On Aug 15, India marked 79 years as an independent modern nation. A moment not only for national reflection, but also for revisiting the extraordinary and parallel journeys of two of the world's oldest continuous civilizations. India and China both began their modern nation-building endeavors within years of one another in the mid-20th century. As we mark this milestone, it is worth pausing to consider what our two ancient societies have built, what we have learned from one another, and what possibilities lie ahead as both nations continue to rise.
Long before the modern age, India and China were already connected, through the movement of ideas, trade and scholarship. With contact over the ages came understanding and the mutuality of benefit: philosophy, medicine, astronomy. Even everyday goods such as sugar, spices, paper and ink traveled across these ancient networks, creating new bridges of contact between our peoples. That tradition of learning from each other's civilizations continued through the 19th and early 20th centuries, as we made our respective journeys toward national liberation and freedom.
When India gained independence in 1947, it inherited a society scarred by the trauma of Partition and colonial exploitation. Some 90 percent of India's 340 million people at the time lived below the poverty line, literacy stood under 16 percent, and life expectancy was around 31 years. Even in that adversity, India's founders chose a path grounded in constitutional democracy and pluralism for all citizens, regardless of race, religion or gender, and thereby becoming among the first post-colonial nations to adopt universal adult suffrage. In many ways, this was a continuation of our civilizational democratic ethos. And unlike most other countries that chose such a path after becoming prosperous societies, we did so in the most challenging conditions. China, too, has undertaken a remarkable transformation over a comparable period, lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty. While our developmental paths have differed, both our nations have shared a common conviction that the well-being of our people must remain at the heart of nation-building, and that it is for the people of each nation to decide on the system that best suits their circumstances.
Today, like China, India is a country of rapid transformation. India is among the fastest-growing major economies in the world, sustaining growth of around 7 percent. This transformation has also been underpinned by political stability and a growing degree of policy continuity, providing greater predictability for businesses and investors.
Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a decade, among the more remarkable achievements of India are the facts that electricity has reached 100 percent of rural and urban India, and that the proportion of Indians with bank accounts has risen from around 40 to over 80 percent. Today, India records the world's largest number of fintech transactions, over 130 billion a year, across interoperable payment platforms that, much as in China, have all but obviated the need for cash. India is also a space-capable nation with end-to-end launch capability, the world's second-largest smartphone market, and among the fastest-growing populations of internet users, at some of the lowest data costs anywhere.
This dynamism is carried forward by the world's largest youthful workforce, with several hundred million Indians under the age of 30, and by a vibrant startup and innovation ecosystem.
As two of the world's most populous emerging economies, a stable, predictable and amicable relationship between India and China is not only in the interest of our 2.8 billion people, but is also a significant factor for peace, stability and prosperity in Asia and the wider world. As Asia and the wider international landscape become increasingly multipolar, India and China both have a stake in ensuring that global governance structures evolve to reflect the aspirations and interests of the developing world.
This shared interest finds concrete expression in platforms such as BRICS, which is an important voice for emerging economies on issues ranging from sustainable development and financial architecture to technology cooperation and people-centric growth. As we look toward the upcoming BRICS Summit hosted by India, there is a valuable opportunity to deepen India-China cooperation on issues of mutual concern, from trade and investment to climate action, public health and the digital economy, while contributing constructively to a more balanced, inclusive and equitable global order.
Last year, President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed that India and China are cooperation partners who are each other's development opportunities. This perspective is in keeping with the long history of mutually beneficial contact between our two civilizations. Maintaining peace and tranquility in the India-China border areas is vital to building this partnership. We must build on that foundation, guided by mutual respect, mutual sensitivity and mutual interest, while ensuring that differences, which are natural between nations, do not become disputes. In doing so, our partnership can contribute to the well-being of our two peoples and to a more stable, peaceful and prosperous world.
Source: Chinadaily.com.cn
2026-09-23
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From September 15 to 17, the Delegation of the Political and Business Community in CEEC, consisting of 25 members from 10 countries, visited Fujian. They visited CATL, attended the Belt and Road China (Fujian)-CEEC Business Dialogue, and explored the Three Lanes and Seven Alleys Historical and Cultural Block. Over the three-day trip — from the new energy industry to business dialogue, and then to the culture of ancient alleys — the delegates saw a multifaceted and vibrant Fujian.
Source: FJICC
2026-09-21
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When coastal cities face offshore wind and storm surge threats, how can sandy shorelines find a flexible pathway that combines disaster reduction and ecology beyond “hard defences”? When the dune–beach–shelterbelt geomorphic system is damaged, how can ecological restoration serve as the foundation to reclaim the blue of this sea area?
The Xiasha Beach project in Fuzhou Binhai New City innovatively adopted key technologies such as “construction of multi-peak and multi-layer dunes in high-wind areas”. By reshaping the complete dune–beach–shelterbelt landform system, removing rigid seawalls, restoring natural shoreline morphology, and revitalising historical cultural tourism facilities, the project achieved a transformation from “grey protection” to “green resilience”. It significantly enhanced the coastal zone’s capacity to withstand extreme disasters such as storm surges, built a resilient coast that integrates ecological disaster reduction with marine-friendly spaces, and pioneered a replicable and scalable path for ecological protection and sustainable development along the sandy coasts of southeast China (contributing to SDGs 11, 13, 14, and 15).
Background: Ecological Degradation of the Sandy Coastal Zone and the Ecological Practice of Resilience Reconfiguration
The Fuzhou Binhai New City enjoys exceptional ecological conditions. However, it is classified as a Grade I storm-surge hazard area – a typical high-risk marine disaster zone – facing severe damage to the integrity of its sandy coastal geomorphology and increasing coastal erosion. To effectively address these issues, the Binhai New City launched the Xiasha coastal dune–beach restoration and nourishment project in June 2021, aiming to protect, restore, and promote the sustainable use of wetland ecosystems.
Project description: From “eroded and fragmented” to “blue‑green symbiosis”
The Xiasha coastal dune–beach restoration and nourishment project was initiated in June 2021. Guided by the principles of coastal dynamic geomorphology, it restored dunes and stabilised sand-fixing vegetation to build a beach–dune ecological buffer zone. From sea to land, it formed a continuous and complete beach ecosystem consisting of beach, dune, and backshore vegetation, restoring the ecological functions of the shoreline, expanding the buffer space of the sandy coast, effectively improving shoreline stability and disaster-reduction capacity, and treating direct marine pollution sources. The project created an ecological beach adapted to the restored coastal environment and landscape characteristics of the Xiasha area, improved the ecological service functions of the beach, and enhanced the overall value of coastal zone natural resource assets.The restored coastal dune section is approximately 1.28 km long, with a restoration area of about 2.71 hectares and a sand replenishment volume of approximately 67,400 cubic metres. The backshore dune vegetation restoration section is about 1.28 km long, covering an area of approximately 2 hectares. At the same time, to consolidate the ecological restoration effect of the sandy beach and ensure the health and stability of the beach ecosystem in the restored Xiasha area, the project addressed direct marine outfalls as a key intervention. This included both internal and external source pollution control, raising discharge standards for direct marine pollutants, and safeguarding the integrity of coastal landscapes and beach ecosystems. The area of marine pollution treatment covers 0.73 hectares.
Xiasha Coast Before Restoration
Xiasha Coast After Restoration
Sustainability impacts
Environmental impact: The project reshaped the complete “beach–dune–backshore vegetation” coastal geomorphic system, effectively treated direct marine pollution sources, improved coastal habitat conditions, and built a solid blue ecological barrier for Binhai New City.
Governance impact: It innovatively explored a new integrated land–sea management and systematic restoration model. By combining scientific sand nourishment, sand fixation, and pollution control, it established a cross-sectoral, cross-domain comprehensive coastal management and long-term operation and maintenance mechanism.
Economic impact: It successfully converted “ecological appearance” into “economic output”, activating new momentum for coastal tourism consumption. According to statistics, since its opening in May 2023, Xiasha Beach has received approximately 3.5 million visitors.
Social impact: It addressed the long-standing pain point of coastal erosion threatening residents’ livelihoods. Through people-centred restoration, it greatly enhanced public satisfaction and well-being in terms of coastal access. According to satisfaction surveys, public satisfaction with the Xiasha dune–beach restoration and nourishment project reached 99.4%.
Significance:
Sustainability: By establishing a comprehensive restoration effect assessment mechanism and a multi-department coordinated “wall-chart battle” system, the project ensured rapid implementation and long-term maintenance.
Replicability: As a typical case integrating economic, social, and environmental benefits, the project’s successful experience has already been applied to the restoration and nourishment of the surrounding Shawei Beach and the beach restoration project south of the airport.
Innovation: It built a comprehensive protection system dominated by Casuarina and mixed forests on the landward side, while creating an ecological dike composed of “beach–backshore vegetation–shelterbelt” on the seaward side, forming a resilient defence line for bidirectional disaster reduction from both sea and land.
Source: Global Alliance for Sustainable Development in Cities
2026-09-18
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Waleed Al-Hasani from Oman's Al Shabiba Newspaper praises Fuzhou Port's AI & digital technologies, looking forward to deeper connectivity & tech-sharing with Oman.
Source: Fudao Funway
2026-09-16
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The Ministry of Natural Resources recently released the marine economic performance for the first half of the year. Preliminary estimates show that China’s gross marine product reached 5.5 trillion yuan in H1, a year-on-year increase of 5.1%. Scientific and technological innovation has markedly accelerated its capacity to empower high-quality development of the marine economy.
In recent years, China has accelerated the deployment of an integrated air-sea-subsea intelligent equipment system. A matrix of homegrown intelligent equipment centered on maritime drones, unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), manned submersibles and unmanned submersibles has taken shape. It has built a three-dimensional perception and operation chain spanning “air – sea surface – underwater – deep abyss”. Powered by artificial intelligence, the system deeply empowers marine industries and establishes a fully covered, independently controllable marine three-dimensional security network. Intelligent equipment replaces human operations in extremely high-risk marine environments, building a solid safety barrier for the high-quality development of marine industries.
Aerial drones serve as cutting-edge perception carriers for marine observation and monitoring. In emergencies such as offshore oil spills, man overboard incidents and vessel loss of control, drones can rapidly reach target sea areas, transmit real-time data on oil spill spread and coordinates of personnel and vessels, and deliver emergency supplies, filling the gap in early-stage observation of traditional rescue operations.
Today, drones fitted with high-definition cameras, infrared thermal imagers and high-volume loudspeaker systems leverage a low-altitude intelligent networked platform to deliver closed-loop management: detection → identification → expulsion → evidence collection. Operators compare Automatic Identification System (AIS) data with live footage to accurately lock onto “ghost ships” that turn off AIS signals. The system assigns the nearest drone for on-site warning and expulsion, retaining high-definition video evidence throughout the whole process to form a complete digital archive chain, which provides solid support for subsequent law enforcement.
Meanwhile, another vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) fixed-wing drone flies along subsea pipelines toward the open sea, feeding live footage back to the low-altitude intelligent networked platform. A conventional tugboat takes more than four hours to inspect a 70-plus-kilometer subsea pipeline, while the drone completes the task in less than one hour. Equipped with AI recognition algorithms, the drone automatically marks pipeline anomalies and transmits data to the platform in real time. Behind this capability lies an invisible “protection network”: China’s independently developed marine meteorological forecasting products deliver refined 6-hour interval forecasts for the next 10 days. The system selects safe flight windows precisely, enabling drones to return safely before sea conditions deteriorate.
In scenarios including offshore wind power, port waterways and meteorological observation, unmanned surface vehicles work in tandem with underwater robots to form a dual-layer monitoring system: rapid surface scanning + detailed underwater verification, safeguarding round-the-clock safety of offshore production and operations. Since 2025, multiple marine intelligent equipment achievements have been rolled out. The high-speed submersible unmanned surface vehicle “Blue Whale” was launched, capable of intelligent switching between high-speed surface navigation and submerged cruising, extending its application to meteorological data collection inside typhoon eyes. The “Haiwei (Sea Guard)” system, China’s self-developed intelligent monitoring equipment for deepwater subsea pipeline laying, successfully completed sea trials. It pioneered the technical solution combining “unmanned ship + autonomous remotely operated hybrid submersible + repeater + optical communication”, achieving six “firsts in China” and greatly improving the intelligence level of deep-sea pipeline laying monitoring. The deployment of underwater inspection robots integrated with service data and life prediction models for key marine materials has formed a technical closed loop of “intelligent monitoring/inspection — data platform — evaluation system”, bringing China into a new phase of deep integration between “intelligent equipment and big data” in marine engineering safety monitoring and inspection.
Against extreme harsh deepsea conditions such as high pressure and low temperature, China’s homegrown manned and unmanned submersibles have become primary equipment for high-risk core underwater missions.
In the first half of 2026, the manned submersible “Jiaolong” completed research cruises in the Western Pacific and the South China Sea, with a total of 40 dives. The manned submersible “Fendouzhe (Striver)” finished a trans-Pacific scientific expedition, logging 63 dives, among which 50 exceeded 6,000 meters in depth. The two manned submersibles collected abundant biological and geological specimens as well as high-definition underwater footage in four extreme deep-sea environments: hydrothermal vents, cold seeps, ocean trenches and hadal zone. Adopting in-situ deep-sea biological detection technology based on AI recognition and environmental DNA (eDNA) testing, they have significantly boosted deep-sea exploration efficiency and sampling precision, strengthened seafloor resource survey capacity in complex deep-sea habitats, and offered a brand-new technical paradigm for deep-sea resource exploration and extraction, as well as ecological assessment and conservation.
In addition, deepsea unmanned submersibles including the “Hailong” series ROVs, the “Haidou No.1” remotely operated vehicle and the “Qianlong” series autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) have achieved regular scientific research and operational applications. They can carry out operations such as pipeline damage repair, foreign object clearance and deep-sea archaeology in turbid, high-pressure and low-temperature deepsea environments.
Artificial intelligence serves as the core brain of the three-dimensional security system. Currently, cross-sphere and cross-region submersibles are emerging one after another. Intelligent perception capabilities including embodied AI, network self-generation, fine-grained target recognition and autonomous tracking keep iterating, breaking down data exchange barriers among multiple pieces of equipment across “space, sky, land, sea and seabed”. Drones conduct large-scale rapid screening over the sea surface; unmanned surface vehicles perform fixed-point monitoring and communication relay; unmanned submersibles accomplish underwater positioning and simple disposal; manned submersibles carry out in-depth surveys and personnel search and rescue as needed. Together they form a full-chain closed-loop emergency response: airborne detection, surface support, underwater intervention. Meanwhile, digital twin systems are built for deepsea equipment. Massive measured data trains fault prediction models to warn potential risks in advance such as pipeline fatigue and equipment leakage, realizing the shift from “passive emergency repair” to “active early warning”.
To strategically develop the ocean, science and technology acts as the tool. Deeply embedded in marine equipment, artificial intelligence enables submersible autonomous obstacle avoidance, intelligent identification of pipeline defects and automatic classification of underwater targets, substantially cutting the labor cost of remote control. It is driving the transformation of marine industries from “manpower-driven” to “intelligence-driven”. China will continue to refine its integrated air-sea-subsea equipment system. Marine cutting-edge technologies will shoulder the mission of safeguarding the blue ocean, laying a solid technical foundation for the high-quality development of the marine economy.
Source: China Natural Resources News
2026-09-14
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