不友善：對 COVID-19 起源的探索如何變得政治上非常不愉快(2/3)

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Toxic: How the search for the origins of COVID-19 turned politically poisonous (2/3)

Associated Press -DAKE KANG and MARIA CHENG

Updated Mon, April 22, 2024 at 6:09 a.m. PDT·14 min read

(continue)

Another early victim was Zhang Yongzhen, the first scientist to publish a sequence of the virus. A day after he wrote a memo urging health authorities to action, China’s top health official ordered Zhang’s lab closed.

“They used their official power against me and our colleagues,” Zhang wrote in an email provided to AP by Edward Holmes, an Australian virologist.

On Jan. 20, 2020, a WHO delegation arrived in Wuhan for a two-day mission. China did not approve a visit to the market, but they stopped by a China CDC lab to examine infection prevention and control procedures, according to an internal WHO travel report. WHO’s then-China representative, Dr. Gauden Galea, told colleagues in a private meeting that inquiries about COVID-19’s origins went unanswered.

By then, many Chinese were angry at their government. Among Chinese doctors and scientists, the sense grew that Beijing was hunting for someone to blame.

“There are a few cadres who have performed poorly,” Chinese leader Xi Jinping said in unusually harsh comments in February. “Some dare not take responsibility, wait timidly for orders from above, and don’t move without being pushed.”

The government opened investigations into top health officials, according to two former and current China CDC staff and three others familiar with the matter. Health officials were encouraged to report colleagues who mishandled the outbreak to Communist Party disciplinary bodies, according to two of the people.

Some people both inside and outside China speculated about a laboratory leak. Those suspicious included right-wing American politicians, but also researchers close to WHO.

The focus turned to the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a high-level lab that experimented with some of the world’s most dangerous viruses.

In early February 2020, some of the West’s leading scientists, headed by Dr. Jeremy Farrar, then at Britain’s Wellcome Trust, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, then director of the U.S. National Institutes of Health, banded together to assess the origins of the virus in calls, a Slack channel and emails.

They drafted a paper suggesting a natural evolution, but even among themselves, they could not agree on the likeliest scenario. Some were alarmed by features they thought might indicate tinkering.

“There have (been) suggestions that the virus escaped from the Wuhan lab,” Holmes, the Australian virologist, who believed the virus originated in nature, wrote in a Feb. 7, 2020, email. “I do a lot of work in China, and I can (assure) you that a lot of people there believe they are being lied to.”

American scientists close to researchers at the Wuhan Institute of Virology warned counterparts there to prepare.

James LeDuc, head of a Texas lab, emailed his Wuhan colleague on Feb. 9, 2020, saying he’d already been approached by U.S. officials. “Clearly addressing this will be essential, with any kind of documentation you might have,” he wrote.

The Chinese government was conducting its own secret investigation into the Wuhan Institute. Gao, the then-head of the China CDC, and another Chinese health expert revealed its existence in interviews months and years later. Both said the investigation found no evidence of wrongdoing, which Holmes, the Australian virologist, also heard from another contact in China. But Gao said even he hadn't seen further details, and some experts suspect they may never be released.

WHO started negotiations with China for a further visit with the virus origins in mind, but it was China’s Foreign Ministry that decided the terms.

Scientists were sidelined and politicians took control. China refused a visa for Ben Embarek, then WHO’s top animal virus expert. The itinerary dropped nearly all items linked to an origins search, according to draft agendas for the trip obtained by the AP. And Gao, the then-head of the China CDC who is also a respected scientist tasked with investigating the origins, was left off the schedule.

Instead, Liang Wannian, a politician in the Communist Party hierarchy, took charge of the international delegation. Liang is an epidemiologist close to top Chinese officials and China's Foreign Ministry who is widely seen as pushing the party line, not science-backed policies, according to nine people familiar with the situation who declined to be identified to speak on a sensitive subject.

Liang ruled in favor of shutting the Wuhan market at the beginning of the outbreak, according to a Chinese media interview with a top China CDC official that was later deleted. Significantly, it was Liang who promoted an implausible theory that the virus came from contaminated frozen food imported into China. Liang did not respond to an emailed request for comment.

Most of the WHO delegation was not allowed to go to Wuhan, which was under lockdown. The few who did learned little. They again had no access to the Wuhan Institute of Virology or the wildlife market and obtained only scant details about China CDC efforts to trace the coronavirus there.

On the train, Liang lobbied the visiting WHO scientists to praise China’s health response in their public report. Dr. Bruce Aylward, a senior adviser to WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, saw it as the “best way to meet China’s need for a strong assessment of its response.”

The new section was so flattering that colleagues emailed Aylward to suggest he “dial it back a bit.”

“It is remarkable how much knowledge about a new virus has been gained in such a short time,” read the final report, which was reviewed by China’s top health official before it went to Tedros.

(to be continued)

Translation

（繼續）

另一位早期受害者是第一個公佈病毒序列的科學家 Zhang Yongzhen。 在他寫了一份備忘錄敦促衛生當局採取行動的第二天，中國最高衛生官員下令關閉 Zhang 的實驗室。

Zhang 在提供給美聯社看的一封給澳洲病毒學家 Edward Holmes的電子郵件中, 曾寫道: 「他們利用官方權力來對付我和我們的同事」。

2020年1月20日，世衛代表團抵達武漢開始為期兩天的訪問。 根據世衛組織內部行程報告，中國並未批准他們訪問該市場，但他們在中國疾病預防控制中心的一個實驗室停留，查看感染預防和控制的程序。 世衛組織時任中國代表 Gauden Galea 博士在一次非公開會議上告訴同事，有關 COVID-19 起源的詢問沒有得到答覆。

那時，許多中國人對他們的政府感到憤怒。 中國醫生和科學家越來越感覺到北京正在尋找某些人來指責。

中國領導人習近平在二月異常嚴厲的評論中說道: 「有少數幹部表現不佳」。 「有的不敢承擔責任，膽怯地等待上級的命令，不被推就不敢動」。

據中國疾病預防控制中心兩名前任和現任工作人員以及其他三名知情人士透露，政府對高級衛生官員展開了調查。 兩名知情人士稱，鼓勵衛生官員向共產黨紀檢機構舉報對疫情處理不當的同事。

中國國內外一些人懷疑實驗室發生洩漏。 持懷疑態度的人包括美國右翼政客，也包括與世衛組織關係密切的研究人員。

焦點轉向了武漢病毒研究所，這是一個對世界上一些最危險的病毒進行實驗的高級實驗室。

2020 年 2 月初，以時任英國 Jeremy Farrar 信託基金會的 Jeremy Farrar 博士和時任美國國立衛生研究院院長 Anthony Fauci 博士為首的一些西方頂尖科學家以電話、在Slack 的頻道和電子郵件聯合起來評估病毒的起源。

他們起草了一篇提出自然演化的一個理論，但即使在他們內部，他們也無法就最可能的情況達成一致。 有些人對一些跡象有可能顯示出有事情被改動感到震驚。

相信該病毒起源於自然界的澳洲病毒學家 Holmes 在 2020 年 2 月 7 日的一封電子郵件中寫道: 「有跡象表明該病毒是從武漢實驗室逃脫的」。 「我在中國做了很多工作，我可以向你保證，那裡有很多人相信他們被欺騙了」。

與武漢病毒研究所研究人員關係密切的美國科學家提醒那裡的同行做好準備。

德州一家實驗室負責人 James LeDuc 於 2020 年 2 月 9 日向他的武漢同事發送電子郵件，稱美國官員已經與他聯繫。 他寫道: 「要去明確地解決這個問題是至關重, 無論你有什麼類型的文檔在手上」。

中國政府正在對武漢研究所進行秘密調查。 時任中國疾病預防控制中心主任 Gao 先生和另一位中國衛生專家在數月和數年後的訪談中透露了調查的存在。 兩人都表示，調查沒有發現任何不當行為的證據，澳洲病毒學家 Holmes 也從中國的另一位聯絡人聽到了這一點。 但 Gao 說，即使他還沒有看到進一步細節，一些專家懷疑這些細節可能永遠不會被公佈。

考慮到病毒的起源，世衛組織開始與中國就進一步訪問進行談判，但最終決定條件的是中國外交部。

科學家被邊緣化，政客掌控了局面。 中國拒絕了當時世界衛生組織首席動物病毒專家 Ben Embarek 的簽證。 根據美聯社取得的行程草案，行程中幾乎刪除了所有與出發地搜尋相關的項目。 時任中國疾病預防控制中心主任 Gao 先生也是一位受人尊敬的科學家，負責調查病毒的起源，但他沒有被列入行程表。

相反，由共產黨架構中的政客 Liang Wannian 負責國際代表團。 據九位以話題敏感為由不願透露姓名的知情人士透露，Liang 是一位與中國高級官員和中國外交部關係密切的流行病學家，人們普遍認為他在推行黨的路線，而不是推行有科學支持的政策。

根據中國媒體對中國疾病預防控制中心一名高級官員的採訪報道，Liang 在疫情爆發之初就裁定支持關閉武漢市場，該採訪後來被刪除。 值得注意的是，Liang 提出了一個令人難以置信的理論，即該病毒來自進口到中國的受污染的冷凍食品。 Liang 沒有回覆透過電子郵件發送的置評請求。

世衛代表團的大部分成員均不被允許前往已處於封鎖狀態的武漢。 少數可以這樣做的人獲知到的東西很少。 他們再次無法進入武漢病毒研究所或野生動物市場，僅獲得了有關中國疾病預防控制中心在當地追蹤冠狀病毒的些少資訊。

在火車上，Liang 遊說來訪的世界衛生組織科學家在公開報告中讚揚中國的衛生應對措施。 世衛組織總幹事譚德塞的高級顧問 Dr. Bruce Aylward 認為，這是「最佳方式去滿足中國需要就其對應對方法得到有力的評估」。

報告新加部分非常阿諛奉承，以至於同事們給 Aylward 發電子郵件建議他「稍微調低一點」。

最終報告中寫道：「在如此短的時間內獲得了關於一種新病毒的如此多的知識，真是太了不起了」。該報告在交給譚德塞之前經過了中國最高衛生官員的審查。

（待續）

Note:

Slack is a messaging app for business that connects people to the information they need. By bringing people together to work as one unified team, Slack transforms the way organizations communicate. Slack organizes conversations into dedicated spaces called channels. With channels, you can assemble the right people in one space and organize around a common goal.

不友善：對 COVID-19 起源的探索如何變得政治上非常不愉快 (1/3)

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

Toxic: How the search for the origins of COVID-19 turned politically poisonous (1/3)

Associated Press - DAKE KANG and MARIA CHENG

Updated Mon, April 22, 2024 at 6:09 a.m. PDT·14 min read

BEIJING (AP) — The hunt for the origins of COVID-19 has gone dark in China, the victim of political infighting after a series of stalled and thwarted attempts to find the source of the virus that killed millions and paralyzed the world for months.

The Chinese government froze meaningful domestic and international efforts to trace the virus from the first weeks of the outbreak, despite statements supporting open scientific inquiry, an Associated Press investigation found. That pattern continues to this day, with labs closed, collaborations shattered, foreign scientists forced out and Chinese researchers barred from leaving the country.

The investigation drew on thousands of pages of undisclosed emails and documents and dozens of interviews that showed the freeze began far earlier than previously known and involved political and scientific infighting in China as much as international finger-pointing.

As early as Jan. 6, 2020, health officials in Beijing closed the lab of a Chinese scientist who sequenced the virus and barred researchers from working with him.

Scientists warn the willful blindness over coronavirus’ origins leaves the world vulnerable to another outbreak, potentially undermining pandemic treaty talks coordinated by the World Health Organization set to culminate in May.

At the heart of the question is whether the virus jumped from an animal or came from a laboratory accident. A U.S. intelligence analysis says there is insufficient evidence to prove either theory, but the debate has further tainted relations between the U.S. and China.

Unlike in the U.S., there is virtually no public debate in China about whether the virus came from nature or from a lab leak. In fact, there is little public discussion at all about the source of the disease, first detected in the central city of Wuhan.

Crucial initial efforts were hampered by bureaucrats in Wuhan trying to avoid blame who misled the central government; the central government, which muzzled Chinese scientists and subjected visiting WHO officials to stage-managed tours; and the U.N. health agency itself, which may have compromised early opportunities to gather critical information in hopes that by placating China, scientists could gain more access, according to internal materials obtained by AP.

In a faxed statement, China's Foreign Ministry defended China’s handling of research into the origins, saying the country is open and transparent, shared data and research, and “made the greatest contribution to global origins research.” The National Health Commission, China's top medical authority, said the country “invested huge manpower, material and financial resources” and “has not stopped looking for the origins of the coronavirus.”

It could have played out differently, as shown by the outbreak of SARS, a genetic relative of COVID-19, nearly 20 years ago. China initially hid infections then, but WHO complained swiftly and publicly. Ultimately, Beijing fired officials and made reforms. The U.N. agency soon found SARS likely jumped to humans from civet cats in southern China and international scientists later collaborated with their Chinese counterparts to pin down bats as SARS’ natural reservoir.

But different leaders of both China and WHO, China’s quest for control of its researchers, and global tensions have all led to silence when it comes to searching for COVID-19’s origins. Governments in Asia are pressuring scientists not to look for the virus for fear it could be traced inside their borders.

Even without those complications, experts say identifying how outbreaks begin is incredibly challenging and that it’s rare to know with certainty how some viruses begin spreading.

“It’s disturbing how quickly the search for the origins of (COVID-19) escalated into politics,” said Mark Woolhouse, a University of Edinburgh outbreak expert. “Now this question may never be definitively answered.”

CLOUDS OF SECRECY

Secrecy clouds the beginning of the outbreak. Even the date when Chinese authorities first started searching for the origins is unclear.

The first publicly known search for the virus took place on Dec. 31, 2019, when Chinese Center for Disease Control scientists visited the Wuhan market where many early COVID-19 cases surfaced.

However, WHO officials heard of an earlier inspection of the market on Dec. 25, 2019, according to a recording of a confidential WHO meeting provided to AP by an attendee. Such a probe has never been mentioned publicly by either Chinese authorities or WHO.

In the recording, WHO’s top animal virus expert, Peter Ben Embarek, mentioned the earlier date, describing it as “an interesting detail.” He told colleagues that officials were “looking at what was on sale in the market, whether all the vendors have licenses (and) if there was any illegal (wildlife) trade happening in the market.”

A colleague asked Ben Embarek, who is no longer with WHO, if that seemed unusual. He responded that “it was not routine,” and that the Chinese “must have had some reason” to investigate the market. “We’ll try to figure out what happened and why they did that.”

Ben Embarek declined to comment. Another WHO staffer at the Geneva meeting in late January 2020 confirmed Ben Embarek’s comments.

The Associated Press could not confirm the search independently. It remains a mystery if it took place, what inspectors discovered, or whether they sampled live animals that might point to how COVID-19 emerged.

A Dec. 25, 2019, inspection would have come when Wuhan authorities were aware of the mysterious disease. The day before, a local doctor sent a sample from an ill market vendor to get sequenced that turned out to contain COVID-19. Chatter about the unknown pneumonia was spreading in Wuhan’s medical circles, according to one doctor and a relative of another who declined to be identified, fearing repercussions.

A scientist in China when the outbreak occurred said they heard of a Dec. 25 inspection from collaborating virologists in the country. They declined to be named out of fear of retribution.

WHO said in an email that it was “not aware” of the Dec. 25 investigation. It is not included in the U.N. health agency’s official COVID-19 timeline.

When China CDC researchers from Beijing arrived on Jan. 1 to collect samples at the market, it had been ordered shut and was already being disinfected, destroying critical information about the virus. Gao Fu, then head of the China CDC, mentioned it to an American collaborator.

“His complaint when I met him was that all the animals were gone,” said Columbia University epidemiologist Ian Lipkin.

Robert Garry, who studies viruses at Tulane University, said a Dec. 25 probe would be “hugely significant,” given what is known about the virus and its spread.

“Being able to swab it directly from the animal itself would be pretty convincing and nobody would be arguing” about the origins of COVID-19, he said.

But perhaps local officials simply feared for their jobs, with memories of firings after the 2003 SARS outbreak still vivid, said Ray Yip, the founding head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention outpost in China.

“They were trying to save their skin, hide the evidence,” Yip said.

The Wuhan government did not respond to a faxed request for comment.

(to be continued)

Translation

北京（美聯社) - 在中國，對COVID-19起源的追尋已經陷入黑暗，在一系列尋找病毒來源的嘗試停滯不前和受挫之後, 追尋起源在中國成為政治內訌的受害者，這病毒導致数百万人死亡並令世界癱瘓數月。

美聯社的一項調查發現，儘管中國政府發表聲明支持公開科學調查，但從疫情爆發的第一周起，中國政府就凍結了有意義的國內和國際追蹤病毒的努力。 這種模式一直持續到今天，實驗室被關閉，合作破裂，外國科學家被迫離開，中國研究人員被禁止離開中國。

這項調查利用了數千頁未公開的電子郵件和文件以及數十次採訪，這些採訪顯示凍結開始的時間比之前所知的要早得多，並且涉及中國的政治和科學內訌以及國際指責。

早在2020年1月6日，北京衛生官員就把一名對病毒進行定序的中國科學家的實驗室關閉，並禁止研究人員與他合作。

科學家警告說，對冠狀病毒起源的故意忽視使世界很容易再次爆發疫情，這可能會破壞世界衛生組織協調的大流行病條約談判，該談判定於五月得出最終結果。

問題的核心在於，該病毒是從動物身上傳播的還是來自實驗室事故。 美國情報分析稱，沒有足夠的證據證明這兩種理論，但這場辯論進一步損害了中美關係。

與美國不同，中國幾乎沒有關於該病毒是來自自然還是實驗室洩漏的公開辯論。 事實上，公眾對這種疾病的來源幾乎沒有任何討論，這種疾病首先在中部城市武漢發現。

最初的關鍵性努力因武漢官僚試圖避免被指責而去誤導中央政府而受阻; 中央政府壓制了中國科學家的言論去對來訪的世界衛生組織官員進行了有預早鋪排的參觀； 美聯社取得的內部資料顯示，聯合國衛生機構本身，為希望透過安撫中國讓科學家而獲得更多資訊, 可能已經損害了收集關鍵資訊的早期機會。

中國外交部在一份傳真聲明中為中國處理起源研究的方式進行了辯護，稱中國開放透明，共享數據和研究，「為全球起源研究做出了最大貢獻」。 中國最高醫療機構國家衛生健康委員會表示，中國 「投入了大量人力、物力和財力」， 「沒有停止尋找冠狀病毒的起源」 。

正如近 20 年前爆發的 SARS（COVID-19 的遺傳學學親戚）所表明的那樣，情況的發展可能會有所不同。 那次中國最初隱瞞了感染病例，但世衛組織迅速公開抱怨。 最終，北京解雇了官員並進行了改革。 聯合國機構很快發現SARS很可能是從中國南方的果子狸傳染給人類的，國際科學家後來與中國同行合作確定蝙蝠是SARS的天然宿主。

但中國和世界衛生組織的不同領導人、中國尋求控制其研究人員, 以及全球緊張局勢都導致在尋找 COVID-19 起源時導致沉默。 亞洲各國政府正在向科學家施壓，要求他們不要尋找這種病毒，因為擔心病毒可能在亞洲境內被追蹤到。

專家表示，即使沒有這些複雜因素，去確定疫情是如何開始的也是非常具有挑戰性的，而且很難確切地知道某些病毒是如何開始傳播的。

愛丁堡大學疫情專家 Mark Woolhouse 表示： “對 (COVID-19) 起源的搜尋很快就升級為政治，這令人不安”; “現在這個問題可能永遠不會得到明確的答案。”

保密的雲霧

疫情爆發的開始被保密性遮閉了。 甚至中國當局首次開始尋找起源的日期也不清楚。

首次公開的病毒搜尋發生在 2019 年 12 月 31 日，當日期也不清楚。時中國疾病預防控制中心的科學家造訪了出現許多早期 COVID-19 病例的武漢市場。

然而，根據一位與會者向美聯社提供的世衛組織機密會議記錄，世衛組織官員聽說早前於 2019 年 12 月 25 日對市場進行了檢查。 中國當局或世界衛生組織從未公開提及此類調查。

在錄音中，世衛組織頂級動物病毒專家 Peter Ben Embarek 當提提到了較早的日期，將其描述為「一個有趣的細節」。 他告訴同事，官員們正在 “查看市場上出售的商品，是否所有供應商都有許可證，(以及)市場上是否存在任何非法（野生動物）貿易。”

一位同事詢問已不再在世衛組織工作的 Ben Embarek，這是否顯得異常。 他回答說 “這不是例行公事” ，中國人 “一定有某種理由” 調查市場。 “我們將盡力弄清楚發生了什麼以及他們為什麼這麼做。”

Ben Embarek 拒絕置評。 另一位世衛組織工作人員在 2020 年 1 月下旬的日內瓦會議上證實了 Ben Embarek 的評論。

美聯社無法獨立確認25 日對市場進行的這次檢查這。 它是否發生過、檢查人員發現了什麼、或他們是否對活體動物進行了採樣，去指出 COVID-19 會是如何出現的，這仍然是一個謎。

當武漢當局意識到這種神秘疾病時，在2019年12月25日的檢查一定會發生。一天前，一名當地醫生把取自一位患病的市場小販的一份樣本送來進行測序，結果發現樣本含有 COVID-19。 一名醫生和另一名醫生的親屬 (由於擔心造成影響，他拒絕透露姓名) 表示，有關不明肺炎的討論正在武漢醫學界蔓延。 

疫情爆發時，一名在中國的科學家表示，他們從國內一些有合作的病毒學家聽說在 12 月 25 日有調查。 由於擔心遭到報復，他們拒絕透露自己姓名。

世衛組織在一封電子郵件中表示，它「不察覺到」12 月 25 日的調查。 它不包含在聯合國衛生機構的官方 COVID-19 時間線中。

1月1日，當中國疾控中心的研究人員從北京到達該市場採集樣本時，該市場已被勒令關閉，並且已經進行了消毒，銷毀了有關該病毒的重要資訊。 時任中國疾病預防控制中心主任 Gao Fu 向一位美國合作人仕提到了這一點。

哥倫比亞大學流行病學家 Ian Lipkin 說: 「當我見到他時，他抱怨說所有的動物都消失了」。

Tulane大學病毒研究人員 Robert Garry 表示，基於對該病毒及其傳播的了解，12 月 25 日的調查將「非常重要」。

他說，關於 COVID-19 的起源, 「能夠直接從動物身上採集樣本將非常令人信服，而且沒有人會爭議」。

但美國疾病管制與預防中心駐華前哨站的創始負責人 Ray Yip 表示，也許地方官員只是擔心自己的工作崗位受到影響，2003年非典爆發後被解僱的記憶仍然歷歷在目。

Yip 說: 「他們試圖為了保護自己免於困境，隱藏證據」。

武漢市政府沒有回覆透過傳真發送的置評請求。

（待續）

270 million people in China live in sinking cities: new research

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

中国の２億７０００万人、沈みゆく都市に居住　新研究

2024.04.19 Fri posted at 18:47 JST

（ＣＮＮ） 米学術誌「サイエンス」に１８日に発表された研究によると、中国の人口の２９％にあたる２億７０００万人が居住する都市部の半数近くが年間３ミリ以上沈下しているという。

６７００万人は毎年１０ミリ以上沈下している土地に住んでいる。

研究者らは、中国の地下水汲（く）み上げのまん延が地盤沈下の主な要因の一つだと指摘する。都市では地下の帯水層から水を汲み上げているが、その速度は地下水がたまる速度を上回っている。この状況は気候変動による干ばつで深刻化している。過剰な汲み上げによって地下水位が下がり、その上にある土地が沈下する。

土地は、都市自体の重量の増加によっても沈下する。長い年月をかけて堆積（たいせき）した土砂の重みや重い建物が地面を押し下げることによって、土壌は自然に圧縮され徐々に沈下していく。

地盤沈下は中国だけの問題ではない。米国ではニューヨーク市を含む数十の沿岸都市が沈下している。オランダでは国土の２５％が沈み、海面よりも低くなっている。世界で最も急速に地盤沈下が進んでいるとみられるメキシコ市では、１年で最大５０センチメートル沈下している。

海岸沿いは地盤沈下の影響がより深刻なうえ、海面も上昇していることから、より多くの土地、人々、財産が破壊的な洪水にさらされている。

この研究は、中国の沿岸部のおよそ４分の１が地盤沈下と、予測される海面上昇によって海面より低くなり、甚大な被害を受け人命が危険にさらされることを示唆している。天津市、上海市、広州市周辺地域は、この二つの問題にさらされている。

中国の一部の沿岸地域では増大する浸水リスクから物理的に地域を保護するための堤防がすでに建設されている。研究者によると、例えば上海市は高さ数メートルの堤防を建設したという。

研究者は「このような巨大な海岸堤防システムは地盤沈下と海面上昇の両方を考慮しても浸水のリスクを大幅に軽減する」とＣＮＮに語り、「このような巨大な堤防システムを建設した国を私はほかに知らない」と続けた。

同氏によると、中国政府はここ数年、地下水の汲み上げを規制する厳格な法律を施行するなど、いくつかの方法で地盤沈下に対処している。上海とその周辺地域では地下水の汲み上げを制限した結果、地盤沈下の速度を抑えられているという。

Translation

(CNN) Nearly half of China's urban areas, home to 270 million people, or 29% of China's population, were sinking more than 3 millimeters a year, according to a study published in the American academic journal Science on the 18th.

67 million people lived on land that was sinking more than 10 mm every year.

Researchers said China's widespread groundwater pumping was one of the main reasons for land subsidence. Cities pumped water from underground aquifers at a rate faster than the groundwater could accumulate. This situation was becoming more serious due to droughts caused by climate change. Excessive pumping lowered the groundwater table and caused the land above it to sink.

Land also sank due to the increased weight of the city itself. Due to the weight of the earth and sand that had accumulated over many years and the pushing down of heavy buildings, the soil was naturally compressed and gradually sank.

Land subsidence was not just a problem in China. Dozens of coastal cities in the United States, including New York City, were sinking. In the Netherlands, 25% of the country has sunk and was now below sea level. Mexico City was believed to be experiencing the world's fastest land subsidence, with land sinking up to 50 centimeters per year.

In addition to effects of land subsidence along the coast, more severe was due to sea levels rising, many land, people and property were exposed to destructive flooding.

This study suggested that while around a quarter of China's coastline were having land subsidence, due to projected sea level rise, they became lower than sea level, there would be severe damage and human lives could be at risk. The areas surrounding Tianjin, Shanghai, and Guangzhou were exposed to these two problems.

Embankments had already been built in some coastal areas of China to physically protect areas from the increased risk of flooding. According to researchers, it was said that the city of Shanghai, for example, had built embankments several meters high.

A researcher told CNN that "A huge coastal levee system like this greatly reduces the risk of flooding, even considering both land subsidence and sea level rise", and continued to say that “I don't know any other country that had built such a huge levee system."

According to this person, the Chinese government had used several methods to combat land subsidence in recent years, including enforcing strict laws regulating groundwater pumping. In Shanghai and surrounding areas, the rate of land subsidence had been slowed by restricting the pumping of groundwater.

So, according to a study, nearly half of China's urban areas are sinking more than 3 millimeters a year.  The Chinese government has used several methods to combat land subsidence, including enforcing strict laws regulating groundwater pumping.  The city of Shanghai, for example, has built embankments several meters high to prevent flooding.

iPhone sales plummet, struggling in Chinese market

Recently CNN.co.jp reported the following:

ｉＰｈｏｎｅの販売が急減、中国市場で苦戦

2024.04.16 Tue posted at 12:46 JST

（ＣＮＮ） 米アップルのスマートフォン「ｉＰｈｏｎｅ（アイフォーン）」の２０２４年１～３月期の出荷台数が前年同期比で１０％減少したことがわかった。調査会社ＩＤＣが明らかにした。ｉＰｈｏｎｅの販売は中国市場で大きく落ち込んでいる。

アップルは中国市場で勢いを失っている。中国国内のナショナリズムや厳しい景気、競争の激化などが過去数カ月、アップルにとって打撃となった。

ＩＤＣの調査ディレクター、ナビラ・ポパル氏はＣＮＮの取材に対し、「アップルにとっては大きな落ち込みだが、過去４年間の状況を考えると、アップルは恐らく最も回復力のあるブランドであり、他のブランドよりもサプライチェーン（供給網）の問題やマクロ経済的な課題を克服してきた」と述べた。

韓国のサムスン電子が１２年間にわたって、スマートフォン市場で業界の首位にいたが、アップルが昨年、その座を奪っていた。しかし、わずか１四半期で、サムスンが再び首位に返り咲いた。

ポパル氏は「サムスンが首位に返り咲いたことも非常に重要だ」と指摘。ポパル氏によれば、今年はサムスンが使う基本ソフト（ＯＳ）の「アンドロイド」がアップルのＯＳ「ｉＯＳ」の２倍のペースで成長するとみているという。

これは、アンドロイドのほうが過去数年、大きな落ち込みをみせていたため、現在は成長の余地がより多くあるためだ。

ＩＤＣによれば、全体では１～３月期の世界のスマートフォンの出荷台数は前年同期比７．８％増の約２億８９００万台だった。このことは、スマートフォン市場が過去２年のマクロ経済的な苦境を乗り越えて再浮上しつつあることを示している。

サムスンの市場シェアは約２０．８％。アップルが同１７．３％で続く。中国の小米科技（シャオミ）は同１４．１％だった。

ＩＤＣは最新の報告書の中で、アップルとサムスンが引き続き市場で支配的な地位を維持するとの見方を示しているが、小米科技や華為技術（ファーウェイ）といった中国勢の復活も続く可能性が高い。かつてはアップルを検討した中国の消費者は今、中国のブランドに目を向けている。

中国はアップルにとって依然として重要で、米国に次ぐ最大の市場。アップルは売り上げを伸ばそうと、中国で値引き販売を行っている。

Translation

(CNN) It had been revealed that shipments of Apple's smartphone "iPhone" in the January-March period of 2024 decreased by 10% compared to the same period last year. This was revealed by research company IDC. The iPhone sales had fallen sharply in the Chinese market.

Apple was losing momentum in the Chinese market. Domestic nationalism in China, a tough economy and increased competition had all hurt Apple in the past few months.

Nabila Popal, research director at IDC, told CNN that "It's a big drop for Apple, but given the way things have been over the last four years, Apple is probably the most resilient brand, more so than other brands in overcoming supply chain issues and macroeconomic challenges."

South Korea's Samsung Electronics had been at the top of the smartphone market for 12 years, but Apple usurped its position last year. However, in just one quarter, Samsung regained the top position.

Popal said that "Samsung's return to the top is also very important." She said this year she expected Samsung's Android operating system to grow twice as fast as Apple's iOS.

This was because Android now had more room to grow after seeing a big decline over the past few years.

According to IDC, global smartphone shipments in the January-March period totaled approximately 289 million units, an increase of 7.8% from the same period last year. This showed that the smartphone market was re-emerging after overcoming the macroeconomic hardships of the past two years.

Samsung's market share was approximately 20.8%. Apple followed with 17.3%. China's Xiaomi likewise was 14.1%.

IDC said in its latest report that while Apple and Samsung would continue to maintain their dominant positions in the market, but Chinese players such as Xiaomi and Huawei could quite likely to continue to make a comeback. Chinese consumers who once considered Apple were now turning to Chinese brands.

China remained important to Apple, its largest market after the United States. Apple was offering discounts in China so as to boost sales.

              So, Apple is losing momentum in the Chinese market. In China, Apple sales in the past few months have been hurt due to domestic nationalism, a tough economy and increased competition. It seems that to do business in China is getting more difficult.

Note:

1. According to IDC web-site, Nabila Popal is Research Director with IDC's Worldwide Tracker team that is specializing in Mobile Phones, PC Monitors and other consumer devices.  Ms. Popal is responsible for the global research, and quality and timely delivery for her respective technologies, by coordinating with regional and worldwide research teams.  (https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=PRF004267)

G42在與微軟交易前, 與美國達成秘密協議從中國撤資

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

G42 Made Secret Pact with US to Divest from China Before Microsoft Deal

Ben Bartenstein, Mackenzie Hawkins, Nick Wadhams and Dina Bass

Mon, April 15, 2024 at 10:26 p.m. PDT

(Bloomberg) -- Microsoft Corp.’s just-announced partnership with Abu Dhabi’s G42 followed behind-the-scenes negotiations between the US government and the Middle Eastern firm, which agreed to divest from China and pivot to American technology.

G42, a holding company focused on artificial intelligence, held talks with the US Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security and came to an understanding last year, according to people familiar with the discussions. Under the arrangement, G42 agreed to pare back its presence in China or face potentially punitive measures from Washington, they said.

The talks were part of a broader effort by the Biden administration to rein in China’s technological prowess and line up support around the world. G42 is backed by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, an influential member of Abu Dhabi’s ruling family, and looks to become an AI superpower in the Middle East.

G42 Chief Executive Officer Peng Xiao told Bloomberg News in February that the firm would divest from China, but the details behind that decision weren’t public. According to the people familiar with the talks, US officials — led by BIS, with the blessing of the National Security Council — approached the UAE last summer and told executives they would have to choose between the US or China.

The BIS negotiations involved Xiao, Sheikh Tahnoon, UAE Ambassador Yousef Al Otaiba, and veteran Paul Hastings lawyer Marty Edelman, who serves as G42’s general counsel.

A representative for BIS declined to comment. In a statement, a G42 spokesman said that the divestment decision stemmed from a desire “to partner with the most sophisticated AI technology companies in the world — the ones in the US and, in some cases, Europe.”

“Geopolitical factors affect every international business, including ours,” the spokesman said. The chance to work with Microsoft and its partner OpenAI “were authentic economic and technological transformative opportunities for us. Clearly these opportunities required a movement away from Chinese relationships, equipment and services, and we are in the process of making that transition in a verifiable way.”

In exchange for the Chinese divestment, G42 was assured that it would have continued access to US technology that powers AI applications, one of the people said. That includes chips from Nvidia Corp. But the agreement came at considerable cost to G42, according to one of the people, because it had to remove some Chinese technology from its systems.

The divestment plan also helped lay the groundwork for Microsoft to invest $1.5 billion in G42 — an agreement announced Tuesday. As part of that pact, Microsoft President Brad Smith will join the board of G42, which will use the software maker’s Azure cloud for its AI applications. The agreement, which builds on an existing partnership, was reached after consultation with the UAE and US governments.

G42, the largest AI company in the UAE, came under scrutiny from Congress in recent months, with a key lawmaker calling for sanctions over its ties to blacklisted Chinese businesses Huawei Technologies Co. and Beijing Genomics Institute. The firm “categorically” denied that it had “connections to the Chinese government and their military industrial complex.”

The deal with the Biden administration followed warnings from the State Department and elsewhere that putting G42 on an export blacklist would be catastrophic for the US-UAE relationship. The firm, which aims to apply AI to everything from medicine to space exploration, is a prized asset of Sheikh Tahnoon. The G42 spokesman said that US officials didn’t threaten sanctions during the talks.

Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo visited the UAE in March to discuss G42’s progress in shifting away from China, among other topics, according to some of the people.

It’s the latest example of Washington’s increased focus on AI and semiconductor ambitions in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both vying to become major tech hubs.

The Commerce Department expanded export controls last year on semiconductor technology. It now requires a license for the sale of advanced chips and tools to countries that officials worry China could use as intermediaries to skirt US controls, including several in the Middle East. Wealth funds from that region have also drawn scrutiny from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States over their ties to Beijing.

But the region is also a favorite among American companies and executives, including Microsoft and OpenAI’s Sam Altman, which are bolstering their Middle Eastern presence as sovereign wealth funds pour billions into cutting-edge technology.

Translation

（彭博）— 微軟公司剛宣布與阿布達比的 G42 合作，此前美國政府與G42這家中東公司進行了幕後談判，後者同意從中國撤資並轉向美國技術。

知情人士透露，專注於人工智能的控股公司 G42 去年與美國商務部工業與安全局進行了會談並達成了諒解。 他們表示，根據這項安排，G42 同意削減在中國的業務，否則將面臨華盛頓可能採取的懲罰性措施。

此次會談是拜登政府遏制中國技術實力並在世界各地爭取支持的更廣泛努力的一部分。 G42 得到阿布達比統治家族頗具影響力的成員 Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan 的支持，並希望成為中東的人工智能超級大國。

G42 執行長 Peng Xiao 今年 2 月向彭博社表示，該公司將從中國撤資，但該決定背後的細節並未公開。 知情人士透露，以國際結算銀行 (BIS = Bank for International Settlements) 為首的美國官員在國家安全委員會的支持下於去年夏天與阿聯酋接洽，並告訴高階主管們，他們必須在美國或中國之間做出選擇。

BIS 談判涉及 Xiao、Sheikh Tahnoon、阿聯酋大使 Yousef Al Otaiba 以及 Paul Hastings律師行資深律師 Marty Edelman、亦是G42 總法律顧問。

國際算銀行的代表拒絕發表評論。 G42 發言人在聲明中表示，撤資決定源於「與世界上最先進的人工智能技術公司合作 - 這些公司位於美國，有時甚至是歐洲的公司」的願望。

發言人表示: 「地緣政治因素影響著每一項國際業務，包括我們的業務」。 與微軟及其夥伴 OpenAI 合作的機會「對我們來說是真正的經濟和技術變革機會。 顯然，這些機會需要擺脫與中國的關係、設備和服務，我們正在以一個可被驗證的方式去進行這一轉變」。

一位知情人士表示，作為中國撤資的交換條件，G42 得到保證，它將繼續獲得支援人工智能應用的美國技術。 其中包括來自 Nvidia 公司的晶片。但據一位知情人士透露，該協議讓 G42 付出了相當大的代價，因為它必須從其係統中刪除一些中國技術。

這項撤資計劃也為微軟向 G42 投資 15 億美元奠定了基礎 - 該協議於週二宣布。 作為該協議的一部分，微軟總裁 Brad Smith 將加入 G42 董事會，G42會將使用該軟件製造商的 Azure 雲端來開發其人工智能應用程式。 該協議建立在現有合作夥伴關係的基礎上，是在與阿聯酋和美國政府協商後達成的。

G42作為阿聯酋最大的人工智能公司近幾個月受到美國會的審查，一位重要議員呼籲進行製裁, 因它其與被列入黑名單的中國企業華為技術有限公司, 以及北京基因組研究所有關係。 該公司「斷然」否認它「與中國政府及其軍工聯合體有聯繫」。

在與拜登政府達成協議之前，美國國務院和其他地方發出警告，稱將 G42 列入出口黑名單將對美國-阿聯酋關係造成災難性後果。 該公司旨在將人工智能應用於從醫學到太空探索的各個領域，是 Sheikh Tahnoon 的寶貴資產。 G42發言人表示，美國官員在會談期間並未威脅實施制裁。

據一些知情人士透露，美國商務部長雷蒙多於 3 月訪問了阿聯酋，討論了 G42 去擺脫中國的進展以及其他話題。

這是華盛頓更加關注中東人工智能和半導體野心的最新例子，沙地阿拉伯和阿拉伯聯合酋長國都在爭奪成為主要科技中心。

美國商務部去年擴大了對半導體技術的出口管制。 現在，向一些國家出售先進晶片和工具需要獲得許可，官員擔心中國可能利用那些國家作為中間人來規避美國的控制，其中包括中東的幾個國家。 該地區的財富基金也因與北京的關係而受到美國外國投資委員會的審查。

但該地區也是美國公司和高管的最愛，其中包括微軟和 OpenAI 的 Sam Altman，隨著主權財富基金向尖端技術投入數十億美元，這些公司正在加強其在中東的影響力。

              So, Microsoft Corp. announces partnership with G42 which has agreed to divest from China and pivot to American technology. It is another example of Washington’s increasing focus on AI and semiconductor ambitions in the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both vying to become major tech hubs. Middle East in recent years has been a battle ground between China and the US in fighting for regional influence.

Note:

1. The Bank for International Settlement (BIS) is an international financial institution which is owned by member central banks. Its primary goal is to foster international monetary and financial cooperation while serving as a bank for central banks. (Wikipedia)

2. Paul Hastings LLP is a global law firm that represents a client base in finance, M&A, private equity, and litigation. The firm specializes in white collar and government disputes, energy, infrastructure, and intellectual property. (Wikipedia)

歐盟在被「愚弄」後對華發動貿易攻勢 (2/2)

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

EU Goes on China Trade Offensive After Getting ‘Played’ (2/2)

John Ainger and Alberto Nardelli

Tue, April 16, 2024 at 12:00 a.m. PDT

(continue)

Over the past decade, China has come to dominate the market for clean tech, with domestic industries buoyed by massive support from the state. Take the wind sector as an example. Companies are able to sell products on average 20% lower than European and US peers, backed by deferred payments systems. The EU has a trade balance deficit of €462 million last year, according to the commission.

The EU said last month that it had found “sufficient evidence” that the imports of new battery electric vehicles from China received subsidies including direct transfer of funds, tax breaks, or public provision of good or services below market prices. This means the bloc could introduce provisional tariffs on Chinese imports by July, with definitive duties hitting by November.

The EU is also using a new tool — its foreign subsidies regulation — to crack down on bidding from Beijing for a railway tender in Bulgaria, as well as solar parks in Romania. Vestager last week announced an early-stage probe of Chinese involvement in wind parks in Spain, Greece, France, Romania and Bulgaria.

“We are using our trade tools and our tools that come with the foreign subsidies regulation in full in order to restore fair competition,” Vestager said.

The bloc has also started surveying its industry about the use of Chinese legacy chips, which could see action taken in future against older — but widely used — semiconductors.

The investigations are part of a concerted EU drive to keep global markets open and based on rules, protect supply lines and bring production closer to home. The moves have tested relations with Beijing, which has launched its own investigations into EU trade practices.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire also issued a warning on Monday about fair competition. “Europe must assert its economic interests between an increasingly protectionist US and China’s industrial over-capacity that risks overflowing into the European market,” he told reporters.

The EU is also set to launch an investigation into China’s procurement of medical devices in a bid to address concerns that Beijing unfairly favors domestic suppliers, Bloomberg reported Monday.

These trade measures are not just “symbolic,” said Maximo Miccinilli, head of energy and climate at the consulting firm FleishmanHillard EU. The “EU is working really working hard case by case and will continue to do so, providing there is no u-turn on trade after elections, which I do not expect,” he added referring to the region’s vote in two months time.

When the EU put forward it’s Net Zero Industry Act last year — a plan to make sure 40% of the EU’s clean tech needs were produced domestically — the focus was clearly on trying to rival the US’s enormous package of support under the Inflation Reduction Act. Since then, the focus has moved squarely toward China, including through the insertion of provisions in the NZIA to make sure that Chinese firms find it more difficult to bid for renewable energy contracts.

But ridding itself of cheap Chinese clean tech may hamper its ability to slash emissions by 55% this decade, with the bloc already off-track. Vestager has warned that other sectors, like EVs or chips, could share a similar fate to solar panels, which the EU has lost out on since investing heavily in the technology over a decade ago. Now more than nine in 10 are produced in China.

“The EU must ensure that all rules applied to domestic players are also applied to foreign players acting in its market,” said Simone Tagliapietra, a senior researcher at the Bruegel think tank. “Its all about level playing field, not about trade wars.”

--With assistance from Tom Hancock.

Translation

（繼續）

在過去的十年裡，中國已經主導了潔淨技術的市場，國內產業得到了國家的大力支持。 以風電產業為例。 在延期付款系統的支持下，該公司的產品售價平均比歐洲和美國同業低 20%。 據歐盟委員會稱，去年歐盟的貿易逆差為 4.62 億歐元。

歐盟上個月表示，已發現 “充分證據” ，證明從中國進口的新型純電動汽車曾獲得補貼，包括直接資金轉移、稅收減免或以低於市場價格的價格公開提供商品或服務。 這意味著歐盟可能會在 7 月前對中國進口商品徵收臨時關稅，並在 11 月前徵收最終關稅。

歐盟也利用一項新工具 - 外國補貼監管 - 來打擊北京對保加利亞鐵路招標以及羅馬尼亞太陽能園區的招標。 Vestager上周宣布對中國參與西班牙、希臘、法國、羅馬尼亞和保加利亞風電場進行早期調查。

Vestager表示： “我們正在充分利用自身的貿易工具和對外國補貼監管的工具，以恢復公平競爭。”

歐盟也開始調查其行業有關中國傳統晶片的使用情況，這可能會導致未來對較舊但被廣泛使用的半導體採取行動。

這些調查是歐盟共同努力的一部分，旨在保持全球市場開放並基於規則、保護供應線並使生產更接近國內。 這些措施考驗了與北京的關係，北京已經對歐盟的貿易行為展開了調查。

法國財政部長 Bruno Le Maire 週一也就公平競爭發出警告。 他對記者表示： “歐洲必須在日益保護主義的美國和中國工業產能過剩之間維護其經濟利益，中國的工業產能過剩有可能溢出到歐洲市場。”

根據彭博社週一報道，歐盟也將對中國醫療器材採購展開調查，以解決人們對北京不公平地偏袒國內供應商的擔憂。

顧問公司 FleishmanHillard EU 的能源和氣候主管 Maximo Miccinilli 表示，這些貿易措施不僅僅是「象徵性的」。 他在談到兩個月後該地區的投票時補充道， “歐盟正在逐個個案努力調查，並將繼續這樣做，前提是在選舉後貿易不會出現180度大轉變，那不是我預期見到的。”

當歐盟去年提出 淨零工業法案 時 - 該計劃旨在確保歐盟 40% 的潔淨技術需求在國內生產  - 其重點顯然是試圖與美國根據《通膨削減法案》提供的巨額支持相抗衡。 從那時起，焦點就直接轉向中國，包括透過在淨零工業法案 (NZIA)中插入條款，以確保中國企業在競標再生能源合約變得更加困難。

但擺脫廉價的中國潔淨技術可能會阻礙其在本十年內將排放量削減 55% 的能力，而歐盟已經偏離了軌道。 Vestager警告說，電動車或晶片等其他產業可能會遭遇與太陽能板類似的命運，自從十多年前大力投資該技術以來，歐盟已經失去了太陽能板。 現在超過十份之九是在中國生產的。

Bruegel智庫高級研究員 Simone Tagliapietra 表示： “歐盟必須確保適用於國內參與者的所有規則也適用於在其市場中的外國參與者。” “這一切都是為了公平競爭環境，而不是貿易戰。”

              So, China is going to face two difficult trading partners at the same time, respectively EU and the US.  EU’s aim is to keep global markets open and based on rules, and to protect supply lines and bring production closer to home. This goal is similar to that of the US. Many countries are trying to protect their own industries and globalization is being challenged.

Note:

1. Definitive duty is the final legal assessment or collection of a duty or tax where the facts as finally established show that there is dumping and injury has been caused.

歐盟在被「愚弄」後對華發動貿易攻勢 (1/2)

Recently Yahoo News on-line reported the following:

EU Goes on China Trade Offensive After Getting ‘Played’ (1/2)

John Ainger and Alberto Nardelli

Tue, April 16, 2024 at 12:00 a.m. PDT

(Bloomberg) -- European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is unleashing a barrage of trade restrictions against China as she seeks to follow through on a pledge to make the EU a more relevant political player on the global stage.

In addition to an investigation into Chinese subsidies for electric vehicles, the European Union is looking into whether Beijing provided illegal support for windparks on the continent. It has also brought subsidy probes into solar and railway firms and will shortly launch an inquiry into China’s procurement of medical devices.

The deluge of investigations is a reflection of the EU’s increasingly assertive approach to China, threatening restrictive trade measures that could result in tariffs, cutting China off from European markets, and potentially leading to a trade war. But for some, it’s a matter of the EU finally taking steps to make international trade fair again.

“We recognize what we see as the Chinese playbook,” Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition chief told Bloomberg Television last week. “Knowing you have been played teaches you that you need to watch out, to be much more observant and to take better actions.”

European officials including former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi have argued that China’s trade abuses are at the heart of the biggest social and political problems that have plagued Europe and the US over the past 20 years. The lack of international rules and dispute settlements created unfair competition that led voters to turn against democratic values because, Draghi said in a February speech, they “justifiably felt they have been left behind.”

The EU’s approach aligns with some Western allies, who are taking a firmer stance with Beijing. US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen traveled to China earlier this month, saying that the vast output of its factories had become a global problem. The US won’t take “anything off the table,” including the possibility of additional tariffs, to stem the flood of Chinese goods, she told CNN over the weekend.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who is visiting China this week, warned officials in Beijing to address overcapacity and to treat foreign companies better, saying “competition must be fair.” Chinese leader Xi Jinping told his German counterpart that a surge in clean-technology exports have helped the world tackle inflation.

“We are not in favor of general systems of tariffs, quotas and alike because in the end, trade measures, if they are not intelligent and considerate, tend to cause more damage than good,” Sven Giegold, Germany’s state secretary for climate, said at a meeting of energy ministers Monday. “But at the same time, we should not be naive.”

EU leaders will this week step up efforts to defend the bloc against unfair trade practices as part of its efforts to come forward with a new competitiveness deal, according to draft conclusions for the summit seen by Bloomberg. The document highlights that the bloc is facing increasingly “assertive policy measures” by rivals, most notably when it comes to subsidies.

It’s in the area of clean tech where the EU is most fervently fighting to stave off competition from cheap Chinese imports of everything from EVs to solar panels. An industry backlash has raised concerns that its domestic green technologies could be hijacked during the transition to net-zero by the middle of the century.

(to be continued)

Translation

（彭博）— 歐盟委員會主席馮德萊恩正在對中國實施一系列貿易限制，因為她尋求兌現令歐盟在全球舞台上成為更具影響力的政治參與者的承諾。

除了進行調查中國對電動車的補貼外，歐盟還在調查北京是否為在歐洲大陸的風電場提供非法支持。 亦調查中國對太陽能和鐵路公司進行了補貼，並將很快對中國採購醫療設備的情況發起調查。

大量調查反映了歐盟對中國日益強硬的態度，威脅採取限制性貿易措施，這些措施可能導致關稅、切斷中國與歐洲市場的聯繫，並可能導致貿易戰。 但對某些人來說，這是歐盟最終採取措施讓國際貿易再次公平的問題。

歐盟競爭主管 Margrethe Vestager 上週對彭博電視台表示: 「我們見識到我們所看到的中國劇本」。 「知道自己被愚弄了，你需要保持警惕，更加善於觀察，並採取更好的行動」。

包括前歐洲央行行長 Mario Draghi 在內的歐洲官員認為，中國的貿易濫用行為是過去20年來困擾歐洲和美國的最大社會和政治問題的核心。 Draghi 在二月的演講中表示，缺乏國際規則和解決爭端機製造成了不公平競爭，導致選民反對民主價值觀，因為他們「有理由感到自己被遺棄」。

歐盟的做法與一些西方盟友一致，他們對北京採取了更強硬的立場。 美國財政部長耶倫本月稍早訪問中國，稱中國工廠的高產量已成為全球性議題。 她週末對美國有線電視新聞網(CNN)表示，美國將不會 “排除任何措施”，包括徵收額外關稅的可能性，以阻止中國商品的大量湧入。

本周正在中國訪問的德國總理朔爾茨警告北京官員解決產能過剩問題，並更好地對待外國企業，並表示「競爭必須公平」。 中國領導人習近平告訴德國方，潔淨技術出口的激增幫助世界應對通貨膨脹。

德國氣候國務秘書 Sven Giegold 在周一舉行的能源部長會議上表示：「我們不贊成關稅、配額等一般制度，因為最終，如果貿易措施不合理、不周全，往往弊大於利」。 「但與此同時，我們也不應該天真」。

根據彭博社看到的峰會結論草案，歐盟領導人本週將加大力度，捍衛歐盟免受不公平貿易行為的影響，作為提出新的競爭力協議的一部分。 該文件強調，歐盟正面臨競爭對手日益 “脅逼性政策措施” ，尤其是在補貼方面。

在潔淨技術領域，歐盟最熱衷於避免從電動車到太陽能板的中國廉價進口產品的競爭。 業界的強烈反對引發了人們的擔憂，即在本世紀中葉向淨零轉型的過程中，歐盟內綠色技術可能會被別人掌控。

（待續）