China Voice: 66 years on, New China advancing along path of peace, development

On Oct. 1, the People's Republic of China will celebrate the 66th anniversary of its founding. Peace and development have been the main themes in the past year, and they will continue to be.

It was a vital year for China. In its internal and foreign affairs, China achieved significant results, and laid solid foundations for future.

Development is the priority for China at the present time. Its development is its biggest contribution to the world.

During China's annual legislative session in March, leaders set the country's GDP growth target this year around 7 percent, the lowest in 11 years, but it will concentrate on quality over quantity. President Xi Jinping captured the new focus when coining the phrase "new normal" to describe this stage of China's economic development.

To stimulate the market and benefit wider society, the central government has kept streamlining administration and delegating power to lower levels, leading to a surge in business startups.

In October last year, the Communist Party of China (CPC) convened a key meeting on rule of law, aiming to guarantee justice for every individual.

The anti-graft campaign never rests. In the past year, former security chief Zhou Yongkang was sentenced to life in jail, former senior political advisor Ling Jihua was arrested and put under investigation, and former military leader Guo Boxiong was investigated for criminality.

China also held its first V-Day military parade on Sept. 3 to commemorate its war-time miseries and look forward to a peaceful future.

During the parade, Xi announced that the Chinese military will cut its forces by 300,000, further showing China's commitment to world peace.

In China's world view, peace and development are the dominant trends, now and in the future. They are also the focuses of China's foreign policies.

From multilateral platforms such as the UN General Assembly to bilateral ones like Xi's visit to the United States (both last week), China has acted as a constructor of the world system, vowing to build a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation and a new type of major-country relations. It has also shouldered more responsibilities corresponding to its rising strength.

China is also trying to benefit other countries through its own development. In the past year, the government has come up with a blueprint for the Silk Road Economic Belt and 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, the "Belt and Road" trade and infrastructure network with which it hopes to bolster trade and ties with other countries.

The upcoming 67th year of the New China will be important too. Shortly after the seven-day National holiday from Oct. 1 to 7, the CPC will convene another key meeting to discuss the country's 13th five-year plan from 2016 to 2020.

The plan is important because by 2020, China is expected to have built an all-round moderately prosperous society, one of the Party's two centenary goals. Another is to have built a modern socialist country by the time the New China celebrates its 100th birthday.

In the 67th year, China will continue to carry out the "Four Comprehensives" strategy: comprehensively build a moderately prosperous society, comprehensively deepen reform, comprehensively implement the rule of law, and comprehensively strengthen Party discipline.

New China will also aid the world as more infrastructure will be built with funds channeled by the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. China's cooperation with other countries will result in win-win situations.

However, the country will also need to address some major challenges. The pressure of economic downturn will be a risk for China's economic growth, and environmental challenges are coming to a head. The country is facing traditional and non-traditional security threats as well.

As it keeps integrating into the world system, China will benefit more and contribute more to other countries and the world as a whole, and become a power to safeguard peace and development. Endi