On Dec 30, 2008, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi was interviewed by CCTV's News Weekly program correspondent Bai Yansong. The interview was broadcast on Jan 4, 2009.

While talking about China's surrounding environment, Yang said the country's neighbors last year were confronted with many challenges, such as the terrorist attacks in Mumbai and the political turmoil in Thailand.

There were many reasons behind these incidents, including the political and economic transition in some countries, the havoc of extremism and terrorism and unexpected external factors like the ongoing global financial crisis.