Senior officials in Latin America have praised Chinese President Xi Jinping's annual New Year address on Tuesday, calling it a reflection of wisdom and a call for cooperation during interviews with China Media Group (CMG).
In the speech, Xi reviewed the country's achievements in 2024 and extended best wishes for the coming year.
Doris Alejandrina Gutierrez, the vice president of Honduras, highlighted China's progress and expressed the desire of strengthening ties with China.
"First we want to congratulate the people and Government of China led by President Xi Jinping, in relation to the significant progress they have made in political, economic, social and cultural matters, and we predict that in this year 2025 relations between our country and the People's Republic of China will be strengthened, so that we can move forward together in important actions especially in education for the improvement of the culture and welfare of our people," she said.
Fernando Reyes Matta, former Ambassador of Chile to China, hailed the wisdom of China's leadership in navigating the country through the challenging year.
"I believe that President Xi Jinping has spoken very honestly to his people when he said that this year that is ending has had major challenges, it has had obstacles, it has had complexities, but the wisdom of leadership has made possible to move forward in the midst of obstacles and unexpected challenges," he said.
Carlos Larrea, former Ambassador of Ecuador to China, noted the significance of Xi's message in advancing the objectives and tasks outlined in China's development plan.
"I have had the opportunity to listen to President Xi Jinping's New Year greetings. It is a profound message, in which he highlights China's decision to continue with the materialization of the objectives and tasks of the 14th Five-Year Plan and the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China," he said.
Larrea also noted that China's developments are of strategic interest to Ecuador and to the international community, as they open up prospects for quality cooperation among developing countries.
Latin American officials praise Xi's New Year address for "embodying wisdom, promoting cooperation"
Iraq has seen its aviation industry dealt a huge blow because of continued airspace closures and flight suspensions amid regional hostilities triggered by the recent Israeli-U.S. strikes on Iran.
As security concerns persist while tensions remain high, Iraq announced on Friday it would extend the closure of its airspace for one more week as uncertainty over the conflict continues to hang in the air.
It is estimated that the country's aviation industry has lost more than 43 million U.S. dollars over the past month since the crisis erupted, with the war causing huge disruption to air travel across the region.
"After the closure of Iraqi airspace, airport operations were halted, and revenue from both arriving and departing flights was lost. This includes income from passenger services as well as overflying aircraft, which has significantly impacted overall revenues," said Maytham al-Safi, director of media office of the Iraqi Ministry of Transport.
The impact is being felt across the board, from government revenues to private businesses, as some of the leading travel agencies say bookings have completely collapsed, with some reporting daily passenger numbers dropping from around 100 to just five.
"Our company has been directly affected. We have four branches and around 80 employees, and the impact has been significant. We still have rent and other expenses to cover, so we are trying to adapt to whatever limited business is still possible," said Ahmed Khalid, managing director of the Safari Trip travel and tourism company in Baghdad.
With air travel no longer an option, many Iraqis are turning to overland routes -- often traveling for hours, even days, to reach neighboring countries like Türkiye. But the journey is not only longer and more expensive, it can also be highly risky.
"This situation creates real anxiety for families. It's not only the travelers who are at risk, but also the vehicles transporting them. These journeys can be dangerous. There is always the risk of accidents or even drone strikes. At the same time, costs have doubled, so people are facing both financial and safety pressures," said Anwar al-Mousawi, a local resident.
For many, a sense of frustration is growing the longer the current situation drags on, as civilians bear the consequences of a conflict they are not part of, and with no clear timeline for reopening Iraqi airspace, economic losses and public frustration are expected to deepen.
"The reality is, we are in a country that is not part of this war and did not start it, yet we are the ones paying the price," said al-Mousawi.
Iraq's aviation industry left grounded as Middle East crisis continues
