China update: G20, Covid-19 and rising cross-strait tensions among our reporter’s picks for top headlines last week

US troops confirmed on Taiwan and all eyes on COP26 at Glasgow after G20 leaders fail to make any real climate commitment

Washington and Beijing continue their squabble over Covid-19 origins and heads start to roll over the summer’s devastating floods

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Observers have expressed disappointment at China’s emissions reduction commitment ahead of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30am, 1 Nov 2021Updated: 8:46am, 8 Nov 2021

Good morning. My name is Mimi Lau, China correspondent with a focus on human rights, religious and ethnic affairs, labour issues, and civil society. I spent nearly eight years in southern China from 2009 before returning to Hong Kong in 2017 and I continue to keep an eye on the stories unfolding in China on these contentious fronts. I also host the South China Morning Post’s Inside China podcast. Follow me on Twitter @gzmimi for more.

Last week’s biggest news was the heightened cross-strait tensions after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen confirmed for the first time the presence of US troops on the island – apparently intending to push Washington into making clear whether it would go further than its pledge to help Taiwan provide for its self-defence.

Beijing, which dismissed the size of the US military presence on the self-ruled island, is expected to step up its preparations against Taiwan, triggering concerns that its actions could lead to a real confrontation.

Environment

The weekend’s G20 meeting ended in Rome with few new commitments from the heads of the world’s 20 biggest economies to tackle the existential threat of climate change. Chinese President Xi Jinping, Russian President Vladimir Putin, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador were also criticised for being physically absent from the summit.

In a video call, Xi said “developed countries” should lead the way in the fight to reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by setting an example to accommodate difficulties, implement climate finance commitments, and provide technological and capacity building support to developing countries.

COP26