China is one of world’s most polluting countries, a reality dating back to when this power emerged as a developing country and was already known as ‘the world’s factory’. But the government wants to change this situation, making use of regions such as Xiong’an New Area, a self-sufficient and sustainable city, in which priority is given to shorter supply chains for energy and materials. What is the Xiong’an New Area? The Xiong’an New Area will be a newly created city (very common in China) developed by the government and intended to take pressure off other nearby cities and conduct pilot projects aimed at innovation and sustainability.2016 saw the start of China’s 13th Five-year Plan (2016-2020), aimed at the construction of “a moderately prosperous society, prepared to tackle instabilities in the economy and established on a solid base of innovation, regional integration, sustainable development and openness”.The most important theme of this statement of intent was sustainable development, and the Xiong’an New Area announced in 2017 by Xi Jinping, a new mega smart city designed to be the perfect setting for the 19th Chinese district. A technological and responsible district acting as a bridge between Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei and which, simultaneously, would help regulate the growing population of the latter.This saw the start of a project with an estimated cost of 580 billion dollars and designed to “convert a rural area into the next Shenzhen”. As well as attracting talent with a message of self-sufficiency in resources, Zhongguancun (the Chinese Silicon Valley) will build a new scientific park and mobilize around 500,000 scientists, as well as dozens of major companies.The first phase consists of unifying and modernizing over 60 rural villages with a population of one million, which occupy an area of around 1000 km2, with the ultimate aim of having a population of around 25 million inhabitants by 2035 distributed over an area of around 2000 km2. A colossal and yet sustainable city. Why will Xiong’an be a green self-sufficient city?
Xiong’an Citizen Service Center (2019)[/caption]One of the main objectives of the Xiong’an area, which is still using vast amounts of coal for heating and cooking and for generating energy, is that the Xiong’an New Area uses 100% clean, emission-free energy. The State Grid Corporation of China opened a subsidiary to plan the growth of the future grid.As of 2020, thousands of companies have been closed down due to a breach of Xiong’an’s new pollution regulations. This sustainable city’s road map includes “exploring new [economic] growth models”, “creating a world-class smart city” prioritizing “green development and environmental protection”.To achieve all of these points, including sustainable farming, the city’s actual buildings will generate most of its energy, and grow all the food required in the area, minimizing exports and imports.Another point sought by the area is to become a completely electrified transport hub with five high-speed lines connecting the territory with other major cities, with the aim of minimizing and even eliminating the use of polluting vehicles
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Early hydroxychloroquine but not chloroquine use reduces ICUadmission in COVID-19 patients10/2/2022 Mounting global tensions require additional efforts to ensure strategic stability, first and foremost, by getting comprehensive security guarantees for Moscow from the United States and NATO, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a message to the Foreign Ministry’s employees and veterans on Diplomats’ Day, marked on February 10.
"The situation in the world is becoming more turbulent and tense. This certainly requires additional and persistent efforts to ensure strategic stability and counter arising threats and challenges. This especially includes our bid to receive comprehensive, legally binding national security guarantees from the US and its NATO allies," says the statement published on the Kremlin website. In addition, the Russian leader stressed that "consistent, systemic work to strengthen the supremacy of international law and the UN’s central coordinating role, to create a fair and stable multipolar world order remains fully topical," the message reads. The head of state wished employees of the Foreign Ministry success in their work and good health to veteran diplomats. He was confident that the ministry’s staff "will continue working efficiently, doing all it can to consolidate Russia’s position in the world arena." According to Putin, the Russian Foreign Ministry has a proud history of serving the country and protecting its interests globally. "Relying on the traditions of the past, Russia’s diplomats befittingly perform their professional duties today," the message said. "Our diplomacy helps uphold the lawful rights of Russian citizens and compatriots abroad and facilitates the settlement of regional conflicts and crises and, most importantly, plays a major role in creating favourable external conditions for the steady progress of our country," the president emphasized. Diplomats’ Day was established in Russia by a presidential decree in 2002 to commemorate the founding of the Russian diplomatic service on February 10, 1549. Russia has agreed a 30-year contract to supply gas to China via a new pipeline and will settle the new gas sales in euros, bolstering an energy alliance with Beijing amid Moscow's strained ties with the West over Ukraine and other issues. Gazprom , which has a monopoly on Russian gas exports by pipeline, agreed to supply Chinese state energy major CNPC with 10 billion cubic metres of gas a year, the Russian firm and a Beijing-based industry official said.
First flows through the pipeline, which will connect Russia's Far East region with northeast China, were due to start in two to three years, the source said in comments that were later followed by an announcement of the deal by Gazprom. Russia already sends gas to China via its Power of Siberia pipeline, which began pumping supplies in 2019, and by shipping liquefied natural gas (LNG). It exported 16.5 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas to China in 2021. The Power of Siberia network is not connected to pipelines that send gas to Europe, which has faced surging gas prices due to tight supplies, one of several points of tension with Moscow. Under plans previously drawn up, Russia aimed to supply China with 38 bcm of gas by pipeline by 2025. The new deal, which coincided with a visit by Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Beijing Winter Olympics, would add a further 10 bcm, increasing Russian pipeline sales under long-term contracts to China. Gazprom gave few details about the deal in its announcement. Russian gas from its Far East island of Sakhalin will be transported via pipeline across the Japan Sea to northeast China's Heilongjiang province, reaching up to 10 bcm a year around 2026, said the Beijing source, who asked not to be identified. The deal would be settled in euros, the source added, in line with efforts by the two states to diversify away from U.S. dollars. Discussions between the two firms began several years ago after the start-up of Power of Siberia, a 4,000-km (2,500-mile)pipeline sending gas to China. Talks accelerated more recently after Beijing set its 2060 carbon neutral goal, the source said. Of the $35 billion that the world’s 74 lowest-income nations will owe in debt service payments this year, about 37% — or $13.1 billion — is owed to Chinese entities, according to the World Bank. A similar amount, $13.4 billion, is owed to the private sector. Official bilateral debt to countries other than China accounts for only $8.6 billion, World Bank President David Malpass said Wednesday during an event hosted by the Peterson Institute for International Economics. Malpass said the Paris Club — the group of 22 mostly Western creditors — was once the main holder of lower-income countries’ debt. This allowed the group to reach deals on debt relief, creating solutions for nations that had trouble making payments on their loans.
However, reaching deals with major creditors outside the club, such as China and the private sector, is a more complex process, requiring each major creditor and bond-holder to enter into an agreement separately. The shifting nature of who has owned debt in the past decade effectively means no global system exists for dealing with a debt crisis. “The Paris Club portion of the debt that’s coming due — even for the IDA countries — is small, and so that poses a challenge for the world,” Malpass said, using an acronym for the International Development Association, the World Bank’s fund for the lowest-income nations. The $35 billion estimate for 2022 is a 45% increase over the total debt payments ultimately owed in 2020, according to the bank. “Many more countries are in a situation where their debt is unsustainable,” Malpass said. Often, these nations took on debt before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and now there is “just not going to be enough money for them to pay the debt service.” Additionally, more central banks have taken on de facto debt through swap lines, adding to countries’ burdens, he noted. The $35 billion that governments owe and have guaranteed during 2022 dwarfs the $24 billion that donors pledged in December for the most recent round of IDA funding, which is meant to last three years. Malpass said that Chinese-owned debt suffers from a lack of transparency around the loans, including nondisclosure agreements attached to lending packages. This makes the deals hard to track. Moreover, Beijing-controlled creditors have continued to take “full payments” during the pandemic, Malpass said, despite an effort to freeze such transfers with the world economy in turmoil. |
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