Likely talks between Xi and Zelensky a boost for Ukraine
Great power rivalry
Ukraine: China’s President Xi Jinping is expected to meet with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, this week and also to speak to Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky – for the first time since Russia’s invasion – as Beijing seeks to play a more prominent role in international diplomacy.
An online meeting between Xi and Zelensky would be seen as a breakthrough for Ukraine, which is pressing China to remain neutral rather than expand its support for Russia.
Zelensky has repeatedly sought a conversation with Xi, who has avoided criticising Russia and has presented a peace plan that does not stipulate that Russian troops must withdraw from Ukraine. China has been buying large volumes of Russian gas and oil, and the United States has warned in recent weeks that Beijing may be planning to supply Moscow with weapons.
Tensions in Ukraine were heightened this week after a Russian jet collided with a US drone over international waters near Crimea. The US accused Russia of “unsound” conduct, saying a Russian fighter struck the drone’s propeller. Russia denied there was a collision.
China’s diplomatic manoeuvres in Ukraine follow its efforts to broker a deal last week to restore ties between Iran and Saudi Arabia. The two Middle Eastern oil giants have been fierce rivals for decades and closed their embassies in 2016.
The Saudis and Iranians have been talking for some time – and it is not clear that their normalisation of ties will involve a lasting rapprochement – but the decision to turn to China as broker was seen as a sign of Beijing’s growing global stature and a diminution of America’s powerbroking role in the Middle East.
In an apparent rebuke of Washington, senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi said in a statement: “The world is not limited to the
Ukraine issue. There are many issues related to peace and people’s livelihood that require the attention of the international community.”
The neighbourhood
Federated States of Micronesia: The outgoing president of the Federated
States of Micronesia (FSM), David
Panuelo, has called for the country to switch allegiance from China to Taiwan, accusing Beijing of espionage, bribery and foreign interference.
In a letter to congress, Panuelo, who lost his seat in congress in an election earlier this month, said he had faced threats to his personal safety from Chinese officials over his opposition to their tactics. He said China had handed envelopes filled with cash to
FSM officials to “curry favour” as it tried to undermine relations between FSM and the
US, Australia and Japan.
“Simply put, we are witnessing political warfare in our country,” he said.
China dismissed Panuelo’s claims as slander, saying it supported FSM’S independence and development.
“China urges relevant people in the
FSM to stop sending any wrong signals to the ‘Taiwan independence’ separatist forces,” said China’s ambassador to the FSM, Huang Zheng.
In recent years, China has persuaded a growing number of Pacific countries to switch recognition from Taiwan. Just four Pacific countries – Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau and Tuvalu – now recognise Taiwan.
Democracy in retreat
Britain: On the first page of Britain’s new bill aimed at deporting asylum seekers arriving by boat, the home secretary, Suella Braverman, admitted the legislation may not comply with international law but she “nevertheless wishes … to proceed”.
The bill authorises the detention and deportation of migrants who arrive without permission, primarily those arriving on small boats. The migrants will be sent to their home country or to Rwanda or other “safe” countries.
The European Union has advised Braverman the policy appears to violate international law, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the bill would illegally ban the seeking of asylum by irregular arrivals “no matter how genuine and compelling their claim may be”.
Braverman, whose parents emigrated from Kenya and Mauritius in the 1960s, this week said the bill was not xenophobic or bigoted but was a humane measure aimed at ending uncontrolled migration and people-smuggling.
“It’s perfectly respectable for a child of immigrants like me to say I’m deeply grateful to live here, to say that immigration has been overwhelmingly good for Great Britain but that we’ve had too much of it in recent years,” she told parliament.
Almost 46,000 people – including many from Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq and Syria – entered Britain via small boats last year, up from 299 in 2018.
Britain’s Conservative government, led by Rishi Sunak, has adopted anti-migrant tactics and rhetoric that have been influenced by former Australian prime minister Tony Abbott, including repeating – wherever possible – the pledge to “stop the boats”.
The bill has aroused intense opposition, including from former England soccer captain Gary Lineker, who was suspended as a BBC commentator after denouncing the “immeasurably cruel policy” on Twitter.
The house of commons passed the bill this week despite it being opposed by the Labour Party, which called for moves to curb people-smugglers and speed up asylum processing.
Braverman told MPS the government had a “moral duty to stop the boats”.
Spotlight: Silicon Valley Bank collapse
United States: During the recent technology sector boom in the US, Silicon Valley Bank – a 40-year-old bank that catered to businesses and executives in the technology sector – soared. Between 2018 and 2021, its share price doubled as startups and entrepreneurs deposited their ballooning wealth.
But the technology boom ended as inflation and interest rates began to rise, which led to a drop in new deposits and proved disastrous for the bank’s decision to pour money into investments that hinged on low interest rates.
On March 8, the bank, which desperately needed more funds, announced plans to raise $US1.75 billion. But the move worried customers, who quickly began withdrawing deposits. Last Friday, the bank – the 16th largest in the US – was on the brink of collapse and was rescued by regulators, who feared that the bank’s failure could threaten the nation’s financial system. The US government has guaranteed all deposits at the bank, beyond the $US250,000 covered by insurance.
The saga has raised questions about why the bank’s troubles were not exposed earlier. One reason is that Greg Becker, the chief executive, continued to express unfailing confidence in the bank’s future, even after he had been alerted to its ill health. Another is that Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers, backed by some Democrats, rolled back measures introduced after the 2007-08 financial crisis that were designed to avoid another meltdown and impose greater oversight of banks. The rollback in
2018 exempted banks with assets of less than $US250 billion from stress tests and other oversight. As of the end of last year, Silicon Valley Bank had $US212 billion in assets.