A full-scale search and rescue operation has been underway in Suichuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, after a mudslide struck a village on Saturday.
The disaster hit Mingkeng Village at around 4:00 Saturday, triggered by days of torrential rains brought by Typhoon Saudel, according to the local flood control headquarters.
As of 22:00 Saturday, 641 rescuers had arrived at the site and 39 of the 50 affected villagers had been evacuated.
Roads and communications have been largely restored, and 5,339 residents have been relocated to safety, with basic necessities including drinking water, electricity and food supplies available.
Rescue efforts have been challenged by continuing landslides and blocked roads, with further collapses still possible. Rescue teams were forced to withdraw at least once after a small-scale slide during the operation.
The mudslide damaged 12 houses, eight of which were completely destroyed. The volume of debris at the site exceeded 30,000 cubic meters as of 17:00 Saturday, according to the local flood control headquarters.
The National Commission for Disaster Prevention, Reduction and Relief and the Ministry of Emergency Management of China activated a Level-IV national emergency response for natural disaster relief on Saturday.
The Ministry of Natural Resources raised its geological disaster response for Jiangxi from Level IV to III, and dispatched a working team to the site to guide rescue operations. Meanwhile, Jiangxi Province activated a Level-II emergency response for geological disasters.
China has a four-tier emergency response system, with Level I being the most severe.
Rescue in full swing as mudslide hits Jiangxi
Amidst overlapping global challenges, international experts at the 2026 Global Governance Forum in north China's Hebei Province emphasized that rebuilding confidence and cooperation in global governance requires enhanced dialogue, the establishment of common rules in emerging fields, and a fairer, more inclusive international system that amplifies the voice of the Global South.
Held from October 23 to 25 in Xiong'an, China's "city of the future" built on the North China Plain, the forum brought together nearly 400 representatives from over 90 countries. Spanning five major sectors and 22 thematic seminars, the event provided a platform for diverse stakeholders in politics, economy, technology, culture, and think tanks to jointly address governance challenges and promote inclusive, multi-stakeholder global governance reform.
"In this conference, I met some American representatives, a remarkable businessman. I asked him, 'what are you doing here?' And he said, 'I wanted to discuss Global Governance Initiative.' I said, 'Listen, I don't believe because whatever China proposes, the U.S. will object. And he said no. And he mentioned specific subject -- AI. He said, 'I want to make my humble contribution into establishing (of) global governance in AI.' So among Americans, this idea is also receiving some understanding. More dialogue is required and I would underline the weight of this forum," said Djoomart Otorbaev, former prime minister of Kyrgyzstan.
In today's world, where deficits in peace, development, security, and governance are intertwined, rebuilding confidence and cooperation is the most scarce international public good. In response, China has proactively set the agenda to address pressing concerns, such as advancing the reform of the UN-centered governance system, cooperating on new frontiers like cyberspace, outer space, and AI, and bridging civilizational divides amidst geopolitical rivalry.
"And there were some specific initiatives which we also have discussed, which is to set the global governance for the outer space, for the deep seas, for some areas of the planet like the Antarctica, where there is various needs for more common rules. One area the world is looking for is artificial intelligence and we need to regulate globally and efficient intelligence to avoid the worst. So if we work together, we can get the benefits and make sure that we make it much more difficult to do the harm," said Erik Solheim, chairman of the EU-Asia Centre and former UN under-secretary-general and former executive director of the UN Environment Programme.
"The world has become a global village, but this global village is now fighting. There's a problem going on in the Middle East, there's a problem going on in Africa, but China is trying to promote a conclusive thing so that the world can be peaceful. Because of this Global Governance Initiative, China has been able to tell the world (that) how to work together," said Khalid Taimur Akram, executive director of the Pakistan Research Center for a Community with a Shared Future.
Since its proposal over a year ago, the Global Governance Initiative has garnered support and responses from over 160 countries and international organizations.
During the forum, China announced pragmatic measures to further implement the initiative, reaffirming its firm support for multilateralism and the core status of the United Nations, while emphasizing the need to enhance the representation and voice of the Global South in international affairs to translate the initiative from a Chinese proposal into broader international practice.
"It's that combination of defense of the games that arise from the existence of the international system, but improving it, updating it, performing it, making it fairer, particularly to the great mass of developing countries, which is why the Chinese proposals meet a lot of support, particularly from the Global South, but also from fair minded people in other countries," said Keith Bennett, vice chairman of UK 48 Group Club.
Participants of Global Governance Forum hail China's contribution to fairer international order
