Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Croatian Minister of Foreign and European Affairs Gordan Grlic Radman in Beijing on Monday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China and Croatia have always respected each other, treated each other as equals and cooperated in a mutually beneficial manner, adding that bilateral high-quality Belt and Road cooperation has achieved fruitful results.

Noting this year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the comprehensive cooperative partnership between China and Croatia, Wang urged both sides to enhance exchanges at all levels, increase mutual understanding and mutual trust, continue to firmly respect and support each other, strengthen the alignment of the Belt and Road Initiative with Croatia's development strategies, and deepen exchanges and cooperation in various fields.

Wang said that cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European Countries (CEEC) is an important part of China-EU relations.

He added that China is willing to continue to strengthen cooperation with Croatia based on the principles of openness, transparency and mutual benefit, urging both sides to enhance multilateral coordination and cooperation, uphold multilateralism and free trade, and jointly cope with global challenges.

Noting this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the EU, Wang said that a steady, healthy and positively developing China-EU relationship is in line with the fundamental interests and common aspirations of both sides, adding that China hopes Croatia will continue to play a constructive role in promoting China-EU cooperation.

Radman said that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Croatia and China over 30 years ago, both sides have advanced cooperation in the spirit of mutual respect and mutual benefit, and bilateral relations have maintained a sound development.

He said that the government of Croatia adheres to the one-China policy, believing that the government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory.

Croatia looks forward to maintaining close high-level exchanges with China, strengthening cooperation in trade, investment, connectivity and other fields, and welcomes more Chinese citizens to visit Croatia, he said.

Noting that China is an indispensable and important economic and trade partner of Europe, Radman said that Croatia supports the EU and China in resolving specific differences through constructive dialogue and promoting the sustained and steady development of EU-China relations.

China-CEEC cooperation is a beneficial platform for promoting economic, trade and investment cooperation between the two sides, and Croatia is willing to continue to actively support and participate in the cooperation, said Radman.

Croatia attaches great importance to and appreciates the key role played by China in promoting world peace and is willing to strengthen multilateral cooperation with China, he added.

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

Chinese FM holds talks with Croatian counterpart in Beijing

The number of temporary accommodation registrations of foreign nationals in Shanghai hit a record high of 7.139 million in 2025, up 49.6 percent from the previous year, the Exit-Entry Administration Corps of the Shanghai Municipal Public Security Bureau said at a press briefing on Thursday.

The figure, which had already doubled in 2024, points to a continued rise in the number of foreign nationals visiting and staying in the city, highlighting the metropolis's growing appeal to international visitors.

Shanghai also issued more than 200,000 visas and residence permits to foreigners for the second consecutive year in 2025.

Long-term permits, including residence permits, accounted for a share 10 percentage points higher than the previous year, reflecting growing demand for extended stays.

Officials said the increase mirrors Shanghai's expanding openness and improving services for foreign visitors and residents.

"In 2025, Shanghai processed 7.139 million temporary accommodation registrations for foreigners. Following a doubling from the year before last, the figure rose by another 49.6 percent year on year, marking a historical high in the number of foreign nationals coming to Shanghai," said Song Weiqi, deputy head of the administration corps.

Accommodation registrations are required for foreigners staying in China. In 2025, 94.7 percent of temporary accommodation registrations were handled directly by hotels, resulting in a convenient check-in process.

Among foreigners residing in Shanghai's residential communities, 84.8 percent opted for online self-reporting via a multilingual platform that offers efficient, flexible registration.

Meanwhile, to ease the surge in passport applications for foreign travel ahead of the upcoming Chinese New Year holiday in mid-February, the administration corps announced plans to extend service hours for residents.

Shanghai hits a record-high 7.14 million expat accommodation registrations in 2025

Shanghai hits a record-high 7.14 million expat accommodation registrations in 2025