Amid a salvo of gun salutes, the People's Republic of China celebrated its 70th birthday Tuesday with a grand military parade and a 100,000-people mass pageantry, manifesting to the world its full confidence as a socialist country to achieve modernization the Chinese way.
In just several decades, China has done what took developed countries several hundred years to complete. The Chinese people, once mocked as "the sick man of East Asia" and tortured by aggression and turmoil more than a century ago, now see their motherland rising with dignity and ever-growing clout on the global arena.
Abject poverty, a chronic problem facing the Chinese nationality for thousands of years, was uprooted as the ruling Communist Party of China (CPC) has endeavored to bring out the best of the socialist system for the good of the people.
With more than 700 million people lifted out of poverty, China has set an unprecedented example in eliminating poverty in large scale.
For the Chinese, enormous changes have taken place in their homeland which has never been closer to realizing the Chinese Dream of national rejuvenation.
It is now the world's largest trader and industrial manufacturer, a popular investment destination with huge market potential, a significant engine of the world economy, a contributor to world peace and a determined supporter of globalization as well as a proponent of a just and reasonable international order.
As an ancient oriental civilization dating back 5,000 years, China never sought outward expansion or hegemony. At the center of the Chinese culture is benevolence, peace and harmony.
At the parade, a series of new, sophisticated weaponry were unveiled. They will be used to safeguard China's national sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity, protect China's overseas interests, and promote world peace and development, as China's defense policy has always been defensive in nature.
When addressing a grand rally on Tuesday, President Xi Jinping said no force can ever shake the status of China or stop the Chinese people and nation from marching forward.
Taking its 70th founding anniversary as a new starting point, China is now sprinting toward building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by next year, just before the CPC celebrates its centennial anniversary in 2021.
What ensues will be another lofty target: a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious and beautiful.
Along the way, the world will see China remain committed to peaceful development and dedicated to building a community with a shared future for humanity.
