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In a report released on Tuesday, the Australian Strategic Policy Institute detailed state-backed efforts by Chinese-run Twitter accounts to target Hong Kong residents and the overseas diaspora—largely using Chinese-language posts—with misinformation maligning anti-government protesters. Last month, Twitter said it had removed almost 200,000 Chinese accounts that were seeking to undermine the protest movement in Hong Kong. Facebook subsequently dismantled a smaller network of fake pages, acting on information received from Twitter....

McGovern, you may recall, predicted the moderate Clinton-Gore ticket would spew liberal appointees and policies postelection. Other formerly trendy liberals, like the writer Joan Didion, sneered that the radical-middle positions proposed by the Democratic Leadership Council and its think tank, the Progressive Policy Institute-and espoused by Bill Clinton during the campaign-were a smoke screen, a “marketing strategy” rather than a philosophy of governance. And so, more than a few of Washington’s professional liberals were chilled by the centrist breeze last week as the Clinton economic team emerged, the PPI published its substantial and rather creative transition road map, “Mandate for Change” (with an enthusiastic endorsement from the new president), and the DLC held a triumphant and egregious fund-raiser that was the hottest ticket in town....

Meanwhile, China has been accused by the U.S. and human rights groups of committing genocide against Muslims and ethnic minorities in the country’s Xinjiang province. The statement from Beijing came after the U.S. blocked an originally scheduled Friday session to address the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. However, diplomats eventually agreed to move the meeting to Sunday, The Times of Israel reported. In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters that the U....

The majority of citizens in the country of 1.4 billion people are receiving China’s Sinopharm and Sinovac vaccines, as more than 704 million doses have been administered as of Wednesday. At least one vaccine dose has been given to 40 percent of the population, government doctor Zhong Nanshan said on Sunday. “They don’t have to say it is mandatory. They’re not going to announce that it’s required to have the vaccine, but they can put pressure on you,” said public health expert Ray Yip who was China’s former director for the Gates Foundation there....

Although there was was no official government announcement, aviation data providers revealed the extent of the disruption, with 1,255 flights being scrapped at Beijing Capital International Airport and Beijing Daxing International Airport, comprising around two-thirds of incoming and outgoing air traffic, CNN reported. The country’s flag carrier Air China, announced on social media outlet Weibo that 297 flights going to and from Beijing Capital International Airport would be scrapped and that warned of “mass delays and cancelations” although it did not say if it was acting under orders from the authorities....

The Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan wrote in an alert to its citizens that 1,772 people had been killed by an “unknown pneumonia,” including Chinese citizens, CNN reported Cases have been rising since mid-June, according to the statement, and 628 people died last month. The regions of Atyrau, Aktobe and Shymkent were those affected. “The death rate of this disease is much higher than the novel coronavirus. The country’s health departments are conducting comparative research into the pneumonia virus, but have yet to identify the virus,” the statement said, according to the South China Morning Post....

These Winter Games, dubbed by some as the ‘Genocide Games’, are much more than a major sporting event as they come shrouded in controversy and heightened political tensions. Over the past several decades China has been expanding its presence as a geopolitical powerhouse on the global stage, a development that the U.S. has kept a close eye on from Washington D.C. One of the people keeping tabs on the issue is Isaac Stone Fish, an international affairs analyst, founder and CEO of the consultancy firm Strategy Risks and author of the new book America Second: How America’s Elites Are Making China Stronger....

“It’s something we’re considering,” Biden confirmed when pressed on the issue during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in the Oval Office on Thursday. A diplomatic boycott from the U.S. would mean that the Biden administration would not send dignitaries to the Beijing Winter Olympic Games in February 2022, but American athletes would still be allowed to compete. Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian hit back at Biden’s remarks on Friday, saying that it is wrong to politicize the Games....

Voracious new capitalists like You are making China the hottest car market in the world. Last year China snapped up more than 4 million cars, surpassing Germany to become the world’s third largest car market. And auto execs say China is poised to become the world’s No. 2 auto market–trailing only the United States. That’s why giddy auto execs descended on the Beijing Auto Show this month. General Motors launched its Cadillac luxury line with a dazzling ceremony at the Forbidden City, staged by filmmaker Ang Lee....

Many of China’s young people have been obsessed with cartoons and other forms of animation from Japan and South Korea for more than a decade. The authorities have tended to view the cartoons as a troublesome counterculture—too violent and lacking in any positive social message. But Beijing seems to have finally recognized it has nothing to fear from spectacles like Hangzhou’s. Several official Chinese media organizations are footing the bill, and the contest took place in a new, state-of-the-art official exhibition center, part of the city’s annual International Cartoon and Animation Festival....

Less than a month ago, Sai had shocked the higher-ranked Ginting 21-19, 21-13 on his way to his maiden World Championships medal that also ended India’s 36-year medal drought in men’s singles. On Friday, the Indian looked to have begun his sixth face-off with the Indonesian with the same conviction. Having built a strong 11-3 lead at the time of the mid-game interval, Sai made no mistake in pocketing the opener 21-16....

America has boycotted the Olympics just once—the 1980 summer Moscow games—and the Biden administration hasn’t made a final decision yet. But White House press secretary Jen Psaki indicated on Thursday it was possible the U.S. wouldn’t attend, a marked shift from a few weeks ago, when she said there weren’t any conversations about changing plans. Asked about the White House’s lack of a decision, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin criticized the “politicization of sports” for going against the “spirit of the Olympic Charter....

He replaces Marcello Lippi after the veteran Italian quit last November following a defeat to Syria in World Cup qualifying. Lippi’s second spell lasted just six months and Li will now be charged with leading China towards Qatar 2022. His first match in charge will be against the Maldives on March 25 with China lagging eight points behind Group A leaders Syria, although they have a game in hand....

Coinciding with the 95th anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army, China’s Eastern Theater Command published a video Monday showing off the nation’s military might, including depictions of missiles launches, amphibious landings and other displays of force on air, land and sea. Attached to the clip, which was posted on the social media website Sina Weibo, were a number of slogans such as “bury any invading enemies” and “always ready to fight....

“China stands ready to promote the stable and long-term development of pragmatic bilateral cooperation with Russia,” Xi told Putin, according to a Chinese Foreign Ministry readout. “China stands ready to continue mutual support with Russia on issues concerning core interests and major concerns, such as sovereignty and security, and to deepen strategic coordination between the two countries,” he said. In return, Putin threw his weight behind Xi’s “global security initiative” and backed Beijing’s opposition to interference on “domestic affairs,” among them Xinjiang, Hong Kong and Taiwan, the Chinese-language press release said....

In official remarks released after his meeting with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Wendy Sherman, Vice Foreign Minister Xie Feng accused the Biden administration of trying to contain and suppress China’s development. China also blamed the U.S. for a “stalemate” between the two countries. Xie said relations between the two nations are difficult because some Americans view China as an “imagined enemy.” For more reporting from the Associated Press, see below:...

The Chinese General Administration of Customs said it found that clothing from brands like H&M, Gap, Zara, Ralph Lauren and Nike contains hazardous dyes and other substances that could be ingested or absorbed through the skin. “The quality and safety of children’s products is related to the physical and mental health of children and teenagers, and has attracted the attention of the whole society,” the announcement said. “Customs has always been committed to strictly controlling the quality and safety of imported children’s products, protecting the legitimate rights and interests of consumers, and strictly preventing unqualified children’s products from entering the domestic market....

On Friday, Putin announced that the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Luhansk People’s Republic, and the regions of Zaporizhzhia and Kherson will now be under Russian control. While the move has prompted criticism from a number of Western nations, such as the U.S., China called for peace between the two sides, but did not take an explicit stance. “China’s position on the Ukraine issue is consistent and clear. We believe that all countries deserve respect for their sovereignty and territorial integrity, that the purposes and principles of the U....

As U.S. politicians continue to criticize Beijing’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak, Trump said today that he has seen evidence that gives him a high degree of confidence that the coronavirus originated from a lab in Wuhan. The president’s comments came hours after U.S. intelligence officials confirmed that they were exploring the possibility that the novel disease leaked from a Wuhan lab, confirming Newsweek’s earlier reporting on the matter....

After cancelling a scheduled game at Estadio Azteca last year due to an unsafe playing surface, and pushing through with an embarrassing preseason contest this year in Winnepeg, Canada, the league has received a new wave of criticism concerning its turf conditions. Numerous divots emerged during Monday’s game — and ground crew members had to fill them during breaks in the action. That led to increased risk of injury and questioning of how the NFL deemed the field OK to compete on....