Blinken Discusses Taiwan Aid, TikTok, Russia During China Visit

Welcome back to World Brief, where we’re looking at the United States‘ top diplomat visiting China, Israel preparing for its Rafah offensive, and high-level economic talks between North Korea and Iran.

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Taiwan, TikTok, and Trade

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Shanghai on Wednesday for a three-day diplomatic mission—mere hours after US President Joe Biden signed into law a $95 billion emergency spending package that contains tough-on-China policies. This is Blinken’s second visit to the mainland, where he will meet with business leaders and Foreign Minister Wang Yi. It is unclear whether Blinken will also speak with President Xi Jinping, as he did during his last trip in June 2023.

Experts predict the foreign aid package to be a prime talking point between the US and Chinese delegations, as part of it provides $8 billion in funding for the Indo-Pacific region, including military assistance to Taiwan. Beijing does not recognize Taipei’s sovereignty and has repeatedly threatened to take back the island. Next month, Taiwan is set to inaugurate Lai Ching-te, whom China accuses of being an advocate for Taiwanese independence, as its new president.

The new US law also requires ByteDance, the Chinese owner of TikTok, to sell the social media app. Otherwise, it will be banned in the United States. Under Chinese law, companies are required to hand over to the government any personal data relevant to the country’s national security. The FBI and US Federal Communications Commission have warned that this opens up US TikTok users to the risk of ByteDance sharing their personal data—such as browsing history, location, and biometric identifiers—with the Chinese government. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson declined to answer reporters’ questions about TikTok at a news briefing on Wednesday, instead pointing to past Commerce Ministry statements that say China will “firmly oppose” selling the app. TikTok vowed to challenge the ruling in court.

Blinken is also expected to urge Beijing to stop sending military-related technology to Russia amid its war in Ukraine. Blinken accused China last week of being the “primary contributor” to Russia’s defense industrial base, citing evidence of Beijing providing the Kremlin with machine tools, semiconductors, and other items to rebuild Russia’s military. “If China purports on the one hand to want good relations with Europe and other countries, it can’t on the other hand be fueling what is the biggest threat to European security since the end of the Cold War,” Blinken said.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen went a step further during a meeting in Beijing earlier this month, when she warned Chinese banks that they could face fresh US sanctions if they help Russia’s war effort. But a senior Chinese Foreign Ministry official said on Tuesday that Ukraine is not an issue between the United States and China, adding that “the US side should not turn it into one.”

Blinken also plans to address human rights concerns in Hong Kong and China’s Xinjiang province, cheap Chinese exports that Yellen said threatens US jobs, the flow of Chinese-subsidized fentanyl and synthetic opioid substances to the United States, and Beijing’s broad claims over the disputed South China Sea. Biden met with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Washington earlier this month to collaborate against Chinese activity in the region.

For its part, Beijing hopes to ease US export controls on advanced technologies, with Xi warning Biden in San Francisco last November that more restrictions could “deprive the Chinese people of their right to development.” Biden called for raising tariffs on steel imports from China last week during a campaign rally.

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What We’re Following

Evacuation prep. Israel is “moving ahead” with a ground operation in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, a spokesperson for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday, although no timeline for when that might occur was provided. Top Israeli security officials said they visited Egypt on Wednesday to coordinate with Cairo on the operation, and Israel’s Defense Ministry has purchased 40,000 tents with the capacity to hold 10 to 12 people each to house Palestinians forced to evacuate Rafah. A military official said on Tuesday that relocated civilians would go to a safe zone elsewhere in Gaza, a few miles along the Mediterranean coast.

Israel insists that a Rafah offensive is vital to eliminating Hamas militants believed to be sheltering in the city; however, humanitarian groups and foreign leaders have warned Israel against such an assault, arguing that it would inflict mass civilian causalities. Israel’s war cabinet is expected to discuss the offensive on Thursday.

Along Israel’s northern border, the Israeli military announced on Wednesday that it struck around 40 sites linked to Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the Israeli military has already killed around half of Hezbollah’s brigade-level commanders. The group has denied Gallant’s claim. Israel’s latest assault came one day after the Iranian-backed militant group said it launched its deepest attack inside Israel since the war began on Oct. 7, 2023.

Economic talks in Tehran. North Korea sent a high-level economic delegation to Iran this week, Pyongyang state media reported on Wednesday. These are North Korea’s first known talks with Tehran in almost five years and will be led by North Korean External Economic Relations Minister Yun Jung Ho. State media did not provide additional details on what topics would be discussed, but experts say trade and military collaboration are likely to be on the agenda.

“North Korea is sending an economic delegation now but it will be the beginning of a wider military cooperation to follow between the two,” Ban Kil Joo, a research professor at Korea University, told Bloomberg.

Experts have long suspected Pyongyang and Tehran of cooperating on ballistic missile programs and exchanging technical expertise. Both North Korea and Iran are also among a small number of nations that outwardly support Russia in its war against Ukraine. Pyongyang has been accused of providing Russia with missiles and other munitions, and Tehran stands accused of sending drones to the Kremlin.

Red notice. Argentina asked Interpol on Wednesday to issue a “red notice” for Iranian Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi, accusing him of being one of the people responsible for the 1994 attack on a Jewish community center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people and injured 300 others. A red notice alerts police in Interpol member countries about internationally wanted fugitives, but it does not constitute an arrest warrant. That responsibility is up to each member nation.

Earlier this month, Argentina’s highest criminal court ruled that Iran planned the 1994 attack and helped one of its proxy groups, Hezbollah, carry it out. This was a “crime against humanity,” the court said. Tehran dismissed the ruling as having political motivations and denied any involvement. Iran did not comment on the red notice against Vahidi.

Odds and Ends

Spanish authorities accidentally released notorious alleged cartel boss Karim Bouyakhrichan less than 60 days after he was arrested in January. On Tuesday, Spain’s Cadena SER radio network revealed that the National Court in Madrid failed to issue a detention order after agreeing to extradite Bouyakhrichan to the Netherlands, allowing Málaga’s provincial court to release the billionaire on a bail of roughly $53,000.

The “Mocro Mafia” leader is accused of money laundering as well as planning to murder the heir to the Dutch throne and Prime Minister Mark Rutte, making him one of Interpol’s most wanted criminals. Spanish Justice Minister Félix Bolaños conceded that Bouyakhrichan’s release was “worrying news” but said the country’s justice system was “generally good.”