President renews his call to win ‘3 tough battles’

WUHAN — President Xi Jinping called for maintaining China’s new development philosophy and winning the “three tough battles” during a five-day inspection tour in Hubei province that concluded on Saturday.

Xi, who is also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, emphasized the importance of “fully implementing the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress and following the Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era”.

Xi urged efforts to “maintain the new development philosophy, pursue progress while ensuring stability, focus on winning the three tough battles and solve the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development”.

Forestalling and defusing major risks, carrying out targeted poverty alleviation and preventing and controlling pollution have been identified as the three tough battles that China must win.

On Thursday morning, Xi inspected two leading chipmakers in a high-tech development zone in Wuhan, Hubei province.

The area, dubbed “China’s Optics Valley”, is the world’s largest R&D and manufacturing base for optical communication equipment.

Xi first visited FiberHome Technologies Group, which leads the world in R&D and production of optical communication equipment of “ultralarge capacity, ultralong haul and ultrahigh rate”, with technology that can enable 6.75 billion telephone calls at the same time using a single optical fiber.

Xi praised the company’s achievements and told its executives that innovation is the priority of China’s new development concept.

Having become the world’s second-largest economy, China must rely on innovation to spur economic growth because the old resources-dependent way is no longer effective, Xi said.

Independent core technology determines the survival of businesses, he said.

“Businesses must unceasingly make breakthroughs in core technology, mastering more key technologies with self-owned intellectual property rights and building up the ability to dominate industrial development. The country needs you to pick up the pace,” Xi said.

Xi then visited Wuhan Xinxin Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp to inspect a national production base for computer memory and integrated circuits.

In workshops, he listened to reports about the smart manufacturing of chips and accelerating the chip localization progress.

Likening chips to the human heart, Xi said, “No matter how big a person is, he or she can never be strong without a sound and strong heart.” He urged businesses to make major breakthroughs in chip technology and reach new heights in the global semiconductor industry.

China’s two centenary goals cannot be delivered easily, Xi said, adding that both the opportunities and

challenges ahead of the country are unprecedented. He called on all Chinese to make a bigger contribution to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

At noon, Xi inspected Qingheju, a modern community developed from a former shantytown. He said that redevelopment of rundown areas is about allowing people to live and work in contentment, adding that there are still some daunting tasks.

“We will strive to take actions as long as they are good for the people, and will make every endeavor to get things straight,” Xi said.

While visiting a community center, Xi urged more efforts to reform and innovate governance at the community level and to offer more targeted and detailed services to the public.

On Saturday afternoon, Xi listened to work reports of the Hubei Committee of the CPC and the provincial government.

Pushing high quality development is the fundamental requirement for good economic work, Xi said.

Supply-side structural reform should be pushed forward, with efforts to be made both on upgrading traditional industries and developing emerging sectors, Xi said.

The overall quality of the supply system should be improved so that the system will be more adaptive to demand, Xi said, adding that “Chinese quality should be just as world-renowned as Chinese speed.”

Emphasis should be given to innovation-driven development, and efforts should be made to improve the innovation system and boost innovative capacity, he added, noting that technological innovation should be deeply integrated with economic and social development.

Environmental protection should also be enhanced, he said, adding that actions should be based on the understanding that “clear water and lush mountains are invaluable assets”. A holistic approach should be used to conserve the mountains, rivers, forests, farmlands, lakes, and grasslands, while control of air, water and soil pollution should be strengthened, Xi said.

During the inspection, Xi also stressed that the rural revitalization strategy is central for China in addressing issues related to agriculture, rural areas and rural residents.

To develop rural areas with thriving businesses, pleasant living environments, social etiquette, civility, effective governance and prosperity, more focus should be put on fostering modern industrial, production and business operations, Xi said.