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Russia has invaded Ukraine, sending shockwaves across the globe and marking the beginning of the end of the post-Cold War world order.
In China, the new-energy vehicle industry set records in 2021, paving the way for local battery-makers such as CATL to accelerate their expansion overseas, and attracting giants from other industries like Huawei to test the waters.
The Beijing Winter Olympics has ignited global discussion over the stunning carbon-lite opening ceremony, the crowd favorite mascot Bing Dwen Dwen, and U.S.-born Chinese figure skater Zhu Yi’s fiasco.
Hong Kong is battling the worst wave of local Covid-19 with the help of Beijing. Experts say that insufficient forethought and vigilance is to blame for the challenging situation.
This month, Caixin Global includes a relaxing read, leading you to explore the “four great classical novels” of Chinese literature through the lens of a particular Chinese obsession — food.
# War in Ukraine #
Cover Story: The Beginning of the End of the Post-Cold War World Order
At 4 a.m. Feb. 24, when Russian missiles pounded the Ukraine capital Kyiv, the post-World War II world order faced its most severe challenge — far more so than the Balkans crisis of the 1990s and the regional wars in eastern Ukraine since 2014.
Hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a “special military operation” to “demilitarize” Ukraine in a nationally televised speech, multiple cities in Ukraine came under attack from three sides by land, sea and air. Massive explosions were heard in Kyiv, and street fighting broke out in the second-biggest city, Kharkiv.
Four days into the war, fighting continued in Kyiv and spread to more cities. A Ukrainian delegation agreed to meet with Russian officials for talks on the Ukraine-Belarus border, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy’s office said. Meanwhile, Putin ordered Russia’s nuclear forces to high alert.
Analysis: China Looms Large in Western Debate Over Russia SWIFT Ban
As Western leaders act to punish Russia for its attack on Ukraine, they are divided on whether to cut Moscow off from the global financial payments system SWIFT, with some fearing it could push the country closer to China, analysts say.
The U.S., in its latest raft of economic sanctions on Russia announced, stopped short of shutting Moscow out of SWIFT, the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. European Union (EU) member countries are divided on whether to block Russia from the system used by financial institutions for cross-border payments, with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saying he was against such a move although some states are in favor.
Opinion: Ukraine Is Only the Start as Putin Reasserts Control of Eastern Europe
Forty-eight hours have passed since Russia announced the launch of its special military operation in eastern Ukraine.
In a narrow sense, the Post-Cold War Era during which we grew up and that we have become so familiar with has now completely ended. In a broad sense, the international order and the international system of law established and upheld since 1945 have taken a serious blow.
From the 2004 Orange Revolution and the 2014 Euro Square protests to the current struggles and conflicts in Ukraine, we can see a cruel gap in the international community between what should be and what it is.
Chinese Embassy in Ukraine Urges Its Citizens Not to Reveal Their Identity
In a reversal of a prior recommendation, China's embassy in Ukraine has advised its citizens in the country not to reveal their identity or display any identifying signs, as “growing extreme behavior” amid an escalation of the conflict with Russian posed a security risk to Chinese nationals.
The advice came just two days after the embassy suggested its citizens in Ukraine should attach a Chinese flag to their vehicles if they needed to go out amid growing levels of violence and bloodshed across the country.
# Beijing Winter Olympics #
Beijing Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony Goes Carbon Lite
China’s use of a “micro-flame” instead of igniting a huge cauldron of fire to officially kick off the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics was intended to send a message around the world about the importance of reducing carbon emissions and protecting the environment, according to the opening ceremony’s director.
Some viewers may have been surprised when Dinigeer Yilamujiang, a female cross-country skier from West China’s Xinjiang region, and Zhao Jiawen, a male Nordic combined athlete from Shanxi province, simply placed the Olympic torch in the center of a giant snowflake-shaped structure bearing the name of every country and region participating in the Games.
China Makes Example of Peddlers of Phony Olympic Mascot Merch
Chinese authorities are stepping up intellectual property protection for the Beijing Winter Olympics mascots, as soaring resale prices prompt some sellers to risk punishment for copyright infringement by profiting from fake toys.
Authorities in Beijing announced the country’s first criminal case of copyright infringement regarding the Olympic mascots.
Opinion: Why Olympian Zhu Yi Doesn’t Deserve the Scorn She Received
The skater fought till the end despite a serious injury and got nothing in return but abuse. Kindness cannot be expected from all, but can one live without even the slightest bit of compassion?
Beverly Zhu, known in China as Zhu Yi, a U.S.-born figure skater and naturalized athlete competing for China at the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, has been the target of severe abuse on Chinese social media platforms.
# Covid in Hong Kong #
Analysis: How Hong Kong Failed to Maintain ‘Zero Covid’
A sign that warns against sneaking across the border between the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong has been put up in neighboring Shenzhen. Several districts in Zhuhai, another Guangdong province city near Hong Kong, have also offered rewards for tips about illicit crossings.
On Feb. 14, 15 people illegally entered Zhuhai from Hong Kong by boat. Four of them later tested positive for Covid-19.
Illegal border crossings have been common for decades. But now, as Hong Kong is struggling with its biggest ever Covid-19 outbreak, they bring the risk of infections coming into the mainland, which is sticking to its policy of “dynamic zero.”
China’s top infectious disease expert Zhong Nanshan has urged Hong Kong authorities to “put people’s lives and health first” in a Cantonese video message, where he shared recommendations for Hong Kong to contain its latest outbreak, including reserving anti-Covid drugs such as U.S. pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc.’s oral pill Paxlovid.
Hong Kong residents are facing the city’s worst-ever Covid-19 outbreak, which has overwhelmed its healthcare system and led the government to impose its toughest social-distancing rules.
Beijing Dispatches Top Disease Control Official to Take On Covid in Hong Kong
Beijing has dispatched a top disease control official to Shenzhen to help neighboring Hong Kong contain its fast-growing local Covid-19 outbreak, which continues to worsen with thousands of new cases recorded daily.
Wang Hesheng, deputy director of the National Health Commission, arrived in the southern city to coordinate disease control work. The health veteran is also the head of the newly established National Administration of Disease Prevention and Control.
# NEV #
Cover Story: The Turning Point for China’s New-Energy Vehicles
China’s new-energy vehicle (NEV) industry set records in 2021. The country produced 3.54 million NEVs, including battery-electric cars and plug-in hybrids, and sold 3.52 million of them. Sales were up 181% from 2020 and exceeded the total of the previous three years. In 2021, NEVs made up 15.7 % of the country’s car market.
The numbers boosted market enthusiasm. Experts predict that NEV sales in China will jump to 5 million to 6 million this year, taking 25%–30% of the domestic auto market. China will be by far the world’s largest producer and consumer of NEVs.
In Depth: Huawei Tiptoes Into Carmaking
Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. has repeatedly dismissed speculation that it wants to be China’s Tesla challenger. But its deep collaborations with automakers may justify such speculation, industry insiders say.
Since April, Huawei has established partnerships with automakers BAIC BluePark New Energy Technology Co. Ltd., Chongqing Sokon Industry Group Co. Ltd., Chongqing Changan Automobile Co. Ltd. and GAC Group to help them build sub-brands by using Huawei’s autonomous driving technology.
CATL Considers Building More Factories Outside China, Including U.S.
The world’s largest electric-vehicle battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL) has announced that it’s considering building more factories overseas, including in the U.S., to localize supplies of its products.
The news came as CATL, based in East China’s Fujian province, has been trying to ease investor concerns about the recent sell-off of its stock.
Weekend Long Read: How Mouth-Watering Foreign Delicacies Pepper China’s Classic Novels
The “four great classical novels,” must-reads for every schoolchild in China, are deeply rooted in people’s hearts. I like to see them through the lens of a particular Chinese obsession — food.
As a child, the strategy in “The Romance of the Three Kingdoms” (三国演义) washed over me, as did the brotherhood and passion portrayed in “Water Margin” (水浒传), the fusion of Western and Eastern fantasy in “The Journey to the West” (西游记) and the romance of “Dream of the Red Chamber” (红楼梦). All I could think about was the delicacies the characters were eating. The novels span centuries, from the Three Kingdoms, through the Tang and Song Dynasties and into the Qing Dynasty, witnessing to huge changes in the China diet, including the introduction of important crops from abroad.
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