火勇廝"The success of the show reflected the increasing global interest in China's people and culture, as well as the interest of the people of China in preserving and studying their own history," said Loewentheil, who's Historical Photography of China Collection is the largest holding of late Qing dynasty photographs of China in private hands

殺裁判險However, the Pew survey finds that Duterte and his policies are widely popular at home despite concerns expressed by some governments, in particular the US, over Duterte's clashes with drug cartels and alleged human rights violations唱戲庫A quarter now name China as the world's leading economy, up from 14 percent the last time the Philippines was surveyed

裏關鍵At the same time, 78 percent believe the current economic situation is good, and 57 percent are satisfied with the direction of the country, a 21 percentage-point increase from 2014, the last time this question was asked in the Philippines射好And despite the Philippines being the most pro-Trump nation in Pew's spring 37-country survey, confidence in Trump now is lower than it was in then-President Barack Obama in 2015火勇廝The Philippines under Duterte has tried to develop an independent foreign policy rather than being a US puppet most of the time殺裁判險Since becoming Philippines president in June 2016, Rodrigo Duterte has refused to be used by the US to advance its strategy唱戲庫That was certainly not the policy under Obama when he launched the US pivot-to-Asia policy, trying to gang up US allies on China

裏關鍵And on global economic status, about half of Filipinos (49 percent) say that the US is still the leading economic power, but that is down from 66 percent who said so in 2015射好The survey released on Sept 21 bore a title saying people in the Philippines still favor the United States over China, but that the gap is narrowing火勇廝The white paper went to great lengths to define China as one of the "destabilizing factors" along with Democratic People's Republic of Korea

殺裁判險It highlighted "more tangible" and "acute" challenges and destabilizing factors唱戲庫The legislation provides greater flexibility, responsiveness, and interoperability for training, exercises, and planning on a broader spectrum of security issues by easing restrictions on Japanese Self-Defense Force operations, including the ability to exercise collective self-defense裏關鍵This will empower Japan to be an active player at the region and global stages射好The white paper, the first after Japan's security legislation went into effect in March, played up the so-called "gray zone" situations, or neither pure peacetime nor contingencies over territory, sovereignty and economic interests

In its 2016 defense white paper, Japan interferes in the South China SeaThe white paper served as an implementation scheme for the controversial security bills that enable Japan's Self-Defense Forces to play a more comprehensive global military role and allow implementation of the new US and Japan alliance guidelines

It made irresponsible accusations against China, claiming that China continues to act in an "assertive" manner, including attempts at changing the status quo by coercioncn]On August 2, Japanese government approved this year's version of defense white paper, which described the security environment surrounding the country "increasingly severe"China's "dangerous acts" in the South China Sea and East China Sea could cause unintended consequences(To overblow Chinese ship's entry, Japan's foreign ministry summoned Chinese Ambassador to Japan Cheng Yonghua in the tee hours of that day, and lodged a protest

)Refusing to have a territorial dispute in the East China Sea, Japan is unlikely to talk with China over its settlement, leaving the waters near the islands a minefieldThe Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force destroyer Hatakaze quickly followed them into that areaIn response to the Hatakaze's entry, the Chinese Jiangkai I-class frigate rushed into the waters, according to the Japanese weekly Nikkei Asian ReviewHiding the first part of the episode, the white paper criticized China for its frigate's entry into Japan's "contiguous" zone near the disputed islets in the East China Sea

On June 8, three Russian naval ships entered the waters close to the Diaoyu IslandsThe defense legislation eliminates geographic constraints by substituting a situational threshold (situations that "gravely affect the peace and stability of Japan") rather than limiting support to "situations in areas surrounding Japan"

Iowa's ties with China had already shown signs of increasingEven though Iowa is best known for its agricultural products and services, Reynolds said that advanced manufacturing is "actually the largest sector of our GDP

Reynolds said last month when announcing the trip that "there is no better time than now to market and pitch our products in China"We believe as a united Iowa agricultural delegation, we can find opportunities that are beneficial to both China and Iowa," Reynolds saidAccording to Allen Williams, the business development manager at the Iowa Economic Development Authority, the state has had more inquiries from China in recent months than in the previous two or three yearsOur relationship with the country is strong, and their growing middle class means increasing purchasing power, and Iowa stands to gain significantly as a resultUS beef had been banned from China since 2003 due to a mad cow disease scare" When Branstad was receiving a Chinese trade delegation as Iowa governor in March, he remarked that he would like to be able to enjoy a bite of US beef at the US embassy in Beijing

Meetings are planned for the delegation with Chinese government officials, industry partners and Branstad in Beijing, Shanghai and Xi'an, Shaanxi provinceIowa Governor Kim Reynolds is leading a trade mission to China that will feature officials from groups representing the state's major agricultural producers

Reynolds, who succeeded Terry Branstad as governor when he became the US ambassador to China on May 22, noted that agricultural "is the backbone of Iowa's economy and contributes about $112 billion to our economy annually""Relationships are especially important in China, and we are fortunate that Governor Branstad welcomed a then local agricultural official from China over 30 years ago into Iowa named Xi Jinping, who is now the nation's president," said Reynolds

Last year, nearly $6 billion worth of US pork was exported to China, including more than $1 billion from Iowa"We will have representatives from our corn, soybean, beef, egg, poultry, dairy and turkey sectors seeking an opportunity to expand their footprint in China as the country's middle class grows," Reynolds said of the 10-day trip, which began on Wednesday

His wish came true on June 30 in Beijing when Branstad had prime rib from Nebraska to celebrate the return of US beef to China after 13 yearsIt detailed how one particular photograph in the series depicted the daughter of the famous Chinese statesman, Zeng GuofanThe story about a collection of rare photographs of Beijing from the late 1800s, on show in London's Chinatown, included a number of images from the exhibit - one of which set Watt back on his heelsThe article explained how British photographer, Thomas Child, who had moved to China as an engineer, captured marriage ceremonies during the late Qing dynasty - which spanned from 1644 to 1912

"The display of Child's work at the China Exchange, an organization in London, was the first time US-based collector, Stephan Loewentheil, had shared the original images of life during the Qing dynasty in Peking, now known as Beijing"The family rose in importance in Shanghai from the late Qing dynasty into the twentieth century and went through more than 70 years of ups and downs until 1950," he said

While Watt's reaction to the never-before-seen photographs was by far the most compelling, the exhibition in Soho's Gerrard Street attracted worldwide attention, making headlines in the UK, the US, Europe and China"The success of the show reflected the increasing global interest in China's people and culture, as well as the interest of the people of China in preserving and studying their own history," said Loewentheil, who's Historical Photography of China Collection is the largest holding of late Qing dynasty photographs of China in private hands

"My great, great grandfather was Zeng Guofan," Watt saidThe 79-year-old never expected when he was browsing the internet that day that he would uncover a piece of family history dating back some 140 years

"It was a picture I had never seen before and my instinct told me that the subjects could be my great grandparents," he told China DailyAccording to Watt, the unique wedding photograph documents the moment of the start of the prominent Nie family in China"The groom, Nie Jigui, served as Shanghai's Governor from 1890 to 1893, died in 1911 and was buried in Hunan, while the bride, Zeng Jifen, died in 1942 and was buried in ShanghaiNot to mention, in an exhibition some 3,500 miles away from where he lived

Portrait of a womanWhen New York-based Raymond Watt came across an article on the BBC news website about a Chinese photography exhibition in the UK last November, he was shocked, to say the least"Today, Beijing is a vastly different place and the early photographs presented a perspective on the city which had never been previously available

The country, which gained independence from the United Kingdom in April 1961, remains one of the least developed in the worldIt has eight surgical operation rooms and 300 patient beds

The Chinese Navy's hospital ship Peace Ark arrives on Tuesday in Freetown, Sierra Leone, on an eight-day mission to deliver free medical services to 2,000 people in the West African nationThe visit marks the first time the ship has visited West Africa, Xinhua said