China

May 1st marks Labor Day and International Workers' Solidarity, observed by countries around the world to honor the contributions of workers and advocate for labor rights.

At least 19 people died when part of a highway collapsed in southern China's Guangdong province on Wednesday, state media reported.

State broadcaster CCTV said a stretch of road between Meizhou city and Dabu county in Guangdong province caved in at around 2:10 am (1810 GMT).

The incident caused 18 vehicles to become trapped and involved a total of 49 people, CCTV said.

The commission on plants suitable for culinary use, under the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry, has greenlit the incorporation of four previously untapped plants into Turkish cuisine.

The newly endorsed additions include Japanese pepper, lychee, holy basil and buckwheat sprouts.

BELGRADE - Serbian Minister of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure Goran Vesic said on Tuesday that, thanks to Presidents Aleksandar Vucic and Xi Jinping, Serbia and China had built a steely friendship based on which they were developing new prospects for the relations between the two countries and the two peoples.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is embarking on a six-day tour of Europe amidst escalating trade tensions with the European Union and concerns over China's support for Russia. The trip, Xi's first to the continent since 2019, includes visits to France, Serbia, and Hungary.

During the World Economic Forum, United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken raised concerns over Russia's unprecedented pace of weapon production, comparing it to historical records, including the Cold War era of the USSR.

BEIJING - Serbia is China's first comprehensive strategic partner in Central and Eastern Europe and the two countries maintain an iron-clad friendship, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Serbia on May 7-8.

Meta Platforms' Facebook and Instagram have failed to tackle deceptive advertising and disinformation in the run-up to European Parliament elections, the European Commission said on Tuesday as it opened an investigation into suspected breaches of EU online content rules.

Cyprus' Shipping Deputy Minister, Marina Hadjimanolis, met last week in Guangzhou, China, with executives of shipping companies, shipping agencies, financial institutions as well as local officials, according to a press release by the Deputy Ministry.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is due to make a state visit to France on May 6 and 7, Paris announced on Monday, with wars in Ukraine and the Middle East expected to be high on the agenda.

The visit to France, which will be followed by trips to Serbia and Hungary, marks the Chinese leader's first European tour since the coronavirus pandemic.