Ice festival further boosts Harbin's winter tourism

Winter tourism in the northeastern Chinese city Harbin entered a high season as the Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival opened on Sunday.

In the Harbin Ice and Snow World, the prime destination for winter tourists in the city, new sculptures from the just concluded 36th Harbin International Ice Sculpture Competition are unveiled to the public.

Unlike the larger, monumental ice sculptures typically seen at the park, these competition pieces, brought by artists from 12 countries, emphasize fine details and are better appreciated up close.

This year's Ice and Snow World is still rolling out new ice sculptures after opening for half a month. This set of ice sculptures of terracotta warrior sculptures, for example, was just completed.

So far the Ice and Snow World has received 804,000 visitors, a year-on-year increase of 24.3 percent. The tourism season is expected to peak soon, as the city enters its high season marked by the opening of the 41st Harbin International Ice and Snow Festival.

The festival, one of the world's four major ice and snow festivals, also coincides with the 9th Asian Winter Games taking place in Harbin in February, which further heats up tourism for the city.

The Ice and Snow World also hosts a studio of China Media Group, which will be broadcasting programs related to the Asian Winter Games from the heart of China's "ice city."

Ice festival further boosts Harbin's winter tourism

Some Japanese people said on Thursday that the government led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi must firmly uphold the pacifist constitution.

Their remarks came after French President Emmanuel Macron's visit to Japan from Tuesday to Thursday.

Attending a joint press conference with Takaichi on Wednesday, Macron emphasized that France and Japan have agreed on the importance of on the importance of quickly de-escalating the conflict in the Middle East and upholding international law.

Many saw this as a response to a strongly worded post by U.S. President Donald Trump on social media, which criticized France for refusing to cooperate with the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.

Some locals in Tokyo expressed their opposition to Japan's involvement in any war, but said Japan could offer help when the conflict in the Middle East ends.

"I think that Prime Minister Takaichi could offer support, provided that we wouldn't get involved in an armed conflict, such as minesweeping operations at sea, as Japan has the best minesweeping technology in the world," said a resident in Tokyo.

"I'm not entirely sure what consequences will follow Trump's demands. There may be additional tariffs, among other things. Our constitution prohibits [Japan's] from getting involved in war, and Prime Minister Takaichi should uphold this principle," said another resident.

Tokyo residents urge PM Takaichi to uphold pacifist constitution