Cutting ties with Taiwan, who's next?

The year of 2024 marks the beginning of the second decade of the development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), a global cooperation platform China proposed in 2013 to support and add vitality to economic globalization and help resolve global development challenges and improve global governance system. How will the "the global project of the century" navigate in the next 10 years? And how should it adapt to cope with the ever-changing global geopolitical landscape? The Global Times (GT) invited a number of Chinese and foreign scholars to share their perspectives. 

BRI's next 10 years development characterized by high quality, people-centered and sustainable approach

BRI's next 10 years development will be characterized by high quality, people-centered, and sustainable approach, this is to ensure that the development best serves the common interests of all countries and benefits of cooperation reach all individuals. 

The West is so jealous of the BRI and has maliciously accused China of engaging in so-called "debt trap diplomacy" to discredit the BRI. That was a complete failure propaganda.

In the next decade, just to avoid any negative view about the BRI, all the BRI investments and collaborations must be transparent and characterized by high quality, people-centered, and sustainable approach. As already people are seeing the tangible benefits, the best way to stop the negative propaganda is to further turn the people of partner countries into more ambassadors.

The BRI also will progress toward new models of growth and development in new fields such as green development, digital cooperation, technology innovation, international cooperation in healthcare. The initiative's next decade goal will be to build a global community with a shared future. This is what many developing nations like Sri Lanka are dreaming of, as some of the Western nations are trying to restrict the development as privilege for them only.

A number of countries including Iran, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, and Ethiopia in recent days have been officially invited to join the BRICS. Over the next decade, the BRI will further synergize with BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), which all represent the Global South that is emerging as a key player in international relations and is demanding a change in the current unfair and Western-centric international world order.

The further development of the BRI will extend its global influence and strengthen trade ties with a wide range of emerging market economies. It will create new economic architecture and find alternative pathways for common currency and payment systems which cannot be weaponized by the US and its Western allies.

I also suggest India join the BRI in the future. This will be a game-changer not only for India and South Asia, but also can benefit the Global South. India will also surely benefit from China's capital and technology know-how. 

The author is the director of Belt & Road Initiative Sri Lanka (BRISL)

BRI keeps shining on diverse global stage despite 'hideous media campaigns, Western-led development approach'

Propelled by in-built features of resilience and sustainability, the new year of 2024 will keep on catalyzing the BRI to spur green growth in all shades of developments.  

Overseas BRI projects will inch toward being greener, with a broader and more transformative focus on environmental sustainability. It emphasized the firm commitment of China, as a responsible international stakeholder, to encourage a low-carbon global economy. 

As a partner country of the BRI, Pakistan will continue to be a beneficiary of a greener BRI vision. With the help of more Chinese companies, it is highly likely that Pakistan's solar energy market size is expected to grow from 1.3 gigawatts to 9.77 gigawatts in coming years. Chinese companies individually and in collaboration with Pakistan's local enterprises have already launched numerous EVs projects in the country, facilitating its greener transformation. 

With regards to challenges, the hideous media campaigns to dwarf the role of BRI on global stage are a major challenge in the next decade. Meanwhile, BRI will continue to face Western-led development approach that encourages protectionism, zero-sum game, de-risking phenomenon, bloc politics and cold-war mentality. 

It is important to note that BRI is not a vehicle of China's economic growth alone, but provides a pathway to shared global prosperity.

The BRI, as an engine of international developmental growth, has immense potential to keep shining across a diverse global stage. It has many dimensions and vibrancies. Across the spectrum of its engagements, the BRI will continue fostering collaboration in an array of domains, spanning economics, culture and ecology. In the past decade, with focus on land-based roads, sea routes, airways and soft connectivity, the BRI has enhanced rules and standards as well as people-to-people connectivity in various arenas like education, culture, sports, tourism, and archeology.

As per my perspective, the BRI and other initiatives proposed by China, such as the Global Development Initiative and Global Security Initiative, will chart out a new course of common global development and build a global community of shared future characterized by multilateralism, co-existence, rule-based world order, mutual respect, peace and harmony.

The opinion is based on an interview with Yasir Habib Khan, president of Institute of International Relations and Media Research in Pakistan.

With strengthened BRI cooperation, Chinese yuan likely to become the third largest global currency in the next decade

There are five focal areas of BRI development looking ahead to the coming decade, including education, new digital basic infrastructure, finance, agriculture and healthcare, some of which are "small yet smart" projects that will significantly improve the livelihood of people in BRI partner countries, especially to the developing countries. The emphasis also echoes with the goal of BRI to build a global community with a shared future. 

Take finance as an example. Some BRI partner countries lack modern financial systems and financial trading markets, a key in financing and the expansion of the private sector. On the other hand, China has mature financial markets, as exemplified by the various stock exchanges in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen as well as the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. Under the BRI, not only will China help the developing countries to build modern financial system, but also in newly emerging fields such as fintech and green financing.  

In the next decade, the global geopolitical landscape will become more complex and present greater uncertainty. It is likely that the US could further abuse dollar hegemony and weaponize the dollar to impose unilateral sanctions that endangers global financial order. Against the backdrop, it is important that BRI partner countries sign more local currency swap deals with China, expand the use of Chinese currency yuan in trade, payment, and global settlement. And the joint building of a global yuan payment system could then provide a shield against arbitrary hegemony practices that could weight on a country's development prospects.  

I believe that with strengthened BRI economic cooperation, the yuan is poised to become the third largest global currency after the dollar and euro in the next decade. The Chinese yuan is currently the world's fifth most traded currency after the dollar, the euro, the UK pound and Japanese yen. Overtaking the Japanese yen could take place in the next three to five years.

The opinion is based on an interview with Liang Haiming, President of Belt and Road Research Institute of Hainan University

The Shanghai Municipal Government has taken major steps to support the online economy, pledging various forms of support including funds, with a focus on advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain.
 
Since January 1, 2024, a total of 20 measures have been implemented to boost the online new economy in a range of areas, according to a notice from the Shanghai Municipal Government that was released on Thursday. 
 
The city vowed to support the listing of online companies that are in line with national strategies, that have made breakthroughs in key core technologies, and have high market recognition. Qualified red chip online companies are also being encouraged to return to the domestic capital market, and platform companies will be supported in listing both in China and overseas. 
 
The notice also vowed to encourage high-quality online new economy enterprises to participate in the construction of the city's AI computing power center and to work jointly to build a multi-level commercial intelligent computing power cluster in the city. Also, the city will support companies in areas such as Web 3.0.
 
Shanghai will also accelerate the construction of urban blockchain infrastructure and improve AI large model innovation capabilities. It will support online new economy enterprises to build large models with international competitiveness, encourage the formation of a data flywheel, accelerate model iteration, and provide special rewards to enterprises that have achieved significant results in accordance with regulations.
 
Notably, the city pledged up to 50 million yuan for projects that are in line with the nation’s and Shanghai’s key strategic and public welfare goals.
 
Shanghai’s latest support measures come amid an increasing focus in China on boosting sci-tech innovation, supporting the private sector and promoting high-quality development. 

Through the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge (HZMB), Chinese mainland residents can take international flights directly from Hong Kong International Airports (HKIA) without entry permit. The new policy, set to take effect on Tuesday, will further facilitate international travel for travelers from the Chinese mainland and drive passenger growth at HKIA.

This policy aims to simplify foreign travel procedures for mainland travelers through HKIA, and take advantage of the airport's direct international flights.

The move is expected to increase mainland passenger traffic at HKIA and create demand and business opportunities for Zhuhai International Airport in South China's Guangdong Province. According to media reports, Zhuhai Airport operates flights to nearly 90 mainland destinations, while HKIA offers direct flights to nearly 200 international destinations.

Zhuhai Airport will also open a multimodal passenger terminal to provide shuttle bus service for passengers traveling to Hong Kong Airport for transit flights. Passengers will board buses at Zhuhai Airport and go directly to the Skypier Terminal of Hong Kong International Airport after completing exit procedures and collecting boarding passes at Zhuhai Highway port. 

Following the implementation of northbound travel for Hong Kong and Macao vehicles, allowing Chinese mainland travelers to travel via HKIA without entry permit will further integrate the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. The action is also conducive to deepening business cooperation between airports in the area. 

The border control of HZMB has set up a designated inspection channel in Zhuhai highway port to differentiate ordinary travelers and travelers to HKIA for inspection, and to provide convenient and high-quality customs clearance services, Lin Meihong, a senior official of HZMB boarder control was quoted as saying.

This policy will further leverage the bridge's central role of connecting the Greater Bay Area and influencing the western part of Guangdong, helping to promote the formation of a world-class airport cluster in the area, Lin said. 

At this stage, Chinese mainland travelers to HKIA will need to check in and complete exit procedures at Zhuhai Highway porter, in the future, travelers traveling via HKIA are expected to be able to complete their flight procedures directly at Zhuhai Airport, according to news.cctv.com. 

HKIA is one of the busiest airports in South China. In the first 10 months of 2023, the airport's passenger traffic had reached 31.4 million, up 9.5 times compared to the same period last year, according to the Airport Authority Hong Kong. 

The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area is accelerating integration and facilitating convenience for  local residents. On Sunday, the Digital Bay Area Development Forum in Guangzhou, South China's Guangdong Province announced a new application which provides integrated transportation, payment and healthcare services to residents of the Greater Bay Area, it is now online on multiple platforms such as Alipay, Wechat, AlipayHK and MPay, according to Chinanews.com.cn. 

A college research team from East China’s Jiangsu Province has recently released China’s first large language model (LLM), a type of artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm that uses deep learning techniques and massively big data sets to help conduct research on Chinese ancient books.  

The LLM for ancient books was designed to intelligently process ancient texts, promote innovative development in the research and preservation of Chinese ancient books, enhance the efficiency and quality of the inheritance of traditional Chinese culture, and facilitate deep integration between LLMs and the processing of ancient books.  

The LLM “Xunzi,” named after Xun Zi, one of the most famous philosophers in ancient China for his Confucian classic Xunzi, contains the vast majority of Chinese ancient books and documents including the collections of the “Complete Library in Four Sections” or “Siku Quanshu,” with a large-scale corpus of over 2 billion Chinese characters and words.  

The research on Chinese traditional classics is a painstaking and laborious work even for scholars and experts, let alone for average learners. Thus, translating ancient texts into modern Chinese is one of its most important functions, Wang Dongbo, professor from College of Information Management of Nanjing Agricultural University in Nanjing, Jiangsu, who led the research team told the Global Times. 

With the model, researchers can swiftly summarize the ancient texts and know about the themes of the ancient books. The model can also extract key information from the ancient texts, such as characters, events and places, to sort out the information with efficiency.  

Besides, the model can also automatically generate ancient poems that comply with grammar and prosody rules with the prompts the users give to it to provide inspiration for poetry lovers. It can also precisely translate ancient texts into modern Chinese to help researchers understand the original meaning and connotation of ancient texts. 

Led by Wang, the research team has been working in the area of digitization of ancient books and documents for a decade. Supported by the presence of the university’s strong computing power and based on the application scenarios provided by Zhonghua Book Company, the research team accomplished China’s first open-source LLM for ancient texts in AI.  

The LLM has been published on websites such as github.com and modelscope.cn as open-source software, allowing users to download and use it for free. 

“We trained Xunzi using big data built on ancient books which can be obtained for free on the internet just like the way OpenAI trained ChatGPT. Although we spent great effort, labor force and money into it, we still share it for free with the aim to encourage more people to study and pay attention to traditional Chinese culture,” Wang said. 

What does it feel like to dive 100 meters deep under the surface of the ocean with one breath? "The hydrostatic pressure will be 11 times than that a person feels on the ground," Xu Tongtong, Chinese freediver and the country's record breaker, told the Global Times in a recent interview.

A person now titled with two record-breaking champions, the 35-year-old Xu is now the first woman of China reaching 100 meters under the sea level in history, after she claimed a gold in Constant weight (CWT) freediving discipline in Asian Freediving Cup in the Philippines in June.

The win of her first 100-meter try gave her courage. 

During July, in another competition she participated in AIDA Panglao Depth Championship in Bohol Island, the Philippines, Xu finished her another 100-meter challenge in the Constant weight bi-fins (CWTB) depth discipline, ranking second place in the world.

"If we compare the 100 meters to the height of a building, it means we are about to jump from the 30th floor to the ground and then climb back to the roof top, with one breath," Xu added. "I feel so happy when I touched and grabbed the tab underwater. 

This was a goal I set for myself three years ago, and I feel nice that the world can see the efforts we made as Chinese freediving athletes," she told the Global Times in an interview on the phone at her home in the Philippines.

The two records Xu set pushed China to reach the next level: Since then the depth record of Chinese women in freediving has entered the 100-meter level.

'First try'

Xu now lives in Boho Island, an area covering an area of 3,269 kilometers and known as top island in the Philippines.

The Boho Island has been boasting its hospitality of the freediving lovers. And it is also among the most popular freediving destinations in the country where international competitions are often held here.

But for Xu, the place means much more than a freediving heaven, as both of the two competitions she participated in with record breaking also took place here in Boho Island.

June's competition is her first ever try in challenging 100 meters freediving. "I made it," recalled Xu. "That was an unprecedented experience for me as I remembered my smile as I swam up out of the surface." 

Before heading to the competition, she undergone a three-month systematic training where her coach developed a training program cut out for her. 

"There were different proportions I needed to devote to in including the physical training and muscle training."

Based on her training plan, the last training Xu had the free diving reached 98 meters under the water. "By two meters deeper during each try, I would reach 100 meters by the time of my competition day."

"This needs a stable state of mind. If you're nervous you fail, but if you're not you win," Xu added.

Explaining the trick of the sport, Xu said that it is the opposite of the others as one needs to calm her/him down to be "as stable as possible in order to slow down the heart rate, which is essential to reduce the oxygen consumption."

A yearn for ocean

Born in Anhui, a landlocked province in East China, the 35-year-old free diver has a nickname Mutou, translated as wood often known by her friends. She also named her social media atlas after Mutou.

She believed in the flexibility of the wood as "a piece of wood can be carved into anything you want. And I wish I can have the quality just as the wood."

Xu started her swimming training as early as 8. Being a professional swimmer, Xu has participated in a string of competitions nationwide, where she won second place as her best result. 

Xu's free diving enlightenment came from a video she accidentally came across on social media. As early as 2012, when she saw the famous French freediving champion Guillaume Néry "flying" in the ocean.

"Normally we swim horizontally, but I never try swimming vertically. And I decided to have a try."

From 2012 to 2017, Xu has traveled to islands across the world for freediving, where she would immerse in the enjoyment the ocean brought her.

"If we carry gas cylinders, the bubbles that pop out will keep those sea creatures from approaching us. We are just 'guests' in the ocean, and in the ocean, we are so small," said Xu.

In the years of her career in ocean, she also received help from Israeli freediving legend Aharon Solomons, who she met in China when the later traveled there for freediving classes.

According to Solomons, freediving is a kind of sport that requires intelligence, commitments and common sense, where he believed that Xu has all of them. 

Among many sports, freediving can be dangerous, but "she has been outstanding," Solomons told the Global Times in an interview.

"I also feel honored that he coached me during my entering stage of the sport, and I've never experienced from a single injury," Xu recalled her experience when learning from Solomons.

Now in Israel, Solomons is still preparing for more competitions as he told the Global Times.

“One, two, three, post the product links!” “Please press the button and give us a thumb-up” “exactly!” the “vibe group,” which means a group of people who are pumping some life into live-streaming and coordinating with live streamers top help steer customers to buy products. The group also billed as the “E-commerce straight man/crosstalk” by Chinese users has stirred a craze in recent weeks on Chinese media platforms such as Douyin and Sina Weibo. 

The “E-commerce crosstalk” is said to earn 8000 yuan ($1,450) per month depending on its wisecrack sentences. “Learning these sentences, you can easily earn over 10,000 yuan ($1,552) per month, quipped by several netizens.” 

For the “E-commerce crosstalk” or people who coordinate with live streamers to help sell their merchandise, it is their specialization. However, others believe that this is confusing to consumers. 

The “E-commerce crosstalk” is also known as the center control of the live stream. The work of the center control spans across the pre, mid and post-stage of the live stream, and needs to be responsible for equipment debugging, backstage operation, maintenance of the live stream order, data review and other contents. 

They usually create a warming vibe to help live streamers sell products such as “I want 100k likes, could you guys help me to get them, please” or “Post product links!” These are normal psychological suggestions for customers which don’t break any of the rules of how to conduct business.  

While, the “E-commerce crosstalk” group doesn’t just control the tempo, they also have another important role—they create a sense of urgency for customers, making them buy now, such as “My friends, the last one! Hurry, buy it now! ” “How many left? No, almost out of stock, only 30 left!” “Buy more today! hurry up my friends! Go to the yellow cart, find the 1st link! Great price, great quality!” 

“These practices are creating an illusion of inventory constraints to mislead customers,” Fan Xiaolin, a Beijing-based lawyer told the Global Times on Wednesday. 

Legally, this is infringement of the consumer’s right by means of crosstalk, bullet chat and false propaganda. And those who bring rhythm to the live stream and cause chaos in the public order of the network will be held criminally liable, he added.

Meanwhile, the law on the protection of the rights of the consumer in China also stipulates that they have the right to be informed, and that consumers have the right to know the truth about the goods they buy, use or services they receive. Operators who provide consumers with information about the quality, performance,  and expiration date of goods or services should be truthful and comprehensive, and advertising or marketing should not be false or misleading.  

The unrealistic atmosphere created by the “E-commerce crosstalk” can easily mislead consumers, causing them to make irrational purchases. The 2020 China Live E-commerce Industry Research Report shows that the average return rate of live e-commerce is as high as 30 percent to 50 percent, which is much higher than the traditional e-commerce return rate of 10 percent to 15 percent. 

To address these concerns, Fan advised that when consumers find that for the sale of goods they encounter false advertising, violation of rights and interests, they can promptly collect evidence and go to the relevant departments to file a complaint or file a lawsuit. They can also ask the seller to pay compensation.

In September of this year, Bozhou Public Security Bureau, East China's Anhui Province, took down an illegal business criminal gang. They were buying cell phones to build a server room, and organize personnel for an e-commerce platform to provide followers of the live stream interaction. They had been posting fake reviews and a false number of sales to increase the popularity of the merchants and improve their sales. 

Italian Ambassador to China Massimo Ambrosetti recently visited South China's Guangdong Province and met with Chen Jianwen, a member of the Standing Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Guangdong Provincial Committee and director of the Publicity Department of the Guangdong Provincial Committee.

Ambassador Ambrosetti recalled Italy's long history of cooperative relations with Guangdong. This relationship is rooted in history and has matured over the centuries through the efforts of important historical figures such as Matteo Ricci, he said. 

During the meeting, Ambrosetti and Chen discussed deepening trade and cultural exchanges, and strengthening of people-to-people contacts between the two countries. Meanwhile, Ambassador Ambrosetti also met with Sun zhiyang, acting mayor of the Guangzhou, capital city of Guangdong . The ambassador recalled the excellent cooperation that has always existed between Italy and Guangzhou, which builds on the friendship that the capital of Guangdong Province has with the Italian cities of Bari, Genoa, Milan, Padua, and Turin.

The ambassador also visited Shenzhen and experienced the rapid development of the city compared to his first visit in 1992. Shenzhen Vice Mayor Wang Shourui introduced its economic and social development situation to the ambassador, while Ambrosetti pointed out that Italy has unrivaled advantages in the fields of industry and fashion, and that there is huge cooperation between Italy and Shenzhen in these fields. 

"Italy is the world's fashion capital and has had a positive impact on the design sector in Shenzhen, where the creativity of Italian designers is particularly appreciated. This year, the relation links between Shenzhen and Italy have also been gradually strengthened due to increased direct flights," he alleged. 

The ambassador also awarded the Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy to Sun Qijie, who is responsible for the Sea World Culture and Arts Center. This is a great honor in Italy, and was awarded to Sun to recognize his contribution to the dissemination of Italian culture in South China.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned on Friday that the relocation of Gaza residents from the north to the south as ordered by the Israeli military is extremely dangerous.

After days of airstrikes, the Israeli military has ordered the Palestinians in Gaza City and its surroundings to move to the south of the territory, said Guterres. "Moving more than 1 million people across a densely populated warzone to a place with no food, water, or accommodation, when the entire territory is under siege, is extremely dangerous - and in some cases, simply not possible."

Hospitals in the south of Gaza are already at capacity and will not be able to accept thousands of new patients from the north. The health system is on the brink of collapse. Morgues are overflowing; 11 healthcare staff have been killed while on duty; and there have been 34 attacks on health facilities in the past few days, he said before walking into a Security Council meeting on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The entire territory of Gaza faces a water crisis as infrastructure has been damaged and there is no electricity to power pumps and desalination plants, he added.

Guterres said the situation in Gaza has reached a dangerous new low.

The horrific terror attacks by Hamas on Israel that killed more than 1,200 people and injured thousands more on Saturday were followed by intense Israeli bombardment of Gaza that has already killed 1,800 people and injured thousands more, he noted.

Guterres called for immediate humanitarian access throughout Gaza so that fuel, food and water can be provided to people in need. He called for respect for international humanitarian law and human rights law, and for the protection of civilians. He also called for the immediate release of hostages in Gaza.

"It is imperative that all parties - and those with influence over them - do everything possible to achieve these steps," said Guterres.

The UN chief also warned against hate speech stoked by the conflict - across the Middle East and around the world.

"Dehumanizing language that incites violence is never accepted. I call on all leaders to speak out against Antisemitism, anti-Muslim bigotry and hate speech of all kinds. This is a time for the international community to come together around protecting civilians and finding a lasting solution to this unending cycle of death and destruction," he said.

The Embassy of Belgium invited Belgians and friends of Belgium in China to the ambassador's residence to celebrate the country's National Day on July 21, which also marked the 10th anniversary of HM King Philippe's accession to the throne.
Departing ambassador Jan Hoogmartens gave a speech that concluded his China chapter for himself and four other Belgian diplomats.

The speech was followed by an artistic showcase by Jehanne de Biolley, a Belgian designer that works in fashion, interior design, fragrance and other artistic mediums, and whose ability to weave her Belgian origins into Chinese culture has been recognized by HM King Philippe. For her achievements, she was granted the title of Knight in the Order of Leopold. 

Guests enjoyed classic Belgian delicacies such as fries, a selection of exquisite beers and the delicious waffles as well.