Month: June 2025

The arrest of a Chinese researcher in the United States for allegedly importing an illegal biological pathogen that could kill crops was “politicised” by the US government and could speed up an exodus of Chinese talent from the country, according to some researchers. Advertisement According to a press release from the US Department of Justice on Tuesday, Jian Yunqing, 33, and her boyfriend, Liu Zunyong, 34, allegedly attempted to smuggle the fungus pathogen Fusarium graminearum into the country. Jian, a research fellow at the University of Michigan, was arrested in…

China and the European Union have agreed to hold a new round of trade talks to pave the way for a high-level leaders’ summit next month, but analysts said it remained to be seen whether the two sides could resolve the impasse in their bilateral economic relations. Advertisement The talks were announced by the European Commission following a meeting between China’s commerce minister, Wang Wentao, and EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization event in Paris on Tuesday. They are expected to lay the…

Advertisement “These remarks maliciously distort historical facts, attack China’s political system and development path, and interfere in China’s internal affairs,” foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told a regular press briefing on Wednesday. He added that China was “strongly dissatisfied” with and “firmly opposed” Rubio’s comments criticising the Communist Party’s crackdown on pro-democracy protests, and “had lodged solemn representations with the US side”. In a statement published on the State Department’s website and on social media, Rubio said: “[The Tiananmen protesters’] courage in the face of certain danger reminds us that…

Biotechnology firm Insilico Medicine said its new drug for lung disease, designed with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), showed positive results in the latest clinical trials, as the company pushes for a public listing in Hong Kong. Advertisement Insilico found that its new small-molecule drug candidate, rentosertib, designed with its AI platform Chemistry42, was “generally safe and potentially effective” for treating idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), according to its phase 2A clinical trial results published in the journal Nature Medicine on Tuesday. IPF is a chronic disease that causes lung…

Chinese scientists have achieved a record in quantum-based secure direct communications – trebling the distance of a multi-user network to around the same length as a drive from Paris to Brussels, according to a new paper. Advertisement While the transmission rate is still too low to handle images, the researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University said the 300km (186 miles) optical fibre network was theoretically scalable, showing the viability of this kind of quantum network. According to the paper, published in the May issue of the peer-reviewed Science Bulletin, the…

China’s economy is projected to grow by 4.3 per cent next year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said this week as it trimmed a 10th of a percentage point off its previous forecast in the light of ongoing world trade strife. Advertisement “Substantial barriers to trade” coupled with “diminishing confidence and heightened policy uncertainty” were putting downward pressure on economic growth rates around the world this year and next, the Paris-headquartered world trade advocacy group said. It said the global slowing trend would be “most concentrated” in…

The US should meet China halfway and create the “necessary conditions” for bringing bilateral ties back on track, top diplomat Wang Yi has told the new American ambassador, amid White House expectations that a phone call between the two state leaders could occur this week. Advertisement In a meeting with David Perdue in Beijing on Tuesday, Wang said that mutual respect and cooperation were the foundation of stable China-US relations, which he said were at a “crucial juncture”. “Equality and respect are the prerequisites for interactions, while dialogue and cooperation…

We have put together stories from our coverage on science from the past two weeks to help you stay informed. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. PLA scientists reveal tech breakthrough behind world’s fastest coilgun A Chinese electromagnetic coil gun capable of firing at 3,000 rounds per minute – a rate that obliterates traditional firearms and greatly surpasses US commercial models by orders of magnitude – has been captured on video. 2. Chinese scientists prove US Air Force’s Mach 16 engine concept…