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NEWS IN CHINA

• China’s Embassy in New Zealand Responds to MFAT Statement on PLA Exercises Around Taiwan: China’s Embassy in New Zealand has rejected a recent statement by New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) expressing “concern” over the People’s Liberation Army’s military exercises around Taiwan island. In a response issued on Thursday, a spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy stated that the MFAT post “confuses right and wrong” and emphasized that China firmly opposes the remarks. The spokesperson reiterated that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China’s territory and emphasized that the Taiwan question is purely China’s internal affair. According to the statement, the current tensions across the Taiwan Straits stem from the Taiwan authorities’ pursuit of “independence” through collusion with foreign forces, as well as external actors that provide backing for such actions. The spokesperson said, these pose the greatest threat to peace and stability in the region. The embassy also emphasized that the one-China principle is a widely recognized international consensus and a basic norm governing international relations. It noted that this principle forms the political foundation of China–New Zealand bilateral relations.
  
  
• Central Government Allocates 512 Million Yuan for Winter Forage Reserves: China’s central government has allocated 512 million yuan in agricultural disaster prevention and relief funds. This has been initiated to support winter forage and fodder reserves. The initiative aims to ensure the safe and stable production of livestock. The funding was jointly announced by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs. The funds will provide support for eight key pastoral regions, which include Inner Mongolia, Sichuan, Yunnan, the Tibet Autonomous Region, Gansu, Qinghai, Ningxia, and Xinjiang, since these areas are major livestock-producing regions and face higher risks during the winter season. The fund will be used to provide subsidies for the purchase and transportation of forage and fodder. The move aims to help local governments build up reserves, ensure enough feed supplies, and lessen the effects of harsh winter conditions on livestock production.
  
  
• China Launches First Local Regulation to Protect Ancient Minority Manuscripts: China’s first local regulation dedicated to the protection and use of ancient books officially took effect in Sichuan Province, marking a milestone in cultural heritage preservation. The Regulations on the Protection and Utilization of Ancient Books in Sichuan Province legally define, for the first time, the status and protection requirements of ethnic minority ancient books at the local level. The regulations cover documents and classics produced before 1911, as well as historically valuable works created between 1912 and 1949 in traditional binding formats. A province-wide survey has identified approximately 230,000 ancient Chinese titles, totaling 1.87 million volumes, along with around 500,000 ancient books from ethnic minorities, ranking Sichuan among the top regions nationwide. To implement the rules, provincial authorities have launched a special plan focusing on minority ancient books, introducing technologies such as non-destructive testing, AI image recognition, and digital databases. Plans also include translating and annotating key works, developing public reading materials, and creating cultural products. The regulations also provide formal legal protection for woodblock printing, benefiting institutions such as the Dege Printing House, which preserves over 320,000 historic printing blocks. During the 14th Five-Year Plan period, Sichuan invested more than 60 million yuan to restore and preserve tens of thousands of rare ancient books.
  
  
• Landmark Progress Achieved in Development of China’s Biggest Logistics Hub: According to the China Railway Guangzhou Group, construction of the Shenzhen Pinghu South Comprehensive Logistics Hub, the nation’s largest single integrated logistics hub, has reached a major milestone with the successful completion of its ground-level railway project. The breakthrough marks the readiness of the hub’s railway transport function and lays a solid foundation for future operations. As one of China’s first 23 national logistics hubs, the project covers a total construction area of about 1.11 million square meters and follows a three-dimensional development model. It integrates railway, highway, and maritime transport, creating a high-efficiency logistics platform featuring rail operations at the lower level, intelligent warehousing above, and a surrounding road network. The newly completed surface-level railway serves as the hub’s core transport artery. About 4.6 kilometers of railway lines were newly built and upgraded within an existing freight yard, including arrival and departure tracks, shunting tracks, and container handling lines. Once fully operational, the railway will connect major lines such as the Hangzhou–Shenzhen and Guangzhou–Shenzhen railways, with an initial annual handling capacity of more than 600,000 TEUs. The hub is expected to handle 30 million tons of cargo annually by 2035.
  
  
• Surge in Travel Activity Sets Positive Tone for Tourism: Strong travel demand is giving China’s tourism industry a positive start in 2026, as New Year holiday trips showed clear signs of rising consumer demand. The three-day holiday became an early test of spending activity after recent policy signals encouraging domestic consumption. Domestic travel led the recovery. Bookings for flights and hotels rose sharply, with many families combining holiday trips, visits to relatives, and year-end celebrations. On the first day of the holiday, hotel reservations jumped significantly compared with last year.  Cultural and entertainment events also boosted travel. New Year’s Eve countdowns, concerts, fireworks shows, and sports events encouraged short trips and overnight stays, increasing demand for hotels in large cities. Outbound travel continued to improve as well. Many overseas tour packages sold out quickly, especially trips to Australia, Europe, and the Middle East. Business travel also showed signs of recovery, with more companies planning team activities. Experts say the holiday data points to a strong indication for more tourism in 2026, with travelers increasingly valuing meaningful experiences and better services.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER

A Young Girl’s Emotional Poetry Recital on the Great Wall Goes Viral on Weibo: A deeply emotional video from the Badaling Great Wall has gone viral on Weibo, featuring a 19-year-old girl from Hunan reciting Qing Ping Le: Liupanshan with tears in her eyes. Traveling alone more than 1,700 kilometers to fulfill her long-held wish of climbing the Great Wall, Chen Xinyan’s emotional recitation struck a chord nationwide. The post with the hashtags #GirlWhoChokedUpRecitingPoetryOnTheGreatWall and #WhyDidHunanGirlsPoetryRecitationOnTheGreatWallEvokeNationwideEmotion has garnered millions of likes. Public reaction has been overwhelmingly emotional and reflective. Many users admitted, “I feel like crying just watching this,” while others praised the enduring power of classical poetry, saying, “The poems of great men still resonate with grandeur today.” One widely shared comment noted how the scene itself amplified the emotion: “The charm of poetry and songs lies in this moment—it inspired my writing.” Some viewers read deeper meaning into her tears, suggesting they weren’t performative but a release of long-held pressure, loneliness, and unspoken struggles. Overall, netizens viewed the moment as a rare blend of youth, history, and personal emotion as proof that the Great Wall and poetry still resonate powerfully with the young generation.

INDIA WATCH

Chinese Media Discusses Differences Between India’s and China’s Views on World War II History: Guancha, a Chinese media outlet, discusses an article by Liu Zongyi, who is a researcher at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies and director of the Center for South Asian Studies, examining why China and India hold fundamentally different views of World War II history. Using Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision not to attend China’s September 3 military parade as a starting point, Liu argues that the divergence is rooted less in diplomacy and more in contrasting historical narratives tied to national identity. According to Liu, China’s mainstream view defines World War II primarily as an anti-fascist war that established the postwar international order centered on the United Nations, while also acknowledging its anti-colonial dimension. India and other South Asian countries, however, emphasize the war as an anti-colonial struggle shaped by their experiences under British rule. In India, World War II is remembered as a conflict imposed by colonial authorities, intensifying demands for independence and exposing deep internal divisions, from Gandhi’s non-violence to Subhas Chandra Bose’s cooperation with Japan. Liu notes that India’s wartime contributions were later ignored, leaving lasting resentment and influencing its historical memory. 

Prepared By

Neha Maurya

Neha Maurya is a fourth-year undergraduate student at FLAME University, pursuing a major in International Studies with a minor in Public Policy. Her research interests lie in strategic studies, governance, and education policy. She aspires to engage in work that links research insights to policy outcomes.