Spencer Low
15May/130

Beijing, New Delhi must shake hands: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang

Beijing, New Delhi must shake hands: Chinese Premier Li Keqiang - The Times of India timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Beijing-…

Recalling his visit to India over two decade and half decades ago, he said, "What I saw and felt during that trip, visiting Taj Mahal and prestigious Indian universities, research institutes and warmth and hospitality of Indian people, left a lasting impact on me".

"In a few days time I will make India the first stop of first overseas visit as a premier of China. I have made this decision not just because India is an important neighbour and one of the populous countries of the world but also because of the seeds of friendship sown during my own youth", he said.

China's Premier Li Keqiang speaks to members of an Indian youth delegation during a meeting at the Zhongnanhai compound in Beijing on May 15, 2013. (AFP photo)

14May/130

Global trade’s fastest-growing choke point – the Straits of Malacca – is about to get more congested

Global trade’s fastest-growing choke point – the Straits of Malacca – is about to get more congested qz.com/84041 via @qz

Oil from the Middle East and Africa that travels through the Straits of Malacca makes up 75% of oil (paywall) consumed by Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, and 37% of China’s demand. [...]

The straits, a 1.5 nautical-mile wide sea lane near Singapore, are considered the second largest “global choke point” after the Straits of Hormuz in the Middle East.

Global choke points: Narrow waterways that are highly vulnerable to piracy, robbery, and competition between nations. Medill National Security Journalism Initiative

14May/130

African traders flocked to Guangzhou to trade but are staying and integrating economically and socially

African traders flocked to Guangzhou to trade but are staying and integrating economically and socially qz.com/81642 via @qz

The first wave of Africans arrived in the late 1990s, shuttling shipments between Guangzhou and African hubs like Lagos, Abidjan and Accra, forming the backbone of the kind of informal trade that has helped make China Africa’s biggest trading partner.

Members of the Sacred Heart Cathedral congregation donate groceries in Guangzhou. There are a growing number of interracial families in the city, according to Elochukwu Chikwendu, who was one of the first Nigerian traders to marry into a Chinese family.”We’re working to keep families together despite the cultural differences,” he said. Yepoka Yeebo

13May/130

San Diego Mayor Building Economic Bridges to Tijuana

San Diego Mayor Building Economic Bridges to Tijuana nyti.ms/ZTm2lV

“Dos ciudades, pero una región — we are two cities, but one region,” he said, using the phrase popular among those who want more collaboration in the area. San Diego would put in a bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics, he said, but only to host jointly with Tijuana.

Three-hour waits are not unusual at the San Diego border. (Monica Almeida/The New York Times)

8May/130

The Changing Map of Middle East Power

The Changing Map of Middle East Power by Volker Perthes via @ProSyn po.st/6QkaYx

Volker Perthes is Chairman and Director of Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, Berlin.

Illustration by Dean Rohrer, from NewsArt.com via Project-Syndicate.org

8May/130

Erbil is preparing to greet visitors as the Arab Capital of Tourism in 2014, a singular honour for a non-Arab city

Erbil is preparing to greet visitors as the Arab Capital of Tourism in 2014, a singular honour for a non-Arab city nyti.ms/YlZc8I

Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, already plays host to tourists from the Arab world, not least Iraqi Arabs, who come north to escape the heat, and the violence, elsewhere in the country.

The citadel at Erbil, Iraq. The city has been chosen to be the Arab Capital of Tourism for 2014.
(Harvey Morris, from NYTimes.com)

5May/130

What China and Russia Don’t Get About Soft Power

What China and Russia Don't Get About Soft Power - By Joseph S. Nye | Foreign Policy foreignpolicy.com/articles/2013/…

The soft power of a country rests primarily on three resources: its culture (in places where it is attractive to others), its political values (when it lives up to them at home and abroad), and its foreign policies (when they are seen as legitimate and having moral authority). But combining these resources is not always easy.

From ForeignPolicy.com

5May/130

China’s India Land Grab, by Brahma Chellaney

China’s India Land Grab, by Brahma Chellaney via @ProSyn po.st/kT0i4s

Brahma Chellaney, Professor of Strategic Studies at the New Delhi-based Center for Policy Research, is the author of Asian Juggernaut, Water: Asia’s New Battleground, and Water, Peace, and War: Confronting the Global Water Crisis.

Illustration by Barrie Maguire, from NewsArt.com (via Project-Syndicate.org)

28Apr/130

México atrae a españoles desempleados

México atrae a españoles desempleados exp.mx/n005LOV via @cnnexpansion

Los países extranjeros en los que residen más personas de nacionalidad española son: Argentina (385,388), Francia (206, 589), Venezuela (183,163) y Alemania (116,056). En México, la cifra es de 94,617, hasta 2012, pero es poco precisa, porque considera las altas que se realizan ante el consulado, trámite que -quizá- no todos los españoles cumplen.

28Apr/130

Latinoamérica, una región de claroscuros

Latinoamérica, una región de claroscuros con estabilidad económica pero elevada desigualdad exp.mx/n005LD7 via @cnnexpansion

Latinoamérica ha logrado sortear el vendaval de la crisis, pero no debe confiarse. (Foto: Getty Images)