Welcome to another episode of the GT Podcast with Mulan – a one-stop shop for the Global Times’ take on top China and global news.

In today’s podcast:

China's top diplomat Wang Yi held phone talks with his Iranian and Saudi counterparts Hossein Amir-Abdollahian and Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud separately on Monday regarding the tensions between Israel and Iran, and the wider situation in the Middle East. Chinese experts emphasized that Beijing's recent actions demonstrate its commitment to playing a constructive role in de-escalating tensions in the Middle East and maintaining stability in the Gulf region.

China's GDP growth rate beat market expectations to reach 5.3 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, kicking off a good start to the year and laying a strong foundation for achieving the annual development targets.

In an interview with the Global Times, Helwig Schmidt-Glintzer, German sinologist and professor emeritus for East Asian Literature and Culture at the University of Göttingen in Germany, said the bilateral relationship between China and Germany is good, and it should become better in the future.

Global Times reporters visited and exclusively spoke with former Philippine president Rodrigo Duterte in Davao, the Philippines, where he repeatedly called for rational and friendly dialogue with China on current intense bilateral relations.

As a major sports powerhouse, China has witnessed a growing number of international sporting events across the country in recent years, attracting more and more foreign athletes and sports enthusiasts to the country.