From The Media Line.
Iran and China have signed an agreement to allow China to set-up an oilrig in
the Gulf despite increasing international calls to enforce tougher sanctions
against Iran.
In a deal worth $143 million between the Iranian North Drilling Company and
China Petroleum Technology Development Corporation, the latter will be allowed
to drill for oil in the Gulf, according to the official Iranian news agency
Press TV.
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Reuters report.
Senior Chinese military officers have proposed that their country boost defense
spending, adjust PLA deployments, and possibly sell some U.S. bonds to punish
Washington for its latest round of arms sales to Taiwan.
[...]
China has the world's biggest pile of foreign currency reserves, much of it
held in U.S. treasury debt. China held $798.9 billion in U.S. Treasuries at
end-October.
But any attempt to use that stake against Washington would probably maul the
value of China's own dollar-denominated assets.
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Telegraph report.
Evidence is mounting that Chinese sales of US Treasury bonds over recent months
are intended as a warning shot to Washington over escalating political disputes
rather than being part of a routine portfolio shift as thought at first.
A front-page story in the state's China Information News said the record $34bn
sale of US bonds in December was a "commendable" move. The article was
republished by the National Bureau of Statistics, giving it a stronger
imprimatur.
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Reuters report.
Acknowledging China's reluctance, Jim Jones, Obama's national security adviser,
told the "Fox News Sunday" program: "We need to work on China a little more. On
this issue they cannot be nonsupportive."
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Laura Rozen in Politico.
After arriving in Doha today and meeting with the Turkish foreign minister and
Qatari leaders, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton heads to Saudi Arabia where
she will meet with Saudi King Abdullah and Foreign Minister Prince Saud
al-Faisal.
What's on Clinton's Saudi agenda? Prodding Saudi leaders to offer the Chinese
energy supply guarantees in exchange for Beijing's nod for Iran sanctions,
AFP's Lachlan Carmichael posits.
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The Leveretts comment.
Amidst the bravado surrounding President Ahmadinejad's announcement that Iran
will start enriching uranium to 20 per cent purity, the Financial Times
reported yesterday that China has passed the European Union as Iran's largest
trading partner.
...
The finding is indicative of a broader trend: China's growing willingness to
work with the Islamic Republic, despite objections from the United States and Europe.
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Guardian report.
The sudden deterioration in US-Chinese relations is set to accelerate after the
White House confirmed today that Barack Obama will meet the Dalai Lama in
Washington later this month in defiance of Beijing.
...
Obama told US legislators on Wednesday that he will take a tougher line towards
China over its huge US trade surplus.
Other grievances include US plans to sell arms to Taiwan, the row with the
leading search engine Google over alleged cyber attacks, and US disappointment
at China's failure to support it over climate change at Copenhagen and on
sanctions against Iran.
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Guardian story.
China and the US are set for renewed confrontation after Beijing warned of
serious repercussions following Washington's announcement of a $6.4bn (£4bn)
arms deal with Taiwan.
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