Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with visiting Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Beijing on Wednesday. Li said China and Azerbaijan are good friends of sincere mutual trust and good partners pursuing mutual benefit on an equal footing.
He said President Xi Jinping held talks with President Aliyev on Wednesday morning when the two presidents announced the establishment of comprehensive strategic partnership, which opens up a new chapter for the development of bilateral relations.
China is willing to strengthen the alignment of Belt and Road cooperation with Azerbaijan’s development strategy, deepen exchanges and cooperation in connectivity, green energy, digital economy, trade, and culture, said the Chinese premier.
Both sides should maintain close communication and coordination in multilateral affairs and safeguard their common interests, Li said.
Aliyev said Azerbaijan is firmly committed to the one-China principle.
Azerbaijan looks forward to maintaining high-level exchanges with China, expanding mutually beneficial cooperation in economy and trade, transportation, energy, and agriculture, strengthening multilateral communication and coordination, and enriching the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries, he said.
Chinese premier meets Azerbaijani president in Beijing
Chinese premier meets Azerbaijani president in Beijing
Chinese premier meets Azerbaijani president in Beijing
At precisely 07:15 each morning, veteran meteorologist Tsering Dekyi launches a weather balloon from Lhasa Meteorological Station, continuing a ritual that has documented the remarkable transformation of the capital city of southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region over half a century.
For 26 years, Dekyi has maintained this precision-critical routine where even a one-second delay constitutes a professional failure.
"Attention to details is vital. The tiniest error can cause disaster. A mistake of just 0.1 in the data input can have a major impact," she said.
As the balloon rises into sky, it captures atmospheric readings while revealing panoramic views of Lhasa's evolving skyline, where ancient temples now neighbor modern infrastructure.
The daily launches, conducted at optimal atmospheric conditions, showcase how this ancient city harmonizes heritage with development. Through the lens of balloon-mounted cameras, prayer-flag adorned rooftops give way to sprawling new residential districts and the gleaming Lhasa-Nyingchi railway terminus.
Meteorological balloons have risen from this station since the 1970s, their flight paths unintentionally chronicling urban expansion. Where observers once saw mostly farmland, they now document a regional hub with highways radiating across the plateau and solar farms powering growth.
As Dekyi watches another balloon shrink to a dot, its sensors will transmit real-time updates about the rarefied air above one of Asia's fastest-transforming cities, where tradition and progress share the same horizon.
Weather balloons witness Lhasa's remarkable transformation
