KUNMING, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Liu Zhicheng, a 26-year-old painter, together with his partner Xu Fengkai, has been creating artworks on the walls of farmhouses in Xingyi Village, Lijiang City, southwest China's Yunnan Province.

Liu has studied wall painting for about six years. In 2020, Liu and his partner began painting walls free of charge and full of love and passion.

It usually takes Liu about two to three days to complete a wall painting.

The two record their creative process through short videos and upload them onto Chinese online platforms, which has won the dedicated artists 330,000 fans and more orders.

The profits generated from the increasing commercial orders in turn can better support the two to continue their public welfare painting campaigns in rural areas.

Produced by Xinhua Global Service

WASHINGTON – United States Trade Representative Katherine Tai today met with Georgia’s Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Levan Davitashvili.  Ambassador Tai and Vice Prime Minister Davitashvili discussed U.S. support for Georgia in this time of crisis in the region. They also discussed how the United States and Georgia can work together on joint initiatives to further deepen the U.S.-Georgia trade relationship.

Ambassador Tai and Vice Prime Minister Davitashvili agreed to stay in communication on these, and other priorities, in the future.

Today, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili submitted the second part of the European Commission's questionnaire - completed by the country before the set deadline-to Carl Hartzell, Head of the EU Delegation to Georgia, at the Government Administration.

"It is my pleasure to deliver to you our questionnaire answers. We have completed filling it, a total of 7 volumes. We are happy to hand it over to you, and we are looking forward to the European Commission's and member states' decisions," the Prime Minister said.

The Ambassador thanked the Prime Minister and emphasized that the questionnaire will be very helpful to the European Commission in delivering its opinion.

"Mister Prime Minister, I am grateful for being here to receive the result of your and many other people's hard work invested in the completion of the questionnaire's second and final part. It will be of tremendous help to the European Commission in delivering its opinion," Carl Hartzell stated.

The second, sectoral part of the European Commission's questionnaire incorporates 33 chapters and up to 2,300 questions, with May 13 previously set as the deadline by the EU. To complete the larger part of the questionnaire effectively and within maximally tight deadlines, all relevant institutions were engaged, and the process proper was personally supervised by the Head of Government.

As the Prime Minister pointed out, Georgia's European choice is a decision with no alternative, the Georgian people's and not just the Government's choice.

The completed part one of the questionnaire was submitted by the Head of Georgian Government to the EU Ambassador on May 2, at the Administration of the Government. After the submission of the second part of the questionnaire, the European Commission will start developing its opinion report to be subsequently referred to the Council of the European Union, with the latter expected to make a relevant decision at the end of June.

Press Service of the Government Administration

National promotional banks and institutions from EU member states and the European Investment Bank on 6 May launched the €2 billion ‘Quick Response — Care for Ukrainian Refugees in Europe’ initiative. The joint initiative aims to provide immediate relief this year for refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine and to promote the integration of Ukrainian refugees in EU Member States. 

The initiative was launched in Paris by five European national promotional banks and institutions, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Association of Long-Term Investors (ELTI). The participants in the initiative will contribute directly or indirectly through their respective general programmes along with regional and local communities to provide housing for refugees and support their integration into local communities. The initiative could also finance education, healthcare and infrastructure needs and has a target of at least €2 billion of financial support this year.

The urgent support initiative in Europe is a first step as the group considers further measures to help Member States deal with the impact of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

The five national promotional institutions involved are:

• Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK — Poland)
• Groupe Caisse des Dépôts (CDC — France)
• Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP — Italy)
• Instituto de Crédito Oficial (ICO — Spain)
• Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW — Germany)

ELTI is the European association of public national promotional banks and financial institutions gathering 31 members all over Europe.

The European Investment Bank is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

The pan-European support initiative for Ukraine will provide loans, grants, equity investment and guarantees for eligible projects and develop innovative financing structures for public and private infrastructure, municipalities as well as private enterprises of different sizes.

Source: EU NEIGHBOURS east 

China's cargo spacecraft Tianzhou-4, carrying supplies for the upcoming Shenzhou-14 crewed mission, successfully docked with the combination of the space station core module Tianhe and the Tianzhou-3 cargo craft on Tuesday, according to the China Manned Space Agency. #GLOBALink

Produced by Xinhua Global Service

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia refers to the so-called second tour of presidential elections held on 8 May 2022 in Tskhinvali region occupied by the Russian Federation and condemns this illegal action that contradicts the fundamental principles and norms of international law and blatantly violates Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity within its internationally recognized borders.
Under the Russian occupation and effective control any so-called elections will not have legal consequences, in the circumstance when hundreds of thousands of IDPs and refugees expelled from their homes as a result of ethnic cleansing of Georgians in Abkhazia and Tskhinvali regions are still hampered to safe and dignified return home, and fundamental rights and freedoms of people on the ground are blatantly violated. Effective control of the Russian Federation over Georgia’s occupied regions and its responsibility for the violations of human rights on the ground are clearly attested in the Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights of 21 January, 2021.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia calls on the Russian Federation to respect Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and implement its international obligations, inter alia the EU-mediated 12 August 2008 Ceasefire Agreement.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia appeals to the international community to duly assess and react on the actions directed against sovereignty and territorial integrity of Georgia. 

MFA of Georgia

The European Union is standing by Georgia, in support of building a strong, prosperous and democratic country, during times of COVID and other crises, and with unwavering support for Georgia’s independence and territorial integrity, EU Ambassador Carl Hartzell said in a statement to mark Europe Day on 9 May, in a year that has seen Georgia apply for membership of the European Union.

He said Europe Day was a celebration of a new vision for Europe, presented 72 years ago in the Schuman Declaration, “at a time when Europe was still rising from the ashes of a devastating war, determined to make sure there would be no more wars in Europe”.

“While we remain faithful to that vision, unfortunately, others blatantly and tragically demonstrate that they still see things differently. But as Russia is waging its unjustified war in Europe, we are standing up in strong solidarity with Ukraine, based on the values and principles that unite us and on which our Union was built.”

“Here in Georgia, our close partnership is based on these same values,” the Ambassador said. “A partnership that is set to grow further as Georgia took the historic step to apply for EU membership, in line with the aspirations of an overwhelming majority of its population and in coping with its civilisational roots.”

Activities to mark Europe Day in Georgia this year are centred around a new film called Europe and me, directed by Giorgi Kvelidze. It highlights the shared values between the EU and Georgia and shows several human stories from Georgia’s region.

The online premiere of the documentary film that has been produced for 2022 Europe Day will be held tonight, 9 May at 21:00 on the Delegation Facebook page.

Source: EU NEIGHBOURS east