The cynosure of all eyes at the opening ceremony was Russian President Vladimir Putin, who flew to Beijing after speaking of his confrontation with the US over Ukraine and the eastward expansion of NATO.
The 2022 Winter Olympics began in Beijing on February 4 with a spectacular ceremony which its organisers claimed had used 200 technologies, including 5G, AI, high-speed rail and new energy with space management to portray China’s progress from an assembly line of manufactured goods to “intelligent manufacturing”.
If Beijing had a grouse that the West had politicised the games for its “groundless accusations”, it was not far behind as it chose Qi Fabao, a PLA regiment commander who was involved in the Galwan clash, as the torch-bearer and a Xinjiang athlete, Dinigeer Yilamujiang, to light the Olympic flame.
They have traded reciprocal support with China opposing further enlargement of NATO, supporting Russia’s proposals to create “long-term binding security guarantees in Europe” and Russia confirming that “Taiwan is an alienable part of China and opposes any forms of its independence”.
Though China and Russia have agreed to support each other for “protection of their core interests”, important differences remain between them as China would not like to alienate the East European countries which are its important economic partners in establishment of any Russian sphere of influence there.
A major highlight of Putin’s visit was the agreement on setting up the Power of Siberia 2 gas pipeline to be built by Gazprom, which would supply an additional 50 billion cubic metres of natural gas annually to northern China.
Imran began his tour by supporting China on the human rights of Uighur Muslims, but his commercial motives were soon transparent as the media reported that he had gone there seeking several favours from Beijing, i.e.
Imran met the Chinese PM, Li Keqiang and signed a framework agreement on industrial cooperation seeking greater investment from the Chinese companies; he also met President Xi Jinping but there was no information if he had agreed to Pakistan’s requests for additional financial assistance.
The main objective of the Winter Olympics was projection of China’s soft power, to tell the world how it had achieved economic prosperity and rivalled the only superpower, the US now.
The Tribune, now published from Chandigarh, started publication on February 2, 1881, in Lahore .
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