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Beijing has long prioritized its relationship with the continent, a frequent stop for Chinese diplomats and investors, and the People’s Republic has increasingly sought to boost engagement in the defense sector as well. On Sunday, the first China-Africa Peace and Security Forum brought together nearly 100 senior representatives from the defense departments of 50 African countries and the African Union, including 15 defense ministers and chiefs of general staff, “to discuss new approaches of China-Africa security cooperation in the new era,” according to the official website of the Chinese armed forces....

Following the latest summit in Brussels, the transatlantic partners said they intended to “closely consult and cooperate on the full range of issues” related to their approaches to China, a relationship that will include “cooperation, competition, and systemic rivalry” with the world’s second-largest economy. “The U.S.-EU statement goes far beyond the normal scope of bilateral relations, imposing demands on China’s internal affairs in a condescending way,” its Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian said at a regular briefing on Wednesday....

“You can imagine everything,” Putin responded when asked during his discussion Thursday at the Valdai Discussion Club whether a military alliance could be imagined between China and Russia. The Russian leader explained that the reason such a pact had not already been forged had nothing to do with reservations on either side, but a lack of necessity. “We have always assumed that our relations have reached such a degree of interaction and trust that we do not need it, but theoretically it is quite possible to imagine such a thing,” Putin said....

China is the most successful nation in Women’s Basketball and has been in the top three in all editions of the games. They have collected 6 Golds, 4 Silvers, and 2 Bronze to lead the medals table. South Korea takes the second spot with 4 Golds, 5 Silvers, and a Bronze. Japan occupies the third position with 2 Golds, 1 Silver, and 7 Bronze. India finished the Jakarta Asian Games at the 9th position above Hong Kong....

Recently, the University College London’s student debating society hosted a discussion where panelists pushed the motion that “Chinese-style” governance could be adopted by other countries—an alarming belief that goes against democratic principles. The event’s panel included Kerry Brown, director of King’s College London’s Lau China Institute and Victor Gao, executive director of Beijing Private Equity Association and erstwhile translator for the late Deng Xiaoping, architect of the Tiananmen Square massacre....

“We cannot lose a single inch of the lands we inherited from our ancestors,” the Chinese Defense Ministry’s Information Bureau said in a statement published Monday in response to a question on China’s national defense strategy, “and we would not take a single cent of others’ possessions.” The remarks echoed comments earlier made by Chinese President Xi Jinping to then-Defense Secretary James Mattis during a June 2018 visit to Beijing....

Guo Shuqing, chairman of the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission, said at a news conference Wednesday that China does not approve of the financial sanctions against Russia “because they don’t have much legal basis and will not have good effects.” He added, “We will not join such sanctions, and we will keep normal economic, trade and financial exchanges with all the relevant parties.” While Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last week drew quick, widespread condemnation from across the world, China is the only major government that has decided to not directly condemn Russia’s attack....

At a structural level, the current economic crisis has its origins in balance-of-payment challenges marked by declining foreign exchange reserves, exports, overseas worker remittances, and foreign investment. Despite warnings, successive governments failed to adapt over time to implement sustainable debt management practices. Sri Lanka’s growth as a middle-income country aggravated the problem through the ensuing loss of access to loans on concessional terms and accelerated the timeline for debt repayment....

Chinese state media reported that an initial shipment of 25,000 concentrators arrived in India, with 5,000 ventilators and 21,000 oxygen generators soon to follow. Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Friday said he was “very concerned about the recent situation” with India’s record-setting COVID-19 outbreak. “Mankind is a community of common destiny sharing weal and woe and only through unity and cooperation can the nations of the world ultimately overcome the pandemic,” Xi said in a statement....

On Friday, Chinese state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) announced on social media platform Weibo that it will broadcast Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Miami Heat, which is scheduled for Friday night at 9 p.m. ET. CCTV will reportedly broadcast Game 5 live, with a replay to be shown on Saturday, October 10. The NBA has been subject to a blackout in China since Rockets general manager Daryl Morey shared his support for protesters in Hong Kong 12 months ago....

During a press conference, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian was asked about the U.S. updating its guidelines with Taiwan encouraging engagement between the two nations. In response, Zhao warned the U.S. “not to play with fire on the Taiwan issue, immediately stop any form of U.S.-Taiwan official contacts, cautiously and appropriately handle the matter, and not send wrong signals to Taiwan independence forces so as not to subversively influence and damage Sino-U....

The Chiefs currently sit atop the AFC Wild Card standings as they heat up despite losing Jamaal Charles early in the season. The Raiders are not outside the playoff picture, either, as they linger in the AFC’s ninth spot. If they can stop Kansas City’s win streak, they will sit in a position their division rival Chargers know well from year’s past: A December surge away from a late-season charge into the playoffs....

Juve were beaten 3-1 by Barcelona in the 2015 showpiece, with Chiellini missing out through injury as his side were outclassed in Berlin. Pogba makes pilgrimage to Mecca However, the Bianconeri knocked Barca out at the quarter-final stage of this season’s competition and the experienced centre-back is optimistic of their chances in Cardiff, despite Madrid’s class. “Our start to the match will be crucial,” Chiellini told a news conference. “We have to be organised – that’s essential in a one-off game and it gives you the best chance of reading the play....

Numerous fire crews were called to the 1500 Block of West Poplar Terrace in West York Borough at around 11 p.m. on Saturday, July 3. Firefighters arrived to find a duplex style house on fire. They removed one child and two family pets, as other members of the family had already gotten out of the house. Two boys suffered burns and were taken to a specialty center, but the West York Borough Police Department said one of them later succumbed to his injuries and died....

Up to 39 million U.S. households are set to get the benefit, according to the IRS and Treasury Department, and that number covers nearly 90 percent of children in the United States, the White House said. The enhanced Child Tax Credit was signed by President Joe Biden in March as part of the American Rescue Plan. The credit was increased from $2,000 to up to $3,600 per child for each child under 6, or $3,000 per child aged 6 to 17....

Instead of receiving the credit once a person files a 2021 tax return, the IRS is sending out advance payments beginning in July. An estimated 39 million households are set to receive direct payments, which are expected to cover about 88 percent of children in the United States. The American Rescue Plan, which Congress passed in March, expanded the Child Tax Credit from $2,000 for children between 6 and 17 to $3,000 and increased payments for children under 6 to $3,600....

Hamas, which rules Gaza, reported that 43 Palestinians were killed, including 13 children, after Israel’s airstrikes this week. Hundreds of people were wounded, it added. The Israel Defense Forces said some 1,500 missiles had been fired from Gaza, resulting in five deaths. On Monday, before the sides began trading rocket fire, China had raised concerns about the “escalating tension.” Hua Chunying, a spokesperson for Beijing’s foreign ministry, called for “calm and restraint....

Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are currently in Asia shoring up America’s Pacific alliances in Japan and South Korea. Part of the agenda for the sit-down with Chinese diplomats Yang Jiechi and Wang Yi could already be gleaned from Tuesday’s joint statement out of Tokyo. Before embarking on the Asia trip, however, Secretary Blinken had told lawmakers on Capitol Hill that the meeting in Anchorage scheduled for March 18 and 19 was “not a strategic dialogue....

China has overlapping territorial disputes with every South China Sea claimant, each of which has a significantly smaller economy and military but is highly dependent on the Chinese market for trade. Littoral states such as the Philippines have felt the sting of China’s indirect economic sanctions in the past decade. With no sovereignty disputes over islands or reefs in the energy-rich sea, Indonesia doesn’t consider itself a claimant but is entitled to an exclusive economic zone, which is undercut by China’s claim to almost the entire South China Sea as part of its sweeping “nine-dash line....