China recorded an average of 198 million daily inter-regional passenger trips during the three-day New Year holiday that ended on Saturday, marking a year-on-year increase of 19.62 percent, official data showed Sunday.

The total number of passenger trips during the holiday reached 595 million, highlighting robust travel demand, according to the Ministry of Transport.

Highway travel remained the dominant mode of transportation, accounting for 539 million passenger trips during the holiday. Daily passenger traffic rose by 15.7 percent compared to the previous year. Railway transport saw the fastest growth among major modes of transport, recording a year-on-year increase of 52.66 percent on a daily average basis. On the first day of the holiday, railway passenger trips totaled 18.56 million, surging 67.9 percent year on year.

Moreover, waterway and civil aviation transport also posted double-digit increases in passenger trips during the period.

“The surge in travel during the holiday boosted sales at tourist attractions, accommodation, entertainment, and specialty products, promoting economic development in urban and rural areas and presenting a vibrant China,” said Xin Minglun, deputy director of the Transport Service Department of the Ministry of Transport.

A total of 142 million domestic travel trips were made during the three-day New Year holiday period, with total tourism spending reaching nearly 84.8 billion yuan (about 12.1 billion U.S. dollars), the Ministry of Culture and Tourism said on Sunday.

The ministry added that winter-themed tours, sun-seeking getaways and short-distance excursions gained significant traction during the holiday, as consumer activity remained robust and dynamic.

The National Immigration Administration said on Sunday that the country recorded more than 6.61 million cross-border trips during the three days. The average number of daily cross-border trips surged by 28.6 percent year on year.

The data also showed that 3.365 million exit and entry passenger trips were made by Chinese mainland residents, and 2.422 million by residents from Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan, up 39.1 percent and 15.9 percent year on year, respectively.

During the holiday, cross-border trips by foreign visitors rose by 29.8 percent from the 2025 figure to reach 828,000. Among these foreign travelers entering China, 292,000 were admitted under the country’s visa-free policy, up 35.8 percent year on year.

The United States’ strikes on Venezuela and its abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife on Saturday have drawn worldwide condemnations.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that the United States has struck Venezuela and captured Maduro, who was flown out of the country along with his wife.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was deeply alarmed by the U.S. military actions, his spokesperson said in a statement.

“The Secretary-General continues to emphasize the importance of full respect — by all — of international law, including the UN Charter. He’s deeply concerned that the rules of international law have not been respected,” said the statement issued by spokesperson Stephane Dujarric.

China called on the United States to release Maduro and his wife at once, said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson on Sunday.

China expresses grave concern over the U.S. forcible abduction of the Venezuelan President and his wife and taking them out of the country, said the spokesperson, adding that the U.S. move is in clear violation of international law, basic norms in international relations, and the purposes and principles of the UN Charter.

China calls on the United States to ensure the personal safety of Maduro and his wife, release them at once, stop toppling the government of Venezuela, and resolve issues through dialog and negotiation, said the spokesperson.

The Russian Foreign Ministry called for immediate clarification of the situation around Maduro and his wife after the U.S. aggression against Venezuela.

Russia is “extremely alarmed” by reports of Maduro and his wife’s forcible removal from Venezuela during the U.S. action, the ministry said in a statement.

“We call for immediate clarification of this situation. Such actions, if they actually occurred, constitute an unacceptable infringement on the sovereignty of an independent state, respect for which is a key principle of international law,” the ministry added.

The ministry also said that the United States committed “an act of armed aggression” against Venezuela, which causes deep concern and condemnation.

The ministry noted that Latin America must remain a zone of peace, and Venezuela must be guaranteed the right to determine its own destiny without any destructive and military interference from outside.

Tens of thousands of people gathered on Saturday in Havana, the capital of Cuba, to denounce the U.S. military actions against Venezuela and voice support for their Latin American brother in defending its sovereignty.

At the event, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel said that Latin America is not the backyard of the United States and that it neither accepts nor recognizes the Monroe Doctrine.

Condemning the U.S. strikes on Venezuela and its kidnapping of Maduro, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said that such actions blatantly violated international law, and gravely infringed upon the sovereignty of Venezuela, leading to power politics rather than multilateralism and resulting in violence, chaos and turmoil.

He urged the international community to react in a strong manner through the United Nations.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro opposed the unilateral military action, urging de-escalation to protect civilians.

The Foreign Ministry of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Sunday condemned the U.S. actions against Venezuela for violating the country’s sovereignty, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported.

“The DPRK Foreign Ministry strongly denounces the U.S. hegemony-seeking act committed in Venezuela as the most serious form of encroachment of sovereignty and as a wanton violation of the UN Charter and international laws,” a ministry spokesperson was quoted by the KCNA as saying.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim on Sunday said on social media that the U.S. capture of Maduro and his wife constitutes a clear violation of international law and amounts to an unlawful use of force against a sovereign state.

He said that the Maduro couple must be released immediately, adding that U.S. actions erode fundamental restraints on the use of power between states and weakens the legal framework that underpins international order.

Within the EU, nations including Germany, Spain, Italy and Portugal said they are closely monitoring the situation and called for restraint and solutions based on international law.

The European Parliament criticized the U.S. action as illegal and destabilizing.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas on Saturday said on social media that the EU is closely monitoring the situation in Venezuela.

“Under all circumstances, the principles of international law and the UN Charter must be respected,” she said.