Taiwan: the technology trade turn

Taiwan has a general election on Saturday. The international media has highlighted the election as an important geopolitical pivot – namely, if the current incumbent government party, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), wins the presidency and legislature and continues its call for formal (not just de facto) independence from mainland China, that will mean intensified attacks on Taiwan by Beijing, perhaps leading to military conflict.

Taiwan: the technology trade turn

2023 Review: China vs US, Who is Winning in Key Tech Domains?

Source

In the List of Critical and Emerging Technologies released by ASPI, a well-known Australian think tank, China takes the lead in 53 categories of cutting-edge technologies. At the same time, the USA claims the remaining 11. Notably, according to the list, China dominates in areas like advanced materials and manufacturing, energy and environment, and advanced information and communication technologies and enjoys a sizable advantage in defense, space, robotics, transportation, and quantum technology.

2023 Review: China vs US, Who is Winning in Key Tech Domains?

In other words, China is eating our lunch! 😉

President Maduro’s speech welcoming the freed Alex Saab to Venezuela

December 20, 2023

Good afternoon to all Venezuela, to the National Radio and Television network, to all national and international media and those through social networks. I want to welcome this brave, patriotic man who resisted 1280 days, 40 months, in the most adverse, most painful conditions of kidnapping, filthy prisons, physical torture, psychological torture, threats, lies. And after 1280 days of kidnapping, he has triumphed. The truth has triumphed, justice has triumphed – what had to happen. Welcome, Alex Saab Moran. From your days of pain, of persecution against you, against your family. This I told Alex when I just gave him this hug. On this beautiful afternoon, with this beautiful sun in Caracas, on this happy Christmas of our people waiting for the year 2024. I knew that this day had to come and this day came. Blessed day, December 20, unforgettable forever in the year 2023. We have to talk about so many things. You have faced the toughest tests that a brave man with Palestinian blood knows how to endure.

President Maduro’s speech welcoming the freed Alex Saab to Venezuela

Previously:

Canadian statistics on government sponsored suicide mark cause of death as ailment patient suffered before they were euthanized

Canada plans to hide its skyrocketing euthanasia deaths as a result of its Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD) program by listing fatalities on the basis of “the disease or injury that initiated the train of morbid events.”

Canadian statistics on government sponsored suicide mark cause of death as ailment patient suffered before they were euthanized

H/T: Redacted with Clayton Morris

On the strategic relationship between Venezuela and China

During a state visit to the People’s Republic of China in September 2023, Venezuelan president, Nicolas Maduro met president Xi Jinping and both agreed to strengthen the relationship of their countries by establishing seven sub commissions to elevate it to the level of ‘all-weather strategic partnership’. This is the culmination of a relationship that began with president Hugo Chavez’s first visit to Beijing in 1999, the very first year of his presidency.

On the strategic relationship between Venezuela and China

Iran: The West Prepares Yet Another Regime Change War

13-11-2023: In what seems to be rather convenient, a war between the Israeli state and Palestine has broken out, in response to the indiscriminate terrorist acts of Hamas on October 7. It comes just at the time when the NATO armed Nazified forces in Ukraine had come to a standstill with a completely failed “offensive” in which the Western proxies reportedly lost 90 000 servicemen dead, 600 destroyed tanks and around 1900 armoured vehicles.[1] Following on from a fraudulent “Covid pandemic”, and NATO’s blundering proxy war against Russia, “all of a sudden” the Israel/Palestine issue has taken the headlines. Yet this latest scenario, which has reportedly taken around 9000 Palestinian lives[2] alongside around 1300 Israeli lives[3] is arguably one more deadly ploy to provide cover for another catastrophe – a US led war for regime change on the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI). In what appears as a grotesque bait and switch, Washington and its imperialist allies have set off a powder keg situation backed by 75 years of injustice against Palestine as a foil for Wall Street to finally be given an excuse to topple the Iranian revolution which has been a thorn in their side since 1979.

Iran: The West Prepares Yet Another Regime Change War

Related:

The WSWS, Iran’s economy, the Basij & Revolutionary Shi’ism: an 11-part series (archived)