On March 6, 2011, Japanese Foreign Minister Seiji Maehara resigned officially due to accepting donation from a Korean national. Most countries have laws banning officials from accepting foreign donations directly or indirectly. Obama was forced to return some donations in 2008 for this same reason. Maehara's receiving of 250k Yen is paltry though, and I don't think that is … [Read more...] about Seiji Maehara, Japanese Foreign Minister resigns; for 250k Yen or Kuril Islands?
Archives for March 2011
The beginnings of a multi-currency monetary system for the world
One of my favorite columnists for China Daily is Zhang Monan. She has a crisp picture of our world's financial system. Her recent Op-Ed, "Rebalancing global economy," lays out for us the benefits enjoyed by the U.S. for having the USD dominating the international monetary system. Precisely because the U.S. is diluting the value of the USD at the rest of the world's expense, … [Read more...] about The beginnings of a multi-currency monetary system for the world
Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on China’s Foreign Policy
Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi held a live questions and answers session with journalists detailing China's foreign policy. The session was done in both Chinese and English. I thought Minister Yang was very articulate and Chinese brand of international relations will be well received around the globe. I will highlight some points and also weigh in on the Reuters … [Read more...] about Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on China’s Foreign Policy
Outline of China’s 12th 5-year Plan
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has just reported on the work of the Chinese government and outlined the country's 12th 5-year plan (2011-2015). For China watchers, it would be a shame to not be familiar with at least some of these specifics. CCTV has all the materials in English, Russian, Spanish, French, and Arabic. For convenience, I have quoted below "Key targets of China's … [Read more...] about Outline of China’s 12th 5-year Plan
Shaun Rein on Education, Inflation, and Other Issues
In light of several recent posts we have had relating to Shaun Rein (see, e.g., this one on how to mend relations between West and China), I thought some of us might actually want to meet someone with intelligent things to say ... face to face. Here is a recent video of Shaun on CNBC sharing some his observations on current events in China. On a blog, this is as close as we … [Read more...] about Shaun Rein on Education, Inflation, and Other Issues