# press briefings

Lunar‑New Year 'Lucky Bags': China’s Foreign Ministry Courts Foreign Press with a Gesture of Warmth

China’s foreign ministry presented Lunar‑New Year “lucky bags” to foreign journalists at a Beijing press briefing, a small act praised as warm by those present. The gesture illustrates how cultural rituals serve as low‑cost public diplomacy aimed at softening interactions with the foreign press amid broader diplomatic tensions.