China's intangible cultural heritage shines ahead of Lantern Festival

A series of intangible cultural heritage celebrations took place across China in the lead-up to the Lantern Festival on Tuesday, demonstrating the vitality and continuity of traditional folk customs amid the festive vibes.

A wide array of national-level intangible cultural heritage items associated with the Lantern Festival can be traced to more than 20 regions across China in terms of their origins. To celebrate this rich heritage, the China Intangible Cultural Heritage Museum last weekend brought together nearly 600 performers and multiple inheritors from several provinces, offering the public an up-close experience to appreciate traditional folk arts such as the Qilin dance and stilt puppet opera.

"The Lantern Festival marks a climax of the Spring Festival festivities, enabling the spirit that springs from the folks to be better displayed to the public," said Wang Chenyang, head of the museum.

Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province, celebrated the festival with a grand display of regional operas. A total of 12 art troupes and over 300 opera enthusiasts staged local classics in the genres of Liuzi Opera and Shandong Bangzi, adding to the strong festive atmosphere.

"We perform both traditional and modern operas. We hope to add to the festive vibes through our shows," said Chen Guangxiang, an opera enthusiast.

The ancient streets of Pujiang County in east China's Zhejiang Province came alive for the festival as a wooden-bench dragon parade made its appearance.

This tradition, dating back over 1,000 years to the Tang and Song dynasties, features a magnificent dragon made of linked benches stretching over 100 meters long. Led by a towering two-meter-high head, the dragon winds its way through the crowd, bringing to life the mythical creature and radiating folk spirit.

"We perform the dragon parade to bring blessings to all, hoping for peace for our country and prosperous harvests for our people in the new year," said a member of the parade.

Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in northern China celebrated the festival with vibrant performances. The highlight was in Darhan Muminggan Joint Banner of Baotou City, where a Yangge dance troupe in dazzling costumes performed with lively steps, perfectly capturing the joyful festive spirit.

China's intangible cultural heritage shines ahead of Lantern Festival

China hopes that France will work with China to promote de-escalation of tensions in the Middle East and jointly uphold the basic norms of international relations, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday.

In a phone conversation with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, urged France to uphold an objective and fair position and maintain a calm and rational approach on the current situation.

During their talks, Barrot elaborated on France's position on the current situation in the Middle East, stressing that France and China, both permanent members of the UN Security Council, bear special responsibilities for maintaining international peace and security.

He noted that the military action by the United States and Israel against Iran neither sought the opinions of the Security Council nor obtained its authorization, stressing that all parties should now work together to promote de-escalation and resolve the Iran nuclear issue and other issues through negotiations.

China maintains good relations with both Iran and countries in the Gulf region, Barrot said, voicing his hope to work together with China to play a positive role in easing tensions in the region.

For his part, Wang reiterated China's principled position, stressing that the international community should resist any acts that violate international law and must not apply double standards.

Major countries must not use their military advantage to launch arbitrary attacks against other nations, and the world should not revert to the law of the jungle, said Wang.

The Iran nuclear issue should ultimately return to the track of political and diplomatic resolution, he said.

Chinese FM urges joint efforts with France to de-escalate Middle East tensions