Weighing in on South China Sea - Washington

Brendan S. Mulvaney, associate chair for the Languages and Cultures Department at the US Naval Academy, and William Jones, executive Intelligence Review Washington bureau chief, agreed with what former State councilor Dai Bingguo stressed in a speech that China and the US should dial down the rhetoric on the South China Sea issue at a media briefing in Washington on Wednesday. From left, Zhu Feng, director of the Collaborative Innovation Center of South China Sea Studies at Nanjing University; Huang Renwei, vice-president of the Shanghai Academy of Social Science; Wu Shicun, president of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies; Wang Wen, executive dean of Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies at Renmin University of China; Mulvaney and Jones. Niu Yue / For China Daily

Ex-State councilor discussed South China Sea

Former State councilor Dai Bingguo delivers a speech at China-US Dialogue on South China Sea between Chinese and US think tanks on Tuesday in Washington. Ji Tao / China Daily

Official support - San Francisco

He Konghua, president of the Beijing Association, stands with competitors of the 2016 Water Cube Cup Overseas Chinese Teenager Singing Competition, the Silicon Valley venue, on July 3. Luo Linquan (center), Chinese consul general in San Francisco, attended the event. Dong Xudong / For China Daily

Immigration program supported - San Francisco

From left: Amanda Alvarado Ford, immigration law coordinating attorney with La Raza Centro Legal,Sally Kinoshita, deputy director with Immigrant Legal Resource Center, Annette Wong, director of programs with Chinese for Affirmative Action, and Wei Lee, program coordinator with ASPIRE, an immigration assistance service group, encourage application for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) in the Asian Pacific Islanders community despite a recent decision by the US Supreme Court. The panel was organized by New America Media and the San Francisco Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs on Thursday. Lia Zhu / China Daily

Building cultural understanding - New York

New York state Senator Toby Ann Stavisky (sixth from right), New York state Assemblyman David Weprin (fourth from right), New York City Councilman Peter Koo (fifth from right), Chang Quansheng (sixth from left), consul at China's Consulate General in New York, and other guests pose for a group photo at the Cross Cultural Internship Program (CCIP) 2016 Recognition Ceremony at Citi Field in New York on Tuesday. Seventy-five exchange visitors celebrated accomplishments and efforts in the field of cultural exchange. As a summer internship program administered by FUSIA Communications, CCIP has served more than 850 exchange visitors from Asia since 2008. Provided To China Daily

Dancing in the rain - Washington

Dancers from Fairfax Chinese Dance Troupe dance in the rain during the National Independence Day Parade on Monday in Washington. Shuhan Li / For China Daily

Light up the night - Houston

From left: Miss Chinatown contestants Karen Lynn Yang, Sharon Liu and Orilla Shen signs autograph on the poster of Miss Chinatown 2016 to promote the event on Monday in Houston. Eight contestants will participate in the annual pageant, to be held on July 23. May Zhou / China Daily

(China Daily USA 07/08/2016 page13)