Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 22m

In May, Marco Rubio’s State Department was railing against Europe as “a hotbed of digital censorship”

on.ft.com/43jTw5o

US revokes visas of individuals who ‘celebrated’ Charlie Kirk’s death

State department announces six revocations and suggests more could follow

on.ft.com

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Reposted by Noah Barkin

Shashank Joshi @shashj.bsky.social · 13h

Our story on what an embassy row & spy case say about where UK-China relations are headed. This government came to power aiming to cool down the rhetoric & build a clearer & more consistent China strategy, but it's hard to see much evidence of either. www.economist.com/britain/2025...

Has Britain gone soft on China?

A spying fiasco and a new London embassy feed accusations that Sir Keir is a Red softy

www.economist.com

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Reposted by Noah Barkin

Soumaya Keynes @soumayakeynes.ft.com · 20h

The European Commission is claiming its steel tariffs will be WTO compliant. How? By telling other members they can renegotiate their trade commitments. This fascinating piece explains why lawyer types probably still won't be happy...

ielp.worldtradelaw.net/2025/10/gues...

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 22h

Sobering analysis of Europe’s China challenge at a time when transatlantic relations are under growing strain

Finbarr Bermingham @fbermingham.bsky.social · 23h

New - Europe’s 3-body problem: collapsing global order sparks hunt for new trajectory

I got to write about one of my favourite Chinese sci-fi novels. Europe, realising it can’t fix systemic chaos, is instead trying to shift its own orbit.

Europe’s 3-body problem: collapsing global order sparks hunt for new trajectory

Some are sceptical the EU’s talk of ‘economic security’ can translate into action, but there are early signs that may be changing.

www.scmp.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 1d

Spying charges against three Germans who had been indicted for supplying information about military technologies to China have been dropped, though they still stand accused of violating export controls.

Latest: www.handelsblatt.com/politik/deut...

Background: www.dw.com/en/germany-t...

Germany: Three indicted on charges of spying for China – DW – 01/09/2025

Authorities have charged three German nationals for obtaining information about military technology for China.

www.dw.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 1d

Vodafone is replacing Huawei gear with Samsung in the German 5G RAN

www.handelsblatt.com/unternehmen/...

Handelsblatt

www.handelsblatt.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 1d

Harris lost me after about 15 seconds. Self-important “I was that girl” righteousness is the last thing Democrats need right now @karaswisher.bsky.social

podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/o...

Kamala Harris on Trump, Tech’s Power Grab, and the Fight for Democracy

Podcast Episode · On with Kara Swisher · 13/10/2025 · 1h 9m

podcasts.apple.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 1d

Translation: We must stick to the rules at all costs even if it kills us

www.bruegel.org/first-glance...

The EU should moderate its steel protection plan

A European Commission proposal for a tight quota and high steel tariffs risks undermining perceptions of the EU as a reliable trading partner

www.bruegel.org

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 1d

Unusual times call for unusual measures. The Dutch government has not shied away from taking measures that infuriate Beijing when its security is judged to be under threat. Other European countries can learn from this.
on.ft.com/4haELYH

Dutch government takes control of Chinese-owned chipmaker Nexperia

Move by The Hague escalates frictions between western countries and Beijing over access to high-end technology

on.ft.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

Sometimes a picture says it all…

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

This quote from Merkel’s defense minister Thomas de Maiziere in 2011, as Germany was ending military conscription, hasn’t aged very well: “It is in our own security interests to have a modern, well-run Russian army”. The fury in Poland & the Baltics is understandable
www.spiegel.de/panorama/ukr...

(S+) Meinung: Ukraine-Krieg: Deutsche Militärs wollten bis kurz vor der Krim-Annexion Russen ausbilden

Deutsche Militärs waren bis kurz vor der Annexion der Krim dabei, den Russen beizubringen, effektiver Krieg zu führen. Und der Rüstungskonzern Rheinmetall konnte auf ein Milliardengeschäft mit Russlan...

www.spiegel.de

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

For German speakers, a must-listen on Berlin’s disastrous misreading of Vladimir Putin’s Russia over many years - from Schröder to Merkel, with Gabriel & Steinmeier in prominent supporting roles. Based on a new book by Katja Gloger & Georg Mascolo

podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/r...

Putin: Warum ignorierte Deutschland so lange die Gefahr? Mit Georg Mascolo & Katja Gloger

Podcast Episode · RONZHEIMER. · 12/10/2025 · 1h 48m

podcasts.apple.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

Yes that’s my reading too. Carne asada is best when it has marinated overnight

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

More 🌮 🌮 🌮

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

If the Dutch government demanded these changes on Sept 30th it’s odd that the Wingtech is only communicating now

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

For background, my Rhodium colleagues delved into the “clawback” of western assets acquired by Chinese firms in this note from March. Nexperia is discussed at length: rhg.com/research/the...

The Clawback: Reclaiming Strategic Assets from China

The United States is on an unspoken mission to claw back strategic assets from China. This is not a policy that began with the current US administration, nor has it been articulated in a speech or pol...

rhg.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

The Wingtech announcement is here: stockmc.xueqiu.com/202510/60074.... Can’t find a story in English yet beyond what I pasted above

stockmc.xueqiu.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

Big intervention from the Dutch government in the operations of Nexperia, the Dutch chip firm that was acquired by China’s Wingtech in 2019

longbridge.com/en/news/2607...

The Dutch government takes action against Wingtech's Nexperia: Director Zhang Xuezheng's position suspended, a foreign director will have decisive voting rights, and Chinese equity is reduced to only ...

荷兰政府对闻泰科技的控股子公司安世半导体采取措施，要求冻结其资产和知识产权调整，为期一年。张学政的董事职务被暂停，一名外籍董事将拥有决定性投票权，中资股权仅剩 1 股。安世半导体 2024 年预计收入 147 亿人民币，占闻泰科技总营收的六分之一。

longbridge.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 2d

Reassuring news on US support for Ukraine: for months Washington had been helping Kyiv mount long-range strikes on Russian energy facilities to weaken its economy and force Putin to the negotiating table
www.ft.com/content/f9f4...

Ukraine hit Russian energy sites with US help

Trump administration has supported Kyiv’s operations since summer in co-ordinated push to weaken Moscow

www.ft.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 3d

If Trump orders the US military to crack down on Americans who oppose his policies, will it resist? @kschake.bsky.social provides some answers, not all of them reassuring

podcasts.apple.com/de/podcast/t...

The Political Scene | The New Yorker

Politics Podcast · Updated twice weekly · Join The New Yorker’s writers and editors for reporting, insight, and analysis of the most pressing political issues of our time. On Mondays, David Remnick, t...

podcasts.apple.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 4d

AI as a religious crusade. Anyone who wants to regulate it is the Anti-Christ. Remember the good old days, when this lunacy was the stuff of dystopian Hollywood movies?

www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2...

Inside billionaire Peter Thiel’s private lectures: Warnings of ‘the Antichrist’ and U.S. destruction

In leaked recordings of private lectures by tech billionaire Peter Thiel he argued that “the Antichrist” is likely to take the form of a critic of technology.

www.washingtonpost.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 4d

In Trump’s America, you are considered a terrorist for studying the resistance to fascism

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Reposted by Noah Barkin

Marietje Schaake @marietjeschaake.bsky.social · 4d

A new low in America. Academic doxed and threatened for doing anti-fascism RESEARCH: Rutgers Expert on Antifa Flees to Spain After Death Threats ↘️ www.nytimes.com/2025/10/08/n...

Rutgers Expert on Antifa Flees to Spain After Death Threats

www.nytimes.com

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 4d

Good piece on the rare earths threat from China @euiss.bsky.social

www.iss.europa.eu/publications...

Beyond Trump: Xi’s price wars and weaponisation of critical raw materials threaten European prosperity

Critics blame Europe’s ‘summer of humiliation’ on the EU’s timidity in trade negotiations with President Trump. Yet the greater threat to European prosperity is Beijing’s twin strategy of flooding mar...

www.iss.europa.eu

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Noah Barkin @noahbarkin.bsky.social · 5d

Master class in handling Trump

m.youtube.com/watch?v=BGC_...

President Trump, Finnish President bilateral meeting at White House

YouTube video by LiveNOW from FOX

m.youtube.com

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