The US and China’s risky pursuit of secrets
The spy game between the US and China is even more elaborate than the one that played out between the Americans and the Soviets during the Cold War, says Christopher A. Wray, director of the FBI. China’s large population and economy allow it to build intelligence services that are larger than those of the US
When a Chinese spy balloon floated over the US mainland in February, attention was drawn to an ever-expanding and highly secretive war between spies and spies. US intelligence agencies learned that the People’s Liberation Army himself had kept President Xi Jinping in the dark about the errant balloon’s trajectory until it was over the US.
For the US, spying efforts are a crucial part of President Biden’s strategy to limit China’s military and technological rise, in line with his thinking that the country poses the biggest long-term challenge to US power. For Beijing, the new tolerance for bold action among Chinese spy agencies is driven by Xi, who has pushed his military to take aggressive actions along the country’s borders and his foreign intelligence service to become more active in more remote areas.
Effective espionage can prevent the slide into war or pave the way for delicate negotiations. It can also lead countries into diplomatic conflicts or armed conflicts. The spy battle could also be a substitute for armed clashes – as was often the case during the Cold War.
Technology: U.S. officials have sharpened their ability to intercept electronic communications, including by deploying spy planes off the Chinese coast. Chinese agents use social media sites – especially LinkedIn – to lure potential recruits, and China even has artificial intelligence software that can detect the movements of an American spy.
Diplomacy: A White House official said yesterday that the US national security adviser met with China’s top diplomat in Malta this weekend.
Ukraine recaptures a strategic village, army says
The Ukrainian army said yesterday it had recaptured the small village of Klishchiivka, the second settlement to return to Kiev’s control in three days and the most significant recent progress in the hard-fought counter-offensive to drive Russian forces out of the country’s east .
Klishchiivka had been occupied by Russian forces since January, when Wagner mercenaries captured it after weeks of fighting as part of the nearly year-long battle for the nearby town of Bakhmut. The recapture of Klishchiivka could help Ukraine put pressure on Russian forces controlling Bakhmut.
The advance claim came as two cargo ships reached Chornomorsk yesterday, the first ships to reach a Ukrainian port since Russia ended the Black Sea grain deal in mid-July, in an early sign that Ukraine could open an alternative route for its grain. export.
In diplomatic news: North Korean leader Kim Jong Un toured key elements of Russia’s nuclear force as President Vladimir Putin sought to cast himself as champion of an anti-American alliance.
Those warmer ties could cause problems for President Xi Jinping. A closer relationship between Russia and North Korea could weaken Xi’s influence over both countries and counter Beijing’s efforts to stabilize its ties with the West.
Aid in Libya shifts the focus to diseases
After dams burst in northeastern Libya last week, thousands of people were killed and more than 40,000 were displaced, creating a serious humanitarian crisis, according to the International Organization for Migration.
As hopes of finding survivors dwindle, relief efforts are shifting focus to a shortage of medical supplies and contaminated drinking water. Nearly 300,000 children face “an increased risk of diarrhea and cholera, dehydration and malnutrition,” according to a UN report.
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Asiatic-Pacific
South Korean adoptees have returned to their native country – known as the world’s largest “baby exporter” – to hold the government accountable for what they call a corrupt adoption system that has remained largely unchanged in recent decades.
They work with a new generation of researchers and politicians willing to shed light on a painful legacy once considered too shameful to discuss openly.
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The biggest story in sports
Coco Gauff’s victory over Aryna Sabalenka last week sealed the US Open and her first Grand Slam title. It was a highlight that overshadowed an anticlimax for the men, in which Novak Djokovic won again, writes our columnist Kurt Streeter.
As Kurt moves to a new assignment, he reflects on watershed moments in the rise of female athletes during his tenure: the WNBA’s leading role in the 2020 civil rights protests. The U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team’s victory for equal pay, and how women’s soccer players around the world rose up against intimidating and abusive coaches. The full stadiums at the Women’s World Cup, with 75,000 spectators for the final in Australia.
“Yes,” Streeter writes, “it is a new era.”