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NEWS IN CHINA 

• Wang Yi Speaks to Pakistan's Foreign Minister Regarding Mediation Efforts: Foreign Minister Wang Yi spoke on phone with Pakistan's Foreign Minister, Ishaq Dar, regarding the mediation efforts by Pakistan between Iran and the USA. Dar gave a comprehensive overview of the briefing on the Pakistani mediation efforts in the talks and reiterated that Pakistan is willing to maintain close communication and co-operation with China to jointly play a positive role in achieving peace. Wang Yi reiterated China's principled position and praised Pakistan for facilitating the temporary ceasefire between the US and Iran by hosting the Islamabad talks. Wang Yi highlighted that the current peace is extremely fragile and the regional situation is at a critical juncture. He emphasised that the urgent task is to prevent the resumption of hostilities and maintain the momentum of the ceasefire. Wang Yi also emphasised the significance of the Five-point initiative by China and Pakistan on restoring peace and stability in the Gulf and the Middle East, which reflects the international community's consensus on peace and can serve as a direction for the resolution of the ongoing issues. Wang stated that China welcomes a greater role played by Pakistan, and is willing to work with the international community to continue making contributions for the early restoration of peace and stability in the Middle East.
  
  

• Ministry of Education Plans to Integrate AI into Classrooms: The Ministry of Education stated that the  "AI Plus Education" initiative will be launched aiming to integrate AI into classrooms as China accelerates efforts to develop AI and adapt it to its economy. The plan lays out steps to speed the rollout of AI education in primary and secondary schools, including the introduction of dedicated courses to integrate AI as a subject across disciplines. For universities, the plan proposes AI as part of the basic curriculum, and colleges will be urged to design interdisciplinary courses that pair AI with other fields. Further universities will also realign programs with evolving industries and add courses that meet the demands of emerging technologies and new business models. Additionally, the plan also proposes using AI to support teaching, such as expanding digital tools to ease teachers' workloads, proposing use of AI to analyze classroom interactions, offering teachers insights to refine their instruction, using AI in homework management, and advancing intelligent Q&A and grading.  Further, the plan also proposes incorporating AI into teacher qualification exams and certification processes. The initial incorporation of AI into national planning  was laid down a decade ago in China in the 13th Five-Year Plan. The 15th Five-Year Plan emphasizes the need to secure a leading position in the AI industry and encourages large-scale application of AI in key sectors and fields.
  
  

• China Issues Rules on Foreign States' Unlawful Extraterritorial Jurisdiction: Chinese Premier Li Qiang signed a State Council decree for a new set of rules on countering foreign states' unlawful extraterritorial jurisdiction measures. As per the rules, extra-territorial jurisdiction measures refer to actions taken by a foreign country that violate international law and basic norms governing international relations that harm China's sovereignty, security and development interests or legitimate rights and interests of Chinese citizens and organisations. The rules stipulate that the Chinese government has the authority to take countermeasures in response to such actions. Additionally, the rules also state that the Chinese government has the authority to exercise extraterritorial jurisdiction over relevant conduct if a sufficient nexus exists. The regulations establish a system of a malicious entity list targeting foreign organizations and individuals that promote, participate in the implementation of a foreign state's unlawful extraterritorial jurisdiction measures. The regulations also state that no organization or individual shall enforce or assist in enforcing such unlawful jurisdiction measures. The regulations state that Chinese citizens and organizations affected by unlawful extraterritorial jurisdiction measures may file lawsuits against those enforcing them and that government authorities will provide guidance and support for such legal actions.
  
  

• Ministry of Public Security Organizes Campaign on Governance: The Political Department of the Ministry of Public Security issued a notice to carry out a nationwide publicity campaign themed "Strengthening Governance, Protecting People's Safety and Promoting Development" in public security organs from April 2026 until January 2027. The notice emphasizes the significance of closely integrating the campaign with education, training,  establishing a correct view of performance, adherence to scientific planning, and promoting it in an orderly manner to safeguard national security and social stability. Further, the campaign calls for focusing on efficient governance, promoting the strengthening and innovation of social governance by public security organs. The campaign focuses on other key aspects, including promoting optimization of policies and measures that benefit the people and their businesses, and actively serving high-quality development. It further calls for making optimal use of communication platforms to continuously reflect the new developments and progress made by various localities in promoting the project to enhance the new combat abilities of public security organs.
  
  

• Auto Makers Launch Application to Address Chokepoint Material Problems: Nearly 30 Chinese automakers, parts suppliers and auto material companies jointly launched  a Strategic Materials Innovation Application Platform. Companies participating in the platform's launch ceremony included BYD, Geely, SAIC, Dongfeng, Li Auto, PPG, Kingfa Science and Technology, among others. China EV100, one of the initiators of the platform, announced that the  application will address critical chokepoint material problems in the vehicle industry. The safety of the domestic industrial supply chain was highlighted by several industry analysts as the number of components in a vehicle typically exceeds 10,000. The launch of the platform was announced during the Intelligent Electric Vehicle Development Forum hosted by China EV100. The platform aims to build a comprehensive collaborative innovation system covering vehicle manufacturers, parts suppliers and material companies, helping accelerate the application of advanced new materials in the automotive sector. The initiative will also provide strong support for the security and self-reliance of China's new strategic materials. 

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER 

Netizens Discuss Upcoming Launch of Elon Musk's Communication  Application: The hashtags #Musk'sWeChat #Musk'sWeChattoLaunchonApril17# and #Musk'sWeChatSupportsSimplifiedChinese# have been trending on the social media platform Weibo. Multiple users are discussing the launch of an independent encrypted communication application called XChat on the Apple App Store scheduled on 17 April, following an announcement by Elon Musk on his X social media account. The application's feature of supporting simplified Chinese has captured the attention of many users. The application will be made available for pre-ordering in the Chinese mainland via an app store link. Many users have expressed suspicion on the launch of the application with comments expressing risk of scams due to phone numbers not being linked to the app to the potential for collection of vital information via the app. Others have also highlighted that the app seems to be a copy of the Chinese application WeChat with comments expressing satisfaction that Chinese apps are gaining acceptance. Some netizens expressed surprise that the US is now copying Chinese apps and many users showed interest in wanting to compare XChat with WeChat following the launch of the app. 

INDIA WATCH 

Chinese Media Discusses India's Decision to Withdraw From Bidding for Climate Conference: An article in Toutiao discusses India's decision to withdraw its bid from hosting the 33rd UN Climate Change Conference. The article describes the decision as rational and in line with India's due consideration of strengths and global perceptions. It notes that several climate activists within India have characterised the decision as missing a strategic opportunity and a failure to demonstrate its leadership as seen during the G20 Presidency. Referring to the Global AI Summit held in New Delhi and the controversy involving Chinese-made robots, the article argues that India lags behind in fields such as AI and humanoid robots as compared to China and the US by a significant margin. The article also cites research on sampling surveys of the Ganges River and its tributaries. The Ganges and its tributaries have high amounts of heavy metals such as cadmium, mercury, and lead, and as a result, there is minimal presence of marine life in the waters. Additionally, it also notes the presence of several chemical plants located upstream and downstream of the river. The article further argues that India’s approach that developed countries should help developing countries in climate change mitigation will not help its efforts as they have to develop a comprehensive plan suited to their own national conditions. 

Prepared By

Rituja Ghosh

Rituja Ghosh is a Research and Administrative Intern at Organisation for Research on China and Asia (ORCA). She holds a master's in International Relations from South Asian University, New Delhi. She has presented her work in several prestigious conferences, such as the paper titled "Sinicization in the People's Republic of China: An Analysis of Language Policies" at the 16th All India Conference on China Studies. She has previously worked as a Security Analyst with a corporate firm and as an Academic Associate at the Kautilya School of Public Policy, Hyderabad. Her interests lie in studying the politics of South Asia, India-China relations and China’s social and cultural policies.