Heavy fighting between Ukrainian and Russian forces over the past week for Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub in the Donetsk region, has forced many nearby residents to flee their homes.
On December 1, Russia claimed to have captured Pokrovsk. However, the Ukrainian military said the next day that fighting centered on the key logistics hub was still ongoing.
The fierce battle to take and retake Pokrovsk has raised great fears among nearby residents about safety, with many deciding to leave before their town becomes a war zone.
In Pavlohrad, a city about 100 km away from Pokrovsk, a transit center has been established as one of the first stops for local residents fleeing the Donetsk region, providing a short break for weary evacuees to warm themselves up, register and figure out where to go next.
"They're flying drones over people. It's terrifying. Every day you lie down and think whether you will get through the window or not, whether you will stay well. Every single day, from morning to evening, you can hear Kostiantynivka (a city in the Donetsk region), and we're being shelled too," said Tatiana, a civilian passing through the transit center.
Though most arrive at the center by bus, others arrive by ambulance. Many more are unable to come at all as evacuations in some areas stall.
"Now, most people are being evacuated in the Mezhiv community [in the Dnipropetrovsk region]. For several weeks now there have been no evacuees coming from the Pokrovsk community itself, because the security situation doesn't allow teams to enter the community," said Evgenya Pinchuk, supervisor of East SOS, a Ukrainian non-governmental relief foundation.
Heavy fighting between Ukraine, Russia for eastern logistics hub triggers mass evacuations
Heavy fighting between Ukraine, Russia for eastern logistics hub triggers mass evacuations
Foreign diplomats and scholars are looking closely at this year's "two sessions", saying China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030) will not only chart the nation's economic and technological priorities but also reshape global value chains.
The fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the nation's top political advisory body, opened on Wednesday, followed by the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Thursday. Together known as the "two sessions," these meetings offer a comprehensive view into China's development priorities.
Global observers emphasized that the 15th Five-Year Plan, a blueprint guiding the nation's economic, social, and technological priorities over the next five years, marks a decisive shift toward high‑quality growth anchored in advanced technologies, with ripple effects across the world.
"The two sessions will discuss China's five-year plan, which is heavily oriented toward China's major technological development. I believe this is important because it represents the new blueprint for China's economy, which is now oriented toward the renowned high-quality development, and this will undoubtedly impact the entire world. I think it is worth studying. This is very important for Latin America. It will help us integrate more intelligently into global value chains and into all aspects of the major development that China is promoting in iconic industrial sectors, such as artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and space development, where Latin America also has much to contribute beyond just commercial growth," said Gustavo Sabino Vaca Narvaja, former Argentine Ambassador to China.
"The two sessions are a major political milestone in China, and this year's gathering carries even greater significance as this year marks the start of the 15th Five-Year Plan. This plan represents not only a blueprint for China, but also a guide for other countries. Instruments like the five-year plan effectively provide greater certainty and predictability for the rest of the world," said Chilean scholar of international relations Ignacio Araya Heredia.
"This is a particularly important date, especially due to the fact that the next Five-Year Plan shall be positioned and we're going to see what its main elements shall be. Serbia, which has a very high degree of steel friendship with the People's Republic of China, can expect further assistance in identifying the most prominent areas of Serbian economy and being helped by its great partner, such as it has been done in the previous period, from one part with establishing the main infrastructure projects, but also reshaping the industrial sector of Serbia, not just Serbia, but the region as a whole," said Veljko Mijuskovic, assistant professor of the Faculty of Economics of the University of Belgrade.
Beyond the policy framework, experts also pointed to China's achievements in green energy and technological innovation as models worth emulating.
Tomasz Bielinski, adjunct professor at the University of Gdansk's Faculty of Economics, said the robotics displays at the 2026 China Media Group (CMG) Spring Festival Gala reflected China's broader push in technological innovation.
"I was really impressed about the robotics. I'm very impressed with Chinese development in the technological field, we can still make great deals with Chinese businessmen and we can cooperate together to use this technology for both the good of China and the European Union. I'm aware of the innovation especially in autonomous drive on the on the Chinese side," he said.
"We hope for more of China's economic cooperation, especially in trade and also in investment. Also, and the other focus, if I talk about the focus of the development, don't forget about the green energy. We know that China is great in the electric vehicle field. So because China's electric vehicles in Indonesia nowadays, since couple of years ago, are very, very popular," said Al Busyra Basnur, president of the Indonesia-China Friendship Association.
Observers see China's new five-year plan driving high-quality development, global tech shifts
