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A6 WORLD NEWS
Thursday 18 January 2024

China’s population falls for a 2nd straight year as births drop even

after end of one-child policy

By KEN MORITSUGU ery 10 years.
Associated Press China, which once sought
BEIJING (AP) — China’s to control population
population fell by 2 million growth with its one-child
people in 2023 in its second policy, is now facing the
straight annual decrease, opposite problem. The
as births dropped for the government has sought
seventh straight year and to encourage births since
deaths jumped following gradually easing the policy
the end of COVID-19 re- over 2014 to 2016 to allow
strictions, the government a second child and then a
said Wednesday. third child in 2021, but with
The number of deaths little success.
rose by 690,000 to 11.1 mil- Many people are delay-
lion, more than double the ing marriage or choosing
previous year’s increase. not to have children. Even
Demographers said the those who do often have
rise was driven by the ag- only one child because of
ing of the population and the high cost of educating
the widespread COVID-19 children in cities in a highly
outbreaks that started in competitive academic en-
December 2022 and con- A man carries a child at a shopping mall in Beijing, Dec. 30, 2023. vironment. The population
tinued into February of last Associated Press of women of child-bearing
year. years to allow up to three Demographer Zuo Xue- clothing, food and other age has also fallen.
The total population stood children. jin, former executive vice products suitable for older Local governments are of-
at 1.4 billion, the statistics The lower fertility rate, to- president of the Shanghai people, cracking down on fering incentives for new
bureau said. China, long gether with people living Academy of Social Sci- scams that target the el- children.
the most populated coun- longer because of better ences., estimated that the derly and making it easier A municipality in China’s
try in the world, dropped health care, means China proportion of the popula- to operate a TV. Inner Mongolia region has
into second place behind is slowly growing older, tion that is 65 or older could The number of births fell by started offering payments
India in 2023, according to something that could slow double to more than 30% 540,000, or 5.6%, which was of 2,000 yuan ($280) for a
U.N. estimates. economic growth over by 2050. smaller than the double- second child and 5,000
The falling births reflect a time and challenge the The government issued digit percent drops the yuan ($700) for a third, as
decline in the fertility rate government’s finances guidelines earlier this week previous three years. The 9 well as requiring that em-
that is a long-term eco- and its ability to provide for on developing the “silver” million babies born in 2023 ployers give an extra 60
nomic and societal chal- a larger elderly population economy and enhanc- were less than half the total and 90 days of paid ma-
lenge for China. Women with fewer workers. ing the well-being of older in 2016. All the figures are ternity leave for the second
are having fewer babies Experts expect the popula- people. They included ex- estimates based on surveys and third child respectively,
despite government incen- tion decline to continue for panding geriatric hospital and do not include Hong according to an online re-
tives and the easing of its decades, even if the fertility and nursing care, encour- Kong and Macao. China port by state-owned China
one-child policy in recent rate rebounds. aging the development of conducts a full census ev- National Radio.q

New doctrine in Russia ally Belarus for the first time provides for

using nuclear weapons

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — The “We clearly communicate Belarus’ views on the use of tactical nuclear weapons Russia used Belarus terri-
defense minister of Belarus stationed on our territory,” tory as a springboard to
said Tuesday that the coun- Defense Minister Viktor send its troops into Ukraine
try closely allied with Russia Khrenin said at a meeting on February 24, 2022, and
will put forth a new military of Belarus’ Security Coun- has maintained its military
doctrine that for the first cil. “A new chapter has ap- bases and weapons there,
time provides for the use of peared, where we clearly although Belarusian troops
nuclear weapons. define our allied obliga- have not taken part in the
Russia last year sent tactical tions to our allies.” war.
nuclear weapons to be sta- The doctrine is to be pre- Security Council Secretary
tioned in Belarus, although sented for approval to the Alexander Volfovich said
there are no details about All-Belarusian People’s As- that the deployment of
how many. Russia has said sembly, a representative Russian nuclear weapons in
it will maintain control over body that operates in Be- Belarus is intended to deter
those weapons, which are larus in parallel with the aggression from Poland, a
intended for battlefield use parliament. NATO member.
and have short ranges and Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu, left, and Belarusian Belarus had both tactical “Unfortunately, statements
comparatively low yields. Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin exchange documents during and long-range nuclear by our neighbors, in par-
It was not immediately a meeting after a session of the Council of Defense Ministers weapons when it was part ticular Poland ... forced us
clear how the new doc- of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in Minsk, of the Soviet Union, but to strengthen” the military
trine might be applied to Belarus, on May 25, 2023. transferred them to Russia doctrine, he said.q
the Russian weapons. Associated Press after the USSR’s collapse.