An ancient pear orchard, a fresh water pearl farming system and a tea culture system in China have been designated as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS) by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
As the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs announced on Tuesday, the three sites are the 600-year-old Gaolan Shichuan Ancient Pear Orchard System in northwest China's Gansu Province; the Deqing Freshwater Pearl Mussels Composite Fishery System, an 800-year-old fish-mussel co-cultivation system that merges aquaculture, agriculture and craftsmanship in Zhejiang Province in east China; and the Fuding white tea cultural system in Fujian Province, also in east China, which blends favorable geography, climate and centuries-old tea culture.
With the three latest additions, China now has 25 GIAHS sites -- the highest in the world.
The GIAHS program, launched by the FAO, has assisted farming communities in safeguarding traditional agricultural systems and associated landscapes, agricultural biodiversity, knowledge systems and cultures.
Three agricultural sites in China recognized as globally important
A Japanese lawmaker has raised concerns over Japan's push to expand its military and its nuclear policy.
Responding to some politicians' dangerous tendency towards possessing nuclear weapons, Takara Sachika, a member of Japan's House of Councilors, said that Japan's push to strengthen its military, combined with what she called a misguided nuclear policy, not only heightens regional tensions but also directly threatens regional security.
"I think this is completely unacceptable. Japan is a country that has suffered atomic bombings and is one of the nations most aware of the threat posed by nuclear weapons. Yet such a country is openly discussing the issue of possessing nuclear weapons and even attempting to revise the principle of not allowing the introduction of nuclear weapons, one of the Three Non-Nuclear Principles. This is an extremely serious problem," Takara said.
Takara said the Japanese government's tendency to expand its military capabilities is completely contrary to the Constitution.
"From the perspective of Japan's Constitution, Japan should never have adopted a policy of ensuring security by strengthening military capabilities. Yet today, enormous effort is being poured into military expansion, and that in itself is a serious problem," said the lawmaker.
At a Diet meeting in early November 2025, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said that what she described as the Chinese central authorities' "use of force on Taiwan" could constitute a "survival-threatening situation" for Japan, and suggested the possibility of armed intervention in the Taiwan Strait, drawing strong criticism worldwide.
Takara urged Takaichi to retract her erroneous remarks as soon as possible.
"I think there is a very big problem with making such remarks that provoke other countries. It is necessary to thoroughly examine the facts as soon as possible and withdraw the relevant remarks," she said.
Japanese lawmaker criticizes nuclear weapons remarks as threat to regional security
