Hong Kong’s university entrance exam should be internationalised to help turn the city into a global tertiary education hub, several lawmakers have suggested ahead of the annual policy address next month, arguing the move will not harm local students’ interests. The legislators also called for the establishment of more Diploma for Secondary Education (DSE) exam…
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has arrived in Kabul to meet his counterparts from Afghanistan and Pakistan. It is Wang’s first trip to the country since a surprise visit March 2022. China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed he had arrived in Afghanistan on Wednesday. The ministry had earlier said he would travel to Pakistan later…
As the United States vows to strengthen counterterrorism efforts with Pakistan and take a hard line against Pakistani separatist groups, experts suggest it could open a rare window in the South Asian country for Sino-US cooperation. The move might also ease Beijing’s long-held concerns over the region’s fatal terrorist attacks that often target Chinese, analysts…
Iran’s reported plans to sign up to China’s BeiDou satellite navigation system could expand Beijing’s footprint in the Middle East as advanced technology emerges as a battleground, according to analysts. The plans come after Tehran suffered major losses to its military and nuclear facilities in its 12-day war with Israel and the US in June….
Jeffrey Sachs is an economics professor and director of the Centre for Sustainable Development at Columbia University. He is president of the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network. He was a special adviser to the UN Secretary General and has advised multiple governments on economic transition, debt crisis solutions and poverty alleviation policies. Part 1 of…
The head of a US congressional committee on Thursday, warned Panama over Chinese influence on the Panama Canal, following reports that leading Chinese state-owned conglomerates are bidding for port concessions there now for sale by Hong Kong-based CK Hutchison Holdings. In his letter to Minister of Maritime Affairs and Administrator of the Panama Maritime Authority…
Hong Kong is striving to enhance its connectivity with countries under the Belt and Road Initiative by increasing flight frequencies to strategic destinations such as Xinjiang, Riyadh and Dallas, as well as launching new direct routes to second-tier Asean and Middle Eastern locations, the city’s chief for the national plan has said. In an exclusive…
The idea that Hong Kong could play a leading role in the global space economy was greeted with scepticism when I raised the possibility with Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu earlier this month. However, critics fail to realise that space technologies have permeated many aspects of our lives – from checking the weather and ordering…
Egypt and China affirmed their commitment on Thursday to strengthening cooperation across a broad range of sectors, as President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hosted Chinese Premier Li Qiang in Cairo for high-level talks aimed at deepening bilateral ties. The meeting, which included Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and senior officials from both countries, focused on expanding…
The new space race is heating up, with the United States warning that its major rival China is narrowing the gap as it makes rapid technology gains. While China says its ambitious plans remain peaceful and that it rejects the weaponisation of space, some of the technologies it has developed in recent years also have…