World Bank-China partnership built on two-way knowledge cooperation: official

The partnership between China and the World Bank is evolving toward a robust two-way exchange built on knowledge sharing, as China increasingly contributes its abundant experience to global development efforts, said a senior World Bank official.

China and the World Bank Group have worked together for more than four decades through financing, technical assistance and policy dialogue.

The cooperation has consistently delivered development impact, according to Tatiana Rosito, the World Bank's division director for China, Mongolia and the Republic of Korea, speaking in an interview with China Global Television Network.

"I think what doesn't change moving forward is that the World Bank-China partnership has worked, and works for development impact. This has always been there. Throughout our over 45 years of cooperation, this has been achieved through both financing and knowledge -- let's say knowledge through our technical assistance and through our policy dialogue. In this period, China has evolved a lot. Now, China has more access to capital, also has very mature development experience in many areas that can be shared. So more recently, I can say that this partnership is evolving -- evolving towards knowledge, but also evolving towards a more two-way partnership," she said. As the World Bank expands its ecological and environmental efforts through climate financing, circular economy programs, and nature-focused investments, its partnership with China grows even more valuable.

"China's development experience is notable in many areas -- for its speed, its scale, but also its success and in implementation. We heard from this interesting China-World Bank Knowledge Exchange Program in ecosystem management -- we heard, for example, that China's ecological civilization concept, it expresses very well the importance of integrating economic development with biodiversity, with nature, and also with finance," said Rosito.

"So bringing together planning and finance is a very useful experience, and one that is in high demand for other developing countries. That's why we're partnering with China on that. We, more and more, continue to have a relationship where inbound knowledge is important for China, but where also outbound knowledge from China can grow, and bloom with the World Bank as a global platform," she said.

World Bank-China partnership built on two-way knowledge cooperation: official

Yemen's Houthi group said Wednesday it had launched two missile and drone attacks targeting an Aramco facility and a military air base in response to Saudi air strikes against Yemen this week.

The Houthis accused Saudi Arabia earlier Wednesday of carrying out more than 450 airstrikes across seven Yemeni provinces over the past week. In response, the group used dozens of ballistic missiles and drones to attack the Saudi Aramco facility in the western Saudi city of Yanbu, and launched several ballistic missiles to struck the airbase in Khamis Mushait air base in southwestern Saudi Arabia near the Yemeni border.

The group claimed the Yanbu attack caused large fires and extensive damage, while missiles targeting Khamis Mushait accurately hit their targets. Saudi authorities and Aramco have not commented on the claims. The Houthis also said that it would continue operations against Saudi Arabia until the kingdom halts its airstrikes and lifts the blockade on Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen.

On the same day, Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a statement carried by Houthi-run al-Masirah TV that the group had shot down a Saudi F-15 fighter jet over the northeastern province of Marib. He said the fighter jet was struck by a locally manufactured surface-to-air missile while conducting "hostile operations" in support of Saudi-backed Yemeni forces in Marib.

Sarea said Houthi forces subsequently fired locally made air-defense missiles at two formations of Saudi F-15 and Typhoon fighter jets that entered Marib's airspace to search for the wreckage of the downed aircraft, forcing them to retreat.

Separately, Saudi air defenses intercepted and destroyed a Houthi drone south of Mecca on Tuesday evening before it entered the prohibited airspace of the holy city, the Saudi-led coalition said.

Coalition spokesman Turki Al Maliki said the security of the Two Holy Mosques and pilgrims is a "red line", adding that the coalition would not hesitate to take necessary measures to deter further Houthi attacks.

An official from the Houthis rejected the allegation on Wednesday.

"The claims about targeting Mecca are a worn-out lie that has been used before and no longer fools anyone," Houthi official Hazem al-Assad wrote on X.

Yemen's Houthis claim missile, drone strikes on Saudi Aramco facility, air base