China’s Unitree Unveils Robot With “Human-Like Physique” That Can Outrun Most People
The race for bipedal humanoid robot intelligence has certainly been in the news, with robots receiving “AI brains” that have already brought them onto factory floors and will likely become more visible in the public world in the coming years (see UBS).
But there is another race that Chinese robot maker Unitree is simultaneously part of, and that is actual speed.
In recent days, Unitree posted a video on X titled “Unitree Breaks the World Record Again,” indicating that one of its humanoid robots now has the “physique of an ordinary person, running at a world champion’s speed.”
Unitree said the robot completed a sprint at 10 meters per second, or 22.4 mph. For context, the fastest human sprint speed ever recorded was Usain Bolt’s 27.8 mph during his 100-meter world record run at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics.
10m/s!! Unitree Breaks the World Record Again😊
With the physique of an ordinary person, running at a world champion’s speed!
Leg length: 0.4+0.4=0.8m, body weight: approx. 62kg!
H1: “Give me one more chance, give the world one more honor!” pic.twitter.com/Fk4Zo9zKit
Combine intelligence with speed, and the world is certainly racing toward the rise of robots that could one day chase down a human or even appear on the battlefield.
Two Alphabet-owned companies, Waymo and Waze, announced on April 9 that they will team up to detect potholes and share that information with local government agencies to help get them filled more efficiently.
“Waymo is already making roads safer where we operate,“ said Arielle Fleisher, the company’s policy development and research manager, in a statement. ”We want to build on the safety benefits of our service by partnering with organizations and city officials to help improve the infrastructure we all depend on.”
Waymo, which started out as a Google self-driving car project in 2009 and spun out into its own company under Alphabet in 2016, said the pothole program was inspired from feedback it gathered from city officials over the years and is intended to fill reporting gaps.
Waymos are covered with cameras and sensors. The company said it will use its feedback systems to detect potholes and share that information through Waze’s platform, which users will be able to verify.
Waze, a GPS navigation app that lets drivers alert others with live updates, was acquired by Alphabet-subsidiary Google in 2013 for around $1.1 billion.
“This pilot program with Waymo adds another source of data to that effort, giving cities a clearer picture of road conditions through our Waze for Cities platform. It’s a great example of how working together helps our community and makes our roads better for everyone,” Waze Strategic Partner Manager Andrew Stober said.
Waze and Waymo will launch the pilot program in five areas—the San Francisco Bay Area, where the two companies are headquartered in Mountain View, as well as the Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin, and Atlanta metro areas.
“We appreciate the collaboration with Waymo and Waze as we explore how technology can help identify issues like potholes faster so we can respond more efficiently,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in a statement. “We’re always looking for innovative ways to deliver better services for residents.”
Waymo said it has already identified around 500 potholes in these locations and will work to expand the program to more cities it serves.
Alongside these five locations, Waymo also operates in Dallas, Houston, Miami, Nashville, Orlando, and San Antonio.
The Nashville location is the newest addition, as Waymo started allowing users in Nashville on a rolling basis on April 7. The company also announced in February that it will expand to Charlotte, Chicago, and Sacramento, where it has released its fleet to begin gathering data on Sacramento’s streets.
Build It, And They Will Come? Not The Case At Baltimore’s Harbor East Luxury Tower
The Four Seasons Private Residences in Harbor East, situated in crime-ridden Baltimore City and serving as a flagship luxury development project tied to the Inner Harbor’s waterfront revitalization, was originally envisioned as an ultra-luxury tower designed to attract the rich and powerful. The premise for building the tower, which opened in 2017, was very simple: build it, and they will come.
The Paterakis family, one of the most prominent business and real estate families in the Baltimore metro area, best known for their baking empire and for transforming part of the city’s waterfront over the decades, backed the Four Seasons Private Residences project, with one-bedroom condos hitting the market in 2017 for $1 million.
Yet the saying “build it, and they will come” didn’t play out here, as the latest report from local outlet Baltimore Banner says a third of the 62 condos “have never sold,” and the current listing price now “starts in the $500,000s.”
Three investors told the local outlet that “the true price is even lower” for these one-bedroom units. That would suggest a 50% collapse in value over just nine years since the 2017 debut.
The outlet continued:
The trio scooped up 11 units at the Four Seasons last year. Now they’re suing Harbor East Parcel D-Residential LLC in Baltimore Circuit Court, accusing the seller of artificially inflating the sale price listed in public records. Harbor East Parcel-D Residential is the limited liability company used by the Paterakis family and other investors to own and sell the condos. George Philippou, a son-in-law of Paterakis Sr., signs deeds and other property records on behalf of the company.
David J. Shuster, an attorney for the limited liability company, said in a statement that the claims in the lawsuit are without merit and declined to comment further, citing the ongoing litigation. The Four Seasons, a Toronto-based company that operates resorts, hotels and condos around the world, did not respond to a request for comment.
Paterakis’ bad bet on the ultra-luxury tower in Harbor East appears to be following a similar pattern to other high-profile redevelopment projects around the Inner Harbor, including Under Armor CEO Kevin Plank’s Baltimore Peninsula project, which has struggled.
Let’s not forget that the actual Inner Harbor is virtually a ghost town:
Downtown Baltimore is witnessing a troubling trend as businesses continue to close, leaving employees without jobs and residents without essential services.
The latest casualty is the Sheraton Hotel, a key fixture of the Inner Harbor, which has left 69 employees jobless.… pic.twitter.com/PagIL8uW9J
At a broader level, the common denominator behind these redevelopment failures is impossible to ignore: Baltimore’s population has collapsed to a 100-year low in a relatively short period, eroding demand for urban revival projects. Much of that decline can be linked to a city and state controlled by unhinged Democratic Party kings and queens, pushing far-left policies that have only backfired into a California-style exodus of residents.
Baltimore’s failure is a direct result of the one-party rule of Democratic queens and kings who appear to have done nothing but economically sabotage the state.
But the story here takes a twist because there is a movement inside the business community, especially among Sinclair Executive Chairman David Smith, to combat the far-left crazies who run the city and state through information warfare. Democrats have freaked out that Smith bought the largest paper in the state, The Baltimore Sun, as the left-wing regime has failed to counter the narratives, while left-wing Gov. Wes Moore’s polling data implodes.
Alex Soros & Gov. Moore.
Here’s a novel idea for the business community that has watched its state and city implode under a far-left regime: it’s time to go on the offensive and ensure common-sense politicians are elected in future elections, rather than left-wing activists who have no problem abusing taxpayers and looting state coffers for progressive projects, such as this:
Maryland Delegate Kathy Szeliga (R) EMBARESSES Democrats who want to force “appropriately sized tampons” into men’s bathrooms.
The Pentagon has come under fire for failing to meet a congressional deadline to release dozens of military videos showing unidentified aerial phenomena, sparking fresh claims of a bureaucratic stall on one of the most sensitive national security issues in decades.
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., had pressed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to deliver 46 specific clips by April 14. Whistleblowers had told her task force that the Pentagon’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) already possessed the records. Yet as the deadline passed with no delivery, critics pointed to a pattern of delay that has long fueled public distrust.
The requested material includes spherical objects maneuvering erratically over Afghanistan, cigar-shaped craft, Tic Tac-style encounters, transmedium vehicles moving between air and water, and multiple formations captured near U.S. military assets, submarines, and sensitive airspace.
🚨Lawmaker asks Hegseth to release UAP videos citing national security concerns
Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. R-Fla., is asking Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to hand over dozens of military “unidentified aerial phenomena” videos by April 14. NBC News’ Gadi Schwartz reports. Today is… pic.twitter.com/pQ0yQDCljR
On April 15, with the deadline missed, the War Department moved to address the growing pressure. A U.S. official told Liberation Times that AARO is now actively working with the White House and other agencies to prepare previously unseen UAP records for public release.
“The Department of War’s All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) is working in close coordination with the White House and across federal agencies to consolidate existing UAP records collections and facilitate the expeditious release of never-before-seen UAP information,” the official stated.
The official added that “Since the office was established, AARO has made progress to make UAP information available and transfer those records to the National Archives in accordance with federal law. We welcome the president’s initiative to supercharge these efforts and make more UAP information available to the public as soon as possible.”
?War Department Says White House Coordinating Release of UFO Material
Ina recent article by @ChrisUKSharp a U.S. War Department official told Liberation Times that the Pentagons dedicated UFO office is working with the White House and federal agencies to prepare the release of… pic.twitter.com/QTlZgMZvKL
This episode fits a broader pattern of incremental movement on UAP transparency. Just days ago, Rep. Tim Burchett indicated that names, dates, people, and locations tied to the phenomenon are set to emerge in upcoming briefings.
Earlier this year the U.S. government quietly registered the domain aliens.gov, adding fuel to speculation that formal acknowledgment of non-human intelligence is being prepared at the highest levels.
And in January an insider warned the Bank of England to ready itself for imminent alien disclosure, suggesting the topic has moved well beyond fringe discussion and into institutional planning.
President Trump directed the process of identifying and releasing government files on UAP, UFOs, and extraterrestrial matters back in February. Yet the slow pace continues to frustrate lawmakers and the public alike.
Luna’s task force has emphasized the national security angle, arguing that unexplained objects operating in restricted airspace warrant full scrutiny rather than continued secrecy. The videos in question were reportedly captured by fighter jets, drones, surveillance aircraft, and naval assets across multiple theaters.
While AARO’s latest statement signals forward momentum and coordination at the White House level, skeptics note that similar promises have been made before without full delivery. The public, long accustomed to partial disclosures and redacted reports, is watching closely to see whether this round produces genuine transparency or another round of managed narrative.
The stakes extend beyond curiosity. If these objects represent advanced technology—human or otherwise—the public has a right to know what their governments have documented in their name. Continued foot-dragging only deepens suspicion that elements within the bureaucracy prefer control over candor.
Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.
Nike has long been one of the most recognizable athletic brands in the world, but the sneaker and apparel company has suffered rapid brand deterioration amid its move to fully embrace woke corporate politics, with its stock collapsing roughly 75% from its peak during the Covid era, when the Marxist NGO Black Lives Matter gained traction across corporate America.
Nike’s stock has been a disaster and is trading at 2014 prices. Management just can’t figure out why.
Even as the face of golf continues to change among the 28.1 million Americans who played in 2024 – with 28% female and 25% Black, Asian, or Hispanic, both the highest proportions ever recorded according to the National Golf Foundation – a viral post on X appears to show Nike’s unhinged corporate culture being criticized once again.
“Do White people even play golf?” one X user asked, after viewing Nike’s website, which features all things golf, and finding the lack of diversity …
This is yet another brand choice by Nike, reflecting not the current audience but instead the audience they want to cultivate or the social message they want associated with the sport. This type of marketing may only push golfers toward other brands, such as Peter Millar, G/FORE, and Holderness & Bourne.
Mullin Blasts Biden Admin After DHS Employee Killed By Naturalized Felon
On Monday, Lauren Bullis, a 40-year-old Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employee, was “brutally shot and stabbed to death” while walking her dog, and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin is blaming the Biden administration for her murder.
Bullis, an auditor with the DHS Office of Inspector General, was found on Battle Forest Drive in DeKalb County, Georgia, around 6:50 a.m. Witnesses saw a man standing over her body before he fled. She was not the only victim. According to reports, a neighbor heard the gunfire and ran out of her house to see what was happening. The neighbor told local media that it appeared Adon-Abel was attempting to sexually assault Bullis.
Before Bullis died, police discovered another woman had been shot multiple times outside a Checkers & Rally’s restaurant. She later succumbed to her injuries. Then, in Brookhaven, a homeless man was ambushed while sleeping outside a shopping center. He was shot several times and remains in critical condition.
That suspect is Olaolukitan Adon-Abel, 26, born in the United Kingdom and naturalized as a U.S. citizen in 2022 under the Biden administration. Adon-Abel was arrested on Monday and now faces two counts of murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime, and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. As a convicted felon, he not only shouldn’t have had a gun, but according to federal law, he should not have been a citizen either.
Adon-Abel had convictions for sexual battery, battery against a police officer, obstruction, assault with a deadly weapon, and vandalism — a trail of violence spanning years. And yet, in 2022, the Biden administration’s U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services granted him full citizenship. The legal standard for naturalization, as outlined in8 U.S.C. § 1427, requires applicants to demonstrate “good moral character.” Someone who has assaulted a police officer and committed sexual battery should not clear that bar.
“Yesterday, a DHS employee, Lauren Bullis, was brutally shot and stabbed to death by Olaolukitan Adon Abel, a 26-year-old born in the United Kingdom, who was naturalized by the Biden Administration in 2022,” DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin said in a statement to Fox News. “Since President Trump took office, USCIS has implemented measures to ensure individuals with criminal histories and who otherwise lack good moral character do not attain citizenship.”
Mullin continued, “He possesses a prior criminal record that includes convictions for sexual battery, battery against a police officer, obstruction, and assault with a deadly weapon, vandalism and now stands accused of murdering DHS employee Lauren Bullis by shooting and stabbing her while she walked her dog. He has also been arrested for the murder of an unidentified woman whom he reportedly shot outside a Checkers, before randomly shooting a homeless man multiple times outside a Kroger in Brookhaven.”
He added, “These acts of pure evil have devastated our Department, and my prayers are with the families of the victims.”
The Biden administration routinely dismissed concerns about immigration vetting as fearmongering. Critics who raised red flags about naturalization standards were called nativists or worse. But the standard is not political — it is statutory. Federal law bars naturalization for individuals who cannot demonstrate good moral character, and multiple violent criminal convictions are about as clear a disqualifier as exists in the code.
“No more activist judges shielding criminal illegals. No more endless delays. Only results.” The Trump White House is celebrating multiple massive immigration enforcement wins that signal the era of mass migration and mass amnesty is over.
Since Donald Trump came back into office, federal authorities have removed three million illegal aliens from the United States through ICE deportations or voluntary deportations, which is the biggest reduction in illegal migration in modern history, according to a White House press release on April 9. This is exactly what the American people voted for. This is the sort of reform we hoped to see when immigration became one of the top issues in the 2024 election.
Besides the three million deportees, border officers have not released a single illegal alien into the United States at our borders for 11 straight months. The “era of amnesty is over,” indeed.
The overwhelming majority of asylum claims have long been fraudulent, and that is one major area where the Trump administration implemented reform. The U.S. immigration authority now grants asylum in only 7% of cases, slashing the number of criminals and illegal aliens who tried to use asylum claims as a free ticket into our country. In contrast, under Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, the government approved over 50% of asylum claims, according to the release.
I will give just two illustrations of why this is a big deal. First, just this week, the U.S. State Department revoked the lawful permanent resident status it had granted to Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, the niece of mass-murdering Iranian jihad leader Qasem Soleimani. Afshar had obtained residency and a life of luxury in the United States by claiming asylum here. Yet she repeatedly returned to Iran and regularly spouted pro-regime propaganda, illustrating how bogus her asylum claim was. And second, back in 2024, an Ecuadoran “asylum seeker” raped a 13-year-old at knifepoint in New York. These are only two examples of how broken our asylum system was before the Trump administration took over.
The White House release also highlighted the following wins:
Deportations and removal orders are surging: In fiscal year 2025, immigration courts issued nearly 500,000 removal orders — a 57% increase over the prior year — as criminal illegals are removed faster and in far greater numbers than ever before.
The massive court backlog is being slashed: Hundreds of thousands of cases have already been cleared since Inauguration Day, with reductions accelerating every month — ending the years-long delays that let illegals remain indefinitely.
And, as noted above, the Trump administration has successfully closed our borders.
The White House press release enthusiastically concluded, “President Trump promised to end the open borders nightmare — and he is delivering on that promise with unrelenting force. The era of catch-and-release, mass releases, and activist judicial amnesty is over.”
As we celebrate the 250th year of America’s existence, there is no better time to reflect on what national sovereignty and security mean.
Beige Book Confirms Uncertainty, Fuel Costs Surged On Iran War As Economy Grew At “Slight To Modest” Pace
US economic activity continued to increase at a “slight-to-modest” pace across most regions as the war with Iran generated a new wave of uncertainty and higher energy costs, the Federal Reserve said. The just released Beige Book – which featured information compiled by the New York Fed and collected through April 6, capturing the early effects of the war on the US economy – was the first one to discuss the state of the US economy after the Iran war started, and came at time when gas prices sstayed above $4/gal for two weeks after the biggest monthly jump in decades, with March fuel spending up 16% according to Bank of America card spending data.
So far, Bank of America said that discretionary spending remains resilient—but risks rise if Hormuz disruptions persist. The Fed agreed, with the Beige Book reporting that overall economic activity increased at a slight to modest pace in eight of the twelve Federal Reserve Districts, while two Districts reported little change (San Francisco and St Louis), and two Districts reported slight to modest declines (Boston and New York).
Price growth remained moderate overall, but energy and fuel costs rose “sharply” in all 12 Fed districts, the central bank reported in its Beige Book survey of regional business contacts released Wednesday.
“The conflict in the Middle East was cited as a major source of uncertainty that complicated decision-making around hiring, pricing and capital investment, with many firms adopting a wait-and-see posture,” the Fed said.
Bloomberg’s NLP model that measures net sentiment by evaluating hawkishness (+ score) and dovishness (- score) pictured below. Recent reading comes in at +1.2.
Several policymakers have signaled a preference to keep borrowing costs steady for quite some time while they evaluate the economic data. Officials are expected to leave their benchmark rate unchanged when they meet on April 28-29, according to pricing in futures contracts. A growing number of officials are concerned the war could fuel inflation, and more favored language at their March gathering that would have made it clear the Fed may need to raise interest rates.
Taking a closer look at the Beige Book, the conflict in the Middle East was cited as a major source of uncertainty that complicated decision-making around hiring, pricing, and capital investment, with many firms adopting a wait-and-see posture.
Manufacturing activity rose slightly to moderately in most Districts. Banking sector activity was generally steady with loan demand stable to up moderately.
On balance, consumer spending increased slightly despite harsh winter weather in some regions and higher fuel prices.
Many Districts continued to report signs of consumer financial strain, increased price sensitivity, and rising demand at food banks and other social service organizations, while spending among higher-income consumers was resilient.
Housing market activity softened across several Districts as heightened uncertainty and rising mortgage rates dampened buyer demand.
Commercial real estate markets improved, with strength in industrial properties, especially data center projects. Office markets saw solid demand for Class A space but weaker demand for lower-tier properties.
Energy activity was up slightly as oil prices rose, though many producers remained cautious about increasing drilling due to uncertainty about the persistence of higher prices. Agricultural activity was mixed, and several Districts reported that rising crop prices helped offset steep price increases of fertilizer and fuel.
Business outlooks varied amid widespread uncertainty about future conditions.
In terms of Labor Markets, the Beige Book noted the following:
On balance, employment was steady to up slightly during this reporting period, though one District noted a slight decline.
Most Districts described labor demand as stable, with low turnover, minimal layoffs, and hiring mostly for replacement.
Several Districts noted increased demand for temporary or contract workers, as firms remained cautious about committing to permanent hires.
Many Districts reported that labor availability had improved, although difficulty finding some skilled workers, especially in the skilled trades, persisted.
While most Districts indicated that AI had not yet significantly impacted overall staffing levels, some noted that AI-driven productivity improvements had enabled many firms to delay or reduce hiring. Wages generally continued to rise at a modest to moderate pace.
Some Districts noted continued wage pressures for some roles in health care and the skilled trades, though overall wage competition remained muted.
Energy prices were sharply higher
Price growth mostly remained moderate overall, with the vast majority of Districts reporting moderate increases and others pointing to modest growth. Generally, input cost increases outpaced selling price growth, compressing margins.
Energy and fuel costs rose sharply in all Districts, attributed to the Middle East conflict, leading to higher freight and shipping costs and higher prices for plastics, fertilizers, and other petroleum-based products.
Input cost pressures beyond energy-related increases were also widespread. Several Districts reported rising prices for metals due to tariffs, such as steel, copper, and aluminum. Technology costs rose for both hardware and software. Insurance premiums and health care costs continued to climb.
Finally, here are the main highlights by Fed districts:
Boston: Economic activity declined slightly, employment and wages were flat, and prices rose at a moderate pace. Consumer spending was flat, as was activity in most sectors, but home sales slowed further. The conflict in the Middle East contributed to rising energy prices and created fresh uncertainty, though the outlook remained optimistic on balance.
New York: Economic activity continued to decline modestly amid heightened uncertainty in large part due to shifts in tariff policy and the Middle East conflict. On balance, employment held steady, and wage growth remained modest. The pace of selling price increases remained moderate, and input price increases picked up markedly. Consumer spending grew slightly. Businesses generally expected little improvement in the months ahead.
Philadelphia: Economic activity in the Third District grew slightly, down from a modest pace last period. Employment declined slightly, and wages again rose modestly. Prices continued to rise moderately, although cost pressures increased. Activity held steady for nonmanufacturers and increased moderately for manufacturers. Firms expect growth over the next six months, but uncertainty has risen further.
Cleveland: Fourth District business activity increased modestly, with similar growth expected in the months ahead. Manufacturers reported increased demand, while retailers saw modest declines amid higher fuel prices. Residential real estate rebounded after a harsh winter. Employment grew slightly, and wages increased moderately. Nonlabor costs remained robust, while selling prices grew moderately.
Richmond: The regional economy continued to grow modestly in recent weeks. Consumer spending on retail, travel, and tourism increased modestly. Nonfinancial service providers also reported modest growth in demand. Other sectors of the regional economy reported little change this cycle. Employment expanded slightly, wages picked up modestly, and price growth remained moderate.
Atlanta: Economic activity grew at a modest pace. Employment remained flat and wages rose modestly. Prices and input costs also increased modestly. Retail sales and travel continued to expand. On balance, residential and commercial real estate conditions improved. Transportation and manufacturing activity expanded. Energy activity rose, but agricultural conditions were flat.
Chicago: Economic activity in the Seventh District increased slightly over the reporting period. Manufacturing demand rose modestly; consumer spending increased slightly; construction and real estate activity, employment and business spending were flat on balance; and nonbusiness contacts saw no change in economic activity. Prices rose moderately, wages rose modestly, and financial conditions tightened modestly. Farm income expectations for 2026 declined some.
St. Louis: Economic activity has remained unchanged since our previous report. Employment levels were unchanged and wage growth was moderate. Prices have risen moderately, but several contacts expressed concern about escalating energy costs. The outlook remains cautiously optimistic, yet contacts are attentive to risks to the economy associated with the conflict in the Middle East.
Minneapolis: District economic activity increased slightly. Employment increased slightly and labor demand turned positive over the past two months. Prices increased modestly overall, but input price pressures intensified as oil price spikes fed through to freight and raw materials. Contacts across industries reported significant uncertainty.
Kansas City: The Tenth District’s economy grew slightly over the reporting period, while employment levels remained flat. Manufacturing firms indicated suppliers have implemented automatic surcharges tied to logistics and energy inputs. District oil and gas activity remains steady. Overall, prices have increased modestly.
Dallas: Economic activity in the Eleventh District expanded slightly. Manufacturing output growth slowed, while activity in services was largely flat. Energy sector activity ticked up, and bank lending increased on strength in commercial real estate, while home sales were slow. Employment grew slightly, while wages and prices increased modestly to robustly. Outlooks deteriorated amid elevated geopolitical uncertainty and fuel price concerns.
San Francisco: Economic activity was stable at subdued levels over the reporting period. Employment levels were unchanged on net. Prices rose moderately, driven primarily by higher energy costs, while wages grew slightly. Retail sales grew slightly. Conditions were stable in services and manufacturing, down in agriculture, and mixed in real estate.
Russia Vows To ‘Fill China’s Energy Resource Gap’ Amid Hormuz Crisis In Lavrov-Xi Meeting
At a moment it remains a serious open question over just how vulnerable China is to the Hormuz Strait crisis, and now with the US-imposed US naval blockade of the vital oil transit waterway, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is in Beijing pledging energy support to China.
Lavrov met with President Xi Jinping on Wednesday, during which Xi urged China and Russia to “give full play to the advantages of geographic proximity and complementarity, deepen all-round cooperation and raise the resilience of each other’s development.”
Russia remains China’s top energy supplier. “Both sides should maintain strategic focus, trust each other, support each other, develop together,” Xi continued, according to a Chinese state media readout.
Lavrov in turn told Xi that Chinese-Russian relations play a “stabilizing role in world affairs” at a time of global “chaos and turmoil.” This has been a consistent theme on which relations and trust have been built between Beijing and Moscow going back to the start of the Ukraine war over four years ago.
Importantly, after the meeting the Russian foreign minister announced to a press conference that Moscow stands ready to increase energy supplies to China.
“Russia can certainly fill the resource gap that has arisen in China and other countries interested in working with us on an equal and mutually beneficial basis,” Lavrov stated.
The two-day Lavrov visit is toward laying the groundwork for an upcoming summit between Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. It’s expected for the first half of this year, but likely after Trump’s upcoming May 14-15 summit with the Chinese leader.
The Hormuz crisis is a threat to Chinese energy given Asia’s largest power still depends heavily on global supply routes it does not fully control. While Beijing has for many years sought to diversify through pipelines from Russia and Central Asia, the reality is that those projects take years to build and remain far too limited to replace the volume of oil moving through Hormuz.
However, there’s a strong counterargument pushing back against the assumption that Trump’s Iran moves will ultimately squeeze and devastate China. Alongside Russia coming to Beijing’s side with its recently unsanctioned oil, there are also these aspects to consider:
While China is to some extent dependent on Gulf oil, so is the rest of Asia. While the United States might be insulated from some of the worst consequences of the Hormuz closure, the economies of our Asian allies are not. Asian economies are among the most dependent on Middle Eastern oil, with South Korea receiving around 70 percent and Japan receiving a whopping 95 percent of their oil from the Middle East. The Council on Foreign Relations notes that in 2024, 84 percent of the oil and 83 percent of LNG shipped through Hormuz were bound for Asia. That is not a targeted squeeze. Instead, such a move looks to be made without much heed to Asia at all, hitting the very states Washington is supposedly positioning against Beijing.
China is actually one of the best-positioned countries in Asia to handle this exact crisis because of existing stockpiles, diversified supply chains, a coal-dependent electric grid, and pipeline alternatives. While China is vulnerable, it is more insulated than most of Asia, only receiving around 20 percent of its oil from Hormuz.
There’s a certain irony in the fact that an early element of blowback from the Iran war was that Washington scrambled to remove sanctions on Russian crude oil transiting the high seas, to bat down soaring global oil prices, and yet it is this very unsanctioned oil flow which will benefit China.
And the ‘unintended consequences’ continue to trickle over. The American Conservativewrites, “This damage to our Pacific allies is not theoretical. Across Asia, partner governments are already scrambling as their economies face the worst crisis in decades. Asian nations are shortening workweeks and implementing fuel controls, disrupting their economies as tension mounts. Many Asian economies have turned to Russia amid this turmoil, bolstering the economy of another supposed U.S. enemy.”
Tax Freedom Day, calculated by the Tax Foundation, “represents how long Americans as a whole have to work in order to pay the nation’s tax burden.”
It appears that they stopped publishing this in 2019, but others have picked up where they left off.
The idea is that the income earned by taxpayers over a certain proportion of the year goes to Uncle Sam.
In 2025, that date was April 16th.
But the burden of government is much larger than the amount we pay in taxes.
The government spends much more than it collects in taxes, diverting valuable resources away from where they would be used in the private market economy, subject to the profit and loss test of the market.
The difference is made up by new government debt.
Much of that debt is purchased by the Federal Reserve with new money, resulting in price inflation, exacerbated income inequality, booms and busts, and financial fragility.
The cost of government is much more than what we pay in taxes.
Rothbard suggested a measure of “total government depredation on the economy” that involves starting with net national product (like GDP but takes capital depreciation into account) and deducting all government spending at all levels, including transfer payments, government officials’ salaries, and the salaries of those employed by government enterprises.
Rothbard considered all government activity as a depredation.
Net national product was $25.7 trillion, which gives us a ratio of 42.7%.
When we turn that ratio into a date on the calendar, we get June 5.
In short, while Tax Freedom Day is mid-April, Rothbard’s measure of the government’s fiscal burden reveals that Americans don’t truly start working for themselves until June 5, over seven weeks later.
