BEIJING: Seventy-five years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, a milestone document in the history of human rights, was published, global human rights and development are still beset with formidable challenges of persistent issues such as hunger, war, environmental pollution, and a widening development gap. Over the past decade, the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has become a …

BEIJING: The speech by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the 30th APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting has been published. Xi delivered the speech, titled “Staying True to APEC Founding Mission and Enhancing Unity and Cooperation to Jointly Promote High-Quality Growth in the Asia-Pacific,” in San Francisco on Nov. 17 local time. The booklet also includes the written speech of Xi at …

KUNMING: The 5th World Media Summit (WMS), co-hosted by Xinhua News Agency and the provincial governments of Guangdong and Yunnan, runs from Dec. 2 to 8 in the cities of Guangzhou and Kunming. The 5th WMS has gathered over 450 participants from 101 countries and regions, including representatives of 197 mainstream media outlets, think tanks, government agencies and diplomatic missions …

SANYA: The fifth Belt and Road Women’s Forum, focusing on women’s development and cultural exchanges, opened Thursday in Sanya, south China’s Hainan Province. Themed “She Power: Jointly Building and Sharing a Beautiful Life,” the forum attracted around 400 participants, including diplomatic envoys in China and business representatives. It runs through Friday. The event includes a youth leadership forum and themed …

BANGKOK: China’s battery maker Gotion High-tech on Thursday launched its first battery product in Thailand, as the workers tightened the last screws and the battery pack rolled off the assembly line. Located in Siam Eastern Industrial Park in Thailand’s Rayong Province, NV Gotion was jointly established by Gotion High-tech and Nuovo Plus, a new energy company belonging to the Thai …

VIENTIANE: Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone said here on Thursday that Laos attaches great importance to the development of news, culture and tourism, and hopes to strengthen cooperation with China in these sectors to attract more Chinese tourists. The second Belt and Road Forum for Laos-China Cooperation, jointly organized by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism of Laos, Xinhua …

BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Thursday met with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sok Chenda Sophea, who is here for the eighth Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. Noting the two countries took the lead in signing the new version of the action plan for building a community with a shared future, Wang said this has …

MOSCOW: Russia on Thursday set March 17 as the date for a presidential election which is expected to be another shoo-in for Vladimir Putin, who has silenced opposition during over two decades in power. In a meeting broadcast live on Russian television, the upper house of parliament unanimously approved the date of the vote. The decision “practically kicks off the …

Karachi Kings, the winners of Pakistan Super League’s (PSL) season five, have made a major trade with Multan Sultans ahead of the draft on December 13. In this trade, Pakistan’s current Test captain, Shan Masood, will join the Karachi Kings’ squad. In exchange, Karachi Kings bid farewell to left-arm wrist spinner Faisal Akram along with their first pick in the …

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan said Thursday it will first ascertain facts before issuing a comment on a report that claims that Afghanistan’s acting Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani possessed a Pakistani passport until recently. In her weekly press briefing, Foreign Office (FO) spokesperson Mumtaz Zahra Baloch said: “I have seen the report on the use of a Pakistani passport by the Afghan minister. …

Singer and songwriter Omer Nadeem has accused Indian singer Sonu Nigam of plagiarising his song ‘Aye Khuda’. In an Instagram post on December 4, Nadeem urged Nigam to acknowledge the original track. “If you’re going to pull this off, you could’ve done it with some finesse. Huge fan of Sonu Nigam, but let’s be real, this is light years away …

RAWALPINDI: Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) intends to demolish the iconic Roosevelt Hotel in New York City to pave the way for the construction of a new hotel through a joint venture, a representative of the Aviation Division informed the Senate Standing Committee on Aviation on Wednesday. The PIA owns 37 buildings across the globe, of which 29 are located in …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Thursday decided to hear PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif’s appeal against his conviction in the Al-Azizia reference on merit. This means that the court will be hearing the actual substance of the case which includes the charge, the defense, the weight of evidence, etc., as opposed to matters of procedure or jurisdiction. Analysts said it …

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Thursday that he was the only politician in the country whose “hands were clean”. “There is no politician in any other political party whose hands are clean. Their politics [revolve around] filling their pockets. I am the only politician who has been doing politics since the age of 19, since 2007 […] I …

Ahead of the upcoming general elections scheduled for February 8, former prime minister Imran Khan on Thursday filed a petition in the Lahore High Court (LHC) challenging the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) decision to disqualify him for five years. On August 8, the ECP had disqualified Imran for five years following his conviction in the Toshakhana case for concealing …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday sought a report from the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) director general, the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA), and other relevant authorities on how an audio of an alleged conversation between Imran Khan’s wife, Bushra Bibi, and her lawyer, Latif Khosa, was leaked online. The court’s directives, which also called for reports from the Pakistan Telecommunication …

BEIJING: The China Foundation for Human Rights Development and New China Research (NCR), Xinhua’s think tank, issued a report on Thursday titled “For a Better World — Looking at the Past Decade of Jointly Pursuing the Belt and Road Initiative from a Human Rights Perspective.” The report explores the relationship between the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the development …

The ongoing COP28 has once again highlighted the strategic significance of green energies in the world. Currently, Indonesia is pursuing massive green transition to decarbonize while achieving economic resilience, which requires significant foreign direct investments (FDIs). It has also started the concept of transition finance to secure the financial support required to implement long-term policies changes on the path to …

BEIJING: Qu Min, a former senior political advisor for northeast China’s Heilongjiang Province, has been expelled from the Communist Party of China (CPC) and dismissed from public office over serious violations of Party discipline and the law. The decision came following an investigation, which was conducted by the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision …

BEIJING: Chinese Vice President Han Zheng met with Luis Redondo, president of the National Congress of Honduras, in Beijing on Thursday. Han said that relations between China and Honduras have gotten off to a good start, showing broad prospects for development since the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries in March this year. China is ready to work …

BEIJING: China’s road logistics price index edged down in the week of Nov. 27 to Dec. 1, industry data showed. The index came in at 1,038.11 points over the period, dipping 0.02 percent from the previous week, according to a joint survey released by the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing and the Guangdong Lin’an Logistics Group. The full truckload …

BEIJING: Chinese President Xi Jinping’s special envoy Wu Weihua will attend the inauguration of incoming President of Argentina Javier Milei on Dec. 10, foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin announced on Thursday. Wu, vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, will travel to Buenos Aires to attend the ceremony at the invitation of the government of Argentina.

CAIRO: The Chinese Embassy in Egypt, in cooperation with the pro-government Egyptian political party of Homat Al Watan (the Protectors of the Nation), has donated school materials to students in need in Cairo. About 400 sets of school bags and stationery were handed over Tuesday to students at a donation ceremony held at the Al-Asmarat District’s service center in the …

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday asked the Security Council to act to avert a humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza, said his spokesman. In a rare move, Guterres wrote to the president of the Security Council to demand action, invoking Article 99 of the UN Charter for the first time since he became UN secretary-general in 2017. Article 99 …

LOS ANGELES: At least three people were killed in a shooting on the campus of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), on Wednesday, including the shooter, according to local police. The shooting happened near BEAM Hall on the campus of UNLV Wednesday morning. There is “no further threat” on campus, Sheriff of Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department (LVMPD) Kevin …

CHENGDU: A 2,400-meter-deep physics laboratory in southwest China’s Sichuan Province became operational on Thursday, making it the deepest and largest underground lab in the world. Scientists believe the laboratory provides a “clean” space for them to pursue the invisible substance known as dark matter. They said the extreme depth helps block most cosmic rays that mess with the observation. The …

TAIYUAN: With the onset of winter, flocks of whooper swans from Siberia migrate to China, with their habitats in several provinces boosting local tourism, attracting photographers and visitors eager to witness the seasonal spectacle. The Sanwan Wetland in the Yellow River basin, located in Pinglu County in north China’s Shanxi Province, is in a leeward location and has a mild …

BEIJING: China’s total goods imports and exports expanded 1.2 percent year on year in November, official data showed Thursday. Last month, the country’s foreign trade stood at 3.7 trillion yuan (about 519.84 billion U.S. dollars), according to the General Administration of Customs. Exports grew 1.7 percent year on year to 2.1 trillion yuan, while imports edged up 0.6 percent from …

BEIJING: China is willing to work with Singapore to grasp the nature of bilateral relations and make greater contributions to regional stability and prosperity, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said on Wednesday. Li made the remarks when meeting with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance of the Republic of Singapore Lawrence Wong in Beijing. Noting that leaders of the two …

BEIJING: Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Foreign Minister of Angola Tete Antonio in Beijing on Wednesday. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state, China-Angola relations have maintained a strong momentum of development with fruitful results in …

The PPP on Wednesday responded to JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s recent reservations about holding elections during what he described as a worsening security situation by suggesting that opposition to polls stemmed from a “fear of the public’s verdict”. PPP Secretary Information Faisal Kareem Kundi’s statement follows the JUI-F chief’s recent statement on the feasibility of holding elections amid a …

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday approved three projects totalling $658.8 million to help Pakistan achieve its goal of more inclusive and sustainable growth and development. The projects approved this week, will focus on improving domestic resource mobilisation; rehabilitating schools damaged by the devastating August 2022 floods; and enhancing agricultural productivity to improve food security, ADB said in a …

Prominent football legends like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar Jr, Salah and others get their own GTA characters as the excitement for the sixth instalment of Rockstar Games’ Grand Theft Auto series reaches new heights with the release of the latest trailer. Messi, coincidentally residing in the game’s setting, Miami, is portrayed as a brooding loner navigating the Magic City …

LAHORE: Caretaker government officials are refusing to disclose any information to back up their oft-repeated claim that Afghan nationals were involved in 14 out of 24 suicide bombings in Pakistan this year. On October 3, the interim interior minister Sarfraz Bugti revealed in a televised press conference that from January till October there have been 24 suicide bombings in Pakistan. …

The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Wednesday turned down former Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan’s plea to withdraw his appeal challenging the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) verdict on his disqualification in the Toshakhana case. The former prime minister had filed an appeal against the electoral body’s verdict on October 28, 2022, and later sought withdrawal on January 18, …

LAHORE: In a major political development, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) have decided to enter into seat adjustment ahead of the general elections slated to be held on February 8 next year. The breakthrough comes as PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif on Wednesday visited the residence of PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain in Lahore after a gap …

Pakistan on Wednesday called on the international community to take cognizance of increasing Islamophobia, hate speech, and hate crimes against Muslims in India on the 31st anniversary of the demolition of the Babri mosque. “Today is a sad reminder of the demolition of the historic ‘Babri Masjid’ in India. On this day, 31 years ago, a mob of Hindu zealots …

The Chinese Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has completed its first ten years during which it has become a “grand path” of common development, connecting unlimited “hearts and minds” around the globe due to which more than 152 countries have joined it so far. The BRI has also become “symbol” of economic globalization disseminating spirits of modernization, openness, qualitative industrial …

BEIJING: The world is undergoing accelerated changes unseen in a century, with uncertainties and unforeseen factors on the rise. Against this backdrop, world media leaders gathered in China to build consensus in addressing common challenges and boosting global confidence. Xinhua News Agency is the host of the 5th World Media Summit from Dec. 2 to 8 in the Chinese cities …

ABUJA: The Nigerian military launched an airstrike in the country’s northern state of Kaduna Sunday during an anti-terror operation, but it hit a residential area by mistake, killing at least 85 civilians and injuring 66 others, authorities confirmed Tuesday. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) “has received details from the local authorities that 85 dead bodies have so far been …