Flag-raising ceremonies held across China to mark National Day

Flag-raising ceremonies were held across China on Thursday to mark the 77th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China.

At the Khunjerab Pass, situated at an altitude of 5,100 meters on the Pamir Plateau in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, thousands of people gathered to watch the flag-raising ceremony.

Afterward, they took a group photo with the border police flag guard, voicing their wishes for the motherland's prosperity. "Watching the flag-raising ceremony at the world's highest border gate and seeing the five-starred red flag rise in the cold wind, I feel truly proud of our great motherland. Happy birthday to our motherland. May it prosper and thrive, and may the nation enjoy peace and stability," said Wang Yanli, a tourist.

At the Mohan Railway Port on the China-Laos Railway, a solemn flag-raising ceremony was also held in the morning.

As a key gateway for China's opening-up to Southeast Asia, the port handles cross-border passenger and freight traffic year-round.

In south China's Hainan Province, Xinhai Harbour in Haikou City and Sanya Phoenix International Airport in Sanya City held synchronized flag-raising ceremonies to celebrate the occasion.

Frontline port staff, port and shipping authorities, Young Pioneers, and representatives from various sectors attended the events.

"When the national anthem played and the flag rose, I felt especially honored and proud. With the vigorous development of the Hainan Free Trade Port and standing at the forefront of opening-up, we feel a great sense of responsibility and mission," said Li Xiaolong, deputy head of a duty team at the Meilan Border Inspection Station of the Haikou General Station of Immigration Inspection.

Flag-raising ceremonies were also held across the islands and reefs of Sansha, China's southernmost island city in Hainan Province.

"Today, attending the flag-raising ceremony on Yongxing Island in Sansha, I feel very proud and honored," said Wang Hao, a staff member with the Sansha Maritime Safety Administration.

Flag-raising ceremonies held across China to mark National Day

The incident in which a Japan Self-Defense Forces officer trespassed into the Chinese Embassy in Japan with a knife constituted a serious violation of China's sovereignty and dignity, said an embassy spokesperson.

On March 24, Kodai Murata, then an active-duty second lieutenant in Japan's Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF), allegedly scaled a barbed-wire wall and broke into the Chinese embassy in Tokyo carrying a knife. He threatened to kill Chinese diplomatic personnel and was later arrested by the police.

The Tokyo District Court on Thursday held the first hearing in open court of Murata's trial.

The embassy spokesperson said that this egregious incident constituted a serious violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, a grave infringement on China's sovereignty and dignity, and a severe threat to the personal safety of Chinese diplomatic personnel and the security of diplomatic premises.

It also exposed numerous deep-seated issues, such as the rampant nature of right-wing forces in Japan and the lack of proper supervision and discipline regarding Self-Defense Forces personnel, the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said that facts are clear concerning the case, and the evidence is irrefutable, leaving no room for denial.

China and the international community are watching closely to see how Japan handles the matter. China urges Japan to show the proper attitude, severely punish the intruder, conduct a thorough investigation and implement corrective measures, and provide a responsible account of the incident, said the spokesperson.

Intrusion of Chinese Embassy in Japan violates China's sovereignty: spokesperson