Xi could visit Russia in spring

• Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit Russia this spring, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement (Ru) on Monday. When asked to confirm if there would be the trip, a spokesperson of China’s Foreign Ministry said yesterday that she had “nothing to share at the moment.” In its statement, which was a review of its diplomacy in 2022, the Russian Foreign Ministry expressed an optimistic outlook on China-Russian relations. “Russia and China are actively taking joint steps to strengthen the multipolar system of international relations,” it said.

Taiwan’s Tsai talks with Czech president-elect

• Czech President-elect Petr Pavel held a call with Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen on Monday in a highly uncommon move between authorities without formal diplomatic relations. Chinese Foreign Ministry said yesterday that it had made “solemn démarche” to Czech, accusing Pavel of “serious interference in China’s internal affairs” and “blatant violation of the Czech Republic’s political commitment to the one-China principle.” The last time a similar situation happened was in 2016 when former U.S. President Donald Trump had a phone call with Tsai shortly after being elected to the top job.

Beijing responds to U.S. curb on chips

• Beijing criticized the U.S. yesterday for persuading the Netherlands to block China from its chip technology. A spokesperson of the ministry called the U.S.’s “pursuing its selfish agenda” at the expense of its allies and partners “bullying and hegemonic practices.”

• Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang talked with Dutch Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra over the phone on Monday. According to China’s readout (Zh/En), Qin said China is ready to “work with the Netherlands to…promote an open and orderly international trade environment rather than a fragmented and chaotic one.” The statement did not specify whether Qin had raised the issue of the reported U.S.-Dutch cooperation on the tech ban against China. The two sides also discussed cooperation in climate, economy, trade, and arms control, as well as the issue of Japan's nuclear-contaminated water discharge. Hoekstra posted a short tweet after the meeting.

USTR releases 2022 Notorious Markets List

• On Monday, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) released its 2022 Review of Notorious Markets for Counterfeiting and Piracy. Chinese online platforms WeChat, Aliexpress, Taobao, Baidu Wangpan, DHGate, and Pinduoduo, as well as seven physical stores including Yiwu International Merchandise City, are among 39 virtual and 33 physical markets named in the document. The 2021 Notorious Markets List included all these seven Chinese online markets and nine physical stores in the country.

U.S., India expand cooperation in tech

• U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense Dr. Kathleen Hicks and Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval had the inaugural meeting of the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) in Washington, D.C. yesterday. The U.S. and India announced the iCET when President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Modi met in Japan on the sidelines of last year’s QUAD summit in May.