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☆ Iran's drones are unlikely to help Russia win in Ukraine — and could backfire for Tehran
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Ukraine has blamed Iran for providing Russia with drones, which have been used to attack Kyiv in recent days. They transferred dozens just this summer & have military personnel in occupied Ukraine helping Russia use them against Ukrainian civilians." Amirabdollahian said that "if it is proven to us that Russia has used Iranian drones in the Ukraine war, we won't be indifferent to it." They've also come in handy for Moscow as Russia's military runs low on more advanced weaponry like guided missiles. "Such systems could become a big headache for the Russians and could make Iran's drones and missiles look ineffective while teaching Western militaries how better to counter them," he said.

Iran may soon arm Russia with surface-to-surface short-range ballistic missiles, three U.S. and Western government officials said, in what would be significant escalation of Iranian support for President Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine. If delivered, they would be the first advanced, precision-guided missiles that Iran has provided Russia since the war started. Short-range ballistic missiles have a range of hundreds of miles, and could help Moscow replenish its dwindling stockpile, which have been depleted by Russia’s war in Ukraine. “We remain concerned about the potential for Iran to provide Russia with surface-to-surface missiles,” White House National Security Council adviser John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday. Ed Ram / Getty ImagesThe Washington Post and CNN reported earlier on indications that Iran may supply ballistic missiles to Russia.

HONG KONG — Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s first two terms in power were marked by intensifying competition and tensions with the United States. The United States does not seek conflict with China, Biden told a meeting of his top military advisers Wednesday. “China stands ready to work with the United States to find the right way to get along with each other in the new era,” he said. But China under Xi has a “superficial stability,” Johnson said. Hulton Deutsch / Corbis via Getty ImagesAt 69, Xi has appointed no obvious successor, indicating he may plan to stay in power indefinitely.

☆ Xi Jinping just became unassailable. Here’s why investors are running scared
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Xi’s preference for personal loyalty over technocratic competence bodes ill for China’s already bleak economic outlook, analysts said. “In effect, Xi Jinping establishes an echo chamber around his own ideas,” she said. People watch the opening session of the 20th Chinese Communist Party Congress in Huaibei, in China's eastern Anhui province. Li Qiang, the party boss of Shanghai who presided over the city’s chaotic two-month lockdown, is now the second-highest ranking party official after Xi. The NDRC is China’s top economic planner, responsible for drafting the country’s economic plans and overseeing major state investment projects.

☆ Xi Jinping's Party Congress speech: yes to zero-Covid, no to market reforms?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

Priorities presented at the political gathering of more than 2,000 party members will also set China’s trajectory for the next five years or even longer. In his speech Sunday, Xi struck a confident tone, highlighting China’s growing strength and rising influence under his first decade in power. China's President Xi Jinping speaks during the opening session of the 20th Chinese Communist Party's Congress at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on October 16, 2022. And China’s economy is in bad shape. Meantime, a comparison between this year’s speech and the last one delivered by Xi in 2017 at the 19th party congress revealed a potentially worrying trend.

☆ Putin's big military mobilization moves won't have any effect on his fight in Ukraine for months, war experts say
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Partial military mobilization won't have any effect on the war for months, a think tank said. Putin's order to call up to 300,000 reservist troops to wage war in Ukraine "will not generate significant usable Russian combat power for months," the think tank said. Putin's mobilization order, ISW said, "may suffice to sustain the current levels of Russian military manpower in 2023 by offsetting Russian casualties, although even that is not yet clear." Additionally, Hardie explained, Putin's call for a mobilization of troops "carries serious political risks and was not made lightly." In the wake of Putin's mobilization announcement, many Russians attempted to flee the country while others took to the streets in cities across the country to protest the war.

☆ Putin is personally giving orders to his generals on the battlefield as dysfunction grows, according to US intel
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Jake Epstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Putin is personally giving orders from Moscow to battlefield leaders in Ukraine, a new report says. CNN reported Thursday that intelligence intercepts have captured Russian military officers arguing about strategy, tactics, and Putin's decision-making from Moscow, even voicing their frustration with loved ones back home in Russia. In some cases, the speed of Ukraine's advances in the northeast Kharkiv region seemingly stunned Russian troops, forcing some to flee in panic and abandon their weaponry. During his speech, Putin also threatened to use nuclear weapons and baselessly accused the West of provoking him. "Russia's is not a mass-mobilization military like the Soviet one; it's not built to quickly intake a large number of mobilized personnel."

Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterU.S. officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, have underscored this year that the United States does not support Taiwan independence. "It is incoherent to argue that America's Taiwan policy has not changed while also claiming that the U.S. has a commitment to fight for Taiwan and that Taiwan makes its own judgments about independence," said Craig Singleton, a China policy expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. read more"The President directly affirmed the United States' longstanding one China policy," said Adrienne Watson, a spokesperson for Biden's National Security Council. 'PRECISION OF LANGUAGE'Taiwan's Foreign Ministry responded to Biden's remarks by expressing its "sincere appreciation" for his staunch support of the island. "One issue where the precision of language is paramount is the discourse on our Taiwan policy," Blanchette said.

☆ 1 in 5 of China's urban youth are unemployed. That's a huge headache for Xi Jinping
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( Laura He | Cnn Business | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

The youth unemployment rate has repeatedly hit new highs this year , rising from 15.3% in March to a record 18.2% in April. In the past few months, mass layoffs have engulfed once booming Chinese industries ranging from private tutoring to real estate. Xi is seeking a historic third term when the Communist Party hold its congress next month. But youth unemployment will constitute a "major threat" to China's economic and political stability in the long run, he added. But the government seems unwilling to tackle the main reason behind China's economic slowdown this year — the zero Covid policy .

☆ 3 ways China and Russia are forging much closer economic ties
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-15 | by ( Laura He | Cnn Business | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Beijing has carefully avoided violating Western sanctions or providing direct military support to Moscow. For the first eight months of this year, total goods trade between China and Russia surged 31% to $117.2 billion. "Russia needs China more than China needs Russia," said Keith Krach, former Under Secretary of State for Economic growth, Energy and the Environment in the United States. For China, Russia now accounts for 2.8% of its total trade volume, slightly higher than the 2.5% share at the end of last year. "Russia's war in Ukraine is not in China's interest, but given Western hostility, China will not oppose Russia," she added.

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