WORLD ROUNDUPHow Huawei Defeated U.S. Semiconductor Sanctions | The U.S. Shouldn’t Worry About the India-Canada Rift | Why Xi Jinping Doesn’t Trust His Own Military, and more

Published 28 September 2023

·  Report Finds China Exploiting Taiwan Voter Doubts About US
China’s encourages doubts of US among Taiwanese voters, ahead of January Taiwan election

·  Time for Australia to Become a Full ASEAN Partner
The case for Australia to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations rests on the challenges ASEAN confronts as much as the association’s strengths

·  How Huawei Defeated U.S. Semiconductor Sanctions
China’s successful launch of a 5G-powered device with 7nm technology reveals that Western regulators have failed to understand the intricacies of semiconductor manufacturing

·  Dawn Raids Across Germany as Neo-Nazi Group Banned for ‘Disgusting’ Targeting of Children
“This is another hard blow against right-wing extremism”

·  Canada-India Row Puts Spotlight on Sikh Activism in UK
Rumours now swirl around the deaths of other Sikh activists around the world, including in the UK

·  The U.S. Shouldn’t Worry About the India-Canada Rift
Washington is committed to partnership with New Delhi, despite U.S. intelligence cooperation in the Hardeep Singh Nijjar case

·  Why Xi Jinping Doesn’t Trust His Own Military
The real meaning of China’s disappearing generals

·  American Hatred Goes Global
How the United States became a leading exporter of white supremacist terrorism

Report Finds China Exploiting Taiwan Voter Doubts About US  (Li Xian, VOA News)
In the run-up to Taiwan’s highly competitive presidential and legislative elections in January 2024, China is exploiting doubts voters may have about the United States and its intentions toward Taiwan, according to political experts in the self-governing island that Beijing considers its territory.
A report by the Information Operations Research Group, or IORG, that was updated Sunday found 84 examples of China promoting suspicion of the U.S. and its intentions in Taiwan over the past three years.
The group believes the Chinese government and its state media are promoting the ideas, such as the U.S. is a fake friend to Taiwan, Washington will abandon Taiwan, and the elite of the two nations are colluding to exploit Taiwan.
The IORG report, published Aug. 8, also says that China’s narrative positions Beijing as the keeper of world order in the face of chaos sown by the U.S. The group is a civil society organization that, according to its website, “uses science and education to reduce information manipulation, advance understanding of the Mandarin information environment, facilitate reasonable public discourse, and strengthen Taiwan’s democratic resilience.”

Time for Australia to Become a Full ASEAN Partner  (Graeme Dobell, The Strategist)
The case for Australia to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations rests on the challenges ASEAN confronts as much as the association’s strengths.
Australia needs to take the next logical step in its long history of strong and sustained support for ASEAN’s central role.
As disorder becomes the future order of the sadly troubled ‘rules-based order’, Southeast Asia is even more vital to Australia’s interests in strategic order.
Aim for in-principle agreement on a form of ASEAN partnership next year, the 50th anniversary of Australia becoming the first ASEAN dialogue nation.
Stormy geopolitical weather means the ASEAN stars are aligned to consider such a dramatic idea. Confronting dimming diplomatic fortunes, ASEAN must bolster its convening powers and coherence.
Australian partnership would be a game-changer for ASEAN, as well as altering Canberra’s role in the game. If Australia got serious and started pushing, ASEAN would get a buy-one-get-one free offer—Australia plus New Zealand. If Australia wants in, so will New Zealand.