Expedite Economic Measures' Implementation - Ren Lixuan: Amid External Turmoil, Run Internal Affairs Well - New Phase in 'Great Battle to Defend Shanghai' - Wang Yi in Vanuatu - New Era's Achievements
Here are the stories and pieces that I found noteworthy in the Thursday, June 2, 2022, edition of the People’s Daily.
Page 1: At the top of the page is a report about Xi’s message of condolence to Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro over the severe floods in Brazil. Then there’s the next piece in the series on following Xi’s footprints; this one focuses on Jiangsu.
Among the other articles, there are three noteworthy articles on the page, from my point of view. First, a report (detailed English report) on the weekly State Council meeting. The report says that Li Keqiang called for efforts to speed up the implementation of the package of policy measures that has been announced to stabilise the economy.
“The meeting noted that the policy package, introduced in line with the overall thinking and policy orientation decided at the Central Economic Work Conference and outlined in the Government Work Report, is mainly aimed at increasing the speed and effectiveness of policy implementation. They are crucial and timely measures for overall economic stability with a properly-heightened intensity, as well as fine-tuned execution of macro policies targeting the needs of market entities, in an effort to raise efficiency without compromising long-term interests.”
The report adds: “The newly-added amount of 140-billion-yuan value added tax credit refunds should be basically delivered by July. Policy banks will increase the credit line by another 800 billion yuan to provide financial support for infrastructure building, and a mechanism will be set up to meet the needs of key projects. All eligible migrant workers who have lost their jobs, whether covered by the unemployment insurance scheme or not, will receive provisional living allowances or other forms of relief. Primary responsibility for paying such allowances should be made clear. With regard to the deferral of principal and interest repayments on the 90-billion-yuan commercial truck loans extended by centrally-managed auto companies, the enterprises concerned will be encouraged to inform loan-takers of the deferral procedures through online announcements, text messages and other means.”
Further, it states: “The meeting called for deepening reform of government functions. Vigorous steps will be made to see that no deliberate application is required for those eligible to benefit from the policies and that more services will be accessible online. To smooth logistics in both trunk and branch routes and facilitate early resumption of full-capacity production, the bottlenecks must be pinpointed, relevant measures should be improved, and targeted assistance to key enterprises will be intensified. On investment projects, all localities and departments concerned should keep work logs, improve approval procedures and provide greater support in land use and other aspects, to enable the launch of projects as quickly as possible. Free and smooth passage of summer harvest agricultural machinery should be ensured. Measures will be implemented to support the listing of platform companies on domestic and overseas markets in accordance with laws and regulations, and ease the restrictions on car purchases. ‘We must foster an enabling business environment for economic development through the reform of government functions, and solve difficult issues and unleash the vitality and creativity of market players with reform-based and market-orientated measures,’ Premier Li said.”
Finally, Li called on the task forces dispatched to 12 provinces to submit reports as soon as possible. Also, he added that major Q2 indicators, including local GDP, surveyed urban unemployment rate, fiscal revenue after deducting tax refunds, and consumer prices “will be released in a fact-based manner.”
The PD report has a specific paragraph on employment. It calls for:
ensure that pensions are paid on time and in full
it is necessary to increase assistance such as subsistence allowances. Strengthen dynamic monitoring, focusing on the unemployed and flexible employees, those who face the likelihood of falling back into poverty; provide timely assistance to those in need or include them in the list of people receiving subsistence allowances. According to local conditions, all localities can issue a one-time living allowance to the minimum living allowance recipients and the poor.
maintain stability in medical insurance reimbursement and medicine supply
strengthen the supervision of livelihood security funds and deal with any corruption strictly
Second, a piece celebrating Shanghai’s return to normalcy after a lengthy lockdown. Apparently, one is not supposed to call what Shanghai experienced a lockdown.
Anyway, this piece calls what’s happened over the past couple of months the Great Battle to Defend Shanghai - 大上海保卫战取. The article’s title says that phased results have been achieved in this battle, and now Shanghai is regrouping and starting off again. The article says that:
“Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core and with the strong support of many provinces and the PLA, Party cadres and the people of Shanghai united as one, fought continuously, and achieved great achievements in the Great Battle to Defend Shanghai…Shanghai is now actively exploring a new mechanism of regularised prevention and control in megacities in order to expedite the return of economic and social development back to the normal lines.” 在以习近平同志为核心的党中央坚强领导下，在多个省份和解放军的大力支援下，上海干部群众团结一心、连续奋战，取得了大上海保卫战的重大阶段性成果。“疫情要防住、经济要稳住、发展要安全”，上海正在积极探索超大城市常态化防控新机制，加快推动经济社会发展回归正常轨道.
This is a piece celebrating the city’s efforts to contain COVID. It says that over 7,20,000 cadres were involved in tasks across the city; some 6000 village party secretaries were engaged and over 1 million volunteers played a role.
After reading the next bit, the points made in the tweet thread above make a lot of sense.
“At the critical moment, Shanghai maintained the normal operation of the city's core functions and strove to maintain the stability of the industrial and supply chains. At important units and in key posts, a large number of cadres and staff chose to stay at their workplaces without any complaints or regrets. Shanghai is an international financial centre and shipping centre. More than 25,000 people employed in Shanghai's financial industry have been stationed in the city since the end of March to ensure stable and continuous functioning of financial services. More than 20,000 employees working at the Shanghai Port remained there in a strict closed loop, ensuring operational continuity… preparations for the 5th China International Import Expo have also progressed smoothly, with the contracted area exceeding 70% of the planned area. More than 240 of the world’s top 500 and leading enterprises have signed up…” 关键时刻，上海保持城市核心功能正常运转，努力维护产业链供应链稳定。在重要单位、重点岗位，一大批干部职工吃住在办公室、守护在岗位上，默默无闻，无怨无悔。作为国际金融中心、国际航运中心，上海金融行业超过2.5万名员工从3月底就驻守单位，确保提供稳定连续的金融服务；上海港2万多名职工严格闭环管理、坚持生产作业，实现了各港区连续不间断运转；作为我国重要的对外开放平台，第五届进博会筹办工作顺利推进，签约面积超过规划面积70%，世界500强和行业龙头企业参展数量超过240家…
But as much as the above sounds like things weren’t really terrible, there is below an acknowledgement that there was significant economic damage caused.
The piece argues that history will remember all those who fought in the Great Battle to Defend Shanghai. And then there’s an acknowledgement that “the impact of this round of the epidemic on Shanghai’s economic operation is unprecedented, the difficulties encountered by market players are unprecedented, and the challenges faced by economic recovery and revitalisation are unprecedented.” This is from the May 29th press conference of officials from Shanghai. But the piece adds that “the fundamentals of Shanghai’s economic development and the long-term positive trend have not changed.”
Anyway, going ahead, the piece calls for “maintaining strategic focus, strengthening confidence in development, and making every effort to accelerate economic recovery and revitalisation so as to better stabilise the main body of the economy, strengthen the driving force, and benefit the people’s livelihood. It is necessary to clarify the expectations of market entities, increase efforts to bail out enterprises, stabilise and expand employment, conduct in-depth visits and listen, and do a good job in addressing issues of people’s livelihood. We must make up for lost time and losses caused by the epidemic.” 再出发，信心比黄金更重要。要保持战略定力，坚定发展信心，全力跑出经济恢复和振兴的加速度，更好稳主体、强动力、惠民生。要给市场主体以明确预期，加大助企纾困力度，稳定和扩大就业，深入走访倾听，办好民生实事。要把失去的时间抢回来，把疫情造成的损失补回来.
The piece then calls for implementing the policy measures that have been announced. Towards the end, the piece informs that on June 1, the Shanghai party committee and government wrote a “thank-you letter to the people of the city, thanking them for their deep love for the city” and adding that “Shanghai will surely regain its prosperity and vitality and move towards a better future.” 6月1日，上海市委和市政府给全市人民写了一封感谢信，感谢广大市民对这座城市的深沉大爱，用一道道微光汇聚成希望的光芒，表示将加倍努力，给予大家更多相信上海、扎根上海、热爱上海的理由，上海必将重现繁华活力，迈向更加美好的未来.
Finally, there’s a long Ren Lixuan commentary. The piece begins by making the point that since the 18th Party Congress, China has been on a new journey of building a comprehensively modern socialist country and that the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process. However, China is bound to encounter various risks and challenges going forward. “For some time, the Ukraine crisis has led to profound and complex changes in the international situation. China's COVID-19 prevention and control is undergoing severe tests, and its development environment is becoming more complex, severe and uncertain.” 经过长期奋斗特别是党的十八大以来的砥砺奋进，我国全面建设社会主义现代化国家新征程已经顺利开启，实现中华民族伟大复兴进入了不可逆转的历史进程。新的征程不可能一帆风顺，我们必然会遇到各种风险挑战。一段时间以来，乌克兰危机导致国际形势继续发生深刻复杂变化，我国新冠肺炎疫情防控正在经受严峻考验，我国发展环境的复杂性、严峻性、不确定性上升。
Within this context, the author recalls Xi’s comment about “maintaining focus, enhancing confidence and concentrating on running our own affairs well” as the “key to coping with various risks and challenges. 习近平总书记指出: “保持定力，增强信心，集中精力办好自己的事情，是我们应对各种风险挑战的关键.” The author says that “we must deeply comprehend the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important instructions, unify our thoughts and actions to align with the strategic judgement and decisions of the Party Central Committee, and concentrate on our own affairs with rock-solid determination and the belief that we will win if we dare to struggle.”
In the first part of the piece, the author says that in terms of the international situation, “instability, uncertainty and insecurity” are on the rise. Speaking of the challenges arising owing to the war in Ukraine, the author adds that in such a scenario, instead of focusing on their affairs, some politicians in the US and the West are engaged in shifting blame, spreading falsehoods and discrediting China and “taking the opportunity to increase containment and suppression of China. However, it should be understood that in the final analysis, for a large and upwardly mobile developing country like China, instability, uncertainty and insecurity in the external environment are ultimately external factors, rather than decisive factors. Whether we can achieve the second centenary goal on the new journey and realise the Chinese dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation depends on the internal factors and whether we can concentrate on our own affairs. Faced with the complicated situation and severe challenges, we should consciously illuminate the reality with the light of theory, deeply understand and grasp the dialectical relationship between internal and external causes, firmly grasp the main contradictions and their main aspects, and concentrate on managing our own affairs well. As long as we do our own thing well, we can navigate the storms.” 当前，国际形势中不稳定、不确定、不安全因素日益突出，乌克兰危机让本来就充满不确定性的国际局势更加动荡不安、让本来就负重前行的世界经济雪上加霜，美西方一些政客不反省自身，却施展转移焦点、造谣抹黑之“能事”，试图借机对中国加大遏制打压。但应深刻认识到，对于中国这样一个体量巨大、向上发展的国家来说，外部环境的不稳定、不确定、不安全因素归根结底属于外因，不是起决定性作用的。能不能在新征程上实现第二个百年奋斗目标、实现中华民族伟大复兴的中国梦，归根结底要看内因，看我们能不能集中精力办好自己的事情。面对复杂形势和严峻挑战，我们应当自觉用理论之光烛照现实，深刻认识和把握内因和外因的辩证关系，紧紧抓住主要矛盾和矛盾的主要方面，集中精力办好自己的事情。只要办好了自己的事情，我们就能“任凭风浪起，稳坐钓鱼台”.
The next paragraph quotes Mao; then Deng Xiaoping’s call to stay calm when the communist regimes in Eastern bloc countries collapsed, and then reiterates Xi’s call about doing one’s own affairs well in the same breath. After this, we get examples of how this call from Xi translated into policy.
“Faced with Sino-US economic and trade frictions and the different types of extreme pressure provoked by the US, we took our time, withstood the pressure, and concentrated on doing our own affairs well. As a result, the country’s development achieved a new leap. Faced with the sudden outbreak of COVID-19, some politicians in the United States and the West shirked their responsibilities. We were firm and confident, fought resolutely, concentrated on our own affairs, and emerged as world leaders in epidemic prevention and control and economic development. Faced with the interference of external forces in Hong Kong and the rampant activities of ‘anti-China chaos in Hong Kong’, we remained determined and unmoved, taking a series of measures to treat both the symptoms and root causes, and worked towards the situation in Hong Kong to achieve a major turning point from chaos to governance. History has proved eloquently that, no matter whether we ride the tide or sail against the wind, no matter what kind of risks and challenges we face, as long as we strengthen our confidence, stick to our faith, look for our own direction and stay on the right path, we will certainly be indomitable and invincible.” 面对美国挑起中美经贸摩擦和各种极限施压，我们从容不迫、顶住压力，集中精力办好自己的事情，我国发展跃上新的大台阶。面对突如其来的新冠肺炎疫情和美西方一些政客的甩锅卸责，我们坚定自信、坚决斗争，集中精力办好自己的事情，在疫情防控和经济发展上都走在世界前列。面对外部势力干预香港事务、“反中乱港”活动猖獗，我们保持定力、不为所动，采取一系列标本兼治的举措，推动香港局势实现由乱到治的重大转折。历史和现实雄辩地证明，无论是乘势而上还是开顶风船，无论面临怎样的风险挑战，只要我们坚定信心、坚守信念，认准自己的方向、走好脚下的路，就一定能一往无前、战无不胜.
The next paragraph says that focusing on one’s own affairs is “an inevitable choice to deal with the great changes taking place in the world.” 这是应对世界大变局的必然选择. This paragraph adds that while “for a period of time, the US and some Western countries have tried their best to contain and suppress China, in terms of major global issues, the international community has paid unprecedented attention to China's approaches and attached great importance to its proposals and plans. The fundamental reason is that we concentrate on doing our own affairs well, and our economic strength, scientific and technological strength, comprehensive national strength and international status have been continuously improved, and we have become a pivotal/critical (举足轻重) power in the world. Without the great strength that we have developed since the reform and opening up, concentrating on development and wholeheartedly pursuing development, and without the great practice and great achievements that the Party has made in leading the people towards self-confidence and self-improvement, upholding integrity and promoting innovation in the new era, we would not have the international influence, appeal and shaping power that we have today, and it would be impossible to create a new situation amid the the great changes taking place in the world and turn crises into opportunities in a chaotic world.” 一个时期以来，美西方一些国家竭力遏制打压中国，但在全球重大事务中，国际社会空前关注中国的态度，重视中国主张、中国方案，根本原因就在于我们集中精力办好自己的事情，经济实力、科技实力、综合国力和国际地位不断提升，已成为世界上举足轻重的大国。没有改革开放以来我们聚精会神搞建设、一心一意谋发展形成的强大实力，没有新时代党领导人民自信自强、守正创新推进的伟大实践、创造的伟大成就，我们就不可能有今天这样的国际影响力、感召力、塑造力，就不可能在世界大变局中开创新局、在世界乱局中化危为机.
The second section says that China is “fully confident and capable” of managing its own affairs well. The author says that the assessment that China’s “development is still in a period of important strategic opportunities” by Xi is an “accurate judgement.” It says that under Xi:
Faced with the rising trend of anti-globalisation and some countries engaging in unilateralism and protectionism, China has unswervingly expanded its opening-up and solidly promoted the high-quality development BRI
Faced with the protectionist actions of the United States, such as provoking economic and trade frictions, engaging in a technological blockade and ‘decoupling’, China has vigorously implemented the innovation-driven development strategy, promoted efforts to tackle the problems related to key core technologies, encouraged independent innovation, and accelerated the building of an innovative country and China’s science and technology power
Faced with the weak recovery of the world economy and the profound changes in the international political and economic structure, China has actively constructed a new development pattern.
“Facts have proved that as long as we implement the decision-making arrangements of the CPC Central Committee, accurately recognize changes, respond to them scientifically and actively seek changes, we will be able to focus on doing our own affairs well, and forge ahead to ensure stability and progress in the cause of the party and the country.”面对逆全球化思潮泛起和一些国家大搞单边主义、保护主义，中国坚定不移扩大开放，扎实推动共建“一带一路”高质量发展，既发展了自己，也造福了世界；面对美国挑起经贸摩擦，大搞技术封锁、“脱钩”等保护主义行径，我们大力实施创新驱动发展战略，推进关键核心技术攻关和自主创新，加快建设创新型国家和世界科技强国；面对世界经济复苏乏力和国际政治经济格局深刻变化，我们积极构建以国内大循环为主体、国内国际双循环相互促进的新发展格局，塑造我国国际经济合作和竞争新优势……事实证明，面对错综复杂的形势和严峻的风险挑战，只要我们贯彻落实好党中央决策部署，准确识变、科学应变、主动求变，就一定能够集中精力办好自己的事情，推动党和国家事业开拓前进、行稳致远.
The next paragraph offers official data to make the point that China’s development has improved, and then we are told that under Xi, the Party has solved many long-standing problems, which had not be resolved; accomplished many important things that were long desired but the Party had failed achieve in the past; and has performed in a manner that has met the people’s expectations, attracted international attention and is being recorded in the annals of history—all of which has greatly enhanced the self-confidence of the Chinese nation has inspired the spirit of the Chinese people. 党的十八大以来，面对各种风险挑战乃至惊涛骇浪，以习近平同志为核心的党中央出台一系列重大方针政策，推出一系列重大举措，推进一系列重大工作，战胜一系列重大风险挑战，解决了许多长期想解决而没有解决的难题，办成了许多过去想办而没有办成的大事，交出了一份人民满意、世界瞩目、可以载入史册的优异答卷，极大增强了中华民族的自信心，振奋了中国人民的精气神.
“The Chinese people today will not be swayed or misled by the so-called ‘China Collapse Theory’ or ‘Theory of Western Superiority’, nor will they succumb to or be coerced by the containment and maximum pressure imposed by the US and some Western countries. Unity is strength, confidence shapes the future. Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, the more than 1.4 billion Chinese people, who have self-confidence and are striving for self-improvement, will surely brave the wind and waves, overcome obstacles, and work triumphantly to create new and even greater miracles for the Chinese nation in the new era and and create new and greater miracles that will impress the world.” 今天的中国人民，绝不会被所谓“中国崩溃论”“西方优越论”等险恶鼓噪所动摇、所迷惑，也绝不会被美西方一些国家的围堵遏制、极限施压所屈服、所胁迫。团结就是力量，信心铸就未来。在以习近平同志为核心的党中央坚强领导下，14亿多自信自强的中国人民一定能够乘风破浪、闯关夺隘、凯歌而行，在新时代创造中华民族新的更大奇迹，创造让世界刮目相看的新的更大奇迹.
The next paragraph talks about the significance of the Party’s leadership and the socialist system, and praises Xi’s leadership.
“With great historical initiative, great political courage, strong responsibility, extraordinary foresight, General Secretary Xi Jinping has steered the ship and set the guidelines; he has been rock-solid amid stormy waves, has devised strategies to face risks and challenges, calmly dealt with different complicated situations, and led the whole party and people of all ethnic groups to overcome a series of risk challenges at home and abroad. 习近平总书记以伟大的历史主动精神、巨大的政治勇气、强烈的责任担当、非凡的远见卓识掌舵领航、定纲指向，惊涛骇浪中坚如磐石，风险挑战中运筹帷幄，从容驾驭各种复杂局面，带领全党全国各族人民战胜国内外一系列风险挑战.
The final section focuses on what should be done going ahead:
It calls for maintaining a long-term perspective, understanding the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, strengthening the four consciousnesses, four self-confidences and achieving the two safeguards, improve political judgement, political understanding, and political execution, combine the firmness of strategy with the flexibility of tactics, etc.
Adhere to the dynamic clearing policy. “Practice has proved that our prevention and control policy is determined by the nature and purpose of the Party, our prevention and control policies can stand the test of history, and our prevention and control measures are scientific and effective.” 实践证明，我们的防控方针是由党的性质和宗旨决定的，我们的防控政策是经得起历史检验的，我们的防控措施是科学有效的. It calls the dynamic clearing policy the “magic weapon - 法宝” to deal with the pandemic, particularly the Omicron variant of COVID-19, at the lowest cost. It calls “lying flat” a choice of the helpless, and warns that one must not be “swayed by its misleading influence and waver in our determination.” 应当看到，一些国家“躺平”是抗疫失败后的无奈之举，实则代价惨痛、危害深远。我们不能受其误导影响而动摇“动态清零”的决心，让来之不易的抗疫成果付诸东流. At the same time, the piece cautions that it is important to optimise and adjust the prevention and control measures according to the situation, strengthen scientific and precise prevention and control, avoid simplification, and avoid a ‘one size fits all’ approach. 因时因势优化调整防控措施，加强科学精准防控，不搞简单化，防止层层加码“一刀切”，在最大程度保护人民生命安全和身体健康的基础上实现全年经济社会发展目标任务.
“Development is the Party’s top priority in governing and rejuvenating the country, and it is the foundation and key to solving all problems in our country. To concentrate on running one's own affairs well, we must adhere to economic construction as the central task, seek progress while maintaining stability, and promote high-quality economic development.” 发展是党执政兴国的第一要务，是解决我国一切问题的基础和关键。集中精力办好自己的事情，必须坚持以经济建设为中心，稳中求进推动经济高质量发展. The piece talks about having confidence and moving ahead in terms of high-quality development. It says “to promote high-quality development, we must strive to achieve the development in which innovation becomes the first driving force, coordination becomes the endogenous feature, green becomes the universal form, openness becomes the only way, and sharing becomes the fundamental purpose. At the same time, it is key to understand that keeping the economy operating within a reasonable range is a prerequisite for high-quality development. With the downward pressure on the economy increasing, we should intensify macro-policy adjustment and speed up the implementation of various measures to stabilise the economy, focus on boosting confidence, injecting kinetic energy, and stabilising expectations.” 推动高质量发展，就要努力实现创新成为第一动力、协调成为内生特点、绿色成为普遍形态、开放成为必由之路、共享成为根本目的的发展。同时，深刻认识保持经济运行在合理区间是高质量发展的前提条件，在经济下行压力加大的情况下，加大宏观政策调节力度，加快落实稳住经济各项举措，唱响中国经济光明论，着力提振信心、注入动能、稳定预期.
It talks about deepening reforms and implementing the agenda outlined in the 14th FYP; it talks about ensuring high quality opening up to the outside world and balancing development and security. And finally, the author says that China must “stand firmly on the right side of history,” while defending China’s response to the war in Ukraine. The final paragraph calls for uniting more closely behind the Party Central Committee with Xi as the core as the country heads towards the 20th Party Congress.
Page 2: A piece talking about the importance and use of the Nantong Museum and the former residence of “patriotic entrepreneur” Zhang Jian as potential “patriotic education bases” for “educating private entrepreneurs and young people to enhance their sense of social responsibility and strengthen the ‘four self-confidences’.” The article says that on January 6, 2021, the Zhang Jian School of Entrepreneurship - 张謇企业家学院 - was officially set up, and training programs have been carried out on a regular basis. So far, 178 training sessions have been carried out, with 15,525 people attending.
Next, a 仲音 commentary that appreciates the phased achievements in the Battle to Defend Shanghai, calls for adhering to dynamic clearing “without hesitation or wavering, maintaining the attitude of being cautious as before and long-term dedication.” But in saying all this, the piece also acknowledges that the vaccination rate among the elderly and children “is not high enough” – with only 82.42% of those aged over 60 having completed the vaccination protocol. The piece also expresses confidence in the ability of Chinese cities to get back to normalcy in terms of economic operations rather quickly.
Finally, there’s a piece (English report) about the improving COVID-19 situation in Beijing. It says that 13 districts in Beijing had no new cases for more than seven consecutive days as of May 31, as normal production and daily life had been restored.
Page 3: First, a report about Wang Yi’s visit to Vanuatu. PD only has the report about Wang’s meeting with Vanuatu President Tallis Obed Moses. But let me begin with the five-point consensus on bolstering bilateral ties and cooperation on international and regional affairs that the two sides agreed upon as Wang met the country’s prime minister.
Xinhua reports that Wang met with Vanuatu Prime Minister Bob Loughman, who called Wang’s visit “historic.” Xinhua reports that “Loughman pledged to uphold the one-China principle as a political bedrock, take the joint building of Belt and Road as a guidance for their cooperation, and lift their comprehensive strategic partnership to a new level.”
The five-point consensus includes:
“strengthen political mutual trust, carry forward the tradition of mutual respect and treating each other as equals, and continue to staunchly support each other in safeguarding their core interests and national dignity.”
uphold win-win cooperation with mutual benefits: “The two sides will develop a blue economy partnership, further explore cooperation highlights including new energy and digital economy, while furthering cooperation in traditional fields such as infrastructure. China will help Vanuatu strengthen its capacity for self-development and enhance its international competitiveness.”
enhance the friendship between the two peoples: “China appreciates Vanuatu for including the Chinese language teaching in its national education system and stands ready to continue supporting the Chinese language teaching in Vanuatu by dispatching Chinese teachers and conducting two-way language and cultural exchanges…”
deepen strategic coordination: “Loughman spoke highly of the China-proposed Global Development Initiative and stands ready to be part of it. Wang welcomed Vanuatu’s support for China's Global Security Initiative, its practice of China's vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, and its contribution to world peace.”
both sides agreed to boost regional cooperation
In the meeting with President Moses, Wang stressed that “different from some major countries, China always adheres to the principle of sovereign equality in its diplomacy and treats all the developing countries, especially small and medium-sized countries, sincerely and equally. At the international and regional levels, especially in the United Nations system, China also firmly upholds the legitimate rights and interests of the developing countries, he added. China will continue to work in solidarity with other developing countries to defend the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, uphold the principle of non-interference in internal affairs, and safeguard international fairness and justice…”
Next, there’s a report about Wang Yi’s comments at a meeting of Chinese and Russian think tanks. He said that “the Chinese side is willing to work with the Russian side to uphold and practice the correct view on democracy, development, security and order, and promote the development of the global governance system in a more just and reasonable direction.”
Finally, there’s the seventh commentary in the Zhong Sheng series criticising the US on human rights issues. This says that the “US, which always boasts a robust labour law system, has only ratified 14 international labour conventions. The US has also not signed any of the three important legal documents directly related to forced labour.” 向来标榜劳动法律体系健全的美国，至今只批准了14项国际劳工公约。与强迫劳动问题直接相关的3项重要法律文件，美国一项也没有签署. It argues that the US has failed to address and continues to ignore the problem of “modern slavery” at home, while continuing to “smear” other countries.
Page 4: A report about Li Ganjie being elected as Shandong Party Secretary; Zhou Naixiang and Lu Zhiyuan being confirmed as deputy secretaries. Next, a report on Hong Kong media and social groups’ reactions to Xi’s meeting with John Lee. Basically, the piece says that they all interpreted the meeting’s message as the central leadership having faith in Lee and being committed to one country, two systems and development in Hong Kong.
Page 8: Today, there’s the 9th piece in the series excerpted from the book Face to Face with the Century-old Party. This one answers the question: “Why is it said that the cause of the party and the country in the new era has achieved historic achievements and undergone historic changes?”
The first bit of the article basically makes the point that is made in the third history resolution. It says that the Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has demonstrated great historical initiative, tremendous political courage, and a powerful sense of mission. It has pushed ahead with many major tasks, and overcome a number of major risks and challenges. It has solved many tough problems that were long on the agenda but never resolved and accomplished many things that were wanted but never got done, thereby leading to historic achievements and historic shifts in the cause of the Party and the country.
And then it lists the 13 achievements detailed in the third history resolution. You can read the full English version of that resolution here, if you’d like.
After this, the next section highlights some key policy changes since the 18th Party Congress. These include:
Administrative reforms by delegating power, simplifying administration, innovating supervision, promoting fair competition, and improving service efficiency
“Drawing a grand blueprint for adhering to and improving the socialist system with Chinese characteristics, promoting the modernisation of the state governance system and governance capacity.”
Reform of the rural land system
Judicial system reform
Population policy reform
The piece then says that in this past decade, China’s comprehensive national strength rose substantially despite the challenges that were encountered. (Note: If you have a better translation of the two paragraphs below, please do share.)
It begins by talking about the economic turbulence that the world has faced in the second decade of the 21st century. “Some people have called it the ‘little ice age’ of mankind, but China has made all-round breakthrough progress in such a short span of time, and these great changes that have taken place have ‘shocked the world’. The scope, depth and impact of these great changes are not only historic, but also global, profoundly changing the face of the country, nation and people, and also affecting the direction of human development.” 进入21世纪第二个十年，世界经济从国际金融危机之后陷入低迷，许多国家发展乏力，有人称之为人类“小冰河期”，而中国却在如此短的时间内，全方位实现了突破性进展，发生了“当惊世界殊”的巨变。这些巨变范围之广、程度之深、影响之大，不仅是历史性的，更是世界性的，深刻改变着国家、民族和人民的面貌，也影响着人类发展的走向.
It can be said that the breakthroughs we have achieved in this decade are unprecedented. This is even more clearly evident if we expand the time horizon of our observation. There has not only been continuous and accumulative development of many orders of magnitude in many areas, but there have also been leap-forward advances. There has not only been a straight-forward expansion in terms of strength, degree and scope (不仅是力量、程度、范围的平面拓展), but also a three-dimensional breakthrough in terms of concepts, patterns and realms (更是理念、格局、境界的立体破圈). It can be said that the cause of the Party and the country is advancing with great strides and rising through large spans. 我们说这十年突破性进展史无前例，如果拉长时间线索、放宽空间界面，更能看清楚这一点。很多领域的发展不仅是数量级的持续性累加，更是层次上的跳跃式提升，不仅是力量、程度、范围的平面拓展，更是理念、格局、境界的立体破圈，可以说党和国家事业是大踏步向前推进、大跨度向上攀升.
The rest of the piece then talks about some of these changes in China — from rising incomes, poverty alleviation, and improving livelihood to dealing with corruption, pollution, strengthening technology capacity, hosting of major international summits and events, and even the success of movies like The Wandering Earth.
Do note this bit:
“Poverty is a chronic disease afflicting human society. No Chinese dynasties were able to solve the problem of poverty; and many developed Western countries have also not completely cured it so far. This global problem has been completely solved in China in the new era.” 贫困是人类社会的顽疾，中国历朝历代都没有解决这个问题，很多西方发达国家至今也没有完全根治，这一世界性难题在新时代中国得到彻底解决。
Page 12: Some useful data on the page. As of 2021, there were 110.425 million Chinese Young Pioneers (CYP). Also:
there are 207,000 grassroots level working committees nationwide; 200,000 of these committees are based in primary and secondary schools, and 7,000 are off-campus committees
there are 216,000 Young Pioneer brigades and 3.021 million squadrons in primary and secondary schools across the country.
there are 3.465 million Young Pioneers counsellors nationwide. Among them, there are 3,000 general counsellors for the Young Pioneers at the provincial, city and county levels, 210,000 counsellors for the brigades at primary and secondary schools, 2.986 million for squadrons, and 266,000 off-campus counsellors
Page 13: I am not doing a breakdown, but the two leading pieces on the theory page talk about Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era being the essence of the Chinese spirit of the times and the essence of present-day Chinese culture.