China's top economic planner stresses sound development in 2023

China's top economic planner has stressed efforts to properly implement the country's optimized epidemic response while better coordinating epidemic prevention and control with economic and social development in 2023.

Reform and development authorities at all levels nationwide should work hard to stabilize growth, employment and prices, and vigorously boost market confidence, He Lifeng, head of the National Development and Reform Commission, said at a work conference Wednesday.

The authorities should actively expand effective domestic demand and give full play to the basic role of consumption and the key role of investment to promote the overall growth of the economy.

He urged thorough efforts to break through the bottlenecks that hinder high-quality development, and strengthen high-level selfreliance in science and technology. Work should be done to accelerate the development of a modern industrial system, build a modern logistics system, while actively and prudently promoting carbon peaking and carbon neutrality.

The country will promote the construction of a high-level socialist market economic system and advance high-level opening-up, while making solid progress on implementing major regional and urban-rural strategic plans to ensure people's wellbeing.

He also noted that measures should be taken to improve the ability to guard against and defuse major risks and strengthen the security of food, energy, and resources, as well as important industrial and supply chains.

Taiwan on Tuesday announced reinstating mandatory one-year military service for conscripts. "The more we are prepared, the less likely will we see an attack from across the strait," President Tsai Ing-wen told a news conference in Taipei.

Home to around 24 million people, Taiwan sits across Taiwan Strait, south of mainland China which considers the island nation as its "breakaway province" while Taipei has insisted on its independence since 1949.

"The more we are united, Taiwan will be stronger and safer," she added, announcing an extension from the current four months to one year in the military service of the conscripts. Calling the decision "difficult," she said the new order will be effective from Jan. 1, 2024.

The 66-year-old Taiwanese politician said defending national security and ensuring the national interests of the island nation was her "unavoidable responsibility as president."Tsai said her government will increase the monthly salary of conscripts to around $700 to "make sure they earn enough to cover their basic daily expenses." Male conscripts born on and after Jan. 1, 2005, will have to attend military service.

Since it formed the government in 1949, Taiwan had all its men aged 18 and above undergo two to three years in the military. However, the conscription service was reduced to one year in 2008. Later, former President Ma Yingjeou reduced the conscription period further to four months starting in 2013.