Exclusive: In his first meeting with the cohort of State Department staffers affected in Cuba and China, the secretary of state spent more than an hour offering reassurances and fielding questions.

Sept. 21, 2021

By Josh Lederman and Brenda Breslauer

WASHINGTON – U.S. diplomats suffering from the unexplained “Havana Syndrome” used a tense meeting with Secretary of State Antony Blinken this month to voice growing dismay over continuing stigma and disbelief within the U.S. government about their injuries, more than four years after the incidents began.

In his first meeting with the cohort of State Department staffers affected in Cuba and China, Blinken spent more than an hour offering reassurances and fielding questions, with most affected staffers joining remotely by phone. His message: Those suffering must be believed, and that the administration is doing all it can to investigate and provide care.

Yet, the assurance from America’s top diplomat stood in stark contrast to the profound challenges that affected diplomats say they’re still facing in getting proper medical care, evaluation and benefits — and the skepticism about their injuries they say is pervasive even among some high-level government officials.

Read more and watch the video at https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/tense-blinken-meeting-havana-syndrome-diplomats-complain-skepticism-n1279769

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Electricity consumption from China’s digital sector on track to increase 289% by 2035: Greenpeace

Greenpeace East Asia May 28, 2021 

BEIJING, 28 May 2021 – Electricity consumption from data centers and 5G base stations in China is on track to increase by an estimated 289% between 2020 and 2035, according to a new report from Greenpeace East Asia. In 2020, 61% of electricity that powered China’s digital infrastructure came from coal.

“Explosive growth in digital infrastructure does not need to mean growth in emissions. Technology companies have the potential to catalyze real emissions reductions via investment in distributed renewables projects and direct purchase of wind and solar energy, among other strategies. But some of the industry’s biggest players, including Alibaba and GDS, have yet to issue 100% renewable energy or carbon neutrality commitments,” said Greenpeace East Asia climate and energy campaigner Ye Ruiqi.

Carbon emissions from China’s internet industry are projected to continue to rise through 2035, long after China’s targeted 2030 national emissions peak, creating complications for the country’s national carbon neutrality commitments. By 2035, emissions from digital infrastructure in China are forecast to reach 310 million tonnes, more than three times Guangzhou’s total carbon emissions in 2019. [1] By contrast, sectors such as steel, non-ferrous metal, and cement, are expected to peak emissions around 2025.

5G is one of the fastest growing sources of internet sector emissions in China. Power consumption from 5G in China is on track to skyrocket 488% by 2035, reaching 297 billion kWh by 2035, roughly equivalent to Sichuan’s total electricity consumption in 2020.

Read more at https://www.greenpeace.org/eastasia/press/6608/electricity-consumption-from-chinas-digital-sector-on-track-to-increase/

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By Sara Xia, April 12, 2021

Online games in China must get approval from the National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA) to be published and sold in China. See China Online Game Approval Laws. The NPPA review and approval process involves requiring that the game have a built-in addiction prevention mechanism.

In November 2019, the NPPA released a Notice on Preventing Addiction among Minors in Online Games that proposes the following measures:

Extract:

1. Real name identification systems

2. Gaming time limits on minors

3. Limit spending by minors within online games

4. Explore and implement age-based rating system

5. Fulfill their responsibility to minors

Read more at: https://harrisbricken.com/chinalawblog/china-online-game-addiction-prevention-requirements/

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May 5, 2021

The following is the April 23, 2021 Congressional Research Service In Focus report, National Security Implications of Fifth Generation (5G) Mobile Technologies.

From the report

National Security Concerns According to a DIB assessment, China is the current leader in sub-6 technologies and is likely to deploy the world’s first 5G wide-area network. Chinese companies, which often receive government subsidies (e.g., subsidized land for facilities, R&D grants), are therefore well-positioned as global 5G suppliers. Huawei has signed contracts for the construction of 5G infrastructure in around 30 countries, including Iceland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

Some experts are concerned that vulnerabilities in Chinese equipment could be used to conduct cyberattacks or military/industrial espionage. These experts claim vulnerabilities were introduced through the poor business practices of many Chinese companies. However, they note that vulnerabilities could also be intentionally introduced for malicious purposes. China’s National Intelligence Law, enacted in June 2017, declares that “any organization and citizen shall, in accordance with the law, support, provide assistance, and cooperate in national intelligence work, and guard the secrecy of any national intelligence work that they are aware of.” Some analysts interpret this law as requiring Chinese companies to cooperate with intelligence services, including compelling installation of backdoors to provide private data to the government.

Other analysts argue that the risks posed by Chinese telecommunications equipment vary depending on the equipment’s location within the cellular network architecture. Most cellular networks are broken into two groups: the core network, which provides the gateway to the internet and ensures devices meet the provider’s standards, and the radio access network, composed of the cellular towers that broadcast and receive radio signals. These analysts state that, while the risks posed by Chinese core networks are significant, the risks posed by Chinese radio access networks could be managed. Other analysts have argued that having any Chinese equipment in the network could pose potential security concerns. Such concerns have prompted some analysts to argue that the United States should limit intelligence sharing with any country operating Chinese-supplied 5G equipment.

Read the report at https://news.usni.org/2021/05/05/report-to-congress-on-national-security-implications-of-5g-technology

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April 29, 2021

Article by Ellen Fungisai Chipango

Postdoctoral research fellow, University of Johannesburg

Zimbabwe is one of the African countries that hopes renewable energy technologies will help to address their energy problems. About 42% of Zimbabwe’s households are connected to the electricity grid.

The country has huge and diverse renewable energy potential. Its sustainable energy portfolio could include solar, hydro, biomass and, to a limited extent, wind and geothermal. Zimbabwe put forward a National Renewable Energy Policy in 2019. The policy aims to have 16.5% of the total generation capacity (excluding large hydro) from renewable sources by 2025. This increases to 26.5% by 2030. These are among the goals it has presented to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and they are promoted in its climate policy.

For policy makers, non-governmental organisations, the private sector and some researchers, it’s a given that renewable energy technologies are the answer. They could meet Zimbabwe’s growing energy demand and achieve universal access sustainably. At face value this is appealing – but the devil is in the details.

My research looked into how renewable energy technologies are understood and how they could alleviate energy poverty in Zimbabwe.

I found that they’re only one piece of the puzzle and other pieces are habitually missing. No matter how well designed and efficient technologies are, their effectiveness is linked to the country’s political economy.

Socio-economic and political factors keep conventional energy out of reach of the poor. My study shows that they can do the same with renewable energy. These factors may even worsen inequality. Adding renewable energy technologies into the existing energy sector structures is like pouring new wine into old wine skins.

The research

I analysed how policy makers and implementers have highlighted some aspects of energy poverty rather than others. This has led to renewable energy being touted as an antidote to energy poverty.

From the data, the following political and economic factors emerged. They explain why renewable energy isn’t a magic bullet for energy poverty:

The politics of energy and technological dependency: China has become a source of finance for large-scale energy projects in Zimbabwe. This is true for both coal-based and renewable energy generation.

Read more at https://theconversation.com/why-renewable-energy-wont-end-energy-poverty-in-zimbabwe-159008

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Abstract

Energy poverty is well acknowledged in the global public and scholarly discussions. Nonetheless, it is habitually analysed in isolation from the discourse through which it is framed, produced, represented and known. Using Zimbabwe as a case study, inductive qualitative research reveals that there is one main discourse associated with energy poverty: net deficit (supply–demand mismatch). This discourse is expressed by narratives that have competed for dominance in the Zimbabwean energy sector (2012-present), in particular, the effect of changes in the climate, vandalism of electricity infrastructure, the impact of sanctions, and the low rate of renewable energy adoption, are analysed. Findings reveal that these narratives construct and interpret energy poverty as an outcome of external factors, while alternative views are scarcely considered due to asymmetrical power relations. The paper concludes that energy poverty cannot be understood outside of the political-economic discourse that constructs and interprets it. Hence, a discursive approach to energy poverty is apt for informing a well-balanced energy policy and practice.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2214629621001195?via%3Dihub

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by Andrew Jones — April 21, 2021

HELSINKI — China is to oversee the construction and operation of a national satellite internet megaconstellation through coordinating the country’s major space actors. 

Recent comments by senior officials indicate that plans are moving ahead to alter earlier constellation plans by space sector state-owned enterprises and possibly make these part of a larger “Guowang” or “national network” satellite internet project. 

Spectrum allocation filings submitted to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) by China in September last year revealed plans to construct two similarly named “GW” low Earth orbit constellations totaling 12,992 satellites. 

The filings indicate plans for GW to consist of sub-constellations ranging from 500-1,145 kilometers in altitude with inclinations between 30-85 degrees. The satellites would operate across a range of frequency bands.

Read more at: https://spacenews.com/china-is-developing-plans-for-a-13000-satellite-communications-megaconstellation/

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China has opened a 5G signal base at the Ganbala radar station in the remote Himalayan region of Tibet which is the world’s highest manually operated radar station at an elevation of 5,374 meters, the Chinese military’s official website reported on Monday.

The mountain is located in Nagarze County in Tibet which is in the vicinity of borders with India and Bhutan.

At the end of last year, the People’s Liberation Army started to coordinate with civilian enterprises to launch 5G base station construction in Ganbala to solve the difficulty of network access for the border defence troops, the website said.

https://www.wionews.com/india-news/china-opens-5g-signal-station-at-worlds-highest-radar-location-near-tibet-border-377235

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Source: http://www.ecns.cn/news/2021-03-20/detail-ihaitayy1353910.shtml

Digital economy to be major driving force during 14th Five-Year Plan period

China is pushing forward the use of informatization within the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-25) with 6G technologies being a top priority, as the country boosts development of the digital economy as a new economic driver, government officials and industry experts said on Friday.

“China will accelerate the research and development of 6G technologies, the construction of the large-scale 5G network, as well as the large-scale application of Internet Protocol version 6－the latest worldwide modality aimed at making the internet bigger, faster and more secure,” Yang Xiaowei, deputy head of the Cyberspace Administration of China, said at a news briefing in Beijing.

“More efforts will also be made to fully release the vitality of data through speeding up the building of systems and standards to accommodate data flow, cross-border data transmission and data security protection. The digital economy can truly play its critical role nationwide,” Yang said.

The digital economy is a key focus in the 14th Five-Year Plan, and China aims to increase the share of the output of core industries in the digital economy in the country’s GDP to 10 percent by 2025.

“China will pay more attention to high-quality digital development in the coming years,” said Li Chao, chief economist at Zheshang Securities Co Ltd.

Li added that the latest government directive also singles out “digital China” as a standalone objective, reaffirming the nation’s strong determination to develop the digital economy to provide fresh economic impetus.

The comments came ahead of the 4th Digital China Summit, which will run from April 25-26 in Fuzhou, Fujian province, under the theme of “New Potential for Data and New Journey of Digital China”.

Read more at http://www.ecns.cn/news/2021-03-20/detail-ihaitayy1353910.shtml

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By SYDNEY J. FREEDBERG JR. on March 15 2021

Source https://breakingdefense.com/2021/03/rearrm-army-holds-modernization-rehearsals/

WASHINGTON: Officials from across the Army are thrashing out how to field a host of new weapons to combat units without disrupting readiness and training.

“We’re conducting rock drills right now,” said Lt. Gen. Thomas Todd, head of acquisition for Army Futures Command. “And it really has to do with, not just what we can afford to do, but the absorption rate and how it impacts readiness.”

The Army is developing 35 top-priority technologies, from hypersonic missiles to higher-caliber rifles, set to enter service between now and 2030. But if you give a single unit too much new technology at once, or at the wrong point in its train-up cycle, you actually disrupt its training and make it less ready for real-world operations. That’s unacceptable to the Army, which is building a master plan called REARMM (Regionally Aligned Readiness & Modernization Model) to guide how its forces train, deploy and modernize.

“What we don’t want to do is to affect [units] to a point where we’re not ready… that being the driving factor behind these rehearsals,” Todd told a Defense News webcast this morning, a prelude to the AUSA’s Global Force Next conference starting tomorrow. “[So] we’re going through right now in an attempt to take all those delivery dates, all those first units equipped, all those initial operational capability dates, and synchronize them.”

Read more at https://breakingdefense.com/2021/03/rearrm-army-holds-modernization-rehearsals/

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