Article on Xi's Concern for Grassroots PLA Officers - Wang Yi Meets Cuban FM
Here are the key reports and articles from the People’s Daily’s edition on Friday, February 06, 2026.
Page 1: The top report on the page is on Xi Jinping replying to a letter from General Secretary of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party Central Committee and Laos President Thongloun Sisoulith to designate 2026 as the Year of China-Laos Friendship. Xinhua says:
“Xi noted that China and Laos are good neighbors and good friends connected by mountains and rivers with generations of friendship, as well as good comrades and good partners who share ideals and a common future. In recent years, Xi added, the two sides have pursued development through mutual benefit, met challenges through unity and collaboration, and firmly supported each other on issues involving their respective core interests, bringing tangible benefits to the peoples of both countries. Xi recalled his multiple meetings with Thongloun, during which they reached important consensus on deepening the building of a China-Laos community with a shared future, and charting a blueprint for the development of relations between the two parties and the two countries under new circumstances. Noting that with the turn of the year comes the renewal of all things, Xi said that China-Laos relations are at their best in history, with broad prospects for development. China has always viewed its relations with Laos from a strategic height and a long-term perspective, and is willing to take the celebration of the 65th anniversary of diplomatic relations and the friendship year as an opportunity to carry forward traditional friendship, deepen practical cooperation, strengthen strategic coordination, and advance the building of a China-Laos community with a shared future to the forefront of state-to-state relations, making greater contributions to regional peace, stability, development and prosperity, Xi said.”
Moving on, there’s a long article telling us how much General Secretary Xi Jinping cares for grassroots officers and soldiers of the PLA. This is an important article given the purge of basically the entire CMC. This article is about how Xi is the commander-in-chief, how connected he is to grassroots officers and soldiers and how much he grasps their jobs through first-hand engagement.
The piece begins by telling us about Xi’s interactions during the commissioning of China’s first electromagnetic-catapult aircraft carrier, the Fujian, on November 5.
“Chairman Xi is extremely concerned about the life of the officers and soldiers on board; he specially went to the dining hall and the soldiers’ cabins to inspect the food and accommodation guarantee situation, had cordial exchanges with the soldiers, and urged all levels to do a good job in all aspects of guarantees, so that the broad masses of officers and soldiers can better dedicate themselves to military construction and war preparedness. The commander-in-chief’s affection for the soldiers was genuinely evident. The earnest exhortations stirred the heroic resolve of the Fujian’s officers and soldiers to be determined to win: ‘We have confidence in mastering the new domestically built aircraft carrier, advancing into the deep blue, and contending across sea and sky.’ This oath is a resounding echo of the dream of a strong military. ‘We must uphold the principle of prioritising the grassroots and putting soldiers first’; ‘truly care for and cherish officers and soldiers, always keep their warmth and hardships in one’s heart’; Chairman Xi has put his concern for the military into practice through his grassroots footprints, walking border posts, ascending plateaus, boarding decks, entering cockpits, with his concern diffused into the spaces between the words and lines of each reply letter. 习主席十分关心舰上官兵生活，专门来到餐厅和士兵舱，察看饮食和住宿保障情况，同士兵们亲切交流，叮嘱各级搞好各方面保障，让广大官兵更好投身部队建设和备战打仗。统帅的爱兵之情，真挚流露。谆谆叮嘱，激起福建舰官兵矢志打赢的豪情壮志：“我们有信心驾驭新型国产航母，挺进深蓝、搏击海天。”这誓言，是强军梦想的铿锵回响。“要坚持基层至上、士兵第一”“真正关心关爱官兵，始终把官兵冷暖放在心上”……习主席将对军队的牵挂，践行在走边防、上高原、登甲板、进座舱的基层足迹，融进一次次回信的字里行间.
Later the piece tells us why, as per Xi, do the grassroots officers and soldiers matter the most:
“The grassroots are the foundation of all the military’s work and combat effectiveness. All military work must rely on the grassroots for implementation; charging into the enemy’s lines and breaking their positions on the front lines also relies entirely on the grassroots; The Party’s foundation lies in the grassroots, and the military’s foundation also lies in the grassroots. Only when the grassroots are solid can the military be strong; only when young officers and soldiers are solid does the military have a future;” “基层是部队全部工作和战斗力的基础，部队所有工作都要靠基层去落实，在第一线冲锋陷阵也全靠基层”；“党的根基在基层，军队的根基也在基层，基层过硬军队才能强大，青年官兵过硬军队才有未来”；
A lot of the report is about Xi’s engagements with individuals or visits to places, where he is meeting with grassroots-level individuals. The idea is to demonstrate that he is very attuned with the basic needs of soldiers, from food to living conditions, etc. Towards the end, we get this:
“Chairman Xi emphasised: ‘In peacetime, we must absolutely not allow troops to become pampered/soft; a mighty and awe-inspiring military force must remain mighty and awe-inspiring, and military personnel must still have martial spirit.’ On the training ground of the Armed Police Force’s ‘Falcon Commando Unit’, gunsmoke fills the air. Bullet after bullet bursts from chambers, accurately hitting targets. Not far away, the large characters ‘From Here, March Toward the Battlefield’ shine brilliantly. Preparing for war and combat, pillowing on weapons while waiting for dawn, the officers and soldiers dare not rest for a moment, treating every training session as actual combat. Chairman Xi personally presented the flag to the Armed Police’s ‘Falcon Commando Unit,’ and in April 2024 sent a reply letter to all its members, encouraging them to ‘strive to forge a world-class anti-terrorism special operations elite force, and remain ready at all times to perform new meritorious deeds for the Party and the people’. This entrustment has transformed into the team members’ action-consciousness. ‘We will certainly use the weapons in our hands to the ultimate limit, practice tactics and methods to the ultimate limit, and deeply accumulate the strength for winning battles’, said special operations member Wu Yuanhao with a firm gaze. Chairman Xi pointed out that we must comprehensively forge rock-solid grassroots units that listen to the Party and follow the Party, rock-solid grassroots units that can fight and win battles, and rock-solid grassroots units with strict law and discipline and upright atmosphere, to provide solid foundation and support for advancing the strong military cause. The commander-in-chief’s care and entrustments are like spring rain, transforming things silently and warming soldiers’ hearts; the commander-in-chief’s expectations and encouragement unite morale and inspire fighting spirit.” 习主席强调：“和平时期，决不能把兵带娇气了，威武之师还得威武，军人还得有血性。”武警部队“猎鹰突击队”训练场上，硝烟弥漫。一发发子弹破膛而出，精准命中目标。不远处，“从这里走向战场”的大字熠熠生辉。备战打仗，枕戈待旦。官兵们一刻不敢停歇，把每一次训练都当作实战对待。习主席曾亲自向武警部队“猎鹰突击队”授旗，并在2024年4月给“猎鹰突击队”全体队员回信，勉励他们“努力锻造世界一流反恐特战劲旅，时刻准备为党和人民再立新功”。这份嘱托，化作队员们的行动自觉。“我们一定会把手中武器用到极致，把战术战法练到极致，厚积胜战实力。”特战队员吴元昊目光坚定。习主席指出，要全面锻造听党话、跟党走的过硬基层，能打仗、打胜仗的过硬基层，法纪严、风气正的过硬基层，为推进强军事业提供坚实基础和支撑。统帅的关怀和嘱托，春风化雨、温暖兵心；统帅的期待和鞭策，凝聚士气、鼓舞斗志.
Next, there’s a report on Wang Huning meeting with Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla, who is the special envoy of the party and government of Cuba. Xinhua reports:
“Wang said that China will firmly support Cuba’s just struggle against external interference and work with Cuba to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries. He added that the CPPCC stands ready to contribute to deepening friendly cooperation between the two countries.”
Rodriguez also met with Wang Yi and Liu Haixing. These reports are on Page 3. Let me cover the Wang Yi meeting here. Xinhua says:
“China firmly supports Cuba in safeguarding its national sovereignty and security, opposes unwarranted interference by external forces, and rejects any attempt to deprive the Cuban people of their right to survival and development, said Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi… (Wang said) that Cuba has long strived to explore a socialist path suited to its own national conditions, earning widespread respect from the international community with its spirit of standing up to power and being unafraid of difficulties. He said that amid the shifting international landscape, China and Cuba have always maintained sincere mutual trust and stood together, and last year, the two countries celebrated the 65th anniversary of their diplomatic ties. At present, the situation in Latin America is undergoing complex and profound changes, said Wang, noting that upholding fairness and justice has always been a consistent principle of China’s foreign policy. China stands ready to work with Cuba to implement the consensus reached between their two heads of state, continue providing support and assistance within its capacity, consolidate and advance the friendly ties between the two countries, and work with like-minded countries in renewed efforts to enhance solidarity among the Global South and uphold regional and global peace…”
Finally, we have some data on the impact of the updated goods trade-in programme. In January, sales of six categories of home appliances and four categories of digital and smart products exceeded 15 million units, with sales revenue reaching nearly 59 billion yuan. In January, 6.813 million home appliances were traded in, driving sales of 29.71 billion yuan; 9.115 million digital and smart products were purchased with subsidies, driving sales of 29.21 billion yuan.
Page 2: There’s a report based on a State Council Information Office presser from Thursday. It has some useful data.
For instance, “in 2025, market-regulation departments organised and carried out spot checks of fair-competition reviews, urging the relevant policy-formulating organs to rectify policy measures that obstruct a unified market and fair competition; they investigated and handled 14,600 cases of various types of anti-unfair-competition violations. They carried out comprehensive rectification of ‘involution-style’ competition, strengthened cost investigations, price inspections, and interview-and-guidance meetings with key enterprises, and effectively promoted the timely cooling-down of ‘price wars’ and ‘subsidy wars’.” 2025年，市场监管部门组织开展公平竞争审查抽查，敦促有关政策制定机关对妨碍统一市场和公平竞争的政策措施进行整改；查办各类反不正当竞争案件1.46万件。综合整治“内卷式”竞争，加强对重点企业的成本调查、价格检查和约谈指导，有效推动“价格战”“补贴战”及时降温.
Also, Yao Lei, Director of the Price Supervision and Inspection and Anti-Unfair Competition Bureau of the SAMR, said that:
“To transform our country’s advantage of an ultra–large-scale market into momentum for high-quality development, it is necessary not only to build sound institutional rules, but also vigorously dismantle local protectionism, promptly correct improper conduct that interferes with market competition, and promote the unblocking of bottlenecks and chokepoints that constrain economic circulation’...Only by tearing down the ‘fences’ can one build the ‘express lanes.’ This year, efforts to dismantle local protectionism and administrative monopolies will focus on three main aspects:
In terms of of strict law enforcement, special campaigns will be organised to concentrate on investigating and handling a number of key cases, promoting the abolition of regulations and practices that hinder the building of a unified national market and fair competition, and comprehensively improving the quality and effectiveness of anti-monopoly enforcement against the abuse of administrative power to exclude or restrict competition.
In terms of strengthening governance at the source, the Fair Competition Review Regulations will be deeply implemented, revisions to supporting implementation measures will be studied, the review mechanisms for major policy measures will be improved, the application of exception provisions will be strictly limited, and the issuance of policy measures that exclude or restrict competition will be resolutely prevented.
In terms of emphasising compliance building, the role of the Office of the State Council’s Anti-Monopoly and Anti-Unfair Competition Committee will be fully utilised to strengthen cross-departmental risk consultations and information sharing, and enhance policy coordination.
“将我国超大规模市场优势转化为高质量发展动能，既要搭建好制度规则，更要大力破除地方保护、及时纠正不当干预市场竞争行为，推动打通制约经济循环的堵点卡点。”国家市场监督管理总局价格监督检查和反不正当竞争局局长姚雷说。拆掉“篱笆墙”，才好修“快车道”。今年在破除地方保护和行政性垄断方面，将重点从三方面发力：严格执法办案方面，组织开展专项行动，集中查处一批重点案件，推动废除一批妨碍全国统一市场和公平竞争的规定和做法，全面提升制止滥用行政权力排除、限制竞争反垄断执法质效。加强源头治理方面，深入实施《公平竞争审查条例》，研究修订配套实施办法，健全重要政策措施审查机制，严格限制例外规定适用，坚决防止出台排除、限制竞争的政策措施。注重合规建设方面，充分发挥国务院反垄断反不正当竞争委员会办公室作用，加强跨部门风险会商和信息共享，增强政策协同性.
Later we learn: In 2025, the market-regulation system as a whole received a total of 26.46 million consumer complaints and reports, helped consumers recover 4.35 billion yuan in economic losses, recalled a total of 8.236 million consumer products over the year, and destroyed 3,683 tonnes of infringing, counterfeit, and substandard goods.”
The article also talks about the issuance of new standards for goods and services in order to ensure better quality; there’s also reference to food and drug safety assessments.
This next bit is useful:
In 2025, a total of 21 key technological bottlenecks along industrial chains were broken through, 71 urgently needed quality-and-technology gaps in industry were filled; 14 national measurement benchmarks and 1,139 national standard reference materials were newly established; 4,929 national standards were issued, a year-on-year increase of 56%; and 20 key inspection-and-testing projects to promote industrial optimisation and upgrading were completed, providing strong support for enhancing the resilience and security level of industrial and supply chains.” 2025年，共突破产业链关键技术瓶颈21项，填补产业急需质量技术空白71项；新建国家计量基准14项、国家标准物质1139种；发布国家标准4929项，同比增长56%；完成检验检测促进产业优化升级重点项目20个，有力支撑了产业链供应链韧性和安全水平的提升.
Page 4: There’s a report on personnel changes at the State Council.
Yu Junsheng has been appointed Deputy Director of China Media Group, replacing Wang Xiaozhen.
Zhang Zhongjun has been appointed Vice President of the National Academy of Governance.
Li Xiaolong has been removed from the post of Vice Minister of Housing and Urban–Rural Development
Cao Jun has been removed from the post of Vice Minister of Veterans Affairs
Zhang Zhongjun is removed from the post of Dean of Education of the National Academy of Governance.
Page 7: There’s a report informing that Hong Kong will, for the first time, formulate a five-year plan. SCMP reports:
“A new task force led by Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu will formulate Hong Kong’s first five-year blueprint to align with the nation’s 15th five-year plan, with a political analyst saying the move signals greater government involvement in shaping the city’s development. Lee also said on Monday that he would prioritise visits to Eastern Europe and Central Asia to explore new markets for local businesses, stressing the need to ‘avoid putting all eggs in one basket’ and mitigate risk amid geopolitical tensions. In an interview with the media, the city leader said that he would lead an interdepartmental task force to align Hong Kong’s policies with the 15th five-year plan, which would guide mainland China’s development from 2026 to 2030.”