World Today

① China to grant zero-tariff access to all African countries with diplomatic ties. How will this boost African exports to China and shared development? （00:55）

② Australia FM visits China. Why now? （13:45）

③ Trump and Putin discuss Iran war and Ukraine ceasefire. What’s really on the table? （23:50）

④ China opens first cross-Bohai drone logistics route. Is low-altitude economy reshaping northern China’s supply chains? （33:00）

⑤ China sees rise in vocational degrees as students prioritize skills over elite universities. Why are graduates “returning” to vocational training? （43:25）

① CPC leadership meeting calls for stronger confidence in economic work. What does this reveal about China's development momentum? (00:45)

② UAE to exit OPEC, OPEC+ from May 1st. What's next for global oil prices and energy markets? (14:10)

③ Japan's push to revise Self-Defense Forces rank titles signals military expansionist motives: Pakistani expert (24:30)

④ Brazilian president enacts Mercosur-EU free trade agreement. What does it mean for Latin American–EU trade relations? (35:10)

⑤ Boom in coffee consumption exemplifies new opportunities for agricultural imports in China. How can the Chinese market drive mutual benefits for foreign agriculture? (44:40)

① China blocks foreign acquisition of Manus project. What signal does this send? (00:46)

② Putin voices support for Iran — impact on U.S.–Iran talks?(11:35)

③ Merz criticizes U.S. strategy in Iran conflict. Where is transatlantic relations heading? (24:00)

④ CATL unveils six-minute EV battery charging. What does this mean for EV industry transformation? (34:20)

⑤ China adds 38 new university majors. What does this reveal about future talent priorities? (43:45)

① China industrial profits surge in Q1. What’s driving the momentum? (00:56)

② Framing China: Inside Western narratives on China’s poverty reduction. (11:44)

③ Japan uses AI-generated videos in China-related disinformation. What are the self-inflicted risks? (27:47)

④ Iran's foreign minister visits Russia for talks with Putin. Will U.S.-Iran negotiations resume, or is escalation continuing? (36:37)

⑤ Shooting at White House Correspondents’ Dinner: why do high-level U.S. security failures keep happening? (47:50)

At a half-marathon in Beijing, humanoid robots stunned spectators by outperforming the fastest human runners and dramatically surpassing last year’s robotic champion. What's behind this rapid progress in humanoid robotics in China? How will they evolve in the near future, and what could that mean to our daily lives?

Host Dou Hongyu is joined by John Gong, a professor with the University of International Business and Economics, Muhammad Ali Nasir, Professor of Economics at the University of Leeds, and Liu Shaoshan, Director of Embodied Intelligence, Shenzhen Institute of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics for Society, to explore the breakthroughs behind China’s humanoid robots and examine how they may change the way we live and work.

① China and Cambodia have held their first “2+2” strategic dialogue between foreign and defense ministers. How is China-Cambodia cooperation contributing to regional peace and stability? (00:48)

② China has reported that its agricultural economy maintained steady growth in the first quarter. We explore the main contributing factors behind this resilience. (13:54)

③ China’s WeChat Pay has expanded its cross-border services, allowing users to scan local QR codes in South Korea, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore. Will this move boost China’s outbound tourist flows to the five countries? (24:48)

④ The world’s biggest iceberg A23a has rapidly broken up after a 40-year life span, as warming ocean water speeds up the melting of Antarctic ice shelf. What can we do about it? (33:32)

⑤ Britain’s parliament has passed a bill to stop people born after 2008 from buying tobacco during their whole lives. Will it become a durable law? (44:36)

① We take a look at Mozambican President Daniel Chapo’s China visit and the outlook of cooperation between the two sides. (00:55)

② Taiwan’s Lai Ching-te has canceled a trip to Eswatini after some countries denied overflight permission for his aircraft. Why are those countries justified to do so? (15:53)

③ Japan’s Sanae Takaichi has sent a ritual offering to the notorious Yasukuni Shrine. Why is this action a provocation against international justice? (24:40)

④ Canada’s Mark Carney has announced a 24-people advisory committee on economic ties with the United States, as Ottawa braces for trade talks with Washington. How does the talks’ prospect look? (33:00)

⑤ We explore how city-based amateur soccer games across China are translating into real economic activities? (40:35)

① In a call with Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Xi Jinping says normal passage through the Strait of Hormuz should be maintained. What can China and Saudi Arabia do together to de-escalate Middle East tensions? (00:57)

② Japan has announced its biggest defense equipment export rule change in decades. What’s the danger of this move? (13:14)

③ With the development of AI, One-Person Companies (OPC) are seeing explosive growth in China. Can this model become a new growth engine for China? (24:45)

④ Former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev has won the country’s parliamentary election by a landslide. What could it mean for Bulgaria’s ties with the EU and Russia? (35:47)

⑤ India and South Korea have signed new deals in efforts to push their trade to $50 billion by 2030. What is prompting the two sides to seek closer cooperation? (44:31)

① Tens of thousands of people have gathered at the parliament building in Tokyo to protest constitutional revision spearheaded by Japan’s Sanae Takaichi. Why is a remilitarized Japan a threat to regional peace? (00:55)

② Iran says there is no plan for a second round of talks with Washington. How is the US seizure of an Iranian-flagged cargo ship complicating the situation? (15:35)

③ A humanoid robot has won a half-marathon in Beijing, defeating the human world record. So what does this tell us about the pace of humanoid robotics development? (25:20)

④ The Iran war has soured Britain’s relations with the US. How is this situation prompting Britain to look to the EU again? (35:17)

⑤ Despite being a self-proclaimed NGO, the National Endowment for Democracy is widely regarded as aligned with Washington’s foreign policy objectives. How does its track record look like? Why is China a primary focus of its infiltration and subversive activities? (44:58)

The disruption around the Strait of Hormuz has posed a great threat to global energy security. The crisis is once again drawing our attention to renewable energy. According to energy think tank Ember's research, solar power growth in 2025 alone could displace gas-fired electricity equal to all liquified natural gas exported through Hormuz in the same year.

Are renewable energy's benefits such as price stability and domestic energy resilience becoming more relevant in a turbulent world? Host Ding Heng is joined by Steven Wright, Director of the Leadership Knowledgebase at the Qatar Leadership Centre; Laury Haytayan, Middle East and North Africa Director at Natural Resource Governance Institute; Christis Tombazos, Associate Professor of Economics at Monash University.