TOKYO -- Just before the start of the Lunar New Year celebrations on Monday, an important political event took place in China.
Huang Xingguo, a close aide to President Xi Jinping and acting party secretary of Tianjin, appeared before the media for the first time since a series of explosions at a chemical warehouse in the port city south of Beijing killed or injured nearly 1,000 people. He broke his silence on Jan. 8 with a bold statement at a meeting of local officials.
