Blinken arrives in China
Antony Blinken arrived in China yesterday — the primary go to by a U.S. secretary of state to China since 2018 — within the hope of slowing the downward spiral of relations between Beijing and Washington.
Blinken met with China’s overseas minister, Qin Gang, for 5 and a half hours, one hour longer than scheduled. The two males and their aides then had a stroll collectively and a working dinner collectively for 2 hours.
The official Chinese abstract of the assembly was bleak. Qin asserted that U.S.-China relations have been at their lowest level because the begin of regular diplomatic ties in 2019. He additionally identified that the Taiwan subject was the best threat to relations between China and the U.S.
According to the U.S. abstract, Blinken stated that the U.S. would rise up for the pursuits and values of the American folks “and work with its allies and partners to advance our vision for a world that is free, open, and upholds the international rules-based order.”
What the U.S. needs: Officials have confused that re-establishing high-level diplomacy is their precedence. Security points are more likely to weigh closely, and Blinken plans to speak with Chinese officers about international points, together with local weather change and financial stability worldwide.
China’s method: China is predicted to boost a litany of grievances through the two-day go to, reflecting Beijing’s view that the U.S. is a declining hegemon decided to cling to energy by containing China.
G.O.P. response: Leading congressional Republicans excoriated Blinken on Friday for touring to China. They accused him of undermining nationwide safety by making an attempt to normalize diplomatic relations with Beijing, as they press for a extra hard-line method.
Evidence suggests Russia blew up Ukrainian dam
The Kakhovka dam in Ukraine was designed to face up to nearly any assault possible from the surface. Evidence reviewed by The New York Times clearly means that Russia blew it up from inside.
The dam, which is managed by Russia, was constructed throughout Soviet occasions, which meant that Moscow had the construction’s engineering drawings and knew about its Achilles’ heel: a small passage beneath the dam reachable from the machine room. This passageway, the proof suggests, is the place an explosive cost detonated and destroyed the dam.
Details: Seismic sensors in Ukraine and Romania detected the telltale indicators of enormous explosions on the day of the collapse, and U.S. intelligence satellites captured infrared warmth indicators that additionally indicated an explosion. Additionally, as water ranges fell, the part that collapsed was now not seen above the water line — sturdy proof that the muse had suffered structural injury, engineers stated.
Nuclear: The prime U.N. nuclear official lately visited the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant and stated that it had a “few months” of water left to cool the reactors and spent gas rods, and that the authorities there had began to take steps to replenish the availability.
Other updates from the battle:
Bangladesh’s coal-less coal plant
Bangladesh spent $2 billion to construct the Maitree energy plant, one of many world’s latest coal-burning energy crops. It started operation in December however has sat idle for weeks at a time. The cause: No coal to burn.
Maitree experiences these short-term shutdowns due to a scarcity of foreign money to import coal from Indonesia. The troubles dealing with the facility plant are a glimpse into the dangers that different new coal crops around the globe may face in coming years, as renewable power sources like wind and photo voltaic turn into cheaper.
Coal in Asia: China continues to construct new coal crops, however different international locations are retiring outdated crops or canceling new deliberate initiatives. Bangladesh, as an example, lately canceled plans to construct 12 coal-burning crops. India stated it will droop new coal plant initiatives for the following 5 years.
What’s particular about your hometown’s meals?
I like speaking in regards to the meals of New York City, the place I used to be born and raised. But that’s not simply bagels and pizza. Instead, when associates go to me, I make them strive the flavors of my New York City.
I believed in regards to the tastes of house whereas studying about a few of New York City’s most distinctive eating places. My colleagues’ suggestions made me marvel: What would you all feed a customer to offer them a style of your hometown? Why is that this meals particular to you?
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Golam Khan was a revolutionary through the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, which one professional calls “a forgotten genocide.” Khan went from being a battle hero to an immigrant cabdriver in New York City. He has fought to maintain the reminiscence of the battle alive in his new land, however does anybody care?
Lives lived: Daniel Ellsberg leaked to The Times a secret historical past of American lies and deceit within the Vietnam War, authorities paperwork that got here to be often called the Pentagon Papers. He died at 92.
ARTS AND IDEAS
Egypt spars with a Dutch Museum
A brand new exhibit within the Netherlands explores how Black musicians — Beyoncé, Tina Turner, Nas and others — have drawn inspiration and pleasure from the concept historic Egypt was an African tradition. The exhibit is framed as a helpful corrective to centuries of cultural erasure of Africans.
But what would possibly sound empowering within the U.S. and thought-provoking within the Netherlands, is anathema to Egypt’s authorities and plenty of of its folks, who’ve flooded the museum’s Facebook and Google pages with complaints — often racist ones — about what they see as Western appropriation of their historical past.
Many Egyptians don’t see themselves as African in any respect, figuring out far more carefully with the predominantly Arab and Muslim nations of the Middle East and North Africa. Many look down on darker-skinned Egyptians and sub-Saharan Africans. Some really feel that their tradition and historical past are being erased within the Western quest to appropriate historic racism.
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Source: www.nytimes.com