President Xi Jinping's important speech at the conference celebrating the 25th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland and the inauguration ceremony of the Sixth-term Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region has elicited enthusiastic responses from all sectors in Hong Kong and Macao. They expressed that President Xi Jinping's important speech was inspiring and unifying. It is imperative to comprehensively, accurately, and unswervingly implement the "One Country, Two Systems" principle. With the strong backing of the great motherland, Macao will surely open up new avenues for development, continuously create new glories, and make greater contributions to building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization. President Xi Jinping pointed out that over the past 25 years since Macao's return to the motherland, with the strong support of the central government and the mainland, the Macao Special Administrative Region Government has united and led all sectors of society in continuous endeavors, achieving great success in the practice of "One Country, Two Systems" with Macao characteristics. Today's Macao has achieved a historic leap in economic and social development, with its per capita GDP ranking among the highest in the world. It has established stable economic and trade relations with over 120 countries and regions and is a member of over 190 international organizations and institutions, attracting investors from various countries to invest, participate in construction, and share development achievements. Since the new era, President Xi Jinping has always cared about Macao's development and the well-being of Macao compatriots, and has always been concerned about Macao's long-term prosperity and stability, making a series of strategic decisions and major deployments that have led to world-renowned achievements in the practice of "One Country, Two Systems" with Macao characteristics. All sectors of Macao society stated that the brilliant achievements since Macao's return to the motherland fully demonstrate the significant institutional advantages and strong vitality of "One Country, Two Systems." President Xi Jinping's important speech has pointed the way for Macao to better leverage the institutional advantages of "One Country, Two Systems" and continuously open up new prospects for the practice of "One Country, Two Systems" with Macao characteristics. In his speech, President Xi Jinping pointed out the need to focus on invigorating the economy, pursuing development, and carrying out construction, continuously fostering new drivers and advantages. As an important platform for promoting Macao's moderate economic diversification, the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin is currently promoting the establishment of branches of national key laboratories in integrated circuits, smart city IoT, and other fields, and accelerating the formulation of a new batch of key measures for Guangdong-Macao alignment. President Xi Jinping has always cared about Macao's youth. In his speech, he expressed hope that the young people would keep Macao and the nation in their hearts, set high aspirations, and work diligently, allowing their youth to shine brightly in the vast world of building a strong motherland and a beautiful Macao. From the forefront of technological innovation to the front lines of public service, President Xi Jinping's important speech has inspired Macao's youth to strengthen their ideals and beliefs and actively take on responsibilities. President Xi Jinping's important speech also resonated strongly among all sectors of Hong Kong society. They stated that President Xi Jinping's important speech is a guide for action to ensure the steady and long-term implementation of the "One Country, Two Systems" practice on the new journey, and that it is essential to better leverage the institutional advantages of "One Country, Two Systems" to make new and greater contributions to building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization.
Today (December 21), People's Daily published a commentator's article titled "The Practice of 'One Country, Two Systems' with Macao Characteristics Has Achieved Great Success – On Studying and Implementing President Xi Jinping's Important Speech at the Conference Celebrating the 25th Anniversary of Macao's Return to the Motherland."
The 13th session of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress held its first plenary meeting in Beijing on the morning of the 21st. Chairman Zhao Leji presided over the meeting. The meeting heard a report by Shen Chunyao, Vice Chairman of the NPC Constitution and Law Committee, on the revisions to the draft amendment to the Deputy Law. It heard a report by He Ping, Vice Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee, on the review results of the draft Value-Added Tax Law. It heard a report by Yuan Shuhong, Vice Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee, on the review results of the draft amendment to the Supervision Law. It heard a report by Zhou Guangquan, Vice Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee, on the review results of the draft revision to the Science and Technology Popularization Law. It heard a report by Xu Hui, Vice Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee, on the revisions to the draft National Park Law. The NPC Supervision and Judicial Affairs Committee submitted a proposal for deliberating the draft Law on Rule of Law Publicity and Education. Yang Xiaochao, Chairman of the Supervision and Judicial Affairs Committee, explained the proposal. The State Council submitted a proposal for deliberating the draft Law on Promoting the Private Economy. Entrusted by the State Council, Minister of Justice He Rong explained the proposal. The State Council submitted a proposal for deliberating the draft revision to the Anti-Unfair Competition Law. Entrusted by the State Council, Luo Wen, Director of the State Administration for Market Regulation, explained the proposal. The State Council submitted a proposal for deliberating the draft revision to the Fisheries Law. Entrusted by the State Council, Han Jun, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, explained the proposal. The State Council submitted a proposal for deliberating the draft Hazardous Chemicals Safety Law. Entrusted by the State Council, Wang Xiangxi, Minister of Emergency Management, explained the proposal. The meeting deliberated the proposal by the Council of Chairmen regarding the draft decision on convening the Third Session of the 14th National People's Congress. Entrusted by the State Council, Ma Zhaoxu, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, explained the proposal for deliberating and approving the extradition treaty between China and Zimbabwe, and the proposal for deliberating and approving the extradition treaty between China and Suriname. The meeting heard reports from Bayanqolu, Chairman of the NPC Ethnic Affairs Committee, Xin Chunying, Chairman of the Constitution and Law Committee, Zhong Shan, Chairman of the Financial and Economic Affairs Committee, Luo Shugang, Chairman of the Education, Science, Culture and Public Health Committee, and Yu Weiguo, Chairman of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Committee, on the review results of proposals submitted by deputies during the Second Session of the 14th National People's Congress. The meeting heard reports from Guo Zhenhua, Director of the NPC Standing Committee's Deputy Affairs Commission, and Sun Yelil, Minister of Culture and Tourism, on the handling of suggestions, criticisms, and opinions from deputies during the Second Session of the 14th National People's Congress. All 9,235 suggestions concerning various aspects of work submitted by deputies during the Second Session of the 14th National People's Congress have been processed and responded to. The meeting heard a report from Yang Xiaochao, Chairman of the NPC Standing Committee's Deputy Qualification Review Committee, on the qualifications of individual deputies. The meeting also deliberated on relevant appointments and removals.
Since the beginning of this year, various regions have continued to increase efforts in fostering new growth drivers, promoting continuous optimization of industrial structure, and China's industrial economy has shown a positive trend of steady growth. Supported by a series of incremental policies, China's industrial economy has continuously improved in quality and upgraded. In the first 11 months of this year, the added value of industrial enterprises above designated size in China increased by 5.8% year-on-year. According to the latest data from November, over 80% of regions and industries, and 60% of products achieved growth. Among them, the output of high-value-added products grew significantly, with integrated circuits and industrial robots increasing by 8.7% and 29.3% respectively. At the same time, the proportion of added value of equipment manufacturing in the total added value of industrial enterprises above designated size has remained above 30% for 21 consecutive months. In addition, in November, China's manufacturing purchasing managers' index reached 50.3%, rising for three consecutive months, and business expectations further improved. Moving forward, various regions will accelerate the effective implementation of stable growth policies to support the continued steady improvement of the industrial economy.
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China proposed to deepen cooperation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and strengthen alignment of rules and mechanisms. Guangdong is promoting development through reform, deepening institutional innovation around regional collaboration, and better leveraging its leading and driving role to advance the construction of the Greater Bay Area to a deeper level in the new stage. Recently, containerized cargo from Jiangmen, Guangdong, was transported by Guangzhou Port's "shuttle bus" barges to Nansha Port for export. The smooth "ferry service" between large and small ports in the Greater Bay Area is thanks to the continuous optimization of the "One Port Connect" customs innovative supervision model. To make cargo circulation more efficient and convenient across the three regions of the Greater Bay Area and promote the flow of elements, Guangdong has further enhanced regional collaboration and policy coordination among the three regions, continuously deepening reforms in rules and mechanisms. Focusing on major cooperation platforms in the Greater Bay Area, Guangzhou Nansha has formulated a list of 350 major reform items, promoting the coordinated development of new industries and new business formats in the three regions. In the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin, the Macao Government 24-hour self-service center was officially launched, allowing cross-border government services to handle nearly 70 types of businesses from 12 Macao departments, breaking down institutional and mechanistic barriers that restrict innovation. Shenzhen Qianhai Shenzhen-Hong Kong Modern Service Industry Cooperation Zone has invested 500 million yuan to establish a Dream Factory Fund to encourage more young people to start businesses and support the innovative development of technology enterprises. The Shenzhen Park of the Hetao Shenzhen-Hong Kong Science and Technology Innovation Cooperation Zone has proposed 79 reform tasks to establish a scientific research management system that aligns with Hong Kong and international standards. To implement the spirit of the Third Plenary Session and accelerate the development of new quality productive forces in the Greater Bay Area, Guangdong is also continuously exploring reforms in the science and technology innovation system to remove bottlenecks and obstacles hindering the development of new quality productive forces in the three regions. Recently, the "Regulations on Science and Technology Innovation in Guangdong Province" was issued in the form of legislation, proposing 94 institutional measures for optimizing open innovation cooperation in the Greater Bay Area. In November, Guangdong officially released new reform tasks in 14 areas, clarifying the "blueprint" for further comprehensive deepening of reforms, strengthening rule alignment and mechanism对接 among Guangdong, Hong Kong, and Macao, and co-building science and technology innovation cooperation platforms, among other measures.
Where the public expects, that's where anti-corruption efforts are focused. Since the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, disciplinary inspection and supervision organs at all levels have started from "small incisions," resolutely rectifying prominent issues strongly complained about by the public, promoting the extension of comprehensive strict governance of the Party to the grassroots, and making the public truly feel that problems are being addressed, difficulties are being helped, and interests are being protected. During this period, the disciplinary inspection and supervision organs in Zhengzhou, Henan Province, targeting food safety hazards in "campus meals" and chaotic management of canteen contracting, promoted local education departments to unify the scattered bidding and procurement of ingredients for primary and secondary schools under a government platform company. They also worked with market supervision, health and other departments to jointly determine meal categories for schools to purchase, ensuring traceable supply sources, controllable processes, safe ingredients, and co-management of meal fees, so that students can eat safely and parents can rest assured. Rectifying "campus meal" management issues is one of the key focuses of this year's concentrated rectification of undesirable practices and corruption issues affecting the public, carried out by disciplinary inspection and supervision organs. The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission, together with the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of Finance, the National Health Commission, and the State Administration for Market Regulation, formulated the "Guiding Opinions on Strengthening Supervision of Food Safety and Dietary Expense Management in Primary and Secondary School Campuses," targeting and rectifying problems such as misappropriation of dietary expenses, seeking personal gain through bidding, and using inferior ingredients or failing to meet nutritional standards. Focusing on "small incisions" to protect "big livelihoods." Disciplinary inspection and supervision organs at all levels have continued to deeply rectify prominent issues that harm the interests of the public, severely investigating and punishing acts such as embezzlement, misappropriation, false claims, extortion, and resolutely combating "flies and ants" (petty corruption) around the public; they have cooperated with health departments to promote the resolution of repeated medical examinations and tests, with 1588 tertiary hospitals in 24 provinces across the country now recognizing over 100 examination and test results issued by domestic tertiary hospitals; they have cooperated with agricultural and rural departments to supervise the rectification of low-price contracts, overdue contracts, and "favor contracts" signed by village-level organizations, rectifying non-standard engineering projects, and promoting the improvement of information-based supervision of collective "three assets" (funds, assets, and resources). Since 2024, national disciplinary inspection and supervision organs have investigated 596,000 cases of undesirable practices and corruption issues among the public, and disciplined 462,000 people.
Currently, the winter period for water conservancy construction is in full swing, and various regions are accelerating the construction of major water conservancy projects. A number of national major water conservancy projects are being expedited. In Guangxi's Yulin Longyun Irrigation Area, the Panlong Reservoir's spillway gate control room and other facilities are undergoing decoration, and it is expected to be ready for water storage by June next year. The Longyun Irrigation Area plans to build three reservoirs, and upon completion, the project will add 210,000 mu of irrigated farmland. In Qiandongnan, Guizhou, the Xuanwei Reservoir's diversion tunnel was successfully penetrated recently, and the main project is expected to be largely completed by March next year, benefiting over 830,000 people. In Jiuquan, Gansu, the Aksai Ecological Protection and Urban-Rural Integrated Water Supply Project is under intensive construction. The project involves building a water diversion hub from the Dahar Teng River to divert water to Aksai County, with a total transmission line length of over 168 kilometers. Upon completion, the project will provide a reliable water source for farmers and herders in Dunhuang City, Aksai County, and Subei County, and also provide guarantees for ecological restoration and desertification control in the Dunhuang area. At the same time, renovation, upgrading, and reinforcement work is also being intensified in irrigation areas across the country. As the main irrigation project in southern Shanxi, the Jiamaokou Yellow River Diversion Project is undergoing continued construction, supporting facilities, and modern renovation, expected to be completed by early February next year. After the renovation, not only will the single pump flow rate be significantly increased, but the level of automated monitoring and intelligent operation will also be effectively enhanced. In Anhui, the Huaihong New River Irrigation Area is carrying out collaborative operations on 78 work fronts, focusing on enhancing the flood control and drainage capacity of key facilities. Through the construction of new diversion canals and dredging of supporting facilities along the line, the Huaihong New River water will be more smoothly introduced into the surrounding farmland. After the main project renovation and construction are completed by the end of the year, it will become the largest river irrigation area in Anhui Province. Zhejiang is continuously advancing the comprehensive reinforcement and reconstruction of large and medium-sized reservoirs, key river governance, and coastal embankment safety projects, fundamentally ensuring the safety of coastal embankments, flood and tide control, and farmland irrigation downstream of reservoirs.
Over 1.1 million cases handled since the formal implementation of the procuratorial public interest litigation system. The Supreme People's Procuratorate announced that since the formal implementation of the procuratorial public interest litigation system in July 2017, as of November this year, the number of public interest litigation cases handled has reached 1.101 million. Procuratorial public interest litigation has expanded from the initial four statutory areas, such as ecological environment and resource protection, and food and drug safety, to 15 statutory areas, including the protection of minors and personal information. 2025 National Master's Degree Entrance Examination Starts Today. The 2025 National Master's Degree Entrance Examination started today (December 21). A total of 3.88 million candidates registered nationwide, with 2,652 examination centers set up. All examination centers are making full efforts to maintain the security and order of the examination, and many places are also responding to low temperatures and cold waves, improving emergency plans, strengthening service guarantees, and actively providing reasonable examination conveniences to ensure the smooth and successful conduct of the examination. 2024 "Job Guidance for the Future" Autumn Recruitment Activities Provide 10.328 Million Positions. According to news from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, the 2024 "Job Guidance for the Future" joint recruitment activities for college graduates in large and medium-sized cities concluded recently. During the activities, a total of 23,000 online and offline job fairs were held nationwide, including cross-regional巡回recruitment and supporting employment and entrepreneurship guidance services. 541,000 employers provided 10.328 million job opportunities. Yangtze River Delta Ecological Green Integrated Development Demonstration Zone Has Accumulated 154 Institutional Innovation Achievements. The Central Leading Group Office for Regional Coordinated Development held a work promotion meeting in Suzhou, Jiangsu, today (December 21) for the high-level construction of the Yangtze River Delta Ecological Green Integrated Development Demonstration Zone. Since its establishment five years ago, the demonstration zone has cumulatively released 63 public service project lists and formed 154 institutional innovation achievements, covering inter-provincial transportation, cross-regional application for talent programs, and data link connectivity. Measures for Management of Mainland to Hong Kong and Macao Air Routes and Flights Released. The Civil Aviation Administration of China recently released the "Measures for the Management of Mainland to Hong Kong and Macao Air Routes and Flights" to regulate the allocation of air route resources and operational license management between the mainland and Hong Kong and Macao, improve the scientific and refined level of management, and further facilitate personnel exchanges and cooperation between the mainland and Hong Kong and Macao. The "Measures" will come into effect on January 1, 2025. The 11th National Public Ice and Snow Season Launched. The 11th National Public Ice and Snow Season was launched today (December 21) in Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia. This year's ice and snow season is themed "Happy Ice and Snow, Create the Future Together," and it is expected that various regions will carry out 1,853 mass ice and snow events and activities at all levels, continuously consolidating and expanding the achievements of "driving 300 million people to participate in ice and snow sports." All activities will continue until April 2025. The 26th Harbin Ice and Snow World Opens. The 26th Harbin Ice and Snow World opened today (December 21). The design and construction of this year's Ice and Snow World incorporate elements of the 9th Asian Winter Games, creating a magnificent and beautiful ice and snow theme park. Harbin snow sculpture landscapes also met visitors at the same time. 2024 Cross-Strait Modern Agriculture Expo and Flower Expo Opens. The 2024 Cross-Strait Modern Agriculture Expo and Flower Expo opened on December 20 in Zhangzhou, Fujian. More than 700 enterprises participated in the exhibition, fully showcasing new products, new technologies, and new achievements in cross-strait agricultural exchange and cooperation. "Lunar New Year - Spring Festival Themed Exhibition" Opens at China Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum. The "Lunar New Year - Spring Festival Themed Exhibition" opened today (December 21) at the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum. The exhibition takes the time period from the Winter Solstice to the Lantern Festival as its focus, displaying over 120 intangible cultural heritage representative projects related to the Spring Festival, covering 31 provinces (regions, municipalities), Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, and Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan regions. The exhibition will continue until March 2, 2025. The Third Season of "Intangible Cultural Heritage in China" Premieres Tonight. The large-scale cultural program "Intangible Cultural Heritage in China" Season 3 will premiere tonight (December 21) on CCTV-1. The first episode will visit Shandong, focusing on characteristic intangible cultural heritage projects such as Liaocheng acrobatics, Haiyang秧歌, and Weifang kites, experiencing the Qi-Lu land from an intangible cultural heritage perspective through interactive experiences, cultural interpretations, and performance presentations.
Russia's Ministry of Defense stated on the 20th that over the past week, Russian forces had taken control of 10 settlements in the Donetsk region. The Russian Investigative Committee announced on the 20th that Ukrainian forces launched a missile attack on Rylsk city in Russia's Kursk region on the same day. According to Russian media reports, the Ukrainian forces used U.S.-made ATACMS missiles. The Russian Ministry of Defense stated that Kazan, the capital of Russia's Tatarstan Republic, was attacked by Ukrainian drones today (December 21), and the Russian military destroyed three Ukrainian drones. According to local government sources, several residential buildings caught fire, but no casualties were reported. Temporary restrictions were imposed at Kazan, Izhevsk, and Saratov airports. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated on the 20th that 146 combat engagements occurred on the front lines that day, and Ukrainian forces were making every effort to prevent Russian advances. Intense explosions were reported in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv on the 20th, with local officials stating that multiple areas of Kyiv were hit by Russian missiles and drones. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said on the 20th that Ukraine plans to stop transiting Russian natural gas to Europe through its gas transmission system starting January 1. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico stated that this move by Ukraine would lead to increased energy prices in Europe and trigger a gas crisis.
Palestinian civil defense and medical personnel in the Gaza Strip stated that Israeli forces continued airstrikes on multiple areas in the Gaza Strip on the 20th, killing at least 25 Palestinians. Among them, an Israeli airstrike on Jabalia in the north killed 10 members of one family, including seven children. Israeli Military Fails to Intercept Projectile from Yemen; Houthi Movement Claims Joint Attack with Iraqi Militias on Israeli Targets. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) stated today (December 21) that alarms sounded in central Israel early this morning, and the Israeli military detected a projectile from the direction of Yemen and attempted to intercept it, but failed. Israeli rescue workers said the attack caused minor injuries to 16 people in Tel Aviv. Yemen's Houthi movement claimed today it launched a "Palestine-2" hypersonic missile at targets in Tel Aviv. The movement had claimed the day before that it launched a joint attack with Iraqi militias targeting critical Israeli objectives, successfully hitting targets with multiple drones.
Cuban people gather to condemn US sanctions and blockade. On the 20th, Cuban people gathered in front of the US Embassy in Cuba to protest against US sanctions and the blockade. Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel delivered a speech at the rally, condemning the US for listing Cuba on the so-called "State Sponsors of Terrorism" list and for the immense harm and suffering that US sanctions have brought to the Cuban people. Cuban revolutionary leader Raúl Castro also attended the rally. Trump demands EU buy US oil and gas or face tariffs. US President-elect Donald Trump said on social media on the 20th that the European Union must significantly purchase US crude oil and natural gas to reduce its trade surplus with the US, otherwise tariffs will be imposed on the EU. In response, the EU stated that it would discuss US-EU energy cooperation and other issues with Trump. UK November retail sales below expectations. Data released by the UK Office for National Statistics on the 20th showed that UK retail sales increased by 0.2% month-on-month in November. Local media reported that this figure was lower than the market expectation of 0.5% growth. The day before, the Bank of England predicted zero growth for the UK economy in the fourth quarter of this year, lower than its previous forecast. Canadian cabinet reshuffle; opposition party to table non-confidence motion. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reshuffled his cabinet on the 20th. New Democratic Party leader Jagmeet Singh said on the same day that his party would table a non-confidence motion against the Trudeau government in the House of Commons. Canada's other opposition party, the Conservative Party, had previously launched three non-confidence motions, all of which failed due to lack of support from the New Democratic Party.
Winter Solstice is the 22nd of the 24 solar terms, and also the fourth solar term of winter. At the end of the program, let's appreciate the natural beauty and cultural significance of the Winter Solstice. "Zhi" (至) means extreme. On the Winter Solstice, the Northern Hemisphere experiences its longest night and shortest day. After the Winter Solstice, the sunshine and daylight hours will gradually increase, as the saying goes, "Winter Solstice marks the start of Yang energy, and daylight grows longer." From the Winter Solstice, the whole country enters the coldest period of the year, known as "Shujiu Hantian" (counting nine cold days), with rime ice blooming on trees, making everything pure and lovely. By the Winter Solstice, winter wheat, rapeseed, and other crops enter their overwintering management period. Folk sayings often refer to "Winter Solstice being as important as the New Year." In northern China, it is customary to eat dumplings during the Winter Solstice, while southerners prefer tangyuan (sweet glutinous rice balls). Whether dumplings or tangyuan, they both represent warmth. With the arrival of Winter Solstice, the New Year is not far away, and spring is even closer.
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