Thread by @TimInHonolulu

1. This is what @washingtonpost is running on China:

U.S. officials caution companies about risks of working with Chinese entities in AI and biotech washingtonpost.com/national-secur…

2. In a quick survey, I find nothing in major US print press on Biden's comment on defending Taiwan. CCP English propaganda pit-bull Global Times reports about an imaginary strong domestic US opposition to the policy of standing up to Communist aggression, but takes a very soft

3. approach now that the Central Military Commission's aggressive, arguably Imperialist policies have brought China to the brink of US sanctions and possible major naval war on its coast. Claiming that the US would never dare to face the 1.4 billion Chinese, the CCP ruling

4. Central Military Commission now has to face the humiliation of backing down to the US in the South Sea, or risk a US escalation that the over-sold PLAN is not equipped to handle. Here is the Global Times report buried on the front page.

5. The downplaying of this very significant statement by the Chinese Communist Party's state controlled media IMO indicates that there are likely shockwaves reverberating in the Central Military Commission. I have thought for some time that Xi was able to stay in power by giving

6. in to hardliners on the CMC and now that their aggressive imperialist policies have brought the PLAN to the brink of a naval war off the Chinese Coast, the major proponents of this aggressive posture can be singled out for their anti-Maoist imperialist thinking. Or they will

7. prevail, and we will be in a shooting war with the PLAN. The way they have buried the lede today, tells me the hardliners are backing down and in the end Xi will become more powerful. I will look for changes in the CMC in the coming days. The foolish policy in the

8. South Sea has locked up the recourses there that China desperately needs. The energy crisis that China is facing is real and getting worse. The time is ripe for a lessening of tension and a decision among the countries surrounding this critical resource to develop the energy

9. resource, with the benefits equally shared by the adjacent states based on some agreed formula. The US ambassador @RNicholasBurns can play a significant role in getting this done. @WHNSC @JakeSullivan46