Beijing has taken aim at the Albanese government’s inaugural national defence strategy, urging Canberra to drop its “Cold War mentality” as it denied China posed any risk to regional stability. Defence Minister Richard Marles unveiled the strategy on Wednesday, announcing Australia would bolster its navy over the next decade toContinue Reading
Has Beijing snared itself in its own debt trap? The lure of cheap cash has bought it diplomatic support and access to ports across Africa, Asia and the Pacific. But now those nations are struggling to meet repayments. And someone still has to pay. “China is a loan shark withContinue Reading
More photos have emerged of a fake “Chinese police car” in Melbourne that sparked outrage on social media earlier this week. The dark grey Nissan Altima sedan has Chinese characters for “police” stencilled on the bonnet and “special police” along the side, and a Chinese police badge on the frontContinue Reading
China has reacted to Australia’s monumental nuclear submarine deal, warning the AUKUS pact it has begun to go “further down a dangerous road”.. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, alongside British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and American President Joe Biden in San Diego announced the historic AUKUS deal on Tuesday, which willContinue Reading
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has made a “deep mistake” with Beijing’s spy balloon saga, a former head of the UK’s Secret Intelligence Service says. Sir Alex Younger, the former head of Britain’s spy agency, told the BBC that China’s assumption of how the US would react to surveillance balloons beingContinue Reading
The Philippines condemned Tuesday the “aggressive” actions of a Chinese security vessel, which is accused of using a military-grade laser light against a Philippine patrol boat in the disputed South China Sea, leaving crew members temporarily blinded. The incident happened on February 6 nearly 20 kilometres from Second Thomas ShoalContinue Reading
Deaths attributed to Covid-19 in China have spiked to 9000 people each day, a data firm says, as the virus spreads rapidly. British-based research firm Airfinity has doubled the number of people it estimates are dying from Covid in China as the number of infections soars. It comes after BeijingContinue Reading