Free Republic

President Donald Trump announced that he will travel to Beijing in the spring to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Trump wrote on Truth Social that he spoke with Xi by phone on Monday. “I just had a very good telephone call with President Xi, of China,” Trump wrote. “We discussed many topics including Ukraine/Russia, Fentanyl, Soybeans and other Farm Products, etc. We have done a good, and very important, deal for our Great Farmers — and it will only get better.” Trump continued: Our relationship with China is extremely strong! This call was a follow up to our highly...

Two Americans and two Chinese nationals are accused of secretly funneling advanced Nvidia artificial intelligence (AI) chips to China, a plot prosecutors say threatened U.S. national security and violated strict export controls.The Department of Justice said in a news release that Hon Ning "Mathew" Ho, 34, a U.S. citizen born in Hong Kong and living in Tampa, Florida; Brian Curtis Raymond, 46, of Huntsville, Alabama; Cham "Tony" Li, 38, a Chinese national living in San Leandro, California; and Jing "Harry" Chen, 45, a Chinese national living in Tampa on a student visa, face multiple counts including conspiracy to violate the...

China’s strategic stranglehold on rare earth minerals threatens America’s national security and economic independence, leaving our defense and technology sectors dangerously vulnerable to Beijing’s whims. OVERVIEW • China controls 85-95% of global rare earth processing through decades of state-directed monopolization • Beijing weaponized export restrictions in April 2025, targeting seven critical rare earth elements in response to U.S. tariffs • America’s defense, electronics, and renewable energy sectors face severe supply chain vulnerabilities • Western efforts to break China’s chokehold require years of investment and face massive technical barriers CHINA'S CALCULATED ECONOMIC WARFARE STRATEGY China’s dominance over rare earth elements represents...

In the same time period that the United States built the overdue and over-budget Plant Vogtle, China built 13 reactors of similar scale, and has 33 more on the way

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA) is reportedly considering a run for California governor — a possible foil to frontrunner Katie Porter. Two anonymous sources close to the congressman told MSNBC that he has been considering a play for the Golden State governor’s mansion with a possible announcement as early as next week. “Swalwell declined to comment when reached by MSNBC, but a source close to the congressman, who asked to remain anonymous to discuss the private discussions, said Swalwell allies had asked him to run ‘to fill a “fighter/protector” role’ in the mold of Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom,” reported MSNBC. Should...

Our economic realities as Americans are tied directly to energy. But those of us working outside the energy industry must be forgiven for not noticing that in 2022, China began construction on an experimental thorium reactor that requires no water, generates substantially less toxic byproduct, purports and appears be vastly safer than all other reactor designs, and all but eliminates the possibility of meltdown. American citizens should be forgiven for not noticing because in 2022, as you recall, we were suffocating in the various tendrils of psychological operations and captured government. And when China operationalized the reactor and proved the...

The Japanese government on Monday demanded explanations from China after Xue Jian, the Chinese consul general in Osaka, threatened to “cut” Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s “dirty neck.” Xue, in a now deleted social media post on X (formerly Twitter), reportedly threatened Takaichi over remarks recently issued by the prime minister regarding Taiwan. According to the Tokyo Weekender, the Chinese diplomat’s message read, “We have no choice but to cut off that dirty neck that has lunged at us without a moment’s hesitation. Are you ready?” The now-deleted social media post included a link to a news article covering comments made...

The Chinese government has issued guidance requiring new data centre projects that have received any state funds to only use domestically-made artificial intelligence chips, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. In recent weeks, Chinese regulatory authorities have ordered such data centres that are less than 30% complete to remove all installed foreign chips, or cancel plans to purchase them, while projects in a more advanced stage will be decided on a case-by-case basis, the sources said. The move could represent one of China's most aggressive steps yet to eliminate foreign technology from its critical infrastructure amid a pause...

A division within the FBI is asking defense contractors to report incursions by “unmanned systems” — including unidentified anomalous phenomena — that could pose a threat to U.S. national security. NewsNation special investigative correspondent Ross Coulthart has obtained a flyer produced by the FBI’s Office of the Private Sector announcing a new initiative to report unmanned systems such as drones and underwater vehicles that could pose a threat to defense facilities and “critical infrastructure” sites. The document notes an increase in “incursions over recent months” and says the unmanned systems “may be intended to disrupt operations or gauge U.S. response...

One of President Donald Trump’s most vocal critics, Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., is raising eyebrows over a “bizarre inconsistency” in his campaign’s Federal Election Commission filings that list several different reasons for payments to a Haitian American staffer, totaling over $360,000. FEC filings from Swalwell for Congress and his Remedy PAC, dating back to 2021 and as recently as last month, show over 75 payments to an individual named Darly Meyer, with various reasons given for the disbursements. Individual payments vary from as little as $53 to over $12,000. Based on the payments, Meyer has earned varying amounts each year,...

Four Republican senators voted with Democrats on Thursday to approve a bipartisan resolution to repeal President Trump’s global tariffs, including steeper rates on long-time allies such as the European Union, Japan and South Korea. Sen. Rand Paul (Ky.), the GOP sponsor of the resolution, and Sens. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) voted for it. The same proposal failed in the Senate in late April on a 50-49 vote after Vice President Vance cast the tiebreaking vote to defeat it. Critically, McConnell and Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (R.I.), who voted Thursday for the resolution, missed the...

Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg For years, international investors poured billions into China’s booming property market, drawn by promises of rapid urbanization, soaring apartment demand, and a government committed to growth. Today, that once-promising bet—valued at more than $140 billion—has become one of the biggest financial traps in modern real estate history. Private equity firms, hedge funds, sovereign wealth funds, and pension managers from the U.S., Europe, and Asia are now stranded in distressed Chinese property assets that are nearly impossible to sell. Some portfolios have suffered 80–95% value collapses, while others are entangled in bankruptcies, halted construction, legal disputes, or regulatory...

China is the target. Venezuela is the stage. That is the core claim in OAN‘s Chanel Rion’s latest report about President Trump’s strategy in the Western Hemisphere. If you’re wondering why a drug war narrative is front and center, Rion says it is a cover for a proxy war against China. In her telling, this is Trump’s third straight strike on Beijing’s energy and influence network. If you want to understand the troop movements, the CIA authorities, and all the noise, you have to follow the oil money and the dual-use projects that tie Venezuela to Beijing.Rion frames the past...

President Trump and President Xi Jinping are locked in a fresh trade war standoff—and Beijing is betting the U.S. stock market will blink first. China’s escalating economic retaliation is timed with precision, and the message is clear: Xi believes Trump won’t risk another market meltdown. That assumption could shape every policy move over the next few weeks and shift investor sentiment worldwide. From rare-earth sanctions to new export controls and shipping-related penalties, China is tightening the screws just as President Trump threatens 100% tariffs on Chinese goods. Meanwhile, both countries prepare for a high-stakes summit later this month in South...

He Weidong was China second highest ranking official in the militaryThe Chinese Communist Party has expelled nine top generals in one of its largest public crackdowns on the military in decades.Nine men were suspected of serious financial crimes, a statement released by China's defence ministry said.Most of them were three-star generals and part of the party's decision-making Central Committee. They have also been expelled from the military.While the statement cast the expulsion as part of an anti-corruption drive, analysts say it could also be seen as a political purge. It comes on the eve of the party's plenum where the...

President Trump said his proposed 100% additional tariffs on goods from China were "not sustainable."

WASHINGTON (AP) — For many years, American and Chinese scholars worked shoulder to shoulder on cutting-edge technologies through open research, where findings are freely shared and accessible to all. But that openness, a long-standing practice celebrated for advancing knowledge, is raising alarms among some U.S. lawmakers. They are worried that China — now considered the most formidable challenger to American military dominance — is taking advantage of open research to catch up with the U.S. on military technology and even gain an edge. And they are calling for action.“For far too long, our adversaries have exploited American colleges and universities...

Since Beijing announced a new visa to attract young science and technology graduates, a backlash has erupted online, forcing the government to respond.When the Chinese government announced a new visa to attract young science and technology talent, it advertised the move as another step toward becoming the leading scientific power, one to which people from around the globe would flock.To many in China, it was a gross mistake.In the days before and since Oct. 1, when the visa was supposed to come into effect, commenters have accused the government of inviting foreigners to steal jobs from Chinese people, at a...

The Trump administration’s cancellation of the largest solar project in the United States has sparked confusion and concern among Republicans and Democrats alike. Known as the Esmerelda 7, the collection of seven solar projects in rural Nevada was set to generate up to 6.2 gigawatts of energy when complete, enough to power 2 million homes. That’s an eye-popping amount of power to add to an electrical grid that desperately needs more of it, due to the insatiable demand from AI-related data centers and increasing residential needs. Under former President Joe Biden, the federal government was moving the sprawling project through...

“China’s stance is consistent,” the Chinese Commerce Ministry said in a statement posted online. “We do not want a tariff war but we are not afraid of one.”China signaled Sunday that it would not back down in the face of a 100% tariff threat from US President Donald Trump, urging the US to resolve differences through negotiations instead of threats. “China’s stance is consistent,” the Commerce Ministry said in a statement posted online. “We do not want a tariff war but we are not afraid of one.” The response came two days after Trump threatened to increase the tax...