World Today

Russia launched its special military operation against Ukraine on February 24th 2022. Since that day, thousands of Russian and Ukrainian soldiers have died or been wounded. Tensions between Russia and U.S.-led western countries have kept rising, with Sweden and Finland quickly announcing bids to join the trans-Atlantic alliance NATO. Economically, the world was thrown into high inflation, energy disruptions, and food shortages, among other crises.

Yet the war is far from over today. An outright military victory by either side remains unclear, and a return to the negotiating table seems just as unlikely.

What has been the war's impact on global geopolitics? Are there any signs of a way out?

Host Liu Kun is joined by Xu Qinduo, host of the Dialogue on CGTN; Victor Gao, Chair Professor, Soochow University; Dr. Grigory Ioffe, Professor of Human Geography at Radford University; and Ronald Grigor Suny, Professor of History and Political Science at University of Michigan.

①Vladimir Putin has met senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi in Moscow. Are China-Russia relations, as Wang Yi says, not directed against any third country? (00:51)

②A Goldman Sachs report shows China's economic growth momentum should increase corporate profits and provide new growth drivers for the Chinese stock market. (12:27)

③China is calling on the United Nations to investigate the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosions. Why does the sabotage deserve a UN probe? (24:51)

④America's only rare earths producer has agreed to ship its output directly to Japan in a latest attempt to curb China's role in the supply chain. (34:27)

⑤Hong Kong looks to lure family offices in a move to boost post-Covid growth. Compared to Singapore, what’s Hong Kong’s competitive advantage in this field? (47:31)

①China's top diplomat Wang Yi is visiting Russia, just ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Ukraine crisis. We discuss the significance of the visit and the messages it sends. (00:48)

②Putin has announced that his country is suspending participation in the New Start Treaty. We examine the potential implications for global security. (13:00)

③How can business communities in both countries contribute to the development of bilateral relations? (24:35)

④China has released "The Global Security Initiative Concept Paper" to lay out core concepts and principles around global security and peace. (34:23)

⑤A four-day workweek trial is so successful in the UK that most of the participating companies said they won't be going back. What does that mean for the future of work? (44:05)

①China released the Global Security Initiative Concept Paper. What does it say about China's vision for global peace and security? (00:44)

②US President Joe Biden makes a surprise visit to Kyiv. What message is he trying to send? (14:10)

③South Korea's ruling party leader hints at the need for nuclear weapons. What's behind the escalation of tensions on the Korean Peninsula? (24:35)

④The EU will ban new sales of fossil fuel cars by 2035 in order to achieve net zero climate goals by 2050. (33:20)

⑤Chinese e-commerce giant PDD splashes on Super Bowl ad for its Temu US shopping site. (44:34)

①China's top diplomat Wang Yi calls for mutual trust to promote a safer world at the Munich Security Conference. We bring you more on his address, as well as on his meeting with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken. (00:49)

②China has rolled out an across-the-board registration-based IPO system. (24:28)

③The White House comes under fire from European business groups for its latest green investment move. How might these tensions impact transatlantic relations and cooperation on climate change? (34:12)

④University of Hong Kong issues interim ban on ChatGPT. (41:15)

Last year, the term "quiet quitting" took the internet by storm. It described a trend in the US labor market where employees declined to go above and beyond.

Now in 2023, there's a new trend called "quiet hiring." According to US consulting firm Gartner, it's poised to be one of the top workplace trends this year.

Quiet hiring is when an organization acquires new skills without actually hiring new full-time employees. This comes amid continued recession fears and a wave of tech industry layoffs in the United States.

Host Zhao Ying is joined by American economist David Blair, Vice President of the Center for China and Globalization, Prof. Soo Hee Lee of Kent Business School, University of Kent, and Prof. Chris Rowley of Kellogg College, University of Oxford and Bayes Business School, City, University of London.

①China's top legislature condemns U.S. House resolution on Chinese airship. What are the details? (00:50) ②Investigative journalist Seymour Hersh talks about Nord Stream blast in first interview since blog post.(13:50) ③China and Iran have released a joint communique after the three-day state visit of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi.(25:21) ④Top executives of multinational companies plan visits to China as economic activities recover after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. How do they view the prospect of the Chinese economy? (33:20) ⑤Our exclusive interview with rising tennis star Wu Yibing.(44:10)

①Senior Chinese diplomat Wang Yi visits France, Italy, Hungary and Russia and attends the 59th Munich Security Conference. What can we expect from this trip? (00:50) ②Our exclusive interview with Jens Eskelund, vice president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China.(12:40) ③Air India signs record aviation deals with Boeing and Airbus. What does that tell us about the Indian aviation industry? (25:30) ④New data show the pace of inflation in the U.S. economy eased in January.(35:46) ⑤High school African-American studies curriculum caught in politics in the U.S. state of Florida.(46:20)

①President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Ebrahim Raisi is on a state visit to China. (00:46) ②U.N. human rights expert strongly urges the U.S. to lift all sanctions on Syria amid deadly earthquakes. (13:10) ③China unveils its rural development blueprint for 2023. What are the details? (26:10) ④NATO defense ministers meet to discuss Ukraine, trans-Atlantic alliance and other issues. (36:50) ⑤Local business owners and citizens in the U.S. have filed against the company involved in a train crash in the U.S. state of Ohio. (44:30)

①Russia said NATO should hold an emergency meeting to discuss investigative journalist Seymour Hersh's report that U.S. destroyed the Nord Stream gas pipelines under the Baltic Sea. What are the latest? (00:50) ②China's consumer price index rose in January. What are the factors that contributed to the rise? (12:56) ③Sweden joins a few developed countries in discarding COVID vaccines as poor nations still suffer from vaccine shortages.(26:00) ④China's Wu Yibing becomes first Chinese player to win an ATP Tour title. How significant is it? (33:54) ⑤India's largest insurer, Life Insurance Corporation, says it might review its stake in the embattled Adani Group.(46:30)