At the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin highlighted the growing threat China poses to Taiwan, emphasizing US commitment to Taiwan's defense under the Taiwan Relations Act. Austin criticized China's provocative actions in the Indo-Pacific region and opposed unilateral changes to the Taiwan Strait status quo. In response, China's Deputy Chief of the Joint Staff Department, Zhang Zhenzhong, labeled US strategy as hegemonic and blamed US actions for tensions in the Taiwan Strait. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking at the summit, called for diplomatic solutions and support for countries like Taiwan facing potential conflict. Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe warned of military action should Taiwan seek independence. The Pentagon reported that a meeting between Austin and Wei in Singapore focused on Taiwan, with both sides agreeing to maintain communication to manage risks.

Italy is reconsidering its participation in China's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), with a senior official indicating the country is unlikely to renew the investment pact when it expires next year. The deal, signed in 2019, has not yielded the economic benefits Italy anticipated. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has expressed opposition to Chinese expansion in Italy and Europe. The agreement includes the development of the ports of Genoa and Trieste, with the latter gaining importance post the Russian invasion of Ukraine. China has not made strong public comments on Italy's hesitation, while Italy has shown increased interest in cooperating with Taiwan, including plans to establish a representative office in Milan and discussions on semiconductor cooperation.

Account holders at four banks in Henan, China, have been protesting since May, demanding access to their savings amid an investigation into financial scams. The banks, controlled by Henan Xincaifu Group Investment Holding Co., are accused of illegal fundraising. Protesters faced police dispersal and discovered their health QR codes turned red, mandating quarantine and restricting movement, despite testing negative for COVID-19. This has raised concerns about the misuse of the health tracking system for social control. The situation also reflects the risks in China's financial sector, as seen with the collapse of online financial instruments in 2018 and the insolvency of China Evergrande Group.

China reported a 4.8% GDP growth in the first quarter of the year, surpassing expectations, but faced a record high unemployment rate of 6% in March. Despite the economic slowdown and public discontent due to strict lockdowns in major cities like Shanghai, the Chinese government maintains its Zero-Covid policy. The People’s Daily has defended President Xi Jinping's approach as 'correct and effective.' The policy is seen as a political stance ahead of the 20th Communist Party Congress. The lockdowns have led to protests and the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China, along with the Japanese Consul General in Shanghai, have expressed concerns over the impact on businesses. The government has allowed a select list of companies to operate under strict conditions, but challenges persist for the workforce and supply chains.

Lu Ke, a Chinese national, was arrested in Zambia for using Malawian children to make racist videos for profit, which were sold on Chinese shopping platforms. The videos, some containing racist content, sparked outrage in African countries after a BBC investigation. The Chinese embassy in Malawi has expressed zero tolerance for racism. The incident has strained China-Africa relations, with protests in Malawi and demands for compensation. The Chinese government has since ordered the removal of such videos from the web. Wu Peng from the Chinese Foreign Ministry visited Malawi, pledging to combat racial discrimination. The situation highlights the growing tension between China's economic influence in Africa and concerns over human rights and racism.

The article by John Ai discusses the 'The Great Translation Movement', an online campaign initiated by Chinese netizens to translate Chinese official media and pro-government speeches into foreign languages. This movement aims to expose the Chinese government's propaganda, which domestically promotes pro-Moscow views and censors anti-war opinions, while maintaining a neutral image internationally. The campaign has revealed the Chinese state media's dissemination of hate speech against the West and conspiracy theories, such as the US developing biological weapons in Ukraine. It also sheds light on the harsh realities of COVID-19 lockdowns in China. The movement has faced criticism from official Chinese media, which accuses it of selecting extreme comments to incite sentiment against China. However, the campaign continues to gain followers and reveals the duplicity of Chinese authorities' internal and external narratives, as noted by Japanese journalist Akio Yaita.

The United States Department of Justice has charged five individuals with stalking and harassing Chinese residents in the U.S. on behalf of Beijing's intelligence service. The suspects targeted Chinese dissidents, including former Tiananmen Square protester Xiong Yan and artist Chen Weiming. Three of the accused are in custody, while two remain at large. The actions are described as 'transnational repression' by the U.S., with the suspects collecting information on activists from Hong Kong, Tibet, the Uyghur region, and Taiwan. The article details the methods used by the accused, such as hiring a private investigator to sabotage Xiong Yan's congressional campaign and installing surveillance equipment to monitor Chen Weiming. The Chinese government has denied knowledge of the operation and dismissed the charges as unfounded.

The article by John Ai discusses the trend among Chinese university graduates to join the Communist Party of China (CPC) as a strategic move to secure employment in the public sector amidst high youth unemployment rates. With over 10 million graduates entering the job market and facing an 18.6 percent unemployment rate, exacerbated by the zero-COVID policy, CPC membership has become increasingly attractive. The CPC has seen a membership surge since Xi Jinping's leadership began, with a significant proportion of members holding university degrees. Marxism has become a sought-after degree, with job postings for Marxism graduates increasing by 20 percent. The government has also mandated private companies to establish Party committees. The article highlights the growing importance of Marxism and Xi Jinping's doctrines in education, with universities required to have a Marxism teacher for every 350 students and the establishment of research centers focused on Xi's ideology. Despite this, the practical application of Marxist philosophy is cautiously approached by authorities, as seen when left-wing students were arrested in Shenzhen in 2018. The article concludes by noting the shift in job preferences among graduates from foreign companies to public sector jobs, with a significant number of top university graduates opting for government positions.

Italy's newly elected right-wing government, led by Giorgia Meloni, is expected to adopt a different stance towards China, particularly concerning Taiwan. Meloni has expressed opposition to China's military threats to Taiwan and has shown support for bilateral contacts between Italy and Taiwan, which Beijing opposes. China's Foreign Ministry has urged Italy to recognize the sensitivity of the Taiwan issue. Meloni's position is seen as a way to protect Italian industries and build international credibility. The future of Italy's involvement in China's Belt and Road Initiative is uncertain, with Meloni previously criticizing Italy's memorandum of understanding with China as a mistake.

The Chinese real estate sector is facing a crisis following the debt problems of developers like China Evergrande. Homebuyers are boycotting mortgage payments due to unfinished housing projects, threatening to extend the crisis to the banking system. The trend has spread across China, prompting regulatory authorities to urge banks to increase loans to builders. Protests have erupted, such as in Xi'an, and authorities have been accused of not supervising builders and censoring protests. The World Bank noted that real estate investments accounted for 13% of China's GDP in 2021. With economic stagnation and high unemployment rates, Chinese confidence in the real estate and banking market is crumbling. The refusal to pay mortgages is growing, and those who default may face social credit system penalties. The Evergrande collapse has already had significant repercussions, and at least 24 major Chinese real estate companies are on the brink of collapse. Temporary measures have been adopted to ensure stability ahead of the 20th Communist Party Congress, but systemic risk looms if discontent continues to grow.

Chinese authorities have issued new internet censorship regulations aimed at revealing user identities and preventing data flow out of China, effective in August. These include requiring real personal information for web service account registration, revealing user IP addresses, and providing professional certificates for content creation in specific sectors. The Cyberspace Administration of China, which oversees internet affairs, censorship, and owns the China Internet Investment Fund, is tightening control in the digital sphere. Measures to counter economic information censorship and the new online portal to check social account associations with phone and ID numbers indicate increased government capability to shut down user accounts. The regulations also challenge multinationals with additional data storage costs in China and follow tighter restrictions on domestic companies seeking foreign stock exchange listings.