orders. students are. training successful. in the. starts october 1st 2 g.w. . step aside usa soon to take over as the world's biggest economy china is no longer just an emerging giant it's already clearly stealing the top spot on the podium staking out its claims on every continent with its sprawling belt and road initiative impacting how most every country does business officials in beijing as setting the

global standards in tech drawing up their own treaties and deals and they've got the upper hand with an immense amount of financial firepower but china's also highly secretive fad restrictive the question is is china more of patna old rival. president xi jinping has promised time and again to open his mammoth economy to the world to lead in international investment and allow for a level playing field german executives i've spoken to say it's going in the other direction they say chinese officials clamping down on foreign firms more than ever china and the european union have been hammering out a comprehensive agreement on investment for 7 years now but after multiple rounds of negotiations they've basically got nowhere. the skyscrapers of frank high have all been built in the past 30 years. almost all

the big german companies have an office in this business metropolis but some are starting to get nervous. 5000 german companies operating in china business is good but for how long the german chamber of commerce invading has confirmed that german companies are increasingly worried. as. the 1st issues market access is asymmetrical access to the chinese market. a 2nd point is the regulatory environment and the 3rd point is obvious protecting intellectual property rights and finally a big concern these days is digitalisation and the free exchange of information and the digital world. in china's digital world no one is really free beijing monitors its internet and messenger services like we chat for years now foreign companies in china have been required to store their data on chinese servers and the so-called social credit system uses big data and artificial

intelligence to monitor the behavior of its citizens and its companies. why do western companies put up with that. for example western companies still have to form joint ventures with chinese companies. germans can own 49 percent of the joint venture but the chinese retain the majority stake. a well known example is fox wagon which has been partners with the chinese automotive company s.a.i.c. since 1988 but joint venture requirement means the transfer of technology is almost mandatory to build in china a company has to make its know how available and technology and systems have to be . to china the reward is access to the chinese market but not to all markets there's a list of approved sectors that's updated regularly if listed is negative and used as a register of the chinese government uses to control what types of foreign investment

are allowed into the country. and the slant. on the list is used to limit which industries these companies can invest in. currently the prohibited industries include medical technology environmental technology and aerospace the negative list includes 33 industries that are closed to foreign investment. do the 300 chinese companies in germany have similar problems to deal with negative lists here the chinese chamber of commerce in germany deflects the question. of course we value the partnership between germany and china very highly and this political security is very important for us we are entrepreneurs of course we invest here we want to earn money here and do good business. good business it's something that german companies are also

doing in china but 44 percent of them want to see more fairness according to an anonymous survey by the german chamber of commerce in beijing why isn't anyone willing to say that on camera. target's is no end of the day a stage in the economy here so closely interwoven from the point of view of german companies it's sometimes better to address things behind closed doors rather than speak out publicly. and there's a lot to lose of all the cars it produced in the 1st half of 2020 v.w. sold over 40 percent in china b.m.w. sold 3040. and dima which makes most eighty's so 33 percent that. no other western industrial country has become as dependent on china as germany. this is especially true in the auto industry. only

a few german companies have left china like model train maker matlin the company moved back to germany because production costs were too high and the quality too low. but that was 10 years ago. looking at real trains is much more revealing chinese high speed trains are as good as their european counterparts much of the technology was copied from european trains made by siemens and storm which are also built in china those companies share their know how with that chinese partners now the copies are challenging the originals on the european market on the one side is the gigantic state company subsidized with millions of euros and on the other private companies from europe. since 2013 the e.u. and china have held over 30 meetings to negotiate an investment protection agreement so far without results. in

a 3 way relationship between china the us and the european union there's only one way germany can play a role that's if the e.u. is firm and united in representing its interests china and the united states. with africa that germany is china's most important trading partner in europe. do you have anything from china that offers you know what i have in my hand my cell phone air pods i think my computer is from china to. i think it is from china you know they are safe yes definitely half my stuff comes from china. coronavirus it's where corolla started no one thinks about where it comes from anymore. the coronavirus did 1st appear in china and china took its time letting the world in on it the chinese communist party brutally suppressed the warnings coming from its citizens. experts agree that if beijing had reacted faster it wouldn't have become

a worldwide pandemic. the coronavirus pandemic has weakened the world's trust in china. china's factories deliver products to the entire world but it's a police state that brutally beat down the democracy movement in hong kong. is it possible to do business with a country like that. how can you do business with a country that's built large concentration camps in shin junk province to detain we go to. european companies have to ask themselves who ends up paying the price for doing business in china that's also a factor in the investment protection agreement our european investments really save even if europeans demand more fairness and support for human rights more and more people are beginning to put trade between the e.u. and china to the test. and what about europe's biggest

economy germany a nation reliant on its exports the chinese make up a huge market for machinery cars and premium products made or designed by germans companies that have a lot of vested in the asian powerhouse insists there is only one china but does the german economic or german economy really rely on the chinese to the extent that some economists would have you believe. as far as i'm with you it's wrong to say that we're dependent on china on its own. if we look at the economic numbers german exports to china are to around 7 percent as important. is considered one of the sharpest critics in germany of chinese economic policies of course is aware that 7 percent of all exports represents a huge portion of the economy. in 29000 it was 96000000000 euro

german says in europe around 10 times that around 903000000000 exports to the us 419000000000 euros. many jobs are we creating in china does this mean that. there are varying estimates but it's definitely at least a 1000000 and we're only talking about jobs directly related to manufacturing and. that if you take into account all the supplier jobs and service industry jobs then it's a lot more. moment so it's time to apply pressure to say we're creating jobs in china we don't have to put up with everything. i'm fully convinced that we could take a much stronger position towards china because in fact china needs german companies especially right now. they need german technology and jobs much more urgently than we need china. if you know. the chinese economy has returned to growth despite the pandemic but national debt has been

increasing for years. in 2019 it reached around 56 percent of gross domestic product. china's g.d.p. has almost tripled in the last 10 years its debt ratio is still rising alarmingly. at the end of october the party leadership wants to toast the agreement of a new 5 year. this is a framework for the distribution of work and money under the communist government. it also determines how much the economy should grow and which companies the chinese may trade with. me expect from this 5 year plan. it depends on how the chinese see globalization and how china sees it interdependence in the area of technological development and we'll see whether china relies more on national technological sovereignty or whether it relies on international interdependence in the partnerships with europe and the us what you think as with

the mission was by and i know it's going to be a mixture of both but under she we have to expect a stronger focus on techno nationalism and the temptation will be very strong for china to be more self-sufficient and independent when it comes to innovation that will make life more difficult for german and european companies there. as for the u.s. the white house is no longer ruling out a complete break with china a 1st president donald trump impose billions in customs duties on goods imported from china now washington is quite openly talking about decoupling the american economy from the chinese one. i think we have to say goodbye to the idea that everything is becoming more interdependent and globalized we're in a day globalization phase at the same time it's also clear that we can't just push ahead blindly and assume that the situation is going to stay the way it has been

and for german companies that means facing some difficult choices. well germany may not be as dependent as you think on china as an export market but the coronavirus has highlighted how dependent multinational corporations and many other small businesses are on chinese suppliers spare parts raw materials manufacturing and very important right now ingredients for pharmaceuticals as the virus spread abroad and its neighbors close their borders to china whole supply chains fell apart it also hurt the chinese economy as factories closed and people were forced to stay home now things are gradually returning to normal the beginning of work. travel season or on national day most people get to record it's a high point for beijing's cultural with a big city which hosts 14000000 tourists a year. it is also the 1st national day holiday since the outbreak of covert 90

just over half a year ago beijing city center looked very different during the winter beijing's heritage sites were shut down because of the epidemic travel restrictions were in place in the whole country 'd. this is usually a bustling commercial street lots of souvenir shops knock shops tourists who visit beijing usually come to spend time here today i'm the only one. and this is what the same things like the late. china has brought the epidemic under control there are virtually no more domestic transmission and people are enjoying a return to normal life. so they go. to you have to thank you know just. like i. have there are you so

right now i don't see all. that was in that they weren't aware that. there are still measures in place people have to use a health and scan the code to register at certain locations tourist sites have limited visitor numbers estimates put the number of tourists in china during this season that 550000000 people that would be 2 thirds of last year's figure. that if you have that. you know we're going to. china's economy has returned to positive growth government spending on infrastructure and construction has brought workers back into the city. the growth is still a lot so. lower than in previous years private consumption you specially is lagging

behind companies have cut wages and council bonuses for the employees in downtown beijing the traces of the past 6 months are still visible. businesses have been hit hard by this crisis many times little to no income for months and months on many shops and restaurants have to shut down experts have long warned of china's imbalance growth too much investment and too tittle consumption hoovered 19 has made these warnings ever more urgent. china has a history of ambitious projects the great wall of china the silk road and now its new silk road officially known as the belt road initiative it's the largest infrastructure project ever seen the transport energy mining i.t. and communications projects spanned the globe and even reach into outer space the

original silk road basing quaint according to today's standards but the fact is it paved the way to where we are now. a brief history of the silk road 6400 kilometers searing 50 degree celsius heat the bitter cold of 40 below across steps deserts and high mountains with the constant threat of armed bandits. the silk road a perilous challenge the bones of pack animals litter the way as if in mourning. but the world's oldest and most important trade route was not a single road it was a vast network of many caravan routes. by the 2nd century b.c.e. the silk road connected china to the roman empire. the term silk road was popularized in 1987 by german geographer fedayeen and funnily toughen.

up was highly sought after by roman women. but only the chinese knew how to produce the valuable textile. the 2 year long trip with up to $1000.00 bactrian camels was worth it. they didn't just carry silk but also spices lacquers furs and porcelain. in return europe sent gold gem stones and glass. inventions too such as paper and black gunpowder were spread. and even with legions were transmitted buddhism arrived in china and japan by way of the silk road. cities along the silk road flourished in summer conde and tashkent there was a ruling trade most merchants only travelled short distances then sold their wares to the next buyers this made the goods more expensive but diseases were also

transmitted along the trade route like the plague which killed a 3rd of europe's population in the 14th century. the demise of the silk road began mainly because it was replaced by new maritime brutes customs duties and bandits could be avoided and goods reached their destinations more quickly. and today china's new silk road is expected to cost a trillion euros but that gigantic infrastructure project is not about reviving the glories of days gone by it's purely a shrewd economic investment. and that brings us to the controversy this initiative is the centerpiece of presidencies foreign policy it's a clever way of locking in future markets for chinese goods and services but also a risky way of keeping countries on the drip of a financial lifeline the belton road loans of may be gone through developing

economies since the. several have applied for debt relief however before taking things too far governments might want to consider china's human rights record and its green credentials. a gigantic construction site part of a highway said to run 170 kilometers across montenegro financed with the help of a 1000000000 euro loan from china this stretch of construction is along the charles river part of a unesco world heritage site some environmental activists say the decision to build here was a mistake there had been 80 alternatives to teach the 6 men and why is that we agree a great question none of these is just considering that this is your next beside and some of it than it should be taken out of. this the tower of river gorge is one of the deepest in europe the river basin is

a biosphere reserve. the water that flows from the higher elevations is crystal clear. environmental activist natasha kovacevich says it's one of the most ecologically important regions in montenegro. for many species suspicious like species. so. that 100 kilometers causes. about 100 kilometers downstream is where the chinese financed highway will run directly across a tributary of the charles river. building on this terrain is complicated and expensive the activist believes that the valley route was chosen because it's the cheapest option biologists studying the issue say that the construction project is destroying the habitat of various fish and plant species. up to $4000.00

construction workers from china have been working here during peak construction phases chinese companies are raking in the profits but paying precious little in tax plus all the construction materials and equipment imported from china are exempt from customs duties. which is environmental organization employs 15 people their work is supported by donations as well as some funding from the european union. while we were filming a guard pops up and orders us to leave the area even though we're on a public road. chinese manager just said that we have to leave the place because we can take it but we cannot take reports of the construction because this is something that should be forbidden so. now the new highway will connect montenegro's to coast to the north of the country. in the capital port greta the state run agency money to put it's responsible for the construction work the

director insists it's all in accordance with each standards and. we're on the right path because we want to develop north montenegro that helps the country and europe as a whole. the north of the country is on the developed compared to the south. but the north has enormous potential in the areas of industry tourism and energy. munt is an anti corruption watchdog that keeps a close eye on the montenegrin government. is investigating the financial impact of the 1000000000 euro loan. it's a difficult task because the government is keeping the financial details under lock and key. says research shows that construction contracts to domestic firms are only going to companies with close ties to the government he's also discovered that under the terms of the loan in arbitration court in china would have jurisdiction

over any legal disputes and if montenegro can't repay the debt in time china would be able to make collateral claims. montenegro is a small country with a population of just over 600000 the average income is around $500.00 euros a month. the chinese loan is worth almost one 5th of montenegro's g.d.p. . we asked monte puts director for his assessment. of you know. what is there are always risks associated with any construction project. the government investigated these risks in full detail. so we can say that the project won't be a problem for the month in a grim budget. it's important to know that every cent of highway tolls will go into

paying back the loan but. we believe we'll be able to pay it back down to the last cent. we had to an area just south of the capital where another section of highway is under construction pitted against a 1000000000 euro project environmental activists like natasha kovacs of which are very much underdogs but she's determined to speak out against the lack of transparency and rampant environmental destruction with the chinese investor and their culture actually it's more about just straightforward being and doing things without the 2 questions and of course the it also causes some questions and none understand. for the time being this is still highway didn't know where whether the new superhighway will ever reach neighboring serbia is very much an open question. skepticism and concerns over china's place in the global economy could be higher

but it's clear the chinese will be already playing a leading role. being good to.

have fun in pyongyang. the capital city of north korea is reinventing itself but only a few people can enjoy the benefits of. an insidious reward system coerces people into milty towards the regime of. those who don't make it into the fun metropolis live in poverty. have fun in pyongyang. in 15 minutes on t w. or. earlier

. the more. big grocery. or losing love. in the slow low swallow for. as long as most of. the slopes no love for the weak it. was a. good student but. the. chancellor. merkel still. hard.

to swallow. every 2 seconds the person is forced to flee their home. the consequences of the disastrous our documentary series displaced depicts dramatic humanitarian crises. focus thing we don't have time to think i didn't go to university to kill people who don't know i think if i don't have any idea of paying people for their cars their future so they seek refuge abroad but what will become of course to stay behind it's a. battle my husband went to peru because of the crisis that i wonder if he hadn't gone there we would have died of hunger one of them. playing distant starts october 16th.

play. this is state of the news live from burma returning to restrictions governments across europe increased efforts to contain the spread of it's. just recorded its highest week a number of new infections since the start of the pandemic they have curb travel from viral hotspots the czech republic and post a state of emergency at that but also coming up. trumps it before the u.s. supreme court that's a way of tough questions from senators and the county parents tells them she doesn't have an agenda.