The Evening Wrap: Qin Gang slams U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy as ‘encirclement’

China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang on March 7 accused the United States of attempting “to encircle China” through its Indo-Pacific strategy, taking aim at what he called “exclusive blocs” led by the U.S. “The U.S. ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy’ seeks to gang up to form exclusive blocs, stir up confrontation, and undermine regional integration,” said Qin, speaking at the Foreign Ministry’s annual press conference on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress (NPC) or Parliament session in Beijing. “The ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy’ claims to safeguard regional security, but in fact it provokes confrontation and seeks to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO,” he said, adding that “the real purpose of its Indo-Pacific strategy is to encircle China”. Chinese officials have previously referred to the India, U.S., Australia, Japan Quad grouping as well as the AUKUS (Australia-U.K.-U.S.) defence pact as being key elements of this strategy. Qin’s remarks followed sharp and rare direct criticism of the U.S. from Chinese President Xi Jinping, who on March 6, addressing a delegation on the sidelines of the NPC, said “Western countries, led by the U.S., have implemented all-round containment and suppression of China, which has brought unprecedented severe challenges to the country’s development”. Xi has emphasised self-reliance in key critical industries, a theme of the NPC session, which concludes on March 13. The session is also expected to pass a number of laws overhauling the party-state machinery to bring greater party control and oversight over government bodies, continuing the trend of centralisation under Xi. Announced on March 7, among the draft measures to be approved by the NPC, was the creation of a new National Financial Regulatory Commission, a super regulatory body to manage China’s $60 trillion banking assets. Meanwhile the Chinese Foreign Minister, in Tuesday’s press conference — his first since taking over in December – spoke in detail on the worsening state of China-U.S. relations and reminded Washington of Beijing’s “red line” on Taiwan. In his more than two hour briefing, Qin did not comment on relations with India, taking questions only from Chinese journalists as well as reporters from Egypt, Russia, the U.S., Pakistan, Japan, Singapore and France. Qin, who served as China’s envoy in Washington prior to his appointment, attacked the Biden administration’s China policy, saying it “claims it seeks to out-compete China but does not seek conflict, yet in reality, its so-called competition means to contain and suppress China in all respects”. “If the U.S. does not hit the brake but continue to speed down the wrong path, no amount of guardrails can prevent derailing and there will surely be conflict and confrontation,” he said, adding that the recent U.S. shooting down of a Chinese balloon — described by the U.S. as a “spy balloon” and by China as a civilian meteorological airship — was “revealing” of the U.S. “regarding China as a primary rival” and of “U.S. domestic politics and hysterical neo-McCarthyism”. On Taiwan, he said it was “the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations” and Beijing would take “utmost efforts to pursue peaceful reunification” while “reserving the option to take all necessary measures”. Drawing a comparison with the Ukraine crisis, he said Asia should not see “a Ukraine-style crisis” and be used as a “chessboard for geopolitical contest”. “Chinese people have every right to ask why the U.S. talks of respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity on Ukraine, but disrespecting China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity on Taiwan, and why the U.S. asks China to not provide arms to Russia while it keeps selling arms to Taiwan,” he said. Qin hailed the China-Russia relationship as a model of “strategic trust and good neighbourliness”, adding, pointedly, that “major countries should figure out what they want with each other — building exclusive political blocs or fostering partnerships that are open.” Congress to persist on its demand for JPC on Hindenburg-Adani issue The Congress will continue with its demand for a probe by the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Hindenburg-Adani revelations in the second part of the Budget Session that begins on Monday. The Trinamool Congress (TMC), the second largest opposition party in Parliament, meanwhile, has taken a diametrically opposite position, calling the JPC an exercise in futility. We are persisting in our demand for a JPC which is the only way to unravel the full dimensions of the PM-linked Adani Maha Mega Scam,” Congress General Secretary (Communication) Jairam Ramesh told The Hindu. At a press conference held on March 2, coinciding with the announcement of a Supreme Court-appointed committee to probe the violations of SEBI law and regulations, Ramesh had stated that “any committee other than a JPC is an exercise in legitimisation and exoneration”. The TMC, meanwhile, has taken a stance that a JPC probe would be inadequate. Rajya Sabha Parliamentary party leader of the TMC, Derek O’ Brien, argued that for a JPC, the chairman would be decided by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Chairman and would have members from each party according to their numerical strength in Parliament. “This makes these committees skewed towards the ruling majority because of their numbers in the Houses,” O’ Brien said. Almost in every JPC, there was never a consensus on the final report and on basis of brute strength the Opposition’s amendments were more often than not defeated. He also cited previous examples from 1987 and 2001 where he claimed that the JPC probes were ineffective. On the 1987 JPC on Bofors Scam, Mr. O’ Brien said the panel’s recommendations were neither accepted nor implemented. Similarly, in a probe into the share market scam of 2001, the JPC suggestions, though adopted, were later on diluted. At the same time, the TMC maintained that the government had not yet answered questions about endangering common man’s savings invested in the State Bank of India (SBI) and the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC). O’Brien pointed out that, with fall in Adani Group’s shares, the LIC reportedly lost over ₹20,000 crore of investment value out of its total holding of ₹36,000 crore. The SBI has an outstanding exposure worth ₹27,000 crore in the same group. “The LIC-SBI issue is independent of the Adani issue. And it is very much alive,” O’Brien said. President accepts resignation of Sisodia, Jain; appoints Bharadwaj, Atishi as Delhi Ministers President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the resignations of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and minister Satyendra Jain, both currently in Tihar jail in alleged corruption and money-laundering cases respectively. The President also appointed Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Saurabh Bharadwaj and Atishi as Ministers in the Delhi government headed by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. “The President is pleased to accept, on the advice of the Chief Minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the resignation of Shri Manish Sisodia, a Minister in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, with immediate effect,” an official notification said. A similar notification was issued with regards to Jain. Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on February 26 in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi liquor or excise policy for 2021-22. He is currently in judicial custody, till March 20. Jain, who is also in judicial custody, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a case of alleged money laundering on May 30, 2022. Bharadwaj has been an MLA of the AAP since 2013 and is currently the Vice-Chairman of the Delhi Jal Board. He was a Minister of the short-lived first Kejriwal government in 2013. Atishi is an MLA of the AAP since 2020 and has been associated with the party since its inception. She was an advisor of Sisodia in his education portfolio. After backlash, Swiggy takes down ‘egg ad’ billboard for Holi: reports Swiggy’s egg ad billboard for Holi has been taken down after a section of people expressed “outrage” on social media. The advertisement said, “Omelette -- Sunny side-up -- Kisi ke sarr par. #BuraMatKhelo. Get Holi essentials on Instamart.” Though there is no official statement from Swiggy on the matter, a source told PTI, “The billboard ads were only in Delhi-NCR and have been taken down now.” Soon after the ad was put up, several people tweeted with the hashtag “HinduphobicSwiggy”, urging people to boycott the food and grocery delivery service provider. All India Sadhu Samaj member and former president of the Kutch Sant Samaj wrote, “Hey @swiggy, it’s not okay to give selective gyan on Hindu festivals. Your Holi reel and Billboard is creating a wrong perception about Holi. You must apologize and take steps to promote cultural inclusivity.” VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi also objected as she wrote, “Hey Swiggy, why don’t you give similar gyan on Eid/Christmas? Afraid of Sar Tan Se Juda gang? Since you serve diverse communities, it’s important for you to learn to respect all religions. Remove your Holi ads.” While former president of Gujarat’s Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Hardik Bhavsar said, “Immediately Uninstalled”, former BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh Arun Kumar Yadav wrote, “By promoting controversial billboards and posting reel, #HinduPhobicSwiggy has hurt the sentiments of millions of people. Swiggy must apologize to Hindu community and remove them immediately, or face consequences. Why is their lack of similar Ads during non-Hindu festivals?” In Brief: The CBI on Tuesday questioned former railway minister Lalu Prasad for nearly two hours in connection with the land for jobs scam case where people were allegedly given employment in the railways in return for land parcels gifted or sold at cheap rates to the Yadav family and its associates, officials said. The examination of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo comes a day after his wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi was quizzed at her Patna residence by the Agency for nearly five hours. The entire exercise was videographed during which Prasad was confronted with some documents in a special room where he is quarantined post his kidney transplant surgery, the officials said. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 07 March 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang slams U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy as ‘encirclement’ [China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang on March 7 accused the United States]( of attempting “to encircle China” through its Indo-Pacific strategy, taking aim at what he called “exclusive blocs” led by the U.S. “The U.S. ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy’ seeks to gang up to form exclusive blocs, stir up confrontation, and undermine regional integration,” said Qin, speaking at the Foreign Ministry’s annual press conference on the sidelines of the National People’s Congress (NPC) or Parliament session in Beijing. “The ‘Indo-Pacific Strategy’ claims to safeguard regional security, but in fact it provokes confrontation and seeks to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO,” he said, adding that “the real purpose of its Indo-Pacific strategy is to encircle China”. Chinese officials have previously referred to the India, U.S., Australia, Japan Quad grouping as well as the AUKUS (Australia-U.K.-U.S.) defence pact as being key elements of this strategy. Qin’s remarks followed sharp and rare direct criticism of the U.S. from Chinese President Xi Jinping, who on March 6, addressing a delegation on the sidelines of the NPC, said “Western countries, led by the U.S., have implemented all-round containment and suppression of China, which has brought unprecedented severe challenges to the country’s development”. [China’s Foreign Minister Qin Gang attends a press conference during the First Session of the 14th National People’s Congress (NPC) in Beijing on March 7, 2023.] Xi has emphasised self-reliance in key critical industries, a theme of the NPC session, which concludes on March 13. The session is also expected to pass a number of laws overhauling the party-state machinery to bring greater party control and oversight over government bodies, continuing the trend of centralisation under Xi. Announced on March 7, among the draft measures to be approved by the NPC, was the creation of a new National Financial Regulatory Commission, a super regulatory body to manage China’s $60 trillion banking assets. Meanwhile the Chinese Foreign Minister, in Tuesday’s press conference — his first since taking over in December – spoke in detail on the worsening state of China-U.S. relations and reminded Washington of Beijing’s “red line” on Taiwan. In his more than two hour briefing, Qin did not comment on relations with India, taking questions only from Chinese journalists as well as reporters from Egypt, Russia, the U.S., Pakistan, Japan, Singapore and France. Qin, who served as China’s envoy in Washington prior to his appointment, attacked the Biden administration’s China policy, saying it “claims it seeks to out-compete China but does not seek conflict, yet in reality, its so-called competition means to contain and suppress China in all respects”. “If the U.S. does not hit the brake but continue to speed down the wrong path, no amount of guardrails can prevent derailing and there will surely be conflict and confrontation,” he said, adding that the recent U.S. shooting down of a Chinese balloon — described by the U.S. as a “spy balloon” and by China as a civilian meteorological airship — was “revealing” of the U.S. “regarding China as a primary rival” and of “U.S. domestic politics and hysterical neo-McCarthyism”. On Taiwan, he said it was “the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations” and Beijing would take “utmost efforts to pursue peaceful reunification” while “reserving the option to take all necessary measures”. Drawing a comparison with the Ukraine crisis, he said Asia should not see “a Ukraine-style crisis” and be used as a “chessboard for geopolitical contest”. “Chinese people have every right to ask why the U.S. talks of respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity on Ukraine, but disrespecting China’s sovereignty and territorial integrity on Taiwan, and why the U.S. asks China to not provide arms to Russia while it keeps selling arms to Taiwan,” he said. Qin hailed the China-Russia relationship as a model of “strategic trust and good neighbourliness”, adding, pointedly, that “major countries should figure out what they want with each other — building exclusive political blocs or fostering partnerships that are open.” Congress to persist on its demand for JPC on Hindenburg-Adani issue The [Congress will continue with its demand for a probe by the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC)]( on the Hindenburg-Adani revelations in the second part of the Budget Session that begins on Monday. The Trinamool Congress (TMC), the second largest opposition party in Parliament, meanwhile, has taken a diametrically opposite position, calling the JPC an exercise in futility. We are persisting in our demand for a JPC which is the only way to unravel the full dimensions of the PM-linked Adani Maha Mega Scam,” Congress General Secretary (Communication) Jairam Ramesh told The Hindu. [Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh addresses a press conference in New Delhi. ] At a press conference held on March 2, coinciding with the announcement of a Supreme Court-appointed committee to probe the violations of SEBI law and regulations, Ramesh had stated that “any committee other than a JPC is an exercise in legitimisation and exoneration”. The TMC, meanwhile, has taken a stance that a JPC probe would be inadequate. Rajya Sabha Parliamentary party leader of the TMC, Derek O’ Brien, argued that for a JPC, the chairman would be decided by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha Chairman and would have members from each party according to their numerical strength in Parliament. “This makes these committees skewed towards the ruling majority because of their numbers in the Houses,” O’ Brien said. Almost in every JPC, there was never a consensus on the final report and on basis of brute strength the Opposition’s amendments were more often than not defeated. He also cited previous examples from 1987 and 2001 where he claimed that the JPC probes were ineffective. On the 1987 JPC on Bofors Scam, Mr. O’ Brien said the panel’s recommendations were neither accepted nor implemented. Similarly, in a probe into the share market scam of 2001, the JPC suggestions, though adopted, were later on diluted. At the same time, the TMC maintained that the government had not yet answered questions about endangering common man’s savings invested in the State Bank of India (SBI) and the Life Insurance Corporation (LIC). O’Brien pointed out that, with fall in Adani Group’s shares, the LIC reportedly lost over ₹20,000 crore of investment value out of its total holding of ₹36,000 crore. The SBI has an outstanding exposure worth ₹27,000 crore in the same group. “The LIC-SBI issue is independent of the Adani issue. And it is very much alive,” O’Brien said. President accepts resignation of Sisodia, Jain; appoints Bharadwaj, Atishi as Delhi Ministers [President Droupadi Murmu has accepted the resignations of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and minister Satyendra Jain]( both currently in Tihar jail in alleged corruption and money-laundering cases respectively. The President also appointed Aam Aadmi Party MLAs Saurabh Bharadwaj and Atishi as Ministers in the Delhi government headed by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. “The President is pleased to accept, on the advice of the Chief Minister of the National Capital Territory of Delhi, the resignation of Shri Manish Sisodia, a Minister in the National Capital Territory of Delhi, with immediate effect,” an official notification said. A similar notification was issued with regards to Jain. Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on February 26 in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi liquor or excise policy for 2021-22. He is currently in judicial custody, till March 20. Jain, who is also in judicial custody, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a case of alleged money laundering on May 30, 2022. Bharadwaj has been an MLA of the AAP since 2013 and is currently the Vice-Chairman of the Delhi Jal Board. He was a Minister of the short-lived first Kejriwal government in 2013. Atishi is an MLA of the AAP since 2020 and has been associated with the party since its inception. She was an advisor of Sisodia in his education portfolio. After backlash, Swiggy takes down ‘egg ad’ billboard for Holi: reports [Swiggy’s egg ad billboard for Holi has been taken down after a section of people expressed “outrage”]( on social media. The advertisement said, “Omelette -- Sunny side-up -- Kisi ke sarr par. #BuraMatKhelo. Get Holi essentials on Instamart.” Though there is no official statement from Swiggy on the matter, a source told PTI, “The billboard ads were only in Delhi-NCR and have been taken down now.” Soon after the ad was put up, several people tweeted with the hashtag “HinduphobicSwiggy”, urging people to boycott the food and grocery delivery service provider. All India Sadhu Samaj member and former president of the Kutch Sant Samaj wrote, “Hey @swiggy, it’s not okay to give selective gyan on Hindu festivals. Your Holi reel and Billboard is creating a wrong perception about Holi. You must apologize and take steps to promote cultural inclusivity.” VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi also objected as she wrote, “Hey Swiggy, why don’t you give similar gyan on Eid/Christmas? Afraid of Sar Tan Se Juda gang? Since you serve diverse communities, it’s important for you to learn to respect all religions. Remove your Holi ads.” While former president of Gujarat’s Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Hardik Bhavsar said, “Immediately Uninstalled”, former BJP MLA from Uttar Pradesh Arun Kumar Yadav wrote, “By promoting controversial billboards and posting reel, #HinduPhobicSwiggy has hurt the sentiments of millions of people. Swiggy must apologize to Hindu community and remove them immediately, or face consequences. Why is their lack of similar Ads during non-Hindu festivals?” In Brief: The [CBI on Tuesday questioned former railway minister Lalu Prasad]( for nearly two hours in connection with the land for jobs scam case where people were allegedly given employment in the railways in return for land parcels gifted or sold at cheap rates to the Yadav family and its associates, officials said. The examination of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo comes a day after his wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi was quizzed at her Patna residence by the Agency for nearly five hours. The entire exercise was videographed during which Prasad was confronted with some documents in a special room where he is quarantined post his kidney transplant surgery, the officials said. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. First Day First Show Stay up-to-date on all things cinema with the "First Day First Show" cinema & entertainment newsletter. 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