For a long period, Western political and economic leaders had been the leading players in global affairs. In early 2017, however they found that they are no longer the limelight when Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered a keynote speech at the World Economic Forum in the Swiss resort of Davos in January 17.

President Xi was the first Chinese head of state to attend the annual gathering of the world's business and political elites. Xi's speech, which included a quote from British literary giant Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities, earned positive reviews around the world.

In the last few years, there is a global swing in politics, from advocating free trade to the germinating of anti-globalization. Although the situation is discouraging, China has always been a firm supporter of free trade and globalization.

Xi criticized protectionism and a de-globalization trend without mentioning certain country which was conducting the very policy at that moment.

He also promised to deepen China's reform and opening-up, and fulfill its responsibility in the Paris agreement. What China has achieved in the following years in terms of these aspects until now attests what Xi has declared in this forum, which featured his vision for socialism with Chinese characteristics for new era in the economic realm. China's achievements within the past two years demonstrate its edge compared to the West with regards to political system.

The 20th century witnessed a dramatic change in the world. With the Western economic theory, the global economy is booming as a whole. However the Western model is far from impeccable. The global economic growth is at the expense of the disadvantaged groups. Scholars, politicians, and business leaders who proposed and advanced this might have forgotten the status quo of the impoverished area of the world.

According to World Bank, there are more than 800 million people living below 1.9 U.S. dollars per day and most of them settle in the most undeveloped countries across the world. 

The West's political and economic elites did not prioritize the needs of the destitute people. This is one of the significant differences between Western economic theory and what President Xi and the Communist Party of China (CPC) propose. During the periods of revolution, construction, and reform, the key to the success of the CPC's great cause is to always prioritize the people and to always meet the people's needs.

In the international communist movement, countries who have failed their socialist experiment could also be due to their ignorance of this point. Therefore, it is arguable that the setback of international communist and socialist cause in last century might not be the success of Western-style economic and political approach, not to mention the end of history.

Besides for globalization and the open economy, the omnipotent and all-powerful market system is another myth depicted by Western economic theory. Indeed, in modern economics, the market is not only a real field in which exchange of materials, resources, capitals, and even personnel take place, but it is also a series of regulations and institutions that all participants should obey and follow.

Although the market still plays a crucial and decisive role to Chinese further economic development, we should never forget that market failure happens from time to time and from place to place. Blindly believing that once a market system is established and even consolidated all the issues would be solved accordingly is a stupid mistake.

Any serious political and economic leaders should be cautious to dual character of market. And this shows another notable difference between Western economic theory and what President Xi and the CPC propose, which is the fact that the Chinese state takes responsibility of both national economic growth and improvement of people's livelihood. All these are attributed to the strong leadership of the CPC. This is key to the China miracle and China would like to share it with other countries.