Beijing Orders Alibaba To Dump Media Assets That Rival China's Propaganda Machine

Beijing is reviving its crackdown on the country's biggest tech firms, reminding the world that the CCP is still focused on neutralizing any and all threats to its control of the Chinese economy and its people. Even after amending China's official ideology to include entrepreneurs among the protected classes represented by the CCP (in addition to workers, farmers and soldiers), Beijing, with President Xi at its center, has apparently decided that Chinese tech firms won't follow the American model after all. Instead, their growth and competitive capabilities will be curtailed for the sake of stability at home.

After Tencent was censured and strict new requirements weren officailly imposed on Alibaba-owned Ant Group that will prevent the company from growing, the Wall Street Journal reports that next up on Beijing's to-do list is to force Alibaba to dump its array of media outlets. Presumably, Beijing sees these outlets as an unwelcome competitor to Beijing's own propaganda machine.

Alibaba's media portfolio includes ownership of the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong's most widely read English-language newspaper, which has an audience far outside of Hong Kong. The paper often struggled with its coverage of the unrest in Hong Kong, occasionally adopting the language of the CCP (like referring to the demonstrators as "rioters") while still managing to rankle Beijing with its detailed coverage of the demonstrations.

According to WSJ, the CCP has been "discussing" whether to force the divestitures since early this year. Chinese regulators have been "reviewing" a list of media assets owned by Hangzhou-based Alibaba, which earns most of its money via an online retail business. Officials were appalled at how expensive Alibaba's media interests have become. Now, Beijing is asking Alibaba to devise a plan to "curtail" its media holdings.

Now, just imagine if President Trump tried to force Amazon to sell the Washington Post.

In a statement delivered to WSJ, Alibaba said it's merely a passive investor in these media companies, and doesn't exercise any sway over editorial direction.

"The purpose of our investments in these companies is to provide technology support for their business upgrade and drive commercial synergies with our core commerce businesses. We do not intervene or get involved in the companies’ day-to-day operations or editorial decisions," the statement said.

Here's a roundup of Alibaba's media holdings courtesy of WSJ:

Alibaba owns 100% of the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong’s premier English newspaper.

Alibaba owns nearly 37% of Yicai Media Group, one of China’s most influential news outlets.

Alibaba owns about 30% of Weibo, a Twitter-like social media platform. Its stake is valued at more than $3.5 billion.

Alibaba owns 6.7% of Bilibili, a video platform that is popular among younger Chinese people. Its stake is worth nearly $2.6 billion.

Ant owns 16.2% of 36kr, a U.S.-listed digital media outlet focused on technology. Its stake is worth $25 million.

Alibaba owns 5% of Mango Excellent Media, a subsidiary of government-run Hunan TV. Its stake is worth about $819 million.

Alibaba owns nearly 5.3% of Focus Media, China’s largest offline advertising network. Its stake is worth nearly $1.2 billion.

Ant owned a 5.62% stake in Caixin Media, one of China’s most respected news sources. It sold its interest in 2019.

Shares of BABA were down on the news.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/beijing-orders-alibaba-dump-media-assets-rival-chinas-propaganda-machine

Trump Releases Statement on WaPo’s Retraction of the “Find the Fraud” Fake News Story – RIPS Stacey Abrams and Crooked Georgia Political Machine

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/03/trump-releases-statement-wapos-retraction-find-fraud-fake-news-story-rips-stacey-abrams-crooked-georgia-political-machine/

‘Move Fast’: Zarif Urges US to Return to Nuclear Deal Before Iran’s Upcoming Presidential Election

Tensions between Iran and the US have been running high since former US President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear deal on May 8, 2018.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif urged the United States to quickly rejoin the Iranian nuclear accord, warning that Iran’s June presidential elections could prevent progress in any talks.

“A lame-duck government will not be able to do anything serious. And then we will have a waiting period of almost six months. We will not have a government before September,” Zarif said during an online conference with the European Policy Centre think-tank in Brussels, The Times of Israel reported.

“A lot of things can happen between now and September. So, it is advisable for the United States to move fast,” Zarif advised.

Iran has repeatedly stated that the US, which pulled out of the nuclear deal, must make the first move to make amends and should not set any preconditions.

“We are ready to go back immediately after the United States goes back to implementation of the deal. That’s as simple as that,” Zarif noted.

“We don’t see any reason for talks; we can go immediately to implementation and then have talks,” Zarif said, also noting that “up until now, this administration has done nothing different from the Trump administration.”

In February, the Biden administration expressed interest in reviving the nuclear deal, but said it wanted to see changes from Tehran before it lifts the economic sanctions imposed on the Middle Eastern country by the Trump administration. However, Iran has said that it wants sanctions removed as part of the agreement to come to the negotiating table.

In a briefing last month, US State Department spokesperson Ned Price said the US and Iran are a “long way” from a return to the 2015 nuclear deal, The Washington Post reported at the time.

Price also added that Biden has been “very clear” that “if Iran comes back into full compliance with its obligations under the [deal], the United States would do the same, and then we would then use that as a platform to build a longer and a stronger agreement that also addresses other areas of concern.”

In 2018, the US abandoned its conciliatory stance on Iran, withdrawing from the JCPOA and implementing hard-line policies against Tehran, prompting Iran to largely abandon its obligations under the accord. In December, Iran passed a law to increase its uranium enrichment and stop UN inspections of its nuclear sites in response to the killing of nuclear physicist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh. At the start of January, Iran’s atomic energy organization announced that the country had succeeded in enriching uranium at 20 percent at the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant.

Iran had also threatened to suspend all Internation Atomic Energy Agency’s inspections of the country's nuclear facilities by February 23 if the US sanctions were not lifted by that time. However, after talks with the international watchdog, Tehran agreed to prolong the inspections but in a limited capacity.

https://sputniknews.com/middleeast/202103151082351560-move-fast-zarif-urges-us-to-return-to-nuclear-deal-before-irans-upcoming-presidential-election/

AZ Mayor: We’re ‘Completely in the Dark’ on Health Status of Migrants Being Placed in our Town

On Monday’s broadcast of the Fox News Channel’s “Your World,” Gila Bend, AZ Mayor Chris Riggs stated that his city is “completely in the dark” on the migrants that will be placed in his city, and the federal government can’t give information on the backgrounds of people being placed in Gila Bend, “They can’t tell us what their health issues are.” Riggs also stated that “we just do not have the ability to care for these people.”

Riggs said, “At this point, what we’re looking at is, we’re a very economically depressed community. We can barely afford to take care of the people that we have here in our community now. And, as of the 2nd, Border Patrol advised us they’re basically going to drop people off here and…they’re your problem. And we just do not have the ability to care for these people. And, quite frankly, it’s going to cost us tens of thousands of dollars a year to be able just to provide them with a bottle of water and a sandwich when they get dropped off. Because they’re not able to give us how many. They can’t give us what background[s] on these people are. They can’t tell us what their health issues are. I’ve got a lot of seniors and elders here…that are very susceptible to COVID.”

He added, “We are completely in the dark. And we’ve asked [for] documentation, some kind of documentation, give us something. And we’re still not getting anything.”

https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2021/03/15/az-mayor-were-completely-in-the-dark-on-health-status-of-migrants-being-placed-in-our-town/

Fresh Rocket Attack Hits Iraqi Base Housing American Troops

Here we go again: on Monday a barrage of rocket fire targeted an Iraqi military base which houses American troops just north of the capital of Baghdad.

In total seven were fired, with initial reports saying there were no casualties. "At least five rockets hit the Iraqi military air base of Balad north of Baghdad on Monday, without causing casualties, Iraqi security officials said," Reuters reports.

Additionally two other rockets failed to land inside the base, detonating in a rural area without causing casualties.

Officials have named the usual suspects: "No group immediately claimed the attack, but armed groups that some Iraqi officials say are backed by Iran have claimed similar incidents in the past," Reuters reports further.

It comes after a spate of similar attacks and tit-for-tat US responses, which notably included Biden two weeks ago ordering airstrikes on 'Iranian militia' positions in far eastern Syria. And crucially Monday's attack comes just days into a truce agreement in which Iran-backed Iraqi paramilitary forces agreed to halt all attacks on American bases.

However, the temporary ceasefire came with this key caveat:

After frantic meetings in Baghdad, Beirut and Tehran, Iranian-backed Iraqi paramilitaries have agreed to stop attacks against US forces in Iraq on the condition that Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi formally demands an American withdrawal, officials and faction commanders told Middle East Eye.

Kadhimi must tell Washington that the pullout has to be completed within 12 months, they added. Sources said it is likely that Kadhimi will comply and make the formal request.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/fresh-rocket-attack-hits-iraqi-base-housing-american-troops

Tech Executive Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud and Money Laundering in Connection with PPP Loans

https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/tech-executive-pleads-guilty-wire-fraud-and-money-laundering-connection-ppp-loans

'Breathtaking bulls***': Critics rip AP article blaming Republicans for Cuomo's mounting scandals

"… You aren't a news organization, you are a propaganda machine."

The Associated Press was once considered an unbiased source for news.

Not anymore.

In a story on Friday – headlined "Top Dems call on Cuomo to resign amid harassment allegations" – the wire service found a way to praise President Biden and bash Republicans, saying the GOP has "seized" on the sexual misconduct scandal swirling around New York Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo.

"The escalating political crisis has spawned an impeachment inquiry in an overwhelmingly Democratic state, and threatens to cast a cloud over President Joe Biden’s early days in office. Republicans have seized on the scandal to try to distract from Biden’s success tackling the coronavirus pandemic and challenge his party’s well-established advantage with female voters," the AP wrote in the story’s fourth paragraph.

The story does point out that New York’s two U.S. senators, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand – both Democrats – have deserted Cuomo and that top Democratic progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has called on the governor to resign.

But the article doesn't state that more than 50 Democratic lawmakers in the statehouse have seized on the scandal. A huge swath of state Democratic lawmakers have called in the governor to resign or face impeachment.

"Just breathtaking bulls***," Washington Examiner journalist Becket Adams tweeted. He later said, "Taking a screen grab again just in case" the AP edited the piece.

Others pointed out the irony of the verbiage. "Cuomo literally seized women who worked for him," wrote one person on Twitter.

Still others took aim at the AP.

"Can’t decide what’s more crazy about this “Republicans seize on Cuomo scandal” line — that it was published .. or that it was published in the AP, not Think Progress or an outlet that you EXPECT to gaslight," wrote another.

"When your coverage of a Governor having a series of sexual abuse allegations revealed and his own party triggering Impeachment inquires and calling on him to resign is 'Republican have seized on the scandal,' you aren't a news organization, you are a propaganda machine," says another post.

"This is reporting??" wrote still another.

It's not the first time a liberal news site has sought to blame the GOP for a Democratic scandal.

"At this stage, any journalist who frames a mistake or controversial statement made by a Democratic politician with ‘conservatives pounce’ has to be either woefully out of touch with reality or consciously trolling," National Review editor Charles C.W. Cooke wrote last year.

https://justthenews.com/government/state-houses/breathtaking-bulls-critics-rip-ap-article-blaming-republicans-cuomos

Members of the Guam National Guard Pay GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene a Visit After She Called the US Territory a Foreign Land

This is Joe Biden’s America.

GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene falsely called Guam a foreign territory so soldiers were sent to her office to teach her a lesson.

Guam has been a US territory for more than 120 years, but the freshman lawmaker referred to Guam as a foreign land during her CPAC speech last month.

Instead of brushing off Greene’s comments as a small oversight, Guam Rep. Michael F.Q. San Nicolas and members of the Guam National Guard paid a visit to Rep. Greene’s office on Monday.

The troops brought Greene Chamorro Chip Cookies and when they found out she wasn’t in her office, they demanded to know when she would return.

Why are the troops being used as political props? Why is DC politicizing the military?

Did Democrat Rep. Hank Johnson get a visit from the Guam National Guard after he said Guam would tip over and capsize?

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2021/03/members-guam-national-guard-pay-gop-rep-marjorie-taylor-greene-visit-called-us-territory-foreign-land-video/

Who Is Behind Attacks On Illegal Oil Smuggling Infrastructure Of Turkish-Backed Militants ?

It is well known that Syria suffers from stifling economic crises. The most severe of them hit the fuel sector, in which the Syrian state may soon emerge from a shortage, until it faces another shortage, within the ongoing petrol, diesel and gas crises in all the Syrian governorates.

These crises are the result of the thefts of the Syrian oil derivatives by America and Turkey, which control most of the Syrian oil fields in the north and east of the country, noting that the largest number of these fields are under the American and SDF control.

This control and the thefts of the oil derivatives, their smuggling and selling outside of Syria contravene all international laws and norms saying that the sources of the subterranean wealth in any country belong to its people and are managed by their state, and any external control over these sources is a violation of the national sovereignty of the country.

Amid the aggravation of Syrian crises and failure of diplomatic efforts to secure the transition of the Syrian oil to its owners, the Syrian government has recently changed its approach towards the theft operations that affect the oil wells, especially since these important strategic materials have come under the control of terrorist organizations and armed factions affiliated with Turkey directly from the fields under the US control.

The new trend appears through the targeting operations that have affected several times the illegal oil burners, the militants in the areas of “Jarablus” and “Al-Bab” in the northern countryside of Aleppo, especially since this oil comes from the areas controlled by the “SDF”, meaning that the SDF supplies the militants with the stolen Syrian oil at a time when all the regions of the Syrian state are suffering from crises.

This confirms that the Turkish claims about its intervention in the Syrian war in order to fight the “SDF” are false, as it’s supplied with oil from the areas under the control of the factions and the terrorist organizations through the support of “SDF” , which has become categorically rejected by the Syrian state.

https://southfront.org/who-is-behind-attacks-on-illegal-oil-smuggling-infrastructure-of-turkish-backed-militants/

Zaxharova on ten years of war in Syria

The country has been subjected to unprecedented aggression by international terrorism.

Share

Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation

March 15 marks ten years since the outbreak of mass unrest in the Syrian Arab Republic. Outside interference rapidly transformed the internal political process into an armed conflict, in which illegal armed groups came to the fore. The country has been subjected to unprecedented aggression by international terrorism.

Thanks to the decisive contribution of Russia, it was possible to defeat ISIS and inflict irreparable damage on other structures of the terrorist international. As a result of the concerted efforts of the partners in the “Astana format” – Russia, Iran, Turkey – a stable regime of cessation of hostilities is provided in most of the territory of the SAR. Yet, separate hotbeds of tension still remain in Idlib, where the terrorists of Jabhat al-Nusra and allied bandit formations have dug in, as well as in the zones of the illegal US military presence in Trans-Euphrates and At-Tanf.

Taking an uncompromising position on international terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and providing military assistance to eliminate it on Syrian soil, Russia firmly and consistently stands for a political settlement of the internal conflict in Syria. We are deeply convinced that it has no military solution. We are committed to the political process, led and carried out by the Syrians themselves on the basis of UN Security Council Resolution 2254. We are doing our best in contacts with the Government of the SAR and representatives of the opposition to promote it.

We are actively promoting the work of the Inter-Syrian Constitutional Committee in Geneva, created in accordance with the decisions of the Congress of the Syrian National Dialogue, held in 2018 in Sochi. We are encouraging the Syrian parties to ensure that discussions on this platform are regular and constructive. At the same time, we are convinced of the need for the Syrians to independently develop a common vision of the future of their homeland without external pressure and without setting artificial deadlines for reaching the final result.

The imperative of our policy in the Syrian direction has always been and remains respect for the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of the Syrian Arab Republic.

On the tragic anniversary of the beginning of the devastating and bloody events in Syria, one cannot but recall the numerous atrocities committed by terrorists against the civilian population, and the provocations of pseudo-humanitarian workers from the White Helmets with the use of chemical weapons, inspired by their Western patrons. As you know, it was the far-fetched accusations against the SAR government of war crimes that were repeatedly used by the Americans and their allies to justify strikes on Syrian territory in violation of international law and bypassing the UN Security Council.

We call on everyone who is actually interested in an early settlement of the crisis in Syria to abandon politicized approaches and take an effective part in providing international assistance to the Syrian people.

https://fort-russ.com/2021/03/zaxharova-on-ten-years-of-war-in-syria/

Portugal and Spain join 15 European countries suspending roll-out of Oxford's AstraZeneca vaccine amid blood clot fears while Italy launches MANSLAUGHTER probe into death - but EU health chiefs back Boris in insisting the jab IS safe

France, Italy, Spain and Germany joined a growing list of countries to suspend the use of Astrazeneca jab

While reaching out to Russia, European countries have been rejecting British-made AstraZeneca jabs

Russia has reached agreements with factories in Italy, Spain, France and Germany to make Sputnik V jabs

Move comes despite Covid cases rising and lockdowns tightening in Italy, with Paris also facing tighter curbs

Europe, the continent hardest hit by the pandemic, passed 40-million-case mark as news of jab bans broke

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9362989/Ireland-puts-lockdown-exit-risk-suspends-AstraZeneca-jab.html