A forum on strengthening collaboration between China and Central Asia opened in Tacheng City of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Tuesday.
Hosted at Tacheng's Central Asia Cultural Exchange Center, the 2025 Xinjiang-Tacheng Baktu Forum focuses on deepening regional cooperation between China and countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative, as well as promoting high-quality opening-up.
The event includes a series of seminars covering topics like China-Central Asia cooperation and development, international logistic collaboration, and culture-tourism integration along the Silk Road.
Via these activities, the forum seeks to harness collective wisdom to further boost the vitality of border trade, fostering benefits for local communities.
Forum on deepening China-Central Asia cooperation opens in Xinjiang
Israel's Foreign Ministry has apologized for the brief detention of Gilles Michaud, Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security at the United Nations Department of Safety and Security, at an Israeli airport, attributing the incident to human error, a UN spokesman said on Wednesday.
Farhan Haq, deputy spokesman for the UN secretary-general, said at a daily briefing that an apology had been received from Israel's Foreign Ministry over Tuesday's incident in which Gilles Michaud was questioned after arriving at Israel's Ben-Gurion Airport.
Haq said Michaud's visit had been aimed at discussing Israel's obligations to ensure the safety of UN personnel in the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, and the wider region. The security of UN staff and humanitarian workers, he said, is an essential precondition for UN's operations.
"Obviously he, like other UN officials, is accorded diplomatic protocols during their travel. In this particular incident in Israel, Under-Secretary-General Gilles Michaud received an apology from the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs for his reception at the airport, and they attributed the matter to human error," said the spokesman.
Israeli media reported on Tuesday that Michaud was briefly detained and questioned after arriving at Ben Gurion Airport, Israel's main international gateway near Tel Aviv. According to the reports, he was taken to a holding area and kept there for about 45 minutes, during which he was asked about an official visit he made to Gaza in August 2025.
Michaud was stopped and checked by Shin Bet, Israel's domestic security agency. He later described the treatment as "unusual" for a senior UN official, saying he had "never experienced anything like it" in any other country.
Israel apologizes after detention of senior UN official: spokesman
