China and Malaysia have agreed to build a high-level strategic China-Malaysia community with a shared future to accelerate their modernization efforts and jointly promote regional and global prosperity and stability.

The two countries made the announcement on Thursday in a joint statement released in the context of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Malaysia.

In the statement, China and Malaysia vowed to strengthen strategic coordination, deepen synergy of development, tighten people-to-people bonds, maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, strengthen regional cooperation, and conduct multilateral cooperation.

Malaysia reiterated its firm commitment to the one-China policy, recognizing the government of the People's Republic of China as the sole legal government of China, Taiwan is an inalienable territory of the People's Republic of China, and in order for China to achieve national reunification, will not support any call for the independence of Taiwan.

The two sides agreed to become a pacesetter for regional cooperation on new quality productive forces and further synergize development strategies.

Focusing on four key areas of digital economy, green economy, blue economy and tourism economy, the two sides pledged to expand future economic cooperation, promote integrated, coordinated and complementary development, achieve deep integration of industrial and supply chains, value chains, data chains and talent chains, so as to further improve the level and quality of China-Malaysia cooperation.

The two countries also agreed to jointly build a safe and stable industrial and supply chain and strengthen cooperation.

According to the statement, the Malaysian side welcomes Chinese enterprises to participate in the construction of Malaysia's 5G network. Both sides look forward to exploring potential cooperation in the semiconductor industrial chain to the extent practicable to maintain the stability of the industrial and supply chains.

The two countries reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening rail transportation and infrastructure cooperation and contributing to the realization of the Pan-Asian Railway vision.

China said it welcomes Malaysia to continue promoting Malaysian products and expanding exports to China through platforms such as the China International Import Expo, the Global Digital Trade Expo and the China-ASEAN Expo.

As a way to tighten people-to-people bonds between the two countries, the two sides agreed to continue to conduct joint research on panda protection and expect to achieve more progress in this field.

In a bid to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, the two countries agreed to resolve disputes by peaceful means, through friendly consultations and negotiations, said the statement, noting that both sides recognized that the involvement of parties not directly concerned could be counter-productive.

China will carry out intensive space missions, including Tianwen-2 for asteroid exploration, in 2025, an official of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) said on Thursday.

The Tianwen-2 mission will carry out asteroid flyby and sampling, and the Shenzhou-20 and Shenzhou-21 crewed spacecraft are also scheduled for launch this year, said Liu Yunfeng, deputy director of the CNSA's system engineering department, at a press conference on the upcoming Space Day of China.

In terms of international collaboration, Liu confirmed two major projects: the China-Europe joint space mission -- Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) -- which aims to uncover how solar wind interacts with Earth's magnetosphere, and an electromagnetic monitoring satellite jointly developed by China and Italy, which will support research into earthquake prediction.

China will deepen space cooperation with countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), BRICS nations, and European partners, Liu said. Efforts will focus on advancing collaboration in lunar and deep space exploration, including jointly promoting the construction of the international lunar research station, he added.

Within the BRICS framework, China will continue advancing the development of the BRICS Remote Sensing Satellite Constellation to enhance disaster emergency data sharing, Liu said.

China will also provide satellite services to BRI partner countries, supporting their space capacity development and fostering sustainable progress in agriculture, disaster prevention, and smart city initiatives, he added.

Liu also outlined the events planned for the 10th Space Day of China, to be held on April 24 in Shanghai, which include the opening ceremony, space science exhibitions, cultural forums, and academic conferences.

In response to a media inquiry regarding the Iranian Foreign Ministry announcement that from April 7 to 8, China, Russia and Iran will have trilateral consultations on the Iranian nuclear issue in Moscow, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Tuesday, "Let me reiterate that China firmly believes that the only right choice for settling the issue is through political and diplomatic means."

We support Russia in hosting this trilateral expert-level consultation, which will further promote the political and diplomatic settlement of the Iranian nuclear issue, Lin told the regular press conference on Tuesday.

According to update by Russia's TASS gency on Tuesday night, the three countries are currently engaged in consultations in Moscow to consider possible scenarios following the expiration of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which formally governs Iran's nuclear program, as well as UN Security Council Resolution 2231, which approved the plan.

"Various options and scenarios are being considered regarding what will occur after the current Security Council resolution expires on October 18 of this year," Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko has told the media.

According to TASS, he added that the sides will be closely watching what "will happen to the nuclear deal next in the face of the US' current attempts at forceful resolution of the issue."

China will continue to have communication and coordination with relevant parties, and facilitate the settlement to the Iranian nuclear issue that accommodates all parties' legitimate concerns so as to uphold the international non-proliferation regime and keep the Middle East peaceful and stable, said the spokesperson.

In response to an earlier question at the press conference on Tuesday regarding reports that the US and Iran have announced talks over the nature of Iran's nuclear program, Lin said that China noted relevant reports. "China all along believes that the only right choice for settling the issue is through political and diplomatic means."

Against the current backdrop, it's all the more important for parties to the Iranian nuclear issue to work in the same direction, strengthen dialogue and engagement, and avoid any escalation, Lin commented. 

In 2015, Iran, along with Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia, and the US, signed the JCPOA, which aimed to resolve a crisis that began in 2002 due to Western accusations of Tehran developing nuclear weapons. However, in 2018, US President Donald Trump announced the withdrawal from the JCPOA and reinstated all US sanctions against Iran.

As the country which unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA and caused the current situation, the US needs to show political sincerity, act in the spirit of mutual respect, engage in dialogue and consultation, and stop the threat of force and maximum pressure, Lin noted.

China's National Astronomical Observatories (NAOC) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) on Wednesday announced a major scientific breakthrough in the study of dark energy, one of the greatest unsolved mysteries in modern physics.

The achievement offers a new perspective and key evidence for understanding the physical mechanisms behind the accelerating expansion of the universe, and suggests the possible existence of new physics beyond the standard cosmological model, according to Chinese researchers participating in the program.

According to NAOC, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI) is one of the world's leading dark energy observation programs, involving more than 70 research institutions in a global collaboration. Based on a 4-meter optical telescope, DESI conducts high-precision redshift measurements of tens of millions of celestial objects, creating a detailed 3D map of the large-scale structure of the universe to probe the physical properties of dark energy.

Researchers from NAOC, including teams led by Zhao Gongbo and Zou Hu, have participated in the DESI project for more than a decade. 

Zhao's team has led efforts to systematically study the properties of dark energy using proprietary analytical methods, while Zou's team has played a key role in the scientific operations of DESI, contributing enriched star catalogs that have facilitated new scientific discoveries, per the NAOC. 

Dark energy remains one of the most challenging topics in modern astronomy and cosmology. Since the discovery of the universe's accelerating expansion in the late 1990s, scientists have recognized that conventional theories of gravity and ordinary matter cannot account for this phenomenon. A mysterious, unknown component of the cosmos - dark energy - must be driving the acceleration. Yet, its true nature remains one of the greatest unsolved mysteries in modern physics.

In the standard cosmological model (ΛCDM), dark energy is typically regarded as a constant vacuum energy. Over the past two decades, this model has successfully explained a wide range of observational data and has been widely regarded as the simplest and most effective theoretical framework. However, as observational technologies and data precision have improved, inconsistencies have emerged between different types of observations within the ΛCDM framework. These tensions pose new challenges to the model and leave room for deeper exploration of dark energy and potential new physics.

Dark energy research led by Zhao's team within the DESI international collaboration has recently achieved a significant breakthrough in the study of dark energy's dynamic properties. Using a newly developed method and analyzing the latest DESI cosmological distance data - combined with observations of supernovae and the cosmic microwave background - the team found evidence that the dark energy equation of state evolves over time. 

The result confirms previous findings by the DESI collaboration using alternative analytical approaches and suggests that dark energy likely exhibits dynamical behavior, the Chinese researchers explained to the Global Times on Wednesday. And such result challenges the traditional cosmological constant model and implies that dark energy may not be static vacuum energy, but rather a component with more complex evolution, they further elaborated.

"In this study, we developed a new method for reconstructing dark energy and applied it to the latest DESI measurements, cross-validating results with data from supernovae and the cosmic microwave background. This multi-probe approach significantly enhanced the reliability of our analysis and conclusions," Zhao told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The study not only opens a new direction in uncovering the fundamental nature of dark energy but also provides vital clues for building a more comprehensive cosmological theory, he added. 

It also injects new momentum into upcoming large-scale projects including the full DESI survey, Subaru's Prime Focus Spectrograph (PFS), the European Space Agency (ESA)'s Euclid mission, and next-generation cosmic microwave background experiments, according to Zhao. 

Zhao said that his team will continue to analyze future DESI data with greater precision and collaborate with international peers to conduct more rigorous and comprehensive tests on the dynamic nature of dark energy through high-precision measurements and improved theoretical models. 

NAOC also pledged to deepen cooperation with major international astronomical institutions, promote the application of emerging technologies such as big data and deep learning in astronomical research and accelerate the development of next-generation observation platforms and core instruments - further enhancing China's global influence in fundamental cosmological research.

Humanity shares the same sky, which makes international collaboration particularly important for astronomical research, Chang Jin, a Chinese astronomer and the current president of the University of Science and Technology of China, commented on Wednesday. 

NAOC places great emphasis on international cooperation in observations. For many years, Zhao's team has participated in the DESI project, using its data to study dark energy. This not only showcases the strength of Chinese scientists, but also enables young Chinese astronomers to take part in large-scale international projects - gaining valuable experience and developing their expertise in the process, said Chang, who is also an academician of the CAS.

Commenting on the new findings led by researchers from the NAOC on Wednesday, Dragan Huterer, a professor of physics at the University of Michigan, said that he found the new findings as an important stepping stone in our understanding of dark energy. "I congratulate these researchers, for really a very, very interesting paper. And I can't wait to see what new results come from the DESI instrument."

The NAOC also pledged to strengthen partnerships with leading global astronomical institutions, actively promote the application of emerging technologies like big data and deep learning in astronomical research, and accelerate the development of next-generation observational platforms and core instruments.

DESI is an international project with more than 900 researchers from over 70 institutions around the world and is managed by the US Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab).

DESI is supported by the DOE Office of Science and by the National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center, a DOE Office of Science national user facility. Additional support for DESI is provided by the U.S. National Science Foundation; the Science and Technology Facilities Council of the United Kingdom; the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation; the Heising-Simons Foundation; the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA); the National Council of Humanities, Sciences, and Technologies of Mexico; the Ministry of Science and Innovation of Spain; and by the DESI member institutions.

The DESI collaboration is honored to be permitted to conduct scientific research on I'oligam Du'ag (Kitt Peak), a mountain with particular significance to the Tohono O'odham Nation.

China's blockbuster animated sequel "Ne Zha 2" has garnered an astonishing 15.5 billion yuan (about 2.16 billion U.S. dollars) globally, including presales, as of Thursday, per ticketing platform Maoyan's data.

Hitting theaters on Jan. 29 during the Chinese New Year, the Enlight Pictures production is currently the fifth highest-grossing film of all time globally, just behind James Cameron's 1997 epic "Titanic" at nearly 2.27 billion dollars.

It has shattered multiple records: It's the first film ever to cross the 1 billion U.S. dollar mark in a single market, the first non-Hollywood title to join the billion-dollar club, and the highest-grossing animated movie of all time worldwide.

Directed by Yang Yu, known as Jiaozi, the fantasy epic delves deeper into Chinese mythology, following the rebellious boy god Nezha and his ally Aobing as they battle to reconstruct their physical forms. With the help of the immortal Taiyi Zhenren, they navigate a journey of self-discovery, fate and defiance. 

Q: It is reported that a Chinese research vessel passed  the south of the Australian coast in recent days. Some Australian media claimed that the vessel following the underwater cables is a so-called "spy ship" and can be used for dual purposes. What is your response and what are the objectives of the vessel? Why is it on the south of the Australian coast? Is China worried about its consequences for the upcoming Australian federal election?

A: We have noted relevant reports and maintained close communication with the Australia side through diplomatic channels on this issue. The reports covered by some Australian media outlets are nothing but smearing the research activities of the Chinese vessel. We are strongly against that and hereby would like to elaborate three points as follows.

First and foremost, the recent activities are parts of routine scientific research of the Chinese vessel. As science knows no borders, over recent years China has conducted joint scientific expeditions with multiple countries, making positive contribution to global marine biodiversity protection and sustainable development. Politicizing or stigmatizing of the research activities is disrespectful to global scientific development.

Secondly, the route of the Chinese vessel was set accordance with the international waterway and taken into consideration of the coastal weather forecast. The vessel has all along carried out normal activities at sea and has performed no operation in the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), which fully comply with the international laws, including UNCLOS.

Thirdly, these activities are not directed at any third party and have nothing to do with China-Australia relations, let alone the Australian federal election. The Australian federal election is Australia's internal affairs. China always upholds the principle of non-interference in other countries' internal affairs, and does not want to participate in, interfere with, or comment on Australia's election. China and Australia are comprehensive strategic partners, and deepening friendly cooperation serves the common interests of our two countries and peoples. China is willing to join hands with Australia and develop our bilateral relations from a strategic height and long-term perspective, deepen political trust and mutually beneficial cooperation, so as to achieve common development.

We hope that relevant Australian media outlets cover China in a comprehensive, objective and faithful manner, stop the groundless suspicion and speculations, and provide sound atmosphere for bilateral relations.