Nigeria Times

By Tian Hong, People’s Daily

Digital technologies are employed to make the 5th China International Import Expo (CIIE) more intelligent and bring better experiences to participants.

So far, preparations of the grand trade fair, which is scheduled to kick off on Nov. 5 and conclude on Nov. 10, have generally been completed.

New exhibiting zones will open this year featuring the crop seed industry and the artificial intelligence industry. Besides, the event has optimized the special area for low carbon and environmental protection technology, and expanded the innovation and incubation area. 

More than 150 startups specialized in technological equipment, consumer products, healthcare and automobiles will display their products and services at the innovation and incubation area.

Representatives from a total of 145 countries, regions and international organizations will participate in the 5th CIIE. Enterprises from 127 countries and regions are expected to join the business exhibition, and 66 countries and three international organizations will take stage in the country exhibition. All these figures outnumber those in the last year.

Nicaragua, Djibouti, Mauritania, Comoros, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, and Iceland will take part in the country exhibition for the first time this year.

This year, the country exhibition will still be held online, showcasing participating countries’ technological innovation, culture and art, as well as investment environment with augmented reality, real-time rendering and other frontier technologies. It will give visitors an immersive experience.

Besides, more than 300 exhibitors specialized in intelligent industry and information technology will display and launch their products and services at the Digital CIIE platform this time.

On Oct. 28, a batch of art pieces to be exhibited at the 5th CIIE from the UK, France, Norway and Japan arrived in the Shanghai Waigaoqiao bonded area. Shanghai Customs for the first time employed information sampling devices to collect data of the features of the art pieces for exit-entry consistency verification.

Since exhibits of the 5th CIIE started entering China in mid-September, Shanghai Customs has set up 110 exclusive and around-the-clock customs clearance windows and channels to improve efficiency. Relevant exit and entry information is acquired on a big data platform of the customs to ensure faster customs procedures for visiting guests and exhibits.

Shanghai Customs has also combined inspections at the port of entry and exhibition hall so as to avoid secondary package opening.

So far, 194 batches of CIIE exhibits have completed customs clearance, with a total value of $142 million.

Shanghai has built the Hongqiao Central Business District Bonded Logistics Center and the Greenland Global Commodity Trade Hub Bonded Exhibition and Sales Place to expand the spillover effect of the CIIE and make bonded exhibition and sales regular.

The China-Europe freight train “Shanghai” launched by the Shanghai-based Orient International (Holding) Co., Ltd. before the 4th CIIE has reached some 20 cities in six countries over the past year.

This year, the company has set up a Shanghai International Sister Cities Hub at the Hongqiao Import Commodity Exhibition and Trade Center, which has so far attracted over 100 exhibitors from 30 countries.

“This year marks the fifth year and also a new start of the CIIE,” said Gu Jun, executive deputy director of the office of the leading group for urban service and security of the CIIE, adding that Shanghai is going all out to make the 5th CIIE successful, splendid and fruitful.

By Yu Jianbin, People’s Daily

The Mengtian lab module successfully docked with the front port of Tianhe, the core module of China’s Tiangong space station at 4:27 a.m. on Nov. 1 after it entered the planned orbit, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

The whole process of rendezvous and docking took about 13 hours.

The lab module was launched by a Long March-5B Y4 carrier rocket from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site on the coast of the southern island province of Hainan on Oct. 31.

Mengtian will conduct transposition as planned and then form the space station’s basic configuration in T-shape together with Tianhe core module and Wentian lab module. It is a key step toward the completion of the space station.

According to an expert with the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the Mengtian lab module is so far the heaviest payload launched by China to date. The rocket fairing of the Long March-5B Y4 was “custom-made” based on the shape and weight of the Mengtian.

For instance, to enable wireless communication during the ascent stage, a wave-transparent window was designed on the fairing.

Su Lei, chief designer of the control system of the Long March-5B rocket family, told People’s Daily that carrier rocket is capable to achieve accurate rendezvous and docking within a limited period. Besides, the control system of the rockets can also automatically calculate the deviation and correct it to ensure the accuracy of orbit injection, rendezvous and docking.

The Mengtian lab is one of the three modules forming the basic T-shape configuration of China’s space station and the second lab module after the Wentian lab. It consists of four sections: working cabin, cargo airlock cabin, payload cabin, and resource cabin.

The 17.88-meter-long new module has a takeoff mass of about 23 tons and a diameter of 4.2 meters. It is mainly used for space science experiments.

The design team of the Mengtian module innovatively equipped the space lab with a cargo airlock cabin that facilitates the ins and outs of cargo and payloads. With its payload transfer device, the cargo airlock cabin is able to handle cargo as heavy as 400 kilograms, and the size of the cargo envelope for a single shipment can reach 1.15 meters x 1.2 meters x 0.9 meters.

To allow the entry and exit of larger and heavier cargos, Mengtian has been installed with a 1.2-meter-wide port gate to the airlock cabin, with which astronauts can finish outboard operation of cargos and payloads just in the cabin without extravehicular spacesuits.

The airlock cabin of the Mengtian module will better help astronauts carry out efficient and safe extravehicular experiments, and further improve the scientific ability of China’s space station, said an expert.

Building an advanced national space lab is the goal of the construction of the Tiangong space station. The Mengtian module has the most powerful payload-supporting capabilities among the three modules.

Liu Guoning, deputy chief designer of the scientific cabinet system at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)’ Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, introduced that the Mengtian lab mainly focuses on microgravity studies.

Carrying eight science experiment cabinets, Mengtian can carry out scientific research on materials science, fluid physics and combustion science, which is expected to make scientific results at an international level.

Some 40 scientific experimental projects in these fields have been scheduled so far, Liu revealed.

Besides, among Mengtian’s payloads, there is also a cabinet with the ability to film – for the first time in a space station – material changes in high temperatures with X-rays. It is a device of historic significance, said Liu Xuechao, chief designer of the experiment system of the cabinet and a researcher with the Shanghai Institute of Ceramics of the CAS.

By Yin Xiaoyu, People’s Daily

The Xinghua Duotian Irrigation and Drainage System in Xinghua, Taizhou, east China’s Jiangsu province was recently recognized as a World Heritage Irrigation Structure (WHIS).

Granted by the International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage (ICID) on Oct. 6, the Xinghua Duotian Irrigation and Drainage System, together with three other newly-designated projects, have brought the total number of Chinese irrigation projects on the WHIS list to 30.

Back in 2014, the Xinghua Duotian Agrosystem has been designated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS).

The two heritage designations are now a “golden signboard” of local development.

Xinghua, a county-level city in Taizhou, sits between the Yangtze and Huaihe Rivers. The low-lying city is traversed by many lakes.

On higher marshes, ancestors of the city raised mud into small stacks and gradually developed a unique method of water-land utilization that dates back to over 1,000 years ago.

China’s agricultural development has a natural bond with irrigation engineering. “Duotian,” which means raised farmland in Chinese, is core to both the Xinghua Duotian Irrigation and Drainage System and the Xinghua Duotian Agrosystem. The two systems both include irrigation and drainage systems, remains of ancient irrigation and drainage facilities, ancient water systems, architectural remains, as well as relevant documents and tales about water conservation.

Being similar to each other, the two systems still have differences, which indicates the necessity of applying for two separate heritages.

The two heritages designations, focusing on irrigation structure and agricultural system, respectively, discover and demonstrate the connotation of Xinghua Duotian in terms of history, technology and culture in different ways.

As an agricultural heritage, Duotian is a “living fossil” of ancient land utilization and a precious sample facilitating the study of the evolution of local ecology and methods of land utilization.

As an irrigation heritage, it is the world’s only irrigation and drainage system located on raised and dry farmland. It plays an important role in supporting agricultural development and the utilization of water resources.

The successful application of the WHIS and the GIAHS not only motivated Xinghua to protect and preserve its raised farmland, but also stimulated the productivity of social development.

When spring arrives, the blossoming rape flowers on the raised fields and the boats floating on nearby waterways would form a picturesque view. In autumn, high-quality Longxiang taro, a local featured gourmet, is harvested.

Duotian is not only a rich source of agricultural products, but also a tourist attraction. As early as April 2009, it held a rape flower festival.

The WHIS and GIAHS recognitions have given a huge boost to the local economy, especially the tourism sector. Xinghua has fully leveraged such brand advantage to improve its influence.

In 2016, it signed a memorandum to enhance cooperation and exchanges on agricultural heritage with Mexico City. Between 2015 and 2017, it held three sessions of high-level training courses on GIAHS under the framework of the South-South Cooperation program and a seminar on the management and protection of agricultural cultural heritage for Belt and Road countries.

Besides, Xinghua has vigorously promoted integrated development of the primary, secondary and tertiary industries. It cultivates various types of ornamental plants to sustain its beautiful landscape all year round.

By fostering the dehydrated vegetable business, it has established a national-level demonstration zone for food safety and quality that covers over 10,000 mu, or 667 hectares, becoming the top county in China in terms of the processing of dehydrated vegetables and fruits.

Duotian is driving the economic growth of Xinghua, and the local government is in turn enhancing its efforts to further protect the heritage.

Since March last year, a regulation on the protection of Duotian has been put into force in Taizhou. Xinghua has set up a research center for Duotian protection and development, and is carrying out regular patrols for monitoring and reconditioning of the raised farmland.

In the recent two years, the Qianduo scenic area in Xinghua has completed the comprehensive management of 500 mu of Duotian, and plans to advance with a progress of 200 mu per year.

By Zhao Peng, Sun Haitian

Driving along the coast of Haikou, the capital city of south China’s Hainan province, all the way west, people would be attracted by a huge facility that resembles a blooming begonia flower. That’s Haikou International Duty Free Shopping Complex, the world’s largest stand-alone duty-free shopping mall. It just opened in Haikou a few days ago.

Located close to Xinhai Port, a key transportation hub in Haikou, the new shopping complex boasts a construction area of around 289,000 square meters, which is equivalent to the size of 39 football fields. It has four floors above ground and two floors underground. A tour of the entire facility by foot would make a trip of more than four kilometers.

Inspired by begonia flowers and the sea, the architectural design of the shopping mall features dynamic and elegant curves. The atrium of the shopping mall is filled with elements of tropical rainforest. In the atrium, there is a giant glass curtain wall, which is 11.3 meters high. The curtain wall reflects the splendid and mysterious tropical rainforest-themed atrium like a mirror. Visitors would be immediately attracted by the curtain wall as soon as they enter the mall and feel as if they were in a jungle as they look around.

As an important part of the tropical rainforests in the world, tropical rainforests in Hainan represent the most concentrated, best-preserved, and largest contiguous tropical rainforests in China.

The thematic design of the shopping mall’s atrium, which is named AURA, not only agrees with the local conditions of Hainan province but also conveys the idea of green consumption to consumers.

In fact, the shopping complex has tried to be environmentally friendly in every link of its design and construction, as well as in every aspect of its operations.

During the planning and design period, the facility adopted a good number of design concepts for energy conservation to reduce its comprehensive energy consumption, including natural lighting, sponge city, cyclic utilization of rainwater, intelligent lighting, and contactless payment.

In particular, the novel design of the large glazed glass dome with a hollow center enables the facility to effectively use natural light, thus saving more than 10 percent of the amount of electricity consumed for indoor lighting.

The shopping mall has vigorously promoted green construction and management through measures targeting many aspects, including energy management, building materials, and pollution prevention and control.

In addition, since it entered operation, the facility has leveraged big data platforms to make use of low-carbon technologies and achievements in environmental protection.

These efforts have made the mega shopping mall a low-carbon facility.

On its first day of business, the new shopping mall received more than 44,000 visitors, while the number of individual visitors on the online shopping platform of China Duty Free Group Co., Ltd. (CDFG), the operator of the shopping mall, reached two million.

On the same day, the 11 offshore duty-free shops in Hainan reported a record high of more than 700 million yuan ($96.18 million) in total sales.

As more and more consumers have shifted from foreign countries to Hainan for overseas products in recent years, the annual sales of offshore duty-free shops in Hainan grew from 990 million yuan in 2012, when the province officially rolled out the offshore duty-free shopping policy, to 49.5 billion yuan last year.

Over the past 11 years, the policy has been adjusted eight times, with the annual tax-free shopping quota being increased from 5,000 yuan to 100,000 yuan per person and the number of categories of duty-free goods expanding from 18 to 45.

By 2021, the annual sales of offshore duty-free products in Hainan had risen more than 10 times, the total sales of duty-free products had exceeded 100 billion yuan, and the annual growth rate of the sales of duty-free products in the province had averaged 44.6 percent.

Last year, sales of duty-free products accounted for half of Hainan’s tourism revenue, the share of duty-free goods imports in the total imports of Hainan reached one-third, and the sales of such goods contributed one-fourth of the total retail sales of consumer goods in the province.

With offshore duty-free shopping experience in Hainan being continuously improved and upgraded, the policy is propelling the high-quality economic development of the entire province. 

The newly opened shopping mall has gathered more than 800 international and domestic brands, among which 25 brands have been introduced to duty-free shops in Hainan for the first time and 78 brands are sold exclusively in shops operated by the CDF in Hainan. The opening of the mall marked an increase in the total area of offshore duty-free shops in Hainan from 220,000 square meters to 490,000 square meters.

In an effort to attract more tourists, Hainan has planned to issue 53 million yuan worth of tourism consumption coupons between Oct. 27 and Dec. 31.

It’s believed that the world’s largest stand-alone duty-free shopping mall will usher in brighter prospects for the economic development of Hainan province.

The first Hainan International Offshore Duty-Free Shopping Festival, which kicked off in Sanya, Hainan province, on June 28, will last until the end of the year, according to a white paper on the tourism retail market of the Hainan Free Trade Port, which disclosed that the Wangfujing International Duty-Free Port will start operation in January 2023 in Wanning city, Hainan province.

The white paper predicted that if Hainan continues to maintain its current growth momentum, it will become the world’s largest duty-free market in a short time.

Cultural exchange has been described as a tool for the enhancement of friendship between peoples and nations.

This is the reason for the 2022 Annual China-Nigeria Cultural Fiesta, Singing and Dancing competition jointly organized by the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria and the Federal Capital Territory Secondary Education Board (SEB), held at the China Cultural Center in Abuja.

Mr Li Xuda, Cultural Counsellor of the Chinese Embassy in his welcome address, said the fiesta provides an excellent opportunity for students in FCT schools to acquire cultural knowledge, showcase their talents and win great prizes in return.

His words, “As you know, a long and fruitful relationship has already been built between the Chinese Embassy in Nigeria and the FCT Secondary Education Board through the joint organization of the China-Nigeria Cultural Fiesta for many years.

“Today, the fiesta has developed into a well-known cultural brand in FCT, especially as our students from China-Corner schools eagerly look forward to its opening every year so they can fully display their talents and win big awards.

“Teenagers are the future of a country and culture is very critical to their personal development and national progress. China-Nigeria Cultural Fiesta provides an important platform for our FCT school students to learn cultural knowledge, master cultural skills and enhance cultural awareness so that they can make valuable contributions to building a more civilized and beautiful country.”

In his keynote address, Muhammed Sani Ladan, Director of FCT-SEB, who was represented at the event by Aishatu Sani Alhassan, Director School Services thanked the Chinese Embassy for their continuous collaboration and urged participating students to use the fiesta to learn new cultures, socialize and have fun.

“May I bring to your notice that the China-Nigeria Cultural Fiesta is one of the oldest activities engaged by the two parties since the inception of this collaboration. It has provided immense opportunity for cultural exchange and schools have benefitted from the valuable prizes attached to the competition annually. Today our students are dressed in Chinese costumes courtesy of the Embassy and they are happy to appear as Nigerian Chinese. That is a feat that has been achieved in cultural diplomacy,” he said.

“Apart from this event, the Embassy and the Board engage in the celebration of Spring Festival, Temple Fair, Health Lectures in Schools, Award of Scholarship to students, capacity building of staff in China and so many other interventions in education and culture. We are grateful for all the beneficial bilateral relations and we hope to see more of them.

“The Chinese corners that are established in Eleven Schools have been up and doing and as a result of that, Chinese language learning, Chinese songs and dances, as well as Nigerian dances are all products of the Chinese corners. The book, serials and internet services provided in the corners by the Embassy equally helps to improve their academic performances,” he added.

12 schools in the FCT took part in the contest divided into three categories namely Chinese Dance, Nigerian Dance and Chinese Song.

After series of breathtaking performances from the students, Government Day Secondary School, Dutse won first position for both Chinese and Nigerian Dance, while Army Day Secondary School, Asokoro emerged winner in Chinese Song category.

Rahama International Academy Suleja and Government Secondary School, Apo came second and third IN Chinese Dance, while Government Secondary School, Npappe and Government Girls Secondary School, Dutse emerged second and third in the Nigerian Dance category. 

Similarly, Government Secondary School, Byazhin and Government Secondary School Jabi came second and third in the Chinese Song category respectively.

Highlight of the event was the presentation of prizes to winners and consolation prizes to other participating schools.

It was a Thursday of fun, laughter, and excitement for the children of Prime Iqrah School, Ishashi Road, Iba, Lagos.

The school bubbled with cultural activities, especially a blend of exotic and local cultures.

The Nigeria-China Culture Exchange that day took its cultural festivities to the school as a partner.

This has been the tradition of the group led by Dr. Eric Ni, a Chinese national who has become so popular in Lagos for his passion and pursuit over 15 years that promote cultural awareness, and exchange between the two worlds.

That day, the school was inducted as a partner of the Exchange. The group brought gifts, Chinese dances, costumes, songs, folktales, and the prominent dragon dance.

Young men and women participated in the activities and they all belong to Ni’s cultural troupe where he has over the years trained the Nigerian young ladies and men in Chinese dances, songs, and others.

The men also participated in dragon dances, wushu, martial arts, and many others.

In the past, the group had hosted a lot of festivities at different locations such as the wushu competitions that it hosted at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos in August 2021.

As the school children had fun, some were rewarded with monetary gifts, books, souvenirs, and many others that depict their participation in the cultural exchange and also assisted them to learn more about the cultures of the two countries.

While the school management and the exchange group spoke, they emphasised that when Nigerians and Chinese citizens know each other’s culture, they would be better friendships and understanding.

Some of the children took part in quizzes on the cultural heritage and other similarities between Nigeria and China.

For instance, China and Nigeria share the same National Day on October 1. While China is the most populous country in Asia and the world, Nigeria is such in Africa. The two also share a commonality in the multi-ethnic composition of the population.

By Chang Biluo, People’s Daily

Guoyuan Port is playing a bigger and bigger role in the opening up of southwest China’s Chongqing municipality due to its unique geographic advantages.

It is linked with the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road by the Yangtze River Economic Belt to the east and connects the Silk Road Economic Belt via the westward China-Europe freight train routes. Besides, cargoes at the port can go all the way down to Qinzhou Port, in south China’s Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region along the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor, and be shipped overseas via the southern gateway.

Guoyuan Port, gathering factors of inland opening up, is improving its port functions and accelerating intelligent development. It has been approved as a port-based logistics hub at national level.

During an inspection tour to Guoyuan Port, Chinese President Xi Jinping requested Chongqing to better its opening up platforms and build itself into an inland international logistics hub.

Over recent years, the development of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) has provided a larger platform for Chongqing to “go global,” and the progress achieved by the Yangtze River Economic Belt better integrated Chongqing into the development of central and east China.

Guoyuan Port, building itself into an intelligent and green port for higher logistics efficiency, is a miniature of Chongqing’s efforts to expand its opening up channels.

Chongqing is currently striving for better construction, management, and operation of its ports, to serve the development of the BRI and the Yangtze River Economic Belt, and advance China’s western development program. It enjoys huge development potential and bright prospects.

Opening up leads to prosperity. The head of a foreign trade company told People’s Daily that the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor has cut shipping time by over 50 percent, and his company’s business in Southeast Asia is thriving.

Many enterprises doing business in Chongqing, seeing the dividends of opening up, are confident about the development of interior China.

Their confidence came from a series of facilitation measures adopted by the municipality. For instance, settlement by letter of credit and rail-ocean intermodal trains have significantly facilitated foreign trade enterprises; the pilot program of “ship-side direct pickup” of imported goods and “direct loading upon arrival” of exported goods has optimized the process of customs clearance; the single-window system has reduced customs clearance time by over 30 percent and cut enterprises’ comprehensive costs by over 20 percent.

Working to meet enterprises’ demands, giving play to policy advantages, improving service quality and optimizing supporting measures, Chongqing has widened its platforms of opening up and gradually built itself into a focus of opening-up in China’s interior.

The municipality’s opening up channels are of national influence and connect China with the rest of the world. They not only extend the industrial chain of the logistics sector and the value chain of the trade sector, but also boost regional development, bringing Chongqing, an interior municipality, much closer to the world.

“We will better plan regional opening up, consolidate the leading position of eastern coastal areas in opening up, and more widely open the central, western, and northeastern regions,” said Xi in the report to the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China.

Opening up and development shall not be exclusive to a certain area. Instead, it should be pursued by all regions. It calls for integrated resources, concerted efforts and coordinated steps.

Apart from Chongqing, all regions in west China are working to optimize their opening up platforms. An inter-region operation platform of the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor is well underway. Provinces and municipalities along logistics channels are cooperating closely. New advantages of development are taking shape.

By adopting approaches that address both local and regional development, acting in light of local conditions, making science-based planning, conducting practical cooperation, and driving reform, development and innovation through opening up, inland areas will be better integrated into the national and even global economic and trade systems.

It is believed that inland areas, including Chongqing, will be able to promote high-quality development through higher-level opening up as long as they make unremitting efforts to smooth opening up channels, build opening up platforms and enhance inter-regional cooperation.

By Li Yingqi, Huo Wen, People’s Daily

“China is a builder of world peace and a contributor to global development. I appreciate the Global Development Initiative (GDI) proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping,” said B. Batbaatar, deputy chairperson of the Mongolian Civil Will-Green Party in a recent interview with People’s Daily.

The initiative fully indicates that China is committed to maintaining world peace and promoting win-win cooperation and the happiness of the people around the world, Batbaatar added.

Batbaatar said the GDI focuses on development issues faced by the world, especially developing countries, and will play an important role in promoting global development.

The governments of China and Mongolia issued a joint statement when Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene came to China for the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games in February this year.

The two sides agreed to further synergize the China-proposed GDI and the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) with Mongolia’s “Vision 2050” long-term development policy and the new revival policy, to expand cooperation in trade, investment, finance, minerals, energy, interconnectivity, infrastructure, digital economy and green development.

Batbaatar believes it is a practical measure to advance cooperation between the two countries.

Batbaatar has paid multiple visits to China, where he witnessed the country’s huge development progress.

He said China’s development experience is recognized by the international society, and Mongolia hopes to learn from such experience.

The Mongolian Civil Will-Green Party and the Communist Party of China (CPC) have launched various exchange activities. Many young cadres of the Mongolian party have visited China for study.

Batbaatar told People’s Daily that these young cadres are eager to visit China and expect to take courses on Chinese culture and the BRI.

The Mongolian editions of the first volume of “Xi Jinping: The Governance of China” and “Up and Out of Poverty” were released at a China-Mongolia seminar on state governance held in Ulan Bator in August, 2019. Batbaatar attended the seminar.

“I still vividly remember that day. President Xi’s works involve multiple areas such as politics, economy, culture and diplomacy, demonstrating his profound thinking and long-term vision on the past, the present and the future,” Batbaatar said.

“By reading these books, I gained a deeper understanding of the CPC’s guiding philosophy and strategic thinking,” he added.

Batbaatar believes it is impossible to comprehend China’s development achievements and valuable experience if one doesn’t associate the country’s progress with the CPC.

He said the CPC unites and leads the Chinese people in working ceaselessly for a better life, and has embarked on a new journey to fully build a modern socialist country.

“I believe China will make more glorious achievements under the leadership of the CPC,” Batbaatar said.

As a Mongolian saying goes, “Neighbors are connected at heart and share a common destiny.” The global spread of Covid-19 is causing great concern, China and Mongolia have offered mutual assistance to tide over difficulties.

For instance, central China’s Hubei province, once hard-hit by the pandemic, shipped local tea to Mongolia as gifts in appreciation of the latter’s previous donation of sheep in support of China’s COVID-19 fight.

Besides, China offered over four million doses of vaccines for Mongolia when Mongolia was experiencing the most difficult time in fighting the disease.

Batbaatar noted that China, as a friendly neighbor of Mongolia, has offered sincere assistance for his country, providing batches of vaccines.

China has also donated anti-pandemic materials to many other countries, worked to promote the fair, equitable allocation of COVID-19 vaccines around the world, and actively launched cooperation with other countries, he said.

“Unquestionably, China has made important contributions to global solidarity in the fight against COVID-19 and to the recovery of the global economy,” Batbaatar told People’s Daily.

Mongolians see Beijing as a “blessed land” as their country won its first Olympic gold medal during the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.

Earlier this year, Batbaatar attended a Winter Olympics-themed activity collecting artworks showcasing the China-Mongolia friendship jointly held by the two sides. He was deeply impressed by the successful Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games.

“The Winter Olympics is a top sports event for people around the world. It is conducive to promoting solidarity and bridging differences,” Batbaatar said.

He noted that China has demonstrated to the world the charm of “Together for a Shared Future”, the official motto for 2022 Winter Olympics and Paralympics, by delivering the games as scheduled and providing an important platform for promoting peace and friendship amid the pandemic.