1 - 7 June, 2020

• China and India Move to Defuse Tensions after Clashes in the Himalayas
  The confrontations between troops along their shared border led to injuries and the most serious tensions between the two Asian powers in years. China and India have stepped back from a tense confrontation along their shared border high in the Himalayas, pledging to resolve disputes over territory through diplomatic and military channels, India’s Foreign Ministry said on Sunday. (New York Times, June 7, 2020)
• China, India military commanders meet on Kashmir frontier dispute
  Top generals of both sides meet in a Himalayan outpost in Chinese-controlled Kashmir, in a bid to end the latest frontier showdown between the powerful armies. It wasn't immediately clear what the talks yielded. Indian and Chinese military commanders met on Saturday to try to resolve a bitter standoff along their disputed frontier high in the Himalayas where thousands of troops on both sides are facing off. (TRT World, June 6, 2020)
• China denies coronavirus cover-up and insists relations with rest of world have not been damaged
  Beijing publishes lengthy document defending its ‘transparency’ and ‘openness’ after reports World Health Organisation officials were frustrated by delays in releasing information. Foreign vice-minister says relations with most countries have improved but a ‘very few’ have ‘smeared’ China and forced it to defend itself. (South China Morning Post, June 7, 2020)
• Coronavirus pandemic shows global consequences of China’s local censorship rules
  China’s heavily regulated social media platforms have been removing and banning references to the Covid-19 pandemic. Censorship trackers say impeding the flow of information may have hampered the global response. (South China Morning Post, June 7, 2020)
• China is showing off its military hardware during its latest border showdown with India
  The deployment of Chinese advanced weapon systems is meant to show India what the Chinese military's capabilities are, one expert says. Ongoing friction between the two countries along a disputed stretch of their western border echoes another serious confrontation after Doklam in 2017. (South China Morning Post, June 4, 2020)
• India, China’s top generals hold talks at Himalayan border amid efforts to defuse month-long stand-off
  The high-level talks to ease the tense situation along the Line of Actual Control come a day after Indian and Chinese diplomats discussed the boundary flare-up via videoconference. Analysts say the meeting alone is unlikely to resolve the crisis but would help New Delhi to determine the reasons behind Chinese aggression. (South China Morning Post, June 6, 2020)
• US may open doors to Hongkongers in response to China’s push for national security law, MikePompeo says
  Asked about welcoming people from city to ‘come here and bring their entrepreneurial creativity’, Secretary of State says Washington is ‘considering it’. Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell in favour of such a move, saying US has ‘rich heritage of standing as beacon of light’ (South China Morning Post, China, June 2, 2020)
• BRI projects and deals accelerate despite slander from Western media
  From the Diamer-Bhasha Dam project, a hydropower station in Pakistan under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, to the Australian state of Victoria's recent deal with China, moves by Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) participants indicate the China-proposed initiative is accelerating its progress despite being slandered by some Western media. (Global Times, China, June 2, 2020)
• Trump’s move on Hong Kong stems from US domestic political pressure
  The US death toll from the novel coronavirus hit over 100,000 on Wednesday. Two days later, protests erupted in Minneapolis over the death of an African American man in police custody. However, at a press conference on Friday, US President Donald Trump expressed his concern on neither of them. Instead, he continued to divert attention onto China, blasting it for passing national security legislation for its Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. He threatened to revoke the Chinese city's special trading status in an attempt to contain Beijing. (Global Times, China, June 2, 2020)
• U.S. groundless allegations against China’s national security legislation for Hong Kong doomedto fail
  When the decision on the national security legislation for Hong Kong was approved at the third session of the 13th National People's Congress (NPC), China’s top legislature, those in power in the U.S. and its few loyal “fans” immediately began to clamor, blatantly interfering in China’s internal affairs by issuing a “joint statement”, tweeting and holding news conferences. (People’s Daily, China, June 2, 2020)
• India-China border standoff raises military tensions
  Tensions between the world's two most populous countries have flared once again in recent weeks, along their disputed border high in the Himalayas, prompting fears of an inadvertent escalation. (DW, June 02, 2020)