China's Tibet Autonomous Region, known as "the world's last piece of pure land" and "the roof of the world," celebrates its 70th anniversary of the peaceful liberation this year, and the plans for its future development are becoming clearer.
At last year's high-level meeting on Tibet, China mapped out policy directions for building a new modern socialist region that is united, prosperous, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful.
Tibet's long-lasting peace and stability, as well as developing an ecological civilization and achieving high-quality development, were among the issues highlighted during Chinese President Xi Jinping's three-day inspection tour of the region, which began on Wednesday, to mark the 70th anniversary of peaceful liberation.
The development of Tibet, an inseparable part of China, is a priority for the central government. Since taking the helm of the country in 2013, President Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, has paid close attention to the development of the region. Arrangements have been made to promote social stability, border development, ecological protection and ethnic unity in Tibet, opening a new chapter of improved governance, stability and people's well-being.
Adherence to building ecological civilization
On Wednesday, President Xi arrived at Nyingchi Mainling Airport and was warmly welcomed by local people and officials of various ethnic groups before visiting the Nyang River Bridge to inspect ecological preservation in the basin of the Yarlung Zangbo River and its tributary Nyang River.
Tibet maintained stable environmental quality in 2020, according to a report by the region's ecology and environment department.
Speaking at a meeting wrapping up his inspection tour on Friday, Xi reiterated his belief that "lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets" as he called for greater promotion of biodiversity conservation on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
"We should unswervingly give priority to ecology and pursue green development, strive for modernization focusing harmonious coexistence of man and nature, and protect the third pole environment," he said.
By the end of 2020, Tibet had built 47 nature reserves spanning 412,200 square kilometers, accounting for over one-third of the region's total.
Pursuing high-quality development
"High-quality" is another keyword in the plan for Tibet's development. President Xi outlined critical elements of the process: ensuring national security and enduring peace and stability, steadily improving people's lives, maintaining a good environment, solidifying border defense and ensuring frontier security.
The process of building a modern socialist country in an all-round way has begun and Tibet has now reached a new historical starting point in its development, the president said on Friday, stressing the importance of consolidating and expanding China's achievements in poverty alleviation and guaranteeing a smooth transition into rural vitalization.
During his stay, Xi visited a local city planning hall, a village and a park in Nyingchi, to learn more about the city's development planning, rural vitalization plans and park building.
As transportation is critical to the economic development, he also visited Nyingchi Railway Station to see the design of the Sichuan-Tibet Railway and the operation of Lhasa-Nyingchi Railway section, and then took a train to the regional capital, Lhasa.
Officially put into operation last month, the Lhasa-Nyingchi Railway is Tibet's first electrified railway.
Xi stressed the importance of blazing a path of high-quality development that suits Tibet's actual conditions, and said the reform and opening-up process should be deepened, and the construction of railways, highways and other major infrastructure accelerated. He also urged the development of industries with local characteristics and a national base for clean energy.
Given that Tibet's security and stability are closely related to the overall development of the whole nation, Xi also stressed that work related to Tibet must focus on safeguarding national unity and strengthening ethnic solidarity.
President Xi was briefed on work related to ethnic and religious affairs at the Drepung Monastery, Barkhor Street and the Potala Palace Square in Lhasa, and he emphasized the importance of protecting freedom of religious belief, managing religious affairs in accordance with the law and guiding Tibetan Buddhism in adapting to the socialist society.