cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/54788141

https://www.oglaf.com/outreach/

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/54787590

This year, sales of Chinese-made cars across the EU, UK, and EFTA are expected to exceed 700,000. This is up significantly from the 408,000 that were sold in 2024.

Rather than dampen demand, the tariffs have simply redirected it. While the added fees specifically target EVs and extended-range electric vehicles, hybrid and internal combustion engine (ICE) models remain subject only to the base 10 percent tariff.

Whereas EVs accounted for 44 percent of Chinese car sales in Europe from January-October 2024, this share has dropped to 34 percent in 2025.

Meta has removed or restricted dozens of accounts belonging to abortion access providers, queer groups and reproductive health organisations in the past weeks in what campaigners call one of the “biggest waves of censorship” on its platforms in years.

The takedowns and restrictions began in October and targeted the Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp accounts of more than 50 organisations worldwide, some serving tens of thousands of people – in what appears to be a growing push by Meta to limit reproductive health and queer content across its platforms. Many of these were from Europe and the UK, however the bans also affected groups serving women in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.

Repro Uncensored, an NGO tracking digital censorship against movements focused on gender, health and justice, said that it had tracked 210 incidents of account removals and severe restrictions affecting these groups this year, compared with 81 last year.

Meta denied an escalating trend of censorship. “Every organisation and individual on our platforms is subject to the same set of rules, and any claims of enforcement based on group affiliation or advocacy are baseless,” it said in a statement, adding that its policies on abortion-related content had not changed.

A child bride who was due to be executed this month in Iran over the death of her husband has had her life spared by his parents, who were paid the equivalent of £70,000 in exchange for their forgiveness.

Goli Kouhkan, 25, has been on death row in Gorgan central prison in northern Iran for the past seven years. At the age of 18 she was arrested over allegedly participating in the killing of her abusive husband, Alireza Abil, in May 2018, and sentenced to qisas – retribution-in-kind.

Forced to marry her cousin at 12, Kouhkan became pregnant at 13 and gave birth to a son. She suffered physical and emotional abuse for years. On the day her husband was killed, Kouhkan found him beating their son, then aged five. She called her husband’s cousin, Mohammad Abil, for help. When he arrived a fight broke out which resulted in the death of her husband. According to Iran Human Rights, Abil remains on death row.

Kouhkan’s lawyer confirmed in a post on Instagram on 9 December that the original sum of 10bn tomans had been reduced to 8bn tomans and that amount had been raised through donations. In a video published by Mizan News Agency, Kouhkan’s parents-in-law are seen signing documents.

China, by contrast, has a close ​relationship with the Palestinians and has recognised a Palestinian state since 1988. Taiwan has said it does not plan to recognise a Palestinian state.

Taiwan, whose government rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claims, has been hosting Israeli officials and lawmakers.

In October, Mr Wu met director-general Yinon Aaroni of Israel’s Ministry of Welfare and Social Affairs ​in Taipei while, in September, President Lai met six Israeli lawmakers at his office.

Mr Lai told a dinner in Taiwan ​of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group, that Israel’s determination and capacity to defend its territory provide a “valuable model” for Taiwan, and cited the biblical story of David against Goliath.

Big tech showing its true colors.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.zip/post/54786568

Meanwhile, (NATO Secretary General Mark) Rutte delivers a very stark warning in the opening lines of his speech in Berlin as he says:

“I’m here today to tell you where Nato stands and what we must do to stop a war before it starts. And to do that, we need to be crystal clear about the threat: we are Russia’s next target, and we are already in harm’s way.”

He says that while the decision to accelerate defence spending at Nato’s Hague summit earlier this year was welcome, “this is not a time for self-congratulation.”

“I fear that too many are quietly complacent. Too many don’t feel the urgency. And too many believe that time is on our side. It is not. The time for action is now. Allied defence spending and production must rise rapidly. Our armed forces must have what they need to keep us safe.”

Rutte says that Russia “has become even more brazen, reckless and ruthless towards Nato and towards Ukraine.”

Frozen out and cold-shouldered: The reality facing Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever if he torpedoes the EU’s plan.

Temu's European headquarters in Dublin were raided by EU regulators last week on concerns about potential Chinese state subsidies granted to the online retailer, a subsidiary of China's ecommerce giant PDD Holdings, a person familiar with the matter has said.

Temu did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

cross-posted from: https://lemmygrad.ml/post/10028972

The Trump administration is proposing to ask visitors from several dozen nations that enjoy visa-free travel to the U.S. to submit additional personal information before entering the country, including five years of their social media history, the Department of Homeland Security said in a notice this week.

Citizens of 42 countries enrolled in the visa waiver program can generally come to the U.S. for up to 90 days for tourism or business travel, without needing to apply for a visa at an American embassy or consulate, a process that can take months or even years.

The list of countries in the visa waiver program includes many European nations like the United Kingdom, Germany and France, as well as some U.S. allies around the world, including Australia, Israel, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea.

cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/12938

American tech giant Meta Platforms is reportedly using an open-source artificial intelligence model developed by Alibaba Group Holding to reinvigorate its faltering AI efforts in another likely win for Chinese AI. According to a Bloomberg report on Wednesday, Facebook owner Meta was using Alibaba’s Qwen model, along with other open-source models from Google and OpenAI, as part of the training process for a new model code-named Avocado, which was expected to be released in the spring. The report...

From China - South China Morning Post via This RSS Feed.

The show of force highlights growing regional tensions as China asserts its military presence.

US nuclear-capable bombers joined Japanese fighter planes for a flight over the Sea of Japan, Tokyo said Thursday.

This comes a day after Chinese and Russian forces completed coordinated drills encircling Japan and South Korea.

"We confirmed the strong resolve of Japan and the United States not to allow any unilateral change of the status quo by force, as well as the readiness of the Self-Defense Forces and the US military," Japan's Defense Ministry said in a statement.

Two US B-52 bombers joined three Japanese F-35 stealth fighters and three F-15 jets in the operation on Wednesday.

For those who want the back story on how it all came about

cross-posted from: https://mander.xyz/post/43442390

[Op-ed by Anders Fogh Rasmussen, a former prime minister of Denmark and former secretary general of Nato.]

Web archive link

...

The war in Ukraine, North Korea’s missile tests, and China’s growing assertiveness reveal a stark truth: the great divide of our age is not as geographic as it once was, but political and ideological. It is the fault line between open societies and autocratic ones.

For Europe, the imperative is clear: deepen partnerships with other democracies that share our values, our economic models, and our strategic outlook.

And few countries embody this alignment more than Japan.

...

Japan is not just a major economy in the Indo-Pacific — it is a democracy of principle, a strategic actor with advanced capabilities, and a steady partner in global security.

Over recent years, Tokyo has grown its defence cooperation, expanded its space and cyber capabilities, and strengthened its regional engagement.

Meanwhile, the nature of threat is shifting.

Autocratic states — Russia, North Korea, China — are cooperating increasingly.

...

I have long advocated for a 'Democratic 7' (D7): the EU, the UK, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada.

Together, these nations account for roughly a quarter of global GDP and more than a third of global trade.

Yet what they share is deeper: a network of trust, rule-of-law, and open economy.

Within that framework, Japan stands out. Its contributions in space, defence and high-tech industries are world-class.

Europe should not view Tokyo as adjunct — it should view Japan as central to our strategy. From satellite systems to missile defence, from industrial innovation to standard-setting in critical technologies, Japan can be both partner and template.

...