China to take resolute countermeasures against US malicious legislation on HK: spokesperson

China will take resolute countermeasures if the United States insists on going ahead with the so-called Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office (HKETO) Certification Act, and even closing the offices, said a spokesperson with the Commissioner's Office of China's Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong on Wednesday.

The statement came after the U.S. House of Representatives passed the act on Tuesday.

The spokesperson strongly condemned and firmly opposed the passage of the act that calls for the cancellation of privileges and exemptions of the HKETOs in the United States and even closing these offices, saying it smears Hong Kong's international reputation and undermines the region's foreign trade and economic cooperation.

Noting that the HKETOs established overseas serve as the official representatives of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR), the spokesperson said that their successful operation is conductive to expanding practical economic and trade cooperation between Hong Kong and relevant countries and regions.

The three economic and trade offices set up by Hong Kong in the United States have played a positive role in promoting mutual benefits between the two sides, said the spokesperson.

The United States has significant economic interests in Hong Kong. Over the past decade, the U.S. trade surplus with Hong Kong has exceeded 270 billion U.S. dollars, the highest among its global trading partners. Additionally, the spokesperson noted that more than 1,200 U.S. companies have invested and established businesses in Hong Kong.

The spokesperson slammed the United States for holding on to the Cold War mentality, engaging in electoral politics, politicizing and instrumentalizing economic and trade issues at the expense of the interests of both the United States and relevant companies.

The United States attempts to use the act to disrupt normal exchanges and cooperation between Hong Kong and the U.S., and undermine the normalization process of China-U.S. relations, the spokesperson stated.

Since the enactment and implementation of the Law on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR and the Safeguarding National Security Bill of Hong Kong, Hong Kong's prosperity and stability have been better guaranteed, and the foundation of Hong Kong's governance and prosperity has become more solid, said the spokesperson.

A higher level of security helps to strengthen Hong Kong's status as an international financial, shipping, and trade center, better protect the lawful rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents, and further consolidate, optimize and enhance the business environment in the SAR, the spokesperson added.

The advantages of the rule of law in Hong Kong are rock-solid, and the implementation of "One Country, Two Systems" is progressing steadily in the right direction, the spokesperson noted.

The spokesperson emphasized that Hong Kong is China's Hong Kong, and China will never allow any external forces to interfere in Hong Kong affairs.

China urges the United States to recognize the facts as soon as possible, immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs, stop using Hong Kong to contain China. Otherwise, such reckless actions will inevitably backfire on the U.S. itself, said the spokesperson.

China to take resolute countermeasures against US malicious legislation on HK: spokesperson

Environmental simulation and digital replication are among the new technologies now employed to protect the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, a 1,600-year-old UNESCO World Heritage site located in the Gobi Desert in Dunhuang City, northwest China's Gansu Province.

Researchers for decades have tried to find ways to protect the cultural heritage site, home to a vast collection of Buddhist artworks carved into the cliffs, from damage caused by natural or human factors.

A multi-field coupling lab on murals and ancient ruins protection under the Dunhuang Academy, the first of its kind in China to be employed in cultural relics preservation, was put into use by the end of 2020.

Located in the city of Dunhuang, the lab covers an area of 16,000 square meters. It is able to simulate the four seasons and the erosion by wind, rain and snow that the earthen relics could experience in a natural environment. It can also simulate temperatures ranging from minus 30 to 60 degrees Celsius and relative humidity ranging from 10 to 90 percent.

"In the 'summer house', we can simulate the environment in the southern region which is hot and humid. We can also simulate a dry environment with a temperature of over 40 degrees Celsius. [The temperatures and lighting] have impacts on the heritage sites," said Liu Xiaoying, a research fellow at the Multi-field Coupling Environmental Lab of Immovable Heritage under the academy.

Researchers at the lab not only study the local soil, but have also brought samples from heritage sites in other areas such as the northwestern city of Xi'an and Sichuan Province in southwest China to the lab.

The academy has been working with academic institutions including the University of Oxford and China's Northwest University in an international synchronous field trial.

With a controlled environment to its merit, the lab will play an important role in cultural heritage protection across the country, according to the academy.

"The time and conditions are controllable and the data is precise. We can also test samples with a larger size - which can better protect the immovable cultural heritage," Liu said.

Dunhuang Academy is now also using digital technology to record all the paintings and sculptures in the Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes in order to permanently preserve the relics in the database.

The Dunhuang Academy started its digitization project in the 1990s to create digital versions of the Mogao Grottoes and other grotto temples and has accumulated massive digital cultural resources.

With digital technology, murals, grottoes, painted sculptures and other splendid cultural heritage items have been reproduced and thus are able to be shared with the world.

New technologies protect ancient Buddhist artwork in Dunhuang caves, cliffs