Welcome to the Beijing Hour, coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

Coming up on our program this morning...

The UN Security Council has passed a resolution endorsing the tentative ceasefire in eastern Ukraine.

Greece's Prime Minister is still promising a deal with its European creditors, despite the breakdown of talks this week.

Celebrations have been taking place across China to help ring-in the Lunar New Year.

In business... Chinese authorities putting together new coordination plans to replicate what's been taking place in the Shanghai FTZ.

In Sports... Beijing Guo'an makes it into the AFC Champions League.

In entertainment.... A Chinese film dominating the box office in Malaysia.

And in the second half of our program, we'll be bringing you a holiday-edition of In the Spotlight.

First, let's check in with what's happening with the weather...

 

 

Weather

 

 

Beijing will be sunny today with a high of 10, tonight will have smog with a low of minus 2 degrees Celsius.

Shanghai , also sunny with a high of 12 and a low of 4 degrees Celsius.

Chongqing, cloudy today with a high of 17, tonight will continue to be cloudy with a low of 12.

Elsewhere in Asia.

Islamabad, sunny, with a high of 33.

Kabul, cloudy, with a high of 15.

Over to North America.

New York will be overcast with a high of minus 2 degrees Celsius.

Washington will see snow with a high of 2 degree Celsius.

Honolulu, cloudy, with a high of 29.

Toronto, snowy with a high of minus 8.

Finally, in South America,

Buenos Aires, showers, 29.

And Rio de Janeiro, also see showers today, with a high of 34 degrees Celsius.

 

 

Top News

 

 

UN Security Council adopts resolution endorsing new cease-fire on Ukraine

 

The UN Security Council has endorsed the tenuous ceasefire in Ukraine.

In approving the new resolution, the Security Council is also raising concerns about the continued fighting around the town of Debaltseve.

This is a key rail-hub which neither the government or the rebel fighters are willing to give up.

Observers from the OSCE have been denied access to the region.

OSCE spokesperson Michael Bociurkiw.

"Unfortunately we did not get to Debaltseve. The Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine didn't get to Debaltseve. This is the third day already of the ceasefire. Attempts will continue, of course."

The ceasefire was inked last week following marathon meetings among the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Germany and France.

It was supposed to take effect on Sunday.

 

 

Greek leader says no compromise but deal possible

 

Greece's Prime Minister is warning his administration is not going to compromise when it comes to eliminating austerity.

But at the same time, Alexis Tsipras says his government does want an "honorable and mutually beneficial agreement."

"We are not hurrying and we do not compromise. We are, however, working hard for an honorable and mutually beneficial agreement, an agreement without austerity and the bailout agreement that has destroyed Greece these past years, and without the toxic presence of the troika. Everything else is not an agreement but a surrender that would complete the euthanasia of our country."

The comments come a day after the collapse of negotiations between Greece and its European creditors about the re-negotiation of the terms of the country's bailout agreement.

The eurozone has given Greece until Friday to ask for an extension of its bailout agreement, which is set to expire at the end of this month.

Greek authorities have been pushing for a so-called "bridging agreement" to ensure it doesn't have any liquidity issues while it negotiates a new deal.

Greek national news agency AMNA reports that Greece will submit a request for a six-month extension of the bailout loan agreement on Wednesday.

 

 

Ashton Carter sworn in as Obama's new Defense Secretary

 

Former Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has been sworn-in as the new Defense Secretary.

Carter is the 4th defense chief of US President Barack Obama's tenure in office.

"I have a commitment to the future, to building a force for our future. That involves not only securing the resources we need, but making sure that we make the best use of the taxpayers' dollar. Make sure that we embrace change, so that years from now and decades from now, we continue to be a place where America's finest want to serve."

US vice president Joe Biden says Carter is going to be tasked with numerous challenges.

"Many tough missions, as you know Ash, as well as any of the men and women in here lie ahead, from the fight against ISIL to strengthening NATO to the Asia Pacific rebalance, to maintaining our technological edge to the continuous efforts to make the most out of every dollar we invest in defense."

One of the new challenges Carter is going to face is whether or not the US should begin supplying Ukrainian forces with lethal weapons.

Another challenge will be the situation in Yemen, which is the United States main battle ground in the fight against al-Qaeda.

The government there has collapsed amid an uprising by Iranian-backed Houthi Shiite rebels.

 

 

Myanmar Declares State-of-Emergency in Shan State Amid Clashes

 

The Chinese goverment has issued a response to the ethnic unrest taking place in northeast Myanmar.

Fighting in the northeastern state of Shan has forced thousands across the Chinese border.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying says provincial authorities in Yunnan say some 30-thousand people who live along the border area in Myanmar have crossed into China. They are providing arrangements and the necessary help for them, including food, medical supplies and epidemic prevention."

The government of Myanmar has declared martial law in Shan amid the fighting between government forces and the Kokang ethnic tribe.

The Chinese government is also issuing a call for calm. Hua Chunying says China wants to use this opportunity to once-again call on all sides involved in the clashes in Myanmar to exercise restraint and avoid the situation escalating further to ensure peace and stability on the border, and especially to avoid affecting security on the Chinese side."

Around 100 people have been killed in the fighting, which broke out last week.

Northeastern Myanmar is home to a significant population of ethnic Chinese.

 

 

Nationwide activities underway to celebrate Chinese Lunar New Year

 

Numerous events are taking place across the country today to mark this year's Spring Festival, which starts from today till next Tuesday.

A village in Dayu County in Jiangxi has seen hundreds of people come together to perform with folk music instruments and dancing in lion costumes to celebrate the coming new year.

"Today everyone is here getting together, it's very busy and noisy. So this makes good atmosphere for the Lunar New Year. So even if I am tired but it doesn't matter. Because we are happy being together."

In Beijing, temple fairs featuring traditional performances will last for 8-days.

In Guangzhou, the annual Spring Festival Flower Fair is already underway.

 

 

Experts appeals for less fireworks

 

Anchor:

Authorities here in Beijing are recommending Spring Festival revelers limit their use of fireworks to help reduce air-quality problems.

CRI's Niu Honglin has more.

Reporter:

Experts have recently appealed to the public to use fewer fireworks to celebrate the lunar New Year, saying heavy usage could cause three days of severe pollution. Weather conditions in the forecast are said to be less-than ideal for the dispersal of fireworks-related pollution.

Li Yunting is the director in charge of air quality at the Beijing Environmental Monitoring Center.

Act 1

"Fireworks will generate a huge amount of pollution in a short time, increasing the density of sulfur dioxide and PM2.5, the major airborne pollutants. After that short period of time, diffusion conditions largely determine the severity and duration of the air pollution caused by the fireworks."

If the fireworks are set off in huge volume, as they were last year, air pollution at hazardous levels will last five to six hours longer compared to last year. Li adds that the weather from Wednesday to Friday is expected to be windless, which means pollutants will linger in the city.

Fireworks remain popular among Chinese citizens, despite pollution problems in major cities. But many people are heeding the message from the authorities and choosing to cut back on fireworks to celebrate the holiday.

Act 2 voxpop

"Fireworks may cause pollution, so I decided to set off only a few this year."

"I didn't buy any fireworks or firecrackers. Actually, this is what I do every year. The air pollution is too serious."

Earlier this month, the Ministry of Environmental Protection required provinces and regions to implement fireworks restrictions, expanding forbidden areas and extending forbidden times, especially when severe air pollution covering cities. In response, cities have made more stringent efforts to reduce the pollutants that come from fireworks.

For CRI, I'm Niu Honglin.

 

 

Kris Wu and Luhan have canceled their upcoming CCTV Spring Gala performance

 

Chinese fans will not see EXO members Kris Wu and Luhan at tonight's Chinese Central Television Spring Festival Gala.

The two are contractually obligated to their South Korean entertainment firm, and have not been given permission to perform at the Chinese gala.

They had been scheduled to perform alongside William Chan and competitive swimmer Ning Zetao.

Both say they're grateful to be asked to perform.

Luhan says he will be watching tonight's show with his family.

William Chan and Ning Zetao have since been removed from the line-up for tonight's program.

CCTV says it's made the move to shorten the show, and has nothing to do with Chan and Ning themselves.

 

 

Thanksgiving Celebrations have nothing on Chinese New Year

 

New analysis is suggesting this year's Lunar New Year holiday is going to see retail spending surpass 100-billion US dollars here in China.

An Ipsos research poll also suggests as much as 60-percent of the spending is going to be on people's parents or grand parents.

By comparison, spending during the Thanksgiving holiday in the US comes in at around 50-billion US dollars.

 

 

Will there be fewer babies in China in the "unlucky" Year of the Goat?

 

Anchor:

Questions are being asked about birth rates here in China this year amid suggestions the "Year of the Goat" is not an auspicious time to have a child.

CRI's Poornima Weerasekara has more.

Reporter:

There is an old Chinese saying "十羊九不全", that means nine out of ten people born in the Year of the Goat are incomplete and will suffer from great misfortune throughout their life.

This led to a mini-baby boom in 2014, with mothers scrambling to have a child in the auspicious Year of the Horse, rather than in the "unlucky" Year of the Goat that will start on Feb 19, 2015.

Chinese media were full of stories about heavily pregnant women in different cities requesting doctors to induce early labor in January and early February to avoid giving birth in the Year of the Goat.

Weiwei, a 28-year-old advertising executive from Fujian says the tradition has influenced her choice not to have a baby this year.

"My parents are quite traditional. They have even asked some younger cousins to postpone their weddings, because it is not good to get married in the Year of the Goat. This year is particularly inauspicious because as per this year's lunar calendar, the Spring season started even before the New year festival. So this year is considered an incomplete year by Chinese people. I decided to postpone having a baby, because I didn't want to go against my parents."

But is this a widespread idea?

I went to one of Beijing's oldest hospitals, the Peking Union Medical College Hospital, more famously known as the Xiehe hospital to find out more.

Lixiaohong, is an expectant mother from Beijing

"Some people still say that it is not good to be born on the Year of the Goat. But I think young people, especially the 80's and 90's generations, don't take such traditional ideas very seriously. I feel my baby who will be born in the Year of the Goat is still a blessing. But, older people may still take this into consideration."

Dingchunfang, a retired government official from Jiangsu province in East China, had come with her daughter-in-law to the maternity clinic. She says many elderly parents have put such obsolete ideas in the backburner.

"Some couples are waiting to have a baby in 2016, in the luckier year of the Monkey. But if everyone wants to have children in a so called "lucky year" this could have a negative effect on the child's future. If they are born in a year when birth rates are particularly high, it will be harder for the parents to get them into a good kindergarten and the child will face more competition at the university entrance exam or when looking for a job. So why wait and make things difficult for your baby?"

The origin of this myth about babies born in the Goat year being doomed with bad luck is murky. But as LiXiaoHong, who is also high school history teacher explains, the tradition dates back to the time of empress Cixi in the Qing Dynasty.

"Negative sayings about those born in the Goat year were not very popular before the period of the Xianfeng Emperor during the Qing Dynasty. It might have been a rumor started to overthrow the reign of the Empress Cixi who ruled China from 1861 until her death in 1908. Cixi and other high-ranking officials of late Qing Dynasty, like Zeng Guofan and Li Hongzhang were all born in the Year of the Goat. People didn't like these rulers at that time, so they started spreading rumors that those born in that year had bad luck."

Another reason offered by those who want to avoid having babies in the Goat year is the deep-rooted belief that your zodiac sign could influence your personality.

Each of the 12 animals in the Chinese zodiac has their own virtues and shortcomings. The undisputed favorite is the dragon, often followed by the tiger, horse and pig. These strong animals are associated with success and prosperity.

But goats are meek creatures, raised to be slaughtered. So babies born this year are expected to grow up to be followers rather than leaders.

Such beliefs had led to a marked dip in the number of newborns in the previous Goat year in 2003.

But those who brush aside this idea, point out that many successful people including China's first Nobel laureate Mo Yan, born in 1955, was born in the "year of the goat."

So will we see lesser babies in China in 2015?

Actually, with the easing of the one child policy, China's family planning authorities are anticipating an extra million births in 2015 compared to last year.

For CRI I'm Poornima Weerasekara.

 

 

Vulgar ads appear on Wechat public accounts

 

Anchor:

A number of sexually explicit advertisements have been turning up on certain public accounts on WeChat in recent weeks.

Tencent, which owns and operates the instant messaging service, says hackers have been able to insert the ads by exploiting loopholes in the accounts themselves.

CRI's Luo Wen has more.

Reporter:

"Lately I've seen that there have been a lot of vulgar advertising links directing me to sex shops on my public account on WeChat. I'm really surprised, given that I didn't give permission for sponsors to advertise on my account."

He Wen is one of many WeChat users who have recently discovered a significant number of questionable links which have been popping up through his account.

Some of the links even end up being suspended on his mobile device, even if he attempts to switch to another page.

And Hu Wen isn't alone.

Even the public accounts belonging to government organs and state-run media outlets aren't immune.

Zhou Boyun with Tencent says hackers are behind it.

"The third-party ads have been put in by hackers who specialize in inserting advertisements through data flow hijacking. The ads they insert have vulgar or pornographic content, but also tend to have the word "sponsor" on the split line to deceive users into thinking it's legitimate."

Network security expert Zhang Zhengbao says the vast majority of data flow hijackings are done through attacking loopholes the hackers find in either the software or hardware of a router.

"Through a wireless hotspot, the router can be hijacked. This way, parts of the original content of an official account can be tampered with, allowing the hackers to tap into users' browsing pages, which they can then re-direct. This can allow the hackers to slip-in unauthorized advertisements in the form of links or pop-up windows."

Zhang says the main way around this is to simply update your online security.

"Ordinary users should just simply reset their passwords on their routers. And at the same time, don't connect to a Wifi hotspot which seems suspicious. You should always delete your browser history after using free Wifi in public places."

Tencent says as many as 10-percent of all government organizations and public institutions have been hacked this way.

The company is asking anyone who discovers they've been hacked report it through WeChat itself.

For CRI, I am Luo Wen.

 

 

Gold falls sharply on hopes of Greek deal

 

Gold futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange have fallen sharply amid the breakdown of the Greek debt negotiation.

April gold contracts lost 18-dollars-50 cents US, or 1.5-percent, to come in at 12-hundred-8-dollars-60-cents US per ounce.

Suggestions the European Central Bank might continue to fund Greek banks pulled investors away from the commodity.

 

 

Reforms in FTZs to be coordinated

 

Chinese authorities are setting up a system to insure better inter-department coordination within the Shanghai Free Trade Zone.

The goal is to promote the successful reforms nationwide.

The Ministry of Commerce is leading the joint session.

30 different departments and units will be involved.

It will include the National Development and Reform Commission, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the central bank.

The idea is to try to coordinate reforms in the pilot free trade zones nationwide and to replicate those experiences across the rest of the country.

 

 

China's Home Price Continues Downward in January

 

China's real estate market has continued its downward trend, with new home prices in January registering month-on-month declines in most city's surveyed.

The National Bureau of Statistics says new home prices fell in most Chinese cities in January.

64 out of 70 surveyed saw month-on-month prices drop.

For existing homes, prices in 61 cities dropped in January on a monthly basis.

Six cities recorded gains.

Three cities saw prices remain flat.

 

 

Beijing Guoan whitewash Bangkok Glass 3-0 to reach AFC Champions League

 

Beijing Guoan gave their supporters a Lunar New Year's gift of qualifying for the AFC Champions League after they thumped visitors Bangkok Glass 3-0 Tuesday night.

Guoan dominated the game from the very beginning, but the attacking line led by Dejan Damjanovic missed several scoring chances in the early minutes.

New winger Song Boxuan filled the vacancy left by midfield talent Zhang Xizhe, who left for German Bundesliga giants Wolfsberg.

Song lifted Guoan to a 1-0 lead in the 17th minute with a tap-in at a goal-mouth melee from a corner attack.

Guoan's Argentinean midfielder Pablo Batalla netted on the 64th minute off a penalty kick from Song to put Beijing two ahead.

Batalla notched the game-winning goal in the 73rd minute off of Dejan's shot, which hit the post.

Visiting Bangkok presented little threat during the match and seemed affected by the Chinese capital's cold climate.

The win puts Guoan in Group G with J.Leage's Urawa Red diamonds, South Korean club Suwon Samsung Bluewings and Australia's Brisbane Roar.

 

 

Chinese Peng Shuai Loses to Pironkova at Dubai Open

 

Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai has lost in a neck-and-neck match against Bulgaria's Tsvetana Pironkova in the second round of the women's annual Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships.

Amid sunny weather with temperatures above 25 degrees Celsius, Peng, a semi-finalist of last year's U.S. Open, won the first set 6-3, but dropped the next set 6-4. The third set came down to a hard-fought tie-break that eventually went in Pironkova's favor 7-6.

Caroline Wozniacki claimed a place in the third round with a 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 win over Samantha Stosur.

After suffering a scare in the first set, second seed Petra Kvitova defeated Elina Svitolina 2-6, 6-3, 6-2.

Fifth seed Agnieszka Radwanska defeated France's Caroline Garcia 6-3, 2-6, 6-3.

And Germany's Sabine Lisicki produced little to challenge fourth seed Ana Ivanovic, as the Serbian recorded a 6-0, 6-3 victory.

The Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships WTA event continues until this Saturday. Then the ATP tournament continues next week, which stars world number one Novak Djokovic, defending Dubai champion Roger Federer and Australian Open runner-up Andy Murray.

 

 

IOC Evaluation Commission Completes Meetings with Almaty 2022

 

The International Olympic Committee Evaluation Commission is concluding its inspection of 2022 Winter Games bid for Almaty, Kazakhstan.

About 30 speakers for the Almaty 2022 bid presented the IOC inspectors with Kazakhstan's plans for the Paralympic games, event safety, marketing and finance, as well as public and political support for the event.

The bidding committee's vice chairman, Andrey Kryukov, says the Winter Games would be a boost to rapid economic progress for both Almaty and Kazakhstan.

"Under the current circumstances, it is crucial for us to work out how to bring more benefit to the people in Almaty and neighboring regions through the Olympic Games. Actually, as we have repeatedly mentioned, the Olympics offer the best opportunity for rapid economic progress in the region."

However, residents are less optimistic about the benefits Almaty will reap if they get the winning bid for the 2022 Winter Games.

One resident, named Chengiz, says the cost to the city may not be worth hosting the event.

"Yes, I'm skeptical because it costs too much. It would need a lot of reconstruction and a lot of investment. So maybe it is not worthwhile for us to host an event like that."

The country's Prime Minister Karim Massimov, who is chair of the Almaty 2022 bidding committee, was not present to make the case for his country during a closed-session meeting on Tuesday, but Kryukov assured the IOC inspectors that Massimov will be present in Kuala Lumpur for the final election on July 31.

Almaty and Beijing now have only two more opportunities to win over IOC Members: a special hearing session in Lausanne June 9 and at the final election in the Malaysian capital.

 

 

Chinese film Triumph in the Skies takes top spot at Malaysia box office Polisher sophie

 

Chinese romance "Triumph in the Skies" has become one of the leading films in the Malaysian box office.

The film is an adaptation of a Hong Kong series of the same name.

It pulled in big numbers through this past Valentine's Day weekend.

"Triumph in the Skies" is a TV series which has been running for two seasons.

Directed by Wilson Yip and Matt Chow, the film is not a continuation of the show.

However, it does feature the three main characters from the second series.

The film tells the aspirational story the lives of a group of pilots and flight attendants.

The movie centers on three different romantic stories featuring a solid cast.

The cast include Louis Koo, Francis Ng, Julian Cheung, Charmaine Sheh and Kuo Tsai Cheh.

The film will also be released in North America.