Tycoon Shoulders Multimillion-Koruna Czech Piano Purchase Cancelled by Chinese Buyer over Senate President’s Visit to Taiwan

A Chinese buyer cancelled a 5.3 million-koruna (approximately 1.83 million-Hong Kong dollar) order with the Czech piano maker Petrof as Beijing fumed over a recent visit to Taiwan led by the Czech senate president Miloš Vystrčil. The Czech News Agency and Forbes reported that Czech tycoon Karel Komárek had took on the purchase and donated all 11 handmade pianos involved to local schools.

Petrof’s CEO Zuzana Ceralová Petrofová said earlier that a Chinese customer from Beijing had cancelled a close order because of Vystrčil’s visit to Taiwan. Petrof is a renowned musical instrument brand with the Chinese market contributing to about 35% of its revenue. The company is worried that further deterioration of the Czech Republic’s relations with China will have an impact on its business.

In a surprising turn of event, Czech tycoon Karel Komárek and his wife were reported on 9 September to have taken on the rejected purchase. Having learnt that a Chinese customer had cancelled an order with Petrof, said Komárek, the billionaire decided to buy the 11 pianos involved in the name of the foundation KKCG and donate them to schools in the Czech Republic. These pianos, he hopes, can become a symbol of Czech pride and unity.

Source: Stand News #Sep09

#Czech #Taiwan #China #Vystrčil #Piano #Petrof #Komárek #Diplomacy

https://bit.ly/35NWEd0

India Blames Latest Conflict on China’s First Shot, PLA Soldiers Show up with Medieval Glaives in Standoff

Developments have taken place in the skirmish on the Indo-Chinese border near Pangon Lake in eastern Ladakh. India stated on 8 September that the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of China fired the first shot in the air in an attempt to menace frontline Indian troops on the Mukhpari peak. The Times of India quoted government sources as saying that the Indians also fired several shots in the air in response.

The latest confrontation started at around 6 pm on 7 September when Chinese soldiers tried to approach the Indian camp. Using loudspeakers and floodlights, the Indian troops asked them to fall back, only to meet with a shot in the air by the Chinese in an attempt to intimidate the Indians. The Indian military stressed in a statement that its soldiers had shown great restraint facing gross provocation and had acted maturely and responsibly.

The Times of India noted that the incident was still far from being a gunfight, adding that the PLA had not taken further actions after the initial shot. About 40 Chinese soldiers remained in a standoff with the Indians on the Mukhpari peak, which is over 18,000 feet above the sea level. Besides rifles, the the Chinese troops were also armed with such medieval weapons as rods, clubs, spears and even homemade glaives.

Source: Stand News #Sep09

#India #China #Ladakh #Pangon #Military #Border #Conflict

https://bit.ly/3kwbM2C

Mainland cautiously opens up to foreigners

China on Wednesday eased entry restrictions for foreigners holding certain residence permits, an incremental step towards reopening borders closed to prevent the spread of Covid-19.The country has gradually allowed more foreigners to enter after an abrupt ban on all foreign nationals, including those with Chinese work or residence permits, announced in March to fight the pandemic.Foreigners who have residence permits tied to employment, as well as permits for two types of family reunions may now re-enter the country without applying for new documents, the foreign ministry said in a statement.But all entrants "must strictly abide by China's anti-epidemic management regulations," it said.That means being subject to Covid-19 tests and a 14-day quarantine.People keen to return will also need to find a plane ticket, after Beijing ordered a drastic reduction in international flights at the end of March, and prices soared.In August, China allowed foreign nationals from 36 European countries to re-apply for visas without a previously required and rarely issued invitation letter.Before that, China opened its borders to a slow stream of skilled foreign workers under special fast-track agreements signed with a small number of countries.China has largely controlled the spread of the virus, which first emerged in the central city of Wuhan late last year.Despite several small outbreaks during the summer, most cases reported in the country in recent weeks have been travellers entering from abroad. (AFP)

2020-09-23 20:45:41

Pompeo: China stirring up trouble in US

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Wednesday accused China of trying to foment unrest in the United States through its criticism of racism.Pompeo, known for his hawkish views on China, went on the attack on Beijing in an unusual address to state lawmakers in Wisconsin, a crucial swing state in November elections.The Chinese Communist Party "thinks it can drown out American cries for accountability with shouts of racism," Pompeo told lawmakers from his Republican Party inside the state Capitol in Madison."It wants to foment the kind of strife we've seen in Minneapolis, and Portland and here in Kenosha," he said, referring to three cities that have seen protests over racism in recent months."That's disgusting. We can't let that happen," he said.As evidence of China's intentions, Pompeo pointed to a letter from a Chinese diplomat to a lawmaker from Wisconsin.The letter said that Beijing was "firmly opposed to racial discrimination and xenophobia" against the Chinese community over the coronavirus."America's righteous anger at the CCP over its handling of the coronavirus has nothing to do with race and everything to do with citizens dead, children kept from school and jobs lost," Pompeo said. "The CCP knows this."President Trump has alarmed not only China but many Asian Americans by referring to the "China virus," a term that health experts call stigmatizing.The United States frequently assails China's human rights record including over its incarceration, according to witnesses and activists, of more than one million Uighurs and other Turkic-speaking Muslims in the western region of Xinjiang.China's official media eagerly returned criticism after the May killing of African American George Floyd by Minneapolis police, which has sparked global protest and renewed attention to racism. (AFP)

2020-09-24 02:33:33

President Donald Trump doesn't beat around the bush like career politicians:

“China should have stopped it at their border, they should’ve never let this spread all over the world, China let this happen and just remember that”

🇨🇳 🇪🇺 Totalitarians of a feather
https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2020/09/23/eu-sending-surveillance-tech-chinese-communist-party-report/