Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a tea reception in the Red Room of the White House in Washington on Friday (local time). [AP]
Chinese President Xi Jinping attends a tea reception in the Red Room of the White House in Washington on Friday (local time). [AP]

Chinese President Xi Jinping declared that China has become one of the safest countries in the world and called for strengthening the country's national security framework and capabilities.

Xi's directives were conveyed Monday at a national conference on building a "peaceful China," held in Beijing, according to China Central Television and other state media.

The "peaceful China" initiative is a national-level social stability and public security policy that Beijing has pursued in earnest since 2013, early in Xi's tenure. China institutionalized the effort over the years, including by establishing a dedicated coordinating body in 2020.

Xi said China had achieved "remarkable results" in building a peaceful China since the 18th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party, adding that "the favorable situation in which the people live and work in peace and contentment, and society remains stable and orderly, has been further consolidated."

He went on to declare that "China is one of the safest countries in the world," and urged officials to "firmly implement the holistic approach to national security" guided by the thought on socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era.

Xi also called on officials to "coordinate development and security, advance both punishment and prevention, and address both underlying and surface-level problems," while strengthening the national security framework, raising the level of public safety management and guarding against various risks.

Chen Wenqing, a member of the Political Bureau of the Chinese Communist Party Central Committee and secretary of the Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission, told the conference that "the achievements of peaceful China construction are recognized by the world," adding that "'peaceful' has already become a distinctive symbol of China's governance."

The conference was also attended by Zhang Jun, president of the Supreme People's Court, and Ying Yong, procurator-general of the Supreme People's Procuratorate, according to CCTV.


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