Middle East on edge: Iran to buy Chinese anti-ship cruise missiles amid Trump’s strike threat

    Iran China missile deal: Iran to buy Chinese anti‑ship cruise missiles amid Trump’s strike threat — Middle East on edge | World News

    Iran is close to finalising a deal with China to purchase advanced anti-ship cruise missiles, Reuters reported, citing six people with knowledge of the negotiations, at a time when the United States is deploying significant naval forces near the Iranian coast amid escalating tensions.The proposed deal involves the Chinese-made CM-302 supersonic anti-ship missiles, which have…

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    HMAS Toowoomba is in the Philippines for a scheduled port visit in February 2026. (Source: MonteroMax/X)

      Australian Warship Sails Through South China Sea as China Claims “Full Monitoring” — UNITED24 Media

      An Australian naval warship sailed through the South China Sea despite warnings and monitoring by Chinese forces, highlighting ongoing tensions over freedom of navigation in one of the world’s most strategically contested waterways, according to reporting by the UK Defence Journal on February 24. The Royal Australian Navy’s Anzac-class frigate HMAS Toowoomba conducted what Canberra described as a routine and lawful transit through the region on February 12. We…

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        Anthropic vs China: The grand AI heist is a hall of mirrors

        A new front has opened in the global AI race, and this time the issue is not innovation but theft, national security and geopolitical rivalry. Anthropic has publicly accused three Chinese AI firms –DeepSeek, Moonshot AI and MiniMax — of orchestrating what it described as coordinated “distillation attacks” on its flagship model, Claude. The claims…

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        BRUSSELS, BELGIUM - JANUARY 09: BYD YangWang U8 luxury plug-in hybrid suv on display at the AutoSalon press preview on January 09, 2026 in Brussels, Belgium. The 102nd Brussels Motor Show has firmly established itself on the international calendar, featuring over 60 car brands and more than 20 motorcycle brands, and visited by over 270,000 people. (Photo by Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty Images)

          Tesla Europe sales tumble 17% in January as China’s BYD soars

          Tesla’s (TSLA) Europe woes are only getting worse, just as Chinese rival BYD’s (BYDDY) fortunes soar there. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA), Tesla electric vehicle registrations (a proxy for sales) in Europe fell to just 8,075 units in January, a 17% drop compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, total EV registrations in…

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          tim cook data privacy day

            Tim Cook Warned by CIA That China Could Move on Taiwan by 2027

            Apple CEO Tim Cook was among a handful of top tech executives who attended a classified CIA briefing warning that China could attack Taiwan by 2027, according to a sweeping investigative report by The New York Times ($). The previously unreported briefing was apparently held in a secure room in Silicon Valley in July 2023….

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            Simon Calder’s Travel

              China hails longest lunar new year holiday for tourism boost

              Sign up to Simon Calder’s free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calder’s Travel email Get Simon Calder’s Travel email China‘s recent nine-day Lunar New Year holiday has delivered a significant boost to domestic travel and consumer spending, successfully fulfilling government hopes that an extended break would encourage households to explore,…

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              Illustration of Person in the News Xu Yangitan sitting in front of a rack of clothing with his laptop in front of him. His face is dark as a lamp behind his back is illuminating the screen of his laptop.

                Shein founder emerges from shadows to hail Chinese roots

                Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. The mysterious founder of fast-fashion giant Shein has used his first major public appearance to stress the company’s roots in China’s southern Guangdong province and to hail communist and government officials for their support in…

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                  China military purge taking toll on command and readiness, study finds

                  China’s ongoing military corruption purges are leaving serious deficiencies in its command structure and are likely to have hampered the readiness of its rapidly modernising armed forces, a leading defence research centre said on Tuesday. The purges are likely to be incomplete, even though they have so far ranged across its supreme Central Military Commission,…

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