China

20 April 2022; MEMO: China, on Wednesday, criticised Sweden after a recent incident took place involving the burning of copies of the Muslim holy book, the Quran, Anadolu News Agency reports.

"Freedom of speech cannot be a reason to incite racial or cultural discrimination and tear society apart," said Wang Wenbin, spokesperson of China's Foreign Ministry, referring to the incident that triggered widespread condemnation across the Muslim world.

BEIJING, April 20 (APP): Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Wang Wenbin on Wednesday hoped that Sweden would earnestly respect the religious beliefs of Muslims and other minority groups, protect their lawful rights and interests, and square their words of respecting and protecting freedom of religious belief with actions.

BEIJING, April 20 (APP): China on Wednesday expressed deep concern over escalating violence and conflict between Israel and Palestine, especially the tension in Jerusalem and opposed any unilateral attempt to alter the historical status quo of Jerusalem.

BEIJING, April 20. /TASS/: China has demanded explanations from Washington over Chinese media reports saying the CIA is using a powerful platform, "Beehive", as cyber warfare, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman said at a regular briefing on Wednesday.

"China has expressed its deep concern over the irresponsible and harmful activity on the part of the US government in cyberspace," Wang Wenbin said when asked to comment on the media reports. "We are calling on the US to provide relevant explanations and to immediately stop this activity," the diplomat says.

SHANGHAI, April 20 (Reuters) - China's commercial capital of Shanghai reported no new COVID-19 infections outside quarantine areas in two districts on Wednesday, fanning hopes that the tide is turning in its pandemic battle, as some factories began to return to work.

State media trumpeted the resumption of production by electric car company Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) at its Shanghai plant on Tuesday, after a halt of more than three weeks. 

BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China's civil aviation regulator on Wednesday gave a briefing on a preliminary investigation report on the China Eastern Airlines passenger plane crash in March.

The report contains information about the plane's flight history, crew and maintenance personnel, airworthiness maintenance, wreckage distribution and other issues, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said in a statement.

BEIJING, April 20 (Xinhua) -- China-developed BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) is boosting the country's mobile phone industry by enhancing product performance.

Mobile phones equipped with the BDS-3 short message communication function will soon be available in the consumer market. It will help expand the application and function of smartphones and effectively ensure the safety of people's lives and property, according to the China Satellite Navigation Office.

BEIJING, April 19 (APP): Cheng Xizhong, Visiting Professor of Southwest University of Political Science and Law said on Tuesday said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, China-Pakistan relations would witness a broad-based acceleration in all domains.

“Since being elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, Shehbaz Sharif has repeatedly stressed the need to speed up the construction of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said in a statement issued here.

BEIJING, April 19 (Reuters) - As China's domestic tourism unravels, desperate provinces are slashing ticket prices, offering tax breaks and even begging locals to help save plummeting tourist earnings in a sector that employs tens of millions of people.

The slump in tourism - which includes travel, accommodation and catering - has persisted into 2022 because of wider COVID-related curbs on inter-province travel, lockdowns and endless mass testing, official data shows.

BEIJING, April 19 (Xinhua) -- China will adhere to its dynamic zero-COVID approach as local infections are surging, a spokesperson for the National Health Commission (NHC) said Tuesday.

The World Health Organization said COVID-19 remains a public health emergency of international concern, NHC spokesperson Mi Feng told a press conference, adding that China will keep in place its measures against both imported and local infections.