Aerial helicopter views of Harbin, capital of northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, are nothing short of passion and drive of the host city of the upcoming Asian Winter Games.
The 2025 Harbin Asian Winter Games is scheduled for Feb 7-14. Themed "Dream of Winter, Love among Asians", the Games marks the most recent major international winter sports competition to be hosted in China, following the successful Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.
As the grand event draws near, Harbin has put on a new look, adorning landmarks with Games-themed decorations and hosting exciting ice and snow activities throughout the city. The festive atmosphere is captivating visitors and tourists, as well as the locals and Asian Winter Games staff.
China Media Group (CMG) has built a studio in the bustling Harbin Ice-Snow World, gearing up to cover the Games.
The opening ceremony of the Games, which starts on Friday night at the Harbin International Conference, Exhibition and Sports Center, will deliver a captivating glimpse of the host city's unique winter charm with its landmarks, local cultural elements and winter sports traditions.
The 2025 Harbin Asian Winter Games marks the second time Harbin hosts the event, following its staging of the Games' third edition in 1996.
Aerial views of Harbin show passion, vitality of Asian Winter Games host city
The Navy of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) said that the Strait of Hormuz has been blocked since Saturday evening and will not reopen until the United States lifts its naval blockade on the waterway.
In a statement carried by its official news outlet Sepah News, the IGRC said that the move came after the United States violated its commitments under the two-week ceasefire, which took effect on April 8, and failed to end its naval blockade against Iranian vessels and ports.
The IRGC Navy called on all vessels and their owners to follow official updates via its channel and VHF Channel 16, the international maritime distress, safety, and calling frequency. The statements by U.S. President Donald Trump hold no credibility in the strait and the Gulf, it added.
The IRGC warned that no vessel should move from its anchorage in the Gulf or the Gulf of Oman, and any approach to the strait would be deemed "cooperation with the enemy" and targeted accordingly.
Tehran's political leadership echoed the IRGC's firm position. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf asserted that the Strait of Hormuz is under Iran's control, revealing that during previous negotiations, Iran had firmly countered U.S. attempts to carry out minesweeping operations, which Tehran viewed as a ceasefire violation.
He said the situation had come close to conflict, but the U.S. had eventually backed off.
Calling the U.S. maritime blockade "reckless and ignorant," Ghalibaf warned that passage through the strait would certainly be restricted if Washington does not lift the blockade.
Underpinning these public announcements, Iran's Supreme National Security Council on Saturday affirmed the country's resolve to exercise control and supervision over traffic through the Strait of Hormuz until the war is definitively ended and lasting peace is achieved in the region.
For its part, the United States pressed ahead with its own military measures.
The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement on Saturday that the U.S. military is imposing a maritime blockade on ships entering and exiting Iranian ports and nearby coastal areas. Since the blockade began on April 13, 23 ships have complied with U.S. directions to turn around.
Meanwhile, the U.S. military is preparing in the coming days to board Iran-linked oil tankers and seize commercial ships in international waters, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing U.S. officials.
The move will enable the U.S. to take control of Iran-linked vessels around the world, including ships carrying Iranian oil that are already sailing outside the Persian Gulf and those carrying arms that could support Tehran, the report said.
Iran's IRGC says Strait of Hormuz blocked, demands end to US naval blockade
