Meeting and Reception with the Ambassador and Consuls General of Belgium in China 28 January 2019 – Brussels
Jan-29-2019 By : fcccadmin
(from left to right): Mr Marc Vinck, Ambassador of Belgium in China; Ms Gwenn Sonck, FCCC Executive Director; Mrs Michèle Deneffe, Consul General of Belgium in Hong Kong and Macao; and Mr Bart De Smet, FCCC Vice Chairman
The Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce (FCCC) organized a meeting and reception with the Ambassador and Consuls General of Belgium in China with sponsoring of Dawo Law Firm Shanghai. This event took place on 28 January at ING in Brussels. It provided an excellent opportunity to discuss member companies’ activities in China with the Ambassador and Consuls General of Belgium in China, Mr Marc Vinck, Ambassador of Belgium in China; Mr Paul Lambert, Consul General of Belgium in Shanghai Mr Joris Salden, Consul General of Belgium in Guangzhou and Mrs Michèle Deneffe, Consul General of Belgium in Hong Kong and Macao.
Mr Bart De Smet, Vice Chairman, Flanders-China Chamber of Commerce delivered an introduction, followed by a speech by His Excellency Mr Marc Vinck, Ambassador of Belgium in China. An exchange of views and networking with the Ambassador and Consuls General concluded the event.
In his speech Ambassador Vinck said that “2018 was a good year for our bilateral relations, although the general international situation was challenging to say the least. The U.S. and China engaged in a trade war, developing into a wider strategic competition. This situation has repercussions far beyond the protagonists themselves, not least upon the multilateral system, to which we all owe so much.” But he added that at the same time China continued its impressive development. “The transformation towards a new normal of quality- and consumer based growth seemed well on track.”
“People are becoming better aware of China’s rise and the opportunities this presents, but there are also worries. Worries about market access, about technological transfers, cybersecurity, political meddling. We should welcome this debate,” the Ambassador said.
Crash course Chinese in Leuven in February
By : fcccadmin
Crash course Chinese starting on February 12 on 6 consecutive Tuesday evenings, a total of 15 hours of courses in Leuven.
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Negotiations on trade dispute to start in Washington
By : fcccadmin
Chinese Vice Premier Liu He
China and the United States will have in-depth negotiations on economic and trade issues during Vice Premier Liu He’s visit to Washington on January 30 and 31, China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said. An advance team, led by Commerce Vice Minister Wang Shouwen and Finance Vice Minister Liao Min, arrived in Washington to prepare for the talks. Eleanor Olcott, China Policy Analyst with research firm TS Lombard, said rhetoric from both Beijing and Washington had been “less belligerent and more cordial in the run-up to these talks” with officials “keenly expressing optimism for the negotiations to culminate in a deal”.
Some analysts predict that a trade deal would be reached by the March 1 deadline, but add that this is not the crux of the matter, as competition in technology between China and the U.S. is much more important that the trade imbalance. They argue that as the tariff war draws to a close, the technology war has only just begun. Some predict a new long-lasting “cold war” between the two countries, as both U.S. Republicans and Democrats agree on the need to “get tough” on China.
Two U.S. business groups have told American trade negotiators that Beijing is moving ahead with its hi-tech ambitions as outlined in the Made in China 2025 strategy. In a joint report, the American Chamber of Commerce in China and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said they had identified more than 100 policies in 24 provinces and cities that “either set targets, create rules, or provide normative guidance” that directly institute or are related to Made in China 2025, a key initiative backed by Chinese President Xi Jinping to build up technology sectors including robotics, semiconductors, AI and aviation.
“Developing and owning indigenous innovation and intellectual property is a primary goal” and regional governments have been actively developing and promoting their own plans in line with Made in China 2025 with state support, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said. “It suggests a deep, concerted, and continuing effort among sub-central authorities to carry out and take advantage of incentives tied to the Made in China 2025 plan. Any solution must address systemic challenges at all levels of the Chinese government.”
President Xi Jinping warned officials at a Communist Party study session in Beijing to take all the necessary precautionary steps and be vigilant about any risks that could jeopardize China’s stability and reforms. Xi told Provincial Party Secretaries, Governors, Ministers and Generals that although China’s economy was generally performing well, they must not let their guard down and they should be aware of potential turbulence and disruption ahead. He told his audience to stay alert for any “black swan”, or unforeseen events, and to take steps to prevent “grey rhinos”, the predictable but ignored threats.
Huawei Founder confident the West will eventually buy its 5G products
By : fcccadmin
Huawei Founder Ren Zhengfei (74) said Huawei’s wireless and 5G solutions are world class and will solve issues many Western countries face in 5G development. He made the remarks in his first-ever television interview on CCTV. “They are foolish and will lose money if they don’t buy our products,” Ren told a CCTV reporter who asked his view on the bans some countries have slapped on Huawei equipment. “We have many things that the European and American countries need, and they will have to purchase from us,” said Ren, who added that he was confident about Huawei’s competitive position in wireless and 5G development when compared to its global peers.
Ren, who founded Huawei in 1987, has embarked on a public-relations campaign to rebuild the company’s image, speaking with at least three groups of reporters in Shenzhen, including a group interview with selected international media, a group interview with domestic media, as well as the CCTV appearance. Huawei, the world’s largest telecom equipment vendor, is facing growing pressure from Western countries, particularly the U.S., over claims it has close ties with the Chinese government. Britain, Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Canada have either banned or are reviewing whether to allow Huawei equipment to be installed in their telecommunication networks.
Before January 30, a U.S. prosecutor must decide whether to formally ask Canada to extradite Sabrina Meng, Huawei’s CFO and Ren’s daughter, who has been in custody and subsequently house arrest in Vancouver since December 1 on charges of banking fraud in relation to U.S. sanctions on Iran. Her next court appearance will be on February 6, to set the date for her extradition hearing. Under the U.S.-Canadian extradition treaty, Meng’s offenses need to be a crime in both countries, or “double criminality”. Once the U.S. submits its formal extradition request, officials from the Canadian Department of Justice will have 30 days to decide whether to go ahead, but if the decision is unfavorable to Meng, she could still apply to the courts to reverse the decision. Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Hua Chunying warned that “China will take action in response to measures taken by the U.S.”.
Huawei Chairman Liang Hua also called for a quick resolution of the case when speaking to the media on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Canadian Ambassador to China John McCallum jumped into the controversy commenting that Meng “had a strong case against extradition to the United States”, but he had to retract his comment following criticism that it was tantamount to offering legal advice to Meng and undermined the independence of Canada’s judicial process. He later added that Canada would like the U.S. not to file its extradition request. Former Ambassador to China David Mulroney called the comment “mind-boggling”. Another former Canadian Ambassador to China, Guy Saint-Jacques, said that McCallum’s remarks about how Canada would like to see the U.S. drop the case “are true but he should have kept his mouth shut”. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau subsequently sacked the Ambassador.
China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in Rome when asked to comment on the recent problems faced by Huawei that the use of state power to smear or discredit a legitimate business is “not only unfair but also immoral”. Wang’s comments came after Vodafone Group became the latest Western company to boycott Huawei products. The British telecom conglomerate said it had suspended its purchases of the Chinese firm’s equipment for the core of its wireless networks.
China on track for more growth, Vice President Wang Qishan tells Davos elite
By : fcccadmin
Chinese Vice President Wang Qishan sought to reassure the world’s business and political elite about China’s economy at the World Economic Forum in Davos, while also warning other countries against dominating future technologies and making a thinly veiled criticism of the Trump administration’s “bullying” tactics. Wang said China’s economic growth rate – which last year was 6.6%, the lowest since 1990 – was “not low at all”. “One thing that is certain is that China’s growth will continue and be sustainable,” he said, after an introduction by Klaus Schwab, the Forum’s Executive Chairman. “There are all sorts of views, some are saying that China is approaching the end of its growth or we have already reached the end of our growth. If you ask us, we believe that we have not reached the end, we are actually pursuing more sustainable growth.”
Wang also warned against protectionism and unilateralism. “Many countries are increasingly looking inward when making policies; barriers to international trade and investment are increasing; and unilateralism, protectionism and populism are spreading in the world. All these are posing serious challenges to the international order. Will economic globalization move forward or reverse course?”, he said. China’s plan is to expand economic opportunities and not waste time on endless rhetoric, he added. “What we need to do is make the pie bigger while looking for ways to share it in a more equitable way,” he said. “The last thing we should do is to stop making the pie and just engage in a futile debate on how to divide it.”
Wang also said the international community must allow China the “right to take part in the global technological governance system as equals”. The Trump administration has made China’s industrial modernization strategy, “Made in China 2025”, a major target in his assault on the country’s trade practices, including the imposition of punitive tariffs on items covered by the project. “It is imperative to respect national sovereignty and refrain from pursuing technological hegemony, interfering in other countries’ domestic affairs, and conducting, shielding or protecting technology-enabled activities that undermine other countries’ national security,” Wang said. “With a 6.6% growth, we can definitely reach our target of delivering ‘modest prosperity’ for all Chinese people by 2020, there is no question about it. We can definitely make it,” the Vice President said, as reported by the South China Morning Post.
Wang was among about 3,000 people attending the Forum, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, and Brazil’s newly elected President Jair Bolsonaro. But among the notable absentees were U.S. President Donald Trump, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Theresa May.
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