By An Gang

The upcoming First Plenary Session of the 12th National Peoples Congress， Chinas top legislature， and the First Session of the 12th National Committee of the Chinese Peoples Political Consultative Conference， the countrys top advisory body， will finally complete the countrys leadership transition.

The job performance of the new leadership of the ruling Communist Party of China（CPC）， headed by Xi Jinping as general secretary of its central committee， in the past months has been described as a “dream start”—the Chinese public has clearly seen the emerging fresh look of the new leadership in governing a state， deeply sensing a promising future for China as well as an exciting and beautiful “China dream” for the people.

New start for reform

It is undeniable that Chinese society underwent a period of anxiety and fickleness marked by a public full of complaints， soaring grievances， acting on ones own will and rebuking government aimlessly. All these signs pointed to the rapidly growing richpoor wealth gap and the damaged state of social justice. It is an unavoidable winding step in the course of Chinas development， however， which originated from the variety of reform bottlenecks and the emerging middle-income trap， as well as being directly related to the economic downturn worldwide.

Chinese leaders do not evade any problems or block the public from expressing their will. By discussing openly the major policies and theories as well as frequent base-level field investigations and public opinion surveys， they fully demonstrate the resolve for top-down reform.

The series of moves of the new leaders after the 18th CPC National Congress have instilled in the public a vivid feeling of the rhythms of reform from the top level.

During a visit to an exhibition on Chinas development since 1840 in Beijing last November， Xi said， “Realizing the great renewal of the Chinese nation is the greatest dream for the Chinese nation in modern history.” He also emphasized that spouting empty talk is harmful to the nation， while doing practical work can help it thrive. Xis remarks highlighted that peoples prosperity and a strong country are the two greatest common goals of Chinese society. He also spoke of restoring the social cohesion of Chinese society.

A commentary article on the British website Ftchinese.com remarked on the new look of Chinese politics that the right perception is a precondition for the right action. It is true that the new leadership has already taken action. On December 4， 2012， the Political Bureau of the 18th CPC Central Committee held its first meeting after taking office. The meeting adopted a document making explicit requirements on how Political Bureau members should improve their work style in eight aspects， including reducing meetings， getting rid of superfluous language， shortening traffic control during officials visits， and exercising thrift. The new regulations have sent a clear signal that the top leadership sets itself as an example.

From December 7 to 11， 2012， Xi went to Shenzhen， Zhuhai， Foshan and Guangzhou in southern Guangdong Province for field investigations， dubbed the “new southern tour，”signaling a continuation of the great course of Chinas opening up and reform started by former leader Deng Xiaoping in the late 1970s.

Prior to Xis tour， during a meeting on November 21， 2012， Vice Premier Li Keqiang， who is expected take over the premiership next month， said that opening up and reform is the biggest dividend of Chinas development， in addition to being warmly welcomed by the public. The moves of the new-generation leaders demonstrate clearly they will waste no time knocking down barriers and deepening the reforms in important areas with greater political courage and wisdom.

Within China， the public has keenly caught on to the political signals by top-level officialdom and echoed it with action. Now， a new environment for reform with the positive interaction between the public and high-level officials is taking unprecedented shape. Many greedy officials have been ousted by an online anti-corruption campaign launched by the public.

Xi said openly that the Party should remain tough on corruption and crack down on malfeasance by both low- and high-ranking officials. In the meantime， Xi ordered enhanced restraint and supervision on the use of power. Power should be limited within the cage of regulations， Xi said.

A discussion about the direction of Chinas reform is underway nationwide， which will help to reach consensus on promoting the steady progress of the reform. The discussion has underlined the importance of political restructuring and drawn an outline for improving the style of the leadership and the ruling mode of the Party， assuring effective governance of the country under the leadership of the Party and safeguarding the rights and freedom people enjoy according to law.

In the new decade， China will abandon the“GDP first” principle and pay more attention to peoples livelihood. A more comprehensive， balanced and sustainable development pattern will reconsolidate Chinese society and stimulate the development vitality and innovation capacity of China， setting a new path for Chinas development and reform.

Commitment to peace

At a group study session held on January 28 with members of the CPC Central Committee Political Bureau， Xi said that China will remain on a path of peaceful development and explained how to pursue that path. Xi stressed first and foremost that China should run its own affairs efficiently and rely on its own strengths. Xi also said that the country will never surrender its legitimate rights or sacrifice its core national interests.

“No country should presume that China will engage in trade involving our core interests or swallow the ‘bitter fruit of harming our sovereignty， security or development interests，” he added.

Chinas core interests are both multifaceted and wide-ranging. Raising and defining explicitly the conception of Chinas core interests is one of the major achievements in the theory and practice of Chinese diplomacy. A whitepaper entitled Chinas Peaceful Development released by the Chinese Government in September 2011 said that China is firm in upholding its core interests： state sovereignty， national security， territorial integrity and national reunification， Chinas political system established by the Constitution and overall social stability， and the basic safeguards for ensuring sustainable economic and social development.

China is at a special and crucial juncture approaching the great renewal of the Chinese nation， during which the most important thing is maintaining a trend of peaceful development. As China develops， it is increasingly necessary to show its determination and effectiveness in safeguarding its core interests. Meanwhile， safeguarding the core interests of the country relies on national strength and will， the solidarity and maturity of the nation and the firmness and wisdom of its diplomacy. Not a single aspect can be ignored.

With the growth of Chinas national strength and the advancement of social transformation， Chinese diplomacy has to take into consideration many more factors to maintain its core national interest. The countrys diplomatic efforts must rise to its defense. A grand strategy with a comprehensive approach is needed， with a healthy dose of caution when pitting core interests against the overall development objectives of China. Its diplomatic approach is not an either/or question between perceived“softness” and “toughness.”

Handling disputes over territorial sovereignty and maritime rights properly is not contradictory to Chinas adherence to peaceful development. On the one hand， China firmly opposes any behavior that impairs its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights； on the other hand， China works actively to create a favorable atmosphere and conditions for peaceful solutions to relevant disputes through dialogue and consultation.

From Chinas reaction to the disputes over the Huangyan Island in the South China Sea and the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea in 2012， we can conclude that China has held consistently to the principle of shelving disputes in favor of joint resource development.

In the new era， peaceful development is still the banner of Chinese diplomacy and the extension of domestic development and reform. China will unswervingly pursue the road of peaceful development， with its growing overall strength as a solid backing force. The fact that China has become increasingly powerful shows that it has more capacity to maintain its core and major interests and prevent wars， which should not be misinterpreted to suggest that Chinas diplomacy will be tougher or even go to war.