Dinesh Chandra

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers his 2022 New Year Address on New Year's eve. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) -- Xi reviewed the landmark events in the past year, including the elimination of extreme poverty, the Party's centenary celebration and its third historical resolution. -- The country is making confident strides on the path toward great rejuvenation, but to realize the goal will be no easy task like a walk in the park, Xi said. -- Xi confirmed that China has fulfilled the promise of providing 2 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines for the world. -- China is ready for the 2022 Winter Games, Xi said. BEIJING, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday gave a heart-warming speech to see off the "exceptionally significant" year of 2021, acknowledging a series of landmark events and countless "unsung heroes" behind China's march toward great rejuvenation. In the nationally televised and livestreamed speech to ring in 2022, Xi praised ant

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers his 2022 New Year Address through China Media Group and the Internet on New Year's eve. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) BEIJING, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- On New Year's eve, President Xi Jinping delivered his 2022 New Year Address through China Media Group and the Internet. The following is the full text of the address: My greetings to you all. The year 2022 is approaching. From Beijing, I extend New Year wishes to all of you! The past year has been a year of exceptional significance. We have lived through landmark events in the history of our Party and our country. At the historical convergence of the Two Centenary Goals, we have set out on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects and are making confident strides on the path toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. From the beginning to the end of the year, the Chinese people have been hard at work in the fields, enterprises, communities, schools, hospitals, barrack

BEIJING, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday addressed a gathering organized by the country's top political advisory body to ring in the year 2022. Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC), delivered an important speech at the gathering of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Beijing. Senior leaders Li Keqiang, Wang Yang, Wang Huning, Zhao Leji, Han Zheng and Wang Qishan attended the gathering. They were joined by leading officials of China's non-Communist parties and the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, personages with no party affiliation, officials of central Party and government departments, and individuals from various ethnic groups and sectors of society in Beijing. On behalf of the CPC Central Committee, the State Council and the CMC, Xi extended New Year's greetings. Notin

BEIJING, Dec. 31 -- The Chinese PLA Navy's aircraft carrier Liaoning taskforce group successfully completed its combat training in the open sea and returned to the home port in Qingdao on the morning of December 30. During the over-20-day training, the taskforce group sailed across the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea, entered waters of the Western Pacific via the Miyako Strait , and conducted comprehensive exercises on multiple subjects, having effectively improved its joint combat capabilities. On December 9, the taskforce group set sail and went straight to waters off the Yellow Sea. It carried out a number of targeted training such as search and rescue, tactical flight of carrier-based aircraft, and handling of varied air situation . Besides, the taskforce group focused on the all-weather combat capabilities of the carrier-based aircraft and carried out high-intensity, day-to-night, multi-batch ship-based take-off and landing training in an orderly manner. During the voyag

BEIJING, Dec. 31 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, exchanged messages of New Year greetings on Friday. On behalf of the Chinese government and people, Xi extended sincere congratulations and best wishes to Putin and the Russian people. Noting that the year of 2021 marked the 20th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, Xi said he and Putin jointly announced the extension of the treaty, and have led bilateral relations to robust development in the spirit of everlasting friendship and win-win cooperation. The two sides have been committed to a four-point agreement on firmly supporting each other, with their political mutual trust growing ever deeper, he said, adding that they have also worked hard against the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and achieved fruitful results in their all-round practical cooperation. Xi noted that the China-Russia Year of Scientific and Techno

By Zhang Yafei The 2nd echelon of the 12th Chinese peacekeeping medical contingent to South Sudan (Wau) arrives at the mission area. WAU, South Sudan, Dec. 31 -- The 2nd echelon's 29 peacekeepers of the 12th Chinese peacekeeping medical contingent to South Sudan (Wau) arrived at the mission area on December 28 after a 14-day medical quarantine in Juba, capital of South Sudan. This also marked the full deployment of the 12th Chinese medical contingent which will begin its one-year peacekeeping mission. The medical contingent is mainly composed by personnel selected from the 985th Hospital of the Joint Logistic Support Force. It consists of personnel from over 10 clinical and other specialties including orthopedics, general surgery, stomatology, vasculocardiology, obstetrics and gynecology, mainly serving to guarantee the medical security of the UN officials and peacekeeping troops, and assist in the implementation of humanitarian and emergency medical rescue. It is learned th

Screenshot from CCTV BEIJING, Dec. 31 -- Former US drone operators have more than once exposed the killings of innocent committed by the US military. In fact, a certain number of Afghans, employed by the US military, used to operate the US drone to perform air strikes. Now, they were left behind by the US, living in fear for punishment. Some of them stood up and exposed the sin to the media. Considering their safety, the interviewees required their faces to be blurred. Jamal : "We are required to operate the ScanEagle drone for 8 hours in the daytime, and another 8 hours at night. A US company signed an agreement with the then Afghan government, and the US company hired us as operators of the ScanEagle drone." From 2017 to August 2021 (when the US withdrew all troops from Afghanistan), Jamal had been working for the US military as operator of ScanEagle drone. Jamal : "Each of us conducted about 17 to 20 drone strikes every month. Sometimes more, but definitely no

BEIJING, Dec. 31 -- Since the Type-075 amphibious assault ship Hainan LHD was commissioned, a series of training have been launched to improve the troops' capabilities of equipment operation and vessel maneuver, laying a solid foundation for the rapid enhancement of combat effectiveness. source http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2021-12/31/content_10119851.htm

BEIJING, Dec. 31 -- Former US drone operators have more than once exposed the killings of innocent committed by the US military. In fact, a certain number of Afghans, employed by the US military, used to operate the US drone to perform air strikes. Now, they were left behind by the US, living in fear for punishment. Some of them stood up and exposed the sin to the media. Considering their safety, the interviewees required their faces to be blurred. Djamel : “We are required to operate the ScanEagle drone for 8 hours in the daytime, and another 8 hours at night. A US company signed an agreement with the then Afghan government, and the US company hired us as operators of the ScanEagle drone.” From 2017 to August 2021 (when the US withdrew all troops from Afghanistan), Djamel had been working for the US military as operator of ScanEagle drone. Djamel : “Each of us conducted about 17 to 20 drone strikes every month. Sometimes more, but definitely no less.” According to Djamel, he had n

Undated file photo shows a carrier-based J-15 fighter jet taking off during open-sea combat training. The Chinese navy's Liaoning aircraft-carrier formation returned on Dec. 30, 2021 to a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, concluding 20-plus days of open-sea combat training. The exercise, which began on Dec. 9, took the formation into various waters, from the Yellow Sea to the East China Sea and the West Pacific, and has improved the formation's combat capability, according to an official statement. (Photo by Hu Shanmin/Xinhua) BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese navy's Liaoning aircraft-carrier formation returned on Thursday to a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, concluding 20-plus days of open-sea combat training. The exercise, which began on Dec. 9, took the formation into various waters, from the Yellow Sea to the East China Sea and the West Pacific, and has improved the formation's combat capability, a

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese military spokesperson on Thursday expressed strong indignation at and firm opposition to a U.S. defense spending act that contains negative content concerning China. The U.S. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2022, which is full of Cold War mentality and ideological bias, smears China's national defense policy and military and launches groundless accusations against China on issues related to Taiwan and Xinjiang, said Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, at a press conference. It has seriously interfered in China's internal affairs, undermined China-U.S. mutual trust and poisoned relations between the two countries and militaries, Tan said. Tan urged the U.S. side to abandon the zero-sum game mindset, develop an objective and rational perception of China's national defense and military, and stop issuing hostile policies towards China.   source http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2021-12/30

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese military spokesperson on Thursday urged the United States to take a thorough probe into the drone strike in Afghanistan that killed 10 civilians, severely punish involved personnel and bring justice to Afghan people. Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense, made the comment in response to a media query about the U.S. drone strike in Kabul in August that claimed the lives of 10 Afghan civilians, including seven children. Tan said it is a consistent stance of China that any means of fighting, including using armed drones, should be applied in line with the international humanitarian law, especially to discriminate between civilians and armed forces personnel. Justice has still yet to fall on those innocent victims to the drone strike and their families after months, which is a gross trampling on the provisions of international humanitarian law and irony against the U.S. so-called "democracy" and "human rights

BEIJING, Dec. 30 -- "The Type-21 combat uniforms and work uniforms have been successively distributed to all the military members this winter," introduced Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of National Defense (MND), at a regular news briefing on December30, 2021. According to Tan, the series of Typ-21 combat uniforms include the camouflage uniforms and special services uniforms, matching with combat boots. They are used for combat, training, duty-performing, or military operations other than war (MOOTWs). To be specific, the series of camouflage combat uniforms have diverse colors for jungle and desert, while the series of combat uniforms for special services are classified into different styles for ship crew, aircrew and ground crew to meet the needs of personnel in special positions. The combat boots have two types, respectively for use with general purpose and specialized purpose. The Type-21 work uniforms take the jacket style. They are

BEIJING, Dec. 30 -- The US side is urged to give up the concept of zero-sum game, view China's defense and military development in a rational and objective light, and do more to facilitate the healthy development of the China-US relationship, a Chinese defense spokesperson said on Thursday. Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, made the remarks at a regular media briefing when asked to comment on the newly approved US National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA ) for Fiscal Year 2022. Rife with Cold War mentality and ideological bias, the NDAA hypes the “China threat” theory, smears China’s defense policy and military buildup, and makes baseless accusations against China on multiple issues, said Tan, adding that the NDAA has grossly interfered in China’s internal affairs, seriously damaged China’s national sovereignty, security and development interests, severely poisoned the state-to-state and mil-to-mil relations between China and t

BEIJING, Dec. 30 -- Since the beginning of this year, the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) has organized normalized patrols around the Taiwan island, with a view to act decisively against the ill deeds challenging the one-China principle by forces on and out of the island, and defend China's national sovereignty and territorial integrity, a Chinese defense spokesperson said on Thursday. Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, made the remarks at a regular media briefing when asked to comment on the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities' hype about the number of aircraft dispatched by the PLA in patrols around the Taiwan island. Tan said that since the beginning of this year, the PLA has dispatched bombers, reconnaissance aircraft, and fighter jets to carry out normalized patrols around the Taiwan island, routine joint combat readiness patrols around the island with multiple arms and services, and carried out norm

BEIJING, Dec. 30 -- China urges the US to launch a thorough investigation into the deaths of Afghan civilians in drone attack this August, punish the perpetrators, and do justice to the Afghan people, said a Chinese defense spokesperson at a regular press conference on Thursday. Senior Colonel Tan Kefei, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, made this remark when being asked to comment on the recent decision released by US Department of Defense that no punishment would be imposed on the military personnel that had caused the death of ten civilians during the drone attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, this August. Tan said that the Chinese side always holds that all combat approaches and means, including armed drones, must comply with relevant rules of the international humanitarian law, especially on the strict distinction between innocent civilians and combat personnel. He pointed out that the so-called Summit for Democracy led by the US has come to an end recently,

BEIJING, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping will deliver a New Year address to ring in 2022 at 7 p.m. Friday. The speech will be broadcast by major TV and radio channels of the China Media Group, and the websites and new media platforms of major state news organizations.   source http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2021-12/30/content_10119567.htm

BEIJING, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- With the world still overshadowed by the protracted pandemic and scrambling for economic recovery, Chinese President Xi Jinping has offered his vision on and China's approach to overcoming global challenges. Attending a series of bilateral or multilateral cloud events in the past year, Xi has demonstrated China's firm commitment to upholding international justice, helping the world defeat COVID-19, and promoting balanced, coordinated, inclusive, and green development. His pledges and proposals, ranging from providing more vaccines to developing countries and giving top priority to development to phasing down coal consumption, have won wide recognition and are expected to play constructive roles in a post-pandemic world. WALKING THE TALK ON PANDEMIC RESPONSE With new variants of the coronavirus raging globally, vaccines remain humanity's best chance of emerging from the pandemic. Under Xi's leadership, China has provided more COVID-19 va

A Long March-2D carrier rocket carrying the Tianhui-4 satellite blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, Dec. 29, 2021. China on Wednesday successfully sent the Tianhui-4 satellite into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The satellite was launched at 7:13 p.m. (Beijing Time) and has entered its planned orbit. (Photo by Wang Jiangbo/Xinhua) JIUQUAN, Dec. 29 (Xinhua) -- China successfully sent its Tianhui-4 satellite into space on Wednesday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwest of the country. The satellite was launched by a Long March-2D carrier rocket at 7:13 p.m. (Beijing Time) and has entered its planned orbit. The launch marked the 404th flight mission of the Long March series of carrier rockets. It was also the 22nd mission carried out by the launch center this year, setting the country's new record for the number of space launches by a single site within a year. Two manned spaceships, Shenzhou-12 and Shenzh

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, presides over a meeting of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and delivers an important speech. The meeting of criticism and self-criticism, themed on studying the Party's history, stressed carrying forward the Party's great founding spirit and upholding its historical experience from the endeavors over the past century. The meeting was held from Dec. 27 to 28. (Xinhua/Ju Peng) BEIJING, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- A meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee has stressed strengthening the Party members' historical confidence, unity and their fighting spirit. The two-day meeting of criticism and self-criticism, themed on studying the Party's history, stressed carrying forward the Party's great founding spirit and upholding its historical experience from the endeavors over the past century. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the

BEIJING, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- A meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee has stressed strengthening the Party members' historical confidence, unity and their fighting spirit. The two-day meeting of criticism and self-criticism stressed carrying forward the Party's great founding spirit and upholding its historical experience from the endeavors over the past century. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting that ended on Tuesday and delivered an important speech. The meeting reviewed a report on the implementation of the eight-point decision on improving conduct by the Political Bureau in 2021, as well as another report on addressing the practice of formalities for formalities' sake and reducing burden at the grass-roots level in 2021. Afterward, the Political Bureau members spoke one by one, conducting criticism and self-criticism. The meeting noted that 2021 is a milestone year

BEIJING, Dec. 28 (Xinhua) -- A meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee has stressed strengthening the Party members' historical confidence, unity and their fighting spirit. The two-day meeting of criticism and self-criticism stressed carrying forward the Party's great founding spirit and upholding its historical experience from the endeavors over the past century. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, presided over the meeting that ended on Tuesday and delivered an important speech.   source http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2021-12/28/content_10119019.htm

China's new large carrier rocket Long March-5B blasts off from Wenchang Space Launch Center in south China's Hainan Province, May 5, 2020. China's new large carrier rocket Long March-5B made its maiden flight Tuesday, sending the trial version of China's new-generation manned spaceship and a cargo return capsule for test into space. (Photo by Tu Haichao/Xinhua) BEIJING, Dec. 28 -- In 2021, China's space launches have set new records by exceeding 50 times. Wu Yanhua, vice administrator of China National Space Administration (CNSC), said in an interview recently that multiple carrier rockets are under development, which will make their maiden flights in the next few years as scheduled. According to Wu, China is currently developing a heavy carrier rocket with a low-Earth orbit (LEO) carrying capacity between 50 tons and 150 tons. It can send a 150-ton spacecraft into LEO, the same weight of the Tiangong space station, and space vehicles as heavy as 30 tons to the

By Li Xingchao and Wang Yidi BEIJING, Dec. 28 -- In mid December, a brigade with the PLA 78th Group Army held an artillery live-fire assessment, which not only focused on the fire rate and accuracy, but also examined whether the actual damage effect of shells meets expectations. According to the brigade commander, the previous artillery live-fire assessment just required excellent hit, which led to the troops’ one-sided pursuit of shooting speed and range, while little attention was paid to the damage effect. In an assessment last year, although an artilleryman hit all targets, the damage effect was quite limited, and the target weapon systems were still capable of combat. To this end, evaluation on damage effect is highlighted this time. They studied the fatal points of various targets, and set up specially designed targets equipped with steel plate, or fortifications made of different materials, with the possible damage effect being classified into three levels, namely, hit, dam

By Zhuang Xiaohao and Wang Zhehao BEIRUT, Dec. 28 -- The 20th Chinese peacekeeping engineering contingent to Lebanon organized a night defense exercise against the severe local security situation on December 25, which aimed to temper the emergency response capability of peacekeepers. The exercise took place against the backdrop of an unknown attack on the camp. A contingency combat team responded quickly and marched to the target area to seize a favorable position; a medical rescue team rushed to the scene with equipment, followed by the ambulance, to evacuate the wounded after emergency treatment. At the exercise site, all emergencies were dealt with reasonably, with all combat elements in close coordination. "This exercise focused on team coordination, rapid support, self and mutual rescue, etc., which effectively tempered the peacekeepers’ responding capability to contingencies, " said the commanding officer of the contingent. source http://eng.chinamil.com.cn/view/2

Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe meets with Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi via video link in Beijing on the afternoon of December 27, 2021. (Photo by Li Xiaowei) Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe meets with Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi via video link in Beijing on the afternoon of December 27, 2021. (Photo by Li Xiaowei) BEIJING, Dec. 27 -- Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister General Wei Fenghe held video talks with Japanese Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi on Monday. Wei said that China and Japan are important neighbors and cooperative partners, and share a long history of friendly exchanges. Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan. The two sides should follow the important consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries to enhance strategic mutual trust, handle differences properly and achieve win-win cooperation. Speaking of

HONG KONG, Dec. 27-- Recently, the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Hong Kong Garrison organized the joint patrol exercise in the fourth quarter of the year. The army, navy and air force troops assigned to the garrison jointly conducted combat drills on patrol, search and rescue, as well as visit, board, search and seizure (VBSS). At 8:40 a.m., the command post issued the dispatch order and the troops set out for the designated area. At 10 a.m., an army mobile echelon and two air force helicopters began the joint land-air patrol on the Ngong Shuen Chau Bridge. At the same time, the naval warships were assigned to search and rescue the simulated victims who fell into the waters off Hong Kong. After completing search and rescue, the task forces received an order to intercept and verify a suspicious vessel. Under the guidance of the air force’s helicopters, the suspicious vessel was successfully intercepted and inspected by the naval vessels. The exercise, which involved

Aerial photo taken on Sept. 23, 2021 shows farmers operating rice harvesters at Hongguang Village, Changchun City of northeast China's Jilin Province. (Xinhua/Zhang Nan) -- Noting the 20th CPC National Congress to be held in 2022, this year's central rural work conference stressed the special significance of steadily advancing the rural work to fostering a stable and healthy economic environment and keeping the country prosperous and the people at ease. -- President Xi Jinping underscored ensuring the steady development of agriculture and rural areas in responding to multiple risks and challenges. -- After China scored a complete victory in poverty alleviation, the country has shifted its focus to achieve an all-round rural vitalization in its work concerning agriculture, rural areas and farmers. BEIJING, Dec. 26 (Xinhua) -- China has laid out its 2022 priorities for rural development, pledging concrete measures and great efforts to consolidate agriculture and advance r