Chinese President Xi Jinping, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, delivers an important speech while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting on May 17, 2023, ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

President Xi Jinping has called on northwest China's Shaanxi Province to give full play to its strengths and play an exemplary role in advancing Chinese modernization in the country's western region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks Wednesday while hearing a report on the work of the CPC Shaanxi Provincial Committee and the provincial government at a meeting ahead of the upcoming China-Central Asia Summit, which will be presided over by Xi in Xi'an, the capital city of Shaanxi Province.

Shaanxi should prioritize the primary task of promoting high-quality development, base its work on local reality, and actively integrate into and work for the creation of a new development pattern, Xi said.

Efforts are needed for breakthroughs in building self-reliance and strength in science and technology, modernizing the industrial system, boosting coordinated development between urban and rural areas and between regions, expanding high-level opening up, and strengthening ecological and environmental protection, he said.

To catch up with and surpass other regions, Shaanxi must make new breakthroughs in sci-tech innovation and modernizing the industrial system, Xi noted, calling on the province to cultivate new strengths while consolidating its leading position in traditional industries.

Shaanxi should speed up modernizing the industrial system that is intelligent, green and integrated, and meets the requirements of integrity, advancement and security, Xi said, demanding more efforts to strengthen its modern energy industrial clusters.

The most arduous tasks in building a modern socialist country in all respects and promoting common prosperity remain in the rural areas, Xi said, stressing efforts to narrow the gap between urban and rural areas and build county economies with county seats as hubs and small townships as junctions.

He also called for vigorously developing industries with distinctive features in light of local conditions, creating more channels for increasing farmers' incomes and ensuring that people would not slide back into poverty in large numbers.

Efforts should be made to promote the green and low-carbon transformation of development patterns and enhance ecological conservation, Xi said.

He stressed the need to strictly implement the Yellow River Protection Law and related plans and strengthen ecological protection and restoration of the river basin to protect the Yellow River, known as the "mother river" of the Chinese nation.

Xi called for promoting green and low-carbon economic and social development, facilitating the green transformation of the energy industry while actively and prudently advancing carbon peaking and neutrality.

Work should be done to advocate green consumption and further promote the economical and intensive use of resources, Xi said.

He urged efforts to open up wider and develop the inland province into a high ground for reform and opening up. The province should give full play to the city of Xi'an as an assembly center for China-Europe freight trains, move faster in becoming a pivotal opening-up channel for countries in Central Asia, South Asia, and West Asia.

Speaking of the Party-wide education campaign on the study and implementation of the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Xi called on Party organizations at all levels to advance the campaign profoundly and steadily and yield tangible results in forging inner strength, gaining wisdom, improving Party conduct and motivating actions.

Xi stressed the importance of handling complex situations, pooling strength from across the society, and guarding against political risks, calling for translating the worldview and methodology of the thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods running through it, into a "master key" of problem-solving.

Xi also underlined the need to work more scientifically with foresight, initiative, and creativity, and enhance the capabilities of promoting high-quality development, serving the public, preventing and diffusing risks, and being more professionally competent.

Shaanxi should use its historical and cultural resources and red culture to continue advancing the education campaign and make solid progress, he said.

On his way to Shaanxi, Xi inspected the city of Yuncheng in north China's Shanxi Province, where he visited a museum and a salt lake Tuesday afternoon.

Valuable cultural relics in the Yuncheng Museum, some of which are national treasures, are witnesses to the Chinese history of humanity, culture and civilization, he said.

He called for further efforts to advance the national research project on tracing the origins of Chinese civilization and the historical research on this civilization to improve the capabilities of protecting and utilizing cultural relics and passing on Chinese cultural heritage.

At the Yuncheng Salt Lake, which has a history of over 4,600 years of exploitation, Xi noted that the ecological values and functions of the salt lake are increasingly important, urging coordinated efforts to protect and utilize it to further protect its historical and cultural values.

The ecological conservation and high-quality development in the Yellow River basin is a major strategic decision made by the CPC Central Committee for the sustainable development of the Chinese nation and the Chinese civilization, Xi said.

He required provinces and regions along the Yellow River to uphold ecological conservation in the Yellow River basin as the bottom line in planning development and pursuing high-quality development.

Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and director of the General Office of the CPC Central Committee, attended the meeting and accompanied Xi on the inspection trip.