Xi Jinping Thought has global influence

The 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China has caught worldwide attention, not only because of China's influence in the world economy, but more importantly, the Party's insatiable yearn for institutional innovation, as General Secretary Xi Jinping's report indicates.

Any keen observers of China would not deny that the 68-page work report delivered by Xi on behalf of the 18th CPC Central Committee to the Congress on October 18 was a concise, down-to-earth and systematic explanation of what the Party has done and will do.

Kenneth Lieberthal, a professor emeritus at the University of Michigan and senior fellow emeritus at the Brookings Institution, said that there is no single "most notable change" – there have been major developments in many aspects of China's economy, social life, civil society, politics, and foreign policy. Xi Jinping's leadership style differs very significantly from that of his predecessor, and those differences are reflected in many aspects of life in China.

Xi has demonstrated a strong ability in theoretical manifestation, in a confident and convincing manner. In the report he defines the new era of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and redefines the main contradiction of the new era, seamlessly docking his thoughts with both the reality of China and the inheritance from his predecessors.

To some extent, Xi's thought represents a new development of Marxism's localization in China, and the latest contribution to the world's socialist cause and theoretical progress.

The vitality of his thought rests with the institutional innovations China has made under the leadership of the Party with him as the core since 2012 — more than 1,500 reform measures have been launched in a more systematic, holistic and coordinated way — as well as the concrete benefits these innovations have delivered to China and elsewhere in the world.

The Belt and Road Initiative, proposed by Xi in 2013, is a case in point.

In the report delivered by General Secretary Xi Jinping at the opening session of the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Xi mentioned the Belt and Road Initiative five times.

He regards the progress of the Belt and Road projects as an important achievement of the past five years. He also sees the Belt and Road Initiative as part of the new type of big power diplomacy and means to promote the opening-up of the country and international cooperation.

The CPC has incorporated pushing for Belt and Road development into its Constitution, according to a resolution approved by the 19th CPC National Congress.

Erik Berglof, director of the London School of Economics' Institute of Global Affairs, said that China is playing an important role on the world stage by championing big ideas, including the Belt and Road Initiative and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. What China does is important for the world, and what China does, even domestically, has implications for the world.

Kevin Rudd, former Australian prime minister, said China has been actively participating in global governance through its climate change policies and the Belt and Road Initiative.

"Its diplomatic efforts have contributed to the reform of global governance structures and the establishment of a community of shared future for mankind," Xinhua quoted Rudd as saying.

With nearly one fifth of the global population, China's continuous institutional innovation in economic growth, good governance, poverty alleviation, environmental protection, security, and public services at home is of global value, and generates increasingly more spillover effects around the world.

Bill Gates, co-chair of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, said: "I see China as an indispensable part of the solution to the world’s most pressing challenges. … There are lots of areas where we could be doing even more to apply China’s experience to global problems."

Also, the mounting expectation upon, the concrete benefits linked with and the bright prospects related to Xi’s thought at home and abroad, which guides the profound reform and all-round development of the largest developing country in a stable and increasingly predictable manner, should consolidate other developing countries' confidence in their independence. They should explore their own future based on their practical national conditions.