CiCM 26th February 2025

NEWS IN CHINA

China willing to work with the U.S. for mutually beneficial business cooperation: Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen stated during a meeting with a U.S. company counsellor that China is willing to enhance cooperation with the United States to create a stable and sound policy environment for mutually beneficial cooperation between the business communities of the two nations. The two officials exchanged views on various topics including U.S.-China economic and trade ties. China-U.S. trade relations are mutually beneficial to both nations hence they should refrain from choosing conflict or confrontation, said Wang. He also stressed that the two countries should enhance cooperation based on mutual respect, win-win cooperation and peaceful coexistence. The commerce vice minister also stated that China’s high-quality economic development will provide more opportunities for investment in foreign-funded enterprises. Also present during the conversation was Myron Brilliant, senior counsellor to Albright Stonebridge Group, who referred to the broad opportunities for economic and trade cooperation between the two nations. He also expressed that he hopes to witness the two governments enhance dialogue and communication, building more bridges than walls.
Xi Urges New Responsibilities in Advancing Modernization: Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, has called on senior Party leaders to take on new responsibilities and introduce new strategies to advance Chinese modernization. Xi made his remarks following the examination of the yearly work reports submitted by senior Party officials to the CPC Central Committee and the general secretary. Xi highlighted the demanding task of advancing reforms and development while maintaining stability, as this year marks the final year of the 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) and is vital for further comprehensively deepening reform. The general secretary underlined the importance of robustly implementing the critical policies and decisions set by the CPC Central Committee and to accomplish the goals specified in the 14th Five-Year Plan with great effectiveness, to lay a solid groundwork for a successful start to the upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) phase. Xi also encouraged a measured response to challenges arising from shifting dynamics both at home and abroad, expediting the development of a new growth framework, furthering extensive reforms, enhancing high-quality openness, and promoting sustained economic recovery and expansion. Xi also encouraged the officials to increase research and studies, adhere closely to the central Party leadership's eight-point guideline on improving behaviour, and proactively fulfil their political responsibilities for Party self-governance.
Chinese VP meets with New Zealand deputy PM for diplomatic talks: Chinese Vice President Han Zheng met with Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of New Zealand Winston Peters in Beijing to provide strategic guidance for the continued development of China – New Zealand relations. As the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership enters its second decade, Han said China attaches great importance to the development of China-New Zealand relations and stands ready to work with New Zealand to implement the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries. Peters said New Zealand attaches importance to developing relations with China and is willing to strengthen dialogue, enhance understanding, and deepen economic and trade cooperation as China's partner. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized the need for mutually beneficial cooperation, focusing on upgrading economic and trade cooperation, launching negative list negotiations on service trade, and jointly building new growth engines such as artificial intelligence, green economy, and coping with climate change.
China Cracks Down on Deep Seek Trademark Misuse mid AI Boom: China’s National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA) has rejected 63 trademark applications attempting to exploit Deep Seek, an AI startup known for its high-performance language models. The decision was made after businesses and individuals attempted to exploit Deep Seek's global success through IP agencies. CNIPA condemned these ‘malicious trademark registrations’ involving trademark squatting, appropriation, and imitation. The move comes as China intensifies efforts to combat fraudulent trademark registrations nationwide, extending enforcement to e-commerce and livestreaming platforms. The regulator aims to support technological innovation and ensure the integrity of intellectual property rights and the growing AI sector. The decision comes as the country continues to fight against fraudulent networks.
Senior CPC Officials Calls for Firm Action on Taiwan Reunification: Wang Huning, a senior official in the Communist Party of China (CPC), has highlighted the importance of maintaining the initiative and the ability to direct interactions across the Taiwan Straits. Addressing a work conference on Taiwan matters in Beijing from Tuesday to Wednesday, Wang, a member of the CPC Central Committee's Standing Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, called for determined measures to advance national reunification. Highlighting the importance of “upholding the one-China principle” and the 1992 Consensus, he called for unity with Taiwanese compatriots, providing robust support to patriots in Taiwan who pursue reunification, and firmly opposing provocations aimed at Taiwan independence. Wang spoke on the importance of enhancing exchanges and collaboration across the Straits, boosting interactions among people, supporting Taiwan-funded businesses on the mainland, and creating conducive conditions for young people from Taiwan to realize their dreams on the mainland. He mentioned that the joint progress of both parties needs to be improved so that Taiwanese individuals can reap the benefits of the opportunities and outcomes of “Chinese modernization”.

SOCIAL MEDIA CHATTER

Mountain resembling a puppy goes viral across China: A post shared by Shanghai-based designer Guo Qingshan on Valentine’s Day, captioned ‘Puppy Mountain,’ went viral on social media. The photo was taken while the user was hiking in Zigui county of Yichang city, central China’s Hubei Province. The post quickly gained popularity, generating over 120,000 likes within just 12 days and generated a range of comments on the social media platform Red Note. The hashtag used to circulate the post was xiaogoushan, meaning "Puppy Mountain." Many shared pictures of a similar animal shaped mountain they had discovered. The viral post has now started a search collection – on searching “Puppy Mountain” on Red Note, one can find a collection of individuals sharing their photos of the mountain, some even bringing their dogs along to take photos. People also grew curious about the exact location of the spot and asked if the spot can be visited. Local authorities cautioned that the spot is in a remote area with no roads and a challenging terrain. As it has not been developed into an official tourist site, the spot has remained as a hidden gem for visitors but many without trekking experience are advised to avoid visiting the place unprepared.

INDIA WATCH

Global Times report Indian media’s close watch on Bangladesh friendship delegation to China: A friendship delegation from Bangladesh comprising of political party leaders, think tank representative, media and youth delegates has embarked on a visit to China. The Chinese news media has reported that this visit has drawn close attention from some Indian media channels, further stating that the reports reflect concern on part of India. This “anxiety”, as the Chinese media chose to call, is due to India’s perception of changes in Bangladesh’s domestic political dynamics, prompting heightened observation toward China-Bangladesh ties. The media source also called this anxiety unnecessary as both, China and Bangladesh, pursue relations based on mutual respect, non-interference and their relations do not target or harm any other nations’ interests. The news report mentions various titles used by Indian media sources, invoking agencies like Firstpost and NDTV which contextualized this visit to China amidst rising diplomatic tensions between Bangladesh and India. Liu Zongyi, director of the Center for South Asia Studies at the Shanghai Institutes for International Studies, told the Global Times that India has long valued Bangladesh in its sphere of influence and the changes in Bangladesh’s leadership has contributed to India’s increasing anxiety. Some worry, said Liu, that the current interim government might adopt a different stance toward India and this potential shift could prompt heightened vigilance toward any China-Bangladesh collaboration.

Prepared By

Riddhi Deokar

Riddhi Deokar is a Second-year bachelor’s student pursuing Global Affairs with a minor in Public Policy at OP Jindal Global University. She exudes a strong interest in learning and researching about Northeast Asian and Middle Eastern dynamics, specifically learning about China’s equation with the two regions. She endeavours to contribute to solutions addressing gender issues in the political realm. She pursues her linguistic aspirations, learning French and Mandarin. She is also a TEDx speaker, spreading her message about the theory of 'Relative Happiness'. Understanding varied perspectives and keeping an open mind while analysing and researching global issues is an effort she keeps making.