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If the consumers, at all levels, of the worlds outside China were to decide they would not buy anything with Chinese made content the world's economy would probably collapse in less than a month.
There are probably very few products that do not contain CN made components or that are produced using equipment that does not have CN made components.
For the past 20 years - in fact probably since Hong Kong was returned to Chinese control officially rather than acting as a "Western" interface for Chinese manufacturing output with "Made in Hong Kong" embossed on everything - economics and green posturing has provided a two pronged excuse to shut down "dirty" industries and make stuff "more cheaply" than would be possible under Western regulations.
So long as there is enough spare "wealth" floating around to fund such policies China can siphon it away and use part of it to fund its influence in Africa, South America and anywhere else it feels that payments could be useful. British and American politics for example.
Or for sending Chinese students to Western Educational establishments from secondary schools to Universities and thus make those places evolve economic models that rely on the Chinese students funded by wealth previously transferred to China.
Ms. Lee seems to be an interesting case. Brought up in Northern Ireland, twice married, a family with her second husband, a qualified solicitor and multiple entrepreneur with several registered companies and lives in leafy Solihull apparently.
The alleged payments, or whatever they may be called, are reportedly a few hundred thousand pounds over several years. Who knows if those numbers are accurate?
From what have read this morning this seems like small beer and a rather typical British "Foreign Spy" coming from a largely homegrown background.
To make real money the recipients really should be seeking Russian and former USSR countrymen or friendships in the Middle East, not a middle-aged solicitor from Birmingham who seems to have been around for quite a long time.
Does Ms. Lee, in MI5's opinion, present a bigger threat than, say, Tony Blair?
More importantly, could one find the right personal connections for some alleged nefarious activity opportunities to get her to hand over enough money to go racing for a season or two?
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