China's largest dual-fuel driven car-carrying vessel set sail on its maiden voyage from Shanghai to Europe on Wednesday, supporting the country's vehicle exports, according to China Media Group.

The maiden voyage of the vessel will transport a total of 5,000 China-made vehicles to Europe after setting sail from Shanghai and refill at other Chinese ports. At least half of the shipped belong to new-energy vehicles.

The vessel was the first car carrier invested by Chinese ship owner, the SAIC Anji Logistics Co, with largest capacity among world's in-service car carriers, which has a maximum capacity of 7,600 vehicles with over 40,000 tons of displacement. It dual-fuel engine can reduce 40 percent of CO2 emission, according to the report.

Data from China's General Administration of Customs showed that China exported 5.221 million vehicles in 2023, rising 57.4 percent year-on-year.

Shanghai Waigaoqiao port, China's largest port for vehicle export, realized a record 1.025 million vehicle export in 2023, thepaper.cn reported on Wednesday.

To match the nation's newfound strength in the emerging field of vehicle exports, Chinese shipyards are running at full throttle to keep up with demand from shipping companies as well as auto manufacturers.

Over the next three years, a total of 14 car carriers with various capacity levels will join SAIC Anji Logistics Co's transport fleet, further supporting exports of Chinese auto brands, said the report.

In recent years, Britain's Secret Intelligence Service has intensified its attacks on China for alleged spying activities in Britain. However, if the SIS wants to root out operatives working undercover to steal the country's secrets, they should perhaps ask themselves. The arrest of a businessman surnamed Huang by China's Ministry of State Security brings attention to the hypocrisy of the spymasters at MI6.

Huang, the head of an overseas consultancy, is accused of serious offences. He is said to have worked for SIS for about nine years, using the specialist skills and equipment provided to him after being recruited to steal state secrets. The MSS says that behind his façade as a businessman, his undercover job was to collect China-related intelligence for the British espionage agency and identify potential recruits. 

It smacks of double standards. What else would you call repeatedly attacking another state by accusing it of something, and then cynically behaving in the same way?

Last year, the head of MI6, Richard Moore, said in2023 that China presented "an epoch-defining challenge" and that his organization commits more of its resources to Beijing's activities than to any other country. It is not the first time he criticized China. In 2021, he described China ominously as "an authoritarian state, with different values from ours."

The UK's assaults on China come in many forms. They can be a warning of vague, unsubstantiated allegations about individuals having undue influence on British politicians. They can come as personal attacks on people of Chinese heritage simply because they work with influential decision-makers to raise issues of concern to the UK's Chinese community (but without real evidence to back up the slurs). They can even come in the form of sudden arrests by police accusing people of serious espionage offences - and then letting those people go free without charge. A common feature of these events is that they created a great deal of smoke without fire - generating much Sinophobic sentiment fueled by unsupported allegations. Nothing came of them.

The most recent example is of Chris Cash, a researcher in the UK parliament, who was arrested, with an associate, under espionage laws. He could hardly be described as pro-China - he actually worked for an anti-China research group and vehemently denied wrongdoing. The substance of the investigation seems to have been that he had contact with influential politicians interested in Chinese affairs. It looked like guilt by association. Neither he nor his colleague have been charged.

Cash's arrest happened almost a year ago, but it did not become public knowledge until it was leaked to the British media six months later, creating negative publicity, at about the same time that Beijing was hoping to improve China-UK relations at a high level.

Two years ago, Christine Lee, a London-based layer of Chinese origin, was accused by Britain's domestic intelligence service, MI5, of being a spy for Beijing - and yet again, no arrests or charges followed. All that happened was that her reputation - and goodwill toward China - was severely damaged. The agency accused her of being "involved in political interference activities" in the UK. Lawmakers in the House of Commons were also given a so-called "interference alert" - the first issued in at least 80 years. Lee knew nothing about it until she saw media reports branding her "an enemy of the state." She later launched legal action against MI5 in a bid to clear her name.

Britain's intelligence services have clearly identified China as a target for their operations. Is one aspect of that to cast suspicion on people simply because of their Chinese background or with personal connections to China, or with a special interest in China? Why is there so much smoke without any fire, so many accusations without substantiation? In the Huang case London stands accused of doing the very thing it accuses Beijing of doing. It's astonishing hypocrisy, especially when the West has so often been caught out in the past. 

The memorandum of understanding between China and the US on preventing illegal entry of Chinese cultural relics into the US has been extended. The new text will enter into force on Sunday and will be valid for five years, as announced by the National Cultural Heritage Administration on Thursday.

Chinese electric vehicle (EV) producer BYD Co overtook US-based Tesla Inc to become the world's biggest EV maker in the fourth quarter of 2023 for the first time, according to latest data from the companies. This had added another milestone to a historical year for China's auto industry as it's poised to propel China to become the world's biggest auto exporter. 

BYD's success, which also include an impressive growth rate throughout 2023 that outpaced Tesla and other EV makers, is a microcosm of the achievement in China's upgrade of its vast manufacturing industry, export sector and the domestic market - all crucial to China's high-quality development, experts said. 

On Tuesday US time, Tesla said that it delivered 484,500 EVs in the final quarter of 2023, which also marked a new record for the company. However, that means BYD, which said on Monday that it had sold about 526,400 EVs during the same period, overtook Tesla to become the world's biggest EV maker in the fourth quarter of the year for the first time.

For the whole year of 2023, Tesla retained its spot as the biggest EV maker, as it delivered a total of 1.8 million EVs, larger than BYD's total sales of about 1.57 million units. Still, BYD's recorded a year-on-year sales growth rate of 73 percent for 2023, far outpacing Tesla's sales growth of 38 percent. Such sales growth rate has also led many to speculate that BYD will surpass Tesla to become the world's biggest EV maker in 2024. 

This is also significant considering that BYD's market capitalization, at 573.17 billion yuan ($80.21 billion) as of Wednesday, represents only a fraction of Tesla's $778.42 billion. Over the past six months, BYD's shares dropped by 28.85 percent, while Tesla's shares fell by 11.22 percent. 

Despite such a huge gap in the financial market, analysts expect that BYD is well positioned to maintain its lead in EV sales in 2024 over Tesla. 

Hu Qimu, a deputy secretary-general of the digital-real economies integration Forum 50, said BYD's success is due to a slew of factors, including its own technological innovation, major policy support for industrial upgrading, a complete and stable domestic supply chain - which all helped BYD to make high-quality but affordable EVs. 

"Given all these factors, it is no wonder that BYD surpasses Tesla," Hu told the Global Times on Wednesday.  

In a statement it sent to the Global Times, BYD noted that it has grown to be the world's biggest EV company, and since its passenger car export strategy in May 2021, it has exported to 58 countries and regions around the world.

"Going forward, BYD will continue to promote the overseas expansion of passenger cars and continue to accelerate the global expansion of new-energy passenger cars," the company said. 

BYD's milestone also came as China's whole EV sector saw a bumper year in 2023. According to the latest data from the China Association of Automobile Manufactures, in the first 11 months of 2023, China's exports of new-energy vehicles jumped 83.5 percent year-on-year to 1.09 million units. Thanks to such rapid growth, China's total auto exports reached 4.41 units, up 58 percent year-on-year and outnumbering Japan's 3.99 million units during the same period. 

This also represents a landmark event for China's auto industry as it becomes the world's biggest auto exporter after surpassing Japan in 2023 and Germany in 2022 - two countries that had been dominating the world's auto market for decades. 

Industrial upgrading

The success of BYD as well as the whole Chinese EV sector directly reflect solid progress China has made in relentlessly pushing for industrial upgrade and high-quality development, experts said.

Cui Dongshu, secretary general of China Passenger Car Association, said BYD and other Chinese EV makers have benefited greatly from China's vast domestic market as well as the country's efforts to boost industrial transformation and upgrade. 

"The biggest factor behind Chinese EV's success is the technological transformation. In addition, the Chinese market also offered a huge advantage for them to grow," Cui told the Global Times on Wednesday, noting that China's auto industry, especially the EV sector, has seen relatively better growth than other countries around the world thanks to China's policy supports. 

For its success, BYD also pointed to various policies, including China's continued reform and opening-up, support for private businesses and the building of a new development model. 

"Looking back, we feel more and more strongly that it was the reform and opening-up that gave birth to BYD, and it was the new development concept that created huge opportunities that strengthened BYD," the company said in the statement.

Policy support for the EV sector is just part of China's broader effort to transform and upgrade its industrial system, which has become a top priority in the pursuit of high-quality development. The Central Economic Work Conference held in December, which set priorities for economic work for 2024, listed the development of a modern industrial system led by innovation as a top priority.

Hu said that China's industrial transformation and upgrade has made great strides. "Through industrial transformation and upgrade, our international competitiveness is also strengthening and in terms of the macroeconomic situation, all three main drivers have been revitalized," he said. 

One example of industrial upgrade revitalizing China's main economic drivers is the exports of EVs. Lithium batteries and solar panels became a highlight of China's exports in 2023, and they have been described as "the new three items" of China's exports sector, a drastic shift from the previous "three items" of China's exports - clothes, furniture and electronics. 

In the first three quarters of 2023, total exports of "the three new items" jumped by 41.7 percent year-on-year, compared to a mere 0.6 percent in China's total exports during the period due to weak external demand. 

Police in Meigu county in Liangshan, Sichuan, recently received a report from the School of Ecology and Nature Conservation, Beijing Forestry University, which said that a black-necked crane with a tracker for scientific research had remained in a static status for an extended period. The institute asked for an investigation into the condition of the migratory bird. 

The police immediately formed a task force to investigate into the incident in the outskirts of a sparsely populated hamlet. 

After extensive investigations and visits, the police finally tracked down the suspect surnamed Jike. 

Jike confessed under interrogation that he illegally captured and killed the rare species of the endangered wildlife animal black-necked crane. 

According to Jike, he happened to see the big bird resting on the river bank on his way home and the idea of catching and eating the bid just occurred to him. A thought that he soon followed up on.  

According to the judicial appraisal results by a forestry judicial appraisal center in Sichuan, the bird killed by the suspect was a black-necked crane, which is one of China’s national first-class key protected animals. The tracking device tied to the bird’s foot and the serial number show that the black-necked crane was exactly the one that was used for ecological study of migration of the crane by the college institute. 

Jike has been placed under criminal detention by the police for the suspicion of the crime of endangering precious and endangered wildlife animal. The case is currently under further investigation. 

According to media reports, the black-necked crane is the only species of crane endemic to China and is among the 15 crane species that currently exist in the world. It is also the only crane species in the world that grows and breeds on plateaus, earning it the titles of “plateau fairy” and “plateau divine bird.”

China’s top legislature passed regulation on February 24, 2020 to strictly ban the illegal wildlife trade and eliminate bad habits of eating wild animals in China to safeguard people’s health and livelihoods. 

According to China’s Criminal Law, anyone who illegally captures, kills, transports, purchases or sells national protected, precious, endangered wildlife and their products, shall be sentenced to imprisonment for up to five years or faced with criminal detention, along with a fine. 

In cases of serious circumstances, the punishment may be extended to 5-10 years of imprisonment, along with a fine. In particularly severe cases, the sentence may be more than 10 years of imprisonment, along with a fine or confiscation of property and assets. 

Preliminary investigation shows the separation of carriages accident along the Changping Line of Beijing subway on Thursday evening was due to the snowy weather, which affected the train's braking system, resulting in a rear-end collision with the front train, Beijing transportation authorities said on Friday.

Around 11:00 pm on Thursday, the personnel transfer was completed, and the on-site disposal work basically finished. A total of 515 people were sent to the hospital for examination, and 102 people were found to have suffered fractures, with no fatalities, the authorities said on Friday.

According to the authorities' announcement, the accident occurred as a result of the slippery tracks caused by the snowy weather. The preceding train had to make an emergency brake to stop. Unfortunately, the following train was situated in a downhill section, making it difficult to effectively brake due to the snowy conditions.

Beijing transportation authority apologized for the inconvenience, fright, and injuries caused to the passengers in this accident, and vowed to do a good job in carrying out post-accident work and conduct a comprehensive investigation to improve extreme weather operation and emergency response to ensure the safety of operations.

It was at 6:57 pm on Thursday, when a rear-end collision occurred in the section between Xi’erqi to Life Science Park stations of the Changping Line. The municipal government officials immediately went to the scene and set up a working group for on-site accident disposal. The relevant departments including transportation, firefighting, health, public security and emergency response responded quickly and made efforts for rescue, according to the authorities.

As of 6 am on Friday, 423 people have been discharged from hospital, 25 people are under observation, and 67 people are receiving hospital treatment, the authorities said.

On Friday, Beijing Subway apologized again over the incident, while putting in place measures to reduce inconvenience for passengers.

Currently, the Beijing municipal government has established an investigation team for the Changping Line accident, which will further investigate the cause of the accident, evaluate the emergency response, and learn lessons from the accident, effectively carrying out rectification measures.

The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Emergency Management on Tuesday have urgently allocated 200 million yuan ($28 million) in disaster relief funds to northwest China’s Gansu and Qinghai provinces. This funding will support local earthquake relief efforts and ensure the safety of people's lives and property, minimizing the impact and losses caused by the disaster, China Media Group (CMG) reported.

China is stepping up rescue and relief efforts to ensure the safety of people's lives and property after a 6.2-magnitude earthquake shook Jishishan County in northwest China's Gansu Province at midnight Monday.

The State Council has sent a working group to the stricken regions to help guide relief work. Gansu and Qinghai provinces have organized relief support with immediate allocation of relief supplies such as camps and folding beds to impacted areas.

Relief supplies were immediately redeployed from nearby areas, with supplies gradually arriving to impacted communities, China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) told a press conference on Tuesday.

The NDRC has activated emergency response mechanism to ensure energy, electricity, and essential supplies. Efforts are being made to repair damaged power facilities and provide emergency power supply. Food and material reserves are being allocated for disaster relief, a spokesperson from the NDRC said.

The first shipment of 46,100 emergency relief supplies from central and provincial level have been dispatched to the disaster-stricken areas, including cotton tents, quilts, mattresses, folding beds, cotton shoes, and stoves, according to Gansu provincial grain and material reserve bureau. The bureau has also obtained 15 tons of flour for emergency supply in Jishishan.

The State Council's earthquake relief headquarters and the Ministry of Emergency Management have upgraded the national earthquake emergency response to Level II.

At present, the earthquake has led 105 deaths in Gansu and 11 deaths in Qinghai, with damaging basic infrastructure such as water, electricity, transportation, and communications, Xinhua News Agency reported.

Rescue and relief efforts are progressing in an orderly manner, including hazard inspections, evacuation and resettlement of residents, and repair of damaged facilities, China Media Group reported.

The Chengdu FISU World University Games concluded on Tuesday as the hosts, the Chinese delegation, finished with 103 gold, 40 silver and 35 bronze medals to sit at the top of the medal table, setting a new record for the best results for China at a FISU Games.

The world-leading Chinese university swimming team has been the biggest contributor for China's medal haul at the Games, as the Chinese swimmers totaled 18 gold and two bronze medals.

Besides the big stars such as multiple-time gold medalists Qin Haiyang, Zhang Yufei and Li Bingjie, names such as five-time National Para Games gold medalist Peng Huidi, who faces a lasting hearing issue, also took the stage.

The Central South University student, who had to rely on a visual confirmation at the start of the race, compared to her opponents who dive into the pool after hearing the starting horn, is a slow starter in every race. 

However, she had successfully improved her result in the 1,500 meters freestyle by a stunning 32.3 seconds. 

Beyond the outstanding performances delivered by the Chinese delegation, which consisted of a total of 411 athletes participating in all 18 events, the tournament has a lot of memorable moments. 

Communication, understanding

FISU Acting President Leonz Eder said Tuesday that Chengdu has really made all dreams come true as he reviews the Games. 

"What we have witnessed here in Chengdu is state of the art. It's the best we can have. It's really fantastic for the athletes, for the spectators, for everybody," he told reporters. "There's nothing to complain about."

FISU Secretary-General Eric Saintrond believes that hosting the Chengdu Universiade has helped foster China's global image as many young people come to visit the city.

"What you see and hear is different from what people tell you," Saintrond said. "Many people have never been to Chengdu and to China."

As for the impact of the FISU Games on the youth, Acting President Eder affirmed that the Games showcased the importance of communication, understanding, and learning from different cultures. 

He asserted that fostering open dialogue and embracing diverse viewpoints is key to creating a better world.

"In some parts of the world, people stopped talking to each other, but the young generation, they don't know these borders, these frontiers," Eder told the Global Times.

"They talk to each other, they learn their own stories, they tell their own stories, they start to communicate, and these are the students, because the students, they speak different languages, and they have no shy to meet other people, and this is really what we believe is needed to make a better world," Eder said of the young people of the world.

"Don't think that your opinion is the only one in the world. We have so many different opinions, different cultures, based on different histories, not one is better than the other, but go and talk to each other, learn from each other, and this is the basic for creating a better world."

Showcasing Chinese culture

The Chengdu FISU Games, the first international multi-sport tournament held in West China, have also become a platform for athletes worldwide to learn about the diverse Chinese culture.

The cultural fair is among the most popular destinations for athletes every night after their competitions. 

"One of the pillars of FISU is education, culture, and sport. We do not just organize sport event. For us it is important to show the young people to give the opportunity to discover the culture, the richness of every place where we are going," Eder said. 

Saintrond highlighted that after the two postponements of the originally scheduled 2021 event, the Universiade was able to provide more opportunities to students to learn about China. 

Saintrond said China hosting an open Universiade, rather than in a closed loop like Tokyo Olympics and Beijing 2022 due to COVID-19, is of much significance.

"It was not only to open the [Games] Village and allow the people to go out of the Village. It is to open the door to the Chinese culture. That has been extremely important for students," he said. "The sports competition is one thing, but the people have to meet each other, have to make friends to get to learn the culture and the history of other nations." 

As Chengdu moves forward to host future sports events, such as the 2025 World Games, venues and facilities as well as the volunteers and staff for the FISU Games are likely to be involved again.

"These facilities will be used not only for university students, but also for the citizens of Chengdu and the province," Eder said. 

"With these fantastic facilities, you can host future games, whether it's world championships or the World Games .... It's important to use all these venues."

China's mixed martial arts (MMA) athlete Zhang Weili has once again proven that she's the best women's MMA strawweight fighter in the world with a unanimous decision win over Amanda Lemos in the co-main event at the UFC 292 on August 20.

Currently in Beijing after the fight, in which she defended her title for the first time since her second championship win, Zhang is now focused on blending Chinese culture into her future tactics. 

Zhang applauded her opponent's tenacity, noting that credit is due to Lemos' persistence.

"There were a few times when I would see her eyes close when I was punching her, but later her eyes would open up again. I thought that her willpower was great," Zhang told the Global Times in an interview.

In Zhang's view, Lemos, known for her jiu-jitsu skills, is one of the most tenacious opponents she has encountered in recent years, and if the roles were reversed, she doubts she would have withstood such an onslaught of heavy punches. 

"Nearly everyone thinks that I'm poor at ground skills, but I actually won the first 10 matches of my career on the ground," Zhang noted as her win came thanks to her overpowering ground-fighting skills, which involves hand-to-hand combat, against Lemos.

As far as the moniker "hexagon warrior" bestowed upon her by fans for her well-rounded skill set, Zhang considers as a humbling gesture.

"I'm yet to be a hexagon warrior but I'm trying my best to be one," Zhang said. "I think my skills, either ground skills or stand-up combat skills or agility, still need to be honed."

Tactic without tactics

She said the tactic employed against Lemos was to wrap around her "like water" and not give her too much space in any aspect. Using the "tactic without tactics" formula allows her better control of the situation.

The 34-year-old, who has dominated in nearly all of her matches outside of her two losses to Rose Namajunas of the US, has woven the tapestry of Chinese culture into her fighting approach beyond the octagon.

"Now I fight by using a tactic which does not involve any specific tactics," Zhang told the Global Times. 

While on the face of it, Zhang's approach may appear strange, it is credited to the concept "Be water, my friend," famously coined by martial artist Bruce Lee, noting this philosophy guides her movements, emphasizing fluidity and adaptability in the face of adversity.

"I learned this concept at a very young age but it wasn't until recent years that I have developed a deeper understanding of what 'be water' means, which I can blend it into my tactics rather than previously trying to stick to one planned tactic," Zhang said. 

She describes her fighting style as possessing both fluid and solid qualities, allowing her to be agile and efficient. Her use of traditional Chinese martial arts principles, such as the balance of yin, which means something of darkness, and yang, which means life and brightness, has given her a unique edge in the ring. 

"I have benefited a lot from Chinese culture. I hope more people can learn from it and then improve themselves. It's more about studying and learning how to comprehend," she told the Global Times. 

"It's important to learn from what the ancestors have left us, such as sincerity and modesty, and know how to be respectful and grateful," said Zhang. 

Rose to fame

Born in Handan, a city in North China's Hebei Province, Zhang's formative years were characterized by discipline and dedication. 

Zhang was introduced to martial arts at the age of 12. Little did they know that this early influence of modesty and discipline would set the stage for a remarkable athletic journey.

It was not common for girls to seriously pursue martial arts in China, but Zhang's passion burned brighter than the obstacles in her path. She trained diligently, determined to become a skilled fighter.

But it was her entry into the Ultimate Fighting Championship that truly catapulted her into the MMA spotlight. 

Zhang's rise to prominence has not only made her a symbol of hope and empowerment for aspiring fighters in China but also a trailblazer in women's MMA globally. Her influence extends far beyond the ring, as she continues to inspire the next generation of fighters, both in China and around the world. 

Zhang spent some time in 2022 learning tai chi from a master in her hometown.

"When I would use force while wrestling, it would always feel especially hard, but now with the idea of tai chi, everything is curved - there is rigidity and flexibility," Zhang said, noting that when incorporating Tai Chi into her training routine made her realize that wrestling also had soft qualities.

Zhang's winning form has also triggered an increasing number of young people participating in MMA in China. 

It also gives pause to those who claim that championships are only built on the failures of many, which is antithetical to traditional Chinese culture's advocacy for securing victories through subduing opponents without fighting rather than an emphasis on the eventual victory.

"I don't think it is accurate to say that championships are based on the failures of many," Zhang told the Global Times. 

"As long as you practice, at the very least, you will learn a lot from it," she said.