Xi vows to press ahead with reform until triumph

World
Europe

Reform and opening up is the "only path" to fulfilling the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation, Chinese President Xi Jinping said in his New Year Address on Sunday, vowing to press ahead with reform in 2018, when China celebrates the 40th anniversary of launching the reform and opening-up policy.

Xi said China, as a "responsible major country," will make contributions to world peace and development and will honor its promise to fight climate change.

In the 11-minute televised speech, Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, reviewed the country's achievements in different areas from the past year, adding that the fruits of development should be shared by all Chinese people.

Xi reiterated the goal of eliminating poverty among rural Chinese by 2020.

An aerial view of a port in a pilot free trade zone in Xiamen, southeast China's Fujian Province. /Xinhua Photo

Forty years of reform and opening up

China has been implementing the policy of reform and opening up since 1978.

Reform and opening up "has been the only path to the development and progress of contemporary China and the only path to the realization of the Chinese Dream," Xi stressed.

Since the 18th CPC National Congress in November 2012, the country has launched over 1,500 reform measures.

In 2017, China continued to increase reform in all aspects, with 79 key reform tasks completed, 211 reform tasks finished by central departments and 399 reform plans put forward in various sectors.

"2018 marks the 40th anniversary of our reform and opening up," Xi noted, calling on the nation to "surmount all obstacles to carry the reform further to its ultimate triumph."

This was not the first time recently that Xi underscored China's commitment to deepening reform and opening up to the outside world. In his report at the 19th CPC National Congress, Xi said the country must break new ground in the pursuit of opening up on all fronts.

"Openness brings progress, while self-seclusion leaves one behind," he told over 2,200 CPC delegates on Oct. 18. "China will not close its door to the world; we will only become more and more open."

'Builder of world peace'

With an increasingly important role on the world stage, China must "speak out" as a "responsible major country," Xi said in his New Year Address.

The past year saw an escalation of tensions on the Korean Peninsula, as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) upgraded its nuclear and ballistic missiles program, while the United States and South Korea staged large-scale military drills in the region.

Beijing has been calling for the crisis to be resolved through dialogue and negotiation, but Washington refuses to rule out military options. DPRK leader Kim Jong Un and US President Donald Trump frequently exchanged verbal insults and threats of war.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (R2) and his wife Peng Liyuan (R) welcome US President Donald Trump (L2) and his wife Melania Trump at the Palace Museum, or the Forbidden City, in Beijing, November 8, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

China has made it clear that it will not allow war or chaos on the peninsula.

Xi reiterated that Beijing is dedicated to safeguarding peace. "China will act as a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and an upholder of the international order."

China will make joint efforts with other countries to build the Belt and Road and a community with a shared future for mankind, he added.

Proposed by Xi in 2013, the Belt and Road Initiative aims to build the trade and infrastructure networks connecting Asia with Europe and Africa via land and maritime routes.

Building a community with a shared future for mankind, an important concept of China's diplomacy in the new era, calls for win-win cooperation and turning planet Earth into a harmonious family.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, foreign delegation heads and guests walk out of the Yanqi Lake International Convention Center after the first session of the Leaders' Roundtable Summit at the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation, in Beijing, May 15, 2017. /Xinhua Photo‍

Trump's 2017 decision to pull the US out of the Paris agreement for fighting climate change has drawn worldwide criticism, while China has repeatedly stressed its commitment to implementing the accord.

"China will honor its promises in countering global climate change," Xi said.

Xi calls for solid efforts to modernize China

2018 will be the first year to implement the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress, he said, calling for solid efforts to carry out the country's "beautiful blueprint" for the next three decades.

According to the two-stage development plan mapped out in Xi's report at the congress, socialist modernization will be basically realized in China from 2020 to 2035; from 2035 to the middle of the century, China will be developed into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful.

Chinese President Xi Jinping (C) talks to grassroots official Xu Wan in Desheng Village, Xiaoertai Township of Zhangbei County in north China's Hebei Province, January 24, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

"A tall tower needs a solid foundation," Xi said. "To translate the blueprint into reality, we have to avoid the distractions of unsubstantial ideas and superficial fame, take one step at a time, and approach our work with a firm footing."

China will honor its "solemn commitment" to lifting its rural impoverished population out of poverty by 2020, Xi added.

The poverty line in China is set at an annual average net income of 3,300 yuan (about 507 US dollars) per capita in 2017. More than 10 million rural residents were lifted out of poverty during the past year.

With three years until the deadline, the whole nation must make concerted efforts with targeted measures to "win the final phase of the war on poverty," the Chinese president stressed.

Villagers harvest rice in a paddy field in Gufang Village in Wenwuba Town of Huichang County, Ganzhou City, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 28, 2017. /Xinhua Photo

'Fruits should be shared by the people'

In 2017, China's GDP rose to the level of 80 trillion yuan (about 12.3 trillion US dollars); over 13 million jobs were created; 3.4 million people were relocated from poverty-stricken areas and now live in new warm housing, Xi listed the country's achievements, noting that 1.35 billion people are now covered by basic medical insurance, and that the quality of the environment has improved.

"People have enjoyed a stronger sense of gain, of happiness and of security," he said.

Xi hailed the Chinese people's creativity and contributions, attributing the country's progress to the people.

"Our country's great development has been achieved by the people, and its fruits should be shared by the people," he said.

Xi attaches great importance to the well-being of ordinary Chinese citizens. "The people's longing for a good life is what we are fighting for," he said in his first public speech as general secretary of the CPC Central Committee on Nov. 15, 2012. He has since repeated the words and sentiment on many occasions.

"I am aware of the people's biggest concerns, such as education, employment, income, social security, healthcare, old-age security, housing and the environment," Xi said on Sunday, acknowledging the efforts to improve people's well-being "have not always been satisfactory."

While pledging to further improve peoples' livelihoods, Xi also called on every Chinese to "work hard to achieve happiness."

2km