Day: July 22, 2026

China and the EU have renewed their joint research agreement, according to Chinese state-linked media, signalling a willingness to collaborate on climate and agriculture despite trade tensions. People’s Financial News, a publication affiliated with Communist Party mouthpiece People’s Daily, reported on the new two-year agreement on Wednesday. China’s Ministry of Science and Technology and the European Commission had signed joint research funding agreements to support scientific cooperation through to 2027, the report said. The cooperation focuses on areas such as food, agriculture and biosolutions, as well as climate change and…

Why haven’t Ukraine’s drone and missile attacks on Russia triggered Moscow’s use of tactical nuclear weapons, as it has threatened? When Russia is attacked time and again, one wonders what purpose it serves to have the world’s largest nuclear arsenal. The Ukraine war is at a stalemate. Though roughly 90 per cent of the territory in East Donbas is under Russian control, its ground advances have slowed to less than 100 metres a day, according to a July 1 report by the Centre for Strategic International Studies. Could Russia use…

An award-winning mathematician has called for Asia to set up its own maths union after Hong Kong lost out to Glasgow to host a top international meeting in the field. “My colleagues and I are deeply regretful about the voting result,” Yau said on Wednesday. “The voting power within the IMU is relatively entrenched. The European Mathematical Society, as a regional umbrella organisation representing Europe’s national mathematical societies, commands an overwhelming majority of votes, while Asian countries together hold less than a quarter of the total.” Yau said Europe, North…

The top Chinese and American diplomats discussed President Xi Jinping’s planned visit to the US later this year and the dispute between Beijing and Manila in the South China Sea during their bilateral meeting on Wednesday. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio are in Manila for a series of Asean meetings from Monday to Thursday, including the Asean foreign ministers’ meeting which brings together 11 member states, along with ministers from Russia, Japan, Australia, Canada and Britain. After the meeting, Rubio described the recent…

Canada has been given a front-row seat to a British-Italian-Japanese effort to develop a sixth-generation fighter aircraft, allowing Ottawa to diversify its defence partnerships as the US and China vie for an edge in future air power. In London on Tuesday, Canadian Defence Minister David McGuinty joined his British, Italian and Japanese counterparts – Wes Streeting, Guido Crosetto and Shinjiro Koizumi – to sign Canada up as an observer of the Global Combat Air Programme (GCAP). It marks the first expansion of the programme – which aims to develop a…

On July 9, a fire burned through a shoe factory in Jinjiang, Fujian province, killing at least 28 people. The accident signals a larger problem: firms operating under financial pressure often cut costs by compromising safety. China’s low-cost business model needs reform, but why has change been so difficult? The plant that burned employed hundreds of workers, yet company filings for 2025 indicate that only a handful of them were enrolled in pension and medical insurance plans. A fire-safety inspection two days earlier had flagged its blocked exits, but it…

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi urged Australia to give up “double standards” and join efforts to maintain the momentum of improving bilateral ties, as Canberra voiced concerns over Beijing’s military development and a recent missile test. In a meeting with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Tuesday, Wang said Canberra and Beijing should address differences on the basis of mutual respect and equality. “Both sides should seek common ground while managing disagreements and foster a virtuous cycle of positive growth in relations, rather than allowing them to be disrupted or…

A satellite that can provide 24/7 surveillance of a third of the Earth’s surface relies on a rare mineral whose global supply is dominated by China, a new study has disclosed. It orbits 36,000km (22,000 miles) above the Earth and is able to stay in what is known as a geosynchronous orbit, which keeps it fixed over the same spot. This allows it to monitor both large areas of the planet and moving targets – something the United States has spent decades trying to achieve without success. China has near-total…