Page 6 - Chinese Government

As Xi Jinping visits Europe, Ukraine, trade likely to be top priority

Ukraine, trade and investment are expected to dominate Chinese leader Xi Jinping's first trip to Europe in five years, as the Asian giant rebuilds its foreign relations after a prolonged absence during the Covid-19 pandemic. Xi will start the tour in Paris on Monday, meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, who has been stressing the idea of European strategic autonomy from the U.S. On a visit to Beijing last year, Macron courted controversy by saying France would not necessarily always align with the US in foreign policy, an apparent reference to American support for the self-governing republic of Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory to be annexed by force if necessary. After leaving France, Xi will visit Hungary and Serbia, both seen as China-friendly and close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, rebuffing Western criticism of his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Xi's European visits will be closely followed in Washington for signs of diminishing support for its k

China sending probe to get samples from less-explored far side of moon

China is preparing to launch a lunar probe on Friday that would land on the far side of the moon and return with samples that could provide insights into geological and other differences between the less-explored region and the better-known near side. The unprecedented mission would be the latest advance in the increasingly sophisticated and ambitious space exploration program that is now competing with the US, still the leader in space. China already landed a rover on the moon's far side in 2019, the first country to do so. Free from exposure to Earth and other interference, the moon's somewhat mysterious far side is ideal for radio astronomy and other scientific work. Because the far side never faces Earth, a relay satellite is a needed to maintain communications. The Chang'e lunar exploration probe is named after the Chinese mythical moon goddess. The probe is being carried on a Long March-5 YB rocket set for liftoff on Friday evening from the Wenchang launch centre on the south

Heavy rains lead to highway collapse in South China killing 48 people

A section of a highway collapsed after heavy rains in southern China, sending cars tumbling down a slope and leaving at least 36 people dead, authorities said Thursday. The Meizhou city government said that 23 vehicles have been found in a pit after a 17.9-metre long section of the highway gave way about 2 a.m. on Wednesday. Thirty other people had injuries, none of them life-threatening, a government statement said. Parts of Guangdong province have seen record rains and flooding in the past two weeks, as well as hail. A tornado killed five people in Guangzhou, the provincial capital, last weekend. Some villages in Meizhou flooded in early April, and the city had seen heavy rain in recent days. The ground beneath the highway appeared to have caved in, along with the section of the road above it. Witnesses told local media they heard a loud noise and saw a wide hole open up behind them after driving past the section just before it collapsed. Video and photos in local media showed s

China, Russia should clarify nuclear weapons are not controlled by AI: US

As part of normalising military communications, US and Chinese officials resumed nuclear weapons discussions in January, but formal arms control negotiations are not expected any time soon

China acquires recently banned Nvidia chips in Super Micro, Dell servers

While the US bars Nvidia and its partners from selling advanced chips to China, including via third parties, the sale and purchase of the chips are not illegal in China

EU aims to increase agri-food exports to China despite trade tensions

Unlike sectors such as solar panels or new energy vehicles (NEVs) the European Union's agri-food sector runs an export surplus in its trade with China

China leaves benchmark lending rates unchanged in line with expectations

The one-year loan prime rate (LPR) was kept at 3.45 per cent, while the five-year LPR was unchanged at 3.95 per cent

Taiwan detects 21 Chinese military aircraft, 7 naval ships in its territory

In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed air defence missile systems to monitor the PLA activity, reports say

China flight paths move: Taiwan to exercise its air traffic control rights

Taiwan's Civil Aviation Administration has voiced concern regarding the W122 and W123 flight paths jeopardizing flight safety

A third of China's city dwellers face danger of land sinking, says study

About a third of China's urban population is estimated to be at risk due to land subsidence, shows a new finding which researchers said is indicative of a global phenomenon. China's urban area below the sea level could triple by 2120, potentially affecting 55 to 128 million residents, it found. Using satellite data, the research team studied 82 cities, including Shanghai and Beijing, with a collective population of nearly 700 million people. The team, including researchers from the University of East Anglia, UK, found that 45 per cent of the urban land area analysed was sinking, with 16 per cent sinking at the rate of 10 millimetres a year. Hotspots included Beijing and the coastal city of Tianjin, they said. The study estimated that 270 million urban residents could be affected, with nearly 70 million experiencing rapid subsidence of 10 millimetres a year or more. The findings are published in the journal 'Science'. Caused mainly by human activities in cities, land sinking can a

Hong Kong must hold national security line to ensure development: China

Hong Kong in March enacted a new national security law, also known as article 23, that updates or introduces new laws to prohibit treason, sabotage, sedition

Asia's market reset: 'Expensive' India lures investors avoiding China risks

The powerful rallies in Indian and Japanese equities as China's market has slumped have reset Asia's financial-market landscape

Taiwan detects 14 Chinese military aircraft, 8 naval vessels around nation

So far this month, Taiwan has tracked Chinese military aircraft 85 times and naval vessels 71 times

China holds talks with N Korea in nations' highest-level meeting in years

A top Chinese official arrived in North Korea and held talks on how to boost their cooperation, North Korea's state media reported on Friday, in the counties' highest-level meeting in about five years. Zhao Leji, who is chairman of China's National People's Congress and considered the No. 3 official in the ruling Communist Party, arrived in North Korea on Thursday. China's government earlier said he will stay in North Korea until Saturday. Zhao met his North Korean counterpart Choe Ryong Hae later on Thursday and discussed how to promote exchanges and cooperation on all areas such as politics, economy and culture, the North's official Korean Central News Agency reported. The two also exchanged views on unspecified regional and international issues of mutual concerns, KCNA said. Zhao is one of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, the Communist Party's top leadership body headed by Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Zhao's visit to North Korea marked the first bilateral ..

China's consumer prices rise for 2nd month, factory deflation persists

Persistent declines in factory-gate prices and export prices, meanwhile, have added to tensions with China's biggest trading partners

Emerging from seclusion, Jack Ma voices support for overhaul at Alibaba

Ma, who's still revered by many of the company's 200,000-plus employees, struck a markedly more upbeat tone than just four months ago

BYD got €3.4 bn in aid from Chinese govt to dominate EVs, finds study

Aid for China's leading EV maker jumped from €220 million in 2020 to €2.1 billion only two years later, Germany's Kiel Institute for the World Economy said Wednesday

Xi Jinping meets with Sergey Lavrov in show of support against West

Chinese leader Xi Jinping met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Tuesday in a sign of mutual support and shared opposition to Western democracies amid Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. We would like to express our highest appreciation and admiration for the successes that you have achieved over the years and, above all, over the last decade under your leadership," Lavrov told Xi, according to Russian media. "We are sincerely pleased with these successes, since these are the successes of friends, although not everyone in the world shares this attitude and are trying in every possible way to restrain the development of China - in fact just like the development of Russia, Lavrov said. Russia's growing economic and diplomatic isolation has made it increasingly reliant on China, its former rival for leadership of the Communist bloc during the Cold War. In past decades, the two have closely aligned their foreign policies, held joint military exercises and sought to rally non-aligned

China's EV makers order record number of ships to support car exports

BYD alone exported over 240,000 cars in 2023, about 8 per cent of its global sales, and plans to export up to 400,000 this year

Russia, China to maintain fight against terrorism, says Sergei Lavrov

"Our cooperation on counter-terrorism will continue, including within the framework of multilateral institutions," Lavrov said