Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Thursday stressed the importance of promoting the great founding spirit of the Party and the spirit of Yan'an, and striving in unity to fulfill the goals and tasks set by the 20th CPC National Congress.

Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, led the other members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee – Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi, Ding Xuexiang and Li Xi – on a trip to Yan'an, an old revolutionary base in northwest China's Shaanxi Province, on Thursday.

They visited the site where the 7th CPC National Congress was held, a former residence of late Chinese leader Mao Zedong and an exhibition at the Yan'an Revolutionary Memorial Hall, which features the history of the 13 years during which the CPC Central Committee was based in Yan'an.

The 7th CPC National Congress held in 1945 is of milestone significance in the history of the CPC, marking the Party becoming more mature politically, ideologically and in terms of its organization, Xi said.

After visiting the exhibition on the 13 years of the CPC Central Committee in Yan'an, Xi hailed Yan'an as a holy site of the Chinese revolution and the cradle of New China in a speech.

Xi noted in the speech that it was in Yan'an that the Party's Central Committee and veteran revolutionaries, including Mao Zedong, led China's revolutionary cause from a low point into an upsurge, reached a historical turning point, and transformed the prospects of the country.

Xi said he lived and worked in Yan'an for seven years, and his father also worked there.

The spirit of Yan'an highlights the firm belief in the correct political orientation, the guiding principles of freeing the mind and seeking truth from facts, the fundamental purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly and the enterprising spirit of self-reliance and hard work, Xi said.

The spirit, the glorious traditions and fine conduct developed and promoted during the Yan'an period are all precious assets of the Party, and should be passed down from generation to generation, Xi added.

In the speech, Xi underscored that all members of the Party should apply a people-centered development philosophy in their work, advance common prosperity and do a better job of seeing that the gains of modernization benefit all the people fairly.

He urged them to always stay independent, self-reliant and hard-working, remain committed to full and rigorous self-governance, and enable the Party to remain the strong leadership core in building socialism with Chinese characteristics.

The 20th CPC National Congress has laid out the major policies and strategic plans of the Party and the country at present and for some time to come, and the blueprint of advancing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization, Xi stressed.

The visit to Yan'an comes less than one week after the conclusion of the 20th CPC National Congress in Beijing.

According to the report adopted by the congress, the central task of the CPC will be to lead the Chinese people of all ethnic groups in a concerted effort to realize the Second Centenary Goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects and to advance the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization.

China eradicated absolute poverty and finished building a moderately prosperous society in all respects in 2021, thus completing the First Centenary Goal.

(With input from Xinhua)

(Cover: Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, leads members of the Standing Committee of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau to visit Yan'an, China, October 27, 2022. /Xinhua)