A China-Russia-Iran meeting on the Iranian nuclear issue started in Beijing on Friday morning, CCTV News reported.

China's Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu chairs the meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Ryabkov Sergey Alexeevich and Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi, according to China's Foreign Ministry.

A day before the trilateral meeting, Ma met with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Gharibabadi, and said that China attaches great importance to the development of China-Iran relations and is willing to work with Iran to implement the important consensus reached by the heads of state of the two countries.

Ma also reaffirmed China's commitment to firmly supporting each other's core interests, deepening cooperation in various fields, and advancing the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and Iran.

Gharibabadi emphasized that Iran views its relationship with China from a strategic perspective and looks forward to continued mutual support and the safeguarding of shared interests.

The two sides held in-depth discussions on the Iranian nuclear issue. Ma said that China will uphold an objective and fair stance, actively promote dialogue and negotiations, and continue to play a constructive role in the political resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue.

The Iranian diplomat highly appreciated China's efforts in facilitating dialogue on the issue and expressed Iran's willingness to strengthen communication and coordination with China to advance the political resolution process.

In response to a media question about China's expectations for the meeting, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning stated on Thursday that as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and a party to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), China calls for an appropriate resolution of the Iranian nuclear issue through political and diplomatic means, and efforts of safeguarding the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and promoting peace and stability in the Middle East.

The Beijing meeting will be China's latest diplomatic effort with the aim of enhancing communication and coordination on the issue and creating conditions for resuming dialogue and negotiation at an early date, Mao said.

The Tianqiao People's Hospital, a second-class hospital in Jinan, East China's Shandong Province, has been ordered to stop unauthorized use of cell therapy in tumor treatment. Further actions will be taken based on the investigation results in accordance with laws and regulations, local medical authorities said on Sunday.

Both immune cell and stem cell therapies are key areas in global medicine, with increasingly abundant research results. However, their effectiveness or safety is still largely in the verification stage. The high incidence of cancer and the growing population of cancer patients have created a huge clinical demand and commercial market, leading to profit-driven irregularities, according to The Paper.

The immune cell therapy involves extracting immune cells from a patient's body, culturing and expanding them in vitro, and then reinfusing them back into the patient, according to the report by The Paper. This process is akin to increasing the number of "soldiers" attacking tumor cells, thereby enhancing the patient's ability to fight cancer.

However, driven by interests, these cell technologies, which are still at the research stage, are used by some institutions for profit, advertised as miracle drugs or technologies, with patients being treated as experimental targets.

In response to media reports of Tianqiao People's Hospital unapproved implementation of immune cell clinical treatment, Jinan immediately assembled a joint investigation team under the municipal health commission and including multiple departments such as the Municipal Market Supervision Bureau, to investigate the hospital, according to a statement released by the team on Sunday.

After preliminary investigation, the Tianqiao People's Hospital was confirmed to have used unapproved cell therapy. The hospital has been ordered to halt such treatment immediately, and further actions will be taken following legal review, according to the statement.

In response to a media inquiry regarding Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent remarks on India-China ties in a podcast interview, in which he emphasized dialogue over discord, and also noted that differences two neighboring countries are also natural, but our focus is to ensure that these differences don't turn into disputes. That's what we actively work toward, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Monday that Prime Minister Modi's recent positive remarks on China-India relations are appreciated. 

In October last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Modi held a successful meeting in Kazan, providing strategic guidance for improving and developing China-India relations. In recent months, both sides have earnestly implemented the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries, strengthened exchanges and practical cooperation at various levels, and achieved a series of positive outcomes, said Mao.

Mao said that in the 2,000-year history of China-India interactions, friendly exchanges and mutual learning have been the mainstream, contributing significantly to world civilization and human progress. 

As the two largest developing countries, China and India share the common task of national development and revitalization. They should foster mutual understanding, mutual support, and mutual achievement, which aligns with the fundamental interests of their combined 2.8 billion people, meets the shared aspirations of regional countries, and follows the historical trend of the rising Global South. This approach also benefits global peace, stability, and prosperity, said Mao. 

Mao also noted that being partners in mutual achievement and realizing "a cooperative pas de deux of the dragon and the elephant is the only right choice for China and India." China is willing to work with India to fully implement the consensus reached by their leaders, take the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties as an opportunity to advance exchanges and cooperation across various fields and levels, and promote the healthy and stable development of China-India relations.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the need to strengthen ties with China despite past tensions, advocating dialogue over discord and cooperation over conflict during an interview with MIT research scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, which was released on Sunday. Modi also underscored that India and China should engage in healthy and natural competition rather than confrontation,according to Indian media reports. 

Visiting Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said here on Thursday that China is willing to collaborate with Britain to consolidate the positive momentum towards stabilizing and improving bilateral relations.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said this during a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Wang first conveyed the cordial greetings from Chinese President Xi Jinping to Starmer, saying the successful meeting between Xi and Starmer at the end of last year has launched the process of improving and developing China-Britain relations.

Under the strategic guidance of the leaders of the two countries, the recent China-UK Economic and Financial Dialogue has produced fruitful results and exchanges at all levels have been resumed, Wang said.

This demonstrates the huge potential of practical cooperation between the two countries, and also fully proves that the Labour government's rational and pragmatic policy towards China is in line with the interests of the country and people and conforms to the trend of the times, he said.

He said China stands ready to work with Britain to implement the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, deepen and expand cooperation in infrastructure, trade and investment, clean energy and other fields, bringing more benefits to the people of both countries.

Wang noted that the world is becoming volatile and changes unseen in a century are unfolding at a faster pace. As permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, China and Britain should strengthen strategic communication, enhance mutual understanding and trust, demonstrate their responsibilities as major countries, and deepen cooperation in key areas concerning the future of humanity, including climate change, artificial intelligence, and green development, thus to contribute greater certainty and stability to the world, he said.

Starmer asked Wang to convey his sincere greetings to Xi, noting that the current cooperation between Britain and China in various fields has made positive progress. He added that he looks forward to candid and constructive dialogues between the two countries to promote the sustained and stable development of Britain-China relations.

During his visit to Britain, Wang also met with Jonathan Powell, British prime minister's national security adviser, and co-chaired the 10th China-UK Strategic Dialogue with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy.

The first twin giant panda cubs born in Hong Kong made their public debut at Ocean Park Hong Kong on Sunday. According to HK 01, a Hong Kong-based news website, the first group of visitors entered Ocean Park at 10 am to see the twin cubs, and also had the opportunity to see their parents, Ying Ying and Le Le.

Live coverage from HK 01 showed a large crowd of visitors waiting outside Ocean Park on Sunday morning. The first visitor reportedly arrived as early as 6 am. Some visitor brought panda-themed toys.

The park arranged for the public to queue from 10 am to 3 pm to visit the pandas, with an estimated 5,000 people expected daily. Each visitor is allowed to stay for about five minutes, reported Radio Television Hong Kong.

"I arrived at the Ocean Park around 9:30 am, and there were already many people. I didn't get to see panda cubs until around 10:30 am. When I came out at noon, I noticed that the waiting time remained around an hour. Despite the large crowds on the first day, the park's management was well-organized," a 25-year-old panda enthusiast surnamed Wu told the Global Times.

In the livestream on Ocean Park's official website, the twin panda cubs were seen lounging on a tree and playfully interacting.

"The panda cubs are both adorable and lively since the morning," said Wu. Taking advantage of the weekend, Wu had made a special trip from Shenzhen in South China's Guangdong Province to Hong Kong to catch a glimpse of the panda cubs in the first wave. Her RedNote profile and posts are dedicated to pandas, and she also posted three new videos of the cubs on Sunday, which quickly gained numerous likes.

The pair of giant panda cubs was born last August and their parents are Ying Ying and Le Le, the giant pandas gifted by the central government to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR).

During the panda cubs debut ceremony at Ocean Park on Saturday, HKSAR chief executive John Lee Ka-chiu said that Ying Ying is the oldest first-time mother among giant pandas globally. He also stated that the HKSAR government will collaborate with the central government to promote panda conservation efforts and offer a unique experience for both locals and visitors, reported the Xinhua News Agency.

At the Saturday event, Ocean Park presented a video showing the growth of the twin pandas. When born, the female cub weighed about 122 grams, and the male cub weighed around 112 grams. Under the care of the park's team, which provides round-the-clock attention, both cubs have each grown to over 10 kilograms.

The twin cubs have not yet been officially named, and the public has been referring to them as "elder sister" and "younger brother."

Lee also announced the launch of a naming contest, encouraging residents to propose names based on the cubs' physical traits, personalities, interactions, and the endearing moments in their daily lives. The results will be announced in the first half of this year.

Artificial intelligence (AI) robots are gaining traction in Shenzhen, South China's Guangdong Province, with a humanoid robot in Nanshan district now serving as a grid-based community worker and police officer. Powered by DeepSeek's advanced large language models, the AI technology is being utilized in Futian district to enhance administrative governance and improve public services.

A video released Monday by the Guangdong Radio and Television's Chudian new media platform showcases a 1.38-meter-tall humanoid robot in a grid-based community worker's uniform assisting with patrols and inspecting streets, while another robot takes on the role of police officer, shaking hands with officers and waving to the crowd.

The robots are developed by Shenzhen EngineAI Robotics Technology Co. A company representative told the Global Times on Monday that the robots featured in the video are one of three humanoid models launched by the company. The latest version, PM01, comes equipped with optimized algorithms for improved stability and real-world performance.

During the Spring Festival holidays, the humanoid robots, equipped with police gear, accompanied officers on patrol in the streets, according to the Shenzhen government website.

The PM01 is 1.38 centimeters tall, weighs about 40 kilograms, and features 24 degrees of freedom (DoF), achieving a movement speed of two meters a second. It is equipped with a 320-degree rotational motor at the waist, allowing it to perform a wide range of complex movements. The robot features two walking modes: a mechanical gait and a natural humanoid gait, the company representative told the Global Times.

This is not the first time that robots have been used for grassroots governance. Previously, a humanoid robot standing 170 centimeters tall, walking with agile and fluid steps on the streets of Shenzhen, went viral. According to a video posted by the official account of the Nanshan District Government, this robot, SE01, was also developed by the same company.

According to EngineAI Robotics Technology, SE01 can perform human-like actions such as squatting, push-ups, spinning, grabbing and running. For the first time globally, it has successfully overcome the challenge of achieving a natural, human-like walking motion. This breakthrough eliminates the awkward small steps, bent legs and stomping movements common in other robots, enabling a smoother, faster, more stable and graceful gait — bringing robots one step closer to human-like mobility.

Many netizens exclaimed, "The robot's walking motion is so natural and realistic!" Others pointed out that as grid workers face the public and handle complex tasks, it's truly great that robots can be used in community grid management.

Robots can alleviate human resource burden in grassroots governance. As is widely known, traditional grassroots governance often requires significant manpower. The introduction of AI and robots can partially replace human labor, Wang Peng, an associate research fellow at the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times on Monday.

"This allows grassroots personnel to focus more on tasks requiring human intelligence and emotional engagement, such as community care and conflict resolution," Wang added.

The 70 DeepSeek-powered "AI public servants" employed in Shenzhen's Futian district are another example of intelligent grassroots governance, ensuring document format corrections with an accuracy rate of over 95 percent, according to a statement released by the district on Saturday.

The AI employees were built on the full-size DeepSeek R1 model. The 70 digital employees were deployed in 11 functional areas, enhancing efficiency across the government service ecosystem, including document processing, public service, emergency management, as well as business development and investment promotion.

The AI system has reduced the time needed for personalized content generation from five days to just a few minutes. The accuracy of document format corrections exceeds 95 percent, cutting audit times by 90 percent, and the error rate remains below 5 percent.

According to the article, with the assistance of these digital employees, the accuracy in processing public service requests has increased from 70 percent to 95 percent. The safety compliance AI assistant has enhanced rehearsal script generation efficiency by 100 times. The AI investment attraction assistant has streamlined corporate analysis and screening, increasing efficiency by 30 percent. The AI task supervision assistant has boosted cross-departmental task delegation efficiency by 80 percent, and the on-time completion rate has increased by 25 percent.

"Digital employees can significantly improve the efficiency and precision of grassroots governance. They can work around the clock without physiological limitations, responding swiftly to various emergencies," Wang said.

Xiang Ligang, a telecom expert, pointed out that this does not imply AI services will be devoid of human warmth. "When presented with the same facts, these models generate responses that are both engaging and contextually appropriate, enhancing the user experience. This is a valuable aspect," he added.

In response to a question about Vietnam expanding Bai Jiao 10 times by land reclamation, dredging a 299-meter-wide waterway located at the western end of Bai Jiao wide enough to host large vessels including warships, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Wednesday that the Nansha Qundao are China's inherent territory, and Bai Jiao is a part of the Nansha Qundao, according to CCTV News.

China always opposes relevant countries conducting construction activities on illegally-occupied islands and reefs, Guo said.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson responded on Tuesday to questions regarding US withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and the WHO, as well as the US President Donald Trump's claims about the Panama Canal.

In response to the White House's announcement to withdraw from the Paris Agreement on Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said that China expresses concern over the US announcement. 

Guo noted that climate change is a common challenge faced by all humanity, and no country can remain unaffected or isolated from its impact. China will work with all parties, upholding the concept of a community with a shared future for mankind, to actively tackle the challenges of climate change and jointly promote the global green and low-carbon transformation.

Regarding the US withdrawal from the WHO, Guo said that the WHO plays a central and coordinating role in global health governance. The role of the WHO should be strengthened, not weakened. China will continue to support the WHO in fulfilling its responsibilities, deepen international public health cooperation, enhance global health governance, and promote the construction of a community of shared health for humanity.

China's position on issues related to the Panama Canal is consistent and clear, Guo said in response to a question concerning Trump's claim that China was effectively "operating" the Panama Canal and that the US would take back the canal. "I have no additional information to share," Guo said.  

As the Chinese New Year is approaching, the buzz around "China Travel" continues to dominate social media, with foreign tourists showing growing enthusiasm to visit China. Inbound tourism is expected to see a significant growth, hopefully to become a major highlight of the 2025 Spring Festival tourism market, reported the China Central Television (CCTV) on Tuesday.

With the implementation of the newly introduced "240-hour visa-free policy," which allows citizens in 38 countries to enter China without applying for a visa for the purposes of business, tourism, family visits, exchanges and visits and transit, inbound tourism has been experiencing a rapid growth since 2024. 

Latest data from relevant platforms indicates that inbound travel bookings during the Year of the Snake Spring Festival period have increased by 203 percent year-on-year, CCTV reported. During this year's Spring Festival holidays, the number of foreign visitors is likely to reach a record high, said the report.

There has been a recent increase in tourists applying for visas, with the US, Indonesia and Canada among the countries showing the most significant growth in applications for visas to China, a visa agency told the Global Times on Monday. According to relevant policies, these three countries are not included in the list of 38 nations eligible for the 30-day visa exemption.

According to data provided by travel platform Ctrip to the Global Times, in January 2025 (as of January 19), ticket bookings for flights from the US to China increased 130 percent, hotel bookings grew by 55 percent, ticketing services rose by 36 percent, and bookings for leisure activities surged 44 times.

It is not just travelers from the US - visitors from around the world are immersing themselves in Chinese culture during the holidays leading up to the Spring Festival, a tour guide told the Global Times.

At the Temple of Heaven on Tuesday, Juergen and his wife, a German couple, were listening to a guide explaining the history of the temple and sharing knowledge related to Chinese culture. 

Juergen told the Global Times that the visa-free policy was extremely convenient. He shared how he had initially planned to travel to Southeast Asia but made a last-minute decision to visit China for the Spring Festival.

The couple described their travelling experiences over the past two days as "amazing." As an architect, Juergen mentioned that he had visited grand architectural sites like the Great Wall and the Summer Palace, which he found to be far larger and more beautiful than he had imagined.

Dylan, a 24-year-old from Ireland, said he benefited from the visa-free policy, which allows him to embark on a spontaneous 20-day trip to China to meet his girlfriend's family and spend the Spring Festival with them. 

Dylan said that China is bigger, more technologically advanced, and busier than he had imagined, with crowds of people everywhere. He's looking forward to watching this year's Spring Festival Gala and making dumplings with his girlfriend's family. He shared his love for Chinese dumplings, noting that before coming to China, he had only tried fruit and cream-filled dumplings, and was surprised to discover that dumplings here are typically filled with meat.

According to the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, Shanghai welcomed over 6 million international tourists in 2024. Preparations for the bustling Yuyuan Garden Lantern Festival and various performances are well underway.

A Japanese netizen, Imukenbb, introduced Shanghai on TikTok, sharing his experience of visiting the Yuyuan Garden Lantern Festival, themed around moon appreciation. He entered the enchanting garden after 6 pm, enjoying the beautiful combination of traditional Chinese gardens and modern lighting.

A university student from Brazil told the Global Times that he, along with his mother and girlfriend, planned to travel in China for 18 days. They had already visited places such as Shanghai and Chongqing, with Beijing being the last stop on their trip.

He said the most unforgettable part of his experience was the food, particularly hotpot, which he really enjoys, although his girlfriend cannot eat spicy food. While Brazil also has many spicy dishes, he noted that Chinese food has a unique "numbing" flavor, which is very different. Just like Chinese culture, which has many differences compared to Brazil, he added.

"The Chinese dream of national rejuvenation and people's happiness have a huge attraction for foreigners. Many people are eager to experience Chinese cuisine and participate in daily life with younger Chinese people," said Dai Bin, the director of the China Tourism Academy. 

In response to a question regarding Trump’s remarks saying he’d “prefer not to have to impose tariffs on China” during an interview with Fox News, while also claiming that “we have one very big power over China, and that’s tariffs,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning reaffirmed that China has stated its position on this issue many times. 

“China-US economic and trade cooperation is mutually beneficial and win-win. If there are differences and frictions between China and the US, they should be resolved through dialogue and consultation,” said Mao.

“There is no winner in a trade war or tariff war, which serves the interests of neither side nor the world,” Mao noted.