Chinese robots and culture converge at UN's Year of the Horse celebration

A robotic lion dancer, a panda-shaped robot and three humanoid dancing robots took center stage at a Chinese New Year gala hosted by the United Nations Chinese Book Club at UN headquarters in New York on Thursday. The performance drew hundreds of UN staff, diplomats and international visitors, many pausing their routines to watch, film and applaud.

The Chinese New Year, also known as the Spring Festival, is now officially listed as a floating holiday on the United Nations calendar and has been inscribed on UNESCO's list of humanity's intangible cultural heritage.

"Spring Festival conveys to the world the values of harmony in diversity and peaceful coexistence, and embodies people's shared aspiration for a better life," said Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations.

He called on all parties, in the Year of the Horse, to move forward "with unstoppable momentum and tireless vitality" to strengthen cooperation between China and the United Nations, promote the UN's mission, deepen dialogue among civilizations, and advance the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

The UN Chinese Book Club, part of the organization's staff recreation clubs, is made up of Chinese employees working across different UN departments.

Speaking at Thursday's event, Li Junhua, UN under-secretary-general for economic and social affairs, said the UN is facing unprecedented challenges.

"Confronted with raging conflicts, declining mutual trust, widening poverty gaps and a persistent lack of equity, we need more than ever to revisit the UN's founding mission, and more than ever to reflect calmly on the future and destiny of humanity," Li said.

"These challenges are not distant or abstract," he added. "They are deeply embedded in our daily work."

Li said that amid a sweeping reform process, every Chinese staff member is directly involved.

"Some of our colleagues stay up late into the night drafting proposals. Others hold the line through long negotiations. Reform inevitably brings growing pains: some take on overwhelming workloads, while others are adapting to professional transitions," he said.

Looking ahead, Li described 2026 as a pivotal year for the organization.

"Whether the world moves toward war or peace, prosperity or poverty, inclusion or division depends on the political will and collective actions of member states," he said. "It also depends on the quiet, day-to-day contributions of every colleague, in every post."

Khaled Khiari, UN assistant secretary-general for the Middle East, Europe, the Americas, Asia and the Pacific, expressed appreciation for China's long-standing engagement with the UN, particularly in peacekeeping operations, where China remains one of the largest troop contributors among the permanent members of the Security Council.

Within one week, Chinese robots appeared twice at UN headquarters. The first appearance came on Monday, when the Chinese Mission to the United Nations hosted the Year of the Horse celebration.

"I'm quite impressed by this kind of display of technology, and I know that China is a leader in technology," Yuri Gala Lopez, Cuba's deputy permanent representative to the UN, said on Monday. "We want to wish them all the best in their development in the technological, economic and social fields."

Dima Al-Khatib, director of the UN Office for South-South Cooperation, said that she found the performance "very impressive", adding that she looked forward to learning more about China's technological progress this year.

"We are very much looking forward to the visit this year to explore further how, through technology transfer and support, we can bring it to other countries of the global South," she said on Monday.