The Samaranch Cup Junior Tennis Challenger 2024 ASICS Tennis Junior Tour Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao was officially unveiled in China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region on May 11 and Macao Special Administrative Region on May 12. As an original competition of ASICS, the Tennis Junior Tour has received widespread attention and recognition since its launch in 2022 as it provides a professional competition platform and communication opportunities for young people who love tennis. This year, the competition is linked to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, gathering outstanding young tennis players from all over the country to swing for their dreams.

This year, the ASICS Tennis Junior Tour has been officially upgraded to a Class B event in China Tennis Junior Tour. This tour will compete over four rounds to select multiple outstanding young players, while the finals will be held in Shanghai in October. As the main organizer, ASICS places great emphasis on upgrading and building the entire event experience and has spared no effort to provide professional event platforms and high-quality participation services for domestic tennis youth for three consecutive years. In addition, this year's tour also specially invited Yang Weiguang, former head coach of the national team and chief of the coaches for the Tokyo Olympics, to serve as the coach of the Hong Kong Masters Training Camp, providing professional technical guidance to participating athletes. At the same time, ASICS-signed athlete Yang Zhaoxuan and Wang Kangyi have been invited to interact with young people on site to enhance their enthusiasm for competition.

At the opening ceremony, ASICS also officially launched the "Dream Voices" program, which will collect the sports dreams of participants during this year's competition and help more young people realize their dreams on the tennis court with brand's resources and equipment. Moreover, the Samaranch-ASICS Xiangyang Foundation also awarded special funds for youth tennis exchange to the Hong Kong, China Tennis Association and the Macau Tennis Association. The two sides will work together in the future to support the development and exchange of youth tennis in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. At the same time, the Hong Kong, China Tennis Association and the Macau Tennis Association also awarded ASICS the title of "Strategic Partner," injecting sustained momentum into the development of youth sports through joint efforts from multiple parties.

Tsuyoshi Nishiwaki, senior managing director of ASICS Greater China, said, "ASICS has always been focused on the sports and health development of Chinese youth, and hopes to inspire more young people's interest and love for tennis and sports through hosting such competitions, promoting their physical and mental health. In the future, ASICS will continue to increase investment in related competitions, provide more opportunities and platforms for young people, and inject more vitality into the vigorous development of the national health cause."

ASICS has always been based on the brand concept of "Sound Mind, Sound Body," and has helped promote the healthy development of Chinese youth by various means such as hosting high-quality sports events and collaborating with deep enterprise school cooperation. In March, ASICS officially launched the global campaign "Move your mind with ASICS" along with several running events, aiming to help the public strengthen their bodies and minds through exercise, encourage more people to enjoy a healthy lifestyle oriented by their hearts, and enjoy the motivation brought by sports.

In the future, ASICS will also promote the effective implementation of sports and education integration with higher quality event resources and more diverse cultural exchange activities, contribute brand strength to the construction of a sports powerhouse, and call on more people to participate in sports to "move their mind."

International financial institutions are increasingly upbeat on Chinese stocks, with the NASDAQ Golden Dragon China Index surging by 14.86 percent in the 10 trading days ended on Friday, the highest growth rate for a two-week period since January 2023. 

According to international financial giants including Morgan Stanley and Bridgewater Associates, the China market is a good place to diversify their investment portfolios and explore value, as international investors' interest in yuan-denominated assets is on the rise.

On Thursday, the index jumped by 6.01 percent, the highest daily increase since the end of July last year, data showed. Analysts said that an opportunity is emerging for medium- and long-term capital to flow into yuan assets, especially China's stock market.

Given the rollout of targeted policies to boost the high-quality development of the A-share market and the sustained recovery of China's economy, now is a good opportunity to invest in China's stock market and Chinese companies, Yang Delong, chief economist at Shenzhen-based First Seafront Fund, told the Global Times on Sunday.

He said the valuations of the A-share and Hong Kong stock markets are near record lows, and confidence and patience are needed to achieve long-term gains.

The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee Political Bureau meeting, held on April 30, vowed to front-load efforts to effectively put the established macro policies in place, and well implement a proactive fiscal policy and a prudent monetary policy. 

Those policies will further promote an economic recovery and boost the development of China's stock markets, Yang said.

Since the beginning of 2024, global asset management companies have expanded their investment portfolios in China, boosted by their growing confidence in Chinese assets. 

"Global funds are returning to China stocks," Bloomberg reported in March, citing Morgan Stanley analysts.

Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio posted on social media platform LinkedIn on April 1 saying that "[T]here is no such thing as a bad market; there is only bad decision making. I find the markets in China good for my type of decision making."

Recently, stocks in the Chinese mainland and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) staged a stunning rebound after the State Council, the country's cabinet, pledged measures to keep the stock market stable. 

The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index regained the 3,100 level at the end of April after diving to a multi-year low.

In the first quarter of this year, net inflows of northbound capital - overseas money flowing into China's A-share market through the HKSAR - reached 68.22 billion yuan ($9.65 billion), exceeding the total in 2023, the China Securities Journal reported, citing data from information provider Choice.

In April, the State Council released guidelines on strengthening regulation, forestalling risks and promoting high-quality development of the capital market. This was the third guideline document on the capital market from the State Council in two decades.

By strengthening supervision, and effectively preventing and defusing risks, the new guideline has made arrangements in areas including listings, transactions and the entry of long-term capital. This is expected to enhance fairness and efficiency in the A-share market and stimulate market vitality, Dong Shaopeng, a senior research fellow at the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China, told the Global Times.

The challenges faced by the A-share market are temporary and a bull market will eventually come, Dong said, noting that targeted policies and sound macroeconomic operations will inject new impetus into the capital market.

He said that more efforts are needed to strengthen regulations involving the major shareholders of listed companies, agencies, local governments and stock exchanges. In addition, diversified delisting channels are needed to protect the rights and interests of common investors during the whole process of delisting.

As the Hengqin-Macao multiple-entry visa policy took effect on Monday, Macao welcomed the first tour group from the Chinese mainland. The plan, launched by China's National Immigration Administration (NIA), was designed to enhance personnel and business exchanges between Macao and Hengqin, an island in Zhuhai, South China's Guangdong Province.

The policy will bolster tourism and trade, and shore up consumption in sectors such as tourism, dining and accommodation, not only in Macao but also across the entire Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA). This process will drive local economic growth and accelerate the integration of the GBA, experts said.

The 16 members in the first tour group primarily came from mainland provinces such as Guangdong, Hubei, Shaanxi and Shanxi. The group has a three-day, two-night itinerary spanning Macao and Zhuhai, with two entries into Macao scheduled during the journey, according to a statement the Hengqin authorities sent to the Global Times on Monday.

The implementation of the visa expansion policy is poised to facilitate business cooperation in tourism, exhibitions and other sectors between the two sides, a local official from Hengqin said on Monday during the welcome reception for the tour group. The official stressed that "it will bolster Macao's position as a global tourism hub and expedite Hengqin's transformation into an international leisure destination." 

Against the backdrop of China's high-level opening-up, exchanges between the Chinese mainland and Macao hold great significance. Serving as an international commercial hub, cooperation with the mainland enables both sides to share resources and advantages, Liang Haiming, chairman of Hong Kong-based China Silk Road iValley Research Institute, told the Global Times on Tuesday.

At the end of April, China's NIA announced new entry-exit regulations to streamline residents' trips outside the mainland. Among the highlights was permission for mainland visitors who join Hengqin-Macao tour groups to make multiple trips between Hengqin and Macao within seven days. 

The sweeping policy package includes full online processing for renewing travel documents within seven days and intelligent expedited processing for business visas, allowing extended stays in Hong Kong and Macao of up to 14 days. It also offers more visa options for professionals working in Macao, with stays of one to five years, according to the NIA.

The robust measures represent a comprehensive overhaul of local tourism strategies, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, director of the Macao Government Tourism Office, said on Monday. The moves will bolster the hospitality sector as well as food and beverage operations, alongside related services, Macao Daily Times reported on Tuesday.

As anticipated, the policy sparked widespread responses in related sectors. Macao-owned enterprises based in Hengqin expressed great optimism about the policy, which is expected to prioritize travelers' options for tourism products. They believe that the Guangdong-Macao in-depth cooperation zone in Hengqin can serve as a supplement to Macao's tourism resources to meet diverse market demands.

Multiple travel agencies have sought guidance on the criteria and processes for obtaining qualifications, according to Hengqin's statement. The cooperation zone will evaluate the number of agencies in line with regulations and announce assessments in stages.

The integrated development of the GBA is on a fast track. During the just-concluded five-day May Day holidays, Hong Kong witnessed a tourism surge, with mainland visitors exceeding 750,000, official data showed. Macao received an average of 120,879 visitors daily, a figure described by Senna Fernandes as "quite good" given the stormy weather during the holidays.

China's central authorities issued a general plan in 2021 for building a Guangdong-Macao in-depth cooperation zone in Hengqin, which is expected to be a major arrangement to enrich the practice of One Country, Two Systems, and serves as an important driving force for Macao's long-term development.

China's imports and exports roared back to growth in April after a significant drop in the previous month, according to official data on Thursday, and the strong data add to growing signs that the world's second-largest economy remains on a steady recovery trend despite lingering challenges at home and abroad. 

The strong trade data underscored the resilience of China's trade sector, with growth in exports pointing to the country's unshakable role in global supply chains, while the expansion in imports highlighted strong domestic demand, experts said. With the country's laser-like focus on the economy through a slew of stimulus measures, China's economic recovery will continue to consolidate and is on track to meet annual growth targets, they noted. 

In April, in US dollar terms, total imports and exports surged 4.4 percent year-on-year, reversing a 5.1 percent drop in March, according to the General Administration of Customs (GAC) on Thursday. Notably, exports expanded by 1.5 percent year-on-year in April, compared to a 7.5 percent contraction in the previous month, while imports jumped by 8.4 percent year-on-year, reversing a 1.9 percent decline in March, the GAC data showed.

"First-quarter trade data were dragged down by the drop in March due to a high base in March 2023. And April's data more accurately reflected the development trade in China's import and export sectors," Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times on Thursday. 

Zhou said that the trade data demonstrated the steady recovery trend of the Chinese economy supported by a strong rebound in the trade sector in the first four months of 2024. 

During that period, in Chinese yuan-denominated terms, China's total imports and exports expanded by 5.7 percent year-on-year, accelerating from a 5 percent growth in the first quarter of the year, according to the GAC.

In terms of top trading partners, China's imports and exports with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, better known as ASEAN, its largest trading partner, jumped by 8.5 percent year-on-year from January to April. Imports and exports with the EU, the second-largest trading partner, dropped by 1.8 percent year-on-year, while that with the US, the third-largest trading partner, grew by 1.1 percent year-on-year.

Moreover, among the highlights of Thursday's data are the robust growth in exports by private enterprises and exports of mechanical and electrical products - both major growth drivers. Private firms' total exports expanded by 9 percent year-on-year in the first four months in yuan terms, accounting for 64.7 percent of China's total export value. Exports of mechanical and electrical products grew by 6.9 percent, accounting for 59.2 percent of China's total export value, according to the GAC.

Momentum to last

The strong figures for the January-April period also reflected China's strong competitiveness and prominent role in the global industrial and supply chain, Zhou noted. "If there are no major 'black swan' events in the future, and there are no policies and actions that significantly interfere with trade activities, trade will still maintain a sustained recovery," he said.

While the growth in exports highlighted China's unshakable role in global trade, the expansion in imports accentuated the strong recovery in China's domestic demand, which is key to the overall economic recovery, according to experts. 

"In the previous two years, the growth rate of imports was relatively low, and the total import and export volume was mainly supported by exports, reflecting insufficient domestic demand, Hu Qimu, a deputy secretary-general of the digital-real economies integration Forum 50, told the Global Times on Thursday.

"But vis-à-vis this year's data, the growth rate of imports is higher than that of exports, indicating that domestic demand is recovering and the overall internal circulation is becoming smoother," Hu noted.

Hu said that China has moved swiftly to tackle systemic risks, consumption has been recovering steadily and operations of various industries have been improving significantly. 

The impressive trade data on Thursday come on the heels of a slew of indicators that showed a strong recovery momentum in the Chinese economy. In the first quarter of 2024, China's GDP expanded by 5.3 percent year-on-year, beating market expectations. Retail sales, a main gauge of consumption and the biggest economic growth driver, increased by 4.7 percent year-on-year.  

Such strong momentum in China's economic recovery is widely expected to further gather traction, as Chinese policymakers continue to step up policy support to boost the economy, experts said. 

The latest signal of strong policy support came from a meeting, held on April 30, of the Political Bureau of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee. Noting that the economy has secured a good start this year, the meeting called for various measures to further consolidate the recovery momentum, including front-loading efforts to effectively put the established macro policies in place and issuing ultra-long special treasury bonds at an early stage, according to the Xinhua News Agency. 

In terms of trade, the meeting called for efforts to actively expand trade in intermediate goods, service trade, digital trade, and cross-border e-commerce exports, and support private enterprises in expanding overseas markets.

Apart from policy support, the strong recovery in domestic consumption will help stabilize trade throughout the year, according to Hu. "The full-year trade will maintain a generally positive growth rate that is higher than that of last year," he said. 

Beyond trade, China's two other main economic drivers - consumption and investment - are also expected to maintain a strong recovery momentum, thanks to intensifying policy support, which will ensure that the full-year economic development goals will be met, experts noted. 

In spite of challenges both at home and abroad, China has set a GDP growth target of around 5 percent this year. With the growing positive signs, many experts are increasingly confident that China will be able to meet its 2024 GDP growth target, and the country will remain the main driver for global growth.

President Xi Jinping has stressed efforts to continuously break new ground in ideological and political education at schools in the new era.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an instruction on the development of ideological-political courses for schools.

Xi said that the CPC Central Committee has always made developing ideological-political courses in schools a priority for education since the 18th CPC National Congress and the Party's leadership in this regard has been fully strengthened.

Developing ideological-political courses on the new journey of the new era should follow the guidance of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and the fundamental mission of fostering virtue should be carried out, Xi said.

He underscored the importance of developing a system of textbooks with a focus on the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, and integrating political education across all levels from elementary schools to universities.

Xi stressed the need for efforts to uphold fundamental principles and break new ground to develop ideological-political courses, and to make the courses more targeted and appealing.

He stressed that Party committees and leading Party members groups at all levels should make it a priority to develop ideological-political courses.

Schools of various types should consistently break new ground in ideological and political education in the new era, and foster talented individuals who are loyal to the Party, patriotic and dedicated, and capable of shouldering the mission of realizing national rejuvenation, he said.

Xi's important instruction was conveyed at a meeting on boosting the development of ideological-political courses for schools held in Beijing on Saturday. Ding Xuexiang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and delivered a speech.

Ding, who is also vice premier, called for thorough study and implementation of Xi's important instruction and urged continuous efforts to push forward the reform and innovation of ideological-political courses.

Stressing the importance of helping students better understand national conditions and consolidate their ideals and faith, Ding said the mechanism for guaranteeing proper status and salaries for teachers of the courses should be improved.

China's Chang'e-6 lunar probe has successfully entered its circumlunar orbit after performing a near-moon braking procedure on Wednesday, according to the China National Space Administration (CNSA).

The near-moon braking procedure is a key orbital control action for the Chang'e-6 lunar probe during its flight. The probe should begin braking when approaching the moon to maintain a speed lower than the lunar escape velocity so that it could be captured by the moon's gravitational force and realize circumlunar flight.

If the braking is not applied hard enough and the speed is not reduced, the Chang'e-6 lunar probe will slide into outer space. On the other hand, if the braking is too strong, it could collide with the moon, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

The Chang'e-6 lunar probe consists of an orbiter, a returner, a lander and an ascender. The orbiter is equipped with an orbit control engine to control braking and deceleration during gravitational capture.

The development team also pioneered the design of the secondary thermal protection composite system, for the orbiter to wear a "super protective suit." Layers of protection keep the important payload machine on the orbiter away from high temperature, creating a comfortable traveling experience for the Chang'e-6, Xinhua reported.

The Chang'e-6 lunar probe will later adjust the altitude and inclination of its circumlunar orbit with the support of the Queqiao-2 relay satellite, and implement the separation of the orbiter and returner combination from the lander and ascender combination at an opportune time.

The lander and ascender combination will then make a soft landing on the South Pole-Aitken Basin and conduct a sample return mission on the far side of the moon as planned.

The entire flight of the Chang'e-6 mission is expected to last about 53 days, consisting of 11 flight phases, according to CNSA. 

China has launched the Chang'e-6 spacecraft on Friday to collect and return samples from the moon's far side, which is the first endeavor of its kind in the history of human lunar exploration, according to Xinhua.

The fourth phase of China's lunar exploration program, led and organized by the CNSA, includes four missions: Chang'e-4, Chang'e-6, Chang'e-7 and Chang'e-8, with Chang'e-4 having achieved the world's first soft landing on the back of the moon.

The Chang'e-6 mission will carry out new planetary exploration missions and further upgrade the country's space launch capabilities in the next 15 years. Landing a Chinese national on the moon is expected to happen before 2030, according to previous reports.

The Chang'e-6 mission is also carrying four payloads developed through international cooperation, providing more opportunities for the world's scientists and merging human expertise in space exploration, according to Xinhua.

The Taiwan question is China’s internal affair, which doesn’t allow any foreign interferences. The US should immediately stop hyping up the Taiwan question using the World Health Assembly as an excuse, said Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, urging the US to adhere to the one-China principle and the three China-US joint communiques with practical actions, instead of saying one thing and doing another, and constantly indulging “Taiwan independence” activities. 

Chen made the remarks on Friday in response to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s statement on Wednesday which “encouraged the WHO to reinstate an invitation to Taiwan to participate as an observer at this year’s WHA.”

Regarding Taiwan region’s participation in WHO activities, Chen said the mainland’s position is consistent and clear, which is that the situation must be handled in accordance with one-China principle, which is also the fundamental principle confirmed by UNGA resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1, Chen said. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities stubbornly insist in their “Taiwan independence” separatist stance, refusing to acknowledge the 1992 Consensus which embodies the one-China principle, resulting in the political basis for Taiwan region’s participation in WHA no longer existing. This situation is entirely caused by the DPP authorities, according to the spokesperson. 

Chen said the mainland has made proper arrangements for Taiwan region’s participation in global health affairs under the premise of adhering to the one-China principle. However, the DPP authorities, in their pursuit of “Taiwan independence,” have deliberately politicized public health issues and attempted to rely on external forces to engage in secessionist activities at WHA. The facts of the past seven years have proven that this wrong path is not viable, and the attempt this time will also end up in failure, Chen said.

China’s foreign ministry also slammed Blinken’s statement on Thursday, saying China strongly deplores and firmly opposes the statement, noting the one-China principle has the extensive support of the international community. It is where global opinion trends and where the arc of history bends. There’s no denying or stopping that trend. Any attempt to play the “Taiwan card” and use Taiwan to contain China will meet the firm opposition of the international community and is doomed to failure.

The US accusation of "China's overcapacity" is not a market-driven conclusion, but a crafted narrative to manipulate perception and politicize trade, with the real purpose being holding back China's high-quality development and depriving China of its legitimate right to development, Lin Jian, spokesperson from China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a routine press briefing on Tuesday, in a latest response to Washington's false narratives targeting Chinese new energy vehicles (NEVs).

There isn't a "China overcapacity," but a US overcapacity of anxiety stemming from a lack of confidence and smears against China, the spokesperson said.

The remarks were made in response to media questions regarding the rhetoric by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his recent visit to China. He pointed fingers at China over so-called "unfair trade practices and the potential consequences of industrial overcapacity to global and US markets," naming some industries including electric vehicles, batteries, and solar panels.

The "China overcapacity" accusation may look like an economic discussion, but the truth is, the accusation is built on false logic and ignores more than 200 years of the basic concept of comparative advantage in Western economics, Lin said.

When China's electric vehicle exports account for only 12 percent of its production, it's labeled as "overcapacity." But consider this: Germany exports 80 percent of its automobile production, followed by Japan's 50 percent, and the US' 25 percent. 

"Wouldn't that be considered more serious overcapacity?" Lin asked.

Moreover, according to estimates from the International Energy Agency, to realize carbon neutrality, the world will need 45 million NEVs by 2030, 4.5 times that of the demand of 2022.

"When the global capacity is still far below the market demand, how could there be overcapacity?" Lin asked.

In contrary to the US' narrow-minded narratives in new energy development, China has taken an open stance in the field, welcoming businesses worldwide to develop cooperation together for win-win outcomes, as it is well reflected at the 2024 18th Beijing International Automotive Exhibition Beijing Auto Show, which takes place from April 25 to May 4.

The auto show features more than 1,500 exhibiting companies, 278 new energy models and 117 global premieres, including 30 premieres by multinational companies.

The event was attended by executives from renowned international car companies such as BMW, Volkswagen, and Nissan, demonstrating their regard for the Chinese market and their expectations for working more closely with China.

Recently, German carmakers Volkswagen and BMW announced additional investments in China totaling five billion euros each, aiming to ramp up their layouts in the manufacturing of electric and smart vehicles in China.

These facts and statistics not only reveal global automakers' optimism for the growth potential of China's mega-sized market and their confidence in China's development outlook, but also are the most convincing argument against the so-called "Chinese overcapacity," Lin said.

Chinese experts also refuted the US' intensified discourse of "overcapacity" narratives. 

Speaking with the Global Times on Tuesday, Cui Dongshu, secretary-general of the China Passenger Car Association, said that actual demand for NEVs remain huge in both China and around the world.

The NEV market in China is undergoing rapid expansion, and the implementation of the new trade-in policy alone has the potential to drive up to two million electric vehicle sales this year, according to Cui, reflecting positive market prospects for the booming sector.

Overcapacity is only caused by enterprises lacking competitiveness, leading to unsold inventory, which is surely not the case in China's NEV industry, Cui said, noting that Chinese NEV manufacturers are reputable enterprises, and there is strong demand for their products in the market.

"Both domestically and internationally, there is no overcapacity in the NEV sector," he said.

The US' repeated accusations of "overcapacity" against China stem from concerns about the rapid development of China NEV industry potentially impeding the growth of American car manufacturers. "This highlights the narrow-minded approach of the US in attempting to isolate Chinese companies from the global market," said Cui.

Chinese scientists have successfully developed fast breeding rice in desert greenhouses in Hotan Prefecture, Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, for the first time under the trial period, making the rice grow from planting to harvest in just 75 days.

The tech provides support for the country to carry out year-round cultivation and fast breeding of crops in desert areas, according to the Institute of Urban Agriculture (IUA), Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.

The technology was developed by the IUA's chief scientist Yang Qichang and his research team after five years of research. The team leverages rich solar resources in desert areas, implementing measures such as multi-layer vertical soilless cultivation and artificial light source control, making rice grow from planting to harvest in just 75 days. The tech reduces the rice's growth cycle by around 40 percent compared to rice cultivated in traditional fields, according to the Chengdu-based IUA.

"We used the local new rice for this cultivation by taking fast breeding tech. The seedling cultivation took 15 days. In February, we planted the rice seedlings in the soilless cultivation tanks. The entire production cycle is 60 days by far," Wang Sen, the IUA's researcher, also one member of the research team, told the Global Times on Monday.

The fast breeding of rice in the greenhouses in Hotan adopts vertical soilless cultivation technology, providing crops with good production conditions such as light, temperature, water, air, and fertilizer under intelligent LED supplementary lighting from artificial light sources, according to Wang.

Within the facility, the temperature, humidity, light intensity, and other conditions can always be controlled precisely. However, the costs of energy, operation, and construction are always high. As a result, the experiment utilizes the abundant light and heat resources in Taklimakan Desert to establish a desert greenhouse plant that significantly reduces costs, according to the IUA.

It's meaningful to "inspire more scientific research" in the field, to encourage scientists to explore various solutions to "ensure national breeding and food security," Wang noted.

The research team has also been exploring key technologies for the fast breeding of staple crops such as soybeans, corn, and wheat, as well as oilseed crops and cotton in the desert greenhouses in Hotan.

The research institution has been making efforts in exploring the tech of building vertical unmanned greenhouse during recent years. In December 2023, a 10-meter-high unmanned greenhouse rack, the tallest of its kind in the world, was built by the IUA in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province. Its cultivation procedures are completely automated, including sowing, thinning, harvesting and packaging, according to media reports.

The Taiwan question is entirely China’s internal affairs, and how to achieve national reunification is a matter for the Chinese people on the two sides of the Taiwan Straits,  Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in a written interview with Qatar-based news channel Al Jazeera on Thursday. 

Addressing a question on the Taiwan question given US continued arms sales to the island, Wang responded that Taiwan has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times. We will strive for peaceful reunification with the utmost effort and greatest sincerity. In the meantime, our bottom line is also clear: we will absolutely not allow anyone to separate Taiwan from China in any way.

At present, the cross-Straits situation is stable on the whole. But it faces serious challenges as well. The biggest challenge comes from “Taiwan independence” separatist activities and external disruptions. China will not sit on its hands with external disruptions, he stressed.

During the interview, Wang also made important explanations regarding the Gaza conflict, the Red Sea crisis, the Ukraine crisis and China-US relations.

Regarding the Gaza conflict, Wang stated that the protracted conflict in Gaza has become a humanitarian catastrophe that should not have happened, which has gone far beyond the bottom line of modern civilization. The international community must act now.

First, what is currently urgent is to achieve a cease-fire as early as possible, and this is the overriding priority. Second, unimpeded humanitarian assistance must be ensured at all times, and this is the pressing moral obligation. Third, further spillover of the conflict must be forestalled, and this is the practical necessity for preventing the situation from spinning out of control. Fourth, historical injustice to the Palestinian people must be redressed timely, and this is the right way to address the root of the conflict in Gaza, Wang pointed out. 

In response to concerns over the rising tensions in the Red Sea and China’s deployment of several hundred servicemen in an escort fleet for cargo ships, Wang stated that it must be noted that the ongoing escort mission by the Chinese navy is not related to the Red Sea situation. Maneuvers are being carried out in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Somalia as authorized by the UN Security Council to deter pirates and conduct humanitarian operations.

When asked about how will China mediate in peaceful negotiations to resolve the Ukraine crisis, Wang said it is imperative to remain committed to political settlement. Conflicts and wars do not end on the battlefield but at the table. 

It is imperative to uphold objectivity and impartiality. All sides should play their due part, and build up mutual trust to create conditions for ending hostility and starting peace talks. More importantly, no one should form factions or provoke bloc confrontation, Wang emphasized.

With the US presidential election approaching, Wang stated that the China-US relationship bears on the wellbeing of the Chinese and American peoples and the future of humanity and the world. 

China is sincere in improving its relations with the US. Meanwhile, the US still sticks to its misperception of China, and presses ahead with its misguided policy to contain China, he noted.

Whoever is elected, the Chinese and American peoples will still need to engage in exchanges and cooperation, and the two major countries must find the right way to get along with each other. The China-US relationship cannot go back to its past. But it should, and can fully, have a bright future, Wang said.