People in Asia and around the world are celebrating the Lunar New Year on Friday with festivals, parades and temple visits to ask for blessings.
In this Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018, file photo, a worker attaches lanterns for celebrations of the Lunar New Year celebrations at the Leng Nuei Yee Chinese temple in Bangkok, Thailand. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
This year marks the year of the dog, one of the 12 animals in the Chinese astrological chart. People in Beijing celebrated with family feasts and visits to bustling temple fairs amid the mid-winter chill.
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People in Asia and around the world are celebrating the Lunar New Year on Friday with festivals, parades and temple visits to ask for blessings.
This year marks the year of the dog, one of the 12 animals in the Chinese astrological chart. People in Beijing celebrated with family feasts and visits to bustling temple fairs amid the mid-winter chill.
Ditan Park in the city center was the most vibrant, with empty tree branches festooned with red lanterns and traditional goods and foods being snapped up by the churning crowds.
Other New Year traditions include the eating of dumplings in northern China and gift giving to children in the form of cash-stuffed red envelopes called "hongbao." However, a ban on fireworks in 400 cities, including the capital, severely curtailed such traditional ear-splitting displays this year.
Ethnic Chinese and others around the world also marked the holiday with celebrations. In the Philippines, which boasts a large ethnic Chinese minority, fire breathers performed at a street fair in Manila and children used crates and buckets to put on improvised lion dances.
In South Korea, the festivals were more solemn, with refugees from the 1950-53 Korean War and their descendants paying respects to ancestors at the Demilitarized Zone dividing the country from communist North Korea.
Taiwanese marked the start of the new year with a mad rush to be the first to plant a stick of incense in a temple censor, with the victor receiving a prize and blessings for a prosperous 2018.
In this Friday, Feb. 16, 2018, file photo, Indonesian ethnic Chinese release birds which is believed to bring good luck during Lunar New Year celebrations at a temple in the China Town in Jakarta, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Indonesian ethnic Chinese pray during the celebration of Lunar New Year at a temple in the China Town in Jakarta, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Security officials ring the bell at midnight to mark the arrival of the Lunar New Year at the Bell Tower in Beijing, Friday, Feb. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
In this Saturday, Feb. 10, 2018, file photo, a man holds a child as they pose for a photo near a pathway decorated for the Lunar New Year at a public park in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Ditan Park in the city center was the most vibrant, with empty tree branches festooned with red lanterns and traditional goods and foods being snapped up by the churning crowds.
In this Monday, Feb. 12, 2018, file photo, a traditional dragon dance is performed ahead of the Lunar New Year in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
Other New Year traditions include the eating of dumplings in northern China and gift giving to children in the form of cash-stuffed red envelopes called "hongbao." However, a ban on fireworks in 400 cities, including the capital, severely curtailed such traditional ear-splitting displays this year.
People pray on the first day of the Lunar New Year at the Lama Temple in Beijing, Friday, Feb. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Ethnic Chinese and others around the world also marked the holiday with celebrations. In the Philippines, which boasts a large ethnic Chinese minority, fire breathers performed at a street fair in Manila and children used crates and buckets to put on improvised lion dances.
In Japan, lion dances were performed in Chinatown in the port city of Yokohama, while in Malaysia, a diver dressed as the god of good fortune fed fish at an aquarium in Kuala Lumpur as visitors looked on.
In this Monday, Feb. 12, 2018, file photo, a traditional lion dance team performs ahead of the Lunar New Year in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. (AP Photo/Heng Sinith)
In South Korea, the festivals were more solemn, with refugees from the 1950-53 Korean War and their descendants paying respects to ancestors at the Demilitarized Zone dividing the country from communist North Korea.
In this Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018, file photo, a vendor selling Lunar New Year decorations waits for customers at a wholesale market in Beijing. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
Taiwanese marked the start of the new year with a mad rush to be the first to plant a stick of incense in a temple censor, with the victor receiving a prize and blessings for a prosperous 2018.
In this Friday, Feb. 16, 2018, file photo, a man carries his child under traditional Chinese lanterns on the first day of Chinese Lunar New Year at a temple in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (AP Photo/Sadiq Asyraf)
In this Friday, Feb. 16, 2018, file photo, Indonesian ethnic Chinese release birds which is believed to bring good luck during Lunar New Year celebrations at a temple in the China Town in Jakarta, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Indonesian ethnic Chinese pray during the celebration of Lunar New Year at a temple in the China Town in Jakarta, Indonesia. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Security officials ring the bell at midnight to mark the arrival of the Lunar New Year at the Bell Tower in Beijing, Friday, Feb. 16, 2018. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attacked the United States for earlier blocking United Nations resolutions calling for a cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting with his counterpart in Indonesia.
The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers reiterated their countries' calls for an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday, condemning the humanitarian costs of Israel's ongoing war against Hamas.
The U.S., together with Egypt and Qatar, brokered a brief cease-fire earlier in the war that included some swaps of hostages taken by Hamas and other militant groups in return for Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, and has sought to bring about a new deal.
But the U.S. vetoed a number of proposed U.N. Security Council cease-fire resolutions because they didn’t tie the calls directly to the release of Israel hostages or condemn Hamas’ attack that prompted the war before allowing a resolution to a pass with an abstention in late March.
The meeting took place on the second day of a six-day tour during which Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will also visit Papua New Guinea and Cambodia.
Indonesia's Minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi told reporters that the two countries share the same view about the importance of a cease-fire and of resolving the Palestinian problem through a two-state solution.
Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, has long been a strong supporter of the Palestinians and does not recognize Israel.
“I am sure that China would use its influence to prevent escalation,” Marsudi said, adding that China and Indonesia "would also fully support Palestine’s membership in the U.N.”
Wang blamed the United States for holding up cease-fire resolutions at the U.N.
“The conflict in Gaza has lasted for half a year and caused a rare humanitarian tragedy in the 21st century. The United Nations Security Council responded to the call of the international community and continued to review the resolution draft on the cease-fire in Gaza, but it was repeatedly vetoed by the United States,” Wang told reporters.
American officials have argued that the cease-fire and hostage releases are linked, while Russia, China and many other council members favored unconditional calls for a cease-fire. China and Russia also vetoed one U.S.-backed cease-fire resolution, saying it was not strong enough.
Referring to the resolution that was approved by the Security Council in March, Wang said: “This time, the U.S. did not dare to stand in opposition to international morality and chose to abstain. However, the U.S. claimed that this resolution was not binding," Wang said. “In the eyes of the United States, international law seems to be a tool that can be used whenever it finds useful and discarded if it does not want to use it.”
The two ministers also discussed their countries' economic relationship and the South China Sea.
China is Indonesia’s largest trading partner, with the trade volume reaching more than $127 billion. China is also one of Indonesia's largest foreign investors, with investment flows of more than $7.4 billion in 2023.
Later Thursday, Wang also met Indonesian President Joko Widodo and president-elect Prabowo Subianto, who is currently defense minister.
Indonesian President-elect and current Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, left, greets Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers called for an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday, condemning the humanitarian costs of the ongoing war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)
Indonesian President-elect and current Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto, left, stands next to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi as Wang signs a guest book in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim/Pool)
In this photo provided by the Indonesian Presidential Palace, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, left, talks with Indonesia President Joko Widodo during a meeting at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers called for an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday, condemning the humanitarian costs of Israel's ongoing war against Hamas. (Vico/Indonesian Presidential Palace via AP)
In this photo provided by the Indonesian Presidential Palace, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi , left, shakes hands with Indonesia President Joko Widodo during a meeting at the palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers called for an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday, condemning the humanitarian costs of Israel's ongoing war against Hamas. (Vico/Indonesian Presidential Palace via AP)
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi gestures as she speaks during a bilateral meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. The Chinese and Indonesian foreign ministers called for an immediate and lasting cease-fire in Gaza after a meeting in Jakarta on Thursday, condemning the humanitarian costs of the ongoing war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/Pool Photo via AP)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi arrives for a bilateral meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Willy Kurniawan/Pool Photo via AP)
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, right, shakes hands with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during their bilateral meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/Pool Photo via AP)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi gestures as he speaks during his bilateral meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/Pool Photo via AP)
Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, left, speaks during their bilateral meeting with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, right, in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Yasuyoshi Chiba/Pool Photo via AP)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, second right, speaks during a bilateral meeting with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, bottom second left, in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Willy Kurniawan/Pool Photo via AP)
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, right, walks with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi during their bilateral meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Thursday, April 18, 2024. (Willy Kurniawan/Pool Photo via AP)
