October 1 marks the main holiday in China – National Day, the anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). This year commemorates the 75th anniversary of the proclamation of the state.

Three-quarters of a century ago, on October 1, 1949, the first five-star red flag was raised in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. This event marked a new birth for the ancient state.

This day marks the beginning of the so-called “Golden Week” in China – a time when the whole country goes on its annual national holiday. Numerous festive events are held during the holiday weekend, and locals travel masse around the country. It is expected that the Chinese will make around 175 million railway journeys during this period.

The celebration of National Day began on September 30. A concert dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the founding of the state was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. Three thousand people attended the event, including Xi Jinping, President of the People’s Republic of China, and other political figures.The Chinese leader delivered a speech emphasising the need to always put the people’s welfare first.

“We should never forget that the people always come first. Everything we do should be for the people, and we should rely on the people in everything we do. We should ensure that all the Chinese people will benefit from our joint cause of promoting reform and development”

Xi Jinping President of the People’s Republic of China

In addition, a ceremony for awarding the highest state honours was held on the eve of the holiday. The President presented orders and conferred honorary titles on outstanding Chinese citizens. The only foreign recipient of a state award was Dilma Rousseff, former President of Brazil and head of the BRICS New Development Bank; she was awarded the Order of Friendship.

During her speech at the ceremony, Rousseff expressed her gratitude for the award and noted the achievements of the Chinese leadership over the past decades.

“I would like to extend my warm congratulations to President Xi Jinping. <…> Your unremitting efforts in addressing major global challenges such as climate change, promoting inclusive development, and maintaining peace and security demonstrate your profound insight as a great statesman into the future. The Belt and Road Initiative exemplifies bold progress, opening new pathways for mutually beneficial international cooperation,” reports
CCTV+, a partner of TV BRICS.

On Tuesday, October 1, the celebration of China’s National Day began with the traditional ceremony of raising the national flag and the playing of the anthem by an orchestra in Tiananmen Square.

On this day, world leaders send congratulations to Xi Jinping. Russian President Vladimir Putin is among them. He noted China’s successes in economic, social and scientific and technological development. In addition, the Russian head of state said that the PRC and the Russian Federation will continue to work together to further strengthen relations of comprehensive partnership and strategic cooperation for the benefit of the peoples of the two states.

“Recently we have managed to achieve a qualitative growth in trade volumes, realise many large-scale bilateral projects in various spheres. The fruitful Russian-Chinese cooperation within the UN, BRICS, SCO and other multilateral structures is of great importance”

Vladimir Putin President of the Russian Federation

The main national holiday is also widely celebrated in other regions of the country. For example, a large-scale light show involving more than 10,000 drones was held in the city of Shenzhen in southern China to mark National Day. The event set two Guinness World Records at once: one for the largest number of unmanned aerial vehicles used in a light show, and the second for the largest number of drones simultaneously controlled by a single computer. The show will be held in five different locations throughout the holiday weekend.

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