This is People’s Daily Tonight, your news source from China. 

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Xi sends condolences to Ethiopian, Kenyan presidents over plane crash

President Xi Jinping led an outpouring of condolences from China to Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta over Sunday's deadly Ethiopian Airlines flight crash.

Xi said he was shocked to learn of the crash that caused heavy casualties to citizens of several countries including Ethiopia, Kenya and China.

He pledged to provide support and help to the Ethiopian government. 

China’s Foreign Ministry confirmed the identities of the eight Chinese victims.

The Boeing 737 Max-8 went down six minutes after taking off from Addis Ababa airport, killing all 157 people on board. (Xinhua)

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Singapore aviation regulator bans use of Boeing 737 MAX in its airspace

Meantime, Singapore’s civil aviation regulator banned the use of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in its airspace following the deadly Ethiopia plane crash. 

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore said it was "temporarily suspending operation of all variants of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in and out of Singapore in light of two fatal accidents involving Boeing 737 MAX aircraft in less than five months. (Xinhua)

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Sterling surges as May secures Brexit assurances, Asian shares rise

The pound sterling rose sharply on Tuesday.

This, as speculation swirled that British Prime Minister Theresa May might be closer to securing approval for her Brexit deal.

The pound extended earlier gains as May won legally binding Brexit assurances from the European Union, in a last-ditch attempt to sway rebellious British law-makers who have threatened to vote down her divorce deal in a parliamentary vote on Tuesday.

At a joint news conference with European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker on Monday, May announced three documents aimed at addressing the most contentious part of the exit deal she agreed in November – the Irish backstop.

It’s an insurance policy aimed at avoiding controls on the sensitive border between the British province of Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland. (AFP)

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Ecology should not be 'sacrificed'

The head of China's top environmental watchdog stressed that the environment should not be "sacrificed" for economic growth in the country.

Ecology and Environment Minister Li Ganjie said that while some people say the one-size-fits-all approach in environmental law enforcement has damaged economic development, others say local governments have relaxed their efforts in environmental protection as the country experiences an economic downturn.

Li said President Xi Jinping has warned against the tendency of sacrificing the environment for economic growth. 

Xi made the point during a panel discussion with his fellow deputies to the National People's Congress from the Inner Mongolia autonomous region last week. (China Daily)

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Chinese envoy asks for promotion of political dialogue in Afghanistan

A Chinese envoy has asked for the promotion of political dialogue in Afghanistan and for negotiations with the Taliban.

Wu Haitao, the charge d'affaires of China's Permanent Mission to the United Nations, told the Security Council the international community should support the Afghan-led, Afghan-owned inclusive political process, and support the government in developing a comprehensive, inclusive, and actionable roadmap for political reconciliation.

He said the situation in Afghanistan is at a critical stage, as the country faces multiple political issues and challenging security and humanitarian situations. (Xinhua)

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US to withdraw remaining personnel from embassy in Venezuela

The United States will withdraw all remaining US personnel from its embassy in Caracas, Venezuela, this week.

The announcement was made by the State Department late Monday night.

The move followed the State Department's decision in January to recall all dependents and reduce embassy staff in Caracas to a minimum.

The US recognized Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido as the nation's "interim president" on Jan. 23, days after Maduro was inaugurated for a second term as Venezuelan president.

In response, Maduro announced that he was severing "diplomatic and political" ties with the US. (Xinhua)

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China concludes 42 pct more IPR cases in first trials in 2018

And Chinese courts resolved 288,000 cases involving intellectual property rights in 2018.

That’s up 41.8 percent from the previous year.

A tribunal for IPR-related cases was set up at the Supreme People’s Court last year to further strengthen IPR protection.

More efforts were put into establishing intellectual property courts in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou, as well as 19 tribunals for IPR-related cases, to improve the legal environment for technological innovation. (Xinhua)

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And that’s People’s Daily Tonight.  Thanks for joining us.

(Produced by David Nye and Wang Zi)