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11.01.26 - 14:57
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BRICS Flexes With China-Led Joint Naval Drills Soon After Maduro Ousting (ZeroHedge)
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BRICS Flexes With China-Led Joint Naval Drills Soon After Maduro Ousting
The multi-national "Will for Peace 2026" naval exercises began Saturday off the coast of Cape Town, hosted by South Africa, and is set to run for one week. It is widely being described as a BRICS and "BRICS+" naval drill and saw a Russian warship arrive off South Africa's primary naval base on Friday.
The Russians joined Chinese and Iranian vessels for the drills, along with other BRICS members Indonesia, Ethiopia and Brazil - which participated as observers. The nation heading up the drill is China, and it's being seen as an attempt of BRICS and Global South countries to flex their collective military might in the wake of the Trump-ordered ousting of Venezuela's Nicolás Maduro. The other members of the bloc - India, Egypt and Saudi Arabia - are not represented at the drills.
via Reuters
Naturally it is especially Iran which could be a ripe target for the next Trump regime change action, as it's ...
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11.01.26 - 06:03
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It′s Very Difficult To Believe China′s Claim Of Mediating Between India & Pakistan (ZeroHedge)
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It's Very Difficult To Believe China's Claim Of Mediating Between India & Pakistan
Authored by Andrew Korybko,
China is uniquely unqualified to mediate between them since it has territorial disputes with India and arms Pakistan to the teeth.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi recently claimed that his country mediated between India and Pakistan during last spring's clashes, but it's very difficult to believe that this actually happened.
Trump has repeatedly claimed the same despite India's denials, which greatly contributed to the deterioration of their ties over the past year. India's half-century-long position since the 1972 Simla Agreement has been that its problems with Pakistan are bilateral, ergo why it's always rejected mediation since then.
Nevertheless, India cannot prevent other countries' representatives from talking to Pakistan during bilateral crises, nor will it decline their calls after they've done so. Rather, it considers each pair of calls to be purely bilateral...
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11.01.26 - 04:36
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Changing tastes: China′s new affluent consumers seek quality not extravagance (SCMP)
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In a premium supermarket in Shanghai one recent weekend, 33-year-old information technology specialist Zhao Wenyu paused in front of the health food aisle, comparing protein content and ingredient lists on imported granola and organic milk – rather than checking discounts.
Zhao now spends around 3,000 yuan (US$420) a month on organic food, nutritional supplements and functional beverages, up from about 1,200 yuan three years ago. “I don't mind paying more if I am satisfied with the product's......
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11.01.26 - 02:36
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Have investors missed the boat on Japan′s property market amid tensions with China? (SCMP)
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Japan's property market was less likely to deliver significant rewards to investors because of heightened geopolitical tensions with China, more than a tightened monetary policy, according to analysts.
“The yield spread is likely to narrow as cap rates are unlikely to widen,” said Chinatsu Hani, head of research at Tokyo-based CBRE. “However, spreads should remain in positive territory.”
The Bank of Japan in March last year began unwinding its nearly decade-long negative interest rate policy –......
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10.01.26 - 22:30
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How the AI race could play out for the US, China and the world (SCMP)
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The global artificial intelligence (AI) race remains one of the most hotly contested spheres of international competition. Few would bet today on an eventual winner, but current trends point to three possible scenarios that we should consider.
In the first scenario, the AI world is dominated by the US and China. While the US still has the technological edge, China is closing in fast and vies with the US for leadership on many of the key dimensions of AI prowess.
According to Stanford......
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10.01.26 - 13:18
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Freedom from China? The mine at the centre of Europe′s push for rare earth metals (The Guardian)
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Swedish producer is trying to to accelerate the process of extracting the elements vital for hi-tech productsIt is deep winter with temperatures dropping to -20C. The sun never rises above the horizon, instead bathing Sweden's most northerly town of Kiruna in a blue crepuscular light, or “civil twilight” as it is known, for two or three hours a day stretching visibility a few metres, notwithstanding heavy snow.But 900 metres below the arctic conditions, a team of 20 gather every day, forgoing the brief glimpse of natural light and spearheading the EU's race to mine its own rare earths. Despite identification of several deposits around the continent, and some rare earth refineries including Solvay in France, there are no operational rare earth mines in Europe. Continue reading......
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