February 2026 - Friends of Socialist China

The US is pursuing a global Monroe Doctrine

The following article is based on a presentation given by Friends of Socialist China co-editor Carlos Martinez at the Latin America Adelante Conference in London on 7 February 2026. The presentation was part of a session on ‘Latin America, the New Cold War and the Rising Global South’, which was also addressed by Sophie Bold (CND General Secretary), Roger McKenzie (Morning Star International Editor) and Fiona Sim (Co-founder, Black Liberation Alliance). The session was chaired by Carole Regan of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign.

Carlos’s presentation focused on the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy and its implications for Latin America, as well as its connection to the US’s longstanding global strategy of encirclement and containment against China. Carlos concludes:

The ruling class is pushing an agenda that is increasingly unpopular and untenable — an agenda of permanent war, economic decline and ecological destruction. We need to push our own agenda: one of peace, multilateralism, solidarity, and the broadest possible global cooperation to confront the existential threats facing humanity.

The Trump administration’s National Security Strategy (NSS), released in late November 2025, has been the subject of widespread comment and a diverse array of interpretations. For those of us concerned with questions of peace, sovereignty and international justice, its most striking feature is its explicit reassertion of the Monroe Doctrine, shifting the focus of US military strategy towards “defending our hemisphere”, with more troops, bases and military operations in the Americas.

US hegemony over the Western Hemisphere is of course nothing new. Since the Monroe Doctrine was first promulgated in 1823, the United States has treated Latin America and the Caribbean as its backyard, overthrowing governments, installing dictatorships, funding death squads and imposing economic subjugation as a matter of routine. But, at least in the post-WW2 era, previous administrations have at least maintained some pretence of respect for international law and the sovereignty of other nations. The NSS does away with any such niceties, declaring that “the United States will reassert and enforce the Monroe Doctrine to restore American preeminence in the Western Hemisphere” and “deny non-Hemispheric competitors the ability to position forces or other threatening capabilities, or to own or control strategically vital assets, in our Hemisphere.”

CPC greets 9th congress of Workers’ Party of Korea

The Ninth Congress of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) opened on February 19 in Pyongyang, capital of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

That day, the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) sent a message of greetings to the congress, noting that the WPK is the strong leadership core of the DPRK’s revolutionary and construction undertakings. The party has long united and led the DPRK people in relentless progress, achieving significant accomplishments in advancing the DPRK’s socialist cause.

“We wish that, under the strong leadership of the WPK Central Committee with General Secretary Kim Jong Un at its helm, the DPRK people will continue to achieve new and greater accomplishments in their socialist construction,” it said.

It added that both China and the DPRK are socialist countries led by communist parties. In recent years, under the strategic guidance of the top leaders of both parties and countries, China-DPRK relations have entered a new historical period. The CPC has always placed great importance on developing a friendly and cooperative relationship with the WPK, and is willing to strengthen communication and exchanges with the WPK, deepen the exchange of experience in party-building and state governance, jointly lead the healthy and stable development of China-DPRK relations, and promote the steady and far-reaching advancement of the socialist cause in both countries to contribute to regional peace, stability, development and prosperity.

We reprint below the reports on the message as released by the Xinhua News Agency and the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). We also carry the text of the opening address to the congress delivered by General Secretary Kim Jong Un as carried by KCNA.

China welcomes the Year of the Horse

February 17 this year marks the Chinese New Year of the Horse and is the most important traditional holiday in China as well as for Chinese communities around the world and for some other countries in East Asia.

With the approach of the holiday, also known as the Spring Festival, Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is also General Secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivered a speech at a celebratory reception held in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, and attended by over 2,000 people, on Saturday February 14.

Xi described the outgoing Year of the Snake as extraordinary, adding that China had met difficulties head-on and made new progress in the face of a complex and volatile environment at home and abroad, elevating its economic strength, scientific and technological capabilities, national defence capabilities and composite national strength to new heights.

He further noted China’s solid progress in various fields in the past year and emphasised several milestones, such as outlining the blueprint for the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-30), commemorating the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1931-45) and the World Anti-Fascist War, establishing the Taiwan Recovery Day, celebrating the founding anniversaries of the Xizang (Tibet) autonomous region and the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, and holding the 15th National Games in Guangdong, Hong Kong and Macao. China had also put forward the Global Governance Initiative and successfully hosted the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit and the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women.

Going forward, the year 2026 marks the 105th anniversary of the founding of the CPC and the launch of the 15th Five-Year Plan. Xi called for advancing high-quality development, maintaining social harmony and stability, and consistently exercising full and rigorous Party self-governance, in order to strive for a sound start to the next five years.

In a brief survey of international reaction to Xi’s speech, China Daily quoted our co-editor Carlos Martinez as saying that Xi noted the vision of building a global community of shared future, in which the peoples and nations of the world cooperate to solve the common challenges facing humanity and our shared home, Earth.

Such a vision, Carlos noted, is highly inspiring and furthermore indispensable, at a time when, referring principally to the United States, some countries are pursuing the policies of hybrid war, aggression, threats, blockades, economic coercion and unilateralism.

The following article was originally published by China Daily. We also embed a brief video from CGTN highlighting Xi Jinping’s close ties with the people especially at New Year.

Friends of Socialist China wishes all our supporters, friends and readers a Happy New Year of the Horse!

Xi’s message of strength, optimism resonates globally

February 15 (China Daily) – February 17 this year marks the Chinese New Year of the Horse and is the most important traditional holiday in China as well as for Chinese communities around the world and for some other countries in East Asia.

CPC holds video talks with Sri Lanka’s JVP

Liu Haixing, Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee (IDCPC), held a video meeting with Tilvin Silva, General Secretary of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) of Sri Lanka on February 13.

The JVP, or People’s Liberation Front, is Sri Lanka’s largest Marxist party and is currently the main governing party in the country at the head of an alliance of left and progressive forces.

Liu said that in January 2025, President Xi Jinping met with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake who was visiting China. They reached important consensus on building a China-Sri Lanka community with a shared future and deepening exchanges of governance experience between the two countries’ ruling parties. The CPC, he continued, stands ready to continue strengthening exchanges at all levels with the JVP, conduct in-depth theoretical discussions and experience sharing on such topics as party building, major national development strategies and sustainable development, and to promote practical cooperation and friendship between the two peoples.

Silva and other leading JVP members said that during their visit to China last year, they witnessed firsthand how the CPC has led the Chinese people to achieve remarkable development accomplishments and won people’s wholehearted support. As Marxist governing parties, the two parties share common goals and ideals. Learning from the CPC’s experience in state governance and administration is of vital importance to the JVP. In particular, China’s practices in comprehensively exercising rigorous governance over the party and pursuing a people-centred development philosophy have provided valuable reference for Sri Lanka. The JVP appreciates China’s valuable support and assistance and is willing to further strengthen inter-party exchanges with the CPC and deepen cooperation in such areas as cadre training, digital city development, poverty reduction and promoting national unity, so as to better serve national development and improve the well-being of the two peoples.

The following article was originally published on the website of the IDCPC.

Beijing, February 13th—Liu Haixing, Minister of the International Department of the CPC Central Committee (IDCPC), held here today a video meeting with Tilvin Silva, General Secretary of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) of Sri Lanka.

Liu said, in January 2025, President Xi Jinping met with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake who was visiting China. They reached important consensus on building a China-Sri Lanka community with a shared future and deepening exchanges of governance experience between the two countries’ ruling parties. The two leaders also witnessed the signing of a memorandum of understanding on exchanges and cooperation between the two Parties. Over the past year, the CPC and the JVP have carried out diverse and fruitful exchanges and cooperation through inter-party channels to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state. The CPC stands ready to continue strengthening exchanges at all levels with the JVP, conduct in-depth theoretical discussions and experience sharing on such topics as Party building, major national development strategies and sustainable development, promote practical cooperation and friendship between the two peoples through the “political parties plus” platform, deepen multilateral coordination, and advance greater development of relations between the two countries and Parties.

Silva and others said, during the visit to China last year, we witnessed firsthand how the CPC has led the Chinese people to achieve remarkable development accomplishments and won people’s wholehearted support. As Marxist governing parties, the two Parties share common goals and ideals. Learning from the CPC’s experience in state governance and administration is of vital importance to the JVP. In particular, China’s practices in formulating medium- and long-term plans, comprehensively exercising rigorous governance over the Party, and pursuing a people-centered development philosophy have provided valuable reference for Sri Lanka. We appreciate China’s valuable support and assistance. The JVP is willing to further strengthen inter-party exchanges with the CPC and deepen cooperation in such areas as cadre training, digital city development, poverty reduction and promoting national unity, so as to better serve national development and improve the well-being of the two peoples. The Sri Lankan side also wishes the Chinese people a happy Spring Festival of the Year of the Horse.

Sun Haiyan, Vice-minister of the IDCPC; Qi Zhenhong, Chinese Ambassador to Sri Lanka; Bimal Rathnayake, Member of Political Bureau of the JVP, Head of the International Department, and Minister of Transport Highways and Urban Development, and Sunil Handunneththi, Member of the Political Bureau of the JVP and Minister of Industry and Entrepreneurship Development of Sri Lanka; and others were present.

Trump 2.0 is not retreating – it is recalibrating for global confrontation

In the following analysis for the Morning Star, British economist John Ross argues that the second presidency of Donald Trump represents not a retreat from US global ambitions – as has been posited in parts of the left – but a tactical recalibration aimed at preserving US hegemony and furthering the longstanding campaign to contain China and suppress its rise.

Citing the Trump administration’s National Security Strategy and National Defence Strategy, the article observes that both documents explicitly prioritise countering China militarily, especially in the Indo-Pacific and around Taiwan. Washington’s current tactical approach, however, is to target what it perceives as lesser enemies – including Cuba, Venezuela and Iran – in order to weaken the broader international alignment against imperialism and hegemony.

John concludes that the notion of US retreat is “dangerous wishful thinking.” Far from accepting multipolarity, the US is intensifying military spending, expanding missile defence systems and sustaining global interventions.

“Global South countries at present under direct attack by the US, such as Cuba, Venezuela and Iran, are today in the front line of fighting the US attack on all independent, progressive and socialist forces in the world. These countries therefore must receive the maximum support both for reasons of moral solidarity, and the interests of these countries, but because if they were to be defeated the US will be strengthened in its attack on every other country and progressive movement.

“The evidence, both in words and actions, is that if the US were allowed to succeed in its attacks in the western hemisphere, against Cuba and Venezuela, it would not stop at that and accept a division of the rest of the world. It would simply follow up its attacks on Cuba and Venezuela, in a somewhat strengthened position, by attacks on other countries.

“In short, the idea that the US is retreating simply into the western hemisphere is entirely wrong and extremely dangerous.”

Coercive diplomacy is diplomacy of muscle

In the article below, Professor Jiang Shixue argues that “coercive diplomacy” best characterises the foreign policy of the United States. He defines coercive diplomacy as the use of diplomatic language backed by military or economic pressure to force other countries into submission. Jiang writes that the United States, as the world’s sole superpower, routinely applies such tactics not only against rivals but even against allies.

As an expert in Latin American politics, Professor Jiang cites as examples of coercive diplomacy the US’s criminal decades-long blockade on Cuba, the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, and the recent developments in Panama, which, under pressure from the US, has cancelled a Hong Kong company’s canal port concession and withdrawn from the China-led Belt and Road Initiative.

Jiang contrasts this approach with China’s concept of building a “community of shared future for mankind”, grounded in principles of non-interference and mutual respect. The article concludes that global stability requires abandoning coercive diplomacy in favour of cooperation and multilateralism.

Jiang Shixue is Senior Research Fellow of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. He is also Distinguished Professor at Shanghai University, Macau University of Science and Technology, Hangzhou Normal University, and Sichuan International Studies University. Professor Jiang spoke on the subject of How to understand China’s relations with Latin America at our 2022 webinar 21st Century Socialism: China and Latin America on the Frontline alongside former Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and a number of other prominent speakers.

If one phrase can be applied to summarize the characteristics of the US’s foreign policy, it should be “coercive diplomacy”.

What is coercive diplomacy? Different people have different definitions. But the basic meaning is simple: It is a type of diplomacy plus muscle. In other words, coercive diplomacy cloaks itself in diplomatic garb and relies on one’s military or economic power to force other countries to submit.

As the world’s sole superpower, the United States often engages in coercive diplomacy against any country at any time. The methods of coercion are varied and numerous. Even countries maintaining close relations with the U.S. sometimes become targets of its coercive diplomacy. For instance, on April 25, 2021, the Danish newspaper Politiken revealed that the U.S. Embassy in Denmark had contacted the paper, demanding it prove it did not use technical equipment such as routers or modems provided by Chinese companies including Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hikvision, and Dahua Technology. Otherwise, the embassy might cancel its subscription. This shows that even subscribing to a newspaper can become leverage for U.S. coercive diplomacy.

Deal diplomacy: Starmer’s China trip bets on business over ideology

In the following analysis for Beijing Review, Carlos Martinez assesses British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s January visit to China as a significant moment in the recalibration of Britain-China relations amid accelerating geopolitical changes. The trip – the first by a British prime minister in eight years – signals a cautious thaw after a prolonged diplomatic “ice age” marked by security rhetoric, sanctions, and absurd propaganda.

Carlos contextualises the visit within Britain’s domestic economic pressures and the wider strain on the US-led international order. Accompanied by senior politicians and a broad business delegation, Starmer’s meetings with Xi Jinping and other senior Chinese leaders produced tangible outcomes, including visa-free entry, tariff reductions and new cooperation frameworks across trade, climate and education. The breadth of agreements reflects Britain’s urgent need for growth and investment in a stagnant economy.

The article argues that London’s previous hardening stance toward Beijing was driven largely by alignment with Washington’s containment strategy. However, as US pressure intensifies and transatlantic relations grow more volatile, the US’s traditional allies are starting to gradually reassess the extent to which their interests are served by subjugating themselves to Washington. China, by contrast, has proven itself to be a reliable advocate of multilateralism and mutually beneficial cooperation.

While resistance from US officials, British “China hawks” and sections of the media remains strong, the article contends that full Atlanticist alignment is increasingly untenable. Starmer’s visit, while bearing relatively modest fruit, reflects a broader shift toward multipolarity. Britain now faces a strategic choice: continue subordinating its interests to Washington, or adapt pragmatically to a world in which engagement with China is economically and politically unavoidable.

The Starmer visit is further explored in articles we posted on 4 February: Breaking the ice: Starmer’s pragmatic turn to China and Keir Starmer’s small-stick diplomacy.

British Premier Keir Starmer’s visit to China on January 28-31 was the first trip by a British prime minister to Beijing in eight years. It came at a time of uncertainty in both British domestic politics and international relations, reflecting wider geopolitical shifts.

An analysis of the escalating US threats toward China

In the following article, Mick Kelly, the Political Secretary of the Freedom Road Socialist Organisation (FRSO) in the United States, argues that the US is on a collision course with socialist China. Scholarly international relations journals, such as Foreign Affairs, regularly carry articles about a coming war between the two countries.

Mick notes that in a rapidly changing world China is ascending while the United States is being left behind, with China’s rapid development standing in great contrast to the deteriorating economic position of the US. The bellicose war threats from Washington are a sign of weakness, not strength.

Giving a historical context, he points out that from the victory of the Chinese revolution in 1949 until the early 1970s, US foreign policy towards China was characterized by extremely hostility. Then came “ping pong diplomacy,” and in 1972 both countries signed the Shanghai Communiqué agreeing that “all Chinese on either side of the Taiwan Strait maintain there is but one China and that Taiwan is a part of China.” This One China principle was reaffirmed when Beijing and Washington established formal diplomatic relations at the end of 1979

In the following decades, the US followed a strategy of “peaceful evolution,” which held that by using political, economic and cultural ties, it would be possible to foster forces in China antithetical to socialism, capitalism would prevail, and a Western-style government would ultimately be established. The application of this strategy was played out in the late 1980s when the US did everything it could to encourage turmoil in China and the other socialist countries. In China, however, socialism continued to not only survive but to thrive, creating incredible social achievements such as the elimination of extreme poverty.

Mick concludes that: “Socialist China is a beacon of progress. Its existence demonstrates that socialism brings peace and prosperity, while the United States controls a declining empire that is continuously at war. The difference between the two roads these respective countries offer could not be starker. When US warmongers talk about ‘modernising’ nuclear weapons, in the next breath they mention China. Progressives and revolutionaries in the United States must do everything in our power to stop them and join with people around the world who want to do the same.”

The article originally appeared in the book, China Changes Everything. It is republished here from Workers World.

China and Vietnam reaffirm solidarity with Cuba

Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla, a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Cuban Communist Party (PCC) and Foreign Minister of Cuba, recently visited China as a Special Envoy of the Cuban party and government. The visit occurred in the context of the viciously enhanced US blockade and the severe crisis this is engendering in the heroic socialist island.

Rodríguez met with Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) on February 5.

Wang said that Chinese President Xi Jinping and Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel met on two occasions last year to draw a blueprint for building a closer China-Cuba community with a shared future, adding that China will firmly support Cuba’s just struggle against external interference and work with Cuba to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries.

Noting that China is an important force in safeguarding world peace and carries hope for the Global South, Rodríguez said that Cuba is willing to work with China to implement the consensus reached between the two heads of state, continuously enhance relations between the two parties and countries, and uphold international fairness and justice.

The Cuban envoy also met with Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on the same day.

Wang Yi asked Bruno Rodríguez Parrilla to convey President Xi Jinping’s warm greetings to Comrade Raúl Castro Ruz and President Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez. Wang Yi stated that this year marks the 100th anniversary of Fidel Castro’s birth. For a long time, Cuba has adhered to the tradition of independence, firmly safeguarding state sovereignty and national dignity, and striving to explore a socialist path suited to its own national conditions. With a spirit of never yielding to coercive power and not fearing hardships, Cuba has earned widespread respect from the international community.

China reaffirms backing for Iran

China has reiterated its support for Iran’s right to safeguard its sovereignty, security, and national dignity as well as its legitimate rights and interests.

The Tehran Times newspaper reported this, on February 6, noting that this was stated by Assistant Foreign Minister Miao Deyu in a meeting with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi who was visiting Beijing.

Miao underlined that China is opposed to unilateral bullying and coercion in international relations and to interference in other countries’ internal affairs.

The Iranian diplomat, in turn, briefed his Chinese counterpart on the developments in Iran as well as issues related to Iran’s nuclear program. He underlined that Tehran remains committed to resolving issues through diplomatic channels and would like to move forward with negotiations based on fairness and justice. He said Iran is opposed to foreign threats and pressure and praises China’s role in maintaining regional and international peace and stability.

Whilst in Beijing, Gharibabadi also met with Nurlan Yermekbayev, Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), of which Iran is a member.

The following article was originally published by Tehran Times.

TEHRAN – China has reiterated its support for Iran’s entitlement to safeguard its sovereignty, security, and national dignity as well as its legitimate rights and interests.

That was announced by Chinese Assistant Foreign Minister Miao Deyu in a meeting with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi in the Chinese capital, Beijing.

During the talks, the Chinese diplomat noted that his country closely monitors developments in Iran.

He underlined that China is opposed to unilateral bullying and coercion in international relations and interference in other countries’ internal affairs. He said China is willing to boost engagement and cooperation with all parties, including Iran, so that the principles of the UN Charter as well as fundamental norms ruling international relations would be respected and international justice would prevail.

The Iranian diplomat, in turn, briefed his Chinese counterpart on the developments in Iran as well as issues related to Iran’s nuclear program. Gharibabadi underlined that Tehran remains committed to resolving issues through diplomatic channels and would like to move forward with negotiations based on fairness and justice. He said Iran is opposed to foreign threats and pressure and praises China’s role in maintaining regional and international peace and stability.

The visiting Iranian diplomat also held a separate meeting with Secretary General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Nurlan Yermekbayev.

During the talks, the two sides discussed current priorities of the organization for the year 2026 and traded views on the arrangements for a plenary session of the SCO in the fall. They further discussed the implementation of Iran’s initiative in the domains of transportation, economy, energy and other fields.

The SCO chief, for his part, said the motto “achieving peace, stability, common development and welfare” proposed by the SCO’s rotating president is of utmost significance.

China says: Hong Kong has long returned to China and British colonial rule over Hong Kong has long ended

On February 9, the High Court of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of China sentenced Jimmy Lai, an instigator of anti-China riots in Hong Kong, to 20 years in prison.

Lai was found guilty in December by the High Court of the HKSAR on two charges of conspiring to collude with external forces and a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious materials. Mitigation hearing for Lai’s case began on January 12 and concluded on January 13.

The Xinhua News Agency quoted a spokesperson for the Office for Safeguarding National Security of the Central People’s Government in the HKSAR as noting that the 156-day public trial, which involved the examination of 2,220 exhibits, over 80,000 pages of case files and testimonies of 14 prosecution witnesses, had established that Lai colluded with external forces to endanger national security.

A commentary published by the news agency asserted that: “Disguised as a media man while acting as an agent for external anti-China forces, Lai was the principal mastermind and perpetrator of a series of riots that shook Hong Kong and undermined the fundamental interests of both the country and the HKSAR. The reality of Lai’s crimes is clear, backed by conclusive evidence. The traitor has received the penalty he deserves… The days when external forces and anti-China destabilising elements could act with impunity are obviously over.”

An article posted on the social media account of the Hong Kong and Macao Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee noted:

“People have realised that Jimmy Lai has never been the so-called ‘fighter for freedom, democracy and human rights,’ but rather the chief culprit and a traitor to the nation who has harmed the country’s fundamental interests and the well-being of Hong Kong residents. Lai’s sentencing has once again proved that justice may be late, but it will come in the end.”

Hong Kong’s Chief Executive John Lee said that Lai had long used the now-defunct Apple Daily to poison the minds of Hong Kong people, by inciting hatred, distorting facts, deliberately stirring up social antagonism and glorifying violence. Lai had openly begged for external forces to impose sanctions against China and the HKSAR, sacrificing the well-being of the people of China and the HKSAR.

Lai betrayed the country and harmed the HKSAR. His conviction is supported by overwhelming evidence and he for sure deserves his punishment after all the harm he has done.

The sentence passed on Lai has led to renewed outbursts on the part of international anti-China, anti-socialist forces, not least the British government and media.

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said in a statement: “We stand with the people of Hong Kong, and will always honour the historical commitments made under the legally binding Sino-British Joint Declaration. China must do the same.”

A joint statement by Cooper and Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood announced an “expanded Hong Kong British National (Overseas) route” whereby, “Thousands more Hong Kongers will be able to build new lives in Britain as the government strengthens safe and legal routes to the UK… It is estimated 26,000 people will arrive in the UK over the next 5 years.”

This from a government that is engaged in a relentlessly wicked, cruel and blatantly racist crusade against the most oppressed sections of the working class, particularly refugees and asylum seekers, the overwhelming majority of whom are fleeing from the devastation caused to their homelands by centuries-long and continuing wars, poverty and climate disasters directly resulting from colonial and imperialist super exploitation and oppression.

China and Uruguay pledge closer bilateral and multilateral cooperation

President Yamandú Orsi of Uruguay recently paid a one-week state visit to China, becoming the first leader from Latin America and the Caribbean to do so in 2026. The visit coincided with the 38^th anniversary of the establishment of bilateral diplomatic relations and with Uruguay’s assumption of the rotating chair of the Group of 77 and China, an economic grouping of developing countries, as well as in the wake of the brazen US kidnapping of the Venezuelan president and his wife at the beginning of the year.

President Xi Jinping met his Uruguayan counterpart on the morning of February 3.

Xi said that despite long distance between the two countries, China and Uruguay share similar ideals and profound friendship. On this very day 38 years ago, China and Uruguay established diplomatic relations. Thirty-eight years on, no matter how the international situation evolves, China and Uruguay have always engaged with each other in the spirit of mutual respect and mutual benefit. Under the new circumstances, the two countries should carry forward past traditions, deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership, and let the tree of China-Uruguay friendship continue to grow and flourish.

The two sides should strengthen the alignment of development strategies, deepen cooperation in areas such as economy and trade, finance, agriculture and animal husbandry, infrastructure construction, and information and communications technology, tap into the cooperation potential in emerging sectors such as green development, digital economy, artificial intelligence, and clean energy, and promote the transformation and upgrading of economic growth. The Chinese and Uruguayan people share a natural bond of affinity. The two sides should continue to deepen exchanges in areas such as culture, education, sports, and media and at the sub-national level, facilitate cross-border travel, and strengthen people-to-people connectivity.

Turning to the regional and international situation, President Xi Jinping noted that the world is undergoing changes unseen in a century, the international situation is volatile and turbulent, and unilateral bullying practices are growing more rampant. China supports Uruguay in assuming the rotating chair of the Group of 77 and China, and stands ready to work with Uruguay to strengthen solidarity and cooperation across the Global South, jointly promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalisation, move forward together in pursuit of common development, and make greater contributions to the building of a community with a shared future for humanity. China attaches high importance to its relations with countries in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), supports LAC countries in safeguarding their sovereignty, security and development interests, and supports Uruguay in assuming the rotating chair of both the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the Southern Common Market (MERCOSUR). China stands ready to work with Uruguay and other regional countries to further deepen and substantiate the joint initiative of building a China-LAC community with a shared future.

President Yamandú Orsi said that China is an important cooperation partner of Uruguay and has provided selfless assistance for Uruguay’s economic and social development. Growing relations with China is now Uruguay’s state policy, gaining unanimous support from all political parties and across the society. The two sides should strengthen the alignment of development strategies, deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, science and technology, poverty alleviation, green economy, and digital economy, and promote people-to-people exchanges in education, sports, tourism, and other fields in order to inject stronger momentum into Uruguay-China relations and deliver greater benefits to the two peoples. Uruguay commends the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity proposed by President Xi Jinping. Facing the challenging international and regional situations, Uruguay stands ready to work with China to promote respect for the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, uphold multilateralism, safeguard the international trading system, further advance LAC-China relations, and defend the common interests of the Global South.

Ignoring China’s poverty alleviation success is costing us all

In recent years, public discussion about China in the United States – and the West more generally – has been dominated by accusations, slander, McCarthyite fear-mongering and geopolitical posturing. The relentless anti-China narrative has meant that one of the most consequential social achievements of the modern era has been almost entirely ignored: China’s eradication of extreme poverty.

As global inequality deepens and economic insecurity becomes a defining feature of life for millions in the West, the refusal to seriously examine how China transformed the lives of hundreds of millions of people is a consequential political failure.

Megan Russell’s article for CODEPINK, republished below, confronts this silence head-on by juxtaposing two starkly different realities. On the one hand is the growing exposure, even within China itself, of the fragility of life in the US – a society where healthcare, housing and survival itself often rest on a razor-thin margin. On the other is China’s systematic, state-led effort to ensure its entire population can enjoy fundamental human rights: a minimum income level, guaranteed housing, adequate food and clothing, free healthcare, universal education, running water and access to modern energy.

Rather than treating poverty as an individual moral failing, China approached it as a structural problem requiring coordinated national action, public accountability and sustained investment in human well-being. The result has been the largest poverty alleviation campaign in human history.

Megan argues that the suppression of these facts in the US – through media omission, political censorship and ideological hostility – prevents meaningful learning at a moment when it is urgently needed. If global cooperation is to replace confrontation, and human needs are to take precedence over militarism and profit, then China’s experience must be examined honestly, not buried. The article concludes:

We need to stop funneling vast resources into military expansion and foreign intervention. We need to prioritize the needs of the people over the profits of the elite. We need to end preparations for a war on China and the propaganda campaigns that justify it. Most importantly, we need the United States, China, and the rest of the world to work together to end global inequality and ensure a just and sustainable future for all. If this does not happen, we will all face the consequences.

Over the past month, Chinese social media platforms like Xiaohongshu and Bilibili have begun dismantling the myth of the “American dream,” replacing glossy imagery with firsthand accounts showing that life in the so-called “land of the free” is far from bright and picturesque. In its place, a new concept has emerged, borrowed from video games, when a character’s health drops so low that a single hit can end everything. It’s called the “kill line,” and the term has rapidly entered mainstream political discussion in China.

The “kill line” describes the fragile margin of survival in the lives of many Americans, where one medical emergency, job loss, or unexpected expense can push a person into homelessness or permanent poverty. This precarious balance is a constant threat embedded in the structure of a society that prioritizes profit over people. One mistake, one illness, or one stroke of bad luck can place someone’s entire life in jeopardy.

China and Laos designate 2026 as friendship year

Chinese President Xi Jinping replied on February 5 to his Lao counterpart Thongloun Sisoulith’s new year greetings to jointly designate 2026 as the Year of China-Laos Friendship.

The friendship year will feature a number of celebratory events and Xi, in his letter, noted that China and Laos are good neighbours and good friends connected by mountains and rivers with generations of friendship, as well as good comrades and good partners who share ideals and a common future.

China has always viewed its relations with Laos from a strategic height and a long-term perspective, and is willing to take the celebration of the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations and the friendship year as an opportunity to carry forward traditional friendship, deepen practical cooperation, strengthen strategic coordination, and advance the building of a China-Laos community with a shared future to the forefront of state-to-state relations.

For his part, Thongloun has pledged to instruct various departments of his country to work with the Chinese side to ensure the success of the celebrations marking the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations and the friendship year, build a Laos-China community with a shared future with high standards, high quality and high level, and continue to elevate bilateral relations and practical cooperation in all fields to new heights in the new era, setting an example for building a community with a shared future for humanity.

On the same day, Laos and China marked the Lunar New Year with a transnational cultural and arts performance held in the Laotian capital Vientiane, bringing together officials, artists, and representatives from both countries to promote friendship and people-to-people ties.

Speaking at the ceremony, Cai Xiangrong, Executive Deputy Director of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Yunnan Provincial Committee, noted that Laos and China are close neighbors connected by shared mountains and rivers and are strategic partners with a shared future. The top leaders of both countries had officially announced the launch of the Friendship Year earlier the same day.

The following articles were originally published by the Xinhua News Agency and the KPL Lao News Agency.

China and Vietnam exchange special envoys

Following the successful conclusion of its 14^th National Congress, the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) has intensified its strategic coordination with its Chinese counterpart with an exchange of special envoys between the two parties.

First, Liu Haixing, Minister of the International Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee (IDCPC), visited Vietnam as the Special Envoy of General Secretary Xi Jinping.

Liu met with To Lam, General Secretary of the CPV Central Committee, in Hanoi on January 30.

According to the website of the IDCPC, Liu delivered a congratulatory letter from General Secretary Xi Jinping to To Lam and conveyed Xi’s sincere greetings and best wishes to him. Liu said, China warmly congratulates Vietnam on the successful convening of the 14th National Congress of the CPV and Comrade To Lam on his re-election as General Secretary of the CPV. China is willing to work with Vietnam to earnestly implement the important consensus reached by the general secretaries of the two Parties, adhere to the six overarching goals of “stronger political mutual trust, more substantive security cooperation, deeper practical cooperation, more solid popular foundation, closer coordination and collaboration on multilateral affairs, and better management and resolution of differences”, firmly safeguard the security of governance, intensify high-level exchanges, enhance political mutual trust, expand common interests, jointly uphold international justice, and promote the continuous development of the China-Vietnam community with a shared future.

The Vietnam News Agency (VNA) added that, welcoming the special envoy, General Secretary Lam emphasised that the visit carries profound political significance, reflecting the high priority, deep respect, and sincere friendship of the Chinese party, state, and people towards their Vietnamese counterparts, as well as the long-standing solidarity and close bonds between the two Communist Parties.

He appreciated the very positive outcomes of the phone talks with General Secretary and President Xi immediately after the CPV’s 14th National Congress, which created a favourable starting point for relations between the two Parties and countries in the new term and Vietnam’s new development era.

Sharing with the special envoy the important outcomes of the 14th National Party Congress, the party chief underscored that its success marked a turning point and a particularly important milestone determining Vietnam’s future development in the new era. The congress not only reviewed the past five years and summed up 40 years of renewal, set goals and tasks for the next five years, but also shaped strategic mindset, vision, and long-term development orientations toward the mid-21st century. Vietnam will continue to play an active and responsible role in maintaining peace, stability, and development in the region and the world, he stressed.

On the same day, Liu Haixing held the first meeting of the mechanism for meetings between the Minister of the IDCPC and the Secretary of the Party Committee of Vietnam’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Le Hoai Trung, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPV, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.

The IDCPC reported Liu as saying that the two sides should walk hand in hand on the path of socialist modernisation and jointly create a brighter future for China and Vietnam, contributing positive energy to regional peace, stability, development and prosperity.

For his part, Le Hoai Trung thanked Special Envoy Liu Haixing for coming to Vietnam to extend congratulations. He said, Vietnam and China are like-minded partners on the socialist path. Vietnam always regards its relations with China as an objective requirement, strategic choice and top priority of its foreign policy. The development of bilateral relations is of great strategic significance to the socialist cause of the two countries. Under the new circumstances, Vietnam is willing to work with China to strengthen high-level exchanges between the two parties, deepen exchanges and mutual learning of experience in state governance and administration, expand exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and jointly build a Vietnam-China community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.

Xi Jinping holds same day conversations with Presidents Putin and Trump

In an unusual diplomatic coincidence, Chinese President Xi Jinping held separate conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump on February 4.

Xi Jinping first met with President Putin by videoconference.

The readout published by the Chinese Foreign Ministry said that President Xi extended sincere Spring Festival greetings to President Putin and the Russian people, and noted that today is the Beginning of Spring, one of the solar terms in the Chinese lunar calendar. It means the return of spring and signals a new start. He added that that over the past year, we met twice and steered China-Russia relations into a new stage of development. The two countries solemnly commemorated the 80th anniversary of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War, demonstrating a firm resolve to defend the victorious outcomes of WWII and international fairness and justice. The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Tianjin Summit and the 24th meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of Member States were successfully held in China and Russia respectively. The two sides have increased multilateral coordination and stayed committed to building a more just and equitable global governance system.

President Xi noted that the first few weeks of the year have witnessed increasing turbulence around the world. As responsible major countries and permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and Russia are duty-bound to pool global efforts to firmly uphold fairness and justice, firmly defend the victorious outcomes of WWII, firmly safeguard the UN-centred international system and the basic norms of international law, and jointly maintain global strategic stability.

President Putin said that over the past year, Russia and China jointly commemorated the 80th anniversary of the victory of WWII, firmly safeguarded world peace secured with great sacrifice by the people of both countries and defended historical truth. Cooperation between the two countries in areas such as trade, energy, science and technology, and agriculture has deepened and achieved tangible results. People-to-people exchanges have grown closer, the China-Russia Years of Culture concluded successfully, and mutual visa exemption has facilitated travel between the two peoples. Looking ahead to the new year, Russia has full confidence in the bilateral relationship.

For its part, the website of the President of Russia released the text of the opening remarks of both leaders.

President Putin said: “I would like to personally wish Happy New Year 2026 to you and through you to the entire friendly Chinese nation. Please also accept my greetings on the Spring Festival, which will signal the beginning of the Year of the Fire Horse. As far as we know, this horse stands out by its strength, energy and determination to move ahead. This is also what makes the relations between our two countries so special.”

He added: “I believe that we properly celebrated the 80th anniversary of victory in World War II in Moscow in May and in Beijing in September. The fact that we did this together has demonstrated to the world our solidarity and Russia and China’s readiness to uphold historical truth and carefully preserve the memory of the heroism of our countries’ people, who sacrificed tens of millions of lives to restore peace on the planet.”

Xi Jinping said, among other things: “I would like to thank you for sending Comrade (Sergei) Shoigu to Beijing recently for consultations with Comrade Wang Yi on international and regional issues in preparation for our meeting. He has briefed me on the content of their discussions.” [See below.]

The Russian Presidency also released a commentary on the conversation by Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov.

He also noted that: “Consultations were held on February 1 in Beijing between Secretary of the Russian Security Council Sergei Shoigu and Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, Minister of Foreign Affairs of China Wang Yi. The heads of state discussed the information received following these consultations,” and added:

“I would like to emphasise that Xi Jinping was the principal guest in Moscow at the Victory Day Parade on May 9, while Vladimir Putin was the principal guest at the commemorative events in Beijing on September 3. Both Russia and China intend to continue upholding historical truth and preserving the memory of the heroism of our fathers and grandfathers in those harsh years.”

Keir Starmer’s small-stick diplomacy

In the article below, published in the Morning Star on 4 February, Andrew Murray argues that Keir Starmer’s visit to China marks a rare moment of realism in British foreign policy after years of hopelessly counterproductive hostility shaped by the demands of Washington. Starmer’s pragmatism reflects an overdue recognition that rebuilding relations with China is in Britain’s material interest.

Andrew dismisses the loud and oft-repeated fears about Chinese spying and influence as hypocritical, noting Britain’s own intelligence operations and aggressive military posture in the Asia-Pacific alongside the US and its allies.

China is not parking aircraft carriers off our coast, nor entering into an Aukus-like bloc to help encircle Britain and drag it into an escalating arms race. Nor even did it hold the Isle of Wight as a colony for a century. And the considerable place it has secured in our markets was achieved without recourse to gunboats. Imagine!

The article underlines the importance of engagement in terms of the British government’s much-vaunted growth agenda: China has grown at roughly 7.5 per cent annually over the last decade, while Britain has stagnated at around 1.2 per cent.

Starmer’s willingness to proceed with the visit despite pressure from Donald Trump is praised, though Andrew notes Britain’s continued aggression in East Asia: “Britain continues to indulge in various military provocations in the Far East directed at China, alongside the US, Japan and Australia, all in service of the imperial vanity project ‘global Britain’”.

Ultimately, no major British constituency benefits from confrontation with China. The British government appears to be slowing getting to grips with this fact.

One cheer for Keir Starmer. The hapless Prime Minister has finally found a problem bequeathed by the Tories that he is addressing with some sense of purpose.

His visit to Beijing is the moment when the monkey at No 10, furiously pounding at the typewriter of governance for the last 19 months has finally produced, if not Shakespeare, at least a line or two of coherent prose.

Breaking the ice: Starmer’s pragmatic turn to China

In the following article, which was originally published by the Morning Star, Keith Bennett notes that the recent China visit by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer marked the end of a long diplomatic hiatus and produced tangible, if limited, economic results.

It had been nearly eight years since a British prime minister, Theresa May, had set foot in China. In contrast, French President Emmanuel Macron had made three visits, the most recent in last December, and the leader of Germany has also visited multiple times, with a further visit scheduled for this month.

Moreover, while travelling in the first month of the year, Starmer was already the third European head of government to visit China, being preceded by those of Ireland and Finland, and the second from the Anglophone “Five Eyes” intelligence-sharing alliance, being also preceded by his Canadian counterpart. Starmer was thus beating an already well-trodden path.

Among the results of Starmer’s visit were a Chinese pledge to unilaterally grant short-stay visa free entry to UK passport holders – a facility already enjoyed by the citizens of some 50 other countries, a halving of tariffs on whisky, and a decision by Chinese company Chery Commercial Vehicles (CCV) to open its European headquarters in Liverpool.

However, the visit predictably attracted opposition from reactionary quarters at home and abroad.

Asked what he thought of Starmer trying to forge closer business ties with China, US President Donald Trump, who himself plans to visit China in April, said: “Well, it’s very dangerous for them to do that.”

Negative reaction also came from Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch, the Liberal Democrats, Reform UK and the right-wing press. Keith opines that: “To face all this down may require not simply common sense and pragmatism but degrees of political skill and courage that the Prime Minister has yet to show signs of possessing.”

For his part, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said that China and Britain should continue to carry forward the “ice-breaking spirit” and tighten their bonds of cooperation. In so doing, he invoked China’s continued respect for the July 1953 “Icebreaker Mission” — the first business delegation of its kind from any Western nation following the founding of New China — that led to the formation of the 48 Group of British Traders with China, with its core values, inspired by premier Zhou Enlai, of equality and mutual benefit.

A version of the article was also published by China Today.

From Zimbabwe to Algeria: China-Africa solidarity, a living tradition

2026 marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and African nations as well as being the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges. In the history of relations between China and Africa, Zimbabwe in the south of the continent and Algeria in the north may both be considered to hold a special place, in that both countries’ protracted and heroic armed struggles for national liberation against settler colonial rule were strongly supported by China from their inception and the three countries have continued to advance hand-in-hand as a community of shared future.

On June 28, Chinese President Xi Jinping replied to a letter he received from a group of veterans of Zimbabwe’s national liberation war.

In his letter, Xi noted that in their youth, the veterans devoted themselves to the great cause of national liberation, left their homelands, and forged with China a profound friendship and comradeship in the struggle. To this day, they remain deeply committed to China-Zimbabwe and China-Africa friendship, which is deeply moving.

Stressing that 2026 marks the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and African nations as well as the China-Africa Year of People-to-People Exchanges, Xi wrote that over the past 70 years, China has always been a good comrade and partner in Africa’s quest for national liberation, development and rejuvenation and against imperialism and colonialism. He also expressed the hope that the veterans will inspire more African youth to devote themselves to the cause of China-Zimbabwe and China-Africa friendship.

The veterans recently wrote to Xi, expressing gratitude for China’s valuable support for Zimbabwe’s national liberation, admiration for his leadership of the Communist Party of China and the Chinese people in achieving remarkable accomplishments in the new era, and for forging a Chinese path to modernisation that offers valuable insights for other developing countries. They expressed pride in the all-weather Zimbabwe-China community with a shared future, pledging to dedicate themselves to carrying forward the friendship between the two countries.

A commentary carried by the Xinhua News Agency recalled that China has firmly supported Africa’s struggle against imperialism and colonialism and the continent’s cause of national liberation. During Zimbabwe’s national liberation struggle in the 1960s and 1970s, many fighters received training in China or from Chinese instructors in Africa, creating enduring stories in the history of the two countries’ relations.

Ahead of his state visit to Zimbabwe in 2015, Xi published a signed article in Zimbabwean media, recalling the profound and time-tested friendship between the two countries.

“During the national liberation struggle in Zimbabwe, the Chinese people steadfastly stood behind the Zimbabwean people as comrades in arms. I was touched to learn that many Zimbabwean freedom fighters who received training from the Chinese side both in China and at Nachingwea camp in Tanzania can still sing songs such as the ‘Three Rules of Discipline and the Eight Points for Attention’,” Xi wrote.

Roar, China! Langston Hughes in Shanghai

February is celebrated as Black History Month in a number of countries, including the United States and Canada, and February 1^st 2026 was the 125^th anniversary of the birth of Langston Hughes, the great African-American jazz poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist, who is widely considered to have been the key leader of the Harlem Renaissance in the 1930s.

Marking these anniversaries, the Historic Shanghai website, noting that the city “has a fascinating, hidden history of Black American poets, activists, and musicians” carried an article on the three months that Hughes spent there in the summer of 1933, during which he met with Soong Ching Ling, the widow of China’s first president Dr. Sun Yat-sen and later the Honorary President of the People’s Republic of China, as well as with the great revolutionary writer Lu Xun.

The article notes: “With barbed wire and guards separating the International Settlement and French Concession from the Chinese sections of Shanghai, and with American race laws (i.e. segregation) often applied in the International Settlement, the parallels between segregated Shanghai and segregated America were all too stark… As a Black American, Langston Hughes was not permitted to enter the Cathay Hotel or the Foreign YMCA, which he called the Whites’ YMCA.”

However, this was also “the era of Shanghai jazz, when Black Americans who had limited performing opportunities at home took their talent to the world, and Shanghai, said Hughes, ‘seemed to have a weakness for American Negro performers.’ There was the ‘sparkling’ Nora Holt at the Little Club, the radio singer Midge Williams, and Valaida Snow, who Louis Armstrong called the ‘second greatest trumpeter’ – after himself, of course!”