As the traditional Chinese New Year approaches, the Central Military Commission held a New Year's cultural performance for retired cadres of troops stationed in Beijing on January 17 in Beijing. Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, President of the People's Republic of China, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, watched the performance and extended festive greetings and New Year wishes to the retired military comrades present and to all retired cadres of the armed forces. With the Spring Festival approaching, Beijing, the capital, was filled with a joyous and auspicious atmosphere. The China Theater was adorned with lanterns and warm lights, as retired cadres of the troops stationed in Beijing, who had made outstanding contributions to the establishment, defense, and construction of New China, and to the building of national defense and the armed forces, gathered to welcome the New Year. At around 4 p.m., Xi Jinping arrived among the veteran comrades, and the entire venue erupted in warm applause. Xi Jinping cordially shook hands with them, exchanged greetings, and inquired about their health and living conditions, jointly reviewing the extraordinary journey and significant achievements of the Party, the nation, and the armed forces over the past year. The veteran comrades unanimously expressed that they would unite more closely around the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core, adhere to Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era as their guide, thoroughly implement Xi Jinping Thought on Strengthening the Military, deeply understand the decisive significance of the "Two Establishes," resolutely uphold the "Two Safeguards," implement the Chairman Responsibility System of the Central Military Commission, carry forward glorious traditions, maintain their political integrity, strengthen confidence, and strive in unity to continue to make active contributions to winning the battle to achieve the centenary goal of army building and to comprehensively advance the great cause of building a strong nation and national rejuvenation through Chinese modernization. "The footsteps of a strong nation and rejuvenation shake the earth, and the attacking army's flag flies high..." The cheerful and lively song and dance "My Post, My New Year" kicked off the performance. The performance showcased the vigorous practice of strengthening the military through the method of cultural light cavalry serving the soldiers, embodying the profound meaning of absolute loyalty to the Party and concerted efforts to overcome challenges, and highlighting the new spirit and integrity of the People's Liberation Army in the new era. The mixed chorus "Following" expressed the common aspiration of the vast number of officers and soldiers to comprehensively implement the new era's strategy of political army building and unswervingly follow the Party. The song, dance, and instrumental performances "Ready to Fight" and "Glory of Victory" vividly reflected the scenes of live-fire training and demonstrated the fearless steel will of the officers and soldiers and their combat readiness to fight and win at any time. The performance "Border Pass Battle Song" expressed the sentiments and commitment of border defense officers and soldiers rooted in the front line of border defense, faithfully fulfilling their missions. Selections from "Daughter of the Party" and "Ode to Yimeng," and a medley of classic songs such as "Antiregime Military and Political University Song" and "We Are Marching on the Great Road," reviewed the glorious years and ignited the passion for struggle. The situational song and dance "Singing the Laundry Song Again" depicted the touching scene of deep military-civilian friendship and joint efforts to strengthen border defense. The short play "True Colors" and the small chorus "Taking Over Your Rifle" recounted the combat stories of revolutionary前辈 and the stories of young officers and soldiers strengthening the military, demonstrating the People's Liberation Army's firm belief in inheriting red genes and practicing its original mission. The mixed chorus "Glorious Departure" brought the performance to a climax with its stirring melody, showing the determination and confidence to go all out, achieve success, strive for the centenary of army building, and advance to a world-class military. The entire performance was simple and unadorned, rich in military and combat flavor, reflecting the grand vision of a strong military culture that sharpens combat readiness, achieves victory, upholds integrity, and innovates. Zhang Youxia, He Weidong, Liu Zhenli, and Zhang Shengmin watched the performance together. Also present were leaders from various departments of the Central Military Commission, relevant units of the military stationed in Beijing, and representatives of officers and soldiers.
On the evening of January 17, President Xi Jinping had a phone conversation with US President-elect Trump at the latter's request. Xi Jinping congratulated Trump on his re-election as US President, noting that both sides attach great importance to their interactions and hope for a good start to China-US relations in the new term of the US President, and are willing to promote greater progress in China-US relations at a new starting point. Xi Jinping emphasized that both China and the US, two great nations, are pursuing their respective dreams and are committed to enabling their people to live better lives. China and the US share broad common interests and vast space for cooperation, and can be partners and friends, achieving each other, prospering together, benefiting both countries, and benefiting the world. Xi Jinping pointed out that as two major countries with different national conditions, it is inevitable for China and the US to have some differences, and the key is to respect each other's core interests and major concerns and find proper ways to resolve problems. The Taiwan question concerns China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, and it is hoped that the US side will handle it with utmost prudence. The essence of China-US economic and trade relations is mutual benefit and win-win results, and confrontation and conflict should not be our choice. The two sides should, in the spirit of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation, strengthen cooperation and do more major, practical, and good things that benefit both countries and the world, so that the two giant ships of China and the US can continue to sail along a stable, healthy, and sustainable development course. Trump thanked President Xi Jinping for his congratulations, stating that he values his great relationship with President Xi and hopes to continue dialogue and communication, looking forward to meeting President Xi as soon as possible. The US and China are the most important countries in the world today and should maintain long-term friendship and jointly safeguard world peace. The two heads of state exchanged views on major international and regional issues of common concern, including the Ukraine crisis and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The two heads of state agreed to establish strategic communication channels to maintain regular contact on major issues of common concern.
On January 18, General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee and President of China Xi Jinping exchanged congratulatory messages with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee To Lam and Vietnamese President Luong Cuong, warmly celebrating the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Xi Jinping pointed out that China and Vietnam are friendly socialist neighbors and a community with a shared future of strategic significance. Over the past 75 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, in the arduous years of striving for national independence and liberation, the two sides fought side by side and supported each other, and the "profound Vietnam-China friendship, comrades and brothers" became the most vivid portrayal of the relationship between the two parties and two countries. In the cause of socialist construction, the two sides learned from each other, advanced hand in hand, and comprehensive strategic cooperation continued to deepen, with shared ideals and a common destiny becoming the most prominent feature of the relationship between the two parties and two countries. My successful visit to Vietnam in 2023 saw both sides announce their commitment to building a China-Vietnam community with a shared future of strategic significance, and the relationship between the two parties and two countries entered a new stage. Xi Jinping emphasized that currently, changes in the world, in our times, and in history are unfolding in an unprecedented manner. For China and Vietnam to continue on the socialist path concerns the future and destiny of the two parties and two countries and the future of the world socialist cause, and is of great significance to peace, stability, development, and prosperity in the region and even the world. I highly value the development of China-Vietnam relations and am willing to work with you to take the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations and the "China-Vietnam Cultural Exchange Year" as an opportunity to keep in mind our original aspirations and missions, deepen strategic mutual trust, strengthen practical cooperation, and continue to advance hand in hand on the new journey of socialist modernization, pushing for new achievements in building a China-Vietnam community with a shared future of strategic significance, better benefiting the people of both countries, and making important contributions to revitalizing the world socialist cause and promoting human development and progress. To Lam stated that over the past 75 years, the two parties and two countries have advanced hand in hand, forging the traditional friendship of "profound Vietnam-China friendship, comrades and brothers." The Vietnamese Party, government, and people always regard developing relations with China as a consistent policy and top priority in Vietnam's foreign policy. Against the backdrop of profound and complex changes in the international and regional situation and the two countries' socialist causes entering a critical stage, the top leaders of the two parties and two countries unanimously agreed to build a Vietnam-China community with a shared future of strategic significance. I firmly believe that with the personal care and guidance of the high-level leaders of the two parties and two countries, various departments of both sides will closely coordinate to elevate the construction of the Vietnam-China community with a shared future to a new level. Luong Cuong stated that the historical practice of the past 75 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Vietnam and China proves that developing the traditional friendly relations between the two countries conforms to the fundamental aspirations and long-term interests of the two peoples and will contribute to regional and world peace, stability, cooperation, and development. Vietnam is willing to work with China to continuously deepen comprehensive strategic cooperation and promote the building of a Vietnam-China community with a shared future of strategic significance. It is believed that under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core and guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, China will surely successfully achieve the goals and tasks set by the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and build China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful. On the same day, Premier of the State Council Li Qiang exchanged congratulatory messages with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. Li Qiang stated that I am willing to work with Prime Minister Chinh to earnestly implement the important consensus of the top leaders of the two parties and two countries, and promote the development of bilateral relations and cooperation in various fields between the two countries to a new level. Pham Minh Chinh stated that Vietnam is willing to strengthen supervision and guidance for relevant departments and localities of both sides, accelerate the implementation of important cooperation plans, and push for the effective implementation of the consensus on "six more" reached by the high-level leaders of the two parties and two countries.
At a press conference held by the State Council Information Office on "Achievements of China's High-Quality Economic Development" series, a relevant负责人 from the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council stated that central enterprises achieved a series of new developments in 2024. In 2024, the total assets of central enterprises exceeded 90 trillion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.9%; value added, total profits, and taxes paid all achieved steady growth. New drivers were further strengthened. Annual R&D expenditure reached 1.1 trillion yuan, exceeding one trillion yuan for three consecutive years; investment in strategic emerging industries increased by 21.8% year-on-year, accounting for over 40% of total investment. Solid steps were taken in the development of new quality productive forces, achieving a series of major innovative results such as Chang'e-6 and the Shenzhen-Zhongshan Link; a series of new breakthroughs were made in areas such as integrated circuits, quantum communication, and high-end equipment manufacturing. Focusing on developing and strengthening the real economy, active efforts were made to promote reorganization and integration and the establishment of new companies. China Resources Recycling Group and China Digital Logistics Information Company were officially established, professional integration of new energy power batteries was actively advanced, and the cruise operation platform company started with high quality, achieving important progress in optimizing the layout of state-owned capital. State-owned enterprise reform was further deepened and solidified, with the in-depth implementation of the action to deepen and upgrade state-owned enterprise reform, and the average completion rate of key tasks has currently exceeded 70%.
Fujian is a large coastal economic province. How will Fujian's economy "forge ahead and move to a new level" in the new year to promote high-quality development? Today (January 18), "Authoritative Interview: Seeking Development and Starting a New Chapter" features a special interview by a CCTV reporter with Zhao Long, Deputy Secretary of the Fujian Provincial Party Committee and Governor of Fujian Province. In 2024, Fujian's provincial GDP is expected to grow by around 5.5%, and its total import and export volume reached 1.99 trillion yuan, hitting a historical high. Zhao Long stated that under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core, Fujian's industrial strength has become more robust, innovation momentum continues to strengthen, and the potential for domestic demand has been rapidly unleashed, achieving new results in high-quality development. The Central Economic Work Conference emphasized vigorously boosting consumption, improving investment efficiency, and expanding domestic demand in an all-round way. This year, Fujian will spare no effort to boost consumption and expand investment, continue to carry out the "All Fujian Enjoy Shopping" activity, and expand the coverage of policies for trade-ins of consumer goods. At the same time, it will expand effective investment, striving to plan and reserve projects with a total investment exceeding 2 trillion yuan, and accelerate the construction of 1,550 provincial key projects. It will promote the integrated development of scientific and technological innovation and industrial innovation, and build a modern industrial system. This year, Fujian will vigorously implement transformation and upgrading by creating the Fuzhou-Xiamen-Quanzhou Innovation Corridor, building eight provincial innovation laboratories, accelerating the implementation of 1,500 traditional industrial technological transformation projects, and promoting the proportion of strategic emerging industries' output value in industries above designated size to exceed 30%.
The Spring Festival travel rush has entered its fifth day, with significant increases in passenger flow for railways, highways, and civil aviation. Transportation departments are optimizing various services to facilitate passenger travel. Data from the 2025 Comprehensive Transport Spring Festival Travel Rush Task Force shows that from the first day of the Spring Festival travel rush to today (January 18), the total cross-regional passenger flow across society will exceed 900 million person-times. Today, the total cross-regional passenger flow across society is expected to reach 207 million person-times, a 7.4% increase from yesterday. National railways are expected to send 13.55 million passengers today, with plans to add 821 passenger trains, new trains concentrated in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, and the Chengdu-Chongqing region. Starting from midnight today, Chengdu East Station will dynamically operate 24-hour open waiting rooms to provide convenience for night travelers. Today, the national highway passenger flow is expected to be 191 million person-times, civil aviation passenger volume 2.26 million person-times, and waterway passenger volume 630,000 person-times, all showing an increasing trend compared to yesterday. This year, 16 domestically produced C919 large aircraft have been put into operation for the Spring Festival travel rush, providing a new option for travelers. In addition, more than 100,000 passengers are expected to travel by cruise during this year's Spring Festival travel rush. Maritime departments are using an integrated supervision and service guarantee system for the first time, making every effort to ensure safe travel for passengers.
As a national intangible cultural heritage, Yangliuqing woodblock New Year paintings are rich in themes, delicate in brushwork, vibrant in colors, and auspicious in meaning. For hundreds of years, they have adorned Chinese New Year celebrations and embodied beautiful wishes. Today (January 18), in "Cultural China Tour," we take you to Yangliuqing, Tianjin, to experience the charm of traditional New Year paintings. At the Tianjin Yangliuqing Woodblock New Year Painting Museum, Greek friends from afar are experiencing the printing of the "Fu" (blessing) character in New Year paintings. Tianjin Yangliuqing woodblock New Year paintings originated in the late Ming Dynasty and have a history of over 400 years. They inherited the painting traditions of the Song and Yuan dynasties, absorbed the woodblock printing techniques of the Ming Dynasty, and combined woodblock color printing with hand-coloring, presenting distinct color characteristics and typical festive atmospheres. New Year painting is "painting the New Year." The painting "Lotus and Fish for Abundance" (Lian Nian You Yu) depicts a baby holding a carp, symbolizing abundant life, and lotus flowers, symbolizing continuous auspiciousness; "Er Jia Chuan Lu" (Two First-Class Scholars) conveys the beautiful wish of passing the imperial examination with honors; "Eight Hundred Autumns" (Ba Bai Qian Qiu), through homophony, expresses wishes for happiness and longevity. In Yangliuqing New Year paintings, carvers use knives as brushes, adding a graceful and rustic woodblock feel to the painter's line drafts; the overprinting technique applies vibrant and full colors to the paintings, bringing them to life on paper; for coloring, a flat brush is dipped in water on one side and paint on the other, sometimes pressed heavily, sometimes gently dabbed, creating shades and illusions of depth and distance, which is quite interesting. The rotating brush technique is used to color the faces of the New Year painting babies, making them festive, cute, and lively; the gold overlay technique applies gold powder to the yellow fish, making them shimmer like they just emerged from the water; the heavy "gold piling and powder drizzling" technique gives the already bright New Year paintings a magnificent aesthetic. From the clever meaning of "Gold and Jade Full House" to the ingenuity of "Lotus Giving Birth to Laurel Seeds," the themes of Yangliuqing New Year paintings, passed down through generations, are rich and diverse in content. Currently, the Tianjin Yangliuqing Woodblock New Year Painting Museum houses over 6,000 printing blocks and more than 20,000 line and color drafts. The nationally renowned and internationally acclaimed Yangliuqing New Year paintings now not only widely influence various types of New Year paintings across China but are also moving towards the world with the vibrant vitality of excellent traditional Chinese culture in inheritance and innovation.
The earthquake relief work for the 6.8 magnitude earthquake in Dingri County, Tibet, is accelerating, with all parties making full efforts to scientifically and efficiently advance various transitional resettlement tasks. As of 6 p.m. on the 17th, 7,303 sets of prefabricated houses have been built in the earthquake-stricken area, 2,548 sets meet occupancy standards, and 7,232 affected people have moved from tents into prefabricated houses. Water, electricity, and heating are gradually being supplied to all resettlement sites, temporary public toilets and garbage collection points are being built, and some resettlement sites have even been connected to broadband internet. The Dingri County Emergency Command for Disaster Relief organized professional personnel to form a health and epidemic prevention work team, which went deep into the disaster area to comprehensively carry out health and epidemic prevention work, conducting all-round disinfection and sterilization in public areas, temporary resettlement sites, garbage collection points, and temporary public toilets, effectively enhancing the public's self-protection awareness and epidemic prevention capabilities.
Multiple Departments Introduce Measures to Strengthen Service Management for Couriers and Online Delivery Riders The Ministry of Social Work of the Central Committee and eight other departments recently jointly introduced measures emphasizing the leading role of Party building, strengthening care and service management for couriers and online delivery riders, helping to solve urgent and difficult problems such as access to buildings, parking, and dining, promoting the construction of harmonious labor relations, and effectively safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of all parties. Courier Industry Ushers in Peak for New Year's Goods Delivery According to the State Post Bureau, since the beginning of 2025, the national express delivery business has been operating at a high level, with a daily average business volume exceeding 550 million parcels. Particularly after the start of the Spring Festival travel rush on January 14, demand for New Year's goods delivery surged. Data shows that from January 14 to 16, the national daily average express delivery volume exceeded 670 million parcels. All Five Large-Span Continuous Beams of Xiongshang High-Speed Railway Completed Yesterday (January 17), the large-span continuous beam of the Yanggu Grand Bridge on the Xiongshang High-Speed Railway was successfully joined. This marks the completion of all five large-span continuous beams along the entire Xiongshang High-Speed Railway. The Xiongshang High-Speed Railway starts from Xiong'an Station of the Beijing-Xiong'an Intercity Railway in the north and ends at Shangqiu Station of the Shanghehang High-Speed Railway in the south, with a total length of 551.97 kilometers and a designed speed of 350 kilometers per hour. It is expected to be completed and opened to traffic in September next year. 2025 "Intangible Cultural Heritage Celebrates New Year, Lights Up Chinese Lanterns" Year of the Snake Lantern Festival and Lantern Arts Event Launched The 2025 "Intangible Cultural Heritage Celebrates New Year, Lights Up Chinese Lanterns" Year of the Snake Lantern Festival and Lantern Arts Exhibition was launched last night (January 17) in Zigong, Sichuan. The event showcased 27 intangible cultural heritage representative projects of lantern festivals and lantern arts from 15 provinces and cities across the country, demonstrating the fruitful achievements in the protection and inheritance of intangible cultural heritage related to lantern festivals and lantern arts.
The Israeli Prime Minister's Office issued a statement today (January 18) announcing that the Israeli cabinet had approved a ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip. On the 17th, the Israeli security cabinet had already voted in favor of the agreement. The Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) issued a statement on the 17th, stating that relevant issues concerning the Gaza ceasefire agreement had been resolved. On the same day, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas issued a statement saying that the Palestinian Authority was prepared to assume "full responsibility" for the Gaza Strip after the war. The Gaza Strip ceasefire agreement will come into effect on January 19, local time. The first phase of the agreement includes a complete ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from densely populated areas of the Gaza Strip, and the release of some detainees by both sides. Yemen's Houthi rebels claim new round of strikes on US and Israeli targets. Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed on the 17th that they launched missile and drone attacks on important targets in the Israeli cities of Tel Aviv, Ashkelon, and Eilat, and attacked the USS Truman aircraft carrier in the Red Sea. According to Houthi-operated media, US forces conducted five airstrikes on a Houthi military base in Yemen's Amran province on the 17th.
The Russian Ministry of Defense stated on the 17th that over the past week, the Russian military conducted 8 concentrated strikes on Ukrainian military targets, gained control of 7 settlements in the Donetsk and Kharkiv regions, and Russian air defense forces intercepted 12 US-made ATACMS missiles, 48 HIMARS rockets, and 747 drones. In addition, the Russian Ministry of Defense also stated that in the Kursk region of Russia, the Russian military has regained approximately 63% of the Ukrainian-controlled areas. Several explosions were heard in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv today (January 18). Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko stated that the Shevchenkivskyi district was hit by Russian missiles. The General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces stated on the 17th that Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks in the directions of Kharkiv, Pokrovsk, and Kursk, and Ukrainian missile units struck Russian command posts and other targets.
Russia and Iran Sign Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty Russian President Vladimir Putin met with visiting Iranian President Pezeshkian in Moscow on January 17, and the two sides signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty. Putin stated after the meeting that the treaty aims to create conditions for stability and sustainable development in Russia, Iran, and the entire Eurasian region. Pezeshkian stated that the signing of the treaty will open a new chapter in Iran-Russia relations, and he emphasized that cooperation between Iran and Russia can counter sanctions from Western countries, including the United States. Nigeria Officially Becomes a BRICS Partner Country Brazil, the rotating chair of BRICS, announced on January 17 that Nigeria has officially become a BRICS partner country. A communiqué from the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Nigeria is the most populous country in Africa and one of Africa's most important economies; Nigeria will work with other BRICS countries to strengthen cooperation with the Global South and global governance. On January 1, eight countries, including Belarus, Bolivia, and Cuba, became BRICS partner countries.
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