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PR Newswire

CGTN: China, Germany highlight cooperation ‘in times of change and instability’

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BEIJING, Nov. 5, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, the first EU leader to come to Beijing after the successful convening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, paid an official visit to China on Friday.

Noting the complex and fluid international landscape, Chinese President Xi Jinping told Scholz that the two major countries, with great influence, should work together “in times of change and instability” and contribute more to global peace and development.

Scholz stressed that his country hopes to maintain communication and coordination with China to better safeguard regional and world peace and security.

China–Germany cooperation benefits EU, and the world

As Germany is a pivotal country in the EU, the continent’s prosperity is closely associated with Germany, and thus deepening China–Germany and China-EU cooperation will serve the interests of both sides and beyond.

During their meeting, Xi stressed that China is ready to work with Germany to build a future-oriented all-round strategic partnership and push for new progress in China–Germany and China-EU relations.

China and Germany should respect each other, accommodate each other’s core interests, adhere to dialogue and consultation, and jointly resist the interference of camp confrontation, Xi said.

China is ready to strengthen coordination and cooperation with Germany and the EU in international affairs and jointly find solutions to global issues such as climate change, biodiversity protection and food security, said the president.

Scholz said that the world needs a multi-polar pattern and the role and influence of emerging countries should be taken seriously. 

Germany opposes camp confrontation, he stressed.

Meanwhile, the two leaders also exchanged views on the crisis in Ukraine. China supports Germany and the EU in playing an important role in promoting peace talks and building a balanced, effective and sustainable European security framework, Xi said.

“This is a critical moment for both Germany and China. Their relationship may not be based on shared political values, but on reciprocal interests, on the common fight against climate change and the strong willingness to build a multilateral world,” said Song Xin, former political adviser at the European Parliament, in an article published on CGTN.

Liu Lirong, an associate professor at the Institute of International Studies of Fudan University also told CGTN that China–Germany cooperation not only benefits the EU but also the world.

“China is the second largest economy in the world, and Germany is the largest economy in the EU. Chinese-German cooperation is of great significance in addressing many global challenges such as climate change, the COVID-19 pandemic and global food security,” Liu said.

China–Germany cooperation shows huge potential 

The German chancellor’s visit coincides with the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Germany.

Over the past 50 years, China–Germany practical cooperation has deepened, and bilateral trade has grown by nearly a thousand-fold, Xi said, adding that the two sides should continue to make the “pie” of common interests bigger. 

In this regard, he highlighted revitalizing cooperation in new areas such as new energy, artificial intelligence and digitalization while expanding the potential of cooperation in traditional areas.

Scholz said that China is an important economic and trade partner of Germany and Europe, and his country is ready to deepen economic and trade cooperation with China.

Germany firmly supports trade liberalization and economic globalization and opposes “decoupling”, he stressed.

China was Germany’s most important trading partner in 2021 for the sixth consecutive year. The trade volume between them has mushroomed to more than $250 billion in 2021 from less than $300 million at the very beginning of diplomatic relations.

In the first nine months of this year, foreign direct investment into the Chinese mainland expanded 15.6 percent year on year to 1.00376 trillion yuan. In U.S. dollar terms, the inflow went up 18.9 percent year on year to $155.3 billion, data from China’s Ministry of Commerce showed.

(Cover: Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, November 4, 2022. /Xinhua)

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-11-04/Xi-meets-German-Chancellor-Olaf-Scholz-1eGlonnwv1S/index.html

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CGTN: How does China set tone for future of “One Country, Two Systems”?

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BEIJING, Oct. 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — The report delivered by Xi Jinping on Sunday at the opening of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in Beijing came at a pivotal point with China embarking on a new journey to build a modern socialist country in all respects.

Unveiling the blueprint for building a modern socialist China in all respects, Xi devoted an entire division of his report to highlighting the importance of “One Country, Two Systems.”

“This policy must be adhered to over the long term,” he vowed, eliminating doubts and misunderstandings about the future of “One Country, Two Systems.”

‘Best institutional arrangement’

The past decade has witnessed historic progress and changes in China’s drive to materialize the vision of “One Country, Two Systems” in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) and the Macao Special Administrative Region.

The SARs’ legal systems and enforcement mechanisms for safeguarding national security have been established. The law on safeguarding national security in the HKSAR was enacted, while the region’s electoral system was also refined. Macao also started proceedings to amend its law on safeguarding national security.

In his report, Xi applauded “One Country, Two Systems” as great innovation of socialism with Chinese characteristics. “It has proven to be the best institutional arrangement for ensuring sustained prosperity and stability in Hong Kong and Macao after their return to the motherland.”

He affirmed the principle of “the people of Hong Kong administering Hong Kong and the people of Macao administering Macao” and a high level of autonomy for the two SARs.

Stressing Xi’s report served as a guideline for future actions of the SARs, John Lee, chief executive of the HKSAR, said he was encouraged by the report’s rich content on “One Country, Two Systems,” Hong Kong and Macao affairs as it reveals the great importance that the central government attaches to work related to the SARs and “One Country, Two Systems.”

Lee said the country has always been the strongest backing for the HKSAR in the past five years when the city has gone through the most severe test since its return to the motherland.

Chief Executive of the Macao SAR Ho Iat Seng also hailed that Xi’s report has given a clear direction to Macao for the successful practice of “One Country, Two Systems.”

He noted the report “illustrated that the central government places great importance in, and is cordial regarding its care for ‘One Country, Two Systems,'” and greatly bolstered Macao residents’ confidence in the city’s development.

Integrating into national development

In his report, Xi pledged to help the two regions resolve the deep-rooted and conflictual problems encountered in the course of their development, stressing efforts will be made to support Hong Kong and Macao in better integrating themselves into national overall development.

A key step for advancing “One Country, Two Systems” as well as a vital entry point for the two SARs to integrate themselves into the country’s overall development has been the development plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), which was planned and advanced by Xi himself.

The GBA is comprised of the two SARs, and nine cities in neighboring Guangdong Province. The total area is around 56,000 square kilometers, and covers around 6 percent of the Chinese population.

Over the past years, the GBA has swiftly turned plans into actions. A one-hour living circle has been basically formed within the GBA with the construction and operation of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, and other cross-river channels connecting the Pearl (Zhujiang) River estuary’s eastern and western banks. The total mileage of rail lines in service in the GBA has reached nearly 2,500 kilometers.

In 2021, the number of GBA companies on the Fortune Global 500 list amounted to 25, compared with 17 in 2017, which also surpassed the New York Bay Area for the first time.

The GBA’s GDP hit 12.6 trillion yuan ($1.97 trillion) last year, 2.4 trillion yuan more than in 2017. With less than 1 percent of the country’s land mass, the GBA created 12 percent of the national GDP.

Zhao Chenxin, deputy head of the National Development and Reform Commission, on Monday told a news conference on the sidelines of the ongoing 20th CPC National Congress that China will ramp up efforts to make the GBA an exemplary model for high-quality development, focusing on promoting technological innovation, boosting coordinated industrial development, and improving people’s livelihoods.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-10-21/How-does-China-set-tone-for-future-of-One-Country-Two-Systems–1ejG7iY1ne8/index.html

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CGTN: China to continue green transition toward carbon peak and neutrality

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BEIJING, Oct. 22, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — China will actively implement its policies to work toward the goals of reaching peak carbon emissions by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2060, Vice Minister of Ecology and Environment Zhai Qing said Friday.

China made the pledges at the United Nations General Assembly in 2020.

“Climate change is a prominent global challenge and a matter of common interest for the international community. General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized that addressing climate change is not something others ask us to do, but something we want to do,” Zhai said at a press conference on the sidelines of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC).

“As the world’s largest developing country, China will make the world’s biggest cut in carbon emission intensity, and move from carbon peak to carbon neutrality in the shortest time in history, which fully demonstrates the country’s sense of responsibility as a big country,” he noted.

To achieve the goals, China will accelerate the low-carbon transition in key areas and vigorously push the synergy of pollution reduction and carbon cut, Zhai said.

The country will also advance the national carbon market in a steady and orderly manner, speed up the research, promotion and application of low-carbon technologies, and promote low-carbon production and green lifestyle, he added.

Significant progress in green transition

China has made significant progress in low-carbon transition.

In the past decade, the country has maintained an average economic growth rate of 6.6 percent with an average annual energy consumption growth rate of only three percent, according to Zhai.

In 2020, China’s carbon emission intensity decreased by 48.4 percent compared with that in 2005, exceeding the target it had pledged to the international community, he pointed out.

In 2021, the carbon dioxide emissions per unit of GDP decreased by 34.4 percent compared with that in 2012.

In the same year, the share of coal use in its primary energy mix dropped to 56 percent from 68.5 percent in 2012 and 72.4 percent in 2005. Meanwhile, the proportion of non-fossil energy in its total energy consumption reached 16.6 percent. 

In 2021, China’s installed capacity of renewable energy exceeded 1 billion kilowatts, with that of wind, solar, hydra and biomass energy all ranking the first in the world.

The country also witnessed the largest increase in forest resources and the largest area of afforestation in the world, leading the global greening effort, Zhai said.

China alone accounted for 25 percent of the global net increase in leaf area with only 6.6 percent of global vegetated area, according to a Boston University study tracking NASA satellites from 2000 to 2017, which was published in Nature Sustainability in 2019.

In addition, the country launched the world’s largest carbon market in terms of the amount of greenhouse gas emissions it covered, effectively giving play to the role of the market mechanism in controlling greenhouse gas emissions and promoting low-carbon transition.

Actively contributing to global climate governance

China has also been actively contributing to global climate governance, Zhai noted.

China upholds multilateralism and the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities, he said, adding that the country has promoted the signature, entry into force, as well as the implementation of the Paris Agreement.

The country has taken an active part in South-South cooperation on climate change. It has done its best to help other developing countries, especially small island countries, African countries, and the least-developed countries, to improve their climate response capacity to reduce the adverse impacts of climate change, said Zhai.

Besides, positive progress has been made in promoting the green development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Zhai said. Proposed by China in 2013, the BRI envisions trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient Silk Road routes.

China established an international coalition for the green development of the Belt and Road in 2019, which has worked to strengthen policy dialogues and joint research, and support the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, he said.

The coalition currently has more than 150 partners from over 40 countries.

Efforts have been made to improve the innovation and exchanges of green technologies and cultivate talent in environmental management.

“We have trained about 3,000 environmental management personnel, experts and scholars from more than 120 countries, building consensus and synergy for green development,” Zhai said.

Heading forward, China will work with all parties to actively participate in the global governance of climate change. It will promote a fair and rational global climate governance system for win-win results, continue to deepen South-South cooperation on climate change, and contribute China’s strength, wisdom and solutions to global climate change response, he said.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-10-21/China-to-continue-green-transition-toward-carbon-peak-and-neutrality-1ejn24Q034Y/index.html

PR Newswire

CGTN: China welcomes foreign firms to share the dividends of its further development

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BEIJING, Oct. 18, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — China welcomes companies from all over the world to invest in the country and continue to share its development dividends as the Chinese economy has shifted from high-speed growth to high-quality development, a senior official from the country’s top economic planner said on Monday.

“China’s door will open wider,” said Zhao Chenxin, vice chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and a member of the commission’s CPC leadership group, at a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the country’s most important political event this year.

The dual-circulation development pattern, where internal and external markets can reinforce each other and with the domestic market as the mainstay, does not mean that China wants to scale back from opening up or even to pursue a self-sufficient economy, Zhao clarified.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed over and again that the new development pattern is an open dual circulation involving both domestic and foreign markets, instead of a closed domestic loop.

The Chinese economy has long been deeply integrated with the global economy, Zhao said, adding that the domestic and foreign markets are interdependent and mutually reinforcing. 

China to further encourage foreign investment

China will further step up efforts to encourage foreign investment, Zhao said, adding the country will release and implement the 2022 version of the Catalogue of Encouraged Industries for Foreign Investment, which will further expand the scope of encouraged industries for foreign investment.

China’s economy has shifted from high-speed growth to high-quality development, and the country is also facing new situation for attracting foreign investment, he noted.

The country will increase policy support for foreign investment in such areas as advanced manufacturing, higher-quality services, high-tech, energy conservation and environmental protection, he said.

There will also be policy support to foreign investment in China’s less developed central, western and northeastern regions, according to Zhao.

Besides, the country will launch the sixth batch of major foreign-funded projects, and help them solve the difficulties in a timely manner in the process of investment, production and operation, so as to ensure the smooth implementation of the projects.

In addition, China will further optimize services for foreign-funded enterprises, and provide more convenience for international investment, exchanges and cooperation on the premise of preventing and controlling the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the first eight months this year, foreign direct investment (FDI) into the Chinese mainland, in actual use, increased 16.4 percent year on year to 892.74 billion yuan ($127.39 billion), against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, complicated international situation and weak cross-border investment, Zhao said.

Specifically, the high-tech industries saw FDI inflow surge by 33.6 percent from a year earlier, he noted.

FDI flowing into the country’s western region reported a year-on-year increase of 43 percent, followed by 27.6 percent in the central region and 14.3 percent in the eastern region.

“Generally speaking, multinational companies are confident in investing in China and optimistic about the Chinese market in the long term,” he said.

China will promote higher-level opening-up to the outside world, intensify policy efforts to attract foreign investment, and give better play to the positive role of foreign investment in promoting the country’s high-quality development, he said. 

A rebounding economy with huge opportunities

China’s economy showed a significant rebound in the third quarter, Zhao said.

“Consumer prices have risen modestly, in sharp contrast to the high global inflation, and the employment remained generally stable.”

He underscored that China’s economy has been recovering and resuming its growth momentum despite some fluctuations caused by the unexpected factors this year, such as the external environment, the pandemic and extreme weather.

A slew of policies has been rolled out to shore up the economy, and major economic indicators of the industries, services, investment and consumption are all recovering, according to Zhao.

The country’s economy still faces multiple headwinds. But facing the impact of the unexpected factors, China’s economy has stabilized and rebounded in a relatively short period of time, showing strong resilience and huge potential, Zhao pointed out.

China, with a population of over 1.4 billion, has the world’s largest middle-income class and the advantage of being a super-large market, he noted.

The country’s huge market, advanced infrastructure, industrial systems and supply chains have all laid a solid foundation and provided opportunities for various companies to develop. 

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-10-17/China-welcomes-foreign-firms-to-share-the-dividends-of-its-development-1ectGQhMSl2/index.html

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Global Times: President Xi’s trip to Central Asia has global significance

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BEIJING, Sept. 16, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech on Friday at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, emphasizing the need to follow the guidance of the Shanghai Spirit as we forge ahead. President Xi pointed out that under new conditions, the SCO, as an important constructive force in international and regional affairs, should keep itself well-positioned in the face of changing international dynamics, ride on the trend of the times, strengthen solidarity and cooperation and build a closer SCO community with a shared future. The speech received an enthusiastic reaction and resonance at the scene of the meeting, becoming one of the most closely watched and essential parts of the SCO summit.

At the summit, leaders of the SCO member states signed the Samarkand Declaration, expressing their unanimous attitude of ruling out bloc, ideologically charged, and confrontational approaches to current international and regional development issues, and reaffirming the importance of promoting cooperation in the development of international relations of a new kind in the spirit of mutual respect, equality and mutually beneficial cooperation, as well as in building a community with a shared future for mankind. In this process, China’s role is evident to all. The Global Development Initiative (GDI) and Global Security Initiative (GSI) put forward by the Chinese leader were a response to the concerns of regional countries and have become an increasingly broad and firm consensus in the international community.

In just three days from Wednesday to Friday, in addition to attending the SCO summit, President Xi also paid state visits to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, met with leaders of a number of countries including Russia, and participated in the sixth meeting of heads of state of China, Russia and Mongolia. He also facilitated several major cooperation projects and signed a series of agreements on several projects and bilateral cooperation documents. This most significant diplomatic event for the Chinese head of state on the eve of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China was a complete success.

The latest head-of-state diplomacy brought the destinies of China and Central Asia closer together. In 2013, during his visit to Central Asia, President Xi for the first time proposed the initiative to jointly build the Silk Road Economic Belt. Nine years later, as he revisited the region, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has already yielded fruitful results in Central Asia: The “SCO Express Line” of the “Qilu” Eurasian freight train was launched; the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor was accelerated, and the longest tunnel in Central Asia on the Angren-Pap railway line in Uzbekistan opened. These are visible and tangible achievements.

The initiative put forward by China, with the joint efforts of many participating countries, has been effectively transformed into the improvement of infrastructure along the BRI and the expansion and deepening of bilateral and multilateral mutually beneficial cooperation, bringing benefits to a large number of ordinary people. This is a real case of building a community with a shared future for mankind. The warm welcome the Central Asian countries gave to President Xi reflects the high recognition of China’s diplomacy and the sincere expectation for the further development of relations with China.

Central Asia, with its unbalanced development, weak foundation, and complex ethnic and religious relations, is a region at high risk of “color revolutions” and social and political unrest. In the last few years, China has brought hopeful changes to this region, and the SCO has also, to a certain extent, prevented the contradictions and differences from evolving into division and confrontation. Under the framework of the SCO, all countries have worked together to embark on a new path of “pursuing dialogue instead of confrontation, and building partnerships instead of alliances.” They have firmly supported each other on issues concerning each other’s core interests and major concerns, injecting positivity and creating vitality in maintaining peace and development in the Eurasian continent.

Needless to say, peace and development are still the themes of the times, but it also encounters severe challenges. The world is neither peaceful nor tranquil. No matter where the Chinese leader goes, the emphasis is on a community with a shared future for mankind, the GDI, the GSI, and the BRI. He focuses on development and cooperation, underlining common values, interests, development and security. This represents a new direction, concept, and form of civilization in a world of change and disorder. This is not only something China talks about, but it also has been taking action in this regard, and it is one of the staunchest practitioners of multilateralism. It is hard to imagine what the world would be like without the perseverance of a responsible major country like China for peace and development.

The more turbulent the world is, the more it needs the strength to stabilize people’s hearts. Amid major changes unseen in a century in which “gray rhinos” and “black swans” are emerging in an endless stream, China itself represents a kind of stability. Under the guidance of the head-of-state diplomacy, it continues to weather storms. President Xi’s trip to Central Asia has global significance. It brings confidence and hope to the region amid crises and changes, and will continue to pool forces to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

Global Times: https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202209/1275444.shtml

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CGTN: Xi stresses strengthening sense of community for Chinese nation

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BEIJING, July 15, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — As the lyrics of a popular folk song in China go, “the brothers and sisters from the 56 ethnic groups belong to the same family.”

China is home to 56 ethnic groups, with the majority Han making up around 91.5 percent of the country’s population, according to 2021 data. Northwest China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has been a multi-ethnic region since ancient times and is home to over 45 ethnic groups.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, stressed promoting ethnic unity and progress and consolidating the sense of community for the Chinese nation during his visit to Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from Tuesday afternoon to Wednesday morning.

Protecting cultures of various ethnic groups

The extensive and profound Chinese civilization is composed of outstanding cultures of various ethnic groups, said Xi when watching a show called “Manas” from the Kirgiz ethnic minority at the Museum of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

The performances have been inscribed as an intangible cultural heritage.

A cultural heritage like “Manas” is a treasure of both the Kirgizs and the Chinese nation, he said, urging better preservation and promotion efforts.

All ethnic groups in Xinjiang have items on the national and autonomous regional representative lists of intangible cultural heritage, and 133 cultural heritage sites are under state protection, according to a white paper released by the country’s State Council Information Office last year.

The cultural traditions of all ethnic groups in Xinjiang are well protected, said the paper, giving examples such as folk cultural events, such as the Han Lantern Festival, the Uygur Meshrep, the Kazak Aytes, the Kirgiz Kobuz Ballad Singing Fair, the Mongolian Nadam Fair, and the Hui Hua’er Folk Song Festival, which are still widely celebrated.

Improving livelihood of all ethnic groups

While visiting the Guyuanxiang residential community in the Tianshan District on Wednesday morning, Xi urged local officials to improve community services to benefit residents of all ethnic groups.

The president also traveled on Wednesday afternoon to Shihezi City, where he inspected officials and staff workers at the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), a group whose status he called “irreplaceable.”

As an important component of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, the XPCC is a special social organization that handles its own administrative and judicial affairs within the reclamation areas under its administration, in accordance with the laws and regulations of the state and the region. It assumes the responsibilities of cultivating and guarding the border areas.

Speaking to XPCC officials and staff workers, Xi said he was pleased about the great progress made by the XPCC in reform and development, and XPCC officials and staff workers themselves should also be proud.

He also learned about the history of the XPCC in cultivating and guarding the frontier areas, as well as the Corps’ efforts in strengthening its primary-level organizations, developing specialty agriculture, and promoting the integrated development of the Corps and local areas.

Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region has seen continuous economic development with businesses thriving. Xinjiang registered a 7-percent GDP growth in 2021, totaling 1.6 trillion yuan (about $253.2 billion).

A total of 477,400 urban jobs were created in the region, reducing the surveyed urban unemployment rate by 1.1 percentage points to 2.2 percent, according to the Bureau of Statistics in the autonomous region.

Nurturing talent, coordinating COVID-19 response with economic and social development and advancing Belt and Road cooperation were also stressed by the president during the inspection tour.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-07-15/China-urges-better-preservation-efforts-for-ethnic-minority-cultures-1bGeb7a8uu4/index.html

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CGTN: Hong Kong, an East-West culture bridge

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BEIJING, July 1, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — Hong Kong is more than an international business and financial center – it is an open and diverse place that blends Chinese and Western cultures, and it has always been nurtured and nourished by Chinese culture.

As Hong Kong celebrates the 25th anniversary of its return to the motherland, Peng Liyuan, wife of Chinese President Xi Jinping, visited the Xiqu Centre in the city’s West Kowloon Cultural District on Thursday.

During the visit, she learned about the cultural district’s planning and latest developments, as well as its work in preserving and promoting Cantonese opera and traditional Chinese theater.

Peng arrived in Hong Kong by train with Xi in the afternoon to attend the meeting celebrating the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China and the inaugural ceremony of the sixth-term government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) on July 1.

From Xiqu to Chinese cultural heritage

Stretching across 40 hectares of reclaimed land, the West Kowloon Cultural District is one of the largest cultural projects in the world, blending art, education, open space and entertainment facilities.

Xiqu Centre, one of the district’s first major cultural facilities, offers the opportunity to “explore and learn about Chinese cultural heritage and the different regional forms of xiqu,” said its website.

During the visit, Peng watched a rehearsal of Cantonese Opera excerpts by the Tea House Rising Stars Troupe at its Tea House and spoke to the performers.

Thanks to the central government’s support, Cantonese Opera was successfully inscribed onto the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s representative list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity in 2009 as a world intangible cultural heritage item.

The HKSAR government has been in collaboration with the community in the protection, transmission and promotion of Cantonese Opera and other intangible cultural heritage items.

A platform facilitating Chinese and Western cultural exchanges

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to the motherland, various activities featuring traditional Chinese culture have been held, such as Chinese Kung Fu (Chinese martial arts) performance and the Hanfu (Chinese traditional costume) fashion show.

President Xi said on June 29, 2017, when visiting Hong Kong that he hoped the HKSAR can carry forward its traditional culture, play its role as a platform facilitating Chinese and Western cultural exchanges, and promote cultural exchanges and cooperation with the mainland.

The HKSAR is encouraged to develop into an international hub for cultural exchanges in the country’s 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025).

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-07-01/Hong-Kong-an-East-West-culture-bridge-1bjFkS8hn7W/index.html

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CCTV+: CGTN documentary casts light on tragedy behind one million COVID deaths reported in U.S.

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BEIJING, May 29, 2022 /PRNewswire/ — A documentary aired on China Global Television Network (CGTN) on Saturday cast a light on the United States’ failure to tame the COVID-19 outbreak as the country reached the grim milestone of one million deaths from the virus.

Titled “A milestone to mourn: America’s one million COVID deaths”, the documentary unveils the internal disparities of the world’s top economy as ordinary people suffer and perish with little protection, while its health care industry has kept raking in enormous profits amid the pandemic.

The five-part documentary highlighted the politics, mistakes, profiteers and victims of the epidemic, while also examining the aftermath of the outbreak.

PART ONE: POLITICS – “That one may smile and smile and be a villain.”

PART TWO: MISTAKES – “What’s done cannot be undone.”

PART THREE: PROFITEERS – “Fair is foul, and foul is fair.”

PART FOUR: VICTIMS – “Double, double toil and trouble.”

PART FIVE: AFTERMATH – “Can the devil speak true?”

Link: https://youtu.be/FOQ4jMGxKfk

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China.org.cn: Hong Kong’s fight against COVID-19: a test for “one country, two systems”

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BEIJING, March 4, 2022 — A news report from China.org.cn on Hong Kong’s COVID-19 pandemic situation:

 

Hong Kong has been taken aback by the 5th onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and it’s spreading fast. Hong Kong is a metropolis that runs under the "one country, two systems" principle, serving as a bridge that connects China with other parts of the world. Hong Kong is special in its own culture and its choice of pandemic prevention protocols, which set complex roadblocks to achieving a "dynamic zero-COVID" outcome. Meanwhile, as proved repeatedly in the Chinese Mainland, eliminating new COVID-19 cases dynamically has been an effective scheme, and a scientific and systematic method for guaranteeing life and health to the greatest extent.

The spread of and response to the outbreak in Hong Kong demonstrate objective differences from that in the Chinese mainland. First, Hong Kong is a densely populated city with relatively small dwelling space. The city thrives on mobility, especially people-to-people exchanges with other parts of the world, making it prone to imported cases and difficult to prevent transmissions. Secondly, debates over Hong Kong’s decision between "dynamic zero-COVID" and "co-existence with the virus" have caused a sway in the city’s response measures. All these factors led to loopholes and risks in Hong Kong’s overall pandemic prevention and control system. These factors, both internal and external, have compromised Hong Kong’s ability to implement comprehensive and effective measures.

Hong Kong’s fight against the pandemic is special indeed, given the "two systems" context. But the pandemic is threatening the lives and health of every Hong Kong resident, and the Chinese government will not let that continue. In the previous four waves, the Chinese government has answered to Hong Kong’s needs and aided it in proper ways. This time, however, the outbreak has been so fierce that Hong Kong has fallen short in medical capacity. People in Hong Kong are faced with severe threats, leading to decisive responses from the Chinese government: experts, medical teams and equipment have been dispatched to support Hong Kong; with resources mobilized from the Chinese mainland, several Fangcang hospitals are also being built. Hong Kong has also cooperated: Under the Basic Law of Hong Kong Administrative Region (HKSAR), the upcoming election for Hong Kong’s chief executive was postponed, staff from the Chinese mainland are exempted from licensing requirements, and collaborative mechanisms for joint responses have also been instituted among the HKSAR government, the Chinese central government and other relevant local governments. Such mutual trust, unwavering assistance and concerted efforts under the "one country, two systems" principle represent a swift combat against the new surge.

Whenever Hong Kong is in need, its motherland is there to respond. This is the essence of the "one country, two systems" principle, which has been repeatedly proven since Hong Kong’s return to China. Seeing into the past, when the 1997 Asian Financial crisis, the 2008 global financial crisis and the 2019 riots hit, the Chinese government took positive actions in back Hong Kong based on the Constitution and the Basic Law of HKSAR. Such efforts were made out of obligation, good faith and bonds among compatriots, which stand for the very rationale behind the insistence on the "one country, two systems" principle and ensuring Hong Kong’s prosperity. Lives matter above all else, and that makes standing up to the pandemic all the more paramount. Hong Kong’s battle against COVID-19 will once more become a test for the "one country, two systems" principle, and critical juncture for "patriots governing Hong Kong".

China Mosaic

http://www.china.org.cn/video/node_7230027.htm

Hong Kong’s fight against COVID-19: a test for "one country, two systems"

http://www.china.org.cn/video/2022-03/03/content_78084164.htm

PR Newswire

CGTN: China calls on Russia, Ukraine to solve issue through negotiation

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BEIJING, Feb. 26, 2022 — The situation in eastern Ukraine has recently undergone rapid changes, causing great concern in the international community. There is a complex historical context on the Ukraine issue and the current situation is the result of the interplay of many complicated factors.

Chinese President Xi Jinping Friday spoke with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, on the phone, exchanging views on the situation in Ukraine.

The Chinese president made it clear that the Chinese side supports the Russian side in solving the issue through negotiation with the Ukrainian side.

China’s consistent stance on the Ukraine issue

During Friday’s phone conversation, Xi told Putin that China determines its position concerning the Ukrainian issue on its own merits.

Xi noted China has long held the basic position of respecting all countries’ sovereignty and territorial integrity, and abiding by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

China has recently reiterated its call for all parties involving in the Ukraine issue to exercise restraint to avoid further escalation of tensions and opposed actions that hype up war.

On regional hotspot issues, as Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying pointed out, China is always committed to promoting peace and negotiation and playing a constructive role in seeking a peaceful resolution of these issues.

Rejecting the Cold War mindset

"It is important to reject the Cold War mentality, take seriously and respect the reasonable security concerns of all countries and reach a balanced, effective and sustainable European security mechanism through negotiation," said Xi on Friday.

He added China is prepared to work with other members of the international community to promote common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and to resolutely safeguard the UN-centered international system and the international order underpinned by international law.

Xi stressed, in a telephone conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron on February 16, that relevant parties should stick to the general direction of political settlement, make full use of multilateral platforms and seek a comprehensive settlement of the Ukraine issue through dialogue and consultation.

Putin expressed Russia’s willingness to have high-level negotiation with Ukraine when talking with Xi. The Kremlin later also announced that Moscow is ready to send a delegation to Belarus’ capital Minsk for talks with Ukraine.

https://news.cgtn.com/news/2022-02-25/China-calls-on-Russia-Ukraine-to-solve-issue-through-negotiation-17WIP1jPxpS/index.html