Xi Jinping on December 31.
Photographer: Yao Dawei / Xinhua / Getty Images
Photographer: Yao Dawei / Xinhua / Getty Images
President Xi Jinping issued an unusually optimistic assessment of China’s future, noting that “time and situation” were on the side of the country in a new year marked by internal unrest in the United States
The Chinese leader told a meeting of provincial and ministerial officials on Monday that he saw “opportunities generally outweigh challenges”, a marked change from his sometimes terrible warnings in recent months. While reiterating a frequently used allusion to the challenges posed by President Donald Trump’s “America First” policies, he expressed new confidence that China will win in the long run.
“The world is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century, but time and situation are in our favor,” Xi said in a study session at the Communist Party School, according to the official Xinhua News agency. “This is where our determination and confidence come from.”
Xi’s optimistic remarks come in the context of an economic return home and a historic Washington uprising. In addition to the chaos on Capitol Hill last week and the worsening of the coronavirus outbreak in America, a forecast published by the Center for Economics and Business Research last month projected that China will overtake the US as the world’s largest dollar economy in 2028, five years earlier than a year ago.
In similar remarks in 2020, Xi highlighted “unprecedented risks and challenges” as the coronavirus hit China and bilateral ties with the US fell to historic lows, with disputes over everything from the pandemic and trade to Taiwan and Hong Kong. .
On Monday, Xi urged provincial officials, who are preparing to approve a new round of five-year plans at their annual legislative sessions, to remain “humble and cautious,” according to Xinhua. He said efforts were needed to raise awareness of potential dangers, consider the most unfavorable scenarios and learn to deal with more complex and difficult situations.
The legislative sessions are part of a long series of events, as Xi prepares to celebrate 100 years since the ruling party was founded in July. Xi also reiterated his call for the country to rely more on technological innovation, while building a “larger internal market” to increase consumption.
– With the assistance of Lucille Liu and Jing Li