Staple foods in iron pot stews styled to resemble plush toys have become a new social media buzz in Shanghai, with many netizens praising its appeal. 

The most recent week, according to figures provided by e-commerce platform Meituan.com, the search volume of this form of cuisine rose over 970 percent week-on-week.

In Northeast China, iron pot stew is a popular dish for social gatherings. The staple foods are typically corn cakes and steamed buns, stewed together in the iron pot. 

Many shops are now fashioning the staple food into plush toy designs with decorative eyes and mouths, resembling the British brand Jellycat, a favorite soft toy in China.

The number of restaurants that have listed “steamed buns styled like plush toys” on Meituan.com doubled in two months.

During the 75th International Astronautical Congress (IAC) held in October 2024 in Milan, Italy, a remarkable exhibit of "extraterrestrial material" caught the eyes of international attendees - a grayish, seemingly unattractive piece of dirt, yet it marked the first global display of the first sample collected from the far side of the moon.

Guests gathered around the display case, some leaning in for a closer look and others taking photos to commemorate the moment when they were finally able to see the true appearance of lunar regolith.

This remarkable feat was accomplished by China's Chang'e-6 mission in June 2024, showcasing the country's steadily advancing aerospace capabilities that earned international recognition. Yet, this is just one of many significant accomplishments China's space sector has delivered this year.

In 2024, driven by the "dual engine" of its "national team" and the booming commercial space sector, China has excelled in the number of rocket launches, satellite networking, technological innovation, commercial space development and international cooperation, Tan Yonghua, a senior expert of China's Academy of Aerospace Liquid Propulsion Technology, told the Global Times.

On December 18, the Chinese Academy of Engineering released the "Global Engineering Frontiers 2024" report. Among them, the Chang'e-6 mission and China's progress in its low Earth orbit communication satellite constellation were selected as two of the "Top Ten Global Engineering Achievements in 2024" in the aerospace field.

Embracing the future, Tan highlighted the potential of deeper collaboration between the state and private sector, citing the recent adoption of a cargo spacecraft design that was for the first time selected from non-traditional state aerospace entities. "This innovative competitive mechanism not only opens a new chapter in China's aerospace history but also lays the foundation for future low-cost space exploration. At the same time, fully leveraging the potential of private aerospace and integrating it with national capabilities will inject more vitality into China's aerospace endeavors," Tan said.

Highlights of the year

Since the Tiangong Space Station entered its normalized application and operation phase, it welcomed four missions in 2024 - two crewed missions and two cargo supplies - while seeing two crew rotations of some of the youngest faces of the post-90s generation, one of them being China's first female spaceflight engineer.

Most recently, Cai Xuzhe and Song Lingdong, part of the three-person Shenzhou-19 crew, spent more than nine hours spacewalking outside Tiangong on Tuesday, proudly leaving their names in human spaceflight history as they broke the previous duration record for a single extravehicular activity, which was set by NASA astronauts in March 2001, according to a report by space.com.

As for moon exploration and related works, apart from the globally acclaimed Chang'e-6 mission, studies related to Chang'e-5 also saw new advances and breakthroughs in 2024, including the discovery of the sixth new lunar mineral, named Changesite-(Y), which makes China the third country in the world to have identified a new mineral on the lunar surface, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

In the advancement of new rockets, China in December witnessed the maiden flight of the Long March-12, China's most powerful single-core rocket to date. It has potential for reusability and can effectively enhance China's capability to place satellites into sun-synchronous orbits and improve the networking capabilities of low Earth orbit constellations, Kang Guohua, a senior member of the Chinese Society of Astronautics and a professor of Aerospace Engineering at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics, told the Global Times.

In 2024, China actively carried out international cooperation. Dedicated to building an open and shared scientific platform for joint construction, the International Lunar Research Station initiated by China further expanded its "friend circle," so far attracting more than 10 countries and over 40 international institutions to sign cooperation agreements.

A more vibrant commercial space sector

During this year's "Double-11" shopping spree, two tickets for commercial space tourism scheduled for 2027 sold rapidly during a livestream event on China's e-commerce giant Taobao at the end of October. With a price of 1 million yuan ($137 thousand) each, the suborbital manned spacecraft will be launched with reusable carrier rocket Nebula-1 to be developed by private space firm Deep Blue Aerospace.

The event triggered intense discussions across Chinese social media platforms, reflecting an ever-strong passion and expectation that people hold toward the development of the country's commercial space industry.

With the inauguration of the Hainan commercial space launch site, China's first of its kind, the "last piece of the commercial space puzzle" has finally come together - the five essential elements, namely satellite manufacturing, launch services, satellite measurement, satellite utilization and launch facilities, Kang said.

Meanwhile, China's low Earth orbit (LEO) satellite internet constellation was officially unveiled with the Qianfan project taking the lead. Independently developed by Shanghai-based company Spacesail, it aims to establish a network of over 15,000 LEO wide-screen multimedia satellites to provide broadband communication and internet access services, the company said.

On December 5, 2024, the third batch of Qianfan constellation networking satellites was sent into orbit. With a single launch comprising 18 satellites, the total number of the "Chinese version of Starlink" has reached 54 satellites.

Moreover, the technology for reusable rockets continues to advance, as several commercial space companies have successfully completed rocket recovery tests.

However, highlights exist side by side with lessons learned. In July, Tianlong-3, also known as the Chinese "Falcon 9 equivalent," accidentally detached from its launch pad during its static fire test due to structural failure, resulting in an unintended launch. It landed in a hilly area in Central China's Henan Province and caused a fire, Xinhua reported.

"The incident serves as a wake-up call for commercial aerospace, prompting the industry to strengthen the formulation and implementation of regulations and standards," Tan told the Global Times.

Aiming for the moon, Mars, and farther

The China Manned Space Agency in October announced the 2030 target for China's grand lunar crewed landing. In order to achieve this goal, China's crewed lunar rover entered the initial prototype R&D stage in November this year. Other relevant work for the manned lunar landing is progressing smoothly, with the Long March-10 carrier rocket, the Mengzhou manned spacecraft, the Lanyue lunar lander and the lunar landing spacesuit all in the initial sample production and ground testing phases as planned.

Apart from putting humans on the moon, China is planning to build the International Lunar Research Station by around 2035, according to the China National Space Administration. Two missions are expected to lay the groundwork, with the Chang'e-7 mission scheduled in 2026 and the Chang'e-8 mission around 2028.

Not only will there be wireless networks and energy on the moon, but growing vegetables may become feasible, scientists said. With simulated lunar soil bricks sent to space for verification, the development team disclosed that they are considering shaping the base into an egg-shaped habitat on the Earth's neighbor, the Global Times has learned.

Next year, China plans to send a probe to a near-Earth asteroid to retrieve samples as part of the Tianwen-2 mission, with the aim of revealing the formation and evolution process of asteroids and the early history of the solar system.

The Tianwen-3 mission is expected to launch around 2030 to collect Martian samples to study the planet's environment. For the Tianwen-4 mission also scheduled for 2030, China eyes exploring the Jovian system to study the evolutionary history of Jupiter and its moons, and unravel the mysteries of Jupiter's space environment and internal structure, Xinhua reported.

Two travelers concealing luxury goods and jewelry in their luggage, carrying a yellow paper with the words "Customs all blind talisman" in the hope of evading customs inspection, were recently seized by customs officers in Hangzhou, East China's Zhejiang Province, China's General Administration of Customs reported.

Customs officers at Hangzhou International Airport recorded anomalies in the baggage screening images of the two travelers who chose the green channel to enter the country.

Officers then found an excessive amount of luxury handbags, scarves and clothing in the luggage. Several pieces of jewelry were concealed on their pants pockets.

The two travelers admitted that all items were branded goods, which were purchased abroad and would be resold at a profit in China. 

They posed as strangers and used separate packages, and created a yellow paper writing "Customs all blind talisman," with the words "frequent sales and safe clearance," in hopes of earning more money and avoiding detection.

China is where the certainty lies in an uncertain world and China's stability is the anchor of stability for the world; the better China develops and the stronger it becomes, the more stable the world will be, Jin Canrong, professor of school of international studies at Renmin University of China, said at the Global Times Annual Conference 2025, themed "Moving forward in Partnership: Resonance of Values between China and the World," which was held in Beijing on Saturday. 

Jin said in the last month of 2024, many events have occurred around the world, including the six-hour martial law farce in South Korea on December 3; on the evening of December 4, the French government collapsed; and on December 8, the Bashar al-Assad's government in Syria fell. "In the face of such chaos, the changes unseen in a century have entered a deep-water zone," said Jin.

China is where the certainty lies in an uncertain world, serving as the stabilizing force for the globe. The better China develops and the stronger it becomes, the more stable the world will be; China's stability is a contribution to the world, said the expert.  

"The key right now is for China to focus on its own affairs, with economic development being the most crucial aspect. We can see that the annual Central Economic Work Conference has set the tone for next year's economy and introduced a series of new measures to provide momentum for the sustained recovery and improvement of the economy," according to Jin. 

In the Macao-Hengqin Youth Entrepreneurship Valley, a space where many young entrepreneurs from Macao chase their dreams, the aroma of coffee mingles with the smell of rain-kissed grass.

From Lei Zhen's office at Nanometals Technology, the view stretches from Hengqin's landmarks to Macao's glittering skyline. Lei founded Nanometals in Zhuhai, south China's Guangdong Province, in 2014, focusing on innovative applications of new materials, with nano silver wire as the core product.

Hengqin, located just across the river from Macao, is home to the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone, which was established in 2021 by the Chinese central government to foster closer integration between the two regions. The zone has become a hub for innovation and entrepreneurship, hosting nearly 6,500 Macao-invested enterprises and providing a platform for new industries.

In 2018, Lei's project won global acclaim, taking first place in a prestigious startup contest. Three years later, Nanometals relocated to Hengqin, seizing opportunities in the cooperation zone.

"Moving our headquarters to Hengqin made connecting with Macao much easier and significantly improved our operational efficiency," Lei said. With support from the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area's manufacturing ecosystem, his company scaled up the production of flexible touch-screen materials -- breaking foreign monopolies in this field.

Macao will soon mark the 25th anniversary of its return to the motherland. Since its return, the central government's strong support, coupled with active integration into the Chinese mainland, has transformed Macao into a modern, international metropolis, achieving remarkable progress in both economic development and people's livelihoods.

In tandem with this transformation, Macao has deepened its exchanges and cooperation with the mainland, becoming an integral part of China's broader development agenda and contributing to the cause of Chinese modernization.

Just over two months ago, the Macao Bridge, a new eight-lane bridge connecting the Macao Peninsula to Taipa, officially opened to traffic. This is the fourth cross-sea bridge to connect the two districts and it has greatly improved the flow of people and goods, enhancing the region's economic vitality.

Before its return to China, Macao's infrastructure was relatively underdeveloped. However, iconic city landmarks such as light rail systems and cross-sea bridges have since become symbols of its modernization. In 1999, Macao's GDP stood at MOP 51.9 billion (about 6.23 billion U.S. dollars). By 2023, it had skyrocketed to nearly MOP 379.5 billion. Meanwhile, by the end of last year, the total savings of Macao residents had surpassed MOP 700 billion -- an eightfold increase compared to 1999. Over the past 25 years, Macao has become one of Asia's wealthiest cities.

While its economy has grown steadily, Macao has also gradually diversified its industries, moving beyond its reliance on the casino sector. With the central government's support, Macao has embraced a more diversified, balanced and sustainable economic structure.

"During the past 25 years, Macao has made remarkable strides under the 'one country, two systems' framework," said Ho Iat Seng, chief executive of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR), noting that the proportion of key industries contributing to economic diversification has steadily increased -- making the economy more resilient and diversified.

Notably, Macao's tourism sector has played a considerable role in its economic transformation. With its rich blend of Chinese and Western cultures, a diverse culinary scene, and unique architectural styles, tourism has become a vital part of Macao's economic diversification. The SAR government has been working to showcase Macao's appeal, attracting tourists from around the world to experience the city's significant cultural heritage.

In 1999, Macao received only 7 million visitors. By Dec. 7, 2024, the annual visitor number had surged to 32.5 million. Macao is now one of the cities with the highest concentration of UNESCO World Heritage Sites globally and is working to establish itself as a world tourism and leisure center. According to a survey by China Tourism Academy, Macao was ranked as the most satisfactory outbound destination for mainland tourists in the first quarter of 2024.

The city has also witnessed a boom in its entertainment industry over the years, with many performance events being held including large-scale concerts.

"Whether in terms of cultural events or infrastructure, Macao is an ideal venue for shows," said Macao tenor Liu Naiqi. "Now, many mainland and overseas tourists come to Macao specifically to attend concerts."

In 2023, cultural and artistic events attracted nearly 20 million participants, with large-scale concerts drawing around 1 million attendees and generating approximately MOP 1.1 billion in box office sales. Non-gaming sectors now contribute to more than 60 percent of Macao's GDP, a steady increase from previous years.

"Macao's efforts to accelerate the diversification of its economy not only strengthen its economic power and competitiveness but also enable it to play a more significant role in supporting the national strategy and the country's high-level opening up to the outside world," said Ip Kuai Peng, vice rector of City University of Macao.

Macao's participation in Greater Bay Area development and its active contribution to the Belt and Road Initiative have provided new opportunities for the city's growth. To further integrate into national development, Macao has established a Working Committee for Integrating into National Development, which promotes deeper economic, cultural and social cooperation with the mainland.

Macao is also collaborating with Hong Kong and the mainland to develop "one trip, multiple destinations" premium tourism routes, promoting business cooperation with Portuguese-speaking countries, and fostering cultural exchanges with nations around the world.

For many Macao residents, integrating their personal development with national growth has become a common goal. Huang Yin, founder of Macao-based Trendyi Health Technology, recalled how aligning her business objectives with China's national development plan had prompted her to expand the business to Hengqin.

"We've built a bridge to connect Macao with excellent pharmaceutical resources from the mainland. Using Macao's platform for trade between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, we're promoting traditional Chinese medicine and culture to Portuguese-speaking countries," Huang said, noting that her business has rapidly grown by seizing such opportunities.

Macao has become an ideal place for entrepreneurs -- via its open business environment and the unprecedented opportunities provided by the Guangdong-Macao In-depth Cooperation Zone.

Cheong Chok Man, director of the Policy Research and Regional Development Bureau under the Macao SAR government, highlighted that the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee had outlined plans to deepen cooperation within the Greater Bay Area and strengthen rules and mechanisms for greater synergy. "We believe that Macao's cooperation with other cities in the Greater Bay Area will become even closer, and its integration with the region will deepen," Cheong said.

Luo Weijian, a law professor at University of Macao, emphasized that the development of the Greater Bay Area provides a platform for all cities to leverage their strengths. "For Macao, it's crucial to further capitalize on the advantages of 'one country, two systems' to better serve national modernization and regional cooperation," he said.

According to Sputnik News on Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin congratulated Chinese manufacturers on their remarkable achievements in the automotive industry at the 15th VTB “Russia Calling!” investment forum. Some Russian people and Chinese businesspeople told the Global Times that Chinese products have achieved both strong sales and a good reputation in Russia.

The Sputnik News wrote a report on Thursday titled "President Putin talks about the popularity of Chinese cars in Russia: Chinese products have become higher quality".

A study by Yandex Market, the e-commerce platform of Russia's largest search engine, shows that about 70 percent of Russian customers are willing to purchase products from China, according to a Russian financial media outlet on November 29, 2024.

According to the study participants, high-quality products from China include electronics and appliances, clothing and footwear, as well as household items. Some emphasized the quality of Chinese automobiles.

A recent survey by RIA Novosti also shows that Russians' impressions of Chinese products are increasingly positive.

“I still remember when I first came to Moscow to expand the Russian market, local people didn’t like Chinese products. I used to stand on the street in the cold, introducing our products to people one by one,” a Chinese clothing vendor surnamed Chen told Global Times.

“At that time, they thought Chinese products were of poor quality and lacked novelty,” Chen added.

This view was echoed by Kolosovskii Ian, a Russian student currently studying at Shandong University. He said that in the past, his family wouldn’t consider buying Chinese products, but now, "I think if you ask a Russian person about this, they might even forget that the furniture in their home is made in China, or that the clothes they’re wearing are also from China. Chinese products have become a part of daily life for Russians."

A similar sentiment is shared by Hou Jinlong, Executive Vice President of China’s Hebei Chamber of Commerce in Russia. He told Global Times: "A few years ago, we actively invited some domestic companies to participate in trade fairs in Russia, but we almost hit a wall everywhere. People were not confident in their products and thought it was difficult to break the stereotypes Russians had about Chinese goods, so they were unwilling to come."

Now, things are completely different. He said, "The Russian market has responded very well to Chinese products, and more people are willing to do business here. The most obvious sign of this change is that in recent years, the number of our members has been continuously increasing, with members covering various fields such as automobiles, auto parts, hardware, clothing, and household goods."

“From the initial lack of attention at trade fairs to now, some products no longer need promotion and are already sold out online,” he said with a smile.

In recent years, economic and trade relations between the BRICS countries have become increasingly close. Among them, e-commerce trade between China and Russia has developed rapidly and become an important area of economic cooperation between the two countries, according to CCTV. 

Russian industry experts said that by 2027, e-commerce trade between China and Russia could increase sixfold, reaching $12 billion, making it one of the fastest-growing sectors in the BRICS countries. Through e-commerce platforms, the distinctive products of both countries are easily accessible, and businesses in both countries are embracing new opportunities.

“In Russia, there are also e-commerce platforms for trade, similar to Taobao, and they are now very popular. Most of the products on these platforms are from China,” Kolosovskii said.

A few months ago, Chinese cars also started to be sold in the Russian market through e-commerce platforms, and their sales have been steadily increasing, CCTV reported.

Shakhnoza Azimova, a PhD student at the Institute of Scientific Information on Social Sciences of the Russian Academy of Sciences, told Global Times that she recently bought a Chinese car.

"My choice of a Chinese brand is related to the fact that it is the newest brand compared with European brands in the Russian market," she said. "The appearance of the car is also attractive, which is one of the preferences of women. Compared to other brands, Chinese cars are both innovative and price-competitive."

Creativity has become a new "tag" for Chinese products.

Veronika Manakova, a second-year student at MGIMO University (Moscow State Institute of International Relations), told Global Times, "What I find most crucial is the fact that Chinese sellers are more creative and tend to come up with extraordinary solutions even for basic products, such as bright outfits, cute accessories, and stationery goods."

“It wouldn’t be erroneous to mention that my impression of Chinese products has improved incredibly and now I regard buying these goods as the most sagacious option in many cases,” she said.

Shakhnoza mentioned that when purchasing her car, the sales staff provided her with very detailed information about it, from manufacturing to delivery. Chinese companies have been continuously improving in terms of service, she added.

Veronika also said, "Purchasing Chinese goods was once challenging, but companies have now improved product variety, quality, and delivery systems. As a result, Chinese products have become popular in Russia, with some sectors even leading the market due to their affordable prices and good quality."

Kolosovskii, who uses a Vivo phone, summarized Chinese products as being affordable, of good quality, and having modern design. He said that his whole family in Russia uses Chinese brand phones and computers. Recently, his father has also decided to buy a Chinese brand electric vehicle.

"Now, Chinese goods are the leaders of the market in Russia. I hope and am confident that Chinese products will soon prove their reliability in various categories and become indispensable," Shakhnoza said with certainty.

In response to a question regarding to Venezuelan Vice President Delcy Rodríguez arrived in Beijing on Wednesday and plans to meet with several Chinese officials, the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian responded on Thursday that China welcomes Rodríguez's visit and looks forward to advancing the important consensus reached by head of state of both countries through this visit. 

China and Venezuela are all-weather strategic partners. In September, 2023, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made a state visit to China, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping and President Maduro held fruitful talks, providing direction for the development of China-Venezuela relations, Lin said on Thursday at a regular press briefing.

It is hoped Rodríguez's visit will carry on the traditional friendship between China and Venezuela, deepen practical cooperation across various fields, and inject new momentum into the China-Venezuela all-weather strategic partnership, better benefiting the peoples of both countries, Lin noted.

"We will release information about the visit at the appropriate time," Lin said.

The US military has recently announced its support for Philippine operations in the South China Sea through task force Ayungin, named after the Philippine term for China's Ren'ai Jiao (also known as Ren'ai Reef). This initiative, according to Manila, will involve collaboration in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance efforts. What additional, lesser-known details exist about this task force? Why was its launch timed during such a sensitive period? To what extent can it bolster the Philippines' provocations in the South China Sea? The Global Times conducted interviews with a Chinese expert who has engaged with high-level sources in the Philippines, as well as a former deputy national security advisor of the Philippines, to uncover deeper insights on the task force.

The announcement represents the latest example of the US "fanning the flames" in the South China Sea. It also underscores the current Philippine government's dedication to strengthening its strategic partnership with the US, according to Ding Duo, a deputy director at the Institute of Maritime Law and Policy at the China Institute for South China Sea Studies, who recently concluded a visit to the Philippines, where he engaged with local sources familiar with the matter.

"The US task force will only hinder the peaceful resolution of disputes that require direct dialogue, consultations, and negotiations between the Philippines and China," stated Rommel C. Banlaoi, Chairman of the Philippine Institute for Peace, Violence, and Terrorism Research, in an interview with the Global Times on Monday.

As the former director of the Center for Intelligence and National Security Studies in the Philippines, Banlaoi previously told the Global Times that he is dismayed by the current government's decision to increase American military presence, which he believes undermines the balance in the Philippines' relationship with China and promotes a markedly pro-Americanism in foreign policy.

He pointed out that the Marcos administration is complicating efforts to improve Philippines-China relations and that these unilateral actions are counterproductive to peacefully resolving disputes with China.

What is the US task force?

According to Ding, local sources revealed the concept of the US task force began to take shape in July 2024.

The idea for forming the US task force emerged after the direct serious clash between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea on June 17 when a Philippine supply boat ignored warnings from the Chinese side and charged into waters off China's Ren'ai Jiao.

The US brought out the idea of founding a task force to the Philippines following the incident, which was then accepted by the Philippine side.

Ding deems that the formation of the US task force likely stemmed from concerns over the July 21 agreement between China and the Philippines regarding maritime disputes following the clash. The temporary agreement established arrangements for humanitarian supplies of essential goods for the Philippine warship stranded at the Ren'ai Jiao. Both parties agree to jointly manage maritime disputes and promote the easing of tensions in the South China Sea.

The US task force was established around the same time as the temporary agreement, suggesting that the US is concerned the agreement may hinder its strategic goals in the South China Sea, according to the expert.

The task force comprises approximately 15 US military personnel stationed on Palawan Island in the Philippines, who regularly engage in training exercises with the Western Command (WesCom) under the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP). These exercises primarily focus on providing personnel rotation and logistical support to the Philippine military vessel that is illegally stranded at China's Renai Jiao, Ding revealed to the Global Times.

Following US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's high-profile introduction of the US task force, both military and political officials from the US and the Philippines released statements. US embassy spokesperson Kanishka Gangopadhyay stated, "Task Force Ayungin enhances US-Philippine alliance coordination and interoperability, enabling US forces to support the Armed Forces of the Philippines in the South China Sea," according to Reuters.

Philippines National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano, however, stressed that the US task force Ayungin "will not directly participate in missions in the West Philippine Sea [South China Sea]," as reported by Filipino GMA.

Ding revealed that specific tasks provided by the US task force include improving the coordination capabilities of both manned and unmanned military equipment and providing personnel training to the Philippines. The instructors for the so-called "small vessel defensive tactics course," conducted by the US military for the Philippines in October of this year, were selected from this task force, Ding said.

The Philippine media Inquirer reported that Philippine coast guardsmen (PCG) trained with US special forces over nearly three weeks in Palawan on how to respond to "noncompliant vessels" as part of the course.

Banlaoi said that the US established the US task force to support Philippine forces not only in rotation and reprovisioning missions, but also in protecting Philippine presence in Ayungin Shoal (Ren'ai Jiao). "The US provides operational training, intelligence information sharing and threat assessment of situation around the shoal, almost the same kind of support that the US has provided the Philippines during the siege of Marawi in 2017 and the Global War on Terrorism from 2001-2010 through the Joint Special Operations Task Force - Philippines."

Ding further noted that the unmanned equipment currently provided by the US task force to the Philippines includes at least four unmanned surface vessels MANTAS T-12 and at least one T-38 Devil Ray, both of which are from Australian company Maritime Tactical Systems (MARTAC) USA Division.

According to a piece on an online news platform Straight Arrow News, Devil Rays can be used as a mother ship of sorts to help relay signals to the T-12s. They can also be used as a weapons platform.

How much can it support Manila?

The maritime situational awareness capabilities of the Philippines remain relatively underdeveloped, a longstanding concern held by the Philippine military. An article from the US think tank Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative in December 2023 pointed out that "the Philippines faces substantial maritime governance capacity gaps, with shortfalls in maritime domain awareness standing out as a primary concern."

The US has provided substantial support to the Philippines in areas such as information sharing, situational awareness, and engagement tactics to bolster its capabilities.

Since 2021, the Philippines has been utilizing the SeaVision program, a maritime situational awareness tool, led by the US Department of Transportation, at no cost. Currently, this system is being employed by the Philippine Coast Guard, the Philippine Navy, the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources, and the National Coast Watch Center, as observed by Beijing-based think tank South China Sea Strategic Situation Probing Initiative (SCSPI).

In May, the US and the Philippines issued a joint statement on space dialogue, announcing an enhancement of cooperation in leveraging space for both maritime and space situational awareness. Moreover, within the framework of the US-Japan-India-Australia "Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness Partnership," the US is coordinating resource support from Japan, India, and Australia for the Philippines, according to SCSPI.

Many Filipino scholars contend that the security cooperation between the Philippines and the US is designed to strengthen the asymmetric advantage over China, enabling the execution of surveillance missions focused on China's maritime activities, Ding noted.

The Ayunjin task force has been interpreted by Philippine media as a direct indication of US military assistance to the Philippines.

Banlaoi believes that the US task will benefit the Philippine military for operational support, intelligence gathering and tactical capacity building, but it politically hinders peaceful dispute resolution between the Philippines and China.

By establishing the task force, the US has sought to gain direct insights into the operational patterns of China Coast Guard vessels, thereby enhancing its situational awareness and battlefield readiness. This move can be interpreted as a concealed intention of the US, Ding noted.

"It remains unclear whether the US task force will expand in personnel and scope. The US may also use this opportunity to encourage the Philippines to provoke incidents at sea, such as conducting 'freedom of navigation operations' against China or providing 'escort' services for Philippine supply ships in contested areas. US military personnel might observe aboard these vessels under the guise of journalists or offer guidance for Philippine maritime operations," he told the Global Times.

If the Philippines continues to provoke incidents through its strengthened alliance and external support, engaging in "gray zone" tactics and challenging China's South China Sea policies with misleading narratives, it risks undermining constructive resolutions and managing differences, Ding stressed.

The remains of 43 Chinese People's Volunteers (CPV) soldiers who lost their lives during the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea (1950-1953) were returned to China on Thursday from the Republic of Korea (ROK).

The remains will be laid to rest in a martyrs' cemetery in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Liaoning Province.

Since 2014, the remains of 981 CPV martyrs have been handed over to China, their home country.

Chinese President Xi Jinping has urged supply and marketing cooperatives to act as bridges for the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the government to maintain close ties with farmers, and strive to write a new chapter in the high-quality development of the supply and marketing cooperative cause.

Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in an instruction on the occasion of the 70th founding anniversary of the All China Federation of Supply and Marketing Cooperatives.

The federation, founded in 1954, is a national economic organization responsible for organizing, coordinating and managing the operation of important agricultural means of production, as well as agricultural and sideline products.

Over the past seven decades, the country's supply and marketing cooperatives have played a positive role in serving rural and urban residents, boosting rural economy, helping eradicate absolute poverty, raising farmers' incomes and promoting rural revitalization, Xi said.

He asked Party committees and governments at all levels to further strengthen their leadership over and support for the work of supply and marketing cooperatives.

Xi urged the cooperatives to build integrated platforms that serve the production and lives of farmers and help promote the development of modern agriculture.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, gave an instruction regarding supply and marketing cooperatives.

Li urged the cooperatives to further promote the high-quality development of agricultural supplies, distribution of agricultural products, as well as recycling and utilization of renewable resources.

A meeting was held in Beijing on Thursday to mark the federation's 70th founding anniversary.

At the meeting, Vice Premier Liu Guozhong, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, called on supply and marketing cooperatives to help promote the integrated development of urban and rural areas and advance all-around rural revitalization.