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China will build an observation station in the country's northwest Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region to improve the ecology of Pamir Plateau, a busy passage once for traders traveling along the ancient Silk Road. The station to be built in Taxkorgan County will be used by researchers concerned with water resources, biodiversity, grassland productivity, climate change and disaster warning and forecasting, said Lei Jiaqiang, director of the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Field observation could also help the local community improve agriculture and livestock production efficiency and support the construction of the China-pakistan Economic...

The New Yalu River Bridge was supposed to be a key link for trade between China and North Korea, replacing the Sino-Korean Friendship Bridge built in 1943. (snip)Click on the site to see the video

China's first domestically built passenger plane completed its maiden flight today. The narrow-body, twin-engine C919 successfully took off from Shanghai Pudong International Airport at 2pm local time (7am BST) amid much fanfare. The single-aisle aircraft has been billed as China's answer to the Boeing 737 and Airbus 320 as the nation aims to take on western airlines. The C919 flight is Beijing's first step toward independence from Boeing and Airbus as it attempts to replace all 6,000-6,800 of its western aircraft at a cost of around $1 trillion.

The news that China is working on an anti-ship drone-missile hybrid of sorts has been bouncing around social media as of late, after a photo and details about the weapon surfaced recently. The system is centered around a wing-in-ground-effect optimized airframe—a concept made famous by the Soviet Union's enigmatic Ekranoplans, and in particular, the giant Caspian Sea Monster. Ground effect craft can efficiently skim very low over the ground at high speeds by leveraging the decreased drag and increased lift that occurs as a result of an aircraft's wings interacting with the air directly above the planet's surface. Although some...

N. Korea's grain imports from China surge in March SEOUL, May 3 (Yonhap) -- North Korea's grain imports from China surged in March from a year earlier, a U.S.-based news agency said Wednesday, citing customs data released by China. The North imported a total of 4,400 tons of grain from China in March, which represented about a 3,200 percent spike from the same month last year, according to a report by Voice of America (VOA). The amount was also up from the North's February grain imports from its closest ally, which stood at around 1,275 tons. Of the imports, wheat...

BEIJING (Reuters) – China said on Thursday it wants to be good neighbors with North Korea, after the isolated country’s state news agency published a rare criticism of Chinese state media commentaries calling for tougher sanctions over the North’s nuclear program. The United States has urged China, North Korea’s only major ally, to do more to rein in the North’s nuclear and missile programs, which have prompted an assertive response from the Trump administration, warning that an “era of strategic patience” is over. A commentary carried by North Korea’s KCNA news agency referred to recent commentaries in China’s People’s Daily...

'Don't move or I'll shoot' - China teaching Korean to soldiers on N. Korean border By Lee Han-soo Chinese soldiers stationed along the North Korean border are learning Korean in case North Koreans cross the border to flee any U.S. attacks, according to a Japanese news outlet Tuesday. The Yomiuri Shimbun said the soldiers are memorizing phrases such as "Stop" or "Don't move or I'll shoot" in Korean, citing sources familiar with China's People's Liberation Army (PLA). "The PLA is teaching Korean to soldiers near the North Korean border in case North Korean refugees start flocking into China if a...

China, US share goal of halting North Korean nuclear tests Source:Global Times Published: 2017/5/2 23:23:39 US President Donald Trump said to the media on Monday that "If it would be appropriate for me to meet with him [Kim Jong-un], I would absolutely, I would be honored to do it." He stressed that "If it's under the, again, under the right circumstances. But I would do that." His latest remarks have triggered great controversy in the US. White House press secretary Sean Spicer explained later that the right circumstances mean "We've got to see their provocative behavior ratcheted down immediately." But...

North Korea's state media published a rare criticism of China on Wednesday, saying Chinese state media commentaries calling for tougher sanctions over Pyongyang's nuclear program were undermining relations with Beijing and worsening tensions. A commentary carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) referred to recent commentaries in China's People's Daily and Global Times newspapers, which it said were "widely known as media speaking for the official stand of the Chinese party and government." "A string of absurd and reckless remarks are now heard from China every day only to render the present bad situation tenser," it said.

After a three year delay the long-awaited maiden flight of China’s 158-seat C919 passenger aircraft is scheduled for Friday, the latest step by the country to break the duopoly of Western giants Airbus and Boeing. According to Xinhua, the first flight of the C919, assembled by state-owned Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (Comac), will be conducted at the Shanghai International Airport on Friday, but could be delayed if weather conditions are not suitable. The timing for the first flight was set after the passenger jet passed a thorough assessment in April. A successful maiden flight, followed by a series of...

Original newz story - Click here Earlier this morning we reported that according to Korea Times, China had allegedly sent North Korea what amount to a final warning over its military provocations. The rumor cited the May issue of Hong Kong monthly news outlet Dong Xiang. It said a Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs junior minister invited Park Myung-ho, an official of North Korea, for a meeting. China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended the meeting and asked his junior to read aloud the warning to the North over the nuclear test. The memorandum mentioned that China will condemn strongly, pull...

North Korea's state media published a rare criticism of China on Wednesday, saying Chinese state media commentaries calling for tougher sanctions over Pyongyang's nuclear program were undermining relations with Beijing and worsening tensions. A commentary carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) referred to recent commentaries in China's People's Daily and Global Times newspapers, which it said were "widely known as media speaking for the official stand of the Chinese party and government." "A string of absurd and reckless remarks are now heard from China every day only to render the present bad situation tenser," it said. "China...

U.S. special operations forces are set to conduct operations against North Korean nuclear, missile, and other weapons of mass destruction sites in any future conflict, the commander of Special Operations Command told Congress Tuesday. Army Gen. Raymond A. Thomas stated in testimony to a House subcommittee that Army, Navy, and Air Force commandos are based both permanently and in rotations on the Korean peninsula in case conflict breaks out. The special operations training and preparation is a warfighting priority, Thomas said in prepared testimony. There are currently around 8,000 special operations troops deployed in more than 80 countries. "We are...

Posts on May 2 saying China sent its last warning to North Korea over nuclear tests have gone viral. / Screen capture from Weibo By Eom Da-sol China has sent a final warning to North Korea over its military provocations, according to unconfirmed rumors spreading widely on Chinese social media Tuesday. Chinese news outlets have previously said Beijing could turn its back on Pyongyang if the latter conducted a sixth nuclear test. But the rumor that China has given North Korea a final warning has drawn particular interest from Weibo users. The rumor cited the May issue of Hong...

As U.S. and China find common ground on North Korea, is Russia the wild card? By James Pearson and Alexei Chernyshev | SEOUL/VLADIVOSTOK, RUSSIA When North Korean leader Kim Jong Un sent Lunar New Year greetings this year, the first card went to Russian President Vladimir Putin, ahead of leaders from China and other allies of the isolated country, according to its official news agency. Some academics who study North Korea argue Kim could be looking for Russia to ease any pain if China, which accounts for about 90 percent of North Korea's trade, steps up sanctions against the isolated...

In case of war with North Korea, the US would face a military challenge as perhaps never before in the last seventy years. This is why a conventional deterrence is actually more important than the nuclear one if we break down a realistic war scenario. The downside is that the DPRK is fully aware that if it responded to a US attack, even in a limited way and only on military targets, it would be flagged as an aggressor, paving the way for a larger foreign intervention. To answer this question, it is necessary to examine what would entail a...

Original newz story - Click here In an unprecedented move, the Chinese Embassy in North Korea has advised Korean-Chinese residents to return home amid concern that the North’s military provocations may trigger a U.S. attack on the North. The Korea Times reports that the embassy began sending the message on Apr. 20, five days before the North celebrated the 85th anniversary of the Korean People’s Army with a show of military power, according to Radio Free Asia (a U.S.-based station specializes in North Korea). The station cited a Korean-Chinese living in the North’s capital, who said he left for China...

The L-15B variant of the L-15 Falcon advanced jet trainer has a passive electronically scanned radar. (Photo: Chinese Internet) China's Hongdu Aviation Industry Corporation on May 1 unveiled a new attack variant of the L-15 Falcon advanced jet trainer, known as the L-15B. Hongdu Aviation is part of the state-owned Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC). The L-15B is an enhanced version of the L-15 LIFT (Lead In Fighter Trainer) variant used by both the People’s Liberation Army Air Force and People's Liberation Army Naval Air Force. Both use the Ukrainian Ivchenko-Progress afterburning AI-222K-25F turbofan, giving the L-15B supersonic speed...

SEOUL: North Korea accused the United States on Tuesday of pushing the Korean peninsula to the brink of nuclear war after a pair of strategic U.S. bombers flew training drills with the South Korean and Japanese air forces in another show of strength. The two supersonic B-1B Lancer bombers were deployed amid rising tensions over North Korea's dogged pursuit of its nuclear and missile programmes in defiance of United Nations sactions and pressure from the United States. The flights of the two bombers on Monday came as U.S. President Donald Trump said he was open to meeting North Korean leader...

Original newz story - Click here As we pointed out earlier today, Reuters cited US military officials who said that the U.S. military’s THAAD anti-missile defense system has “reached initial intercept capability” in South Korea, although they added that it would not be fully operational for some months. Just hours after the announcement, Beijing lashed out at DC and demanded an “immediate halt” to the controversial US missile shield. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang voiced the government’s position against the move during a briefing on Tuesday. “We oppose the deployment of the US missile system to South Korea and...