Xi meets with CEOs from Blackstone and Qualcomm
Xi meets with CEOs from Blackstone and Qualcomm
Chinese President Xi Jinping met representatives from the US business, strategic and academic communities in Beijing on Wednesday, as China hosts a series of high-level events this week, demonstrating the country’s commitment to attracting more foreign investment and expanding its opening-up to the world.
The attendees included Evan Greenberg, chairman of the National Committee on US-China Relations (NCUSCR), Stephen Schwarzman, chairman and CEO of the Blackstone Group, Cristiano Amon, president and CEO of Qualcomm, Graham Allison, founding dean of Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government, and Craig Allen, president of the US-China Business Council.
“China’s economy is healthy and sustainable,” Xi said, noting that China’s growth rate was one of the fastest among major economies last year.
Xi said China is planning and implementing a series of major measures to comprehensively deepen reform, foster a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based and internationalized, and provide broader development space for international businesses including US companies.
Xizang celebrates 65th anniversary of democratic reform
People across Southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region have engaged in various celebration activities to mark the 65th anniversary of practicing democratic reform in Xizang, which falls on Thursday. From autocracy to democracy, from poverty to prosperity, and from alienation to freedom, the process of reform has been hailed by local residents and experts as an epoch-making event in the advancement of human rights.
Observers also denounced Western attacks over so-called human rights violations and forced assimilation of culture, noting that they are nothing but fabricated lies out of thin air. A tour of the region will be more than enough to showcase the harmony and unity among various ethnic groups in Xizang, as well as the unremitting efforts of the government to protect and develop local Tibetan culture, they said.
Lhasa, the capital of Xizang, is gearing up for various activities to celebrate this day, including book-sharing seminars and a thousand-person choral competition. Tibet University, a prestigious school in the region located in Lhasa, held a special lecture highlighting the rapid development of Xizang over the past 65 years. The lecturer inspired the audience as he said, “the younger generation, with ideals, abilities, and responsibilities, holds the key to the future of the country and the hope of the nation.”
Taiwan’s military acts in Kinmen ‘provocative,’ bringing risks of escalation for tension with mainland
The Chinese mainland is closely monitoring the actions of Taiwan island’s military around Kinmen. “If they provoke or cause trouble, daring to act rashly, they will surely face failure,” Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said on Wednesday in response to reports that Taiwan island will conduct live-fire drills in April at locations including Kinmen and Lieyu.
Experts said the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities are trying to shape a hard-line image to confront the mainland and please its secessionist voters and Washington, who like to see cross-Straits tension as this can serve its purpose to contain China. However, the DPP will not dare take any extreme action that could really cause military conflict, yet the mainland still needs to be prepared in case of an accident or mistake made by Taiwan’s military.
The DPP authorities recently announced that live-fire drills will be conducted in April in locations including Kinmen and Lieyu, sparking concern across the local community. The island’s military authorities claimed that these actions are part of routine and regular training exercises, without any specific targets.