A blast at a fireworks factory in China’s Hunan province has killed 21 people and injured 61, prompting the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, to call for a thorough investigation, state media reported on Tuesday. China’s official news agency Xinhua said the blast happened in Changsha city on Monday afternoon. Nearly 500 rescuers were deployed and people were evacuated from danger zones by authorities who citied the risk from two black powder warehouses, the report said. The blast occurred on Monday just before 5pm, according to reports by CCTV and Xinhua.…
Day: May 4, 2026
Has China given the first sign it’s ready to export its J-35A fighter jet to Pakistan?
China’s state broadcaster has given a glimpse of the first export variant of the J-35A – the country’s second land-based fifth-generation fighter jet – with Pakistan the most likely recipient, according to reports and analysis. The CCTV clip featured during the “2026 May 1st International Labour Day ‘Heart to Heart’ Special Programme” shows a J-35A model bearing the serial number 001 rolling out of the hangar with the logo of China’s largest military aircraft manufacturer, Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). In the programme aired on Friday night, the aircraft…
China fireworks factory explosion kills 21, injures more than 60 people
A fireworks factory explosion in Liuyang, Hunan province on Monday has killed 21 people and injured 61 others, state media said. The explosion occurred at around 4.40 pm in a workshop at the Huasheng Fireworks Manufacturing and Display Company in the county-level city famous for its firework production, under the provincial capital Changsha. President Xi Jinping has urged all-out efforts to search for people who are still unaccounted for and save the injured. Online footage circulating on… South China Morning Post
How US tech hegemony is locking out the Global South
In global discourse, a script has been handed to us: the United States and China are locked in a “tech race”. But this is really a misnomer. True competition requires a level playing field. When one runner trips the other to ensure victory, it’s not a competition; it’s cheating. So, when Washington deploys an arsenal of sanctions, export controls and diplomatic strong-arming to hamstring China’s technological ascent, it is not competing. It is an act of suppression. This reflects a deliberate… South China Morning Post
China consul in Mexico calls protectionism a ‘dead end’ as trade tensions with US escalate
Consul General Fu Xinrong told a business gathering in Tijuana that unilateralism benefits no one and called on nations to build economic ties based on sovereignty and mutual respect rather than tariff walls. “Unilateralism and protectionism do not benefit anyone. It would be a dead end,” Fu said. Advertisement Though she did not name the United States, the target was difficult to miss. Washington has signalled it will use the USMCA review to push for tighter rules of origin and new curbs on Chinese firms it accuses of using Mexico…
This Is What Should Unite the Right and the Left on A.I.
We come from different parties and have guided artificial intelligence policy under very different presidents. But we agree: A.I. has become so powerful that, along with its tremendous promise, the technology poses immediate risks to national security. The United States is competing with authoritarian powers for control of A.I.’s future. Yet the country lacks a strong plan to protect the nation from A.I.’s profound dangers. There are clear steps the government can take that both parties can agree on. But Washington lacks urgency. Unless we change course, A.I. systems will…
US’ Bessent urges China to help open Strait of Hormuz
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday pressed China to ramp up diplomatic pressure on Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz even as he stressed that the US has “absolute control” over the strategic waterway. “Let’s see [China] step up with some diplomacy and get the Iranians to open the strait,” Bessent said in a Fox News interview. “Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism and China has been buying 90 per cent of their energy, so they are funding the largest state sponsor of terrorism.” Advertisement Asked…
U.S. Warns China Over Iranian Oil as Sanctions Fight Intensifies
The United States on Monday urged China to push Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz and said that its purchases of Iranian oil amounted to funding global terrorism, delivering a stern rebuke ahead of President Trump’s meeting in Beijing this month with the Chinese leader, Xi Jinping. The warning came from Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who will be participating in the high-stakes meetings. Mr. Bessent has been leading an aggressive campaign to cripple Iran’s economy with a blitz of new sanctions. He has also been working to devise ways…
Fatal 2022 China Eastern Airlines plane crash points to deliberate fuel cut-off
The China Eastern Airlines plane that crashed into a hillside in 2022, killing all 132 people on board, had its fuel supply cut mid-flight, newly released investigative material shows, which bolsters the theory that the aircraft was intentionally brought down. While China still has yet to release a final report on the accident, findings released by the US National Transportation Safety Board this month show that levers controlling the flow of fuel to the jet’s engines were switched to the “cut-off” position while the Boeing 737 aircraft was at a…
Iran war could give Xi the upper hand in meeting with Trump: US experts
The US-Israel war on Iran could bolster Beijing’s leverage on issues such as hi-tech supply chains and Taiwan during the coming Trump-Xi summit, according to American experts. “He’s not going to move to reschedule it,” US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said during an interview with Fox News on Sunday, after Trump confirmed on Friday that his visit would take place as scheduled. Advertisement The summit, expected to begin on May 14, would be the first visit by a US president to China in more than eight years and Trump’s first…