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"The highest priority for the development of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies in China is not to create explosive applications, but to accelerate the development of industrial systems and the real economy," said Xiao Xinguang, a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and chief software architect from Chinese cybersecurity company Antiy.

With the emergence of ChatGPT and Sora, the AI industry is accelerating its development, and human society is accelerating into the era of AI civilization. At the same time, the potential problems and uncertainties related to it may bring negative impacts and challenges to humanity. The security issues arising from it have also been put on the agenda.

"AI's extensive and deep empowerment in all industries and social fields is an inevitable trend in history. For the entire economic and social fields, there is only a difference between fast and slow,  but no choice of whether to use it or not. Embracing AI may not necessarily mean success for various industries, but not embracing AI will definitely lead to elimination," Xiao told the Global Times. 

Embracing AI requires a more open and collaborative mindset, said Xiao, noting that different departments have different focuses.

For example, the industrial sector needs to quickly follow up and apply AI to accelerate digitalization, intelligent upgrading, and transformation; however, government agencies should focus on how to better serve the people with AI, accelerate economic and social development, and also do well in risk control. 

The field of cybersecurity, on the other hand, focuses on three major risks: the risks of AI technologies such as algorithms and data; application risks of platforms such as data leakage; and the risks of upgrading network attack capabilities under AI empowerment, Xiao said.

As a member of the national cybersecurity agency, Xiao described how he and his colleagues encounter cases of "AI-enhanced network attacks" in their daily work. "The graphic and textual content of phishing emails from some overseas attack organizations in the past two years are clearly generated by large model platforms. In cybercrime cases, deepfake technology has been frequently used." 

According to Xiao, AI significantly empowers the entire attack chain. This includes, but is not limited to, efficiently exploiting software and hardware vulnerabilities and enhancing the organization of information intelligence. It also improves the exploration of attack entry points, the orchestration and automatic launching of attacks, and the writing of attack viruses. Additionally, AI enhances the ability to create highly targeted social engineering dialogues, deceiving network administrators and users, among other capabilities.

"We must pay attention to the challenges of content generation and deepfake for cognitive confrontation, and we must also conduct in-depth analysis and research on the deep empowerment of AI throughout the network attack process," Xiao said.

A thief crying "Stop thief"

The US has been the first to associate AI technology with the so-called "Chinese hackers" launching attacks on the US. In January, the FBI and US Justice Department used a court order to address vulnerabilities in thousands of internet-connected devices that are at the center of a so-called Chinese hacking campaign targeting sensitive US critical infrastructure, CNN reported.

In response, Xiao said the US continues to conduct network intrusions and intelligence activities in cyberspace to support its global hegemony system. By using its own behavior paradigm to judge others, the US was trying to shift its attack activities to China in order to muddy the waters in international diplomacy and public opinion.

The US reportedly has the most powerful global network attack engineering system, complete and continuously iterated network attack weapons and equipment, and the largest team of network attack personnel. Since the birth of the internet, the most long-term, covert, and severe network attacks and eavesdropping activities, such as Stuxnet, Flame, and Duqu, have all been initiated by the US. 

"We have analyzed and disclosed the network attack activities of the US against other countries many times, including a detailed analysis and reconstruction of the attack process of the largest SWIFT service provider in the Middle East, EastNets, as well as a detailed exposure last year of the operation mechanism of the US attacking key personnel's phones and computers based on the 'quantum' system," Xiao said. 

US intelligence agencies have long been concerned about the strengthening of AI capabilities in network attacks and the use of deepfake technology. It is necessary to pay close attention to the shaping of the US attack capabilities by super large model platforms, he noted. 

Different paths

While smearing China for using AI technology for hacking attacks, the US is also actively downplaying China's AI technology development. In a report by CNBC on January 9, FBI Director Christopher Wray was quoted as saying "18 of the 20 most successful AI companies in the world are American." He then turned his focus to China, claiming that "You can bet your bottom dollar that foreign adversaries, especially the Chinese, are actively targeting that innovation, that intellectual property."

Xiao said that due to historical advantages and geopolitical factors, as well as long-term global dividends, the US has established a leading position in the global technology and industry. In order to solidify this leading advantage, the US government and capital groups have formed an inertia to suppress followers, especially by creating a false perception: "Whenever other countries show certain advantages in some fields, it must be the result of stealing American achievements." This is an extremely arrogant and deceptive rhetoric, Xiao said. 

China's academic achievements in AI technologies have surged in recent years, with the number of top AI scholars ranking second globally. Universities and industries such as Tsinghua University and Harbin Institute of Technology have published high-level academic achievements in various subfields of AI. At the same time, scientific and technological development from basic theory to engineering implementation and application often follows a "convergence" path, so there will be a certain similarity in the basic path of technological innovation. Respecting the contributions of pioneers does not mean accepting that the first to develop can permanently monopolize, Xiao explained.

"The US has obtained more global dividends, gathered top talent resources worldwide, and naturally established a first-mover advantage in many fields; however, countries with strong self-development intentions, such as China, will also determine key development areas based on their own characteristics, relying on effective government organization, benign competition in the industry, and the diligence and unity of the people to make progress," Xiao stressed.

This cybersecurity expert believes China and the US will have certain differences in the development path of AI technologies. Information technology is the US' advantageous field, and through large-scale capital investment, it has established a large-scale intensive innovation model based on information complexes, forming a new strategic competitive capability. This system operates similarly to OpenAI+ChatGPT. The related experience is highly worthy of reference but difficult to completely imitate. 

Currently, China has experienced a phenomenon of "one factory one model, a thousand-model battle with each other" in the development of general large models, which has brought about some resource waste and ineffective investment, affecting the aggregation of production factors. However, we should not be overly anxious. We are one of the few countries with all the elements to build a super large-scale general artificial intelligence platform. Our "formation" will be optimized and adjusted as we develop, Xiao said.

He noted that, at the same time, China has the most complete industrial system and a very solid foundation in the real economy. There is still a lot of room for improvement in automation, unmanned operation and intelligence. Our real industries cannot wait for the maturity of super large-scale general model platforms but must quickly gain AI empowerment and then iterate and improve. Therefore, the focus of China's AI development is still to accelerate the transition of the industrial system to new quality productivity and gain more benefits in the real industry.

Industrial development the highest priority

On February 12, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang said at the World Government Summit in Dubai that every country needs to own the production of their own intelligence to codify its culture while utilizing its economic potential.

In response, Xiao said that the development model of AI is highly related to the national industrial characteristics. 

In the context of the hollowing out of industry due to profit-driven capital within the US, relying on information giants, capital power and rapid aggregation of talent, the best choice for the US is to establish a large-scale intensive innovation model in the field of large model platforms to form a new strategic competitive capability. On the other hand, China's overall industrial scale, completeness of the industrial system, and substantial real economy are globally leading. We have rich AI integration points and potential points in the industry and real economy, providing ample space for local innovation, he said. 

However, China also needs to move from a fragmented small production model to an intensive large production model for AI platform construction. The country should gradually guide the formation of a super-scale general AI platform in terms of high-quality data sources, large-scale computing infrastructure, operational ecology, and organizational methods, supporting the industrial ecosystem, which is important for developing new quality productivity and strengthening national strategic security capabilities, Xiao noted.  

Xiao added that it is also significant for building a community with shared future in cyberspace. The US government's suppression of China's high-tech industry development through a "small yard and high fence" strategy and the use of the so-called "table and menu theory" to force other countries to take sides is evident. 

Especially in the field of AI, it has used a series of measures such as talent bans, access restrictions and hardware bans. In terms of AI platforms and applications, it forces other countries to make choices, which will inevitably lead to a camp-style rift in the development of artificial intelligence technology, causing a major division. This makes it even more necessary for the development of China's AI technologies to have an internationalist perspective, according to Xiao.

The development of China's universal large-scale model platform can not only provide empowering assistance for the economic development of other countries, but also help third world countries build their own sovereign artificial intelligence infrastructure, helping them break free from dependence on Western countries in modernization development. Peace-loving and progressive countries should work together to bring a new digital infrastructure system to a more equal world, Xiao noted.

Facing the rapid development of AI technologies, reducing the risk of AI proliferation is a challenge facing all governments. By 2023, the US had already signed the first executive order on AI regulation, which requires "companies developing any foundation model that poses a serious risk to national security, national economic security, or national public health and safety must notify the federal government when training the model."

Due to the significant security risks and uncertainties of AI technology, strengthening the management and guidance of technological capabilities and platforms is an important function and responsibility of governments around the world, Xiao sated.

Chinese authorities have already formulated an interim regulation on the management of generative AI services. Currently, China has a certain foundation for the management mechanism of AI technologies and platforms, but it still needs continuous adjustment and improvement. "We need to achieve better, faster, and safer growth and development, and development itself is the greatest security," Xiao said.

Kathy Peng never imagined that her birthplace in Southwest China's Yunnan Province would be a production region for Scotch whisky.

Kathy, a seasoned world traveler with a discerning palate for international delicacies, now resides in Sanlitun, Beijing's cosmopolitan heart. With the Spring Festival, or Chinese Lunar New Year, approaching, as every Chinese person would, she took to the internet, curating an array of goods for her family's festive celebration.

To her astonishment, she discovered that what were once exotic imported foods have now found a home across China - Caviar from Southwest China's Sichuan Province has supplanted the Baltic delicacy, while goose liver, a luxurious staple in French cuisine, can be bought from Anhui Province in central China; South American prawns are sourced from the arid yet latitudinally similar Gansu Province in Northwest China; Matcha, Japan's signature flavor, now hails from Southwest China's Guizhou Province.

"Discovering the world's flavors right at our doorstep in China is like opening a treasure chest in your own backyard," Kathy told the Global Times. "Before you know it, China has become a treasure trove of hidden global delicacies."

China's vastness is a marvel, spanning broad latitudes north to south and longitudes east to west. From the chilly conifer forests of the Northeast to the tropical azure waters of South China Sea, from the expansive deserts of the Northwest to the mountainous highlands of the Southwest... China nourishes a world of produce within its diverse terrains and climates.

As technology advances, even the toughest barriers to agricultural innovation are being broken down, allowing foreign crops to take root and thrive on Chinese soil, becoming powerful tools in the revitalization of rural areas.

The "No. 1 central document" released in January mentions that to effectively promote the revitalization of rural areas, it is necessary to adhere to the principles of boosting agriculture through industry, quality, and green practices. This involves advancing the coordinated development of agricultural production and both primary and deeper processing to enhance value conversion locally and regionally. Additionally, the document advocates for the development of online sales networks for rural specialty products.

On the Chinese internet, netizens have launched an "agricultural census" campaign, uncovering previously unknown local specialties from their hometowns and directly participating in the process of rural revitalization.

Discovery of treasures

This winter, Harbin, the capital of Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, did not just freeze the rivers; it set the internet ablaze as the season's first viral city. It is like discovering a secret level in a video game: Who knew cranberries were not just a Thanksgiving relic but actually grown right here in China as well?

This revelation was just the tip of the iceberg, leading to a treasure trove of hidden gems being unearthed.

On January 30, Taobao, one of the largest e-commerce platforms in China, rolled out the red carpet for the unsung heroes of the culinary world with its "Taobao Hidden Local Specialties Report," featuring goose liver from Lu'an city, Anhui, and matcha from Tongren of Guizhou, followed by Wagyu beef from Qiqihar in Heilongjiang, and macadamia nuts (known in China as Hawaii nuts) from Lincang, Yunnan.

In Yunnan, alongside Lincang macadamia nuts, matutake cookies, Baoshan coffee, and Honghe blueberries have also gradually caught the public eye. Among them, the Tengchong dried cockroach is the most peculiar.

Dried cockroaches, due to their unique medicinal value, have become a new booming industry in Tengchong city. There are nearly a hundred stores on Taobao in Yunnan alone selling dried American cockroaches or cockroach powder, as well as products made from American cockroach as the main ingredient, like face soaps and masks.

The farthest inland northwest region has also astounded many netizens with its large-scale seafood farming properties for specialties such as Shaanxi's hairy crabs, Qinghai's rainbow trout, and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region's iceberg snow crabs and cold-water fish.

The Hidden Local Specialties Report is not just a shopping list; it is a call to adventure for foodies and a geography puzzle that actually tastes good. With local versions of global delicacies popping up faster than mushrooms after rain, it is clear: China's menu, which is already huge and rich, has gotten an even bigger upgrade.

Break through limitations

The "agricultural census" campaign has brought to light some fascinating facts about agriculture in China. For instance, it revealed that Heilongjiang has the largest cranberry plantation in Asia, Gansu produces South American prawns, and Anhui boasts the largest goose foie gras production base in China. These lesser-known facts have quickly spread through the internet, spotlighting some hidden champions in the agricultural sector.

In particular, the unexpected popularity of the city of Harbin has allowed many visitors from Southern China to experience northeastern-style hospitality. In a sign of gratitude, a total of 189 tons of freshly picked sugar tangerines from South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region were sent to Heilongjiang, and in return, Fuyuan city in Heilongjiang, the easternmost city in the Chinese mainland, gifted 100,000 cartons of locally produced cranberries to Guangxi. These exchanges of love between China's north and south have introduced countless people to this small northeastern city and its unique fruits.

"Cranberry sales have suddenly skyrocketed this winter, with over 500 orders sold on January 7 and over 1,000 orders sold on January 8," said Dang Linguang, the manager of the Ganfuyuan flagship store on Taobao, during a media interview.

According to data from Taobao, on January 10, searches for cranberries on the platform increased by 958 percent compared to the same period in 2023.

Dang noted that cranberries mainly grow between 40 and 50 degrees in north latitude, and the environmental requirements of the growth area are extremely harsh. For a long time in the past, cranberries in China were mostly wild, and it was hard to achieve large-scale cultivation.

Before 2010, China's cranberry products were mainly dependent on imports. In 2014, Fuyuan successfully introduced cranberry cultivation from the US.

Fuyuan shares the same latitude as the main cranberry-producing areas worldwide and has a similar natural environment. After overcoming various planting technical difficulties, cranberries are finally cultivated on a systematic scale in the eastern polar land on the mainland.

Currently, the cranberry cultivation area in Fuyuan has expanded to 4,200 mu (280 hectares), making it the largest cranberry cultivation base in Asia. This not only breaks the US monopoly, which accounts for nearly 98 percent of global cranberry production, but also fills the gap in the market with domestically grown Chinese cranberries.

In 2023, Fuyuan's cranberry production reached a record high of 3,000 tons, accounting for 40 percent of Asia's cranberry production, and is expected to net sales of nearly 100 million yuan for fruit farmers.

"The development and transformation of China's agricultural production mode has given many agricultural products unique competitive advantages," Li Guoxiang, a research fellow at the Rural Development Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, told the Global Times.

Li pointed out that in the past, China's agricultural production was relatively slow due to the reliance on regional resource endowments. "However, in recent years, the modernization of agriculture in China has greatly freed agricultural production from the constraints of natural conditions. As a result, the types of industries in different regions have become more diverse, and many new local specialties have emerged," he said.

Thanks to technological innovation, raising shrimp in the mountains is no longer a novelty in Gansu Province. Several years ago, cities like Baiyin, Wuwei, and Zhangye in Gansu began exploring the introduction of specialty aquaculture industries such as South America white shrimp, crabs, and rainbow trout. Since 2018, Jingtai county in Baiyin has been experimenting with the cultivation of South American shrimp in saline-alkali water.

According to Jingtai county's fisheries technology extension service center, Baiyin has continuously made breakthroughs in the cultivation technology of South America white shrimp. In 2023, heating facilities were used to extend the shrimp's growth period, making South America white shrimp more competitive in the market.

At present, rural industries across China have gradually established a sound industrial development system and formed a sense of integrated development of upstream and downstream industries, Li said.

"Although some of these characteristic industries are imported from outside, Chinese farmers combine their own characteristics and break regional planting barriers by relying on science and technology, and become a typical example of the rise of new agricultural innovation," he noted.

Facilitate rural revitalization

In recent years, the potential of local specialties in promoting rural revitalization has been unleashed and once obscure local products are now emerging as powerful forces in transforming rural economies.

A search on popular Chinese e-commerce websites for local specialties yields tens of thousands of results, covering vast regions from the north to the south, and the east to the west. People can receive most of them within three days after placing an order. For some products that are not easily stored, cold-chain transportation is used to guarantee their freshness.

When Global Times reporters visited many rural areas in the country, they also learned from local officials and industry insiders that those local specialties have become an important financial source for locals and helped create employment opportunities as there is a strong need for skilled workers to produce, process, and market them.

Analysts pointed out that this also helps retain talent within the rural community. By the end of 2022, about 12.20 million people had returned to their hometowns to start businesses, according to official data. Among them, many chose the new agriculture industry.

By focusing on the production of local specialties, farmers are empowered to tap into niche markets and command higher prices for their products. This not only improves their income but also enhances their livelihoods, enabling them to invest in better farming practices and technologies, experts said.

However, with the changes in globalization and market demand, the local specialty industry faces new opportunities and challenges. On one hand, globalization has opened up new markets and expanded the reach of local specialties beyond regional boundaries. On the other hand, it also exposes local producers to competition from competent global players.

To overcome these challenges, local specialty producers need to focus on product differentiation, quality assurance, and effective marketing strategies to maintain their competitive edge, experts pointed out.

Meanwhile, there is also a growing environmental protection concern and the sustainable use of resources which are important for the long-term development of this industry.

"Local specialty producers should adopt eco-friendly production methods, minimize waste generation, and promote biodiversity conservation. Additionally, they should work closely with local communities and stakeholders to ensure that the development of this industry does not harm the ecological balance of the region. By prioritizing sustainability, the local specialty industry can thrive while preserving the natural resources that make these products unique," Li said.

Editor's Note:

Houthi rebels in Yemen said, on Monday, that they attacked a US ship in the Gulf of Aden after US launched airstrikes on Houthis. The situation in the Red Sea has grown increasingly tense in recent weeks, showing the spillover effect of the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip. What will possibly happen next? Is it possible for a larger conflict to happen in the Middle East? How will new tensions affect the ongoing Palestine-Israel conflict? Global Times reporters Xie Wenting and Bai Yunyi (GT) spoke with Yezid Sayigh (Sayigh), a senior fellow at the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, on these and other pertinent issues.

GT: The US has launched another airstrike on Houthis in Yemen on Friday. How do you predict the future development of the situation in the Middle East?  How do you assess the possibility of the eruption of a larger conflict that will involve more parties?

Sayigh: The fact that the US is taking direct military action crosses a certain threshold. So far, the US has taken a deterrent posture against Iran and Hezbollah, and so on. But it hasn't taken on a major direct combat role. The situation in which they get involved in Yemen, with air attacks on the Houthis, is going to be more complicated.

The Houthis are in a much stronger position than forces like the Syrian militias or even Iraqi militias in some respects. Their impact on Red Sea shipping is potentially more major for the US to get directly involved militarily.

The question then is, what happens next? If the Houthis retaliate and hit back, does the US then escalate its move? How far will they go? Already, the US is increasing the risk of direct confrontation with Iran. If the Houthis are not deterred and continue their attacks, will the US threaten Iran or escalate military action against the Houthis? Both options are highly risky and undesirable.

I think the risk of a wider war is obviously increasing. However, at the same time, I think that the key parties will not go beyond a certain point into direct confrontation. At the same time, they have already started what we call an escalation spiral.

But the US is in a very risky situation, and it increasingly looks as though it is entering the war on the side of Israel as well. None of this is helpful for their strategic position, and none of this is helpful for the Biden administration. President Biden is starting the election year while possibly starting a new war in the Middle East. Every American president so far for the last 30 years has launched a war in the Middle East: George Bush Senior, Bill Clinton, George Bush Junior, and Obama in different ways. Trump also engaged to some extent. Now we have Biden risking yet another American war in the Middle East after having pulled out of Afghanistan. 

I think all of this is politically very damaging for the US. But right now, the situation in the Red Sea is partly because Biden decided to support Israel in a certain way by signaling military support - both direct military assistance to Israel and by deploying his naval fleets in the Mediterranean. He has already, in a way, signaled military deterrence that encouraged Iran to use military deterrence. Biden, in a way, started this escalation spiral from the beginning with his immediate deployment of military assets to the Mediterranean. 

GT: What kind of incident would be a trigger point for a direct confrontation between the US and Iran? How do you assess the likelihood of such confrontation happening?

Sayigh: I think that the direct use of more technologically advanced missiles by the Houthis against US navy ships in the Red Sea could be perceived by the US as a qualitative shift. This could lead the US to realize that bombing more Houthi targets is pointless unless it engages in large-scale bombings, but this is problematic. Alternatively, it may choose to directly threaten Iran, which is also problematic. 

It is difficult to say whether such a confrontation is likely or not. On one side, Biden has embarked on a path which, in order to maintain credibility, he must continue on a course that raises the risk of confrontation. I think because we're now talking about Red Sea shipping and the threat to global trade, which the US government has basically said it's going to protect, it's harder for Biden to retreat. 

GT: How long do you think the current situation of disrupted shipping in the Red Sea will last?  Is it possible for the US to assert de facto control over the Red Sea under the pretext of counterterrorism?

Sayigh: The US cannot afford, in terms of their strategic credibility, to allow the Houthis to continue this nonstop for much longer. But how can the US stop it? This is a more difficult question. They would have to militarily punish the Houthis enough for them to say the pain is too great and they must stop. But the Houthis can probably take a lot of damage before they stop. 

It is interesting to think back to the 1980s when Iraq and Iran engaged in attacks on shipping in the Gulf in an attempt to disrupt each other's oil shipments and coerce one another into ending the war. Later the US intervened and deployed a substantial naval presence.

Are we looking at the same scenario today? Maybe. But let's remember that in the 1980s, the shipping war lasted for a very long time. It involved a major US deployment, and it wasn't easy to stop. So, I think it's a difficult challenge for them today. They're fighting the Houthis, who of course, are much weaker than Iran and Iraq. But in a way, they're also a difficult target because they're a poor army already. It's not like you're attacking a country that has a lot to lose. There aren't many high-value targets that can be struck if the US attacks the airport, oil refineries, or oil tankers, for example. The US is causing misery for one of the poorest nations on earth, where 80 percent of people depend on food supplied by the United Nations. What is the US going to do? Is it going to increase the food crisis, energy crisis, and poverty crisis of a country that is already devastated by war? 

The options are all very bad, and lack obvious military solutions. The risk for the US is that Biden will have to increase airstrikes from 10 to 20, and then to 40. This escalation appears to be the start of a new US war in the Middle East, which poses a significant problem for a president who is facing elections this year. The costs to start a war in the Middle East are too high.

GT: Considering the recent developments in the Middle East, how long do you think the conflict between Israel and Hamas will continue, and in which direction is it likely to evolve?

Sayigh: All I anticipate for Israel and Palestine is that the Israeli combat in Gaza will continue for many more months to come. For now, there is no meaningful Western pressure on Israel to change its strategy. The Western response, which disregarded international humanitarian law and the rules of war, also signifies a moment of change in world history. The liberal order that the West claims to protect and uphold since 1945 has been abandoned by the West itself. 

But I think that Western governments won't change their policy. This is because the US is going through a presidential election, and no president in the US is going to confront Israel in an election year. I believe this remains the case.

I think the one thing that is happening right now, which is really interesting, is the South Africa's genocide case against Israel in the International Criminal Court. This is a significant diplomatic act. It won't force Israel to stop what it's doing, but if the court issues any kind of ruling against Israel, I think that will be very significant for public opinion. 

The bottom line is, I think, Israel will continue its military operations, and as long as Western governments allow this, the fighting will continue and the damage to Western credibility in the rest of the world will continue.

Editor's Note:

The end of the year and the start of a new one is a time for reflection and anticipation. Throughout 2023, the Chinese society has undergone various developments and changes, behind which manifests the exploration and practice of Chinese path to modernization.

In light of this, the Global Times is launching a series that elaborates on this unique path through the stories of ordinary people's New Year wishes. These wishes serve as a window to the changes in and achievements of Chinese society as Chinese modernization has brought Chinese people more concrete consensus, a more vibrant countryside, more imaginative innovation, more balanced education, a more dignified old age with stronger security, and a more confident civilization. This shows that Chinese modernization is the prerequisite and driving force for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

This is the third installment in the "Wish List" series, sharing the story of a group of secondary school students in Foshan, South China's Guangdong Province, who made a wish to "let taikonauts enjoy fresh fish soup in space." With their yearning for the vast universe, and their pride in China's scientific and technological progress, they have planted exploratory seeds in their hearts to embark on a journey to the sea of stars, through continuous scientific experiments that attempt to turn their creative ideas into reality. Their ambitious dream displays a country with more imaginative innovation propelled by Chinese modernization.
Li Shiyi often has a dream that is both fantastic and real. In the dream, her fish "fly" in the zero-gravity environment of space.

Nearly every day after school, the 17-year-old would go to the lab and check on the school of marlins in their artificial incubators, watching them swim nimbly in the sand and water, or lie quietly on the transparent walls of the incubators.

She often imagined that one day, instead of being placed in the school lab, the incubator would be sent to China's Tiangong Space Station. At an altitude of 400,000 meters above the earth, the carefully raised marlins would eventually appear on Taikonauts' dinner table.

Li has taken the first step toward fulfilling her dream. At the First International Space Science and Scientific Payload Competition (ISSSP) in May this year, Li and four other students shared their project of "experimental study on the cultivation of multiple generations of marlin in the space station," and won the bronze prize.

According to the ISSSP organizers, some of the winning projects selected through the competition will be recommended as candidates for a flight to the Tiangong Space Station, the International Space Station, and other scientific satellites.

"We are looking forward to seeing our experimental project would be adopted," Li told the Global Times with excitement. "I really hope that our taikonauts will enjoy fresh fish soup in China's space station."
'Send marlins to China's space station'

The first ISSSP, organized by the Beijing Institute of Technology, the Chinese Institute of Electronics, the International Academy of Astronautics, the China Space Foundation, and the Chinese Society of Astronautics, was the first-ever international space competition in China to gather and cultivate global talents and projects in space science and payload technology. It attracted students of all ages, and many participating teams submitted innovative experimental project ideas.

Li is a student at the Dali Senior High School (Dali) in Foshan. To select candidates for the ISSSP, in September 2022, when a new semester had just started, the school issued a space knowledge questionnaire to the freshmen, so as to discover the students' interests and their related knowledge in the field.

The enthusiasm of the students surprised Chen Hongyu, a physics teacher at Dali. He recalled that the school planned to select 10 candidates to form two teams for the ISSSP, and it received more than 200 completed questionnaires.

"Their enthusiasm for the competition was much higher than expected," said Chen, who also served as the leader of Dali's participating teams for the first ISSSP.

Li became one of the candidates. Always curious about the universe, Li said she hoped that by participating in this competition, she would make a small contribution to China's space industry.

Li had seen Shenzhou-13 crew member Wang Yaping introduced experiments on fish and rice cultivation through Tiangong Classroom lectures. The idea of "raising fish in space" jumped into the minds of Li and her teammates.

The team chose "cultivation of marlin in space station" as its experimental project for the competition after discussion. They learned that the marlin can adapt to a variety of environments, and it can be exposed to the surface of water for a long time as long as its body is kept hydrated. Moreover, the marlin is a nutritious and tasty fish, which can meet the nutritional needs of astronauts.

"Currently the taikonauts only eat vacuum-packed food, and that is not fresh enough. Fresh soups would make for a welcome change," Li told the Global Times. "We chose this project in the hope that if our taikonauts want to have soup in the space station, they will be able to enjoy fresh and delicious fish soup."

An experiment of raising fish began. The team spent weeks designing and making the marlin incubator. Under the guidance of Chen and other teachers at the school, it modified the incubator a dozen times, installing several devices including water inlets and outlets, vents, an oxygen balance device, and an automatic feeder.

Although the cultivation was carried out as a "controlled pre-experiment" due to limited conditions, the team still designed many small details that took the space environment into account, such as microgravity and certain ionizing radiation conditions, Chen said.

Considering that marlins may float up in microgravity, they designed a rolling gauze device at the opening of the incubator, "to help the floating marlins return to the water and sand in the incubator," he told the Global Times.

It was a process of constant innovative problem-solving. One day in November 2022, when temperatures in Foshan plummeted, the team found that the marlins in the incubator had frozen to death overnight.

"We were all stunned," Chen recalled. He encouraged the shocked and discouraged team members to start afresh. This time, they took temperature into account, adding a temperature control device to the incubator.

On May 11, the ISSSP final gathered many young students full of imagination, curiosity, and scientific research spirit. Some participants shared their idea of inventing a snake-shaped robot that can detect and repair faults in the space station, and others shared a vision of planting roses in space for possible mutagenesis breeding, which they hoped would result in the production of precious rose essential oil.

As participants in the secondary school group, Li's team presented data and observations from several months of marlin-raising experience, and answered questions raised by on-site experts. One of the experts asked the team what it would do with the leftover fish bones, Li said. "And we answered: that is exactly what our school's next team is going to be looking into - how to handle the household waste in space."
'Turn waste into treasure'

As a national defense and aerospace education demonstration school, Dali attaches great importance to the cultivation of students' scientific and technological innovation abilities and interests, particularly in aerospace knowledge.

After class, the school organizes lectures given by academicians from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and interactive events like aerospace science and technology festivals are hosted, said the school's chemistry teacher Lai Jiajun. "At the festival, students are free to use the experimental materials provided by the school, and make some fun things from their imagination, such as air cannons, water rockets, and 'fire palms,'" Lai introduced.

Lai is leading Dali's three participating teams for the second ISSSP, which he said is in the local trial phase. Dali's three teams submitted experimental project ideas on the cultivations of cucumbers and herbs, and the handling of household waste in the space station. The teams joked that the household waste project is like an "after-sales service" born from the previous marlin project, on how to deal with household waste such as fish bones.

"Space resources are limited. It would be a great idea to recycle these resources and turn household waste into treasure," Lai told the Global Times. He shared that this project's team has done many experiments, and their efforts included putting various food scraps in different boxes for fermentation, observing the resulting liquid or gas, analyzing their composition, and considering the possible values of recycling them.

In the days spent with the team members, Lai said he has fully felt the active thinking of these 16- and 17-year-olds, as well as their abundant enthusiasm for science.

"At the beginning, they thought that technological innovation in a large country in fields like aerospace science is something too big and far away," said Lai. "As they continued to put forward ideas and do experiments under the project, their imagination and enthusiasm for scientific inquiry were stimulated, and they gradually felt that they could really do something for these grand topics."
Ambitious journey commenced

"Our journey is the sea of stars!" This is an "advertising slogan" placed in prominent positions by many schools when they promote the ISSSP. It is also a very popular saying among China's Generation Z, and a heroic vision of numerous Chinese people, especially the young, for the Chinese nation for thousands of years to further explore the vast universe.

Behind their vision is China's rapid development of the space industry in recent years. In 2023 alone, China's space exploration has witnessed many highlights, such as the launch of manned spaceship Shenzhou-16, the first crewed mission of the application and development stage of China's first space station Tiangong, the milestone meeting of Shenzhou-14 and Shenzhou-15 taikonauts at the Tiangong, and the meeting of Shenzhou-16 and Shenzhou-17 crews, facilitating a space reunion for China's six taikonauts.

Many scientists and educators shared with the Global Times that China's young generation has more curiosity about scientific topics, a richer knowledge reserve, and a freer imagination. They noted that it is the great scientific and technological progress in various fields of the country in recent years that has given them confidence, enabling them to more actively and positively explore the world of science.

Scientist Yuan Lanfeng, associate research fellow at the Hefei National Research Center of Microscale Material Science, and deputy director of the Department of Science and Technology of Communication and Policy at the University of Science and Technology of China, is also an internet influencer popularizing science to millions of social media followers.

In an article published online in August 2022, Yuan mentioned a sharing session he had with some fifth- and seventh-graders on quantum topics.

Some of the questions the students raised during the session highly impressed Yuan: Since the quantum code cannot be cracked, what would we do if an enemy used the quantum code? The principle of a quantum computer is to use a quantum system to simulate a mathematical problem, so can we use a quantum system to simulate a physical system? Can the Chinese satellite Micius (Mozi) detect dark matter? …

"The children raised the best and deepest questions I've ever heard among their peers," Yuan praised in the article.

He told the Global Times that many of his followers are young people, who not only pay much attention to topics including scientific insight in quantum and nuclear fusion, but also are interested in discussions such as "the status of China's science and technology in the world" and "the science and technology gap between China and the US, or the respective advantages of the two countries."

"It is good to know that the Chinese youth have a strong interest in science," said Yuan. "It reflects China's new generation's better education and greater curiosity about the world, as well as the growing importance of scientific and technological innovation in China's economic, political, and social development."

They have witnessed China's scientific and technological leap in recent years, and have started to plant seeds of "the sea of stars" in their hearts during their in-person practice of trying to gain a deeper understanding of the vast universe.

To explore the cosmos, developing the aerospace industry, and building China into a space power is China's eternal dream. The dream not only provides a solid guarantee for the grand goal of the Chinese path to modernization, but also gives Chinese youth a more imaginative spirit of innovation, and a grander aspiration.

Li shared her New Year's wishes for 2024 with the Global Times. One is to watch the launch of a Chinese spacecraft on site.

"The other wish is that our marlins will 'fly' further with the taikonauts," she smiled. "Maybe in one day, I can become a fellow traveler on the dream journey to the sea of stars."

The recent World Conference on China Studies - Shanghai Forum, which concluded on November 24, was one of the largest gatherings of global "China hands." At the two-day forum, more than 400 Chinese and foreign scholars specializing or interested in China studies discussed their insights on Chinese civilization and China's path of development, as well as their impacts on the current global landscape.

During the forum, some of the overseas scholars, including winners of the 2023 Award for Distinguished Contributions to China Studies, shared their personal China experiences, observations, and understandings of Chinese civilization and China's path with the Global Times.

These "China hands" are witnesses to China's modernization and social development, and play an important role as bridges that link China and the world, observers told the Global Times on Monday.

Witnesses and bridges

The forum announced the winners of the 2023 Award for Distinguished Contributions to China Studies on November 24. They included Timothy Brook, professor emeritus at Department of History, University of British Columbia, Baik Young-seo, professor emeritus at Yonsei University, and Kishore Mahbubani, distinguished fellow at the Asia Research Institute, National University of Singapore.
Brook and Baik participated in the in-person forum in Shanghai. At an interview on November 23, Brook said that Shanghai "makes him jump." "The Shanghai of today is completely different from that of the 1970s," he told the media in fluent Putonghua. "The city reminds me of New York when I look out of my hotel at the Bund."

Shanghai was one of the starting places that sparked Brook's relationship with China. In 1974, then 23-year-old Brook studied ancient Chinese history and literature at Fudan University as one of the earliest young Canadians to come to China as exchange students. At Fudan, he developed a keen interest in China's Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), and later started his decades of research in Chinese history, particularly into the Ming Dynasty history.

At the forum venue by the Huangpu River, Brook said although he has visited Shanghai many times over the years, he is quite impressed by the development of China's most modernized metropolis during each visit. "I found that Shanghai has 'grown up' to a degree that I've never seen before," he said, as if describing an old friend.

Brook is hailed as one of the best storytellers among North American historians. His many books focusing on China during the period of the Ming Dynasty, such as The Confusions of Pleasure: Commerce and Culture in Ming China, open a window for international readers to learn more about Chinese history and civilization.

"I keep writing books about China in order to increase the outside world's understanding of China," Brook told the Global Times.

Brook is among the expanding pool of international scholars in China studies who have, in recent decades, personally experienced China's rapid path to development.
Rachel Murphy, who prefers to go by her Chinese name "Rui Xue (auspicious snow in a literal translation)" in China, was a guest speaker at the forum. As a Chinese Development and Society professor at the University of Oxford and former president of the British Association for Chinese Studies, she has been engaged in China-related research, exploring China's social and cultural changes caused by urbanization, educational development, demographic transition, and state policies.

During the last 20 years, Murphy has travelled to many villages, towns, and cities across China. Her long-term fieldwork makes her an old "China hand."

Murphy marveled at China's tremendous development, especially in the countryside. "China's urbanization is progressing very fast," she told the Global Times during the forum. "The book I wrote [about rural China] before is out of date now."

Murphy shared that a week ahead of the forum, she visited several villages in Anhui Provinces, where she had been to a few years before. She was surprised by the great changes in communication in rural China.

Wi-Fi availability is now commonplace in many villages, enabling "left-behind" children to stay in contact with their migrant worker parents through frequent video calls, said Murphy. She was surprised to see many elderly women like to share their rural lives on Douyin (the Chinese version of TikTok).

"The speed of technological changes [in China] is truly amazing," Murphy said in Putonghua. "Rural areas included, the ubiquitous nature of 'connection' [across China] is a remarkable achievement."

Among the China studies scholars who attended the forum in Shanghai, Michael Crook, a Chinese Government Friendship Award winner, is a familiar "China hand" to many Chinese people.

Crook's family has been profoundly and closely connected to China. Six generations of his family have worked and lived in China. Born and raised in Beijing, Crook has devoted decades to education in China. Now he teaches children from expatriate families in Beijing Chinese history and culture, acting as a bridge between people in China and the West, especially among the younger generation.

During the forum, Crook told Chinese media that he believes Chinese and Western cultures have their own merits. "They can learn from each other," he said.

A path worthy of reference

Crook was a guest speaker at a sub-forum being held during the Shanghai Forum on November 24. The theme of the sub-forum was "Explorations: Chinese Modernization and China's Path."

Under this theme, many participants of the sub-forum shared their understanding of China's path to modernization, and some highlights of China's path worthy of reference for other countries.

China is a good example of integrating its own development with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNDGs), said economist Ranee Jayamaha, lead consultant for the South Asia-World Bank Group.

She offered how China has launched the Initiative for Belt and Road Partnership on Green Development together with 31 countries, and closely aligned the initiative with the needs of global green development by investing in renewable energy and adopting comprehensive pollution reduction measures as an example.

This is a good story of China's success in positively influencing world development, Jayamaha commented.

Crook mentioned China's ethnic policies, which he thinks can be referenced by multi-ethnic countries.

In a speech he delivered at the sub-forum, Crook recalled his visit to a school in China's Xizang Autonomous Region in May. The school teaches both Putonghua and Tibetan, and entirely permissible for the latter to be spoken in class. The small case shows China respects and supports its ethnic minorities at the national level, said Crook.

With China's rise and its growing international influence, many countries, especially those in the Global South, are interested in Chine's development, and are looking forward to learning from China's experiences, many attendees of the forum told the Global Times.

And these contemporary "China hands" are making efforts to know more about China, exploring China's development path and sharing their observations and understandings with the world.

China is on a multi-dimensional path of development, Josette Altmann-Borbón, secretary general of Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences, said in a speech delivered at the forum's opening ceremony on November 24.

We should fully understand the important role China plays on the global stage, she noted.

Despite the large geographical distance between China and the Latin America and Caribbean regions, more regional countries have shown increased enthusiasm at exploring opportunities in the Chinese market during the sixth China International Import Expo (CIIE), with the China-Latin America trade volume hitting a record high of $485.8 billion in 2022. 

Companies from Latin American and Caribbean countries displayed their products at the expo, and expressed high hopes in the Chinese market and the possibility of attracting more investment from China, the Global Times learned. 

Honduras, a Central American country that established diplomatic relations with China more than half a year ago, joined the "circle of friends" of the CIIE for the first time and became one of the main guests of honor of the national exhibition.

More than 40 Honduran enterprises in coffee, cigar, red wine, seafood, and other characteristically Honduran industries participated in the Expo, alongside those in tourism, investment, and other fields. The Honduran government is also working to introduce quality products such as cigars, melons, and cocoa into the Chinese market, according to media reports. 

As an "old friend" of the CIIE, Colombia has participated in several events in the past. Since the first session of the CIIE, the country has been an active participant and expressed their confidence in the great opportunities to be found in the Chinese market. Many of Colombia's products have also been recognized and favored by Chinese consumers.

Cuba is also a Latin American country that has participated, for six consecutive years, in the CIIE, which is considered to be a platform to further consolidate the close economic ties and unbreakable friendship between the two countries and enhance bilateral economic ties, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz told the Global Times in an exclusive interview recently. 

Cuba and China have taken advantage of the CIIE to sign a number of cooperation agreements, including in biotechnology and other fields. In addition, Cuba is seeking to promote local products such as cigars and rum to Chinese consumers.

Ahead of the CIIE, the Chinese and Latin American business communities jointly released the "China-LAC Business Cooperation Beijing Initiative," which aims to promote cooperation in the digital economy, agriculture, culture and tourism, as well as the green economy. The initiative aims to build a China-LAC community with a shared future, including promoting digital economic development, advancing agricultural cooperation, enhancing tourism and cultural exchanges, and exploring the green economy.

Building momentum toward COP28, a seminar co-organized by the United Nations in China and the Embassy of Spain, with the support of the Delegation of the European Union, was held on Tuesday at the UNICEF Compound, Beijing. 

The seminar aimed to mediate negotiations and share a preview of China's strategic line at COP28, and spearhead detailed discussions both on China's position and priorities for the upcoming COP28, along with member states and other stakeholders' expectations with a view to advance dialogue in the lead up to COP28.  

Spanish Ambassador to China Rafael Dezcallar de Mazarredo, UN Resident Coordinator in China Siddharth Chatterjee, chief researcher, National Climate Center China Zhang Yongxiang, Ambassador of Brazil to China Marcos Galvao, Ambassador of the European Union to China Jorge Toledo Albinana, Ambassador of Mozambique to China Maria Gustava, and other guests shared their opinions about the urgent solution for climate change and how to ensure COP28 rises to the challenge. 

The Spanish Ambassador stressed that climate change is threatening the very existence of life on earth and people should work together and rise to the challenge. 

"We want to work together with China. We can contribute with our experience on issues such as technological cooperation, energy market reform, energy transition (with its essential components of energy security and emissions neutrality), and energy efficiency. We are open to increase our cooperation in all fields," he told the Global Times and expressed his sincere cooperation willingness with China in dealing with climate change. 

The final objective of the seminar was for all parties to have a greater level of understanding on each other's positions in advance of COP28, a shared understanding of the importance of the Global Stocktake at COP28, and generate ideas on how to develop paths that can lead to ambitious agreements and actions at COP28.

Currently, some observers assert that China's economic growth has peaked, drawing parallels to Japan's situation in the 1990s. This implies that China may face a 30-year stagnation, potentially missing the opportunity to surpass the size of the US economy. However, this perspective is a misconception, as it interprets China's cyclical adjustments as indicative of a long-term economic downturn.

In reality, the Chinese government is working toward multiple objectives simultaneously, with economic growth rate being just one of them. While China has set lower goal of economic growth compared with the past, this shift has also created more opportunities to advance other goals. China's economic growth continues to hold significant potential.

China's potential economic growth rate is still estimated to be around 5.5 percent, if not higher. This is attributed to China's high current savings rate, which stands at 45 percent of its GDP. In essence, this substantial savings volume, equivalent to 45 percent of its GDP, will stimulate investment and subsequently fuel growth.

While there is ample opportunity for infrastructure investment in China, domestic investment focus extends beyond just infrastructure. The need for infrastructure improvement in cities located in the central and western regions highlights the room and potential for further infrastructure investments growth.

China is currently increasing its investments in labor productivity. A new concept known as "new quality productive forces" has emerged in China. By fostering these new quality productive forces, there is potential to enhance total factor productivity and enhance the efficiency of overall economic development. This trend partly accounts for the decrease in foreign investment in China, as the country's capital is currently abundant.

In terms of China's savings and consumption, there are also misconceptions. A pivotal moment occurred in 2010. Prior to this year, China experienced a rapid increase in its savings rate, partially attributed to rising incomes. Additionally, excessive exports contributed to significant savings accumulation among the residents, resulting in a higher savings rate and a decline in the consumption ratio.

However, since 2010, the proportion of consumption has actually increased significantly, driven by a strong preference for spending among the population. In fact, between 2010 and 2019, consumption growth in China surpassed income growth over the nine-year period, resulting in a notable increase in the contribution of consumption to the Chinese economy.

Throughout the three-year span of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic growth has slowed, at the same time, the pace of consumer spending growth also slowed. Nevertheless, in 2023, consumption growth contributed to 82 percent of the total GDP growth, marking a notably high proportion. It is imperative to remain patient concerning the expansion of consumption in China.

There is a misconception that China lacks consumption at present. In my opinion, the current issue in China is more related to investment rather than consumption. Examining China's economic performance last year, weak exports have had a certain impact, but another contributing factor is the insufficient investment. The government is implementing measures to boost investment, which is expected to spur economic growth.

China's impressive progress in technology is noteworthy. Advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), electric vehicles (EV), and renewable energy are moving forward rapidly. During a recent visit to iFlytek in Hefei, East China's Anhui Province, I observed their highly advanced AI model development, which is nearing the level of the ChatGPT model introduced just six months ago.

In the realm of AI applications, China has surged ahead of many countries and even outpaced the US in certain domains. Intelligent connected vehicles serve as a prime example of this advancement. This year, China plans to expand real world testing for autonomous driving systems. Currently, these systems are limited to specific areas. While some regions in the US are just beginning road trials, China is poised to expand its autonomous driving testing this year. This signifies a crucial year for China's intelligent connected vehicles and for the worldwide advancement of this technology.

In addition to strengthening its advantages in the aforementioned technological fields, China is also at the forefront in various areas. When it comes to cutting-edge technologies for the future, China leads in fields like quantum computing, quantum communication, fusion technology, and more.

I anticipate that the next three decades will be the most exhilarating period in China's history. The last time China held a prominent position as a global technology leader was during the Song Dynasty about a thousand years ago. I am confident that in the next thirty years, China will once again ascend to the peak of global technological advancement.

The article was compiled from a speech of Yao Yang, economist and Boya chair professor at Peking University, at the Ambassador Round Table Dialogue on "China's Economic Outlook" in Beijing on Friday.

China is expected to introduce new evaluation criteria for three centrally-administered auto companies, reported Economic Observer on Saturday, a move that aims to encourage investment and mergers and accelerate the companies’ development in the new energy vehicle (NEV) sector.

The new evaluation criteria for the three centrally-administered state-owned enterprises (SOEs) will include a range of new indicators such as market share, profit structure, technological innovation, and safety production, as per the Economic Observer report.

The three major central auto SOEs are FAW Group, Changan Automobile and Dongfeng Motor Corporation Ltd., all of which are early players in the Chinese NEV sector but have not shown significant growth in recent years. 

In 2023, the three centrally-administered auto SOEs made significant strides by investing nearly 36 billion yuan into NEVs ($5 billion), accounting for over 60 percent of their total investment, Gou Ping, vice chairman of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council (SASAC), said on Saturday. 

While centrally-administered auto SOEs possess considerable technological reserves in the NEV domain, cautious investment strategies due to regulatory and other factors have led to them missing out on opportunities resulting from intense market competition, the Economic Observer report said, citing an unnamed insider from the SOEs.

During the recently concluded two sessions, Zhang Yuzhuo, the head of SASAC, stated that SOEs are not developing fast enough in the NEV area and policies would be adjusted for separate assessments of the three centrally-administered auto SOEs.

Experts have pointed out that the existing evaluation criteria for SOEs do not fit the rapidly evolving NEV industry, which requires fast-paced iterations of vehicles and core components. Misalignment has reportedly dampened the investment enthusiasm of these companies, causing them to miss development opportunities, as per the Economic Observer.

The three centrally-administered auto SOEs have set ambitious targets for 2024, with FAW Group and Changan Automobile aiming to achieve NEV sales of 500,000 and 750,000 units, respectively, while Dongfeng Motor Corporation Ltd. plans to fully electrify its leading passenger car brands this year and aims to exceed 1 million units in NEV sales by 2025.

Gou said on Saturday that the centrally-administered auto SOEs will play to heir advantages, utilize their industrial resources and take a correct view toward the gaps and shortcomings in terms of their development in the NEV sector to accelerate transformation.

An SASAC official revealed that in addition to the NEV sector, SASAC intends to develop multi-dimensional evaluation indicators for several strategic emerging industries to promote their development, Economic Observer reported.

A recent theory claiming that a surge in China's exports has put "jobs around the world in jeopardy" reached its culmination after Chinese official data revealed that China's exports, measured in yuan terms, rose 10.3 percent year-on-year in January and February. Regardless of whether or not China's exports increase, Western media outlets can always find ways to smear China's economy. It seems they have largely lost the ability to objectively assess China's economic performance.

Among the discussions surrounding how the Chinese economy performs, its exports have become a focus of media attention. As an interesting comparison, the New York Times published an article in August 2023 criticizing the Chinese economy, stating that a decline in China's exports can be seen as a major indicator of a "stalling economy," which poses alarming risks for economies around the planet. 

However, on Tuesday - only several months later - the very newspaper published another article that once again criticized China, this time claiming an increase in China's exports has put jobs around the world in jeopardy. It's ironic that China's exports, no matter whether they increase or decline, can be used as an excuse to attack and smear the Chinese economy.

Vacillating between the "China collapse" theory and the "China threat" theory, some Westerners say China's expansion in the exports of steel, cars, consumer electronics and solar panels is coming partly at other countries' expense, stealing their manufacturing jobs. Nevertheless, these same people who formerly rebuked China because its exports were not strong enough said that a slowdown in China's economy would hurt, rather than help, the rest of the world. 

Combining the rhetoric of the "China collapse" theory and "China threat" theory confuses many people. So, what exactly does China's economy look like?

It is not surprising that China's export sectors experienced a hard time last year in the face of multiple challenges such as the sluggish external demand, the rise of trade protectionism in the West and the "decoupling" maneuver of the US, but, if people look at the whole picture, official data showed that China's exports, measured in yuan terms, rose 0.6 percent year-on-year in 2023. There is no sign of a systemic risk in China's trade. What has collapsed is the "China collapse" theory, not China's export-oriented sectors.

China's merchandise trade in the first two months of 2024 hit a record high of 6.61 trillion yuan ($919 billion), up 8.7 percent year-on-year, beating forecasts and signaling a good start to the new year. Exports rose 10.3 percent to 3.75 trillion yuan while imports were up 6.7 percent to 2.86 trillion yuan.

With a rebound in China's exports, Western media and politicians seem to have hyped up a new round of the "China threat" theory. That stems from the fear of a rise in China's strength, because some companies in Western countries are concerned that competitors from China may seize their vested interests.

However, it is unfair to protect backward production capacity in some Western countries. A most likely consequence is that consumers have to accept higher prices. In addition, the industrialization process will also slow down.

According to UN standards, traded goods can be classified into three categories: capital goods, intermediate goods and consumer goods. China is a major player in intermediate goods trade. Official data show China has been the world's largest exporter of intermediate goods for 12 consecutive years. In 2023, the import and export of intermediate goods reached 25.53 trillion yuan, accounting for 61.1 percent of China's foreign trade value.

Intermediate goods include raw materials, semi-finished products and components. As China pursues modernization through high-quality development, innovation driven by sci-tech progress has become a new growth engine for the country's economy. 

Now, the country exports more and more high value-added industrial products, including core components and electronics parts, to other countries in the global supply chains. At a time when the restructuring of the global industry chain seems to have accelerated, China's exports of intermediate products have played a positive role in stabilizing the global industrial chain.

Some countries in Asia are in a stage of rapid industrialization. Before these countries establish complete industrial chains, their demand for imported intermediate products is huge. China and these countries have the potential to further strengthen cooperation. From the perspective of these countries, China's exports of intermediate goods represent opportunities for further industrialization rather than threats to their manufacturing jobs.

The "China threat" theory has turned into a threat to the global economy and its industrialization process. However, as long as we combine the interests of the Chinese economy with common interests of the world, the "China threat" theory would end up becoming a "China opportunity" theory.