Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu disappears, missing from military meetings, likely under investigation. China’s third aircraft carrier, Fujian, is now ready to enter service. Hong Kong wants residents – and visitors – to get out and party in a new campaign to promote nightlife in the city. Chinascope tracks everything that happened in the country this week – from the missing defence minister to Hong Kong’s quest for fun.
China over the week
China’s Defence Minister Li Shangfu hasn’t been publicly seen for over three weeks. Multiple sources in the United States and China have hinted that Li is undergoing an investigation, which I analysed in my recent article for ThePrint.
He is the second State minister to disappear in about two months, the first being former foreign minister Qin Gang. Xi had personally selected both Li and Qin, and their vanishing act could be somewhat personal.
Li is still listed as a minister on the Ministry of Defence’s English and Chinese websites and as a State Councillor on the State Council’s website. There is limited discussion on his absence on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, with some accounts oddly trying to reveal his biographical details. Something similar happened when Qin disappeared, and some Weibo accounts posted his details on the platform.
We may learn about Li’s fate over the next few days.
Meanwhile, satellite imagery has revealed that China’s new aircraft carrier, officially launched last year in June, may be ready to take to the seas after completing its testing phase.
As per photos that have emerged on social media, the sheds and the decks placed around the Fujian during its testing phase have now been removed.
Defence officials who spoke to the Financial Times said that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA)’s ability to test run the aircraft carrier could give insights into how fast it can deploy warships amid growing tensions with the US and intensifying activity along the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan’s former naval commander, Admiral Richard Chen, has said the new aircraft carrier wouldn’t make any difference to the PLA’s current capability. “Of course [the PLA Navy is] showing their muscle, but their capacity is still far behind that of the US.”
Meanwhile, the PLA’s Shandong carrier was seen reentering the South China Sea, according to images published by the Japanese Ministry of Defence. On 12 September, PLA carriers Liaoning and Shandong were seen in the East China Sea and around the Taiwan Strait, which appeared to be preparation for a large-scale exercise.
One likely explanation for such movement is that the Chinese military is testing its ability to surge ships during various scenarios around the Taiwan Strait and the surrounding areas.
Even the US is strengthening its military supply chains by intermingling its capabilities with local allies such as Japan and the Philippines, boasting an “integrated deterrence” model.
“This requires sustaining forces thousands of miles from the United States, sitting at the end of intricate supply chains that China has every interest in breaking,” wrote Zuri Linetsky, a research fellow with Eurasia Group Foundation, in Foreign Policy magazine. Zuri was also embedded with US forces in the Pacific and recounted his experiences in this article.
He describes the daunting task of moving US military personnel from Australia to the Chinese coast via Indonesia and the Philippines – almost an 8,000 km distance.
The business of deterrence is as much about the ability to wage war but also about military supply chains, which both sides are now strengthening across East Asia.
In an exciting move, Hong Kong has launched a campaign to promote the city’s nightlife.
Hong Kong was well known for its nightclubs and ‘almost overnight’ bars before the city was rocked by pro-democracy protests in 2019. According to Finance Secretary Paul Chan, the “Night Vibes Hong Kong” campaign will host special events, including three evening bazaars at the Victoria Harbour.
Special events will be held at some bars and clubs so that residents and visitors have opportunities to loosen their wallets and boost retail spending in the city.
Hong Kong has been trying to rebrand itself after Beijing imposed National Security Law to quell the city’s pro-democracy movement.
Earlier this year, Cathay Pacific – Hong Kong’s carrier – offered about 500,000 free tickets to lucky winners to attract tourists. It’s hard to say if such schemes can genuinely create a tourist surge in a city mired in strife and politics. Hong Kong is also pitched to become a hub for cryptocurrency companies and related activities.
Only time will tell which pivot will save Hong Kong from sinking further into its current quagmire.
Also read: Xi purging military brass has a message—It’s CCP that calls shots in China, not PLA
China in world news
The European Union has opened an investigation into Beijing’s State subsidy programme for Electric Vehicle (EV) companies, which is now challenging European carmakers on their home turf.
“We have not forgotten how China’s unfair trade practices affected our solar industry. Many young businesses were pushed out by heavily subsidised Chinese competitors. Pioneering companies had to file for bankruptcy. Promising talents went searching for fortune abroad,” said Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president.
China’s EV industry is now massive, outstripping the European market.
It had reached over six million car sales by 2022, while Europe had 3.2 million sales. The tussle between Brussels and Beijing over EV subsidy will hit close to home for many in Europe as China tries to challenge an industry considered ‘sacred’ by Europeans.
“China believes that the investigation proposed by the EU is a practice of pure protectionism,” said a spokesperson from China’s Ministry of Commerce.
Such an action now puts Brussels and Beijing into a course of conflict over their economic interests. Earlier, Beijing thought it could manage the economic competition with Brussels. However, recent actions against Chinese subsidies show Europe will no longer remain neutral in the great power competition against the US.
Must read this week
The Myth of Chinese Diversionary War – Taylor Fravel
Sparks by Ian Johnson review — China’s underground historians – Christina Patterson
America’s Warrior Diplomat, Rahm Emanuel, Takes On China’s Xi Personally – Peter Landers
The author is a columnist and a freelance journalist. He was previously a China media journalist at the BBC World Service. He tweets @aadilbrar.Views are personal.
(Edited by Zoya Bhatti)