A Chinese team of virologists has discovered a new bat coronavirus that can infect human cells, raising concerns about potential animal-to-human transmission. The virus, a new lineage of the HKU5 coronavirus, uses the same human receptor as the virus that causes COVID-19. The study, led by Shi Zhengli, a prominent virologist at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, was published in the journal Cell. The discovery comes amid ongoing scrutiny of the Wuhan lab, which was previously accused of being the source of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Chinese government has denied any involvement in the virus's origin and insists that the Wuhan lab never engaged in gain-of-function studies on coronaviruses.
Doval is in Beijing for the 23rd round of the Special Representatives' talks being held after a gap of five years.
During a special briefing in Tianjin, Misri confirmed that the prime minister will first address the SCO plenary session before meeting President Putin.
India has been raising with China the plight of approximately 22,000 Indian students enrolled in Chinese universities who are unable to go back for physical classes. However, the neighbouring country has till date refused to let them enter.
US Under Secretary Victoria Nuland, who met Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session, raised concerns about the upcoming visit of the Chinese research vessel 'SHI YAN 6'
China has toned down its rhetoric on fighting a trade or any other type of war with the US, saying that no such wars should be fought because they cannot be won. Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian responded to US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth's remarks that his country doesn't seek a war with China, but will rebuild the military and prepare for war. However, on Tuesday, Lin had said that China is ready to fight till the end if the US wants a trade war or any other type of war. Hegseth said on Wednesday that the US is not actively seeking conflict with China, but is rebuilding its military and establishing deterrence.
China has defended its plan to build the world's largest dam on the Brahmaputra River in Tibet, assuring that the project will not affect riparian states and safety issues have been addressed through decades of studies. The dam, estimated to cost USD 137 billion, has raised concerns in India and Bangladesh, but Chinese authorities maintain that the project has been thoroughly studied and safeguards are in place. The dam is part of China's efforts to develop clean energy and respond to climate change.
Since the Pahalgam terrorist attack, China, Pakistan's "ironclad ally", while condemning it, has called for restraint, besides a fair and swift investigation into the attack.
Local officials said no casualties have been reported due to Wednesday's quake that hit the Madoi County in Golog Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Qinghai province of northwest China at 3:44 pm (Beijing time), tremors for which were also felt in north-eastern Nepal.
'Personalities are temporary, policies provide for stability.' 'With the former, when personalities change so does the nature of the relationship.' 'Policies and structures, on the other hand, are idiot-proof, as well as maverick-resistant,' explains Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
China dismissed the reports as groundless.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has announced that India and China have reached an understanding to resume the Kailash Mansarovar Yatra in 2025. While an understanding has been reached, the modalities of the pilgrimage are yet to be firmed up. The Yatra has been suspended since 2020 due to the COVID-19 outbreak and non-renewal of Yatra arrangements by the Chinese side.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval arrived in Beijing on Tuesday to take part in the India-China Special Representatives' talks to be held on Wednesday aimed at restoring the bilateral ties stalled for over four years' due to the military standoff in eastern Ladakh.
The foreign ministry's statement came amidst the reported visit of Foreign Minister Sun Weidong to Pakistan on a mediation mission.
The car exploded near the embassy in Bishkek, killing its driver and wounding three people.
Terming the charge that Wangchuk incited the violence in Leh as 'misplaced', she claimed that he has been protesting in the "most Gandhian way possible" and the "situation escalated" on September 24 due to the actions of the CRPF.
They were released late Monday night and their health and spiritual conditions are generally stable, a foreign ministry spokesman said.
China on Thursday said the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Russia's Kazan on Wednesday carries a "great significance" as they reached an "important common understandings" to improve the bilateral ties.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held bilateral talks focusing on economic ties and global stability amid trade tensions and the aftermath of the Ladakh border row.
Xu, 60, is expected to travel to New Delhi soon to take over his new posting.
At least five Chinese nationals were among the six persons killed on Tuesday when an explosive-packed vehicle rammed into their bus in Pakistan's troubled northwestern province of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, officials said.
Chinese response to the presence of its troops in Gilgit-Baltistan, an area described by its foreign ministry as 'northern part of Pakistan,' was curiously omitted in the official transcript, a day after it created a flutter in New Delhi.
'Modi's a great leader... But I don't understand why he's getting into bed with Putin and Xi Jinping...'
Days after it faced nationwide anti-government protests against its stringent zero-Covid policy, China in a major shift of its coronavirus response policies has announced that it will scrap quarantine for international travellers from January 8 as it reopens its borders and comes out of international isolation after nearly three years.
The ship will now arrive on August 16 and remain at the Hambantota port till August 22, they said.
The dead and wounded were members of a delegation from China's University of National Defence.
China on Monday dismissed the existence of a 'median line' in the volatile Taiwan Strait after Taiwan's defence ministry said it detected a record 103 Chinese warplanes flying around the self-ruled island in a 24-hour period.
As China's Foreign Minister Sun Weidong visited Pakistan on a mediation mission, a statement from Foreign Ministry on Monday said it is maintaining close contacts with Pakistan and Iran to 'bridge their differences'.
The ministry of home affairs has received more than 20 proposals for foreign direct investment (FDI), including from China and Hong Kong, requiring security clearance between April and May. 'We are vetting some of these proposals which have come from various sectors. One of the applications is from a well known start-up,' an official said. 'We await inputs from Research and Analysis Wing, intelligence agencies, external affairs ministry, and embassies.'
In seeking visa approvals for engineers from China, the company has reasoned that India lacks the expertise to set up such a solar facility.
China on Tuesday confirmed that it has reached an agreement with India to end the standoff between the two armies in eastern Ladakh.
Zhang made the remarks in response to India's enhancement of its military readiness through the Sela Tunnel in Arunachal Pradesh, according to a report posted on the Chinese defence ministry's website on Friday.
The comments by external affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in Delhi came days after China decided to "freeze" visas of two Indian journalists.
India and China held talks in New Delhi to discuss the lessons learned from the eastern Ladakh military standoff and prevent its recurrence. The two sides also prepared for the next meeting of the Special Representatives on the boundary question. The talks took place under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC). Both sides highlighted the importance of regular exchanges and contacts at diplomatic and military level to maintain peace and tranquility in the border areas.
'One good outcome of Operation Sindoor -- perhaps, its best outcome -- could be that India has resumed meaningful contact directly with Pakistan at the military-to-military level,' observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The announcement was a surprise as the new administration to be headed by the new Premier is scheduled to take over during the annual Parliament session slated to be held from March 5 next year.
China on Monday conducted day-long large-scale military drills aimed at surrounding Taiwan by deploying an aircraft carrier group, besides army, navy, air force and missile forces, in an apparent response to Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te's remarks that Beijing has no authority to represent Taipei.
A rare protest by journalists of a state-run Chinese weekly against official interference entered the second day on Tuesday amid tacit support from other media outlets, notwithstanding the ruling Communist Party of China's assertion that it had an "absolute and unshakable" control over them.
The Indian Army bravely prevented the Chinese PLA's attempts to unilaterally change the status in the Yangtse area of Arunachal Pradesh's Tawang sector on December 9 and confronted it with firmness, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday.
India and China failed to reach any specific agreements on their disputed boundary issue on Friday in the latest round of negotiations in Beijing but decided to pursue their goal for a "fair and reasonable" solution acceptable to both sides.
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