China Now 25-05: Chinese Foreign Minister sends message of support to Palestine
The China Now special program informs about this country's news.
The first segment recaps a pro-Palestinian message from China's Foreign Minister.
The second segment refers to the most recent tariffs imposed by the United States on Chinese products as part of the trade war against China.
The third segment emphasizes the relations between China and Russia, following the re-election of President Vladimir Putin, as well as the repercussions of these relations on the complex political situation in the region.
The first segment recaps a pro-Palestinian message from China's Foreign Minister.
The second segment refers to the most recent tariffs imposed by the United States on Chinese products as part of the trade war against China.
The third segment emphasizes the relations between China and Russia, following the re-election of President Vladimir Putin, as well as the repercussions of these relations on the complex political situation in the region.
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00:00Hello, Telusive English presents a new episode of China Now, a Wave Media's production that
00:14showcases the culture, technology and politics of the Asian giant. In this first segment,
00:19China Current dives into top stories of the week, including a message sent by the Chinese
00:24Ministry of Foreign Affairs in support of Palestine. Let's see.
00:28China Current is a weekly news talk show from China to the world. We cover viral news
00:33about China every week and also give you the newest updates on China's cutting-edge technologies.
00:39Let's get started.
00:49Hi, welcome to China Current. I'm Lisa. Let's start this episode with a message on Palestine
00:56from the Chinese Foreign Ministry. On the 13th of May, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson
01:01Wang Wenbin said that China supports the United Nations General Assembly's latest resolution
01:07over Palestine and urged relevant countries to stop standing on the opposite side of the
01:12international community, international justice and conscience of humanity.
01:18Stop creating hurdles for Palestine to join the UN, Wang said.
01:22Wang's remark comes after the General Assembly's latest resolution regarding the Middle Eastern
01:27country, which vowed support to the Palestinian bid to become a full UN member. The resolution,
01:33which recognised Palestine as qualified to join and recommended the Security Council
01:39to reconsider the matter favourably, was passed on May 10th by landslide, with 143 votes in
01:47favour and only 9 against. Naturally, the US and Israel are among the 9 negative votes.
01:53Regarding its decision, the US representative to the UN explained that, believe it or not,
01:58the US has always been the biggest fan of the two-state solution. Sweet enough, they
02:03are just voting against it for the sake of the Palestinian people, because, and I quote,
02:09statehood will come from a process that involves direct negotiation between the parties. There
02:15is no other path that guarantees either Israel's security and future as a democratic Jewish
02:20state or Palestinians can live in peace and dignity in a state of their own. In other
02:27words, you have to get Israel's consent to become a state first before talking about
02:32joining the UN. But, as the Chinese Foreign Ministry mentioned, at current condition,
02:38being a full membership in the UN is actually a crucial step towards Palestinians' long-cherished
02:44aspirations of independent statehood. Only that will enable the international community
02:49to listen more adequately to the voice of Palestine and help it to talk and negotiate
02:55with Israel on a more equal footing, especially in the current state of Israeli occupation
02:59and suppression. The passing of the solution is the strong core of the international community
03:06to support the Palestinian cause in terms of both the two-state solution and lasting
03:11peace in the Middle East, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson explained. As for the
03:16US' excuses, borrowing from the dude in Big Lebowski…
03:20Yeah, well, you know, that's just like, uh, your opinion, man.
03:27Next up, let's take a look at US latest tariff against Chinese product. On May 14th,
03:33the Biden administration announced that starting this year, the US will quadruple tariffs on
03:38imported Chinese electric vehicles from 25% to 100%. The tariff rate on lithium-ion EV
03:46batteries will more than triple to 25%, and the import tax on Chinese solar cells and
03:52semiconductors will both be doubled to 50%. On Chinese internet, well, netizens are mostly
03:59joking at the following picture.
04:08Besides mocking Paul Biden, the US move is largely viewed as a desperate attempt to contain
04:13China's leadership in the mentioned industries. In Trump's era, the US sanctioned China to secure
04:20its lead in technology, but now it is more of a move to protect its underdevelopment EV industry.
04:27The US, despite being a giant in combustion engines, is only a dwarf in EV.
04:33Time has changed, netizens commented. As for the effect of the new tax barrier, netizens generally
04:40don't consider them a threat. Although China would probably be sad for a moment since the US has the
04:45largest auto market in the world, the reality is if you look at where the growth of auto market is,
04:52it's either the developing countries or where population continues to grow rapidly.
04:57EV only occupies a small portion in US auto sales, and its infrastructure for EV is immature to say
05:04the least. The US has actually gone through a wave where EVs became very popular, but people
05:11quickly realized that the US don't have an electronic grid that can handle all of the
05:16charging. And the replanning of power infrastructure would definitely require a
05:21well-thought-out centralized approach, something that the US doesn't have thanks to the chaotic
05:26bipartisan politics. China now is the number one manufacturer not only in EVs but also in
05:33the batteries themselves, which are basically the engines of the EVs. As conserving the environment
05:38has established its position as the global consensus, the US tariff barriers will only
05:44prevent its consumers to get hold of the best product in the market. Next up, what name will
05:50pop up when you think about the word Aurora? Iceland? Alaska? Thanks to the strongest geomagnetic
05:56storm in two decades, Chinese could now see Aurora without having to bear the burden of a 10-hour
06:03flight. From northwestern Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region to northeastern Heilongjiang
06:08Province, multiple northern regions across China has become unexpected destinations to enjoy the
06:14stunning beauty of the Aurora, attracting visitors and photographers to rush for the mesmerizing
06:20display by the nature. Due to a coronamassive ejection event from the sun, the Earth's magnetic
06:27field experienced a massive geomagnetic storm on the night of May 10th. At 9.32am on May 11th,
06:35the China Meteorological Administration issued a red alert for geomagnetic storms,
06:41predicting moderate to high solar activity levels in the following days.
06:46Here are some videos taken by photographers and tourists across China.
06:54Next up, diplomacy. The Chinese foreign ministry announced on May 14th that at the invitation of
07:01Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin will play a state visit to China
07:07from May 16th to 17th. As of the moment, President Putin has touched down in Beijing and is in talks
07:14with President Xi Jinping. A joint statement titled, Undeepening China-Russia Comprehensive
07:20Strategic Partnership, of called Nation for a New Era, is published. The detail of the visit
07:26is still yet to be released. On Chinese internet, state media says that the visit will have strategic
07:33significance for not only the two major powers, but also the world amid turbulence and profound
07:39changes. Notably, this is Putin's first state visit after he was sworn in as Russian president
07:46for a new term last week. As this year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of
07:52diplomatic relations between China and Russia, Chinese media projects that Xi and Putin will
07:59exchange views on bilateral relations, cooperation in various fields, and international and regional
08:05issues of common concern during the visit. Next up, on May 13th, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi
08:12met South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yoo, who began a two-day visit to China that marks
08:18the first trip to Beijing by a South Korean Foreign Minister in more than six years. According to the
08:25Chinese state media Global Times, Cho's trip is part of the preparation for the China-Japan-South
08:31Korea Trilateral Leaders' Meeting, which is projected to be held later this month. Meanwhile,
08:37Cho aims to make an improvement-orientated adjustment in South Korea's foreign policy,
08:44with its relations with China needing to be eased and reconciled.
08:48Study and improved naval relations are conducive to regional security and stability,
08:53the Chinese state media noted. In the meeting, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that
08:59healthy and stable development of China-South Korea relations is in line with the trend of
09:04the times and in the fundamental interest of the two peoples. The recent ups and downs and
09:10challenges faced by bilateral relations have increased significantly. This is not in line with
09:16the common interest of the two countries, and it is something we do not want to see.
09:21The downs that the Foreign Minister Wang Yi mentioned refers to the South Korean President
09:26Yun Suk-yoo's attitude towards Taiwan. Yun once claimed in an interview last year that Taiwan
09:33is more of an international issue rather than China's domestic politics, which was immediately
09:39refuted by China. In his meeting with the Chinese Foreign Minister, Cho pointed out that South
09:46Korea doesn't perceive foreign relations as a zero-sum relationship. He said South Korea is
09:52willing to enhance mutual trust, expand consensus and focus on cooperation with China, thus avoiding
09:59geopolitical constraints as much as possible and jointly opening up a new situation of bilateral
10:06cooperation. Still on diplomacy, on May 14th, a delegation comprising of 20 senior
10:12commissioned officers from the Chinese People's Liberation Army embarked on a week-long visit to
10:18Japan to conduct exchanges with the Japanese Self-Defense Force. The Chinese state media
10:25Global Times said that this visit, the first of its kind in four years, reflects the mutual
10:30willingness of China and Japan to deepen defense exchanges and foster momentum to stabilize
10:36bilateral relations. The Sasakawa Peace Foundation of Japan announced last Friday that the exchange
10:43activity between the JSDF and the PLA is taking place from May 14th to 20th. During their visit
10:51in Japan, PLA officers are scheduled to visit the Japanese Ministry of Defense, the Komaki Air Base
10:57of Japan Air Self-Defense Force. According to Chinese state media, the said ministry exchange
11:03program between China and Japan was first established in 2001 but suspended due to both
11:10COVID and the deterioration of political relations between the two countries. In other words, the
11:16restart of the exchange is a signal of an improved bilateral relations. Starting from last year,
11:23Sino-Japan relations have shown signs of bottoming out and gradually rebound,
11:28while negative factors affecting bilateral relations, for instance, Japan's dumping of
11:33nuclear-contaminated wastewater and some Japanese politicians' hyping of Taiwan questions still
11:39exist. Both sides have maintained some exchanges and gradually restored relations.
11:45Last but not least, let's turn to technology. Chinese researchers from Harbin Engineering
11:51have announced a major breakthrough in submarine technology with the successful
11:56development of a laser propulsion system. This disruptive innovation marks a significant
12:02departure from traditional propeller shafts and screws utilizing advanced laser pulses and slender
12:09optical fibers to generate remarkable thrust comparable to commercial jet engines. The
12:15Chinese scientific community is buzzing with excitement over the potential of this technology,
12:21particularly in the realm of steel submarine propulsion. The system operates smoothly with
12:27just 2 MW of laser power, well within the limits of nuclear submarines. This relatively modest
12:34power requirement produces an astonishing thrust of 70,000 newtons, a feat previously
12:41thought unattainable. Known as underwater fiber laser-induced plasma detonation wave propulsion,
12:49this revolutionary technology employs laser to generate plasma underwater, which in turn
12:56creates powerful detonation waves to propel the submarine forward. These capabilities are so
13:02extraordinary that it could enable submarines to navigate the depths at speeds far surpassed
13:08current limits. Additionally, this laser-based propulsion system eliminates the persistent issues
13:14of mechanical vibrations, which have long compromised the steel's capability of submarines.
13:21While the concept of underwater laser propulsion was proposed by Japanese scientists two decades
13:26ago, the low propulsion efficiency has hindered progress until now. Led by the School of
13:32Mechanotronics Engineering at Harbin Engineering University, the research team has successfully
13:38overcome this challenge by expertly focusing and guiding the laser-generated plasma through a unique
13:45mechanism. The key innovation lies in utilizing a high-energy laser emitted from an optical fiber
13:52thinner than a human hair to generate bubbles through seawater evaporation, an effect known as
13:58supercavitation. This process significantly reduces water resistance. Simultaneously, the
14:04laser creates plasma in water and simultaneously triggers an explosion wave. The team's breakthrough
14:11is in harnessing this challenging multi-directional detonation wave to provide directional thrust for
14:18the submarine. The solution involves ejecting tiny spherical metal particles and applying the
14:24detonation force to propel the vehicle in opposite direction. As these metal particles exit one end
14:31of the underwater vehicle, the laser pulse propels the submarine forward. This technology also holds
14:39promise for underwater weapon systems, as the supercavitation phenomenon can substantially
14:44enhance the range of underwater projectiles, missiles, and torpedoes. In a recent publication
14:51in Chinese Journal, engineers revealed that submarines utilizing this technology could be
14:56coated with ultra-thin, ultra-fine optical fibers, each thinner than a human hair. These fibers are
15:02capable of emitting lasers, further showcasing the remarkable potential of this innovation.
15:08While significant progress has been made, several challenges remain before this technology can be
15:13fully implemented in military submarines. Effectively managing laser-generated heat,
15:19ensuring the durability of optical fiber in extreme deep-sea conditions, and seamlessly
15:24integrating the system with existing submarine structures are among the hurdles that need to be
15:30overcome. Furthermore, while laser technology eliminates noise from mechanical vibrations,
15:36the supercavitation bubbles themselves may generate detectable sound, potentially making
15:41the submarine vulnerable to sonar detection. This raises questions about the feasibility
15:47of its military applications. Nevertheless, the commercial prospects of this technology are vast,
15:53with the potential to revolutionize ship propulsion and contribute to more environmentally
15:58friendly and efficient marine time travel. Continued research effort and technological
16:04refinements gave us confidence that laser propulsion systems will bring about a profound
16:09transformation in submarine technology in the not-too-distant future. The age of laser-driven
16:16silent and highly advanced submarine propulsion may have just dawned.
16:22That is all for today. Thank you for watching this episode of China Current.
16:26If you have any thoughts and comments about our show, please reach us at the email below.
16:31I am Lisa, looking forward to hearing from you, and see you next time.