President Xi Jinping has congratulated President-Elect of the US Donald Trump, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning at a regular press conference on Thursday.

Mao said President Xi Jinping pointed out that history tells us that both China and the US stand to gain from cooperation and lose from confrontation. A China-US relationship with stable, healthy and sus-tainable development serves the common interests of the two countries and meets the expectations of the international community, Mao added.

Hope the two sides will work in the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, to enhance dialogue and communication, properly manage differences and expand mu-tually beneficial cooperation, and to find the right way for China and the US to get along with each other in the new era to the benefit of the two countries and the world, Mao said.

According to the Xinhua News Agency, President Xi on Thursday extended congratulations to Donald Trump on his election as president of the United States, urging the two countries to find the right way to get along in the new era.

Xi called for the two countries to strengthen dialogue and communication, properly manage differences, and expand mutually beneficial cooperation, Xinhua reported.

On Wednesday, a spokesperson for Chinese Foreign Ministry said that China respects the choice of the American people and congratulates Mr. Trump on being elected as president of the US.

Customs officers in Luohu Port, Shenzhen city, South China's Guangdong Province, recently dealt with a marijuana smuggling case, intercepting 4.82 grams of the drug concealed in a passenger's shoe insoles.

The incident occurred around 7 pm when the customs officers noticed a traveler behaving nervously and displaying unusual behavior, raising suspicion that the individual might be carrying contraband.

During a thorough search, officers found a transparent plastic bag under the passenger's shoe insole containing a plant-like substance with a distinct odor. Preliminary testing confirmed that the substance was marijuana. The suspect has been detained, and the case is under further investigation.

This case serves as a reminder that Chinese customs maintain high alertness in the fight against smuggling, especially drug trafficking, and that attempts to smuggle illegal substances are likely to face detection and legal prosecution.

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The Chinese Foreign Ministry on Monday expressed opposition to violating the sovereignty and undermining the security of other countries, as well as the abusing of force, when asked to comment on the recent situation in the Middle East, including Israel's attack on Iran on Saturday. 

The tensions in the Middle East are running high. Relevant parties need to refrain from further increasing the overall security risks in the region, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said at a routine press conference, noting that the international community, especially major countries with influence, should take concrete actions to play a constructive role and create necessary conditions for the deescalation of regional tensions.

Iran requested a UN Security Council meeting, claiming that Israel violated international law with its direct strikes against it early Saturday, CNN reported.

According to Islamic Republic News Agency, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that the Islamic Republic does not seek war, but will defend the rights of its people and will give a proportionate response to the latest Israeli aggression against the country.

Iran has sent a signal to the international community that it does not seek war and does not wish to become the focal point of conflicts in the Middle East, Sun Degang, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Fudan University, told the Global Times on Monday.

However, Iran has also reserved the right to retaliate against Israel, indicating that tensions between the two countries persist, but a large-scale war may be avoided, Sun said.

Sun noted that the US, Israel, and Iran have a tacit understanding that they do not wish for a full-scale war, and neither are they prepared for one. "The hardline stances they display are intended for domestic consumption," Sun said.

Echoing Sun, Zhu Weilie, distinguished professor of the Middle East Studies Institute of the Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Monday that a regional war is a scenario that the US, as well as the regional countries and the global community, wish to avoid. "Should a regional conflict erupt at this time, it would be detrimental not only for the nations involved but also for the world as a whole," Zhu said.

According to Reuters, the Swiss UN mission said the Security Council meeting scheduled on Monday had been requested by Iran with the support of Algeria, China and Russia. 

The convening of the Security Council is timely, and what may be a matter of urgency is to work to achieve a prolonged ceasefire period, and allow humanitarian supplies to enter the region, Zhu said.

"If the Security Council does not press the pause button on the regional situation now, the spillover of ongoing conflicts and mutual misjudgments could occur at any time," Sun said, noting that the international community is in consensus in hoping to use the UN platform to promote a ceasefire and cessation of hostilities in the region.

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