The grand final of the fifth "Lancang-Mekong Melodies: Lao People Singing Chinese Songs" competition has been held here, bringing together more than 700 people to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival and promote people-to-people exchanges.

Inside a modern, well-equipped classroom at Kabul University, Jawid Ahmadi sits upright, intently absorbing every inflection of his Chinese instructor's carefully enunciated tones. For Ahmadi, the intricate characters on the whiteboard represent far more than linguistic skill. They form a calculated

Afghan security forces have arrested six alleged human traffickers and rescued more than 100 victims in the western Afghan province of Nimroz, provincial police spokesman Mawlawi Gul Mohammad Qudrat said Sunday. The alleged human traffickers were attempting to smuggle 113 individuals out of the

UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Most of the 194 scheduled speakers at the UN General Assembly's General Debate on Saturday touched on shared global challenges, with many calling for greater cooperation to address issues affecting their regions.The global topics ranged from multilateral diplomacy, one of the reasons for the world body's creation, to Security Council reform and the development and possible regulation of artificial intelligence. While regional concerns were widely represented, much attention focused on water.Vice President Aren Palik of Micronesia said his people were seeing a rise in illnesses linked to marine life and vector-borne diseases. The country is therefore strengthening its health capacity.The ocean is the heart of Micronesian identity, he said, urging UN member states to fortify ocean governance, sustainable fisheries management and effective marine biodiversity conservation.Palik said plastic pollution threatens to degrade Pacific ecosystems and communities, calling on the international community to respond with renewed political resolve, scaled-up financing and accelerated implementation.Let us choose cooperation over division, the vice president said.Cabo Verde Prime Minister Francisco Carvalho said that for his country and other small island states, the climate crisis is not a distant threat; it is a present reality, referring to droughts, desertification, water scarcity, ocean acidification and rising sea levels.Just look at what is happening on the island of Sal, where, only two days ago, rising sea waters flooded the avenue in front of the hotels, he said. That is also a question of justice, he added, because those who have contributed the least to this crisis cannot continue to bear some of its most serious consequences.Tajik Foreign Minister Sirojiddin Muhriddin was another speaker whose country had a keen interest in water.As a mountainous country, home to thousands of glaciers, Tajikistan knows the value of water a...

RIYADH, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Lieutenant General Fahd bin Hamad Al Salman, commander of the Joint Forces of the Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen's internationally recognized government, and General Tariq Saleh, a member of Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council and commander of the National Resistance Forces, met on Saturday in Riyadh to discuss enhancing their military readiness.The Joint Forces Command said in a statement on social media platform X that the meeting at its Riyadh headquarters discussed ways to support the readiness of the Yemeni Armed Forces on all fronts to restore the state and its national institutions.Al Salman thanked Saleh for his role in the Presidential Leadership Council and his command of the National Resistance Forces, as well as for the sacrifices his forces have made in the fight to restore the state, the statement read.For his part, Saleh praised the Joint Forces Command's support for the Yemeni Armed Forces and the National Resistance Forces in enhancing their capabilities, while commending efforts to unify ranks and rehabilitate forces for their national duties, according to the statement.The two sides also stressed concerted efforts and continued coordination to strengthen morale and raise combat readiness, it added.Yemen's conflict erupted in late 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized Yemeni government.