- 2 years ago
The China Now special program informs about this country's news. The first segment recaps the meetings of China's Foreign Minister with Ukrainian counterpart and later with French President, and other important issues. The second segment covers three scientific findings to what different diet and exercise plans do to our body. In Thinker's Forum, we have journalist Paula Slier. teleSUR
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00:00 Hello, TeleSor English presents a new episode of China Now, a Wave Media's production
00:13 that showcases the culture, technology and politics of the Asian giant.
00:17 In this first segment, we are going to start with the meetings of the Minister of Foreign
00:21 Affairs of China, Wang Yi, with his counterpart, Dmitry Kuleba, about the relations that China
00:26 has held with Ukraine and the solid position that China has maintained on resolving the
00:30 conflict with dialogue and peace.
00:33 Then two days later, with the President of France, Emmanuel Macron, where France is willing
00:37 to enhance strategic cooperation with China.
00:39 On the other hand, on February 20th, the Southern Theater Command of the People's Liberation
00:44 Army organized frontline naval and air forces to closely monitor a Philippine-U.S. joint
00:49 air patrol in the South China Sea, wherein a statement made by the same command specified
00:54 that the Philippines brought together a non-regional country to stir up trouble in the South China
00:59 Sea.
01:00 Let's see.
01:01 China Current is a weekly news talk show from China to the world.
01:04 We cover viral news about China every week and also give you the newest updates on China's
01:10 cutting-edge technologies.
01:13 Let's get started.
01:19 Hi, welcome to China Current.
01:23 I'm Chris.
01:24 Let's start this episode with a tragic event.
01:27 On February 14th, a fishing boat from the Chinese mainland was violently chased by Taiwan
01:33 authorities in the waters around Kinmen.
01:36 Four people on board fell into the water and two of them died.
01:40 Despite the incident taking place during the traditional Chinese New Year holiday, Taiwan
01:44 authorities refused to provide further explanation and apologies for the incident, excusing its
01:50 actions in the so-called "restricted waters."
01:54 In response, on the afternoon of February 19th, Chinese Coast Guard boarded a tourist
01:59 boat from Taiwan Island for inspection while the latter was passing through the waters
02:04 around Kinmen, a group of islets in the Taiwan Strait controlled by Taiwan authorities.
02:08 It's the first time the Chinese Coast Guard has implemented its law enforcement activity
02:14 on vessels from Taiwan Island in the waters near Kinmen.
02:18 The inspection took half an hour before the tourist boat was allowed to return to Kinmen.
02:23 In response to the confrontational stance of Taiwan authorities, the mainland has announced
02:27 that it will normalize its law enforcement patrols around Kinmen, denying the so-called
02:33 "restricted waters" in the area as the waters have historically been a traditional fishing
02:38 ground.
02:39 "The mainland reserves the right to take further measures," said the spokesperson of the mainland's
02:43 Taiwan Affairs Office at the State Council.
02:47 Next up, let's turn to Chinese diplomacy.
02:50 On February 18th, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Director
02:54 of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs Wang Yi met at request with
02:59 Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba on the margins of the Munich Security Conference.
03:05 Wang Yi noted that China and Ukraine are strategic partners and our two peoples have long enjoyed
03:11 friendly exchanges.
03:12 There is a traditional friendship between the peoples of China and Ukraine.
03:17 Wang Yi also expressed gratitude for Ukraine's help at the emergency evacuation of the Chinese
03:22 nationals.
03:23 Wang Yi stated that on the Ukraine issue, China has always been standing on the side
03:28 of peace and dialogue and insisted on promoting peace talks.
03:33 China does not want to see the crisis being prolonged and escalated and is willing to
03:38 work with the international community to prevent the situation from getting worse and strive
03:43 to bring about peace.
03:45 Kuleba said that Ukraine and China have kept contact all along the past year.
03:50 Ukraine wants to realize peace much more than any other countries.
03:54 And Ukraine values China's status as an important influence on the international arena.
03:59 As well as China's stance on a political settlement to the crisis, Ukraine expects
04:03 China to continue its constructive role.
04:06 Two days later, on February 20th, French President Emmanuel Macron held a talk in Paris with
04:11 Wang Yi.
04:12 Macron stressed the importance of France-China strategic dialogue and reaffirmed France's
04:18 consistent adherence to the One China policy, stating that this position is clear and unambiguous.
04:24 In a face of global challenges, France is committed to strategic autonomy and is willing
04:29 to enhance strategic cooperation with China to jointly safeguard peace and stability.
04:35 Both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation on a wide range of issues, including climate
04:40 change, biodiversity protection, sustainable development, agricultural products, clean
04:46 energy, nuclear energy research and development, artificial intelligence, aerospace and forest
04:52 carbon sinks.
04:54 Next up, AI.
04:55 OpenAI's text-to-video model, SARA, sparked global excitement upon its release.
05:01 A few days later, a meeting of the state-owned Asset Supervision Administration Commission
05:06 on AI Development was held, emphasizing the need for SOEs to play a leading role in the
05:12 country's AI drive.
05:13 It's not the first time SASAC has put particular focus on AI this year.
05:19 At a State Council Information Office press conference in January, SASAC Secretary General
05:25 and Spokesperson Zhang Shuxin introduced that the regulator will plan and promote a batch
05:30 of major projects, select 100 projects in strategic emerging industries, build strategic
05:36 emerging industry clusters and implement special actions like AI+.
05:41 One key goal of China's AI development plans is to address the computing power foundation
05:47 issue, that is, AI chip clusters.
05:49 Secondly, there is an emphasis on AI empowerment across industries, a clear and direct approach
05:55 that, combined with China's national conditions, differs from the U.S. AI direction.
06:01 In 2023, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology issued guidelines on future industrial
06:07 layouts, including general AI, brain-computer interfaces, and humanoid robots and a metaverse.
06:14 It is worth noting that just days ago, insiders reported that relevant Chinese authorities
06:18 had already convened meetings to study and discuss it.
06:23 Next up, lately, Chinese authorities have been focusing on a previously little-regulated
06:27 stock market.
06:29 After the appointment of the new chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission,
06:33 new sets of regulations and punishments are being carried out swiftly, bringing a powerful
06:38 momentum to the previously chaotic and speculative market.
06:42 Here are some examples of the reform.
06:45 Back in October 9, 2023, the Shanghai Stock Exchange has already established a dedicated
06:51 reporting system and corresponding regulatory arrangements targeted at quantitative trading
06:56 by publishing notifications on matters related to the reporting of algorithmic stock trading
07:03 and notification on strengthening the management of algorithmic trading.
07:08 The said regulation has just been implemented lately.
07:12 Now existing investors have completed their reporting on schedule as required, and new
07:16 investors have complied with the report-first trade-later regulation.
07:21 Overall, the quality of the reports submitted by all parties have met the requirements,
07:26 laying a solid foundation for the further strengthening and improvement of quantitative
07:30 trading supervision.
07:32 The SSE has committed to leveraging the reported information to continuously enhance the monitoring
07:38 and analysis of algorithmic trading, especially high-frequency trading.
07:43 The exchange will dynamically assess and refine the reporting system to ensure robust regulatory
07:48 oversight of this advanced and rapidly evolving segment of the trading landscape.
07:54 As of February 20 this year, data from the stock exchanges in Shanghai, Shenzhen and
07:59 Beijing shows that 46 companies have terminated their listing applications.
08:04 Among these, one application was rejected at a review meeting, while the remaining 45
08:10 companies voluntarily withdrew their applications.
08:13 This move comes as part of an effort to improve the quality of listed companies.
08:18 The China Securities Regulatory Commission is set to focus more on strictly controlling
08:23 the initial public offering access by intensifying supervision and inspection of companies preparing
08:29 to go public.
08:30 There is a significant emphasis on clamping down on financial fraud to ensure the integrity
08:35 of the market.
08:37 Market professionals believe that by tightening the scrutiny of IPO admissions and attracting
08:42 genuinely high growth and high-tech enterprises to list, the market will become more robust.
08:48 There is a call for strong measures against companies that aims to list for the purpose
08:52 of cash-grabbing and cashing out.
08:55 Additionally, there is a push to increase penalties for intermediary agencies involved
09:00 in cases of wrongdoing.
09:02 These efforts aim to protect the lawful rights and interests of small and medium investors
09:06 and to boost market confidence.
09:09 On February 19, the Shenzhen Stock Exchange identified abnormal trading activities executed
09:15 by Ningbo-Lingjun Investment Management Partnership.
09:18 Only one minute after trading started, several securities accounts under Ningbo-Lingjun used
09:24 computer programs to automatically generate trading orders, placing a large number of
09:29 orders in a short period, selling a total of 1.4 billion yuan worth of stocks in Shenzhen
09:34 market.
09:35 This activity caused a rapid decline in the Shenzhen Component Index and disrupted the
09:40 normal trading order, constituting abnormal trading behavior as defined by the Shenzhen
09:45 Securities Exchange trading rules.
09:48 Throughout the year, Ningbo-Lingjun securities accounts have been subject to regulatory measures
09:54 such as written warnings from this exchange due to abnormal trading practices.
09:59 But despite these measures, Ningbo-Lingjun continued to engage in abnormal trading behavior.
10:04 The SDSC thus decided to impose trading restrictions on the securities accounts associated with
10:09 Ningbo-Lingjun.
10:11 Starting from February 20 to February 22, these accounts were prohibited from buying
10:16 and selling any stocks listed on the SDSC.
10:20 Furthermore, the exchange has initiated procedures for public reprimand and disciplinary action
10:25 against Ningbo-Lingjun.
10:27 Last but not least, let's turn to military.
10:30 On February 20, the Southern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army organized
10:34 frontline naval and air forces to closely monitor a Philippines-U.S. joint air patrol
10:40 in the South China Sea.
10:42 The operation was confirmed in a statement released by the command on the same day.
10:46 The so-called "joint air patrol" was conducted by three Philippine F-A-50 jet fighters and
10:51 one U.S. B-52 bomber on February 19.
10:55 The Philippine side brought together a non-regional country to stir up trouble in the South China
10:59 Sea and publicly hyped up the air patrol, according to the statement, criticizing the
11:04 U.S. involvement.
11:06 Two days ago on February 18, the Philippines accused Chinese fishermen of poisoning the
11:11 waters in Huangyuan Island with cyanide for fishing and discouraging Philippine fishermen
11:17 from operating in the area.
11:19 Huangyuan Island, a Chinese territory, was continuously claimed by the Philippines in
11:23 recent years.
11:25 Prior to the Philippines-U.S. joint air patrol, the Chinese embassy in the Philippines refuted
11:29 the poisoning allegations as "completely baseless and fabricated," condemning the
11:35 Philippines for "exacerbating tension and undermining the bilateral relationship through
11:39 consistent provocations."
11:41 Well that's all for today.
11:42 Thank you for watching this episode of China Currents.
11:44 If you have any thoughts and comments about our show, please reach us at the email address
11:48 below.
11:49 I'm Chris, looking forward to hearing from you and see you next time.
11:57 We'll go for a short break now, but we'll be right back.
12:00 Stay with us.
12:00 Welcome back to China Now.
12:19 In this second segment, we have threshold.
12:21 In this episode, we are going to learn three scientific findings about what different diet
12:26 and exercise plans do to our body.
12:28 Moreover, in Thinker Forum, we have Paula Slier, former World Correspondent from Roger
12:32 Today and founder of BTGN, talking how she can define 2023 in one word, referring to
12:38 the international point of view and other events in the world.
12:41 Enjoy.
12:42 Every celebration brings forth an extra pound.
12:50 In China, the Spring Festival is a time for feast, and normally after it's over, people
12:56 start to think about losing weight, especially with summer around the corner.
13:01 Hi, I'm Lisa, and this is Threshold in China.
13:05 Losing weight seems simple enough.
13:07 Eat less and exercise more.
13:09 Well, it's easier said than done.
13:11 But today we are going to talk about three scientific findings to what different diet
13:16 and exercise plans do to our body.
13:24 One approach that has gained attention is Intermittent Energy Restriction, IER, which
13:30 involves taking breaks from eating and following a regular meal pattern.
13:35 A recent study conducted by scientists at Zhengzhou University People's Hospital in
13:40 China found that IER can effectively help obese individuals lose weight and reduce obesity-related
13:48 complications.
13:50 The study also revealed interesting connections between weight loss, gut microbiota, the microorganisms
13:57 in our digestive systems, and brain function.
14:02 Using advanced techniques like Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, fMRI, and metagenomic
14:08 sequencing, the researchers examined 25 obese individuals who underwent a two-month IER
14:16 intervention and successfully lost weight.
14:21 During that period, they first ate normally for a baseline, then entered a high-controlled
14:26 fasting phase where they received decreasingly pre-planned meals on specific days, alternating
14:32 with normal days.
14:33 The final phase involved low-controlled fasting, where participants followed a food list and
14:38 limited their calorie intake on specific days while choosing their food on others.
14:45 Researchers monitored body samples at various points.
14:48 At the end of the study, these 25 participants had lost an average of 7.6 to 7.8% of their
14:56 body weight.
14:57 They also had reductions in body fat, waist circumference, blood pressure, fasting blood
15:03 glucose, total cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein, etc.
15:08 These results suggest that IER can not only reduce obesity but also reduce the complications
15:14 associated with obesity, such as hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and liver dysfunction.
15:21 The study also found significant changes in the composition of gut microbiota throughout
15:27 the weight loss journey, including a decrease in the abundance of the E. coli, a bacterium
15:33 associated with obesity.
15:36 In contrast, the level of certain gut bacteria, which are linked to a healthier weight, increased.
15:42 The findings show that IER led to changes in the activities of specific brain regions
15:48 associated with obesity.
15:50 For example, regions involved in cognitive control, emotion and learning, and sensory
15:55 processing showed decrease in activity during weight loss.
16:00 This suggests that the communication between specific gut microbes and certain brain regions
16:06 plays a crucial role in weight loss.
16:08 To understand this concept better, think of your body as a complex machine, with the brain
16:14 as the control center and the gut microbiota as the workers.
16:19 When you embark on a weight loss journey, the brain sends signals to the gut microbiota,
16:24 instructing them to make changes.
16:26 These changes in turn affect the brain's activity and influence your eating behavior.
16:32 This research highlights that weight loss is not solely about diet and exercise.
16:36 It involves a complex interaction between different systems in our body.
16:47 Anxiety disorders affect millions of people worldwide, and while exercise has long been
16:51 known to improve our mood, we still don't know why it is.
16:55 A study from Nanjing University has uncovered some insights into how exercise reduces anxiety
17:02 by examining the connection between different parts of the brain.
17:06 The study focuses on two areas, the cerebellum, which helps control movement, and amygdala,
17:12 which is the emotional center of the brain.
17:15 The researchers discovered a pathway, a three-neutron loop, that connects the cerebellum with the
17:22 emotional system.
17:24 This pathway acts as a bridge between the part of the brain responsible for movement
17:29 and those that process emotions, known as the limbic system.
17:33 By engaging this pathway through physical activity, anxiety levels can be effectively
17:39 regulated.
17:40 The scientists conducted tests on mice and rats, having them engaged in various physical
17:45 activities.
17:47 They found that exercise affects the connection between the cerebellum and amygdala, especially
17:53 in the case of challenging activities like running on the spinning wheel.
17:58 The intense activity sends signals to the hypothalamus deep in the brain.
18:02 The hypothalamus releases a chemical called orexin, which acts as a neurotransmitter that
18:08 carries messages between the brain cells.
18:11 Orexin is already known to regulate important functions like sleep, hunger, and stress.
18:17 The study suggests that orexin also has a significant impact on our emotions.
18:23 Orexin travels to the cerebellum, which then activates the amygdala.
18:28 All of this helps the amygdala stay calm in situations where you might be afraid.
18:33 So challenging exercise has a particularly strong effect in reducing anxiety, such as
18:39 brisk walking, jogging, or participating in sport.
18:43 Additionally, this study suggests that the cerebellum plays a crucial role not only in
18:48 coordinating movement, but also in regulating emotions.
18:58 The ketogenic diet, a low-carb, high-fat diet, has gained popularity as a powerful tool for
19:05 weight loss and is promoted by healthcare professionals and influences on social media.
19:11 But did you know that ketogenic diet also shows promise in reducing seizures for people
19:17 with epilepsy?
19:19 Epilepsy is a common neurological condition that affects about 0.8% to 1% of the world
19:24 population.
19:26 Around 30% of people with epilepsy don't respond well to medications, making alternative
19:32 treatments necessary.
19:34 Epileptic seizures happen due to imbalances between certain brain chemicals that make
19:39 the neuron either too excited or not excited enough.
19:43 This imbalance causes abnormal brain activities and synchronized electrical discharges.
19:49 In the brain, there are two important chemicals called GABA.
19:53 When the balance of these two chemicals is disrupted, it can be linked to conditions
19:58 such as schizophrenia and epilepsy.
20:00 In a recent study, researchers from Fudan University in Shanghai discovered that ketogenic
20:06 diet has anti-epileptic effects by focusing their study on a specific component of the
20:13 ketogenic diet called BHB.
20:17 During the ketogenic diet, the body produces BHB when it switches from using carbohydrates
20:23 to burning fat.
20:25 The study found that BHB can increase the level of GABA in the brain.
20:30 As we mentioned, GABA is crucial for inhibiting excessive neural activity and preventing seizures.
20:37 By increasing GABA levels, BHB helps restore the balance between excitatory and inhibitory
20:43 neurotransmitters in the brain, reducing the occurrence of seizures.
20:49 Although this study was conducted on mice, it provides valuable insights into how the
20:55 anti-epileptic effect of the ketogenic diet works.
21:00 Researchers hope that by understanding the role of BHB in reducing seizures, they can
21:05 develop alternative treatments that can harness the benefit without the need for dietary restrictions.
21:12 And that is all for today's Threshold.
21:14 As usual, we welcome your feedback and thoughts.
21:17 [END]
21:32 Could you use a word to define 2023?
21:36 If I had to choose one word to define 2023, the word would be "challenging."
21:41 I think it was a challenging year for everyone on the professional front, on the international
21:46 front, and for many of us on the personal front as well.
21:49 So it's goodbye to 2023 with the word "challenging."
21:53 I would choose the word "challenging" because I think that firstly, in terms of the international
21:59 front, we're witnessing so many events that are happening in the news world, whether it
22:04 is the war between Hamas and Israel, which is ongoing, whether it's the war between Russia
22:12 and Ukraine, which is ongoing, whether it's an earthquake that happened last year in Turkey
22:17 that still sees millions of people displaced.
22:21 I think the challenges posed on a humanitarian level, a political level, are immense.
22:29 And I sometimes wonder whether it's because there are more challenges than there were
22:34 in previous years, or whether we have just become more interconnected as a global community
22:39 because of social media, because of television, because of technology, that we know more about
22:47 what's happening in other parts of the world.
22:49 Whatever the reason, it just feels that we are inundated too often with bad news.
22:54 I mean, of course, there's some good news, but I would choose the word "challenging"
22:58 because I find that not one day goes past without there being some kind of tragedy somewhere
23:04 in the world.
23:05 I also choose the word "challenging" on a personal level because 2023 for me was the
23:10 year that after 18 years, I left RT, Russia Today, and I'm setting up my own television
23:17 channel, which is BGTN, which is due to go live 24/7 in the coming months.
23:25 And so it's been very challenging doing that, going from working for a television company
23:32 for nearly two decades to suddenly taking that experience and setting up a channel oneself.
23:39 And I always wanted to be a correspondent that covered war.
23:43 I don't know why, probably something wrong with my psychology.
23:48 And I joined RT just under 20 years ago with the position of the Middle East Bureau.
23:54 And it was exciting.
23:55 RT had just started up, it was 2006.
23:58 It was actually the end of 2005.
24:01 And within months, I was covering all the conflicts across the Middle East.
24:07 And I choose the word "challenging" because there are always conflicts.
24:11 So whether it was Lebanon, Israel, whether it was Gaza, whether it was Afghanistan, Iraq,
24:16 you name it, I covered those conflicts for RT.
24:20 Two decades on, I'm a little bit tired of conflict.
24:24 And I also think social media has changed the way we report.
24:28 And I'm not convinced that it's still so important for journalists to be the first at a story.
24:35 In fact, I don't even think we can be.
24:36 I think social media means that journalists will always get there a few hours later or
24:41 perhaps a day later.
24:43 And so I think our role is changing more to verification, looking at the news, contextualizing
24:48 it.
24:49 And so the role of the war reporter is also changing.
24:53 It's not about being the first on the story.
24:55 It's not about being the only one of the story either.
24:58 And as those changes happen, I find that I am a bit tired of the war reporting.
25:05 Two decades on, and I would like a new challenge.
25:10 And what a fantastic challenge to be in a position that you can set up your own channel.
25:14 Who is the most memorable figure in 2023?
25:18 The most memorable figure for me from 2023 and also going forward would have to be the
25:24 Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
25:27 I think that this man is remarkable in terms of what he's doing.
25:31 First of all, last year, he, with China, of course, brokering the agreement, but he was
25:35 instrumental in bringing together Saudi and Iran to sign a peace deal.
25:40 Now this was something I've covered, Middle East politics for the last two decades.
25:44 If you had told me this was going to happen, I would have said absolutely no.
25:48 These are the two polar opposites.
25:50 You have Iran, which is Shia, you have Saudi, which is Sunni.
25:55 When I was reporting in Israel, what a lot of Israelis were afraid of was that Iran was
26:00 going to use their nuclear power against them.
26:02 And then the experts were saying, ah, but first Iran will use their nuclear power against
26:07 Saudi.
26:08 And now you've got the Saudis and the Iranians signing a peace deal.
26:12 So for me, that was remarkable.
26:13 And that happened last year.
26:15 At the same time, we see the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
26:19 From what we understand, the Saudi prince was on the verge, or at least was having meetings
26:25 to create a peace deal between Israel and Saudi.
26:28 And Saudi is the leader of particularly the Arab Sunni world.
26:32 If Israel had signed that deal with Saudi, we would not have the situation we have now.
26:38 And you would have actually had the unbelievable situation of Israel being in a peace.
26:45 It might not be a peace deal that's cheerful and admirable on all levels, but at least
26:52 on paper, it would have been a peace deal between Israel and the Arab world.
26:56 And we still hear now some mention from the Saudi government that when the war, please
27:02 God, when the war between Israel and Hamas is over, they are still interested in normalizing
27:06 relations with Israel.
27:08 Whether that happens is another story.
27:10 But I think that's all because of the Saudi crown prince.
27:13 And I think especially as a young man, I think he's 38, it takes a lot of courage to be able
27:19 to do that, to sign a peace deal with Israel, something that would have been unheard of
27:23 until then.
27:25 The other things that he's doing, he has the Saudi 2030 vision, where he is going to turn
27:31 Saudi into something that it's never been in the past.
27:35 He wants to take the country's reliance away from oil, invested in numerous projects.
27:41 So you'll have the city of the future, which is known as Neom.
27:45 You already have all these sports talents, for example, Cristiano Ronaldo going to live
27:50 in Saudi and play for Saudi sides.
27:54 And for me, this is a leader that the West wants to talk to, the East wants to talk to,
28:01 everybody wants to talk to him.
28:03 And it's not just because he has money, from what I understand, Saudi has enough oil money
28:08 for the next 200.
28:10 And I think the figure was the next 220 years plus minus, but I think he is a man who's
28:16 not afraid of making decisions.
28:19 And for me, he would be someone to watch going forward as well.
28:23 I feel that he is, if not the most influential, then definitely one of a handful of the most
28:30 influential leaders on the world stage.
28:33 And what I think is also exciting is that so few people know anything about Saudi.
28:38 I haven't been there and I'm actually planning to go there this year.
28:42 And I think that I sense Saudi Arabia is going to become the new United Arab Emirates in
28:48 the sense that the capital of Saudi, Riyadh, will be Dubai.
28:51 30 years ago, Dubai was something new.
28:53 It was like it was in the desert and they were attracting foreigners and let's build
28:56 Dubai.
28:57 I think this is what is going to happen with Riyadh.
29:00 They are looking for foreigners to come.
29:02 If you go on any advertising for jobs in Saudi, they're prepared to pay money.
29:07 They want to pay for talent.
29:09 They want to pay people who know what they're doing and they're not afraid of bringing in
29:13 foreigners, building up the country.
29:16 Of course, one of the challenges facing the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is
29:19 going to be finding the right balance with the religious parties because he needs to
29:26 deal with those that are very religious in his country.
29:30 And they're not going to want to have Riyadh as a tourist center for Western foreigners
29:35 like Dubai is.
29:37 So I think he has a lot of pressure and challenges.
29:42 And that's why I really admire him because I think Saudi Arabia is going to become the
29:47 new United Arab Emirates, the new Dubai.
29:50 And for people like me, actually, who feel that I missed out on Dubai 30 years ago, I
29:55 would be open to going to Riyadh now 30 years later and saying, well, let's see what opportunities
30:00 are here.
30:01 Let's see how this country is making the desert bloom, because that's what they're doing.
30:06 One of the projects is what is called rewilding.
30:09 A hundred years ago, Saudi Arabia had animals, had animals and jungles that you see here
30:15 in Africa, and now it's a desert.
30:18 And so one of the projects and one of the stories that we've been looking at is how
30:22 they are rewilding the Saudi desert, how they're introducing animals there and how they're
30:29 dealing with the climate changes that made it into a desert to actually bring back the
30:33 fauna and flora of a hundred years ago.
30:36 What are some of the most significant stories shaping 2023?
30:40 So my focus at the moment with this channel that I'm launching, BGTN, Bricks Global Television
30:46 Network, of course, is Bricks.
30:48 One of the big issues of 2023 was, of course, the Bricks Summit that was held here in Johannesburg,
30:53 South Africa, where I'm talking to you from, in August, the 22nd to the 24th of August.
30:59 And as you well know, next year it will be held in Russia.
31:03 So what is happening in the Bricks world and what comes out of these summits, for me, is
31:08 a big tick in terms of what I focused on in 2023.
31:13 One of the issues here was the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, whether he was going to come
31:18 to the Bricks Summit or not.
31:19 And there was a whole lot of delays.
31:23 In fact, before the summit, we didn't even get as journalists the program for the summit
31:27 up until a few days before it began.
31:28 And a lot of that was confusion about, there was talk at one stage that they were actually
31:32 going to move it to China and then they were going to keep it in South Africa.
31:35 And was Putin coming?
31:36 Wasn't Putin coming?
31:37 Be that as it may, the countries that are part of Bricks were here.
31:42 Six other countries were invited and only five of those joined officially in January.
31:48 Argentina declined the invitation.
31:50 So you now have members of Bricks, Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and then
31:55 you have five new countries, which are Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the United
32:02 Arab Emirates.
32:03 Going forward, you've got something like 14 countries that have formally requested to
32:07 join and you've got more than 20 who have expressed that they're interested.
32:11 So for me, one of the stories is Bricks.
32:14 I think it's going to be interesting also going forward, how Bricks is going to challenge
32:19 the American dollar, what it means on an economic front.
32:22 It's definitely a story that I highlighted on and was focused on in 2023.
32:27 The second story for me would be the 7th of October.
32:30 I'm thinking of the right word, war, because it was later declared a war between Hamas
32:35 and Israel.
32:36 And that is now in its more than 90 days.
32:40 And that, of course, was when you had something like 3,000 Hamas militants who crossed over
32:44 the Israel-Gaza border.
32:46 You had something like 5,000 rockets fired at Israel in a surprise attack.
32:51 There are still questions being asked why Israel wasn't actually ready for that attack.
32:55 I was based in Israel for Russia today before coming here to South Africa.
33:01 So I do have some insight in terms of what's going on there.
33:05 And one of the questions is, how did Israeli intelligence fail to the extent that it did?
33:12 And the only onset, if it's interesting for you, that I can share with you is what I get
33:15 from the Israelis that I speak to is that right now they're in a state of war.
33:19 And they don't want to ask those questions.
33:21 They will ask the questions, but they're trying to deal with the situation as is and then
33:25 go backwards and see what went wrong.
33:27 I think this war has opened up to Israel the shortcomings of its own defense, the shortcomings
33:34 of the Israeli defense forces.
33:36 We are hearing from the Israeli President Netanyahu that they're going to clean out
33:40 Gaza.
33:41 But you have, I mean, I looked at the figures of Palestinians killed, 23,000 Palestinians
33:47 killed of which the majority are women, 17,000.
33:50 Of course, you've got high figures on the Israeli side, and it's not fair to compare
33:53 figures because what life is a life.
33:56 But I think this conflict, and this is what's concerning, has the ability to turn into World
34:02 War III.
34:03 If Iran gets involved with the United States being involved, it is not just about Israel
34:07 and Hamas, which also begs the question whether it was just about Israel and Hamas in the
34:11 beginning.
34:12 And there's a lot of thought, and I would be one of those people who would say, I suspect
34:17 whether it was Iran, Russia, America, they are the bigger powers at play.
34:22 And Israel and Hamas in this war, I think, are their pawns.
34:28 And the sad thing is that in the meantime, you have Palestinians and Israelis who've
34:32 been killed, and those numbers are going to continue.
34:35 Another big story for me from 2023, of course, coming from having worked with RT, Russia
34:40 Today, was the killing of the Wagner boss.
34:43 Now, Wagner, of course, is the Russian private military company, Evgeny Pogozin.
34:51 And he was one of 10 people who died in a helicopter crash.
34:54 I was very involved in that story, and there was a lot of speculation in the beginning
34:57 as to whether or not he had died, whether or not it was just a cover-up.
35:01 The reason why it was important to me, of course, was because he had led a kind of rebellion
35:06 against the Russian president, Vladimir Putin.
35:09 It was a short-lived rebellion back in June last year.
35:12 And then it just kind of simmered.
35:13 I mean, there were a few hours when all of us working and following Russian news were
35:18 in a state of shock, thinking that, you know, could this possibly be an overthrow of President
35:23 Putin?
35:24 And then almost as soon as it started, it stopped.
35:26 And the understanding is that he was paid something like $2 billion.
35:30 There's still a lot of questions around that as to, was this actually an accident when
35:36 the plane went down?
35:37 Was it something more sinister?
35:39 What actually happened?
35:41 And if it was something more sinister, who was behind it?
35:44 For me, that was one of the interesting stories to come out of 2023.
35:49 Another interesting story for me would be the Russia-Ukraine war, which I reported on
35:53 extensively when it began back in 2014.
35:57 And this is almost the second chapter now that we're witnessing in 2023.
36:01 I think that with what's happening with Israel and Hamas, this war is now on the back pages,
36:08 which is always unfortunate.
36:09 I think it has the potential to become a frozen conflict, meaning that it will continue and
36:14 continue.
36:15 And unfortunately, us as journalists, one of the things we do badly is we forget stories
36:20 and then we come back to them.
36:21 And I think this is a story that will continue.
36:24 And how much attention it gets is just going to be how much attention journalists see fit
36:28 to give it.
36:29 I mean, it's already a bit of an old story.
36:31 And there are so many missing people.
36:33 That's a story I've covered, something of thousands of children who've gone missing
36:37 from Ukraine, not into Russia, into Western Europe and the rest of the world.
36:42 And perhaps just a fifth and final story that for me was significant last year was the Turkey
36:47 earthquake.
36:48 That was back in February, and the figures are about 50,000 people who were killed, some
36:55 15 million people, if not more, who were affected and 107,000 people injured.
37:01 That earthquake, of course, happening in the south of Turkey and the north of Syria.
37:06 And millions of dollars have been spent and are still being spent trying to provide humanitarian
37:13 assistance to the victims of the Turkey earthquake.
37:16 Is Israel's failure an excuse or a possibility?
37:20 That's a really good question, because you're asking me whether Israel's failure is an excuse
37:25 or a possibility.
37:27 I would have answered that question in the immediate aftermath of the Hamas attack and
37:33 say it was an excuse.
37:36 Like the Israeli army, there's no way that they did not get the information.
37:42 And there were some reports that I saw of hours that it took the Israeli soldiers to
37:47 respond.
37:48 You had people on social media that were uploading and saying, please, I'm hiding in my bunker
37:54 or in whatever part of the house it was, please come help me.
37:57 And it was only hours later that they were either rescued or militants came in and killed
38:03 them.
38:04 So the question is what happened in those hours?
38:06 My initial response would have been that's impossible.
38:08 The Israeli army is supposedly one of the best in the world, very well prepared.
38:14 It is obviously just not possible.
38:18 In the weeks since then, I would change my answer.
38:22 And I would say that it is now a probability and not necessarily an excuse.
38:26 I think what we've seen in the last 90 days since the war started is unfortunately for
38:33 the Israelis that the army is not as sophisticated and not as prepared as many people, including
38:40 or especially the Israeli civilian population, would like to think.
38:44 I think once this war, please God, is over and it doesn't become a third world war, there'll
38:49 have to be a lot of responsibility being handed out in Israel in terms of why this happened
38:58 and why the army was so ill prepared.
39:01 There's a report I saw today saying that Hamas had already planned this back in 2021.
39:07 Israeli intelligence, I was always told, was one of the best in the world.
39:10 Well, how did they miss something that was in the planning for two years?
39:14 When you have 3000 militants coming across from Gaza, how do you not respond?
39:18 The size of Israel is the size of the Kruger National Park in South Africa.
39:24 It is 1/15 the size of South Africa.
39:26 I've spoken to people here in South Africa who are commandos who say that when they are
39:32 on call, they can go anywhere in South Africa within two hours.
39:36 How is it possible that in a country like Israel that's 1/15 the size of this, it took
39:43 them six to eight hours to respond?
39:47 I think there's going to be a lot of inner searching, a lot of changes that will need
39:53 to be made in Israel.
39:55 How does South Africa view the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?
40:00 This Israeli-Palestinian conflict has really brought to the fore.
40:05 Let me start that differently.
40:08 South Africa has a very sizable Muslim population, and most of the Muslims in South Africa side
40:16 with the Palestinians.
40:17 In fact, South Africa at the moment has taken Israel to the International Criminal Court
40:23 of Justice for genocide charges.
40:26 The South Africans who support that and who support the Palestinians often argue that
40:31 because of South Africa's history of apartheid, which was segregating people, they often say
40:37 that what's happening in Israel is the same.
40:40 Now, South Africa has a much smaller Jewish community that by and large supports Israel.
40:46 They're constantly pointing out the differences between what happened in South Africa and
40:49 what happened in Israel.
40:51 The truth is that I really get the sense neither side is going to convince the other.
40:55 All that happens whenever you have a war in Israel is that those who support the Palestinians
41:00 will start holding demonstrations and lobbying the government, and those who support Israel
41:05 will do what they want to do.
41:07 Nobody's opinions here change.
41:09 The majority of South Africans would be your Christian, let's say black Christian South
41:14 Africans.
41:15 There's a big part of them that actually support Israel.
41:18 They see Israel in Bible terms.
41:21 These would be whether evangelical Christians or other types of Christians, they do believe
41:26 that the Jews are the chosen people, that Israel is the chosen country, but they're
41:31 not the most vocal.
41:32 If you had to walk the streets of South Africa or if you had to open a newspaper now, the
41:38 voice, the most dominant voice that's coming across, which doesn't necessarily mean it
41:42 represents the majority, but the ones who are the most vocal are those who support the
41:46 Palestinians and are against Israel.
41:49 The government of South Africa has taken a stand to be much more pro-Palestinian.
41:54 In fact, over the last few years, they have downgraded the South African embassy in Israel.
42:00 I stand to be corrected, but as far as I know, there is not a South African ambassador in
42:04 Israel, and I'm not sure if there's an Israeli ambassador in South Africa.
42:08 They have really brought the relationship between the two countries all the way down.
42:13 That also dates back to the time of apartheid South Africa, and during those years, South
42:18 Africa had dealings with Israel, particularly around nuclear arms.
42:23 Now the Israelis will say, "Well, we were a new country and we were looking for friends,"
42:28 and South Africa offered itself as a friend.
42:30 The critics will say, "But South Africa was an apartheid country, and you shouldn't have
42:34 had dealings with an apartheid country."
42:36 Like everywhere in the world, this Israeli-Hamas conflict touches on emotions for people.
42:43 And so what we have seen in South Africa is demonstrations at different retail stores
42:47 that support Israel, or if the owner is a pro-Israel activist, and people will protest
42:54 with Palestinian flags in front of it.
42:57 South Africans feel very strongly about this, particularly on an emotional level.
43:02 How the world would be like in 2024?
43:06 The word I chose for 2023 was challenging, and if you ask me the word I would choose
43:11 for 2024, can I cheat and say more challenging?
43:14 Two words.
43:15 There's something like 20 elections coming up.
43:18 One of them is here in South Africa.
43:20 It's an important year for South Africa and the elections, because South Africa is now
43:25 this year, well 2024 will be 30 years since the start of democracy.
43:31 On the one hand, it's exciting because obviously there's been a lot of improvement.
43:34 On the other hand, it's a bit disheartening because there are so many things that people
43:38 perhaps had wished for 30 years ago that haven't come true.
43:41 So it's also challenging being back in South Africa.
43:44 I come back to a media sphere that I haven't been involved in for 20 years and to a country
43:48 that I almost recognize in some ways and don't recognize in other ways.
43:52 It's 30 years since the fall of apartheid, the new South African government, Nelson Mandela
43:58 walking out of prison.
44:00 And so there'll be a lot of retrospective thinking, how far has this country come?
44:05 It is also 30 years since the Rwanda genocide.
44:09 Rwanda is not far from South Africa.
44:11 And when everybody around the world was celebrating South Africa's freedom, one of the sad things
44:17 that journalists ignored when we were all focused here was that not far from here, there
44:21 was a terrible genocide happening where almost a million Hutus were killed.
44:29 So that's 30 years since the Rwanda genocide and perhaps the lessons we've learned or haven't
44:33 learned from there.
44:35 I think we will continue with the war between Russia and Ukraine.
44:40 I think that that, as I mentioned earlier, is a frozen conflict.
44:44 And I think that that could continue for quite some time.
44:47 I think the war between Russia and Ukraine will continue.
44:51 I think that is a frozen conflict and I think it will remain frozen probably for years to
44:56 come.
44:57 And I think that that has an impact on what's happening between Israel and Hamas, because
45:02 I think the United States has been very quick to say it supports Israel, but militarily
45:08 it can offer less than it could have before it got involved in Ukraine.
45:13 And I think the US has given a lot to Ukraine that could potentially have been given to
45:17 Israel.
45:18 I don't know if it's significant enough to change the course of America's assistance
45:23 to Israel, but I do think it's worthy to note.
45:27 I think 2024, for me, the most significant story of 2024 will be this war, will be the
45:33 Israel-Hamas and whether or not it escalates into World War III.
45:38 Because if it escalates, you have Iran backing Hamas and Russia's on the same side.
45:43 You have the United States backing Israel and you have all the criteria of what could
45:49 potentially become a third world war.
45:52 I think China is in an interesting position.
45:55 I think particularly because China brokered the deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia, which
46:01 was kept under wraps.
46:02 No one knew it was happening until the announcement came.
46:05 I think China is an interesting player to watch.
46:08 And I think many people outside of China, and certainly in the circles I move, feel
46:13 that China's actually the real power globally.
46:16 And it'll be interesting to see what the Chinese president does.
46:20 And he might be the person that has the ability to sway the direction of which some world
46:26 politics will be heading off.
46:28 I think 2023 will continue to see the rise of Saudi Arabia.
46:32 I think we will see Saudi flexing its muscles, whether it's in terms of business or not,
46:38 elsewhere on the global stage.
46:41 And here in Africa, what is also a big story is the growing influence of China in Africa.
46:48 And I have been traveling Africa quite a lot over the last few months since I came back.
46:52 And there is distinctly, but it's been going on for a while, very strong influence in Africa
47:00 by China.
47:02 People feel it.
47:03 Depending which country you're in, people either welcome it or don't welcome it.
47:07 But I think that will certainly continue to grow with 2024.
47:15 And this was another episode of China Now.
47:17 A show that opens a window to the present and future of the Asian giant.
47:21 Hope you enjoyed.
47:22 See you next time.
47:23 [MUSIC PLAYING]
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