Friday: China's new U.S. strategy

Yemen, Brexit, Tariff Man View in [Browser]( | Add nytdirect@nytimes.com to your address book. [The New York Times]( [The New York Times]( Friday, December 14, 2018 [NYTimes.com »]( ADVERTISEMENT Asia Edition [Your Friday Briefing]( By ALISHA HARIDASANI GUPTA AND ALEXANDRA MCGUFFIE Good morning. China takes an unexpectedly soft approach with the U.S., warring sides in the Yemen war agree to a cease-fire and a Russian agent pleads guilty. Here’s the latest: Darryl Dyck/The Canadian Press, via Associated Press • China’s new U.S. strategy: Tread lightly. The arrest of the Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou, above, in Canada, at Washington’s request, seemed certain to provoke a harsh retaliation from Beijing — or even upend the precarious trade truce between the U.S. and China. But seemingly against the odds, Beijing has tempered its approach. In recent weeks, President Xi began lifting new tariffs on American goods. This softer approach may be born out of [a position of weakness](. China’s economy is in a sharp downturn, with car sales plummeting, consumer confidence low and the prospect of foreign investment diminishing. So an end to the trade war is extremely important for the government. None of this has entirely stopped Beijing from responding to Ms. Meng’s arrest: The Chinese government [arrested a second Canadian]( working there and announced that both men faced charges of undermining national security. For its part, Canada is finding it very uncomfortable to be [stuck in the middle]( of the dispute. _____ Piroschka Van De Wouw/Reuters • Behind the scenes of Theresa May’s confidence vote. An hour before British lawmakers cast their ballots in a confidence motion on Wednesday, the prime minister, above, [made her case](. She invoked her long history in the Conservative Party, going back to her teenage years. Journalists described it as a “powerful and moving moment” that led to “ministers crying in the room.” Mrs. May also offered a compromise, promising her party she would step down before the next general election in 2022. Still, [more than a third of her party]( voted against her. Today, Mrs. May will be back in Brussels to meet with European leaders, seeking concessions that might help her back home — although she is unlikely to get much out of them. She has promised Parliament a chance to vote on her agreement by Jan. 21. If there is no agreement then, Britain could be facing a chaotic no-deal departure on March 29. _____ Giles Clarke for The New York Times • A truce in Yemen. Warring sides of the brutal civil war took [their biggest step yet toward peace]( a cease-fire in the key port city of Hudaydah. The U.N. secretary general said the Houthi rebels and the Saudi-led coalition agreed to withdraw their forces from the city, which serves as the main conduit for humanitarian aid entering the country. One U.N. official expected the process to begin in the next few days. The two sides also agreed to a prisoner exchange for as many as 15,000 people. Whether the agreement will hold remains to be seen. Above, the aftermath of an airstike in southern Yemen. The three-year-long civil war has produced the [world’s worst humanitarian crisis]( pushing 12 million people to the brink of starvation. The [tragedy of the war]( gained more global attention after the killing of the Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi. → In the U.S.: The [Senate voted]( to withdraw American military assistance for Saudi forces in Yemen, delivering a stinging bipartisan rebuke of President Trump’s continued support for the kingdom and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Though largely symbolic, the move signaled a growing sense of urgency among lawmakers to punish Saudi Arabia. → Go deeper: The Pentagon has been supplying Saudi Arabia with [bombs and intelligence since 2015](. _____ Associated Press • A Russian agent pleads guilty. In a deal with U.S. federal prosecutors, Maria Butina, above, admitted to participating in a [Russian-backed effort to win over conservatives]( and convince them Russia was a friend, not an enemy. She has agreed to cooperate with investigators. Her plea puts a spotlight on Americans she worked with, including [prominent members of the N.R.A.]( and her boyfriend, Paul Erickson, a longtime Republican operative who now faces accusations of fraud in three states. → Go deeper: A Rockefeller heir. An Eisenhower. Here’s a look at Ms. Butina’s [peculiar bid for Russian influence](. _____ Business Paul Hoppe • From businessman to Tariff Man: [Here’s an illustrated guide]( to President Trump’s longtime focus on trade barriers, and how he became a mighty Man of (American) Steel. • With Carlos Ghosn in a Tokyo jail, the [delicate and prosperous alliance between Nissan and Renault]( he helped build is threatening to unravel. • Apple announced it would build a [$1 billion campus]( in Austin, Tex., and add thousands of jobs in cities around the U.S. • The U.S.-China trade war has dragged down markets around the world, but stocks have remained buoyant in China, where the benchmark indexes in Shanghai and Shenzhen hit their lows for the year in October and have been up since. [Here’s why](. • U.S. stocks [were mixed](. Here’s a snapshot of [global markets](. In the News Adem Altan/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images • Turkey suffered its second serious railroad accident in less than six months when a passenger train collided with a locomotive, killing at least nine people and injuring dozens. Above, firefighters and medics at the scene. [[The New York Times]( • One of China’s best-known Protestant pastors and his wife have been charged with “inciting subversion” and face up to 15 years in prison, the latest sign of the government’s intensifying crackdown on religious groups. [[The New York Times]( • More than 250 journalists have been jailed in 2018, an advocacy group said, calling it a sign that an authoritarian response to critical coverage is “more than a temporary spike.” [[The New York Times]( • Russian state television hailed Boris as “one of the most advanced robots.” It could speak and dance, and seemed so human. Turns out, Boris was a man in a costume. [[The New York Times]( • A native Japanese fish was found in California, 5,000 miles from home. Scientists think the barred knifejaw made the trip in debris from a tsunami caused by the deadly 2011 earthquake in Japan. [[CNN]( • To combat online misinformation, France has created one of the world’s largest national internet literacy efforts, teaching students how to spot junk information. [[The New York Times]( Smarter Living Tips for a more fulfilling life. [A sheet-pan dinner suitable for a meatless Monday.]Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times • Recipe of the day: Keeping dinner meatless? Try [sheet-pan tostadas]( with chile-laced black beans, sweet peppers, avocado and plenty of crumbled cheese. • One thing you can do to help the environment: [Reduce your food waste](. • Jogging and aerobics can make your cells [younger as you grow old](. Noteworthy Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images For MTV • Janet Jackson and Radiohead will join the [Rock & Roll Hall of Fame]( next year, along with five other acts representing a wide cross-section of the last half-century of music. Above, Janet Jackson. • He helped build an artists’ utopia called the [Ghost Ship](. Now Max Harris, who wouldn’t even hurt a spider, faces trial for the deaths of 36 people at a concert in the converted warehouse. • Christmas is less than two weeks away. If you’re still looking for gifts, [here’s some help](. Back Story USPTO Last week we asked you, our readers, for ideas for Back Stories — and we were overwhelmed by the response. Richard Babyak, a reader from Cleveland, suggested we look into the Tantlinger twist lock. Invented in the mid-1950s by [Keith Tantlinger]( the simple device made it possible to stack cargo containers aboard ships and securely attach them to truck trailers and rail cars. Twist locks are placed into the corner fittings of shipping containers, which can then be locked to others by [turning a metal handle](. They’re simple to operate and extremely secure. To be useful, containers had to be standardized, and others had developed rival ways of stacking them. But after Mr. Tantlinger persuaded his former employer to release the [patent]( royalty free, it was adopted as an international standard. Above, patent drawings for the twist lock. These standardized stackable containers quickly replaced the manual loading and unloading of cargo and the cost of transport plummeted, [ushering in the current era of global trade](. Albert Sun wrote today’s Back Story. _____ This briefing was prepared for the Asian morning. You can also [sign up]( to get the briefing in the Australian, European or American morning. [Sign up here]( to receive an Evening Briefing on U.S. weeknights. Browse our full range of Times newsletters [here](. What would you like to see here? Contact us at [asiabriefing@nytimes.com](mailto:asiabriefing@nytimes.com?subject=Briefing%20Feedback%20(Asia)). LIKE THIS EMAIL? Forward it to your friends, and let them know they can sign up [here](. FOLLOW NYTimes [Facebook] [FACEBOOK]( [Twitter] [@nytimes]( ABOUT THIS EMAIL You received this message because you signed up for NYTimes.com's Morning Briefing: Asia Edition newsletter. [Unsubscribe]( | [Manage Subscriptions]( | [Change Your Email]( | [Privacy Policy]( | [Contact]( | [Advertise]( Copyright 2018 The New York Times Company 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018