Horticultural expo Declaring the opening of the world’s largest international horticultural* exhibition in Beijing on Sunday, President Xi Jinping expressed his hope that the green development concept embodied* by the expo park would be spread to “every corner of the world.” “The growth mode of ‘killing the hens for eggs’ and ‘draining the lake for fish’ is at a dead end,” Xi said in his speech at the opening ceremony of the expo. “The future will be illuminated* by eco-friendly development that is in accordance with the rules of nature.” Road safety alert The Ministry of Public Security has called for enhanced road safety precautions during the May Day holiday, which is expected to see traffic spikes. The past three May Day holidays have marked the first two nights of the holiday as accident-prone, the ministry said. The ministry warned the public against major traffic risks during the holiday, including a traffic surge on expressways, a tourist cities and destinations, a possible increase of traffic violations and rainfall in some regions. 1,000 ants seized Changsha Customs said they recently seized over 1,000 live ants from a parcel from Britain, the latest of such seizures fueled by the rising fashion for exotic pets in China. Customs officials from Changsha, capital of Hunan Province, said the harvester ants*, sealed in test tubes together with nutrient* solution, were probably mailed into China as pets. They included 37 black-and-red queen ants, with a body length of about 1.4 cm, and a large number of worker ants and eggs. They were identified as harvester ants, which are gaining popularity among China’s pet lovers. B&R forum President Xi Jinping announced that extensive consensus was reached on promoting “high-quality cooperation” under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) at the closing of the Second Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing on Saturday. “We spoke positively of the progress and significance of the cooperation under the BRI. We shared the view that cooperation under the BRI has opened a gateway to opportunities for common prosperity,” Xi said. (SD-Agencies) | 