Gu Huaxiang: Leading the Rule of Law Guarantee for Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform with Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law
Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law "has deepened [our] understanding of the laws governing the Communist Party's governance, the laws of socialist construction, and the laws of the development of human society, making major original contributions to the Sinicization and modernization of Marxist legal theory." Furthermore, it "provides scientific and epochal methods and guidance for resolving China's rule of law issues." Consequently, a major subject requiring long-term, in-depth research at present and in the future is to profoundly understand, grasp, and implement the decisions of the Party Central Committee regarding the deployment of further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization. We must persist in using Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law to lead, promote, and guarantee further comprehensively deepening reform, continuously improving the rule of law to provide the fundamental impetus and legal safeguards for economic and social development during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period [1] and beyond.
The rule of law is a vital safeguard and one of the core engines for advancing Chinese-path modernization.
"Using reform as a driving force to promote economic development is a valuable experience formed by our Party through long-term practice; it is a major reason why our country has been able to create the 'two miracles' of rapid economic development and long-term social stability." A highly developed state of the rule of law is an inevitable choice for a country—especially a major power—to achieve modernization. We must remain focused on the strategic deployments of the Third and Fourth Plenary Sessions of the 20th CPC Central Committee, deepening the legal safeguards led by Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law for further comprehensively deepening reform. Advancing the high degree of integration, coordination, and synergy between development, reform, and the rule of law is an urgent necessity for resolving the key puzzles of Chinese-path modernization and continuously opening new horizons for reform and opening up. To this end, the reform measures deployed in the Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization (hereinafter referred to as the Decision) "cover every aspect of advancing Chinese-path modernization, constructing a panoramic map of further comprehensively deepening reform." It profoundly summarizes the valuable experience of further comprehensively deepening reform since the start of reform and opening up, and especially in the New Era—namely, that "upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground is a major principle that must be firmly grasped and consistently maintained." To persist in advancing further comprehensively deepening reform and Chinese-path modernization within the orbit of the rule of law, we must uphold the unity of reform and the rule of law, pushing for the continued improvement of the socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics.
The Recommendations of the CPC Central Committee for Formulating the 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development (hereinafter referred to as the Recommendations) [2] propose "taking high-quality development as the theme and reform and innovation as the fundamental driving force." A specific chapter in the Decision of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee deploys the reform task of "improving the socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics," stating that "comprehensively advancing the great cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization is the central task of the Party and the state on the new journey in the New Era, and the greatest political priority of the New Era." We must deeply recognize that the Decision further highlights the important role of the rule of law in advancing Chinese-path modernization, defines the goals and tasks for building a "Rule of Law China" on the new journey, and puts forward requirements for advancing the comprehensive law-based governance of the country. It clarifies major theoretical and practical innovations in legal construction, such as the paths and measures for advancing the law-based governance of all aspects of national work. We must accurately grasp the dialectical relationship between further comprehensively deepening reform and the comprehensive law-based governance of the country, persisting in advancing reform under the rule of law while perfecting the rule of law through reform. The Recommendations further emphasize "building a rule-of-law economy and a credit-based economy, creating a world-class business environment that is market-oriented, law-based, and internationalized, and forming an economic order that is both 'dynamic' and 'well-regulated' [3]." Moreover, it sets "reaching a higher level in the construction of a socialist rule-of-law country" as a key indicator for measuring "new breakthroughs in further comprehensively deepening reform" during the 15th Five-Year Plan period. These expressions further enrich and develop Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, strengthening the role of the rule of law in advancing Chinese-path modernization and clarifying the reform paths to basically complete the building of a rule-of-law country, government, and society.
I. Upholding the Fundamentals and Breaking New Ground: Focusing on the Strategic Deployments of the Party Central Committee to Resolve Key Puzzles of Chinese-path Modernization
(1) Upholding the Guiding Position of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law in Coordinating Reform and the Rule of Law to Jointly Advance Chinese-path Modernization
Facing the challenges and opportunities of the era of globalization, to ensure a high-level scientific judgment and a far-sighted strategic layout for reform and the rule of law, we must uphold the absolute leadership of the Party. We must be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, integrate target-orientation with problem-orientation, take institutional building as the main thread, and combine the rule of law with reform. This ensures that the more than 300 major reform tasks specified in the Decision are implemented one by one through established mechanisms and institutional innovations, ensuring the improvement and development of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and a significant increase in the overall efficiency of the national innovation system. In particular, the Recommendations clarify the need to resolve deep-seated reform puzzles such as "institutional obstacles restricting high-quality development, promoting the better alignment of the relations of production with the productive forces, the superstructure with the economic base, and national governance with social development." These all urgently require "improving the linkage and coordination mechanism between intra-Party regulations and national laws." Notably, "to improve the quality, efficiency, and empowerment of the 'governance by Party regulations' [4] on the new journey, we must focus closely on the theme of the era—advancing Chinese-path modernization." We must emphasize using the power of reform to improve and expand the space for the rule of law, while further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization within the orbit of the rule of law to continuously perfect the socialist system of laws with Chinese characteristics.
Therefore, building a higher-level Rule of Law China requires following General Secretary Xi Jinping’s major judgments on the laws of economic and social development in the New Era: "effectively coordinating the five pairs of important relationships: an efficient market and a promising government, total supply and total demand, cultivating new drivers and updating old ones, optimizing increments and revitalizing existing stock, and improving quality and expanding total volume." We must focus on the "five coordinations" to strengthen the role of the rule of law in distilling and Refining the practice of further comprehensively deepening reform and Chinese-path modernization, as well as providing enlightenment and leadership for future development. We must "emphasize systematic integration, the strengthening of foundations, the highlighting of key points, and the effectiveness of reform," ensuring the smooth realization of the main goals and tasks of economic and social development during the 15th Five-Year Plan period and the steady progress of Chinese-path modernization.
(2) Persisting in Advancing Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform within the Orbit of the Rule of Law is the Only Path to Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
Upholding the unity of reform and the rule of law led by the New Development Philosophy [5], focusing on constructing a high-level socialist market economy system, and accelerating the construction of a New Development Pattern [6] provides powerful reform momentum and legal safeguards for high-quality Chinese-path modernization. We must adhere to the leadership of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law, maintain the fundamental stance of being people-centered, and seize the key task of enhancing the capabilities of leading officials. We must focus on "treating the maintenance of stability and the promotion of development as a grand classroom for training and tempering officials, allowing them to hone their will to face hardships and overcome difficulties in practice, and enhancing their ability to unite and serve the masses and manage complex situations." In particular, we must "continuously improve the ability to use rule-of-law thinking and rule-of-law methods to deepen reform, promote development, resolve conflicts, maintain stability, and deal with risks," ensuring the capacity to fulfill the mission of high-quality Chinese-path modernization.
During the 15th Five-Year Plan period, to implement the Party Central Committee’s "Four Comprehensives" strategic layout, "further comprehensively deepening reform has become an important engine for promoting the sustained and healthy development of China's economy and society and achieving the modernization of the national governance system and capacity." To respond to major risks and challenges and ensure the steady progress of the cause of the Party and the state—achieving a New Security Pattern [7] to safeguard the New Development Pattern—we must place the coordination of development and security in a more prominent position. We must consistently strengthen "bottom-line thinking" [8] to ensure the effective prevention and resolution of various risks. For a long time, the modernization models of the West led by the United States dominated world development; however, their capital-centered development concepts and inherent flaws have fallen into a predicament, unable to provide guidance for global sustainable development. This serves as a warning that in advancing Chinese-path modernization and forging a path with unique Chinese characteristics, we must base ourselves on national conditions, allow the market to play a decisive role in resource allocation, and coordinate reform and the rule of law to form a synergistic force. We must combine an efficient market with a promising government, use the New Development Philosophy to lead the accelerated development of new quality productive forces according to local conditions, and continuously enhance the momentum of the whole society and the vitality of market entities. The "monistic modernity" concept promoted by Western development models—which "pursues a single path to modernization, ignores differences in history, culture, and social structure, and leads to North-South inequality, economic dependence, and cultural conflict, presenting a relationship of dominance and subordination"—is unsustainable. Chinese-path modernization carries the historical mission of 1.4 billion people moving toward modernization as a whole. It adheres to a people-centered and trend-responsive development philosophy. In its overall layout, it emphasizes the coordinated development of material and spiritual civilizations, stresses the harmonious coexistence of man and nature, and highlights the peaceful development path. It provides new models and solutions for global diversified development. In many practical dimensions, it surpasses the Western model, discarding the "Western-centrism" that has long confined people's thinking and vision, and establishing strong self-confidence for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
(3) Persisting in Improving the Legal Mechanisms for High-Quality Development is an Urgent Need for Shaping New Momentum and Advantages in Reform and Opening Up
Since the start of the New Era, the essence of China's economic development has leapt from "high speed" to "high quality," and new quality productive forces are accelerating. However, economic development has "entered the 'deep-water zone' of transformation." Planning major projects involving national security, people's well-being, and high-quality economic development—especially the pressure to "stabilize growth"—is unprecedented. To further improve the systems and mechanisms for high-level opening up to the outside world, there is an urgent need to obtain new momentum from global economic growth through further comprehensively deepening reform. We must open up new spaces for the development of new quality productive forces, create new platforms for international economic cooperation, and actively align with high-standard international economic and trade rules. In particular, we must actively participate in the reform of the global economic governance system. Both further comprehensively deepening reform and the rule of law face deep-seated new challenges.
Innovations in theory, institutions, technology, and culture, along with the industrial revolution, will inevitably change the landscape of world economic development. It is crucial to persist in using Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law as a guide, based on a far-reaching strategic vision, clear theoretical lineage, and rigorous logical thinking to promote the unity of reform and the rule of law. We must further improve the legal mechanisms for promoting high-quality development and follow the principles, methods, and paths of the unity of reform and the rule of law to shape new advantages for reform and opening up. The New Development Philosophy must be fully reflected in the coordinated advancement of reform and the rule of law. Specifically, in breaking down the ideological concepts and institutional flaws that restrict high-quality Chinese-path modernization, clearing the bottlenecks that restrict comprehensive innovation, and improving the relations of production to better suit the new quality productive forces, we must "persist in profoundly grasping the systematic foresight and scientific methodology of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law." We must be adept at using rule-of-law thinking and methods to scientifically coordinate major platforms, industries, reforms, policies, and the compilation of factor lists. We must promote the deep integration of the talent chain, policy chain, and innovation chain; strengthen the synergy between science and education in nurturing talent; and promote the integrated development of education, technology, and talent. We must integrate technological innovation into all fields of development, making new breakthroughs in the integrated development of "computing power + industry," especially in key core technologies and frontier technologies. We must facilitate the accumulation of advanced productive factors toward new quality productive forces and future industries. We must consciously enhance the concept of the "digital rule of law," leading and safeguarding the healthy development of new quality productive forces according to the law, nurturing emerging industries, planning for future industries ahead of time, and using advanced technology to empower the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries. We must clarify the boundaries of responsibility for reform according to the law, ensuring vertical and horizontal coordination and simultaneous planning to improve the quality, speed, and efficiency of Chinese-path modernization. We must be adept at using rule-of-law methods to promote reform, persisting in "looking at problems with a comprehensive, dialectical, and long-term perspective, actively expanding new space for development," and always maintaining confidence and composure. We must emphasize institutional innovation, persisting in advancing the rule of law within the logic of historical progress and further comprehensively deepening reform within the trend of the times, truly seizing the initiative in development.
II. Positioning Strategic Initiative Amidst Changes Unseen in a Century: Providing Powerful Momentum and Institutional Safeguards for Chinese-path Modernization
(1) The Rule of Law is an Important Guarantee for Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Advancing Chinese-path Modernization
The rule of law is a consensus of political wisdom in state governance across all times and cultures.
"The path of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics is the only correct path for advancing the comprehensive law-based governance of the country in the New Era." Therefore, "better exerting the active role of the rule of law in removing obstacles to reform and consolidating the fruits of reform, being adept at using legal thinking and legal methods to advance reform, and ensuring that all major reforms have a legal basis" is both an urgent necessity for further comprehensively deepening reform and an important objective for developing whole-process people's democracy and upholding the organic unity of Party leadership, the people's position as masters of the country, and the law-based governance of the country. Since the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee kicked off the era of reform and opening up [9], every subsequent Third Plenary Session has focused on key issues in fields such as people's livelihoods, development, stability, security, opening up, and innovation. These sessions have produced decisions on reform, optimized reform concepts and measures, and advanced the implementation of reform tasks, consistently emphasizing the important role of the legal system or the rule of law. "China's practice of reform and opening up is the largest scale and most successful institutional transformation and innovation in human history," which can be said to have created the greatest miracle in the history of human social development. The Decision of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee clarified the major principle of the "Six Upholds," emphasizing that we must advance further comprehensive deepening of reform and Chinese-path modernization on the track of the rule of law. The Proposals [10] of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee clarified the "construction of a rule-of-law economy," focusing on the comprehensive implementation of the new development philosophy, insisting that the foothold of development be placed on high-quality development, emphasizing the law-based coordination of development and security, and using the law to lead and promote the coordinated progress of various undertakings. This specifically involves "guaranteeing the coordinated operation of various economic legal systems," effectively preventing and defusing risks and external shocks in key areas, continuously expanding high-level opening up, promoting a sustained economic recovery and improvement, maintaining social harmony and stability, and accelerating the construction of a new development paradigm. It is evident that practice since reform and opening up has fully proven that the rule of law is not only an important principle that must be upheld for further comprehensively deepening reform and Chinese-path modernization but is, more importantly, the fundamental guarantee.
(2) The rule of law is an inherent requirement for further comprehensively deepening reform and promoting Chinese-path modernization
To correctly understand and grasp the rich connotations of the Decision of the Third Plenary Session and the Proposals of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, we must focus on the series of major theoretical viewpoints and reform tasks proposed. We must accelerate the work of "enacting, amending, repealing, and interpreting" [11] legal systems and measures to ensure timely provision of legal guarantees and guidance suited to the further comprehensive deepening of reform and Chinese-path modernization during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period (2026–2030), ensuring that the strategic deployments of the Party Central Committee are implemented completely, accurately, and comprehensively. We should adhere to the people-centered development philosophy and the new development philosophy to deepen reform in the field of the rule of law. We must focus on strengthening the rule of law in areas such as national political security, economic and financial security, high-quality economic and cultural development, energy and resource security, social harmony and stability, food and drug safety, counter-terrorism and stability maintenance, ethnic and religious affairs, and ecological environment security. We must continuously refine the working structure for building a "Rule of Law China," constantly using good laws to promote development and guarantee good governance, ensuring the long-term stability of the state and the peace and prosperity of the people. High-quality development is both a new historical starting point and a key area where the unity of reform and the rule of law must focus. For the rule of law to guarantee and lead the further comprehensive deepening of reform and the advancement of Chinese-path modernization, we must give full play to the superiority of the Chinese system. We must coordinately focus on the new development philosophy and high-quality development, and continuously deepen reform, development, and the legal regulation, guidance, and guarantee in nine major relational areas: development and security, a strong state and a wealthy people, city and countryside, economic construction and other forms of construction, internal circulation and external circulation [12], coordinated regional development and major regional strategies, efficiency and equity, strategy and tactics, and the present and the long term.
The rule of law and the further comprehensive deepening of reform should strive to form a synergy in guiding, promoting, and guaranteeing the structural optimization of the modern industrial system, promoting the transformation and upgrading of industries toward intelligence, greening, and integration. Synergy should be formed in the fields of improving factor quality and allocation efficiency, promoting the efficient aggregation of resources toward pillar industries, key industries, and emerging industries. Synergy should be formed in promoting scientific and technological innovation, utilizing mechanisms such as market competitive pressure transmission and economic interest drivers to promote the cultivation and development of new quality productive forces. In coordinating development and security, we must base ourselves on making the real economy bigger and stronger, continuously pushing the digital economy and equipment manufacturing toward "high-end, new, and cutting-edge" levels. We must accelerate the construction of the digital industrial system and the development of new quality productive forces. We must persist in the forward-looking layout of future industries, actively shaping new momentum and advantages for high-quality economic development, and ensuring the high-quality construction of China's modern industrial system during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period. We should persist in accelerating the building of a law-based government, improving the systems and mechanisms for law-based administration, and refining the mechanism for the legality review of major decisions and normative documents. We should continuously advance the statutory definition of government functions, powers, procedures, and responsibilities. We must deepen the reform of the administrative law enforcement system, improve the system and mechanism for comprehensive law enforcement at the primary level, refine the administrative law enforcement supervision system, continuously raise the professional level of administrative law enforcement, and comprehensively enhance administrative efficiency. We should actively improve the legislative, law enforcement, and judicial systems and mechanisms related to cultivating and developing new quality productive forces to further promote and lead their healthy development.
(3) The rule of law is a powerful guarantee for ensuring that Chinese-path modernization continues to advance in a complex environment
To win the strategic initiative amidst the accelerating evolution of the "changes unseen in a century" [13], particularly in responding to the U.S. government's actions of imposing indiscriminate tariffs against the global trend, China must unswervingly maintain the international system with the United Nations at its core, continuously deepen and improve global economic governance, and actively build a cooperative world economy. We must persist in upholding the international order based on international law, further building international consensus in areas such as economy, finance, trade, digital affairs, and the ecological environment to build a stable world economy. We must adhere to the basic norms of international relations based on the purposes of the UN Charter, continue to promote WTO reform, and persist in pushing for the inclusion of the Investment Facilitation for Development (IFD) Agreement into the WTO legal framework. We must restore the normal operation of the dispute settlement mechanism as soon as possible, promote the implementation of the WTO Electronic Commerce Agreement in China, and accelerate the construction of an open world economy. We should persist in starting from the characteristics of international commercial arbitration to reform and improve China's substantive arbitration laws. By referencing international arbitration theory and practice, we can enhance the certainty and predictability of rules for the application of law, thereby strengthening parties' trust in and choice of Chinese arbitration.
We must persist in revolving around the priorities of Chinese-path modernization, proceeding from China's judicial practice to promote the reform and innovation of rules for applying international customs. We should emphasize the role of international customs as a "self-governing law" for transnational commerce, establishing party autonomy as the primary principle for applying international customs. According to the provisions of the Law of the People's Republic of China on the Choice of Law for Foreign-Related Civil Relationships, we should persist in party autonomy as the basic principle, supplemented by the "closest connection" principle. Where Chinese law has mandatory provisions, they shall be directly applied; if the application of foreign law harms China's social and public interests, Chinese law shall be applied instead, and the application of foreign law shall be excluded in accordance with the law. In particular, "international customs with characteristics similar to the Uniform Customs and Practice for Documentary Credits (UCP) can adopt the 'UCP model' recognized by the Supreme People's Court's judicial interpretations, endowing them with 'legality' so they have direct applicability." We must improve a fair judicial system and mechanism with international influence, seize the "ox's nose" [14] of the judicial responsibility system, improve the working system for the uniform application of law in judicial cases, and enhance the international and domestic credibility of the judiciary, creating a favorable international legal environment for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization.
(4) The rule of law is the most prominent advantage in ensuring that further comprehensive deepening of reform and Chinese-path modernization focus on top-level design
In advancing Chinese-path modernization and responding to the challenges of a volatile and treacherous international environment, both the further comprehensive deepening of reform and the rule of law face a series of fierce struggles. We must always focus on the top-level design that integrates, coordinates, and harmonizes the further deepening of reform with the rule of law, always maintaining strategic initiative and continuously enhancing the proactivity and effectiveness of our struggle. The construction of the rule of law plays an irreplaceable role in guaranteeing, regulating, and leading the process of advancing the great cause of building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation through Chinese-path modernization. As our understanding deepens, our strategy improves, and our practice becomes richer, there is an urgent need to continuously strengthen theoretical research and practical exploration into the integration of reform and the rule of law. We must continuously coordinate the relationship between the rule of law system and the system of further comprehensive reform, "realizing the normative expectations guaranteed by the legal system," and striving to ensure that our thinking, understanding, policies, laws, measures, and systems are more in line with objective laws.
Therefore, the top-level design of reform and the rule of law in Chinese-path modernization must be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law. We must precisely grasp the key—the further comprehensive deepening of reform—which governs the whole and the fundamentals. We must persist in coordinating the two overall domestic and international situations, the Five-Sphere Integrated Plan, and the Four Comprehensives. We should use legal means to respond to social hotspots, focusing on regulating management and services in areas related to people's livelihoods such as education, elderly care, and medical care. We must promote the law-based punishment of "flies and ants" corruption [15] occurring around the masses, severely punish crimes endangering food and drug safety, and normalize the governance of issues such as wage arrears and debt defaults, strengthening legal regulation in civil, administrative, and criminal fields. We must persist in deepening reforms in key areas alongside the rule of law, step by step, ensuring the settlement of disputes, standardizing law enforcement, and preventing and resolving social contradictions. We must persist in overall consideration, systematic planning, and holistic advancement, correctly handling a series of major relationships such as top-level design and practical exploration, strategy and tactics, upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground, efficiency and equity, vitality and order, and self-reliance and reform and opening up. To this end, top-level design must persist in improving the macroeconomic governance system, perfecting the basic economic system where public ownership is the mainstay and diverse forms of ownership develop together, and actively building a legal system conducive to an integrated, open, competitive, and orderly market system. We should further strictly regulate administrative inspections involving enterprises in accordance with the law, prohibiting "multi-headed law enforcement," "repeated inspections," "arbitrary fines," and "arbitrary seizures." We should focus on concrete areas such as building a government service concept of "non-interference unless necessary," improving a "full life-cycle" financial support system, creating a development ecosystem of "characteristic industries + digital empowerment," implementing a "dual circulation" talent strategy, and strengthening application-oriented basic research. By strengthening legal regulation, guarantees, and guidance, we can continuously and effectively stimulate the three major drivers of development: reform, opening up, and innovation among market entities.
(5) The rule of law is the new momentum ensuring that further comprehensive deepening of reform focuses on jointly creating an international environment of peaceful development and promoting global cooperative development
"Entering the New Era, China has achieved exchange and dialogue between different civilizations with a broad mind." Modernization of the Chinese-path legal system adheres to the tenet of following the path of peaceful development and benefiting the world. For a series of important issues—specifically the prominent shortcomings in foreign-related rule of law, and particularly the fact that international rule of law concerns global governance and breaking the stalemate in world legal reform—there is an "urgent need to seek the optimal plan, the most convenient path, and the best political, economic, social, and legal effects through comparative legal research." Therefore, China should persist in advancing the strategic layout of foreign-related rule of law, strengthen the research, application, and cultivation of talent in international law, and coordinate the advancement of domestic and foreign-related rule of law. Emphasis must be placed on "adjusting the relationship between domestic and international legal systems," especially strengthening the building of the foreign-related legal system and capacity.
Importance should be attached to coordinating and enhancing the systemic and synergistic functions of domestic and foreign-related rule of law through comparative legal research. This involves accurately grasping the coordination functions of different national laws, analyzing differences in national legal systems, and providing theoretical and technical support for the effective alignment of domestic and international law. We must deeply analyze the application functions of international rules and, based on the differences in similar regulations across various countries, help courts accurately interpret and apply international treaties, customs, and rules. Through the comparative analysis of legal declarations and guiding functions, we can assist courts in accurately grasping development trends in international rule of law and promote the integration of domestic rules with international standards. In hearing cases related to the "Belt and Road" [16], Chinese courts can draw on international commercial arbitration practices to form adjudicatory rules with exemplary effects, thereby increasing international confidence in China's judiciary.
By combining comparative studies of conflict cases between international and domestic law, we can effectively master the art of international risk prevention, control, and struggle, providing effective strategic support for dealing with international legal conflicts. For instance, in response to US "long-arm jurisdiction," Chinese courts can invoke the principle of "sovereign equality of states" established by the Charter of the United Nations to conduct effective counter-measures. To enhance institutional innovation and optimize reform functions, comparative legal research can provide international judicial references for the reform of foreign-related trial mechanisms, draw on the practical experience of international commerce to design and optimize dispute resolution mechanisms for international commercial conflicts, and effectively improve judicial efficiency. This will facilitate the "proactive provision of highly adaptable public products and high-quality international legal talent for maintaining the multilateral trading system and promoting the modernization of the global governance system and capacity," contributing Chinese legal wisdom to the quest for harmony and stability in the world order.
We must persist in practicing the "Belt and Road" cooperation initiative, anchoring and continuously releasing the dividends of foreign-related rule of law. We will continue to actively "assemble teams of foreign-related legal experts and lawyers, establish expert databases for foreign-related legal services, carry out training on international law and rules, and introduce more international legal service institutions with global influence." Strengthening comparative legal research will provide shared opportunities and fruits for the economic development and improvement of people’s livelihoods among cooperation partners. "China has undergone earth-shaking changes [17], and the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process." To ensure this unprecedented great cause continues to move forward, we must firmly grasp the main theme of further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization.
We must persist in advancing the integration of the basic tenets of Marxism with China’s specific realities and with fine traditional Chinese culture ("the Two Integrations"). We must base our actions on the global changes unseen in a century, the multi-point outbreaks of international political disputes and military conflicts, and especially the huge challenges facing the global governance system—where international relations continuously exhibit characteristics such as the judicialization of political and diplomatic issues. We must fully implement global governance initiatives and practice the global governance goal of "observing the international rule of law and opposing the threat of force and aggression." We should actively accelerate the construction of an international legal theory and discourse system with distinct Chinese characteristics, international legal practice features, and adaptability to the special environment of the century-long changes. This will provide a legal guarantee for effectively and steadily increasing global development cooperation—especially China’s high-quality development, high-level opening up, and the steady progress of Chinese-path modernization—using legal methods to better safeguard the interests of the state and the people, and promoting the building of a community with a shared future for humanity, thereby optimizing the international environment for the peaceful development of Chinese-path modernization.
III. Strengthening Legal Thinking and Legal Methods to Deeply Advance the Construction of Chinese-path Modernization
(1) Adhering to the Important Principle of the Unity and Synergistic Advancement of Reform and Rule of Law in Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform
We must persist in "advancing reform and rule of law simultaneously to enhance the penetration of reform. We must be adept at using legal thinking and legal methods to solve reform difficulties, consolidate reform achievements, and achieve the unity of reform and rule of law." Therefore, the rule of law cannot do without the impetus of further comprehensively deepening reform, and further comprehensively deepening reform cannot do without the guarantee, regulation, and guidance of the rule of law. To improve the system of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics within the process of further comprehensively deepening reform, we should persist in continuously deepening reform within the legal field and promptly elevating reform achievements into institutional norms.
To let the rule of law safeguard reform and innovation in all fields of Chinese-path modernization and fully play its important role in consolidating foundations, stabilizing expectations, and benefiting the long term—ensuring that institutions in all aspects become more mature, finalized, and standardized—we must persist in unifying reform and rule of law within the development and perfection of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and within the modernization of the state governance system and capacity. We must consciously follow the methodology of the unity of historical and theoretical logic. As Engels stated in Karl Marx, "A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy": "Where history begins, the train of thought must also begin, and its further progress will be nothing but the reflection of the historical process in an abstract and theoretically consistent form; a corrected reflection, but corrected in accordance with laws provided by the real historical process itself, since every moment can be examined at its point of fully matured development, in its characteristic form." This ensures we always use scientific methods to guide and promote further comprehensively deepening reform, advancing reform under the rule of law and perfecting the rule of law through reform. Realizing a virtuous interaction where the two complement each other is conducive to further improving the socialist market economy system, guiding reform with the new development philosophy, basing actions on the new development stage, deepening supply-side structural reform, improving incentive and constraint mechanisms for high-quality development, shaping new momentum and advantages for development, and ensuring a continuous new situation for further comprehensively deepening reform and Chinese-path modernization.
(2) Ensuring Chinese-path Modernization is Deeply Advanced through the Synergy of Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Rule of Law
Further comprehensively deepening reform and the rule of law are interdependent and complementary. To continuously improve the system of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics, we must further deepen reform in the legal field. Conversely, to use the power of reform to remove obstacles, consolidate achievements, and improve the rule of law, we must be adept at using legal thinking and legal methods to promote reform. The rule of law is an important pillar for the modernization of the state governance system and capacity and the "general grasp" [18] for comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of the country.
"The goal of 'legal reform' is consistent with the general goal of further comprehensively deepening reform," and the implementation of deeper reform measures requires the strong guarantee and deep advancement of the rule of law. "The system of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics is, in essence, the legal manifestation of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics." It is an important component of Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. "The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the fundamental institutional basis for the system of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics and the fundamental institutional guarantee for comprehensively advancing the law-based governance of the country," as well as an important guarantee for further comprehensively deepening reform.
The Decision of the Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee proposed a series of new ideas, tasks, and measures, such as "synergistically promoting reforms in the links of legislation, law enforcement, justice, and law observance" and the "reform" of the rule of law itself. The recommendations of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee [19] proposed goals and tasks such as "promoting the construction of socialist democracy and rule of law" and "persisting in comprehensively governing the country by law, synergistically promoting scientific legislation, strict law enforcement, impartial justice, and law observance by all." This requires that during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period (2026–2030), the construction of a Law-based China must "pay more attention to the synergy between rule of law and reform, development, and stability, and more attention to safeguarding and promoting social fairness and justice."
Facing complex international and domestic situations, a new round of scientific and technological revolution and industrial transformation, and the new expectations of the people, during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, we must build a more complete system of socialist rule of law with Chinese characteristics. We must focus on consolidating and demonstrating the advantages of the socialist system through the rule of law, vigorously promoting the construction of a law-based government, comprehensively advancing impartial justice, safeguarding social fairness and justice according to law, strengthening the foreign-related legal system and capacity building, and maintaining national security and social stability. Laying a solid foundation for a higher-level socialist rule-of-law state and providing a solid legal guarantee for achieving decisive progress in basically realizing socialist modernization all depend on the key measure of coordinating reform and rule of law.
We must take history as a mirror, civilization as a perspective, and the rule of law as a guarantee. Focusing on the great cause of building a strong country and national rejuvenation, we must comprehensively promote the legalization of all aspects of national work. We should value investigating and drawing on the developmental experiences of world legal civilization and Chinese legal civilization, further improve the national security legal system, strategic system, policy system, and risk prevention and control system. We must continuously and deeply promote and innovate the systems and mechanisms conducive to the cultivation and development of new quality productive forces, strengthen the synergistic paths of rule of law and reform under the background of economic globalization, Chinese-path modernization, digitalization, and high-quality development, and continuously promote the synergy between the rule of law and further comprehensively deepening reform.
(3) Deeply Advancing the Modernization of the State Governance System and Capacity through Coordinated Rule of Law and Reform
Firmly grasping the rule of law as a profound revolution in state governance and continuously improving the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics requires further strengthening the publicity and education of the rule of law for the whole Party and society. We must focus on improving the ability of leading officials to use legal thinking and legal methods to deepen reform, promote development, resolve contradictions, maintain stability, and respond to risks. We must enhance the legal literacy of all people and the level of legalization of social governance.
We must persist in deepening the reform of the mechanisms for peripheral [diplomatic] work, deepening all-around cooperation with neighboring countries, improving the system of foreign-related laws and regulations, properly managing contradictions and differences, and actively building a peripheral community with a shared future. We must consolidate strategic mutual trust with neighboring countries, jointly maintain international peace and stability, and jointly respond to risks and challenges. We must improve the mechanisms for building a law-based society, refine the legal systems and mechanisms for preventing and combating violent terrorism, infiltration, subversion, and sabotage activities from home and abroad, and perfect the working mechanisms for urban governance, social governance, frontier governance, and the consolidation of border stability and long-term peace. We must strengthen legal coordination and comprehensive measures.
Importance must be placed on governing the problem of lawbreakers using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to infringe upon the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, legal persons, and other organizations. We must persist in governing the cyber ecosystem according to laws, administrative regulations, and departmental rules, focusing on the approach of "rule of law + reform." We must strengthen the combination of "human defense + technical defense," reinforcing proactive prevention, technical detection, complaint mechanisms, and legal accountability. We must improve long-term mechanisms, regulate AI-generated and synthesized content according to law, and build a co-governance mechanism involving legal norms, proactive supervision, platform responsibility, and user linkage. We must strive to enhance the foresight, precision, systematicity, and synergy of cyber governance, effectively prevent the abuse of AI technology, and maintain a clean and upright ecological environment in cyber-society. This ensures that AI technology is fully utilized to promote high-quality economic and social development while also ensuring that the people fully enjoy the convenience brought by modern information technology.
We must persist in strengthening the legal guidance and promotion of high-quality development, achieving a virtuous interaction between high-quality development and high-level security. We should emphasize directing high-quality legal services toward border areas, strengthening the legal concepts of the masses—especially the youth—and gathering the strength to forge a strong sense of community for the Chinese nation through the rule of law. We should focus on using further comprehensively deepening reform to refine the legal system for early warning, governance, and aftermath handling of major public emergencies, and improve the social governance system that combines self-governance, rule of law, and rule of virtue, with the rule of law as the mainstay.
We should value the new governance form of the "Digital Fengqiao" [20], guiding resources and factors to aggregate toward perfecting the construction of a law-based government. We must attach importance to giving the "Fengqiao Experience" the legal connotation, positioning, and functions of the New Era, building a synergy that is both good at coordination and better able to aggregate the force for promoting high-quality comprehensive governance. This ensures we further "strengthen the backbone of our ideals, solidify the ballast of our beliefs, and maintain strong strategic determination." We will continuously innovate the legal mechanisms for social governance, frontier governance, and peripheral work, anchoring the goal of building vitality and international competitiveness. We will strive to create strategic pivot points for a new development pattern, demonstration sites for high-quality development, and leading areas for Chinese-path modernization, ensuring that the construction of Chinese-path modernization is advanced with high quality on the track of the rule of law.
(4) Persisting in Strengthening the Rule of Law as the Powerful Driving Force and Institutional Guarantee for Advancing Comprehensively Deepening Reform and the Construction of Chinese-path Modernization
The Decision emphasizes...
"Rule of law is an important guarantee for Chinese-path modernization." The Proposal clarified the primary goal of "achieving a higher level of construction for a socialist rule of law country." This involves deepening reform in the legislative field, further advancing law-based administration, improving systems and mechanisms for impartial law enforcement and justice, perfecting mechanisms for advancing frontier governance and the construction of a rule of law society, and strengthening the construction of foreign-related rule of law. Furthermore, the Proposal puts forward a series of tasks, including leading the development of new quality productive forces, building a strong domestic market, enhancing the momentum of high-quality development, expanding high-level opening up, accelerating the modernization of agriculture and rural areas, promoting coordinated regional development, stimulating the cultural innovation and creativity of the whole nation, solidly promoting common prosperity for all people, building a Beautiful China [21], and building a higher-level Peaceful China [22], as well as advancing the modernization of national defense and the armed forces with high quality.
Against this backdrop, the fields of rule of law and reform urgently require strengthened driving forces and institutional guarantees. We must continue to deepen economic structural reform, construct a modern economic system, and optimize structural adjustment and the transition of growth drivers. We must deepen supply-side structural reform, shore up weak links in the rule of law and institutions, advance the construction of a national unified large market in depth, optimize factor allocation, and improve the quality and efficiency of the supply system. We must promote a better fit between the relations of production and the productive forces, the superstructure and the economic base, and national governance and social development, thereby providing a powerful impetus and institutional guarantee for Chinese-path modernization.
We must seize opportunities in digitalization, intellectualization, integration, and green development to promote innovation-driven development. This includes utilizing digital-intelligent technologies such as AI to facilitate innovation, accelerating breakthroughs in foundational theories and core technologies, and further strengthening the legal norms and efficient supply of computing power, algorithms, and data. We must ensure the precise and efficient processing of massive data information, continuously improve computing service capabilities, and enhance the legal guarantee, normalization, and guidance for the deep integration of AI technology into high-quality development.
We must persist in consolidating the foundation of people's livelihoods through further comprehensively deepening reform. This involves focusing on the integration and coordination of AI with various reforms aimed at guaranteeing and improving people's livelihoods. We must emphasize the fundamental function of the rule of law in "promoting the innovative development of artificial intelligence and driving economic growth while strictly implementing the principle of employment priority and striving to expand overall employment opportunities for workers," ensuring the continuous growth of the people's income. All these efforts render the need for legal safeguards and guidance even more urgent as we continue to advance the further comprehensive deepening of reform.
However, whether in the context of the rule of law, the further comprehensive deepening of reform, or Chinese-path modernization—and particularly in responding to the new requirements of high-quality development—the task of "building an enabling artificial intelligence governance mechanism centered on the rule of law, along with various specific mechanisms under its command," remains extremely arduous. The urgency of enhancing the rule of law, reform momentum, and institutional guaranteeing power for Chinese-path modernization is becoming increasingly apparent.
(5) We must ensure that the rule of law and the further comprehensive deepening of reform serve the implementation of the Overall National Security Outlook
The Proposal clarified the requirements for promoting the modernization of the national security system and capabilities, ensuring that society is both vibrant and orderly. To this end, in unswervingly implementing the Overall National Security Outlook [23], we must "fully leverage the political and institutional advantages of Party leadership and persistently hold fast to the core of political security." We must persist in endowing the further comprehensive deepening of reform and the construction of the rule of law with the responsibilities and tasks of maintaining national unity, opposing separatism, upholding solidarity and stability, and promoting the construction of a community for the Chinese nation [24]. We must imbue them with the requirements of improving people's livelihoods and winning people's hearts, thereby consolidating the will and strength of the masses to the greatest extent possible to overcome all risks and challenges with one heart and mind.
We must strengthen the function of the rule of law and reform in coordinating development and security. Taking the further comprehensive deepening of reform as the driving force, strategic planning as the precursor, the improvement of policy measures as the handle, the rule of law as the final guarantee, and risk prevention and control as the key, we must resolve risk factors that endanger national security, public safety, and social governance at their source. National security is the foundation of national rejuvenation. In unswervingly and comprehensively implementing the Overall National Security Outlook and perfecting the systems and mechanisms for maintaining national security, both the rule of law and reform must profoundly grasp the key point that security is where the fundamental national interest lies.
Importance must be attached to "constructing the 'four beams and eight pillars' [25] of a systematized national security legislation; increasing legislative efforts in non-traditional security fields to timely fill legislative gaps in important areas; advancing the process of 'enacting, amending, and repealing' national security legislation to increase the frequency of legal iteration; and utilizing foreign-related rule of law as an important tool of struggle." We must improve our legal capacity to respond to and struggle against sanctions, interference, and "long-arm jurisdiction." We must resolutely block and deter serious provocations that undermine the post-war international order and international law—especially those targeting China's sovereignty and territorial integrity—as well as words and deeds that seriously interfere in China's internal affairs or endanger China's core interests. Specialized laws should be in place to resolutely deter and severely crack down on such acts. This will ensure the further improvement and strengthening of the rule of law system, strategic defense system, policy deterrence system, risk prevention and control system, and risk monitoring and early warning system for safeguarding national security and sovereignty.
We must persist in focusing on the goal of coordinating high-quality development and high-level security. We must improve the rule of law in traditional security fields—such as grain and seed reserves, energy resources, core technologies, infrastructure, key equipment, water resources, industrial and supply chains, strategic channels, strategic hinterland construction, and industrial backups—as well as in emerging fields like data information, artificial intelligence, network transmission, bio-ecology, nuclear security, the deep sea, polar regions, outer space, and low-altitude airspace. This will ensure China's high-quality development and high-level security.
We must persist in using the construction of the rule of law and the further comprehensive deepening of reform to continuously improve foreign-related national security mechanisms. This includes building an overseas security guarantee system and an efficient, interconnected protection system, and strengthening mechanisms for early warning, prevention, control, and protection regarding overseas Chinese citizens, national interests, and investment risks. We must improve mechanisms for participating in global security governance, deepen international cooperation in law enforcement and justice, and perfect a rule-of-law-based and normalized working system for maintaining national security, ensuring that high-level security escorts Chinese-path modernization toward steady and sustained progress.
Historical experience suggests to us: only the reformers advance, only those who rule by law are strong, and only those who synergistically advance reform and the rule of law prevail. To implement the strategic decisions and deployments of the Party Central Committee and ensure that the rule of law and the further comprehensive deepening of reform are advanced closely around the construction of Chinese-path modernization, we must consciously persist in taking Xi Jinping Thought on the Rule of Law as our guide. We must follow the principle of unifying and coordinating the rule of law and reform, and always remain clear about the "goals and historical missions" of the rule of law and reform under specific historical conditions. We must focus on the Party's central task to plan and promote the comprehensive implementation of the general task and blueprint of Chinese-path modernization. Following the scientific method of upholding the fundamentals and breaking new ground, we must proactively utilize rule-of-law thinking and the momentum of reform to break through difficult problems, neutralize risks, and deter challenges, thereby comprehensively consolidating the legal guarantee system for the high-quality construction of Chinese-path modernization.