Brand China is having a moment
Jiehao Chen, The Economist 's China researcher and Gabriel Crossley, our China correspondent, ask: is China becoming cool? And what does the Communist Party have to do with it?
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The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Senior Chinese diplomat Liu Jianchao ‘taken in for questioning by police'
Senior Chinese diplomat Liu Jianchao, widely regarded as a potential successor to the post of foreign minister, has reportedly been taken in for questioning by the authorities. Mr Liu, 61, who heads the Communist Party's International Department, was detained upon his return to Beijing in late July following overseas engagements, according to The Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar with the matter. No explanation has been offered by the Chinese government for Mr Liu's detention. Neither the Chinese ministry of foreign affairs nor the party apparatus, including the International Liaison Department and the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, have responded to media inquiries. Born in Dehui, Jilin province in February 1964, Mr Liu studied English at Beijing Foreign Studies University and pursued postgraduate studies in international relations at Oxford, attending from 1986 to 1987. His career in the diplomatic service began in the foreign ministry's translation office, followed by key postings including first secretary in the UK mission (1995–98), counselor in the Information Department (1998–2000), and deputy director-general of the same department (2001–2006). Mr Liu went on to serve as the ministry's spokesperson, earning recognition for his sharp communication style, and subsequently held ambassadorial posts in the Philippines and Indonesia. In 2013, he was appointed assistant foreign minister, and in 2022, he assumed leadership of the Communist Party's International Department. Alongside his diplomatic duties, Mr Liu also played a significant role in Chinese president Xi Jinping 's anti-corruption campaign, having worked in the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and led international cooperation efforts under the Party's internal watchdog. Mr Liu has travelled extensively since assuming his current role, engaging with officials across more than 20 countries and meeting representatives from over 160 nations, a record that fuelled expectations of his elevation to foreign minister. His outreach included meetings with the US secretary of state Antony Blinken in Washington in early 2024, where he was praised for his balanced style. Mr Liu's disappearance marks the most high-profile diplomatic probe since the 2023 removal of former foreign minister Qin Gang amid scandal and internal party investigation. Mr Qin, 58, who was known for his ' wolf warrior' diplomacy and regarded as one of Beijing's most influential policymakers, was unceremoniously removed from his position after a month-long disappearance from public view. Following his removal, Mr Qin was replaced by his predecessor, Wang Yi, in what some analysts described as a stop‑gap measure to restore diplomatic stability.
Telegraph
2 days ago
- Telegraph
Corbyn told to take inspiration from Lenin
Jeremy Corbyn's new party could take inspiration from the ideas of Lenin, one of his closest advisers has said. James Schneider, who served as Labour's director of strategic communications under Mr Corbyn, made the comments in an interview about the direction the new Left-wing movement, which was founded in July and has the working title of Your Party, could take. He told the New Left Review: 'I've been working on this for about a year now, and I think there are structural factors which make it difficult to launch anything.' Mr Schneider said the party could initially be led by 'a small group of closely aligned, politically advanced people, who can make decisions collectively'. He said: 'There have been many communist parties throughout history, which have been formed by 12 or so individuals sitting around a table, which in short order became mass vehicles.' He also suggested that the party could take inspiration from Lenin, the leader of the Russian Revolution, by thinking about what 'Lenin today' might do. He told Oliver Eagleton, who interviewed him for the New Left Review: 'You ran a short, thought-provoking piece by Dylan Riley the other week titled Lenin in America, which, following [Antonio] Gramsci, argued that Lenin today would pursue a 'productive and creative relationship to the specific national-democratic revolutionary political culture in which one operates'. The British Left needs to be thinking along these lines.' Lenin established the world's first communist state in Russia in 1917 as head of the Bolshevik party. He overthrew the provisional government, established after the Tsar was ousted and made up of liberals and moderate socialists, in a military coup, and dismissed the democratically elected Constituent Assembly to impose one-party rule on the country. Lenin's government indulged in state violence against its opponents, including the notorious 'hanging order' in which Lenin told his revolutionary comrades to publicly execute no fewer than 100 rebels in each of the rebellious districts of Russia, referring to them as 'the rich and the bloodsuckers'. Andrew Murray, another of Mr Corbyn's former advisers, also invoked Lenin when discussing the new party. In an interview with the New Left Review this week, he said: 'As for Leninism: that requires a much higher degree of ideological militancy and unity from the outset than we are likely to get with this new party.' Mr Murray cited Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels's Communist Manifesto when discussing the direction of the new party. He said: 'The Communist Manifesto enjoins socialists to first of all organise the proletariat as a class – and this task clearly needs recapitulating. 'The old organisations and institutions, both formal ones within the labour movement and informal ones within communities, have been broken apart over the past forty years. Reversing this, even partially, is an imperative for moving towards socialism.' Summarising his ambitions for the new party, Mr Schneider said: 'My dream is a party that hits with the same impact as Turn the Page, the opening track on The Streets' debut album Original Pirate Material. 'Something you've never heard before, yet instantly recognisable; unmistakably British and rooted in everyday life, from the pubs to the pavements. 'A sound – or in our case, a politics – that effortlessly blends cultures and traditions, anchored in class and community but moving forward with confidence and style. We need to inhabit this sort of national-popular register. 'To put it in a more theoretical way, the efficacy of this kind of politics stems from unlocking the potential progressive valence of the 'national' dimension of the capital-nation-state triad.' Mr Schneider has given a number of interviews about the new venture and is understood to be involved in plans for the party's future. He was a co-founder of the Left-wing group Momentum, which supported Mr Corbyn's leadership of the Labour party. After leaving his position at the Labour Party following its defeat at the 2019 general election, Mr Schneider became Communications Director at Progressive International, a global network of Left-wing activists. Mr Corbyn established his new party with Zarah Sultana, a former Labour MP who now sits as an independent. It was launched in July with the placeholder name Your Party. Members will decide its name at an inaugural conference in autumn.
Daily Mirror
2 days ago
- Daily Mirror
'I've met Prince Andrew and one thing struck me when I read humiliating new allegations'
More shock allegations have emerged against Prince Andrew in a bombshell book - and royal expert Jennie Bond has revealed her experience when she encountered him Prince Andrew has faced a torrent of new allegations in a bombshell new book. The biography of both Andrew and his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, makes a number of shock claims about the pair, including their rampant infidelity before they split and the disgraced Duke of York's supposed rants at staff. Andrew stepped down from royal duties in 2019 after a car crash BBC Newsnight interview about his connection to convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Since then, he's been embroiled in further scandals - including his links to an alleged Chinese spy. And according to former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond, Andrew is proving to be "the problem that won't go away" with the release of 'Entitled: The Rise and Fall of the Yorks' by Andrew Lownie. She told the Mirror: "Every few months now, there seem to be new allegations about Prince Andrew and lurid stories about his behaviour over the years. "These summer months are meant to be a period of calm and respite for the Royal family. But here's the Duke once again, splashed all over the papers, with graphic tales. "I'm sure the book will have infuriated Andrew. I have to say, though, that from my own experience of meeting the Duke and my conversations with many people who have known him or worked with him over the years, there is a distinct ring of truth about his portrayal in this book. Arrogant, pompous and obsessed with status was my abiding impression of him." The month of August usually sees the royals all decamp to Scotland to spend time at their beloved Balmoral estate. King Charles has continued the tradition of inviting members of his family to spend time with him in Scotland. In previous years, Andrew, as well as ex-wife Fergie, have been among the guests. And Jennie believes these latest allegations could prove to be a spanner in any potential Balmoral plans. She added: "For the King, it must be exasperating to have to read once again about his brother's shenanigans. It will be interesting to see whether the Duke and Duchess are invited to Balmoral this year as part of the family's summer get-togethers. It certainly could be awkward. "But I don't think we should expect any retaliation from the King. He remains Charles's brother, and I suspect the King will just roll his eyes, probably swear about Andrew under his breath — but then get on with more important things in life. "The book will, of course, annoy the Palace communications team who are constantly having to shore up the damage to the monarchy caused by Andrew's behaviour." However, the book did not only make allegations against Andrew, it also claimed that ex-wife Fergie would make extravagant demands and lived a life of "opulent excess". It is alleged she spent wildly on staff, holidays, parties and flowers, with no regard for settling bills during her marriage to Andrew - with the late Queen paying off her debts totalling hundreds of thousands of pounds. The Mirror has contacted the Duke and Duchess of York for comment. And Jennie explained: "For Fergie, I think the book will be a very tough read. In recent months and years, she has been brought in from the cold and has enjoyed a number of family occasions with her royal relatives. "There's also been a good deal of public sympathy for the Duchess in her struggle with cancer. So, headlines like 'Duchess of Excess' and stories about her alleged extraordinary profligate spending will hit her hard."
