The purpose of the article is to examine the changes in cross-border cooperation between Vietnam and China as a result of the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure between the two countries. This article is based on a mixed-methods study that includes desk research and surveys. The article explains how the two countries’ approaches to border shifted from ‘barrier’ to the border of ‘connectivity’. Accordingly, the article examines the changes in border management cooperation between the two countries, which serves as a vital basis for cross-border development cooperation. Furthermore, the article examines the perceptions of the two countries regarding the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure for comprehensive cooperation between the two countries and beyond. At the same time, the article examines how the two countries promote the development and connectivity of cross-border infrastructure, both hard and soft. The article also examined some initial results and some issues facing the two countries. The paper concludes with some findings. In particular, the article concludes that increased border connectivity will encourage cross-border cooperation and integration between the two countries and help to alleviate security concerns. Although the two countries have made efforts to open their borders, in the transition from a border of ‘barriers’ to a border of ‘connectivity’ remain partly to Vietnamese people’s memories of the 1979 Sino-Vietnamese border war, as well as the impact of the two countries’ unresolved South China Sea disputes. However, Vietnam also tries to promote cross-border cooperation within a controllable level.

In April 2023, the government of Changshu City, in Jiangsu Province, China, announced that it would officially use digital Chinese Yuan (E-CNY) as a method of wage payment to the government and state-owned enterprises staff starting in May. With the gradual improvement and application of E-CNY technologies, such as no electricity, no internet payment (offline payment), and the programmability of smart contracts, E-CNY will be officially used in China. CNN said China is on the verge of a cashless society. The advantages of E-CNY have a positive role in promoting the Chinese government’s implementation of the development goals of a low-carbon and sustainable economy. However, artificial intelligence (AI) trust concerns are the primary bottleneck in the current development based on intelligent algorithms and digital information technology. AI trust concerns are affecting the scope of use of E-CNY, and it may need to achieve effective scale-use, making it promote low-carbon and sustainable development. From the industry perspective, this article selects the housing rental enterprises, which are challenging to develop and energy-intensive, to analyze the theoretical approach and practical impact of E-CNY in promoting the low-carbon and sustainable development of China’s rental housing economy. Meanwhile, from the perspective of Chinese consumers, the impact of AI trust concerns on E-CNY in promoting low-carbon and sustainable development is analyzed in this article.

In the context of globalization and urbanization, rural development faces many challenges, such as population loss and uneven distribution of resources. This paper analyzes the similarities and differences in sustainable rural development strategies between China and Europe through a comparative perspective. China has optimized land use by relying on land policy innovations, such as the household contract responsibility system and the “separation of three rights”, as well as the construction of small towns; while Europe focuses on private ownership and market mechanisms, and supports agricultural and rural development through the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). Using literature review, comparative research and policy analysis, the study shows that the policy innovations in China and Europe, each with its own focus, have been effective in promoting agricultural output and rural social development. Particularly noteworthy is that the “three rights” policy has increased agricultural productivity through the liberalization of management rights, while the European CAP has contributed to the diversification of the rural economy and environmental protection through continuous reforms. This study emphasizes that through policy innovation and international cooperation, combining the strengths of China and Europe, it is possible to provide a new model of sustainable development for the global countryside. Specifically, through the establishment of Sino-European R&D centers for agricultural science and technology, exchange of talents, and cooperation in green infrastructure development, technology transfer and application can be accelerated, cultural exchange and understanding can be promoted, and the sustainable development agenda for global rural areas can be jointly advanced.

This study aims to explore the precise characteristics of the issue of bequests, not solely from a jurisprudential perspective as is common among researchers, but also by linking it to its role in community development and progress. Bequests serve multiple functions that represent the ethical and cultural objectives of Sharīʿah [the ‘Divine Legislation’], which manifest in the process of uniting members of a single society. This is achieved through their contribution to building bonds of affection and compassion among individuals. Additionally, bequests have economic dimensions that consider the interests of the needy and provide them with resources to elevate their living standards. The study also presents a comparison between the contract of bequest an inheritance contract in Islamic Sharīʿah and secular laws, particularly Western ones. This is done by examining the mechanisms employed in enforcing bequests and understanding the interests sought in each, highlighting the distinct features of Islamic Sharīʿah in its consideration of kinship and both private and public interests, aiming to clear religious liability and via promoting community development while prioritizing moral and societal values. Accordingly, this study, in its examination of the subject, seeks to investigate the essence and objectives of bequests and extract the meanings endorsed by the majority of scholars who permitted bequests to heirs, conditional upon the consent of the remaining heirs. This approach considers both the significance of maintaining harmonious familial ties, and the positive impact this has on individual and community development. This will then be compared to some methods that strictly define inheritance in certain Western societies. The researcher employed both analytical and comparative methodologies, in line with the study’s requirements, noting that the nature of the research opens horizons for understanding the approaches of non-Islamic countries regarding the issue of wills, the importance of exploring the culture of the other and its foundational references, the impact of Islamic laws on others, and how the laws upon which Islamic legislations were established have benefited from Western legal obligations. This represents an extension that goes beyond legislative codification to a cultural exchange that allows us to build intellectual communication with the other, placing this research before a fundamental problem embodied in the following question: To what extent do bequests contribute to community development? And what are the communicative dimensions that comparative legislation on bequests with the other offers us?