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The strange thing is that New Zealand and China signed a deal to trade in each other's currencies earlier in the year but no threats were made and no one went to war
With this the era of the US Empire is coming to a close.
China & Russia Solidify their Alliance and Issue Joint Statement Condemning U.S. Tinkering
Washington's use of strong arm tactics with China and Russia at the same time was a serious strategic error.
20
May, 2014
Right
now Putin is in China meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in
Shanghai. Though the talks are ongoing, they have already released a
joint statement which takes several jabs at U.S. foreign policy.
Specifically, the two countries committed to "reject
unilateral sanctions rhetoric". Putin
and Xi also agreed to expand military cooperation and
expressed "grave
concern" over the crisis in Ukraine, and
condemned the funding of regime change. The U.S. government was not
named explicitly in the condemnation, but the inference was very
clear.
"The
sides noted the need to respect historical heritage of countries,
their cultural traditions and independently chosen public and
political system, the system of values and ways of development;
counteract interference in domestic affairs of other countries, give
up the language of unilateral sanctions, organize aid, fund or
encourage activity aimed at changing a constitutional system of a
foreign country or its involvement in any multipartite association or
union" the document stated.
The
statement also called for “universal rules of behavior in
information space,” saying that some communication technologies run
"contrary to international stability and security, damaging
countries’ sovereignty and violating personal privacy."
One
one hand, this shot is obviously directed at the NSA, but on the
other it seems to signal Russia and China's agreement on issues of
online speech. As we reported earlier Russia
has recently passed new laws regulating bloggers and
requiring them to register with the government.
Some
pro-Western analysts are watching the emergence of this Russia-China
Alliance with alarm, insisting that it will have a disastrous impact
if allowed to continue, and calling for diplomatic efforts to disrupt
it. Incidentally these are often the same people who avidly pushed
for tougher sanctions against Russia during the Ukrainian crisis, and
who refused to report on theoverwhelming
evidence of U.S. involvement in the coup.
Western
opposition to the Sino-Russia alliance is understandable. With China
firmly in Russia's corner, the U.S. and Europe have no leverage over
Moscow. However, less understandable is the fact that these pundits
didn't see this coming.
What
on earth did the Obama administration expect would happen when they
injected themselves into territorial disputes between China and their
neighbors, while at the same time saber rattling in eastern Europe,
and imposing punitive 'sanctions' against Putin's inner circle? Then,
to top it all off, the U.S. government filed charges against China
this week for corporate espionage. Taken as a whole it would be
difficult to come up with a more effective way to push these two
countries together if one tried.
The
outcome of these moves was so obvious that I'm hesitant to chalk it
up to gross incompetence.
At
any rate, the idea that John Kerry or anyone in the U.S. State
Department has the diplomatic skill (or the leverage) to pit China
against Russia on the global scale is patently absurd.
China
"Sanctions" US, Bans Use Of Windows 8 On Government
Computers
20
May, 2014
Considering
the epic production and sales flop that Windows 8 has been, one
probably does not need an actual sales ban from preventing anyone
sane from using it let alone buying it, however in yet another
symbolic step, banning its government employees from using the latest
Windows operating system is precisely what China did in retaliation
to yesterday's DOJ announcement it was charging five PLA members with
hacking offenses against the US. According to Reuters, this latest
blow to Microsoft came when the Central Government Procurement Center
issued the ban as part of a notice on the use of energy-saving
products. So Windows 8 lead to global warming? Who knew...
The
implication is clear: if the US charges its hackers, China will no
longer condone such porous proxies of NSA activity as Internet
routers and, of course, Windows operating systems, which as has been
documented in the past, is a stroll in the park for NSA infiltration
attempts.
The
official Xinhua news agency said the ban was to ensure computer
security after Microsoft ended support for its Windows XP operating
system, which was widely used in China.
Neither
the government nor Xinhua elaborated on how the ban supported the use
of energy-saving products, or how it ensured security.
China
has long been a troublesome market for Microsoft. Former CEO Steve
Ballmer reportedly told employees in 2011 that, because of piracy,
Microsoft earned less revenue in China than in the Netherlands even
though computer sales matched those of the U.S. Microsoft declined to
comment.
Last
month, Microsoft ended support for the 13-year-old XP to encourage
the adoption of newer, more secure versions of Windows. This has
potentially left XP users vulnerable to viruses and hacking.
"China's
decision to ban Windows 8 from public procurement hampers Microsoft's
push of the OS to replace XP, which makes up 50 percent of China's
desktop market,"
said data firm Canalys.
And
while this escalation in Chinese "sanctions" against the US
may lead to a modest topline miss for MSFT, one company everyone
should be watching is Cisco, which in late 2013 saw its China sales
crater when the anger at the NSA was most acute. Now that the
animosity between the US and China over cyberhacking has been
rekindled, watch for the government to promptly block yet another
quarter of sales growth for the switching giant, whose CEO
unsucessfully pleaded for Obama to tone down NSA tensions over the
weekend, and which should preannounce a weak quarter shortly
China Signs Non-Dollar Settlement Deal With Russia's Largest Bank
20
May, 2014
Slowly
- but surely - the USD's hegemony is being chipped away whether by
foreign policy faux pas, crossed red-lines, or economic fragility.
However, on Day 1 of Vladimir Putin's trip to China it is clear that
the two nations are as close as ever. VTB
- among Russia's largest banks -
has signed a deal with Bank of China to pay each other in domestic
currencies, bypassing the need for US Dollars for "investment
banking, inter-bank lending, trade finance and capital-markets
transactions." Kirill
Dmitriyev the head of Russia’s Direct Investment Fund notes,
"together it’ll be possible to discuss investment in various
projects much more efficiently and clearly," as Russia's pivot
to Asia continues to gather steam.
As
RT reports,
Day 1 for Putin is going well...
VTB, Russia’s second biggest lender, has signed a deal with Bank of China, which includes an agreement to pay each other in domestic currencies.
“Under the agreement, the banks plan to develop their partnership in a number of areas, including cooperation on ruble and renminbi settlements, investment banking, inter-bank lending, trade finance and capital-markets transactions,” says the official VTB statement.
The deal underlines VTB Group’s growing interest in Asian markets and will help grow trade between Russia and China that are already close trading partners, said VTB Bank Management Board Vasily Titov.
But
it's not just the banking relationships...
In the first day of a two-day trip to China Russia’s President Vladimir Putin said the two countries will be increasing their bilateral trade to reach a new level.
“Our countries have done a huge job to reach a new historic landmark…. China has firmly settled in a position of our key trade partner,” Putin said.
Putin also said that trade turnover between Russia and China grew almost 2 percent during 2013 to reach about $90 billion.
“If we sustain this pace the level of bilateral trade of $100 billion will be reached by 2015 and we’ll confidently move on,” Putin said.
Increasing investment cooperation is crucial, Putin added.
...
“Together it’ll be possible to discuss investment in various projects much more efficiently and clearly,” as Interfax quotes Kirill Dmitriyev the head of Russia’s Direct Investment Fund.
Nothing
lasts forever... remember...
Russia’s VTB and Bank of China agree on domestic currency settlements
VTB, Russia’s second biggest lender, has signed a deal with Bank of China, which includes an agreement to pay each other in domestic currencies.
RT,
20
May, 2014
“Under
the agreement, the banks plan to develop their partnership in a
number of areas, including cooperation on ruble and renminbi
settlements, investment banking, inter-bank lending, trade finance
and capital-markets transactions,” says
the official VTB statement.
The
deal underlines VTB Group’s growing interest in Asian markets and
will help grow trade between Russia and China that are already close
trading partners, said VTB Bank Management Board Vasily Titov.
An
Agreement on Cooperation was signed by Titov and Bank of China
President Chen Siqing in Shanghai on Tuesday in the presence of
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
VTB
Group is Russia’s second biggest financial institution with more
than 30 banks and financial firms in more than 20 countries. Its
assets were estimated at 8.8 billion rubles as of 2013, with a profit
of 100.5 billion rubles.
Growing trade and investment
The
agreement comes as a part of Russia’s larger scale pivot to Asia,
as Western economies threaten sanctions over the turmoil in Ukraine.
Sanctions by the US and the EU have been mostly limited to visa bans
and asset freezes on some leading Russian officials, and so far only
threatening a so-called third round of real economic sanctions
against Russian businesses.
In
the first day of a two-day trip to China Russia’s President
Vladimir Putin said the two countries will be increasing their
bilateral trade to reach a new level.
“Our
countries have done a huge job to reach a new historic landmark….
China has firmly settled in a position of our key trade
partner,” Putin
said.
Putin
also said that trade turnover between Russia and China grew almost 2
percent during 2013 to reach about $90 billion.
“If
we sustain this pace the level of bilateral trade of
$100 billion will be reached by 2015 and we’ll confidently move
on,” Putin
said.
Increasing
investment cooperation is crucial, Putin added. Holding the first
Russia-China EXPO in Harbin this summer help towards that, he said.
In
Shanghai Russia and China also agreed to set up a Committee on
Investment Cooperation that will enable consultations between the
countries’ first vice premiers and representatives of state and
private companies.
“Together
it’ll be possible to discuss investment in various projects much
more efficiently and clearly,” as
Interfax quotes Kirill Dmitriyev the head of Russia’s Direct
Investment Fund.
In
terms of concrete deals the Russia-China Investment Fund (RCIF) and
Vcanland, a leading Chinese tourism developer, have agreed to invest
$800 million in development of tourism and social projects.
"Most
of the money (60 - 70%) will be spent on tourism development. The
geographical focus will be on destinations such as Hainan Island,
Lake Baikal, the cities of Vladivostok and Sochi," Dmitriyev
said.
China
is the second most popular destination for Russian tourists, and
Russia - the third most popular destination for Chinese, and in the
next 10 years the Russian tourism sector will be growing, according
to forecasts by the RCIF.
In
2013, the volume of Chinese direct investments in the Russian economy
grew five-fold to $4 billion. By the start of 2013, the total amount
of Russia's direct investments in China was valued at $847.7 million.
Forty projects with investment of 20 billion dollars are on the
drawing board. The power sector is the driving force behind
Sino-Russian cooperation, although agriculture and agribusiness also
have huge cooperation potential.
Putting the Sino-Soviet conflict of 1969 in the past.
Russia and China to construct first rail bridge across Amur River
RT,
20
May, 2014
Russia
and China have agreed to build the first cross-border rail bridge
over the Amur River by 2016, following President Putin’s visit to
Shanghai. The bridge will cut transportation times and increase
trade.
Construction
of the bridge is scheduled to start within the next few months.
"It
is the first ever bridge between Russia and China. Now generally
there are no bridges between our countries: neither automobile, nor
railway,"
Kirill Dmitriev, the head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund told
journalists on Tuesday.
"RCIF
[Russia-China Investment Fund] not only builds financial bridges
between Russia and China, but also invests in the infrastructure to
benefit both countries," Dmitriev
said in a press
release on
Tuesday.
The
bridge will be a project of the Russian-Chinese Investment Fund and
will be able to handle 21 million tons of traffic a year. It will
connect the Jewish Autonomous Region with the Chinese province of
Heilongjiang.
The
new export corridor will make it easier to transport oil and gas from
the new fields developed in Eastern Siberia and the Far East.
It
will also significantly increase the turnover of goods and
competitiveness of Russian exporters in the region. The new route
will reduce the distance to the end customer by about 700 kilometers
compared to other rail routes.
According
to Kirill Dmitriev "railway
border crossings in the region are currently operating close to
maximum capacity.The future development of new natural resource
deposits and increased level of traffic over the next 10 years means
the region could face a shortage of export transportation capacity."
In
the first day of a two-day trip to China Russia’s President
Vladimir Putin said the two countries will increase their bilateral
trade. According to the President in 2013 the trade turnover between
Russia and China grew almost
2 percent to about $90 billion.
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