The 11th UK Chinese Dragon Boat Festival, featuring races and performances, kicked off at Salford Quays in Greater Manchester on Sunday, showcasing rich traditional Chinese culture and fostering people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
Chinese Ambassador to the UK Zheng Zeguang, Consul General of China's Consulate-General in Manchester Tang Rui, Deputy Mayor of Greater Manchester and Mayor of Salford Paul Dennett, along with nearly 10,000 participants, including overseas Chinese, students, representatives from Chinese enterprises, and local residents, attended the event.
A total of 49 teams participated in the dragon boat race, including the renowned Cambridge University team.
Originating in China thousands of years ago, the dragon boat race is one of many traditions celebrating the Dragon Boat Festival, which commemorates the Chinese patriotic poet Qu Yuan (about 340-278 BC) on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month of the Chinese calendar.
The Dragon Boat Festival, also known as the Duanwu Festival, falls on May 31 this year.
"This is the annual Chinese dragon boat race and I think this is the 11th time this has happened in our city of Salford and this dragon boat race is the largest in Europe celebrating Chinese tradition, culture, and heritage," Dennett said.
"Well, I just thought it was about bringing people together and supporting Chinese culture but also bringing people together and recognizing the influences for Chinese people in Manchester," said a participant of the dragon boat race.
In addition to the dragon boat race, the organizers arranged a vibrant array of performances highlighting traditional Chinese culture, including martial arts, dragon and lion dances, and Qin Opera.
UK Chinese Dragon Boat Festival kicks off in Manchester with vibrant races, performances
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Monday that the situation in Iran is "under total control" following violence linked to protests that spiked over the weekend.
Addressing foreign diplomats in Tehran, the foreign minister noted that armed terrorist groups had infiltrated the protests, attempting to divert them from their legitimate course. He claimed that evidence has been gathered showing Iranian security forces being shot at, with the aim of causing further casualties. He accused the United States and Israel of exploiting the unrest to interfere in Iran's internal affairs.
Araghchi further stated that the government is closely monitoring developments on the streets, emphasizing that "the situation has come under control." He also affirmed that internet services, curtailed during the unrest, would be restored after coordination with security agencies.
The government has engaged in dialogue with merchants and protest representatives and initiated reforms to address grievances related to price hikes and currency depreciation. Iran has taken a series of actions and measures to respond to the demands of peaceful demonstrators, the foreign minister said.
Earlier on Sunday, Araghchi said that clear evidence links recent riots and vandalism of public facilities in Iran to the Israeli intelligence agency Mossad. This came after former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo mentioned Mossad agents operating on Iran's streets in a social media post. The Iranian foreign minister asserted that police are being attacked by "terrorists" acting under the direction of Israeli operatives, whom Pompeo publicly acknowledged.
The protests initially erupted over a sharp depreciation of the rial and sweeping subsidy reforms. Iranian authorities have blamed the unrest on foreign-linked agents and U.S. sanctions.
Iranian foreign minister says situation "fully under control," accuses Israeli intelligence of stoking unrest
