WORLD

BEIJING | Xinhua |  A light bulb is not something most people would associate with governance. Yet nearly four decades ago, while working in one of the poorest parts of east China’s Fujian Province as the Party chief of Ningde Prefecture, Xi Jinping told local officials that ensuring access to …

WASHINGTON | Xinhua |  U.S. President Donald Trump will “unleash hell” if Iran refuses to make a deal over the ongoing U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Wednesday. “President Trump does not bluff and he is prepared to unleash hell,” she said at a …

TEHRAN, Iran | Xinhua | Iran’s Tehran Times reported Tuesday that Tehran views U.S. calls for negotiations as a deceptive scheme, stressing that it “does not trust these messages,” even as Washington claims progress in talks. U.S. President Donald Trump said Monday that the two sides had held “very good and …

BOAO, Hainan | Xinhua |  The global epicenter of artificial intelligence (AI) development is progressively shifting from Europe and the United States toward Asia, according to a report released Tuesday by the Boao Forum for Asia. “Capitalizing on their substantial digital populations, diverse application ecosystems and coherent policy frameworks, Asian …

BOAO, Hainan | Xinhua |  Digital transformation has emerged as a new engine for sustainable development in Asia, according to a report by the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA) released on Tuesday. Asia has taken the initiative to explore future-orientated development models through digital technologies, striving to translate its diverse …

WASHINGTON | Xinhua | The United States has sent Iran a 15-point peace plan, via Pakistan, in an attempt to end the war with Iran, now in its fourth week, The New York Times reported on Tuesday, citing two unidentified officials. The Trump administration is eager to “find an off-ramp …

The Straight of Hormuz is subject to sovereign laws of Iran and Oman but under international law, it is also an international waterway   COMMENT | NATALIE KLEIN | The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow body of water adjacent to Iran and Oman, which connects the Persian Gulf to the …

TEHRAN | Xinhua | U.S. and Israeli forces attacked gas company offices and the gas pressure reduction station in the central Iranian city of Isfahan, and targeted the gas pipeline of a power plant in Khorramshahr city, Iran’s semi-official Fars news agency reported Tuesday. Meanwhile, the Iranian Foreign Ministry on …

CAIRO, EGYPT | Xinhua | U.S. media reported on Friday that the Pentagon is sending three more warships and more Marines to the Middle East, marking the second such deployment to the region within a week, as the U.S.-Israel-Iran war escalates. What are these additional forces, what is their mission, …

China’s 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) focuses on high-quality development, technological self-reliance, green transition, and national security, with goals for modernization and global engagement by 2035. NEWS ANALYSIS | ROBERT LAWRENCE KUHN | With the 2026 “two sessions” concluded and the 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) now underway, China has reached a …