China-ASEAN Free Trade Area takes effect

A major earthquake struck Sichuan, killing tens of thousands and displacing millions. The disaster prompted a vast state-led relief effort and public scrutiny of school construction and local...

The Olympic Games opened in Beijing, projecting China’s economic modernization and international stature. The spectacle also drew attention to human rights, censorship, labor, and environmental...

China’s State Council announced a large stimulus package in response to the global financial crisis, emphasizing infrastructure, housing, and domestic demand. The response supported global recovery...

Chinese naval vessels departed to protect commercial shipping from piracy off Somalia. The deployment extended China’s military presence beyond East Asia and was presented as an international...

Violence broke out in Urumqi after a protest by Uyghurs over an earlier factory incident. The unrest and state response exposed ethnic tensions, grievances over security and development, and the...

The Expo opened under the theme “Better City, Better Life,” presenting China as a capable host and an urban-development model. Its global spectacle coincided with the displacement and redevelopment...

The National People’s Congress approved the 12th Five-Year Plan, emphasizing rebalancing, social services, innovation and environmental goals alongside continued growth. Planning remained a major tool...

China launched its first space laboratory module, a step toward developing a permanent crewed space station. The program built independent technological capacity after exclusion from the International...

The Liaoning entered service as the PRC’s first aircraft carrier. Its commissioning signaled a new phase in naval modernization and power projection, although the carrier’s operational capability...

The 18th Party Congress opened in Beijing and began a leadership transition that brought Xi Jinping to the party’s top post. The congress’s report addressed growth, reform, social development and...