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Davidovich Fokina beats Jodar to win Shanghai crown; Chwalinska ⁠wins first title in Wuhan

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina ended Rafael Jodar’s dream run at the Shanghai Masters on Sunday, battling back to beat ‌his fellow Spaniard 1-6, 7-6, 6-4 and clinch the biggest title of his career. In Wuhan, meanwhile, French ⁠Open finalist ⁠Maja Chwalinska ⁠won her first title on the WTA tour as she shook off early ne…

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China urged to copy Pentagon’s hi-tech warfare project without US conflicts of interest

China has been urged to learn from a Pentagon project to assess future warfare but warned to avoid the potential conflicts of interest and other shortcomings of the US defence review. Project Meridian, launched late last month, is designed to identify future battlefield requirements and prioritise investment, with a…

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Kartal denied biggest win of career after Chwalinska fightback in Wuhan Open final

French Open finalist wins 2-6, 6-4, 6-4 for her first titleKartal will become new British No 1 after record runSonay Kartal missed out on winning the biggest title of her career as her brilliant run at the Wuhan Open ended in a final defeat by Maja Chwalinska.Kartal has enjoyed her best tournament only a fortnight a…

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Katie Zacharia and Mao Ning – a study in contrasts in US and China media strategies

Katie Zacharia may have lasted just five days as the White House press secretary but still managed to set off a diplomatic incident with China. In an interview with a conservative commentator on Thursday, Zacharia referred to China as a place that “doesn’t even have proper toilets”. Chinese foreign ministry spokeswo…

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S. Korea, Ukraine had no discussion on timing of disclosing N.K. POW repatriation: diplomat

South Korea and Ukraine had formed a consensus to keep discussions on the repatriation of captured North Korean soldiers confidential for as long as possible, a South Korean diplomat said Sunday. Yoon Ji-wan, charge d'affaires at the South Korean Embassy in Ukraine, made the remark during a parliamentary audit by th…

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How a hospital ship helps buoy China’s strategic mission in Africa

By the time the Chinese navy hospital ship had docked in the Guinean capital Conakry earlier this month, patients were already queuing for free consultations. The queues in front of the Auspicious Ark were so long that some people were told to come back the next day, according to Guinean media reports. The ship, ope…

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Why stealing pumpkins for newlyweds is a blessing in ancient Chinese tradition

In ancient China, welcoming autumn could involve stealing pumpkins, sitting on giant hanging scales and eating extra meat – rituals reflecting how people connected seasonal change with fertility, health and good fortune. Historical records show that during the Qing dynasty (1644–1912), groups of young people would g…

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Qian Jiang, former Johns Hopkins’ eye institute expert, joins hospital in China

Professor Qian Jiang, a senior eye expert at Johns Hopkins University in the United States, has moved back to China full time to pursue research on eye transplants. For more than two decades, Qian built and ran the genetic data hub at Johns Hopkins’ renowned Wilmer Eye Institute. He was welcomed at a ceremony on Oct…

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Former China table tennis teammates Zhang Jike, Liu Dingshuo engage in public online spat

Former Chinese table tennis teammates Zhang Jike and Liu Dingshuo have become embroiled in a public feud online, trading accusations of clout-chasing across their respective live-streams, despite having once shared the same provincial training ground. The dispute erupted when 28-year-old Liu took aim at Zhang during…

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Risky business? Chinese firm agrees to build rail tunnels in Qatar amid Iran war

A Chinese construction company has reached an agreement to work on tunnel projects in the tiny Middle Eastern nation of Qatar, as China’s global infrastructure push continues to gain momentum after recent railway deals in Southeast Asia and Latin America. The state-owned China Railway Tunnel Group has signed a memor…

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800 yrs after Vietnamese prince's arrival, a Korean county tries to revive historic ties

Some 800 people gathered Saturday at Chunghyodang, a centuries-old building tucked away in the mountains of eastern South Korea, where conversations could be heard in Korean, Vietnamese and occasionally English. They had come to commemorate an unlikely historical connection: The arrival of a Vietnamese prince on the…

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Japan to launch world-first mission to collect samples from Martian moon

Japanese space agency leads five-year mission to Phobos, one of ‘most important unclimbed mountains in the solar system’Japan is to launch a spacecraft on the world’s first mission to bring back samples from Phobos, one of the two small, potato-shaped moons orbiting Mars.Scientists hope the mission, which is expecte…

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China slams Japan’s Takaichi over Yasukuni ritual offering, warns of ‘remilitarisation’

China has condemned Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for sending a ritual offering to Tokyo’s war-linked Yasukuni Shrine, a move that threatens to further strain ties between the neighbours. At the start of Yasukuni’s three-day autumn festival on Saturday, Takaichi sent a ritual tree-stand offering to the shri…

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Germany, France to tighten ‘Made in Europe’ stance, pressuring China’s auto industry

France and Germany have unveiled a joint position on Europe’s automotive package, with a tighter geographic definition of “Made in Europe” and a research and development requirement for cars to qualify for subsidies or public procurement, which industry insiders say would put further pressure on Chinese carmakers to…

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Kim Young-kwang isn't afraid of a little K-drama rom-com cringe

Netflix Korea’s latest romantic comedy series, "Take Charge of My Heart," is about as classic a K-drama as they come. The series adheres to a time-tested K-drama formula: a handsome, wealthy heir and an ordinary protagonist drawn together by fate, with a steady stream of accidental physical contact and romantic misu…

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Plan to relocate defense, foreign ministries sparks crisis response concerns

Plans to relocate South Korea's defense and foreign affairs ministries to Sejong have been met with caution from experts and resistance from opposition parties, who point out the importance of the existing diplomatic and security infrastructure in Seoul. On Tuesday, the government unveiled plans to move 44 central g…

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Seo Chae-hyun wins lead title, eyes fourth straight double

Seo Chae-hyun, one of South Korea's leading sport climbers, won the women's lead title at the National Sports Festival for a fourth consecutive year. Seo, who represents Seoul City Hall and The North Face, finished first in the women's lead semifinal at the 107th National Sports Festival at Jeju Sports Complex on Sa…

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Kim Min-jae starts as Bayern thrash Leipzig 6-1, stay unbeaten

Bayern Munich reclaimed first place in the Bundesliga after routing RB Leipzig 6-1, with South Korea center back Kim Min-jae in the starting lineup. Bayern earned the emphatic home victory at Allianz Arena in Munich on Oct. 17 behind a Luis Diaz hat trick and a goal and two assists from Harry Kane. The win kept Baye…

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Wave of anti-discrimination rules sweeps across universities

More university student councils across South Korea are adopting rules against discrimination and hate speech as a comprehensive antidiscrimination bill remains stalled at the National Assembly nearly two decades after it was first proposed. According to local reports, Seoul National University's student council ame…

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China moves to cement ties with Uzbekistan amid tussle with US for Central Asian influence

Chinese Premier Li Qiang has called for deeper cooperation with Uzbekistan in areas such as minerals and artificial intelligence (AI) as Beijing vies with Washington for influence in Central Asia. Li told President Shavkat Mirziyoyev on Saturday that Beijing was ready to strengthen strategic communication and expand…

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US racing to field drone wingmen to close fighter gap with China

A recent breakthrough in airborne drone control has offered a tangible glimpse into the future of US air combat, signaling the US Air Force’s accelerating push to integrate autonomous wingmen alongside frontline fighters. This month, The War Zone (TWZ) reported that a US Air Force F-22 Raptor pilot successfully cont…

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