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Chinese President Xi Jinping waves as he walks with U.S. President Joe Biden at Filoli estate on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Woodside, California, U.S., November 15, 2023. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSAN FRANCISCO/HONG KONG, Nov 16 (Reuters) - When Chinese President Xi Jinping met executives for dinner on Wednesday night in San Francisco, he was greeted with not one, but three standing ovations from the U.S. business community. All three were outcomes the United States had sought from China rather than the other way around, said two people briefed on the trip. Biden administration officials have acknowledged that creating functional military relations won't be as easy as semi-regular meetings between defense officials. That's not going to be a favor to us," one senior Biden administration told Reuters in October in the run-up to the Xi-Biden meeting.

Persons: Xi, Joe Biden, Kevin Lamarque, Xi Jinping, Alexander Neill, Biden, Nancy Pelosi's, hotlines, Craig Singleton, That's, China's, Drew Thompson, Vladimir Putin, it's, Li Mingjiang, Michael Martina, Greg Torode, Trevor Hunnicutt, Antoni Slodkowski, Laurie Chen, Don Durfee, Tom Hogue Organizations: U.S, Economic Cooperation, REUTERS, FRANCISCO, United States, Communist Party, Hawaii's, Commerce Department, Biden, Republican, ., Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Reuters, Pentagon, National University of Singapore, Analysts, Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Thomson Locations: Filoli, Asia, Woodside , California, U.S, HONG KONG, San Francisco, United States, United, China, Beijing, Chinese, Taiwan, Washington, Russia, Singapore

☆ Exclusive: Combat veteran is likely replacement for China's missing defence minister
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

China's defence ministry and State Council information office did not respond to requests for comment. If his departure is confirmed, Li will be the second senior minister to lose his job in recent months. Qin Gang was removed as foreign minister in July, one month after he was last seen in public. U.S. defence officials have long wanted to reestablish routine communications with counterparts directly involved in command decisions. Qin was made foreign minister in Dec. 2022 and Li became defence minister in March.

Persons: Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Liu Zhenli, Liu, Li Shangfu, Li, Qin Gang, Qin, Nancy Pelosi, Xi Jinping, Xi, James Char, Lloyd Austin, Alexander Neill, Willy Lam, Chang Dingqiu, Katerina Ang, Daniel Flynn Organizations: Political Consultative, REUTERS, Rights, Defence, Reuters, Russia, Joint Staff Department of, Central Military Commission, State, U.S . Department of Defense, ., CMC, Xiangshan, National, Committee, Communist Party's, U.S, Pentagon, People's, Army, Rajaratnam, of International Studies, Washington, PUBLIC, National Defence, Joint Staff Department, Pacific Forum, Jamestown Foundation, Xinhua, Air Force, Thomson Locations: Beijing, China, Rights BEIJING, United States, U.S, Taipei, ., Singapore, Honolulu, Vietnam

☆ Inside Asia's arms race: China near 'breakthroughs' with nuclear-armed submarines, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-09 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

But the Type 094s, which carry China's most advanced submarine-launched JL-3 missile, are considered relatively noisy - a major handicap for military submarines. The paper notes that the Type 096 submarine will compare to state-of-the-art Russian submarines in terms of stealth, sensors and weapons. That puts construction on schedule to have the boats operational by 2030, the timeline stated in the Pentagon's annual reports on China's military. Even if China's submarine force reaches technological parity, it will need to train aggressively and intensively over the next decade to match AUKUS capabilities, he added. Vasily Kashin, a Moscow-based Chinese military scholar at HSE University, said it was possible Chinese engineers had made the breakthroughs described in the report.

Persons: Jason Lee, Christopher Carlson, Carlson, Collin Koh, Koh, Alexander Neill, Neill, Vasily Kashin, Kashin, Greg Torode, Guy Faulconbridge, Gerry Doyle Organizations: Liberation Army Navy, REUTERS, Research, U.S . Naval War College, China Maritime Studies, U.S . Navy, Pentagon, U.S, People's Liberation Army, PLA, Reuters, Rajaratnam, of International Studies, New Zealand, Hawaii's, HSE University, Thomson Locations: Qingdao, China, HONG KONG, Russian, Asia, Hainan, South China, United States, Britain, Russia, France, Singapore, Soviet, Australia, Southeast Asia, Japan, India, South Korea, New, U.S, British, Western Australia, Moscow, Soviet Union, Beijing

Newly installed Foreign Minister Qin Gang vanished with scant explanation in July, the same month as an abrupt shake-up of the military's elite Rocket Force, which oversees China's nuclear arsenal. China's Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Saturday. PROXIMITY ISN'T PATRONAGERegarding Defence Minister Li's disappearance and investigation, a ministry spokeswoman told reporters on Friday she was not aware of the situation. With corruption long permeating China's military and state institutions, some analysts and diplomats believe Xi's anti-graft crackdowns mark political purges across the Communist Party. If Li's fate "reflects Xi's increasingly inward focus, it is not good for those of us who want greater openness and lines of communications with China's military," said one Asian diplomat.

Persons: Xi Jinping, GIANLUIGI, Xi Jinping's, Li Shangfu, Qin Gang, Drew Thompson, Thompson, Li's, Li, Helena Legarda, Alexander Neill, Zhang Youxia, Lloyd Austin, Austin, Ja Ian Chong, Chong, Greg Torode, Martin Quin Pollard, William Mallard Organizations: Rights, Reuters, Foreign, Rocket Force, Pentagon, National University of Singapore, State Council and Defence Ministry, People's Liberation Army, PLA, Communist Party, Mercator Institute for China Studies, Hawaii's, Military Commission, Washington, U.S . Defence, Pacific ., East, South China Seas, Thomson Locations: Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, Rights BEIJING, India, China, Russia, Belarus, Beijing, Jakarta, Berlin, Singapore, Washington, Asia, Pacific, Taiwan, South, East China, South China, Hong Kong

☆ Taiwan details China drills, VP says election not China's to call
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-20 | by ( Ben Blanchard | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/3] Taiwan’s Vice President William Lai waves at Taoyuan International Airport following his trip to the United States and Paraguay, in Taoyuan, Taiwan August 18, 2023. "My position is that Taiwan is not a part of the People's Republic of China. China has demanded that Taiwan's government accept that both sides of the Taiwan Strait are part of "one China", but it has refused. LOWER-KEY DRILLSChina's Saturday drills were much more low-key than two rounds of war games around Taiwan last August and again in April this year. Taiwan's military also released pictures of one of its fighter jets taking off and a pilot checking a missile underneath an aircraft.

Persons: William Lai, Carlos Garcia Rawlins, Lai, Su, It's, That's, Taiwan's, Alexander Neill, Neill, lambasting Lai, Tian Dan, Ben Blanchard, Greg Torode, James Pomfret, William Mallard, Kim Coghill, Edmund Klamann Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, U.S, Democratic Progressive Party, APEC, Hawaii's, Eastern Theatre Command, Sunday, Taiwan, State Department, Reuters, Thomson Locations: United States, Paraguay, Taoyuan, Taiwan, Rights TAIPEI, China, Beijing, New York, People's Republic of China, San Francisco, Singapore, U.S, Hong Kong

[1/5] Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping attend a reception at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia March 21, 2023. After securing an unprecedented third term as president earlier this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping made his first overseas trip to Moscow to meet his "dear friend" Putin. China "will be more cautious with its words and actions about Russia", said Shanghai-based international relations expert Shen Dingli. It was unclear if Yang's article was written before the Wagner rebellion and he did not respond to requests for an interview from Reuters. Other China-based academics, however, said Beijing would not change its stance on Russia as a result of the incident.

Persons: Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Pavel Byrkin, Wagner, Vladimir Putin's, Shen Muhui, Alexander Neill, Yevgeny Prigozhin, Qin Gang, Putin, Shen Dingli, Yang Jun, Michal Meidan, Martin Quin Pollard, Yew, Tian, John Geddie, Alex Richardson Organizations: Kremlin, Sputnik, REUTERS, Moscow, U.S, Foreign, NATO, Beijing's China University of Political Science, Law, Reuters, The Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, European Union, Putin's, Australian National University, Shanghai, Thomson Locations: Moscow, Russia, Kremlin, China, Ukraine, Beijing, BEIJING, China's, Fujian, Singapore, United States, Shanghai, Japan, Putin's Russia

☆ China's efforts to catch up in global electronic spying race
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-14 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Aside from monitoring capabilities, a large, permanent presence on Cuba "is an important symbol, getting right under the noses of the U.S. and reflecting China's global ambitions", he said. In 2019, Reuters reported that China's military was running a space monitoring station in Argentina. Regional diplomats say that as China builds a global military intelligence network, it lacks a U.S.-style system of alliances and partnerships that can help discreet surveillance efforts. China's defence ministry declined to comment. "This trend is only going to grow alongside China's global reach," said Singapore-based defence analyst Alexander Neill.

Persons: Diego Garcia, Carl Thayer, China's, Antony Blinken, Alexander Neill, Greg Torode, Kirsty Needham, Laurie Chen, Gerry Doyle Organizations: People's Liberation Army, Australian Defence Force Academy of, Australian National University, PLA, Reuters, Defence, South China, International Institute for Strategic Studies, China, Support Force, Pentagon, Thomson Locations: HONG KONG, China, Cuba, Beijing, United States, U.S, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Taiwan, Guam, British, CUBA, Coast, Florida, Russia, Moscow, Argentina, CHINA, Hainan, South, Southeast Asia, London, Namibia, Pakistan, Kenya, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Angola, China's, Singapore, Sydney

Landing of aircraft at night and in bad weather, for instance - crucial to regular offshore carrier operations - remain far from routine, several of the attaches and analysts said. "Carrier operations are a very complicated game, and China's got to figure this out all by itself. A new plane, the KJ-600, designed to perform a similar role to the E-2C/D Hawkeye launched from U.S. carriers, is still in testing, according to the Pentagon's latest annual report on China's military. Several countries operate aircraft carriers but the U.S. remains the most dominant, running 11 carrier battlegroups with global reach. A September editorial published in a magazine run by a PLA weapons manufacturer, titled "Four great advantages the PLA has in attacking Taiwan", did not mention the role of Chinese carriers.

☆ U.S.-sanctioned general to become public face of China's growing military
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

In 2016, Li was named deputy commander of the PLA's then-new Strategic Support Force - an elite body tasked with accelerating the development of China's space and cyber warfare capabilities. He was then appointed head of the Equipment Development Department of the Central Military Commission (CMC), China's governing defence body, headed by President Xi Jinping. Some security scholars note the sanctions - while not a deal-breaker for future meetings - add a potential complication, and could provide China's military leadership with leverage. Li's term at the Central Military Commission has highlighted his ties to Xi, who has strengthened his grip across the military. Some scholars believe Li has close ties to Zhang Youxia, a close military ally of Xi, whom Li replaced as head of the department.

"Putin's suspension may have set us further back in terms of getting China to step up to the transparency table. "This is only going to make China even less interested in pursuing co-operative nuclear security with the United States," Zhao told Reuters. NO FIRST USEA nuclear power since the early 1960s, China for decades maintained a small number of nuclear warheads and missiles as a deterrent under its unique "no first use" pledge. A month earlier, Washington's Nuclear Posture Review said Beijing had been reluctant to engage in strategic nuclear discussions but that both bilateral and multilateral talks were needed. That would make it harder for the United States and its allies to engage Beijing on its nuclear doctrine, particularly on "no first use".

"The United States government has detected and is tracking a high-altitude surveillance balloon that is over the continental United States right now," Pentagon spokesperson Brigadier General Patrick Ryder told reporters. It was not clear how the discovery of the spy balloon might affect those plans. Senator Marco Rubio, the top Republican on the Senate intelligence committee, said the spy balloon was alarming but not surprising. A separate U.S. official said the spy balloon had been tracked near the Aleutian Islands and Canada before entering the United States. Spy balloons have flown over the United States several times in recent years, but this balloon appeared to be lingering longer than in previous instances, an official said.

☆ Analysis: Need for speed: China Xi's new generals offer cohesion over possible Taiwan plans
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Although the Politburo's seven-man Standing Committee would make the ultimate decision on any Taiwan action, the Central Military Commission would forge and execute the battle plan, eight Asian and Western military attaches say. "If Xi Jinping is going to the pull the trigger on Taiwan, then he can't afford any dissent from the Central Military Commission," said Singapore-based strategic adviser Alexander Neill. That has always been Chinese thinking on Taiwan, and the Ukraine stalemate has confirmed the need to avoid getting bogged down in a slow logistical build up." Crucially, Li has experience with the People's Liberation Army's digitised strategic support forces, a body that covers electronic, cyber and space warfare. He was promoted to the position after his command of the reformed Eastern Theatre Command, which is responsible for Taiwan operations.

☆ Analysis: Xi's new generals face tough military challenges post-congress
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-16 | by ( Greg Torode | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Now come the tricky next steps for his Central Military Commission: implementing sweeping changes to its leadership, which commands China's two million-strong People's Liberation Army, potentially tightening Xi's grip over the military and its modernisation. Among those expected to step down are the body's vice chairmen, Generals Xu Qiliang and Zhang Youxia, both 72. Diplomatic challenges are also mounting, as China's military modernisation confronts the traditional U.S. strategic dominance in East Asia. Who is chosen could shed light on Xi's military priorities. "There is no shortage of senior military officers who internally parrot Xi's 'fight and win' mantra, but the conundrum for the PLA is the lack of operational experience," said Alexander Neill, a private military analyst.

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