History shows it ain't that easy to win a trade war

China is used to bearing the brunt of Washington's beggar-thy-neighbor trade protection measures. But now, as the United States threatens to impose high tariffs on imported steel and aluminum products across the board, all its major trade partners will feel the pain, which would lead to a series of repercussions that will affect the US' own interest, disrupt the global trade order, and ultimately risk derailing the world economy.

Hopes for Korean Peninsula progress should be nourished

The "openhearted talk" between the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's top leader Kim Jong-un and envoys for the Republic of Korea's President Moon Jae-in in Pyongyang on Monday marks major progress in efforts to defuse the tensions on the Korean Peninsula after more than a year of verbal exchanges between Pyongyang and Washington threatening war.

More investment in R&D required to create new drivers for growth

IN THE GOVERNMENT WORK REPORT he delivered to the 13th National People's Congress in Beijing on Monday, Premier Li Keqiang said that the input into research and development has grown 11 percent on average annually over the past five years, making China the world's second-largest investor in innovation, and that science and technology's contribution rate to the country's economic growth has increased from 52.2 percent to 57.5 percent. Beijing News comments:

Law must better protect cultural relics

SPEAKING TO THE MEDIA in Beijing on Saturday at the start of the session of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, China's top political advisory body, Liu Yuzhu, head of the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, said the safety of cultural relics is the bottom line and red line for the administration. Guangzhou Daily comments:

Age ratings for cybergames are necessary

YU XINWEI, a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference National Committee, has proposed a classification system for cybergames. Thepaper.cn comments:

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Supervisory bodies to boost rule of law

The fact that Yang Xiaodu, deputy secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and minister of supervision, said on Monday that the planned national supervisory commission (NSC) will not be a powerful watchdog without restraints confirms the new supervisory body will be under the leadership of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, and responsible to and supervised by the National People's Congress now that it has been proposed to be written into the Constitution.

Developing a new landscape for opening-up

Forty years after the launch of reform and opening-up, China has reached a new stage of economic development, where it is making efforts to create a new landscape for further opening-up. In the Government Work Report delivered to the National People's Congress on Monday, Premier Li Keqiang said: "China will further expand the scope and raise the quality of its opening-up; the structure, layout, institutions, and mechanism for opening-up will be improved, and we will use high-standard opening-up to generate high-quality development."

US leaders must introspect before raising rhetoric on trade war

At a time when US President Donald Trump's plan to impose hefty tariffs on steel and aluminum imports from China and other economies is raising the specter of a trade war, it's important to caution against policymaking based on a "misjudgment" or "wrong perception".

Work Report signals further opening-up

As China marks the 40th anniversary of reform and opening-up this year, the ultimate driver of sweeping changes in the country's socioeconomic landscape since 1978, there has been no lack of discussion about whether the commitment to reform and opening-up remains as firm as it used to be. However, most of the talk has been based on subjective impressions, rather than objective analysis.

Defense budget hike is not out of the ordinary

China's defense budget has become a lightning rod for those keen to claim there is a threat from China, for whatever reason. This year has been no exception, with the announcement that China's defense budget is to grow by 8.1 percent prompting finger-pointing from the usual suspects.

5G an opportunity for China to take lead in next tech evolution

MORE THAN 2,300 telecommunication equipment manufacturers showcased their products at the world's largest gathering for the mobile industry, the Mobile World Congress held in Barcelona, from Feb 26 to March 1. Beijing Youth Daily comments: