China marks 80th anniversary of wartime victory with peace call
China has marked the 80th anniversary of Japan’s defeat, which ended the Second World War, with its envoy here honouring millions of lives lost and urging a renewed global commitment to peace.
China, which has dubbed the conflict the Chinese War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, began its battle against Tokyo in 1931, when Japanese imperialist forces overran the northeastern region of Manchuria a full decade before Japan joined Germany in declaring war on the United States and allies.
Beijing’s new ambassador to Barbados, Zheng Bingkai, highlighted the historic significance of the victory, which came after 14 years of fighting: “Eighty years ago, after enduring the blood and fire of battlefields for 14 years, the Chinese people won a great victory in the War of Resistance, defending national sovereignty and territorial integrity.
This victory marked a historic turning point, leading the Chinese nation out of a profound crisis toward great rejuvenation.”…
Former Central Bank governor and president of the Association of Barbados- China Friendship, Dr DeLisle Worrell, also reflected on the Second World War’s legacy for Caribbean families: “I grew up in an atmosphere of privation, trauma, personal tragedy and loss of life and property. These are the inevitable consequences of war. The Caribbean was on the winning side, but those young Caribbean men and women who lost their lives in the conflict never knew that, and the lives of their partners, parents, children and loved ones were forever saddened by their absence.”
He added: “History teaches us that peace is essential for progress…. War always interrupts that progress.”
How does China's victory in 1945 still define the Taiwan question? (beijingscroll.com)
To grasp why Taiwan has come to be seen as a "question," one must understand that, in the final stage of World War II, a series of documents of international law required Japan to return Taiwan to China. After winning the war in 1945, China had already restored its sovereignty over Taiwan. This was a consensus among the Allies, but Cold War divisions and geopolitics in recent years have obscured that reality for some—and even led to its outright denial.
The 5 key takeaways from China’s Victory Day military parade | South China Morning Post
China hosted two dozen world leaders for a huge military parade in Tiananmen Square on Wednesday to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.
It was only the second time Beijing has held a Victory Day parade, the first taking place a decade ago.
The parade – which started at 9am and lasted nearly 90 minutes – was viewed by many as a showcase of China’s growing military strength. But it was also an attempt by Beijing to cement its global leadership status and to show its rising diplomatic clout.
China In Dialogue: Maintaining Tibetan Language and Identity in Jiuzhaigou, Sichuan (feelingthestones.com)
This essay continues retracing my October 2024 travels through western China’s Gansu and Sichuan provinces. At the end of my previous travelogue, I drove a mountain road from Zhakarna, in Gannan Tibetan Prefecture, Gansu to Jiuzhaigou, in the Ngawa (Aba) Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan. At this stop, we stayed in a family guesthouse in a village near the Jiuzhaigou scenic area, where I had series of illuminating conversations with the guesthouse owner and his family about the state of Tibetan language, culture, and identity in the area.
From Heartland to Mainland - USHCA's Future Ag Leaders Delegation to China
The evening dinner at Heartland Connect for Trade & Investment premiered the Future Ag Leaders Delegation video, which documented USHCA’s recent trip bringing 20 young agricultural leaders from the Heartland to Beijing and Henan.
The delegation’s journey demonstrated the next generation’s commitment to strengthening ties through agriculture, and reminded attendees of the importance of investing in youth exchange to build trust and cooperation. The program received vital support from the U.S. Soy industry, including the U.S. Soybean Export Council, which championed this opportunity to promote American agriculture on a global stage.
China’s electric vehicle influence expands nearly everywhere – except the US and Canada (theconversation.com)
…But Chinese EV makers are also making other advances. They make significant use of industrial robotics, even to the point of building so-called “dark factories” that can operate with minimal human intervention. For passengers, they have reimagined vehicles’ interiors, with large touchscreens for information and entertainment, and even added a refrigerator, bed or karaoke system.
Competition among Chinese EV makers is fierce, which drives additional innovation. BYD is the largest seller of EVs, both domestically and globally. Yet the company says it employs over 100,000 scientists and engineers seeking continual improvement.
From initial concept models to actual rollout of factory-made cars, BYD takes 18 months – half as long as U.S. and other global automakers take for their product development processes, Reuters reported.
BYD is also the world’s second-largest EV battery seller and has developed a new battery that can recharge in just five minutes, roughly the same time it takes to fill a gas-powered car’s tank.
Human microbiome scientist Wang Leyao leaves troubled US government agency for China | South China Morning Post
Top epidemiologist is latest researcher to return to China after the Trump administration withdrew millions of dollars in academic funding.
Facing China’s solar power industry, EU advised to concede defeat | South China Morning Post
A group of French and German economists has urged Europe to identify which industries to support in the face of Chinese competition and boldly abandon those where the battle had already been lost, such as the solar power sector.
The recommendations were presented in five memos to the Franco-German Council of Ministers at the request of the two governments during a council meeting on Friday. The memos cover trade with China, as well as defence, energy, economic growth and the labour market.
The economists advised Europe to protect sensitive sectors such as defence, space and robotics, while leaving mature industries open to cheap Chinese imports. They welcomed Chinese investment in critical technologies such as batteries, provided that technology is shared, according to a summary published by the Franco-German Council of Economic Experts.
South China’s Greater Bay Area boasts world’s largest innovation cluster | South China Morning Post
A portion of China’s Greater Bay Area has been named the world’s largest innovation cluster, underscoring Beijing’s drive for technological self-reliance at a time of rising geopolitical uncertainties with the United States.
The Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Guangzhou technology hub – the heart of the bay area plan – has overtaken Tokyo-Yokohama to become the world’s largest innovation cluster, according to the World Intellectual Property Organisation’s (WIPO) 2025 Global Innovation Index released on Monday.
It marks the first time the region has topped the global ranking after holding the No 2 spot for five consecutive years. Further down the list, the San Jose-San Francisco cluster jumped three spots to third place, followed by Beijing in fourth, then Seoul, Shanghai–Suzhou and New York City.
China wife suffers depression after window cleaners see her sleeping naked; demands rent cut | South China Morning Post
A woman in China has developed depression after two male window cleaners saw her asleep naked in her home.
The woman and her husband live in Port Apartment, a high-end housing estate in Chengdu, in southwestern Sichuan province. They pay 10,000 yuan (US$1,400) a month in rent.
Her plight captivated mainland social media after her husband, surnamed Cheng, exposed the situation online in the middle of August.
Life expectancy for Hong Kong women hits record, while men also get a lift | South China Morning Post
Hongkongers’ already impressive life expectancies rose further in 2024 after falling during the pandemic, with women living on average for a record 88.4 years and men for 82.8 years, census figures show.
But a Census and Statistics Department report also underscored the increasing strain on the city’s public healthcare system, with the number of inpatient and day inpatient discharges and deaths in hospitals increasing by 5.8 per cent in a year.
Hong Kong, Japan and South Korea have the longest life expectancies in the world, according to statistics provider Worldometer.
Exclusive | On the beat with Hong Kong’s highest-ranking colonial-era expatriate officer | South China Morning Post
Briskly walking down an office corridor at the Hong Kong police headquarters, a blond-haired uniformed officer energetically greets passing colleagues with a jovial “Wei hing dai!”, meaning “Hey, brother!” in Cantonese.
His office displays a kaleidoscopic collection of memorial coins and medals from law enforcement agencies worldwide, alongside a wall covered with pictures showing myriad police units, from frontline operations to the secretive VIP protection unit.
The officer was Assistant Commissioner David Jordan, 58, currently the highest-ranking expatriate policeman recruited during the colonial era still serving in the force this year.
China ‘PhD village’ celebrates after gaining another doctoral student; has 33 PhDs already | South China Morning Post
A village in southeastern China has earned the nickname “PhD Village” due to its remarkable achievement of producing 33 offspring who have obtained doctoral degrees from prestigious universities, both domestically and internationally.
Pengdao Village, part of Nanan City in Fujian province, gained widespread attention at the end of August after a video showcasing a grand scholarship presentation held at the local ancestral clan hall went viral, as reported by the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald.
This ceremony, marking the second occurrence in its history, is sponsored by the Guo Family Education Fund, reflecting the dominant presence of individuals surnamed Guo in the village.
Chinese wife hangs banners, ‘thanking’ best friend for sleeping with husband for 5 years | South China Morning Post
A Chinese wife displayed red banners on the fence of a residential complex in Changsha, in central China’s Hunan province, sarcastically expressing gratitude to her best friend for having an affair with her husband.
Alongside the banners, there were pennants revealing that the wife’s best friend, surnamed Shi, works in the finance department of a tourism management office in the Hongshan community.
This weekly newsletter is put together by DeLisle Worrell, President of the ABCF. Visit us at Association for Barbados China Friendship | (abcf-bb.com).
Thanks to everyone who sent contributions for this week’s Update. Please send items of interest to me via the contact page at ABCF-BB.com or to info@DeLisleWorrell.com
The ABCF mission is to build a deeper understanding between the Chinese people and Barbadians and Caribbean people from all walks of life. The association’s focus is on personal experiences, people-to-people contact, cultural exchanges and exchanges of ideas, and the facilitation of travel, business and study. From the outset we aim to learn from and build on the experiences of the Caribbean and China, and to develop mutual understandings and support that will be to the benefit of both sides.
