By He Yin, People’s Daily

In May 2025, the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Forum was held in Beijing. 

Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony and delivered a keynote speech, announcing the launch of five major programs ranging from solidarity, development, civilization to peace and people-to-people connectivity. The initiatives outlined a clear blueprint for the two sides to pursue modernization together.

Over the past year, guided by the principles of equality, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation, China and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries have strengthened coordination and collaboration, steadily advancing the implementation of the five programs and delivering tangible benefits to people on both sides. In doing so, they have continued writing a new chapter in building the China-LAC community with a shared future.

China and LAC countries have stood together in solidarity, deepening political mutual trust.

In recent years, under the strategic guidance of head-of-state diplomacy, China-LAC relations have entered a new stage characterized by equality, mutual benefit, innovation, openness and benefits for the people. High-level exchanges between the two sides have remained close, and both sides have consistently supported each other on issues concerning their respective core interests and major concerns.

Last December, China released its third policy paper on LAC, proposing concrete measures to advance the implementation of the five major programs and providing clearer direction and pathways for building the China-LAC community with a shared future. In March this year, Xi sent a congratulatory message to the 10th Summit of the CELAC, which resonated widely across the region.

The two sides have also institutionalized exchanges on governance and modernization experience, advancing together along the path toward modernization. LAC countries have actively responded to the China-proposed Global Governance Initiative, with five countries in the region joining the International Organization for Mediation, demonstrating through concrete action their commitment to defending multilateralism.

China and LAC countries have also continued enhancing practical cooperation for mutual benefit and win-win outcomes.

The two sides have strengthened the alignment of development strategies and deepened cooperation in trade, infrastructure, energy, agriculture and other sectors, further tightening bonds of shared interests.

According to statistics from China’s General Administration of Customs, trade between China and LAC countries reached a record high of $549 billion in 2025. With highly complementary economic structures and resource advantages, the two sides are jointly fostering a major market of nearly 2 billion people, empowering each other’s economic growth while creating new opportunities for global economic recovery.

A report by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean noted that China-LAC economic and trade cooperation has become a stabilizing force for diversified regional economic development, helping LAC countries diversify economic partnerships and strengthen long-term development resilience.

Openness and inclusiveness have infused vitality into people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two sides.

Platforms such as the Dialogue Between the Civilizations of China and the LAC, think tank forums, and development forums have been held successively, promoting mutual learning among civilizations and exchanges of ideas. Chinese art troupes, cultural exhibitions and film and television exchange activities have toured many LAC countries, sparking growing enthusiasm for Chinese culture across the region. Meanwhile, increasing numbers of tourists from LAC countries are traveling to China, gaining firsthand understanding of the country and developing deeper appreciation for it.

The Chinese navy hospital ship Silk Road Ark has traveled to multiple LAC countries to provide humanitarian medical services, while the Luban Workshop in Nicaragua has officially begun operations, helping train local young skilled workers.

As the civilization and people-to-people connectivity programs continue to move forward, the benefits of China-LAC cooperation are increasingly being reflected in improved livelihoods and closer ties between the peoples of both sides.

China-LAC cooperation is an important part of South-South cooperation. It aligns with the trend of the times and serves the shared long-term interests of both sides.

Under the Peace program, China and LAC countries have strengthened cooperation in international security, regional stability and public security. China and Brazil issued a joint statement on the Ukraine crisis, while several countries in the region expressed support for and participation in the five-point initiative of China and Pakistan for restoring peace and stability in the Gulf and Middle East region, contributing wisdom and strength to global peace and stability.

Closer solidarity and coordination between China and LAC countries help safeguard international fairness and justice, promote global development and prosperity, and generate powerful energy for building a world of peace, security, prosperity and progress.

China remains a steadfast friend and partner to LAC countries. By deepening cooperation and advancing the China-LAC community with a shared future, both sides are expected to deliver greater benefits to their peoples while contributing to peace, stability and development worldwide.

By He Yin, People’s Daily

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing on May 19, 2026, for a state visit to China. At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Putin is visiting China from May 19 to 20. This is Putin’s 25th visit to China and the first face-to-face meeting between the two heads of state this year.

The international community widely anticipates that, under the strategic guidance of the two presidents, China-Russia relations will continue advancing along the right path and make positive contributions to safeguarding global strategic stability and international fairness and justice.

Over the years, head-of-state diplomacy has always been the greatest strength and the fundamental guarantee of the high-level development of bilateral relations.

Since 2013, the two heads of state have met with each other more than 40 times on various occasions. In 2014, the two leaders jointly signed a statement marking a new stage in the China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination. In 2019, they agreed to elevate bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination for a new era. 

In 2021, the two sides officially announced the extension of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation while enriching its contemporary significance.

Last year, the two presidents signed the Joint Statement Between the People’s Republic of China and the Russian Federation on Further Deepening the China-Russia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership of Coordination for the New Era.

Under the joint planning and guidance of the two heads of state, China-Russia relations have grown increasingly confident, stable and resilient.

The relationship has set an example of a new model of major-country relations, delivering tangible benefits to both countries and their peoples while contributing significantly to global strategic stability and improvements in global governance.

During this visit, the two heads of state exchanged views on bilateral relations, cooperation across various sectors, and international and regional issues of common concern. The meeting has elevated China-Russia relations in the new era to new heights and injected positive energy into world peace and development.

Ever-lasting good-neighborliness and friendship, comprehensive strategic coordination and mutually-beneficial cooperation are the defining features of China-Russia relations.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the China-Russia strategic partnership of coordination, the 25th anniversary of the signing of the China-Russia Treaty of Good-Neighborliness and Friendly Cooperation, and the launch of the China-Russia Years of Education.

Seizing this important historic opportunity in bilateral relations, both sides will further strengthen political mutual trust, deepen comprehensive cooperation across all fields, and continue consolidating the social and public foundation for everlasting friendship.

In recent years, thanks to the joint efforts from both sides, cooperation across various sectors has continued to deepen and deliver solid outcomes. Cooperation in key areas has flourished, sub-regional cooperation has remained vibrant, and collaboration in emerging sectors has expanded comprehensively, producing fruitful results.

In 2025, bilateral trade between China and Russia reached $227.9 billion, surpassing the $200 billion mark for the third consecutive year. China has remained Russia’s largest trading partner for 16 consecutive years. In the first four months of this year, bilateral trade totaled $85.241 billion, up 19.7 percent year on year.

Holding thematic years in each other’s countries has become a fine tradition of the people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and Russia, and a feature and highlight of bilateral relations over their course of development. The China-Russia Years of Education launched this year marks the 10th national-level thematic year between the two countries and is expected to inject fresh momentum into deepening mutual understanding between the two peoples while supporting the development and revitalization of both countries.

Against the backdrop of an increasingly turbulent and changing international landscape, the stability and certainty embodied in China-Russia relations are particularly valuable.

They not only provide a solid foundation for the development and revitalization of both countries, but also inject precious stability and positive energy into maintaining global strategic stability and improving global governance.

For many years, as responsible major countries and permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, China and Russia have maintained close coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as the United Nations, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, BRICS and the Group of Twenty.

Together, the two countries have contributed to safeguarding the central role of the United Nations in international affairs, explored a path toward building a universally beneficial, inclusive economic globalization, and injected momentum into advancing an equal and orderly multipolar world.

Last September, Xi proposed the Global Governance Initiative at the “Shanghai Cooperation Organization Plus” Meeting. During the meeting, Putin spoke positively of the initiative and expressed Russia’s support.

Since this year, the international situation has become increasingly volatile. Closer and more robust strategic coordination between China and Russia, alongside their more proactive major-country responsibilities, will help make the international order more just and equitable.

Today, China-Russia relations are at their best in history. Standing at a new historical starting point, China is ready to work with Russia to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, continue deepening and elevating bilateral relations, and make greater contributions to promoting the development and revitalization of both countries as well as safeguarding international fairness and justice.

By Zhou Zhou, Yu Jinghao, People’s Daily

American manufacturer Cummins has cultivated a remarkable half-century partnership with China, evolving from initial technology transfers to establishing joint ventures and now leveraging China-based R&D centers to serve global markets.

Over decades of development, Cummins has evolved from a diesel engine manufacturer into a diversified power solutions provider covering engines, generator sets, hydrogen energy and other fields.

Nathan Stoner, vice president of Cummins and chairman of Cummins China, notes that Cummins’ development in China has been a story of learning and growing together with the Chinese market.

The company’s connection with China dates back to World War II, when China and the United States fought side by side against Japanese fascism. In 1941, when the United States provided wartime aid to China, the supplies included river patrol boats and military trucks equipped with Cummins engines.

Shortly before the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, a company based in Chongqing in southwest China reached out to Cummins to seek opportunities for cooperation. 

Irwin Miller, then general manager of Cummins Engine Company, replied with strong interest in collaboration. Miller’s 1975 visit as company chairman made Cummins among the earliest U.S. firms pursuing Chinese commercial opportunities.

China’s accelerating industrialization created urgent demand for high-power, reliable equipment, while economic reforms provided fertile ground for Cummins’ expansion.

In 1981, Cummins began engine production in Chongqing through a licensing arrangement. In 1986, Cummins signed a licensing cooperation agreement with China’s Second Automobile Works, renamed Dongfeng Motor Group in 1992. In 1996, the two sides established Dongfeng Cummins Engine Co., Ltd. in Xiangyang, central China’s Hubei province, with each side holding a 50 percent stake, demonstrating their shared commitment to equal and mutually beneficial cooperation.

As the partnership deepened, cooperation between Dongfeng and Cummins evolved from simply supplying engines to collaborating across the entire powertrain system. Yang Qing, chairman of Dongfeng Motor Group, said the cooperation between the two companies has been “a process of mutual achievement.”

“Cummins’ cutting-edge power technologies and reliable quality have perfectly complemented Dongfeng’s vehicle products, winning broad recognition among end users,” Yang said.

At Dongfeng Cummins’ heavy-duty engine factory in Xiangyang’s High-Tech Industry Development Zone, robotic arms maneuver engine blocks while AI-powered vision systems conduct millimeter-precision quality checks. This intelligent manufacturing hub features 28 automated workstations producing eight engine series simultaneously, achieving wastewater-free painting processes. Recognized as both national-level intelligent manufacturing and green factory, it rolls out a new “Legend” engine every few minutes.

When Cummins planned a new Chinese engine plant in 2021, Xiangyang officials promptly engaged. Investment teams worked overnight preparing materials to demonstrate the region’s industrial strengths. Cummins vice president Wang Kaijun recalled: “The sincerity and practical policies, professional team, mature supply chain, and government support were decisive.”

The project was ultimately located in Xiangyang. The agreement was signed in November 2021, with construction permits obtained the same month. On May 30, 2023, the new factory officially began operations, producing its first “Legend” engine right away.

To date, Dongfeng Cummins has produced over 4.2 million engines spanning 2.5L to 16L diesel and natural gas models while pioneering hydrogen fuel technologies. The jointly developed ISZ13 engine, featuring fully independent intellectual property rights, has become a benchmark in China’s premium engine market.

At the Cummins East Asia R&D Center in Wuhan Economic and Technological Development Zone in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, Chinese engineers were coordinating remotely with technical teams in the United States, the United Kingdom and India, advancing a next-generation heavy-duty power platform set to enter real-world testing. 

One core control module of the platform was independently developed by the Wuhan team. Outside the meeting room, the nearly 500-member technical team consists entirely of local Chinese engineers, with an average age of under 40.

Shi Lei, general manager of the R&D center, said Wuhan’s mature automotive industrial chain and strong pool of educational and scientific talent were key reasons the center chose the city.

“Powered by AI technologies, the design and development cycle for traditional components such as bearings has been significantly shortened,” Shi said. “Our innovations no longer serve only the Chinese market — they directly support Cummins’ global product lineup. As Cummins’ largest technology center outside the United States, this has long become a source of innovation for the company worldwide.”

In 2025, overseas product development projects accounted for more than 20 percent of the center’s total R&D workload.

Since 2022, Cummins has invested nearly 7 billion yuan (about $1.03 billion) in China to build more advanced R&D and manufacturing facilities.

“Many people ask us why we continue increasing investment in China,” Stoner said. “The answer is straightforward: China boasts not only a huge market of more than 1.4 billion people, but also tens of millions of hardworking engineers, efficient government services, complete industrial chains, and deep respect for innovation. Here in China, ideas can be rapidly turned into real-world products and solutions.”

“The story of Cummins in China is also, in many ways, a reflection of the story between the United States and China,” he added. “When we cooperate as partners, we can absolutely achieve success and shared prosperity together.”