Chongqing ICC Opens Bridging News Bureau in Kuala Lumpur
On July 30, 2026, the Chongqing-based Western China International Communication Organization (西部國際傳播中心), or WCICO — formerly the Chongqing International Communication Center (重慶國際傳播中心), China’s first provincial-level center for state-led external propaganda — unveiled the Kuala Lumpur bureau of Bridging News (陸海財經). Alongside iChongqing, Bridging News is a core WCICO brand for what China’s leadership calls “external propaganda” (外宣), with accounts on Facebook and YouTube. WCICO opened the bureau with the Center for Advanced Studies and Research, or CASR, which characterizes itself as a non-partisan Malaysian think tank. WCICO deputy general manager Sang Jian (桑建) and CASR director of Chinese studies Teah Wuen Khai presided over the launch at the 2026 Land-Sea Economic Forum (陸海財經論壇). WCICO hosted the forum under the guidance of Chongqing’s government information office, which was led by a deputy propaganda chief. The forum drew nearly 200 Chinese and Malaysian participants. The bureau joined WCICO partner stations in Italy, Peru, Brazil, and Singapore. On September 15, 2026, a CASR commentary promoting western China’s development linked repeatedly to iChongqing sources. WCICO also circulated its account of the forum through PR Newswire. WCICO, launched in 2023 by the propaganda office of the Chongqing CCP Committee, is operated by the Chongqing Daily News Group (重慶日報報業集團). WCICO’s 2024 restructuring plan had called for staging the forum with the state-controlled CITIC Press Group (中信出版集團), and for making Bridging News a “mobile portal” for western China’s opening.
