China's turn to court friends in the region
Thanong Khanthong
thanong@nationgroup.com December 23, 2011 1:00 am
Chinese Vice-President Xi-Jinping arrived in Thailand yesterday for a three-day visit designed to boost bilateral ties.
Xi's visit is not being trumpeted like the high-profile visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the Kingdom in November. But Xi is the man to watch. For next year he will succeed Hu Jintao as president of the People's Republic of China.
During this regional mini tour, Xi is visiting only two countries - Vietnam and Thailand. China would like to win both back over to its camp. This comes at a time of growing geopolitical tension between China and the United States in the Asia-Pacific region. US President Obama has refocused US policy in this region through a more aggressive military strategy to counter the rise of China.
Naturally, China is uncomfortable that its immediate neighbour Vietnam has recently tilted its policy towards the United States. Vietnam has offered oil concessions to the US in the South China Sea. If Vietnam were to ally itself more formally with the United States, it could to a certain degree shift the balance of power in this region. Similarly, Thailand is located at the heart of Southeast Asia. A Thai alliance with the United States is also being seen as a threat to China.
Overall, the ability of the Asian countries to walk a balance between the competing interests of China and the US, not to mention Russia and India, will be a huge challenge. It would be in the best interest of Thailand and other Asian countries to remain impartial amid the superpowers' rivalry.
Xi will leave Thailand tomorrow. But during his stay, the impression we are getting is that he will be focusing more on boosting economic and social ties. Military talks are not on the agenda. When Clinton visited Bangkok in November, she mentioned the possibility of using Don Mueang Airport and U-tapao Airport as part of the military cooperation between Thailand and the US.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Xi witnessed a signing ceremony for four agreements covering a bilateral currency swap, a high-speed train link, water-resource management, and education and human-resource development. The currency deal, involving 7 billion yuan for a start, is most important of all. The currency swap agreement will encourage Thai exporters to use domestic currencies instead of US dollars in bilateral trade with China.
China is keen to promote its yuan as the international reserve currency of choice. It has signed several bilateral currency swap agreements with other countries to promote the use of the yuan. This would circumvent the use of the US dollar as the medium of international transactions.
Certainly, Washington is watching this development with a sense of alarm. Any challenge to the dollar's supremacy would erode US military might, which has been financed largely by dollar debt creation. China is waiting for the right timing to float the yuan outright so that it can become a global reserve currency to compete against the dollar, the euro and the yen. Right now it is preparing the infrastructure to make this arrangement possible, using Hong Kong as a financial centre for the yuan trade.
Xi will today meet with General Prem Tinsulanond, the president of the Privy Council, before having an audience with Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn at Chitralada Palace. Princess Sirindhorn will also host a luncheon for Xi at the Sra Pathum Palace. In the afternoon, Xi is scheduled to meet with Somsak Kiatsuranont, president of the Parliament and House of Representatives. In the evening, he will meet with Thai dignitaries and friends of China at the Shangri-la Hotel.
Tomorrow, Xi will meet with Abhisit Vejjajiva, the leader of the opposition. He will end his official visit to Thailand by delivering a speech at the Confucius Institute at Chulalongkorn University.
Xi's visit is designed to touch base with the Thai ruling elite in order to get a sense of the direction Thailand is taking, and at the same time try to boost relations between the two countries. His success will be judged by the follow-ups to the agreements signed by both sides and the stance of Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian countries in the context of the China-US rivalry for predominance within the Asia-Pacific region.
The US dollar is on the way to the grave within 10 years and american power and israel down th drain
Thanong Khanthong
thanong@nationgroup.com December 23, 2011 1:00 am
Chinese Vice-President Xi-Jinping arrived in Thailand yesterday for a three-day visit designed to boost bilateral ties.
Xi's visit is not being trumpeted like the high-profile visit of US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton to the Kingdom in November. But Xi is the man to watch. For next year he will succeed Hu Jintao as president of the People's Republic of China.
During this regional mini tour, Xi is visiting only two countries - Vietnam and Thailand. China would like to win both back over to its camp. This comes at a time of growing geopolitical tension between China and the United States in the Asia-Pacific region. US President Obama has refocused US policy in this region through a more aggressive military strategy to counter the rise of China.
Naturally, China is uncomfortable that its immediate neighbour Vietnam has recently tilted its policy towards the United States. Vietnam has offered oil concessions to the US in the South China Sea. If Vietnam were to ally itself more formally with the United States, it could to a certain degree shift the balance of power in this region. Similarly, Thailand is located at the heart of Southeast Asia. A Thai alliance with the United States is also being seen as a threat to China.
Overall, the ability of the Asian countries to walk a balance between the competing interests of China and the US, not to mention Russia and India, will be a huge challenge. It would be in the best interest of Thailand and other Asian countries to remain impartial amid the superpowers' rivalry.
Xi will leave Thailand tomorrow. But during his stay, the impression we are getting is that he will be focusing more on boosting economic and social ties. Military talks are not on the agenda. When Clinton visited Bangkok in November, she mentioned the possibility of using Don Mueang Airport and U-tapao Airport as part of the military cooperation between Thailand and the US.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra and Xi witnessed a signing ceremony for four agreements covering a bilateral currency swap, a high-speed train link, water-resource management, and education and human-resource development. The currency deal, involving 7 billion yuan for a start, is most important of all. The currency swap agreement will encourage Thai exporters to use domestic currencies instead of US dollars in bilateral trade with China.
China is keen to promote its yuan as the international reserve currency of choice. It has signed several bilateral currency swap agreements with other countries to promote the use of the yuan. This would circumvent the use of the US dollar as the medium of international transactions.
Certainly, Washington is watching this development with a sense of alarm. Any challenge to the dollar's supremacy would erode US military might, which has been financed largely by dollar debt creation. China is waiting for the right timing to float the yuan outright so that it can become a global reserve currency to compete against the dollar, the euro and the yen. Right now it is preparing the infrastructure to make this arrangement possible, using Hong Kong as a financial centre for the yuan trade.
Xi will today meet with General Prem Tinsulanond, the president of the Privy Council, before having an audience with Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn at Chitralada Palace. Princess Sirindhorn will also host a luncheon for Xi at the Sra Pathum Palace. In the afternoon, Xi is scheduled to meet with Somsak Kiatsuranont, president of the Parliament and House of Representatives. In the evening, he will meet with Thai dignitaries and friends of China at the Shangri-la Hotel.
Tomorrow, Xi will meet with Abhisit Vejjajiva, the leader of the opposition. He will end his official visit to Thailand by delivering a speech at the Confucius Institute at Chulalongkorn University.
Xi's visit is designed to touch base with the Thai ruling elite in order to get a sense of the direction Thailand is taking, and at the same time try to boost relations between the two countries. His success will be judged by the follow-ups to the agreements signed by both sides and the stance of Thailand, Vietnam and other Asian countries in the context of the China-US rivalry for predominance within the Asia-Pacific region.
The US dollar is on the way to the grave within 10 years and american power and israel down th drain
