China
Taiwan must be ready for a Chinese invasion ‘at any time,’ experts say
China’s invasion of Taiwan is only a matter of time, a former Taiwanese army chief has warned, as the island’s defense minister vowed that the armed forces will fight to the end against the Chinese troops.
“The question is not whether China will attack Taiwan but when,” said Huoh Shoou-yeh, formerly Taiwan’s Chief of General Staff and currently serving as a strategic advisor to the Office of the President and chairman of a Defense Ministry think-tank.
“Taiwan must be ready for a conflict at any time,” Huoh told the audience at the annual Taipei Security Dialogue, hosted by the think-tank the Institute for National Defense and Security Research on Wednesday.
The four-star general added that Taiwan “has been on alert” for 70 years but since China’s paramount leader Xi Jinping came to power, Beijing’s pressure on the island has intensified.
Meanwhile Taiwan’s minister of national defense Chiu Kuo-cheng told lawmakers in Taipei that the island “absolutely has a chance of winning” a war against China but it will be an act of national defense and not provocative.
“As long as the enemy can’t land troops or plant its flags on top of the buildings of Taiwan’s central government ministries, it has not won,” Chiu said.
When asked about the Taiwanese army’s readiness, the minister said he was confident that “we are capable of mobilizing 200,000 people within 24 hours” and vowed that Taiwan “will fight to the end.”
CREDIT: Taiwan Ministry of National Defense
Asymmetric warfare
U.S. officials have suggested various dates for an invasion of Taiwan. Adm. Philip Davidson, former Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, told a Congressional hearing last year that China may attack in 2027.
Most recently, U.S. Chief of Naval Operations Michael Gilday said that “a 2022 window or potentially a 2023 window… cannot be ruled out.”
Experts attending the Taipei Security Dialogue, however, cast doubt on this timeframe.
Bonny Lin, director of the China Power Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), said she personally doesn’t “see any clear indication for an invasion in 2023 or 2024,” but there may be more coercion or some other actions.
In October, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken also warned that China is pursuing unification with Taiwan “on a much faster timeline.” Again, Lin said that Blinken did not attach any time schedule and there was no mention of China’s imminent invasion of Taiwan in his statement, which was more about Xi Jinping asserting his hardline stance before the Chinese Communist Party’s 20th Congress.
Gen. Huoh Shoou-yeh spoke of the current war in Ukraine, which he said has helped the world notice the Taiwan issue, too.
Ukrainian people have successfully fought off Russian troops thanks to “the will to resist the enemy, as well as the assistance provided by its neighbors and other democratic countries,” he said.
Some participating experts such as Sarah Kirchberger from the Institute for Security Policy at Kiel University in Germany said that learning from the Ukraine war, China should “think twice” about its intention of subduing Taiwan.
“Russia has proved that overlooking the capabilities of the invaded country as well as its will to defend itself can lead to serious miscalculations,” Kirchberger told RFA.
The expert spoke of the brief Winter War between Finland and the Soviet Union in 1939-1940 when, in just three months, the Soviet army suffered big losses despite superior military strength.
There are similarities between Finland then and Taiwan now, according to Kirchberger, and Taiwan can use its “democratic resilience” to take advantage of the asymmetric warfare against China.
Some other analysts suggest that the Taiwanese military should improve its intelligence and public affairs mechanisms, especially as Chinese cognitive warfare and cyberattacks became common practice.
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China
China Provides Tax Incentives on Special Equipment for Green and Digital Development
China has introduced a new tax incentive for companies investing in digital and smart upgrades of special equipment to encourage environmental protection and safe production. Companies can enjoy a 10 percent deduction from their corporate income tax payable. Eligibility and requirements are outlined by the Ministry of Finance and State Tax Administration.
A new China tax incentive aims to encourage companies to invest in digital and smart upgrades of special equipment. Companies upgrading certain equipment that aids environmental protection and safe production can enjoy a deduction of the investment at a rate of 10 percent from their corporate income tax payable. We explain the requirements of the new tax incentive.
China’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) and State Tax Administration (STA) have issued a new preferential corporate income tax (CIT) incentive for companies investing in digital and intelligent transformations of certain types of equipment. To be eligible for the incentive, companies must invest in the digital and intelligent transformation of equipment related to energy and water conservation, environmental protection, and safe production.
The new tax incentive aligns with a State Council Action Plan, released in March 2024, which aims to accelerate the renewal of large-scale equipment and consumer goods, promoting high-quality development and driving investment and consumption for long-term benefits.
If the annual CIT payable is insufficient for the offset, it can be carried forward to future years for up to five years.
The CIT payable refers to the balance after multiplying the annual taxable income by the applicable tax rate and deducting the tax reductions and exemptions according to China’s CIT Law and relevant preferential policies.
Note that companies enjoying the tax incentives must use the transformed equipment themselves. If the equipment is transferred or leased within five tax years after the transformation is completed, the incentives must stop from the month the equipment is no longer in use, and the previously offset CIT must be repaid.
The “special equipment” eligible for the preferential tax treatment covers equipment purchased and used by companies listed in the Catalog of Special Equipment for Safe Production for Corporate Income Tax Incentives (2018 Edition) and the Catalog of Special Equipment for Energy Saving, Water Conservation, and Environmental Protection for Corporate Income Tax Incentives (2017 Edition).
This article is republished from China Briefing. Read the rest of the original article.
China Briefing is written and produced by Dezan Shira & Associates. The practice assists foreign investors into China and has done since 1992 through offices in Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian, Qingdao, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Suzhou, Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong. Please contact the firm for assistance in China at china@dezshira.com.
China
Revealing the Encouraged Industries of Hainan in 2024: Unlocking Opportunities
The 2024 Hainan Encouraged Catalogue, issued by the NDRC, MOF, and STA, aims to boost industries in the Hainan Free Trade Port. It prioritizes sectors like tourism, modern services, and high technologies, offering incentives for foreign investment and market access expansion since 2020. The Catalogue includes 176 entries across 14 categories, with 33 new additions focusing on cultural tourism, new energy, medicine and health, aviation, aerospace, and environmental protection.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the State Taxation Administration (STA), has issued the Catalogue of Industries Encouraged to Develop in Hainan Free Trade Port (2024 Version), hereinafter referred to as the “2024 Hainan Encouraged Catalogue.” The updated Catalogue took effect on March 1, 2024, replacing the previous 2020 Edition.
Beyond the industries already addressed in existing national catalogues, the new entries in the 2024 Hainan Encouraged Catalogue are based on practical implementation experiences and the specific needs within Hainan, prioritizing sectors such as tourism, modern services, and high technologies.
The Hainan FTP has been providing incentives to draw investors to invest and establish businesses in the region, especially foreign investment. Alongside a phased approach to opening the capital account and facilitating free capital movement, Hainan has significantly expanded market access for foreign enterprises since 2020, particularly in sectors such as telecommunications, tourism, and education.
The Hainan Encouraged Catalogue comprises two main sections:
Similar to the approach adopted by the western regions, foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) should always implement their production or operations in accordance with the Catalogue of Encouraged Industries for Foreign Investment.
On top of the industries already addressed in existing national catalogues, the 2024 Hainan Encouraged Catalogue encompasses 14 distinct categories and a total of 176 entries especially encouraged in the region, including 33 new additions compared to the 2020 Edition. These new entries predominantly span cultural tourism, new energy, medicine and health, aviation and aerospace, and ecological and environmental protection, among others.
This article is republished from China Briefing. Read the rest of the original article.
China Briefing is written and produced by Dezan Shira & Associates. The practice assists foreign investors into China and has done since 1992 through offices in Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian, Qingdao, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Suzhou, Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong. Please contact the firm for assistance in China at china@dezshira.com.
China
Key Guidelines for Companies in Compliance Audits for Personal Information Protection Standards
China’s standards authority has released draft standards for personal information protection compliance audits, potentially making them mandatory for companies in 2023. The audits will require companies to undergo annual or biennial checks based on the number of people’s information they handle. The draft standards outline the audit process and requirements, seeking public feedback until September 11, 2024.
China’s standards authority has released draft standards for conducting personal information protection compliance audits. Regular compliance audits to ensure compliance with personal information protection regulations may become a requirement for companies in China under draft measures released in 2023. We explain the audit processes and requirements proposed in the draft standards.
The Standardization Administration of China (SAC) has released a set of draft standards for conducting personal information (PI) protection compliance audits. Under draft measures released by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) in August 2023, companies that process the PI of people in China are required to undergo regular compliance audits.
Specifically, companies that process the PI of over one million people must undergo a compliance audit at least once a year, while companies that process the PI of under one million people must carry out an audit at least once every two years.
While the draft measures stipulate the obligations of the auditing body and the audit scope, the draft standards outline the specific audit process, including evidence management and permissions of the audit organization, as well as the professional and ethical requirements of auditors.
The Secretariat of the National Cybersecurity Standardization Technical Committee is soliciting public feedback on the draft standards until September 11, 2024. Public comment on the draft measures released in August last year closed on September 2, 2023, but no updated document has yet been released.
The draft standards outline five stages of the PI protection compliance audit: audit preparation, implementation, reporting, problem rectification, and archiving management.
Auditors are required to accurately document identified security issues in the audit working papers, ensuring that the records are comprehensive, clear, and conclusive, reflecting the audit plan and its execution, as well as all relevant findings and recommendations.
This article is republished from China Briefing. Read the rest of the original article.
China Briefing is written and produced by Dezan Shira & Associates. The practice assists foreign investors into China and has done since 1992 through offices in Beijing, Tianjin, Dalian, Qingdao, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Suzhou, Guangzhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Shenzhen, and Hong Kong. Please contact the firm for assistance in China at china@dezshira.com.
- China Provides Tax Incentives on Special Equipment for Green and Digital Development
- Revealing the Encouraged Industries of Hainan in 2024: Unlocking Opportunities
- Key Guidelines for Companies in Compliance Audits for Personal Information Protection Standards
- A Comprehensive Guide to China’s Expanded 144-Hour Visa-Free Transit Policy at 37 Ports
- Regulatory Changes in China Aim to Boost Service Sector Growth in Six Cities
- Adhering to Updated Registered Capital Regulations in China’s Revised Company Law
