Developing the road of modernization for the benefit of the world (People’s Watch)
Core reading
China firmly pursues its own development in safeguarding world peace, and maintains world peace with its own development, and has embarked on a road of modernization that not only develops itself but also benefits the world, creating a development miracle in the history of human modernization. No matter how the international situation changes and how it develops, China will always follow the path of peaceful development.
Under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), it took China decades to complete the industrialization process that developed countries have gone through for hundreds of years, creating a miracle of rapid economic development and long-term social stability that is rare in the world, and becoming the mainstay of maintaining world peace and stability and the backbone of promoting global development and prosperity. With the improvement of China’s comprehensive national strength and international influence, the international community is paying more and more attention to the development trend of China. Many people want to know how China will realize modernization, national prosperity and national rejuvenation. China has solemnly declared many times that it will unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development. Chairman of the Supreme Leader pointed out on many occasions that China will always be a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a defender of international order. No matter how the international situation changes and how it develops, China’s determination and belief in taking the road of peaceful development will never waver. China’s modernization is bound to develop itself and benefit the world.
Peaceful development is a choice made by the people of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and China according to their own history and national conditions.
Chinese civilization has lasted for more than 5,000 years, from generation to generation, and has always maintained its vitality and made important contributions to the progress of human civilization. Chinese civilization values harmony, helps the world and embraces all rivers, attaches importance to mutual learning and eclecticism, and is committed to realizing the beautiful vision of peace, good neighborliness and peace in the world. It has a broad vision and an open mind.
More than 2,000 years ago, China people opened the Silk Road to promote the cultural exchanges between the East and the West. More than 600 years ago, Zheng He led the world’s most powerful fleet to sail seven times to the Pacific Ocean and the Western Indian Ocean, and visited more than 30 countries and regions in Asia and Africa, creating a miracle in the history of world navigation. However, he never bullied others and never occupied an inch of land in other countries. Instead, he spread the seeds of peace and friendship along the way, leaving a story of friendly exchanges with people from all countries along the way.
After modern times, due to the corruption of feudal rule, China fell behind in the world development trend. Under the attack of western powers, China became a semi-colonial and semi-feudal society, and fell into a dark situation of internal troubles and foreign invasion, poverty and weakness.
The Chinese nation has always loved peace, but never succumbed to foreign aggression and oppression. In the face of the barbaric acts of western powers, the struggle of China people to save the nation and survive has never stopped. After the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), United and led the people of China in an arduous struggle for national independence and people’s liberation, and established the New China. The establishment of New China has opened up bright prospects for maintaining world peace and promoting common development, and has had a far-reaching impact on the historical process of the world.
General Secretary of the Supreme Leader pointed out: "The deepest spiritual pursuit of a nation must be sequenced in its national spirit passed down from generation to generation." "There is no gene of hegemony and belligerence in the blood of China people." Having suffered from frequent wars, broken mountains and rivers and poor people, the people of China know the value of peace. Taking the road of peaceful development is not only the inevitable result of inheriting Chinese excellent cultural traditions, but also the inevitable conclusion drawn by the people of China from their sufferings after modern times.
Peaceful development is an important reason for China’s great achievements in modernization.
Since the late 1970s, China has firmly grasped the theme of peace and development, followed the trend and started the great process of reform and opening up. Internally, we will devote ourselves to development, continuously deepen reform, liberate and develop productive forces, and strive to make all people live a good life. Hold high the banner of peace, development, cooperation and win-win, always pursue an independent foreign policy of peace, adhere to an open strategy of mutual benefit and win-win, actively participate in and promote economic globalization, firmly safeguard the basic norms of international relations, firmly safeguard world fairness and justice, resolutely oppose hegemony, bullying and unilateralism, and make new contributions to maintaining world peace and stability and promoting common development while realizing its own development.
After long-term unremitting efforts, China has become the second largest economy in the world, and its contribution rate to global economic growth has remained at around 30% for many years. Especially since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with the Supreme Leader as the core, the cause of the party and the country has made historic achievements and undergone historic changes. In 2020, China’s GDP will exceed 101 trillion yuan. We have completed the goal and task of getting rid of poverty as scheduled, created new achievements in modernization that have attracted worldwide attention, and laid a solid foundation for building a socialist modernization power in an all-round way.
China’s modernization achievements were achieved by the Communist Party of China (CPC) leading the people of China to stand on their own feet, work hard and continue to work hard, and it was also the fruit of China’s peaceful development. Since the founding of New China more than 70 years ago, China has never taken the initiative to provoke any war or conflict. China strives for its own development while firmly safeguarding world peace, and also better safeguards world peace through its own development. China insists on providing foreign aid to support and help developing countries to eradicate poverty. It is the second largest contributor to United Nations peacekeeping operations and the permanent member of the United Nations that sends the largest number of peacekeepers. China is getting closer to the center of the world stage, and will continue to make greater contributions to the peace and prosperity of all mankind.
China has made brilliant achievements in modernization in just a few decades, one of the important reasons is to firmly grasp the theme of the times of peace and development and adhere to the road of peaceful development. Historical development has its laws. Only by advancing in the logic of historical progress and developing in the trend of the times can we grasp the historical initiative. Realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is the greatest dream of the Chinese nation. After the founding of New China, the people of China took control of their own destiny, began to build their own country, and their desire for development and prosperity became stronger. Today, with the deepening of world multipolarization, economic globalization, social informatization and cultural diversity, the general trend of peaceful development is irreversible. If China wants to develop, it needs a peaceful and stable international environment, conforms to the trend and seizes precious development opportunities. Adhere to peaceful development, so that China and the world form a close and benign interaction: integrate into the world, expand opening up, and accelerate the modernization of China; Embracing the world and promoting cooperation, China has continuously injected strong positive energy into world peace and development.
China took the road of peaceful development and devoted himself to solving the historical issues and practical problems faced by China, which not only conformed to the historical trend of the Chinese nation’s rejuvenation, but also conformed to the development trend of the present era, the national conditions of China and the wishes of the people of China. While accelerating its own development, China has also created a development miracle in the history of human modernization.
Peaceful development is an inevitable choice for building a socialist modern country in an all-round way.
At present, the changes in the past century and the epidemic in the century are intertwined, the world economy is in a downturn, unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, the international situation is intertwined with chaos and change, and the uncertainty of world instability is obviously enhanced. However, the trend of the times of peace, development, cooperation and win-win has not changed, and people of all countries are more eager for a better life.
After the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, faced with such major issues as "what kind of world to build and how to build this world", General Secretary of the Supreme Leader proposed to promote the building of a community of human destiny, and proposed to build a new type of international relations and jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative. The idea of building a community of human destiny, highlighting the excellent Chinese traditional culture and the common value pursuit of all mankind, summing up and developing China’s experience and wisdom in taking the road of peaceful development for many years, and focusing on realizing the common interests of win-win cooperation and common development between the people of China and the people of the world, reflects the belief, determination and actions of China in unswervingly taking the road of peaceful development in the new era.
Realizing modernization is a relay race. China has achieved a good result and embarked on a new journey of building a socialist modern country in an all-round way. General Secretary of the Supreme Leader stressed: "China’s peaceful development is not an expedient measure, let alone a diplomatic rhetoric, but a conclusion drawn from the objective judgment of history, reality and future, which is an organic unity of ideological self-confidence and practical consciousness. The path of peaceful development is beneficial to China and the world. We can’t think of any reason not to adhere to this path that has been proved to be feasible by practice. " On the new journey, we are faced with arduous and arduous tasks of reform, development and stability in China, and severe risk challenges brought about by profound and complex changes in the external environment. The unique advantages of "the rule of China" and the historical trend of "rising to the east and descending to the west" all show that time and potential are on China’s side, and morality and people’s hearts are on China’s side. Taking the road of peaceful development, we have a solid material and social foundation, firm confidence and strong confidence.
The key to continuing to follow the path of peaceful development lies in turning the opportunities of the world into those of China, and turning the opportunities of China into those of the world, so as to forge ahead in the benign interaction and mutual benefit between China and other countries. According to the changes in China’s development stage, environment and conditions, and in line with the trend of changes in the past century, we should base ourselves on the new development stage, implement new development concepts, build a new development pattern, concentrate on running our own affairs well, solve the outstanding problems of insufficient development imbalance with high-quality development, and enhance our ability and consciousness to seize and make good use of new opportunities. We will continue to uphold the concept of a community of human destiny, promote the building of a new type of international relations featuring mutual respect, fairness, justice, win-win cooperation, build the Belt and Road with high quality, actively participate in the reform of the global governance system, work together with other countries in the world for common development and win-win cooperation, and bring more opportunities and make greater contributions to the world with new achievements in modernization.
Only by taking the path of peaceful development can all countries develop together and live in peace. China adheres to the path of peaceful development, and hopes that all countries in the world will follow the path of peaceful development together. We should widely and deeply publicize China’s idea of adhering to the path of peaceful development and guide the international community to correctly understand and treat China’s development. In this regard, non-governmental diplomacy has unique advantages and shoulders a major mission. China’s non-governmental diplomacy should give full play to the rich resources and unique advantages of non-governmental subjects, and tell the stories of China, the Communist Party of China (CPC), Socialism with Chinese characteristics and China people’s struggle to realize their dreams in an understandable, memorable and touching way, so as to make the world know more about China, understand and treat China’s development path, social system, values and development achievements more objectively, rationally and comprehensively, promote the blind date and empathy between Chinese and foreign people, create favorable conditions for China’s peaceful development, and make the world common.
(The author is the president of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries)