The Point with Liu Xin

TikTok is back online, after going dark for 12 hours. It chose to shut itself down over divestment. The abrupt disappearance came just minutes before a US law banning the app took effect on Sunday, and one day before Donald Trump returns to power. But now, the app, along with its 170 million American users, about half the country's population, thanks him for restoring its operation. Days earlier,...

Following the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that struck southwest China's Xizang, the Chinese President ordered all-out rescue efforts to save lives and minimize casualties. The quake hit the remote border county of Dingri on Tuesday morning, killing 126 people so far, injuring 188 more and damaging over one thousand houses. Rescue teams were immediately mobilized in a race against time despite the hig...

The World Bank raised its forecast for China's economic growth in 2024 and 2025 on Dec 26th of 2024, but cautioned against challenges such as household and business confidence, and headwinds in the property sector. China has emphasized the need to maintain steady economic growth, keep employment and prices generally stable, ensure a basic equilibrium in the balance of payments, and increase reside...

In his 2025 New Year address, President Xi Jinping expressed his expectation for both sides of the Taiwan Strait to work together toward a shared and prosperous future. In recent years, cross-Strait relations have grown increasingly complex. To better understand the trajectory of the evolving dynamics, host Liu Xin spoke with Wu Jung-yuan, chairman of Taiwan's Labor Party, the island's prominent l...

In recent years, developing countries have demanded a stronger voice in global governance. The BRICS mechanism has become an increasingly vital platform for fostering unity and cooperation among Global South nations. Following its expansion in early 2024, BRICS will soon include nine additional partners, including Indonesia, Belarus, Bolivia, Uganda and others. The year 2025 will also mark the 70t...

Harbin, China's iconic winter city, is once again turning snow into gold with its traditional Ice and Snow Festival. Harbin in Heilongjiang Province is pulling out all the stops to grow its winter economy. Other cities in Northern China have long been following suit, and even eastern and southern cities now want a piece of the action to boost tourism and consumption. How should these cities go abo...

The Philippines' planned acquisition of the U.S. Typhon missile system has stirred up fresh tension in the South China Sea. China has slammed the move as dangerous provocation, calling it a reckless act that fuels confrontation and jeopardizes regional stability. With unilateral policies and foreign meddling meant to disrupt peace, can dialogue win over conflict?

In today's world, international disputes over maritime boundaries and territorial sovereignty remain widespread. The UN Charter encourages all member states to resolve disputes through peaceful means, such as negotiation and consultation. However, in practice, some countries often pursue unilateral maritime policies, disregarding the rights and claims of other nations, undermining regional maritim...

"One Country, Two Systems is a good policy that must be upheld for a long time." Chinese President Xi Jinping made the remarks in Macao while attending a ceremony to mark the 25th anniversary of the city's return to the motherland. Two days ahead of the celebration, he arrived in Macao for extensive and in-depth exchanges with locals. He praised the people of Macao for writing "a new chapter in th...

As cities around the world continue to grow and become more densely populated, government hotlines for reporting public concerns have become crucial in effective governance. In 2019, Beijing implemented the 12345 hotline, merging 64 previous hotlines into a single channel, and so far, people have been giving it a thumbs-up with a 97% satisfaction rate. So how does the service work? How does it com...

China's economy is set for a major shake-up in 2025. China stressed plans to boost growth in a high-level economic planning meeting that wrapped up last Thursday. The annual meeting noted that the Chinese economy has posted generally stable performance while making progress in 2024, but also recognized the need to face up to the difficulties. For next year, the meeting called for a proactive fisca...

Over the past two days, China's top leadership gathered in Beijing to review this year's economic performance and set out tasks for next year. During the much-anticipated annual Central Economic Work Conference, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced vigorous efforts to boost consumption, improve investment efficiency, and expand domestic demand on all fronts. He called for more proactive and impa...

For decades, some Western media outlets have predicted the collapse of the Chinese economy, pointing to slowing growth, challenges in the real estate sector, and rising debt. Yet, despite these claims, China has remained the engine of global growth, moving to become the world's second-largest economy. Is the so-called "China collapse theory" based on facts, or is it driven by interests and cogniti...

In a white paper released in late November, China revealed how far it has come in rural road construction, ten years after President Xi Jinping set out the task. Why is China so committed to paving roads in its rural areas? How did China pull off such a mammoth project? Can its experience be replicated elsewhere?

Incoming U.S. President Donald Trump has vowed to impose massive tariff hikes on goods coming from Mexico, Canada and China on his very first day in office. With less than 50 days until President Trump returns to the White House, what's in store for the future of China-U.S. relations?

National parks connect us with nature. Douglas Morris, Board Chair of Global Parks, has travelled to China frequently, being involved with China's ambitious national parks project. He brings his personal stories about the collaboration between Americans and their Chinese counterparts on how to build national parks with their respective national characters.

2024 is on track to become the warmest year on record, according to the World Meteorological Organization. Extreme weather events could impose staggering costs on society, not to mention the environment. Besides the various efforts to mitigate global warming, what else needs to be done? How can low-income countries adapt to climate change for which they are not even primarily responsible?

From Anchorage to San Francisco to Lima, the two sides have come a long way. Over the weekend, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden in Lima on the sidelines of APEC meetings in Peru. Both sides hailed the past four years of engagement. How have bilateral ties evolved over the past few years, especially since the frosty meeting in Anchorage? How did things stabilize?...

China and Peru have agreed to deepen their comprehensive strategic partnership. This is the central message of a joint statement just released by the presidents of the two countries. What message did China send to the people in Peru and beyond? Does that message come with actions? Amid the global uncertainties, how important is China's consistency in its Asia-Pacific policy?

The 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting will be held on November 15th and 16th in Peru. Leaders and senior officials from 21 member economies will meet in its capital Lima. Founded 35 years ago after the end of the Cold War, the group of 21 Asia-Pacific economies now accounts for 60 percent of the world's economic output and half of world trade. The region has always been an engine of global econo...

In this early November, esteemed scholars and experts in classical civilization have gathered at Yanqi Lake Convention & Exhibition Center in Beijing to celebrate the inaugural World Conference of Classics and to trace the origins of human thought and extract wisdom from human history. Why do we need to study the classics today? How can classical knowledge help solve contemporary global issues? An...

How can Global South countries support each other so the group can become stronger as a critical mass in realizing a multipolar world?

As Americans decide who will be their next president, China, like many others around the world, is watching the results closely, trying to gauge the impacts from either a Trump or Harris presidency when the dust settles. What will be some key differences between their trade policies in regards to China? Which would impact China more, both in the short-term and in the long-run? Or will it make any...

Protectionism disguised as "fair trade". That's how China calls the European Commission's decision on Oct. 30 to impose additional tariffs as high as 35.3% against Chinese-made EVs. The China Chamber of Commerce to the EU also expressed profound disappointment in the decision, viewing it as arbitrary, while German carmakers have called it "a step backwards for free global trade and thus for prospe...

Even in our world today, one in ten people globally and as many as one in five in Africa still face hunger. A report by the International Fund for Agricultural Development and four other UN bodies revealed that last year, an estimated 30% of the global population – 2.3 billion people – faced moderate or severe food insecurity. How secure or insecure is the world in terms of food? What kind of inno...