The Chinese army is stepping up exchanges with other member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on multiple fronts, Defense Ministry spokesman Zhang Xiaogang said at a press conference in Beijing on Thursday.
The Defense Ministers' Meeting of SCO member states was held in Qingdao City, east China's Shandong Province, on Thursday morning, with parties at the meeting calling for efforts to further consolidate military mutual trust and pragmatic cooperation among the SCO member states.
In the process of establishing and developing the SCO, defense and security cooperation has played a particularly important role, Zhang said.
Zhang noted that China has actively promoted strategic communication, deepened practical cooperation and innovated cooperation models.
"First, we have organized or participated in meetings of defense ministers, meetings of chiefs of general staff, and department meetings of international military cooperation, making exchanges with other SCO member states, building consensus, and making the 'SCO voice' heard on international and regional security issues. Second, China has many a time hosted and participated in the 'Peace Mission' series of joint military exercises, 'Peace Horn' military music festival and expert working group meetings, and carried out professional exchanges in military medicine, military transportation, and military translation. Cooperation in various fields has been continuously deepened and solidified. Third, we initiated and hosted the SCO Senior Officers Training Course, exchange programs for young and middle-aged officers, and 'SCO plus' Young Scholars' Salon to enrich the forms and channels of exchanges among military personnel of SCO member states, which have continuously enhanced friendship and mutual trust," Zhang said.
China will work to further deepen defense cooperation with other members under the 'Shanghai Spirit' - the set of values that underpins the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, according to the spokesman.
"The Chinese army will work with armed forces of other SCO member states to carry forward the 'Shanghai Spirit,' further broaden and deepen defense cooperation, and join hands in building a common home featuring solidarity and mutual trust, peace and tranquility, prosperity and development, good-neighborliness and friendship, and fairness and justice, so as to contribute to the building of a community with a shared future for mankind," Zhang said.
China to deepen defense cooperation with SCO member states:MND
A new round of trade-in subsidy program is energizing China's consumer market these days, with provinces across the country seeing a surge in demand for cars, home appliances and digital devices.
In north China's Shanxi Province, the new trade-in subsidy program, which started on January 9, has further helped boost sales in home appliances and digital devices which are covered by the new round of subsidies.
To enjoy the subsidies, six types of home appliances, including refrigerators and washing machines, must meet national Level 1 energy-efficiency or water-efficiency standards. Digital and smart products include four types, such as mobile phones and tablets, with a sales price cap of 6,000 yuan (about 800 U.S. dollars) per item.
In both categories, subsidies are set at 15 percent of the final transaction price. For home appliances, the maximum subsidy is 1,500 yuan per item. For digital products, the cap is 500 yuan per item. Each consumer can receive a subsidy for one unit in each category.
Neighboring Shanxi, Hebei Province kicked off the year of 2026 with the new round of trade-in subsidy program starting on January 1.
The subsidies cover automobiles, home appliances, and digital products. Individual consumers who purchase designated Level 1 energy-efficiency appliances or eligible digital products priced at no more than 6,000 yuan can receive subsidies equal to 15 percent of the transaction price. The maximum subsidy is 1,500 yuan per appliance and 500 yuan per digital or smart device, with each person limited to one subsidized item in each category.
Data showed that from Jan 1 to 9, Hebei's home appliance trade-in program alone disbursed more than 130 million yuan in subsidies, driving sales of over 920 million yuan.
In east China's Jiangsu Province, the new trade-in subsidy program, taking effect for two weeks, has brought the province a boom in trade-in.
At a local 4S store in Jiangsu's Suqian City, showroom traffic has spiked as salespeople walked customers through the new benefits from the trade-in subsidy program.
"Under the scrappage-and-replacement scheme, customers who buy a new energy vehicle (NEV) can receive a subsidy worth 12 percent of the vehicle price, capped at 20,000 yuan (about 2,860 U.S. dollars). For combustion-engine cars, the subsidy is 10 percent, with an upper limit of 15,000 yuan. For trade-ins, NEVs are able to receive a subsidy worth 8 percent of the vehicle price, up to 15,000 yuan, while combustion-engine cars will receive a 6-percent subsidy, with a cap of 13,000 yuan," said Sun Yue, a saleswoman at the store.
In the home appliance sector, Jiangsu's policy this year stipulates that only products that meet China's Level 1 energy-efficiency standard are eligible for subsidies. The scheme covers six major categories, including refrigerators and washing machines.
Consumers who purchase qualifying appliances can receive a subsidy equal to 15 percent of the final retail price, up to a maximum of 1,500 yuan per item. Each person is limited to one subsidized unit per product category.
Four types of digital and smart products, such as mobile phones and tablets, are eligible for a 15-percent subsidy capped at 500 yuan per unit, with a retail price no more than 6,000 yuan.
"With the national subsidy policy back in place this year, I went to the store to check what discounts I could get. It knocked 500 yuan off the price. [The discounted price is] very reasonable," said Wang Kang, a resident of Jiangsu's Xuzhou Province.
To enhance the shopping experience for consumers, many retailers are pairing subsidies with "one-stop" services that combine the delivery of new products with on-site collection of old ones.
"After consumers place an order for new home appliances, our staff will schedule a time to pick up the old units. Recycling the old appliance can also further offset the purchase price of the new one," said Yang Jie, a sales supervisor at a major home appliance company.
China's new trade-in program sparks consumption boom
