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NEWS IN CHINA

• Chinese Defense Ministry Says BRICS Nations to Conduct Joint Military Drills Near South Africa: BRICS members are set to hold their first joint maritime exercise under the BRICS framework, China’s Defense Ministry announced on Friday. The drill, named Will for Peace 2026, will take place from January 9 to 16 in the waters and airspace near Simon’s Town, South Africa, with China, Russia, and South Africa participating. The exercise will focus on safeguarding shipping lanes and economic activities, featuring counter-terrorism, hostage-rescue, and maritime strike drills. It will also include professional exchanges, naval vessel visits, and ship tours to strengthen cooperation and interoperability among the participating navies. According to the ministry, the goal is to deepen military exchanges and enhance collective capabilities against maritime security threats. South Africa earlier confirmed the multinational exercise, highlighting its interagency and inter-departmental nature. While China, Russia, and South Africa have held joint drills in 2019 and 2023, experts note that this exercise is the first under the BRICS framework, marking a new stage in defense cooperation. Chinese expert Zhang Junshe stated that the exercise demonstrates BRICS’ commitment to protecting maritime trade routes and global sea lane security, contributing to international maritime stability and peace.
  
  

• Li Qiang Presides Over State Council Executive Meeting: Li Qiang chaired an executive meeting of the State Council on January 9, focusing on boosting domestic demand, improving access to public services, and strengthening ecological protection. The meeting rolled out a coordinated package of fiscal and financial measures aimed at expanding consumption and investment. It stressed closer coordination between fiscal and monetary tools to better guide social capital. To stimulate consumption, the meeting called for improving interest subsidy policies for service-sector operators and personal consumption loans, increasing the supply of high-quality services, and enhancing residents’ spending capacity. To support private investment, it proposed stronger loan subsidies for small and micro businesses, special guarantee programs for private projects, risk-sharing mechanisms for private enterprise bonds, and lower financing costs for equipment upgrades. The meeting also reviewed steps to ensure basic public services are provided based on people’s place of residence. It further focused on expanding public rental housing, improving social insurance coverage, strengthening medical services, and providing better employment services to help migrants integrate into cities. In addition, the meeting approved a revised draft of regulations on nature reserves, emphasizing ecological protection, coordinated development, and improved public service functions under a government-led, multi-party participation framework.
  
  

• State Council Office Reviews Competition in Food Delivery Platform Market: The State Administration for Market Regulation announced that the Office of the State Council’s Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Commission has launched an investigation into competition in the food delivery platform service industry, in line with the Anti-Monopoly Law. Officials emphasized that the Party Central Committee and the State Council highly value the innovation and healthy development of the platform economy. The article states that food delivery platforms have boosted consumption, employment, and innovation; however, recent problems, including subsidy wars, price competition, and traffic congestion, have intensified “involutionary” competition and harmed the Chinese economy. To ensure fair and orderly competition, the Commission will assess monopoly risks and regulate market order to maintain a competitive environment. The investigation will utilize on-site checks, interviews, and questionnaires to examine platform behavior while gathering opinions from operators, workers, consumers, and other stakeholders. Findings will be analyzed to propose corrective measures and strengthen regulatory pressure. Under this assessment, food delivery platforms are required to cooperate fully, uphold compliance responsibilities, prevent monopoly risks, and compete fairly. The goal is to foster innovation, improve service quality, and promote the sustainable and healthy development of the food delivery industry.
  
  

• CPC Publicity Department and MPS Release 2025 “Most Beautiful Grassroots Police” List: The Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and the Ministry of Public Security released the list of “Most Beautiful Grassroots Police Officers” on the occasion of the sixth Chinese People’s Police Day. Rhis was done to study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s essential expositions on public security in the new era, and to strengthen efforts in building a safe and law-based China. Twenty comrades, including Zhang Lei, Lian Jie, Ren Fei, Jin Liang, Feng Jing, Song Liufeng, Cui Hui, Weng Honghua, Song Qinggang, Wan Song, as well as Liao Tianhong, Yan Ming, Tan Jianhua, Zhao Yang, Danzhidaojie, Chen Shaojun, Jumai Abulizi, Lin Fangde, Peng Zedong, and Yi Guiping, were honorably selected for this list. They were selected for their loyalty to the Party, serving the people, enforcing the law impartially and maintaining discipline. Some comrades were a part of the fight against crime, some utilized technology to enhance police work, protect minors, guard borders, and others served communities by addressing people’s urgent concerns. Their actions embodied the promise of “People’s Police for the People,” showing dedication and service. These officers promised that they would remain loyal to the Party, safeguard national security, social stability, and people’s peace.
  
  

• China–Africa People-to-People Exchange Year Officially Launched: The launching ceremony of the 2026 China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges was held on Thursday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, with participants calling for closer dialogue and cooperation between the two civilizations. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi read out a congratulatory letter from President Xi Jinping and delivered a keynote speech. African leaders, including officials from the African Union, the Republic of the Congo and Ethiopia, also addressed the event. This event was also attended by more than 200 representatives from African countries, international organizations and various sectors. Wang said the initiative was jointly agreed upon by Chinese and African leaders, highlighting the importance of mutual learning among civilizations in advancing modernization on both sides. He noted that people-to-people exchanges are the foundation of China-Africa friendship and a key driver of cooperation between the parties. In the face of global instability, Wang called on China and Africa to uphold fairness, strengthen solidarity, and deepen cooperation. African leaders welcomed the initiative, stating that it would open a new chapter in Africa-China relations and expand cooperation in culture, education, tourism, and youth exchanges. They reaffirmed their support for collaboration under the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the Belt and Road Initiative, with the intent to promote shared development and peace.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER

Weibo Debates Mother Barred from Women’s Bathhouse with Toddler Son: A post with the hashtag #MotherRefusedEntryToWomensBathhouseWith2YearOldSon has gone viral on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, sparking heated debate. The controversy centers on a woman in Zhejiang who was stopped from entering a women’s bathhouse on January 8 after bringing her 2-year-old son with her. The shop said it had rules prohibiting boys from entering the women’s bathing area and offered to arrange a male staff member to help look after the child, but an argument followed. The woman later posted a video saying she had not been informed of the rule during a previous visit and tearfully said that “the world is making things difficult for women raising children alone.” She added that the shop has since put up clear signs stating that boys are not allowed. The incident quickly ignited online discussion. Many netizens sided with the bathhouse, arguing that allowing boys inside could make other female customers uncomfortable and that businesses must protect women’s privacy. Some questioned whether the woman should understand basic gender boundaries in public spaces, while others called for clearer advance notice from businesses. Another group of netizens expressed sympathy, raising questions about how single mothers should manage childcare in public facilities.

INDIA WATCH

Chinese Media Discusses U.S.-India Trade Standoff Over Modi-Trump Call: Sina, a Chinese media outlet, reported on growing tensions in U.S.-India trade talks, following remarks by U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick in a podcast on January 9. According to Reuters, Lutnick stated that Washington has not yet reached a trade agreement with India because Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not personally called U.S. President Donald Trump to advance the deal. Lutnick stated that technical preparations were complete, but emphasized that “it has to be Modi who calls Trump,” adding that this step has not yet happened. The report noted that the U.S. government plans to impose punitive tariffs on Indian goods in August 2025, citing India’s imports of Russian oil. These measures would raise the overall tariff rate on Indian exports to the U.S. to 50 percent. Although negotiations are ongoing, Trump has warned that tariffs could be raised further if India fails to curb its purchases of Russian energy as demanded by Washington. The article cited Bloomberg which previously reported that Indian exporters see January as a critical month for negotiations, as it will determine whether a new bilateral trade agreement can be signed in the first half of 2026. Finally, the article concluded that the punitive tariffs have already begun to affect India’s export orders by the end of 2025, adding pressure on both sides to reach a deal.

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.