With the departure of high-speed train G3998 from Ruijin Station heading for Yan'an on Sunday morning, China's two sacred revolutionary sites were directly linked by high-speed rail service for the first time.
This year marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Central Red Army's Long March. Ruijin and Yan'an, serving as the starting points of the Long March and the revolutionary heartland of the Communist Party of China after the Long March, are located in east and northwest China, respectively.
The new train service is the first direct high-speed rail link between the two cities, covering 1,857 kilometers at a maximum operating speed of 300 km per hour, with the full journey taking about 11 hours. It serves as a vital artery connecting eastern China with the city clusters in the northwest, with a host of red landmarks and key cities on the route, including Ruijin, Yudu, Nanchang, Wuhan, Xi'an and Yan'an.
Over the years, several high-speed railways, including the Nanchang-Ganzhou, Xi'an-Yan'an, and Xi'an-Shiyan lines, have been put into operation, significantly shortening the distance between northwest and east China.
With increasingly close exchanges between the old revolutionary bases in southern Jiangxi and northern Shaanxi, such as red-themed study tours, Party-related exchanges, family visits and business travel, the demand for point-to-point direct services has been rising steadily, according to China Railway Nanchang Group Co., Ltd.
New high-speed rail links two major Chinese revolutionary sites
Maintaining internal unity and external deterrence are two important means for Iran when facing its enemies, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Sunday.
He made the remarks at an open session of the legislative body in Tehran, stressing that the "era of proportionate responses" has come to an end, according to the Iranian parliament's ICANA news agency.
"The Americans must have understood that the era of proportionate responses has ended. Our strikes against the aggressor's bases in recent operations were only the beginning," Qalibaf said.
"The rules of the game have changed, and from now on, any aggression against Iran's interests and security will receive a faster, heavier, and more painful response," he added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday threatened Iran with a devastating response if it attacked Israel and said his government remained determined to bring down Tehran's leadership.
"If Iran makes a mistake and attacks us, it will suffer a blow it cannot even imagine," Netanyahu told ministers at a cabinet meeting ahead of the Jewish New Year.
Tensions escalated between Tehran and Washington recently after the United States carried out strikes against southern Iranian regions, and Iran launched retaliatory attacks on U.S. regional bases. The strikes were followed by naval confrontations between the two sides on Saturday.
On Feb. 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities. Iran responded with waves of missile and drone attacks targeting Israel and U.S. bases and assets in the region, and tightened its grip on the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran, Israel threaten each other with more strikes if attacked
