to visit the mainland since relations between China and the Vatican turned frosty after a dispute over canonisation in October 2000. Church sources on the mainland noted Cardinal McCarrick's visit to Beijing came after the US Congressional Executive Commission on China held a hearing titled "Will...

The central government yesterday denounced a Pentagon report that accused it of deploying growing numbers of ballistic missiles aimed at Taiwan and said the US was making excuses to sell advanced weapons to the island. "The motive is to foment public opinion and excuses to sell advanced weapons to Taiwan," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement when asked to comment on the Pentagon's annual report on its military might. "The Chinese side expresses its strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition." Defence Minister Cao Gangchuan, meanwhile, reiterated the central government's stance that Taiwan was part of the mainland that must be...

China slams Pentagon report on missile threat REACTION: Under no circumstances will China tolerate anything or anyone interfering with the mission of reunification, its defense minister said on Army DayREUTERSSaturday, Aug 02, 2003,Page 1 Arms race * The Pentagon says that China now has 450 missiles pointed at Taiwan and is increasing this number by 75 a year. * China says that the US is just trying to make an excuse for selling Taiwan more weapons. * An expert in Taiwan believes the country's biggest problem is that people just are not prepared to fight. China denounced the US yesterday for...

WASHINGTON - China is boosting its missile stocks and military budget to prepare for what could be a quick and brutal showdown with Taiwan — and to prevent U.S. forces from getting in the way, the Pentagon (news - web sites) said Wednesday. Defense officials said China was emphasizing a "surprise, deception and shock" doctrine in its campaign against Taiwan, which Beijing considers a renegade province. "Preparing for a potential conflict in the Taiwan Strait is the primary driver for China's military modernization," the Pentagon said in its annual evaluation of China's military. While focusing on Taiwan, China is developing...