The First Lecture of the "21st Century Marxism Grand Auditorium" of the Academy of Marxism, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
Starting in December 2020, the Institute of Marxism Studies launched the "21st Century Marxism Grand Lecture Hall" series, which will periodically invite renowned Marxist scholars from China and abroad to deliver keynote speeches on major theoretical and practical issues. On the morning of December 24, 2020, the "21st Century Marxism Grand Lecture Hall" series was officially inaugurated. The celebrated Marxist scholar Professor Li Shenming—former Vice President and Deputy Secretary of the Leading Party Members’ Group [1] of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and currently Director of the World Socialism Research Center—delivered a special lecture in the auditorium of the Institute of Marxism Studies titled "Our Country’s Development Remains in a Period of Important Strategic Opportunity: Insights from Studying the Spirit of the Fifth Plenary Session of the 19th CPC Central Committee." The lecture was chaired by Professor Lin Jianhua, Vice President of the Institute of Marxism Studies.
Li Shenming proposed that, against the backdrop of profound and complex changes in the domestic and international environments, understanding "the world's entry into a period of turbulence and transformation," the "critical period for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation," and how "our country’s development remains in a period of important strategic opportunity" [2], as well as the relationships between these concepts, constitutes a major research task.
Li Shenming elaborated on the issue of the period of important strategic opportunity from five perspectives:
First, what constitutes our country's period of important strategic opportunity? He argued that compared to the original intent of the term as first proposed at the 16th National Congress, the New Era has endowed it with new connotations. Using the phrase "full of potential for great achievements" [3] rather than "ready for great accomplishments" to characterize this period is intended to demonstrate that a strategic opportunity that successfully materializes represents a high degree of unity between objective existence and subjective effort, rather than a predetermined outcome. We must also recognize that opportunities and challenges within this period are not static; they can transform into one another under certain conditions.
Second, from an international perspective, five objective conditions already exist for the continued existence of this period for our country's development: 1) the international financial crisis that broke out in 2008 in the Western world led by the United States; 2) the iron law of historical development that wherever there is oppression, exploitation, and polarization, there will be awakening, resistance, and struggle; 3) the two distinct developmental models and outcomes—the collapse of the Soviet Union and the crisis of the United States—serve as typical examples with profound revelatory significance for upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics; 4) the curtain has risen on the fourth industrial revolution; 5) the towering presence of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the East.
Third, the severe international challenges facing this period. Professor Li Shenming focused on four aspects—economics, politics, the United States itself, and preparations for worst-case scenarios—to explain the general trend of the next several decades, where competition will dominate and cooperation will play a secondary role in China-US relations, along with the primary reasons for this.
Fourth, the current status and outlook of the global landscape following the COVID-19 pandemic. 1) The world has entered a new era of great turbulence, transformation, and development; 2) the fight against the pandemic has fully demonstrated the soft and hard power of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and after securing total victory in this major battle, our country will steadily move toward the center of the world stage; 3) the global outbreak and spread of the pandemic is, in final analysis, the concentrated expression of the most fundamental and deepest contradictions of financial imperialism; 4) bad things can turn into good things under certain conditions; 5) while the Democratic and Republican parties in the US differ in their governing tactics—requiring us to differentiate and adopt various policies in response—we must maintain a clear understanding of the essential consistency of capitalist political parties; 6) we remain in the historical epoch identified by Marxism, but the international situation has become more treacherous and unpredictable; international struggle has entered an era of "unrestricted warfare" across all domains and dimensions, and we must prepare for the worst while striving for the best.
Fifth, the key to winning this period of important strategic opportunity lies in domestic reform, development, and stability. 1) The primary and core task is to resolutely achieve the "Two Upholds"; 2) the current key is to uphold the socialist economic system and the basic economic system of the Party during the primary stage of socialism [4]; 3) we must always persist in self-reliance and arduous struggle [5]; 4) we must correctly treat the two different historical periods before and after reform and opening up [6]; 5) we must be mentally prepared to go through a period of "bitter days" [7]; 6) we must effectively prepare for the struggle regarding Taiwan.
In his concluding remarks, Vice President Lin Jianhua spoke highly of Professor Li Shenming's lecture, stating that it embodied a sense of the times, a sense of mission, an analysis of objective laws, and a mountain-like sense of responsibility, describing it as an academic and spiritual feast. Lin Jianhua noted that Professor Li vividly interpreted the meaning of our country's period of important strategic opportunity, profoundly analyzed the opportunities, challenges, and drivers we face domestically and internationally, and provided a comprehensive and strategic discourse on several major issues regarding this period. Lin Jianhua proposed that this is the point of origin and departure for our thinking on and resolution of all problems in New Era China. Whether we can make good use of this period depends on our ability to resolve challenges and seize opportunities; this concerns the "two overarching situations" [8], the "Two Centenary Goals," the developmental momentum of our country’s near, medium, and long-term goals, and the future and destiny of China. Professor Li Shenming has always possessed a strong consciousness of problem-identification and problem-solving; through this report, he has taught us the methodology and path for researching problems, pointing toward the essence, substance, and deep-seated drivers of issues, while demonstrating the operational logic based on the dialectical relationship between the productive forces and relations of production, and between the economic base and the superstructure.
The first session of the "21st Century Marxism Grand Lecture Hall" of the CASS Institute of Marxism Studies concluded successfully.