President Xi Jinping has called on Chinese border troops to enhance their capabilities in border defense and control to forge a "great wall of steel" along the country's borders.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks on Wednesday during a fact-finding trip to survey the work of border management and control and the development of border troops in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.

While visiting the Inner Mongolia military command of the People's Liberation Army, Xi commended the role of the region's border troops in ensuring security and stability on the northern border of the country.

Praising China's progress in border defense work since the 18th CPC National Congress in 2012, Xi said the country's border troops have boosted military training and combat preparedness, and resolutely safeguarded border security and the stability in regions along the borders.

They have effectively safeguarded China's sovereignty, security, and development interests, he added.

Stressing the importance of border defense in ensuring national stability and governance, Xi called on border troops to have a stronger sense of mission and responsibility, and guard the borders diligently for the Party and the people.

Xi underscored the need for continuous efforts to enhance cohesion and forge the soul of the border troops with the Party's new theories, as well as to improve their education on the political discipline, discipline regarding the public and affairs related to foreigners, and policies on ethnic and religious affairs. He emphasized the importance of ensuring the integrity and a high degree of unity among the border troops.

He called for more efforts to intensify troop training and enhance combat preparedness, speed up capacity building concerning information technology-enabled border defense and control, transform the way border defense duties are performed, tighten military discipline, maintain good troop order, and foster more border defense professionals.

Highlighting cooperation among Party and government departments, the military, law enforcement agencies and ordinary people in border defense as China's unique strength, Xi called for joint efforts from all parties to break a new ground in defending the country's borders.

(Cover: Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, speaks after hearing a report on the work of border management and control and the development of border troops in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, June 7, 2023. /Xinhua)