Liu Wei and Fan Xin: Achieving Chinese Modernization through High-Quality Development to Advance the Irreversible Historical Process of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation
Abstract: Realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization is not only a major theoretical innovation of the Chinese Communists, but also a major practical summation based on the Party and the state’s construction of socialist modernization. Surveying the historical development of modernization globally, the modernization of different countries possesses both the common characteristics of modernization and unique practical paths. This has resulted in the modernization process containing both successful cases of irreversibility and lessons from experiences of reversal. As a latecomer to modernization, Chinese-path modernization has achieved great historical successes; this is the result of the organic unity and mutual reinforcement of a theoretical cornerstone, an economic base, and institutional guarantees. In the New Era and on the new journey, the "changes in the world, in our times, and in history" [1] brought about by the accelerating evolution of the "changes unseen in a century" [2] have profoundly shaped the current internal and external environments of China's development, and the connotation of strategic opportunities has undergone new changes. Consequently, Chinese Communists should enhance their awareness of potential risks, adhere to bottom-line thinking, take proactive initiative, and confront difficulties head-on. On the basis of always following the major principles of the "Five Adherences" [3], the Party aims to build a great modern socialist country by accelerating the construction of the new development pattern and focusing on the promotion of high-quality development, so as to achieve the grand goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Keywords: Chinese-path modernization; high-quality development; Chinese nation; great rejuvenation; irreversibility
Faced with the superposition of multiple factors—including the accelerating evolution of the changes unseen in a century, the weak recovery of the global economy, and the far-reaching impact of the once-in-a-century pandemic—General Secretary Xi Jinping, proceeding from the actual conditions of China’s socio-economic development, pointed out in the report to the 20th Party Congress: "Reform, opening up, and socialist modernization have been further advanced. We have written a new chapter in the twin miracles of rapid economic growth and long-term social stability. Our country now possesses a more solid material foundation and more perfected institutional guarantees for development. The realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process." This is a major judgment made by the Party Central Committee after assessing the situation from the perspective of a "Big View of History" [4], affirming that the Communist Party of China (CPC) leads the people of all ethnic groups with the confidence and ability to realize the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. It is also the CPC’s grasp of the laws governing the developmental prospects of the Chinese nation while adhering to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. As a new choice for humanity to achieve modernization, Chinese-path modernization is the Chinese wisdom and Chinese solution contributed by the CPC, proceeding from national conditions and targeting the common problems faced by mankind. "From this day forward, the central task of the Communist Party of China will be to lead the Chinese people of all ethnic groups in a concerted effort to realize the Second Centenary Goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects and to advance the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization." This indicates that Chinese-path modernization is the only way and an inherent requirement for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. To this end, using a perspective that unifies historical, theoretical, and practical logic to analyze Chinese-path modernization; comprehensively organizing and summarizing the stage-based inevitability and practical necessity of Chinese-path modernization; and exploring how to better realize Chinese-path modernization through high-quality development to advance the irreversible historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation—is not only a major theoretical question that Marxist political economy must answer in the New Era, but also helps us firmly grasp the strategic opportunities on the new journey, taking proactive action and overcoming difficulties to build a modern socialist power.
I. The Phenomenon of Reversal in the Global Modernization Process
Modernization is a historical category, and its related theories have been continuously enriched and perfected alongside the development of the times. In classical modernization theory, modernization is equated with "Westernization," positing that latecomer countries should catch up by learning Western socio-economic systems and cultural concepts, with the aim of reaching the economic development levels of Western modernized countries (Research Group on Chinese-path Modernization, 2022). Due to differences in the level of productive forces, economic structures, and institutional environments across different countries, the modernization of different nations and peoples shares common characteristics but also possesses distinct features. In the global modernization process, some countries have smoothly joined the ranks of modernized nations, but others have moved forward tortuously, experiencing stagnation, interruption, or regression. Therefore, to correctly understand the realization of Chinese-path modernization through high-quality development and the advancement of the irreversible historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, one must first view the modernization process of countries worldwide from a "Big View of History," clarify the scientific connotation of modernization, and possess a clear understanding of the historical conditions for the formation of modernized countries and the deep-seated reasons for the reversals that have occurred in the global modernization process.
(1) Modernization bears distinct characteristics of the times
Modernization is a dynamic process of development in which a country or region moves from traditional to modern status. It reflects the dialectical unity of the productive forces and the relations of production, and of the economic base and the superstructure; it is an organic unity of the regularity of developmental laws and the diversity of reality. From the perspective of absolute development, modernization reflects the process of a country or region advancing from a traditional agricultural society to a modern industrial society, manifesting as a leap in its own economic strength. From the perspective of relative development, considering that the modernization processes of different countries or regions vary globally, modernization reflects the relative level of development a country or region occupies in the world during a specific period, directly expressed as the distance between that country/region and the world’s advanced level. In fact, the essence of modernization is to narrow this development gap and achieve growth leaps and developmental catch-up (Han Baojiang and Li Zhibin, 2022).
Reviewing history, it is easy to find that the tide of modernization originated in Western Europe in the 14th and 15th centuries, later expanding to Central and Eastern Europe and North America, and then spreading throughout the world, reflecting the evolution of human civilization. As an irresistible global trend, modernization has gradually become the common goal pursued diligently by all countries since the dawn of the modern era. In this process, every revolution in science and technology has brought about innovations in the mode of production, becoming the fundamental driving force for a country or region to achieve growth leaps and move toward becoming a modernized nation. The first Industrial Revolution occurred first in Great Britain, where coal and iron, steam energy, and the steam engine were widely applied, ushering in the "Age of Steam." This allowed Britain, which had originally lagged behind European countries like France and Spain, to develop its industry rapidly, optimize its economic structure, and leap to become the center of world civilization. The modernization promoted by the first Industrial Revolution was essentially a process of industrialization spreading from Britain to various Western European countries; its driving force was the economic transformation characterized by the material-technical revolution and the political revolution marked by the Atlantic Revolutions (Liu Wei, 2023). The second Industrial Revolution was marked by electricity and steel, the internal combustion engine, and the electric motor, becoming an important driver of modernization and ushering in the "Age of Electricity." This caused the scope of modernization—with industrialization as its core content—to expand rapidly, extending from Western Europe to Central and Eastern Europe, North America, and other countries in the world of Christian civilization, as well as reaching Japan in the Eastern world. From this point on, latecomer catch-up became the main theme of this period. Before World War I, the United States began to replace Britain's economic position, and a multi-centric capitalist world economy began to take shape. The third Industrial Revolution was based on new material and technical foundations such as oil energy, synthetic materials, microelectronics, and other new energies, new materials, and high technology, ushering in the "Information Age." This not only promoted the further upgrading of industrialization and the advancement of industrial structures in developed economies but also allowed a large number of developing countries to begin developing through catch-up, forming a global wave of modernization. However, it is undeniable that the first three industrial revolutions also brought a series of ecological and environmental problems, such as the excessive consumption of resources and environmental degradation. To solve these problems, a new round of technological revolution emerged. The fourth Industrial Revolution is a green industrial revolution with artificial intelligence, new material technology, quantum information technology, clean energy, and biotechnology as its new material-technical foundation, characterized by informatization, digitalization, networking, and intelligence. Although technologically leading countries or regions represented by the United States remain at the forefront, China and a group of newly industrialized countries have, for the first time, become important participants and drivers in the wave of modernization, catching up and even overtaking others during the process of development.
Viewing modernization from a "Big View of History," it refers not only to the transformation from a traditional rural agricultural society to an industrialized and urbanized society but also involves a systemic, complex, long-term, and revolutionary transformation across political, economic, social, and cultural dimensions (Huntington, 1971; Gilbert Rozman, 2010). Economic modernization is the core content of national modernization, while technological change is the important driving force for national and even global modernization. In the process of socio-economic development, every round of technological change allows technology to upgrade through iterations, causing the economic structure to be continuously optimized in development, and the connotation of modernization to be continuously adjusted and enriched with the development of the times.
(2) The phenomenon of reversal in the global modernization process
The modernization process reflects the changes in the development of human civilization; it is a journey of growth leaps that is most rich and profound, yet complex and unpredictable. In the history of global modernization, the modernization of Western countries has moved forward through twists and turns, with some countries successfully entering the ranks of modernized nations, while the modernization of others has experienced reversals. This reversal phenomenon is not only manifested in the inability of some countries or regions to escape the "poverty trap" or cross the "middle-income trap," but also in the inability of some countries or regions to achieve the leap from the lower stages of modernization to the higher stages after joining the ranks of modernized nations.
According to the World Bank’s 2021 criteria for classifying high, middle, and low incomes, among 218 countries or regions globally, there are 28 low-income countries, 109 middle-income countries, and 81 high-income countries or regions. Looking at low-income countries, between 1987 and 2021, 22 countries such as Afghanistan and Ethiopia remained in the low-income stage, accounting for as much as 78.57%. Six countries, including Sudan and Syria, entered the lower-middle-income stage; although their entry times, durations, and trends varied, they all subsequently fell back to the low-income stage. Judging from the modernization processes of these countries, their own economic bases are relatively weak, and factors such as political instability, the outbreak of civil wars, and frequent natural disasters have hindered their modernization. Moreover, under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, the decline in international aid and the severe blow to pillar industries such as tourism have caused these countries to fall from the middle-income stage back to the low-income stage.
As latecomer countries continue to catch up, many developing countries have begun to escape the "poverty trap" and enter the middle-income stage. Among middle-income countries, there are currently 54 lower-middle-income countries and 55 upper-middle-income countries. Because some countries or regions are unable to successfully transition their driving mechanisms during economic development, they fall into the "middle-income trap." This phenomenon shows that the later a country or region enters the middle-income stage, the greater the probability it will be locked in that range (Liu Wei and Fan Xin, 2019). Judging from the trends in per capita GNI for lower-middle-income countries from 1987 to 2021, although some countries—such as India, Cambodia, and Laos—leaped from the low-income stage to the lower-middle-income stage and successfully escaped the "poverty trap," other countries or regions have shown wave-like changes. For instance, countries like Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan have shown a "lower-middle-income → low-income → lower-middle-income" trend, while countries like Indonesia and Iran have shown a "lower-middle-income → upper-middle-income → lower-middle-income" trend. Looking at the trends in per capita GNI for upper-middle-income countries from 1987 to 2021, while some countries like Bulgaria and China have successfully moved from lower-middle-income to upper-middle-income status, others like Argentina and Russia fell out after entering the high-income ranks. Furthermore, a few countries like Georgia and Turkmenistan fell from the lower-middle-income stage back to low-income before rising again to upper-middle-income status.
As the level of economic development continues to rise, some developing countries have begun to leap over the "middle-income trap" to join the ranks of high-income nations. However, are all high-income nations necessarily modernized nations? How can we scientifically measure the level of modernization of a country or region? Judging from existing research, there is currently no clear quantitative standard for modernization. In fact, the connotation of modernization is constantly adjusted and enriched along with the development of the times, and its standards change accordingly. Given the reality of global economic development levels and the fact that economic modernization is the core content of modernization—and combined with the strategic goals of China’s “two-step” strategy to basically realize socialist modernization by 2035 and build a great modern socialist country by 2050—we adopt the practice of scholars such as Sheng Laiyun and Zheng Xin (2017) and Liu Wei and Fan Xin (2019). We use the per capita GDP of the United States as a frame of reference to divide 81 high-income countries or regions worldwide into four stages for analysis: the quasi-modernization stage, the primary modernization stage, the intermediate modernization stage, and the advanced modernization stage. Currently, 16 countries, including Singapore and the Netherlands, have entered the advanced modernization stage; 12 countries or regions, including Germany and the United Kingdom, have entered the intermediate modernization stage; and 13 countries, including Japan and Italy, have entered the primary modernization stage. Looking at the developmental trends of quasi-modernized countries between 1987 and 2021, countries such as Hungary and Poland have remained in the ranks of high-income countries for a long time without entering or stabilizing within the ranks of modernized nations. Although countries like Greece and Portugal once entered the primary modernization stage, they have slipped back into the quasi-modernization stage in recent years. Furthermore, regarding the trends of modernized nations or regions, while most have remained in this category for the long term, many have fluctuated across different levels of modernization.
It can be seen that national modernization on a global scale is not always smooth sailing; reversals occur from time to time in the process of world modernization. When a country or region begins the practical exploration of modernization, it will inevitably encounter various hardships and obstacles; the slightest imprudence can lead to a reversal.
(3) Deep-seated reasons for the phenomenon of reversal in the process of world modernization
Viewed from the perspective of Macro-History [5], modernization brings about a transformation in the mode of production and is an irreversible, dynamic process of development. However, owing to significant differences in basic national conditions, economic development levels, economic structures, institutional environments, and national governance capacities, the modernization of different countries exhibits characteristics such as non-synchronicity and developmental diversity. It is evident that the emergence of reversals is the result of the combined effects of institutional, technical, and natural factors during the process of a country or region exploring a practical path with its own characteristics under the leadership of a political party. Moreover, the dominant factors differ at different stages. Overall, low quality of government governance, the unsustainability of development driving mechanisms, and high economic vulnerability are the primary reasons obstructing the process of national modernization.
First, the low quality of government governance. The quality of government governance is the concentrated expression of a country’s or region’s institutions and their execution capacity. It directly concerns the developmental future and national destiny of a country or region and is an important guarantee for the smooth initiation and advancement of the modernization process. Looking at the developmental history of various nations, as the core of national economic and social stability, the quality of government governance and modernization construction support and complement each other. High-quality government governance helps promote modernization, while issues like corruption and institutional gaps that arise during the modernization process require the government to make corresponding preventative institutional arrangements. This is especially important in situations where social contradictions and conflicts of interest intensify. Looking at countries currently still in the low-income stage—whether those that once leaped into the middle-income ranks only to fall out, or those that have long remained at the low-income stage—the obstruction of their modernization process is closely related to low quality of government governance, such as political instability, frequent civil wars, and the intensification of social contradictions. Measures taken by Western developed countries like the United Kingdom and Sweden to maintain political stability—such as innovating party theories and programs and focusing on the coordination between economic development and social equity—have also laid a solid foundation for modernization. Meanwhile, analysis through the World Bank’s Worldwide Governance Indicators (WGI) shows that countries or regions experiencing reversals score relatively low and grow slowly (or even decline) in indicators such as Voice and Accountability, Political Stability and Absence of Violence/Terrorism, Government Effectiveness, Regulatory Quality, Rule of Law, and Control of Corruption. To this end, Xi Jinping pointed out: “The issue of the rule of law versus the rule of man is a basic question in the history of human political civilization, and it is also a major issue that all countries must face and resolve in the process of achieving modernization. Looking at modern world history, among the countries that have smoothly achieved modernization, there is not one that has not relatively well resolved the issue of the rule of law and the rule of man. Conversely, some countries, though they once achieved rapid development, did not smoothly cross the threshold of modernization but instead fell into one 'trap' or another, resulting in a situation of stagnant or even regressive economic and social development. To a large extent, the latter situation is related to a lack of the rule of law.” It is clear that the failure to establish an institutional system compatible with the level of economic development is an important reason for the reversal in these countries.
Second, the unsustainability of development driving mechanisms. In the process of modernization, the unsustainability of a country’s or region’s economic development driving mechanism is reflected not only in the weakening of the original driving mechanism but also in the failure to timely and effectively transition from old to new driving mechanisms. In fact, modernization not only brings about the expansion of economic scale and growth in total volume but also upgrades the quality and state of the economic structure, all of which depend on the sustainability of the economic development driving mechanism. It cannot be denied, however, that the driving mechanisms differ at different stages of modernization construction. Specifically, for countries in the low-income stage, factor inputs such as capital and labor are important drivers of economic growth. But after entering the middle-income stage, factor-driven mechanisms begin to wane; if an effective transition cannot be realized, it is easy to fall into long-term economic stagnation (Gill and Kharas, 2007). Looking at the typical facts of developing countries, because some countries cannot transition their driving mechanisms timely and effectively, they are easily locked into the middle-income stage, resulting in the "middle-income trap." Taking the ability to leap over the "middle-income trap" within 30 years of entering the middle-income stage as a criterion, there were 19, 21, and 24 upper-middle-income countries in the 1960s, 70s, and 80s, respectively, but the proportion of countries failing to successfully leap to the high-income stage has grown higher and higher, reaching 26%, 43%, and 50% (Zhang Derong, 2013). When a country or region enters the quasi-modernization stage, increasing total factor productivity—especially through technological progress—remains an important driver for achieving a leap in modernization levels. Based on PWT 10.0 data, calculation results using the DEA-Malmquist method show that although the growth rate of total factor productivity in modernized countries shows wave-like fluctuations, most countries generally show positive growth. From the decomposition of total factor productivity growth, technological progress is the main driver, while the effect of technical efficiency varies. This indicates that technological progress has become an important driver for whether a modernized country can achieve a leap forward. In short, the sustainability of the development driving mechanism is an important support for whether a country or region can achieve sustainable development.
Third, high economic vulnerability. As an important manifestation of the capacity to withstand the damage caused by external shocks or disturbances during economic development, economic vulnerability is not only a major hallmark for measuring whether a country’s or region’s development is healthy and stable but also an important factor influencing whether modernization can proceed smoothly. Looking at the history of world modernization, countries that successfully achieve modernization often lead the world in certain industries and possess a complete modern industrial system, such as electronic information and biomedicine in the United States, or automobiles and advanced equipment manufacturing in Germany. Conversely, for some countries or regions, the important lesson for the stagnation, interruption, or retreat of their modernization process lies in an incomplete industrial and supply chain system, making it difficult to resist external shocks. This is particularly evident in countries or regions with a relatively singular economic structure. From the perspective of human history, major sudden public events and other exogenous events occur from time to time—such as the Plague of Athens, the Black Death, SARS, and other raging plagues and viruses—as well as the continuous impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in recent years. To a certain extent, these have obstructed the modernization process of some countries or regions with high economic vulnerability. Furthermore, whether it be the 1997 Southeast Asian financial crisis, the 2008 international financial crisis, or other global economic crises, as well as the ongoing Ukraine crisis and other international political and military conflicts, all bring extreme environmental risks to the modernization process of a country or region. In this process, issues of energy supply, asset price volatility, and the integrity of global industrial and supply chains all face significant risks. This not only affects the countries directly involved but also brings great uncertainty to the modernization process of other relevant countries or regions.
II. The Scientific Basis for the Irreversibility of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation
The historical process of world modernization indicates that national modernization is an organic combination of the universality of human social development and the specificity of concrete nations. As a socialist modernization led by the Communist Party of China, Chinese-path modernization has not only achieved major breakthroughs in theoretical exploration but has also driven the rapid socio-economic development of our country. The proposition that “the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process” is established on the foundation of the historical achievements of socialist modernization construction; it is an organic unity of history and logic, theory and reality. This not only announces that the CPC has led the people of all ethnic groups throughout the country to achieve the great leap from standing up and becoming prosperous to becoming strong, and is marching toward the goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation; it also marks that scientific socialism is radiating new and vigorous vitality in 21st-century China, providing Chinese wisdom and a Chinese approach for humanity to achieve modernization.
(1) The thought of the "Two Inevitabilities" laid the scientific theoretical foundation for the irreversibility of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation
Marx and Engels analyzed the laws of historical development of human society through the sequential evolution of five social formations, scientifically revealing the general laws of human social development and the specific laws of the capitalist mode of production. Taking capitalist society as the object of study and utilizing historical materialism, Marx and Engels focused on analyzing the internal contradictions and laws of motion of the capitalist mode of production, reaching the scientific conclusion that “the demise of capitalism and the victory of socialism are equally inevitable.” As a core category of Marxism, the “Two Inevitabilities” [6] is not only a major discovery in the laws of human social development but has also become an important component of scientific socialism.
The thought of the “Two Inevitabilities” was reflected as early as in the Manifesto of the Communist Party. “The task of the Communist Manifesto was to proclaim the inevitably impending dissolution of modern bourgeois property.” At the same time, it pointed out that “the fall [of the bourgeoisie] and the victory of the proletariat are equally inevitable.” This expression was primarily directed at the typical capitalist societies of Europe and became the initial form of the “Two Inevitabilities.” However, judging from actual conditions, Eastern societies did not undergo the typical stage of capitalist development; their development possessed its own characteristics. The Asiatic mode of production and the communal ownership of land in Russia meant that Eastern societies could not directly copy the Western model. “Now the question is: Can the Russian obshchina [peasant commune], though greatly undermined, yet a form of the primeval common ownership of land, pass directly to the higher form of Communist common ownership? Or, on the contrary, must it first pass through the same process of dissolution such as constitutes the historical evolution of the West? The only answer to that possible today is this: If the Russian Revolution becomes the signal for a proletarian revolution in the West, so that both complement each other, the present Russian common ownership of land may serve as the starting point for a communist development.” In other words, the Russian peasant commune “has the possibility of not passing through the Caudine Forks [7] of the capitalist system, while appropriating all the positive achievements created by the capitalist system.” It is easy to see that the theoretical extension of the "Two Inevitabilities" thought was expanded, and subsequent Marxist scholars have continued to enrich and improve it on this basis.
In fact, the theory of the "Two Inevitabilities" [8] is established upon the foundation of Marx's theory of surplus value. Using the methods of historical materialism and dialectical materialism, and based on the labor theory of value, Marx and Engels scientifically revealed the generation, source, and essence of surplus value by analyzing the processes of capital production and social reproduction. This not only reflects the exploitation of wage laborers by capitalists under the capital-dominated modernization of capitalist society but also provides the theoretical premise for the demonstration of the "Two Inevitabilities." As Marx noted: "The existence of the capitalist class, and therefore of capital itself, is based on the productivity of labor, but not on absolute productivity, but on relative productivity... This productivity is based on relative productivity, i.e., that the worker not only replaces the old value, but creates new value, that his labor-time objectified in the product is greater than the labor-time objectified in the product necessary to maintain his existence as a worker. This production of wage labor is also the basis of capital, the basis of the existence of capital." This indicates that under the capitalist system, all factors are subject to the needs of capital valorization; it is a process of value formation that reaches "a certain point" and then exceeds "a certain point"—a unity of the process of compensating the value of advanced capital and the process of valorization. With the continuous development and adjustment of the productive forces and relations of production, the basic contradictions of capitalism have also undergone profound changes, becoming an obstacle to the development of socialized production and leading to socio-economic problems such as economic crises of overproduction and contradictions between production, consumption, and the production environment. The development of capitalism will ultimately provide the material premise for a new social system: the socialist system (Pu Deshu, 2022). As Marx pointed out in the Preface to A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy: "No social order is ever destroyed before all the productive forces for which it is sufficient have been developed, and new superior relations of production never replace older ones before the material conditions for their existence have matured within the framework of the old society." This mapped out the timing and direction for the demise of capitalism and the victory of communism, serving as a beneficial supplement to the theory of the "Two Inevitabilities." In fact, the shift from capitalist society to communist society and the realization of the transition from the old society to the new cannot be achieved overnight; the primary task of this transition is to increase labor productivity. To this end, Lenin once pointed out: "Labor productivity is, in the final analysis, the most important and the most fundamental thing for the victory of the new social system." "Communism is the higher labor productivity—compared with capitalist labor productivity—of voluntary, class-conscious, and united workers employing advanced techniques." At the same time, he noted that after the proletariat seizes power and basically completes the task of expropriating the expropriators, "it must inevitably set in the forefront the fundamental task of creating a social system superior to capitalism, namely, raising the productivity of labor, and in this connection (and for this purpose) securing a superior organization of labor." "After the proletariat has won state power, its most fundamental and urgent need is to increase the quantity of products and to develop the productive forces of society on a grand scale... Without this, the whole cause of emancipation, of the liberation of labor from the yoke of capital, cannot be successful, and the victory of socialism is impossible." Under the socialist system, the nature and purpose of socialism determine that the productivity of labor manifests as the social productivity of labor. In this process, the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of laborers, combined with the socialist mode of production, will greatly increase labor productivity. General Secretary Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Through deepening reform, we must let the vitality of all factors—labor, knowledge, technology, management, and capital—burst forth, and let all sources of social wealth flow fully." The improvement of labor productivity will lay the material foundation for the free and comprehensive development of human beings under the socialist system.
The global landscape is constantly adjusting and changing through development, and the times are evolving through change. "Although the era we live in has undergone vast and profound changes compared to the era of Marx, viewed from the broad perspective of 500 years of world socialism, we are still in the historical era specified by Marxism." The "Two Inevitabilities" remain the inevitable trend of human social development. Persisting in and developing the theory of the "Two Inevitabilities" will lay the theoretical cornerstone for our country to successfully leap across the "Cauddine Forks" [9] of capitalist society, comprehensively advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization, and render the process of achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation irreversible.
(II) Abundant Economic Strength Lays a Solid Material Foundation for the Irreversibility of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation
Since its founding, the Communist Party of China (CPC) has always upheld as its original aspiration and founding mission "to seek happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation." It has scientifically applied materialist dialectics to analyze basic contradictions and the primary contradictions of different stages, and on this basis, clarified stage-specific tasks to formulate realistic strategic goals and identify effective paths. It has achieved the world-renowned "Two Miracles" of rapid economic development and long-term social stability (Liu Wei, Fan Xin, 2022). The creation of these "Two Miracles" has not only achieved an increase in the total volume and a qualitative leap of the Chinese economy but has also created favorable conditions for the high-quality development of the Chinese economy in the future.
Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, as the understanding of economic laws by Chinese Communists has continuously deepened, economic strength has steadily increased. "During the period of socialist revolution and construction, the main task facing the Party was to realize the transition from New Democracy to socialism, carry out socialist revolution, advance socialist construction, and lay the fundamental political premise and institutional foundation for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." During this period, Chinese Communists formulated the general task and general line for the socialist transition period, carried out "One Industrialization and Three Transformations" [10], and fully established the basic systems of socialism. Regrettably, because the understanding of economic laws by Chinese Communists was not yet profound enough, adjustments and changes occurred in the basic program of this stage, and the national economy suffered serious damage as a result. Generally speaking, however, although the economy during the period of socialist revolution and construction showed wave-like fluctuations with significant ups and downs, the overall trend was one of rapid growth, establishing a relatively complete industrial system and national economic system. This not only laid the material and technical foundation for the independent and sustainable development of our economy but also provided valuable experience and theoretical preparation for the creation of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new historical period. In terms of economic aggregates, from 1952 to 1976, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) increased from 67.9 billion yuan to 296.5 billion yuan, and GDP per capita increased from 119 yuan to 319 yuan. In terms of growth rate, from 1953 to 1976, the average annual growth rate of GDP was 5.9%, with rapid increases in the output of major industrial products such as steel, crude oil, raw coal, and automobiles. The successful convening of the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee raised the curtain on reform and opening up and clearly shifted the focus of work toward economic construction. "During the new period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, the main task facing the Party was to continue exploring the correct path for building socialism in China, liberate and develop the social productive forces, help the people escape poverty and become prosperous as quickly as possible, and provide the institutional guarantee full of new vitality and the material conditions for rapid development for the realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." In the period of reform, opening up, and socialist modernization, facing the reality of low levels of development of the productive forces, the "Three-Step" strategy was proposed, and a series of strategic measures were formulated to advance it, aiming to achieve the goal of building a prosperous, democratic, civilized, and harmonious socialist modern country. Under the leadership of the CPC and through the joint efforts of the people of all ethnic groups, a moderately prosperous society (xiaokang) was built in general by the end of the 20th century; in 2010, China overtook Japan to become the world’s second-largest economy and entered the ranks of upper-middle-income countries.
As socialism with Chinese characteristics entered the New Era, the primary contradiction in Chinese society transformed into the contradiction between the people’s ever-growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development. In this period, "the main task facing the Party is to achieve the First Centenary Goal, embark on a new journey toward the Second Centenary Goal, and continue advancing toward the grand goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation." To this end, based on its historical coordinates and stage of development, and in response to the contradictions of the current stage, the CPC has persisted in using the New Development Philosophy to solve the development problems of the New Era. It has attempted to drive the transformation of the quality, efficiency, and drivers of the economy through a series of effective strategic measures, aiming to achieve high-quality development. In terms of economic aggregates, between 2012 and 2021, GDP grew from 54 trillion yuan to 114 trillion yuan, with an average annual growth of 6.7%; GDP per capita grew from 39,800 yuan to 81,000 yuan. In terms of economic structure, the structure has been continuously adjusted and optimized, primarily reflected in the industrial structure, urbanization level, digitalization level, degree of industrialization, and level of agricultural modernization. Regarding industrial structure, the structure of the three sectors has been further optimized, with the proportion of the added value of the tertiary industry increasing from 45.5% in 2012 to 53.3% in 2021. Regarding urbanization, the level has risen steadily, with the urbanization rate of the permanent population increasing from 53.1% in 2012 to 64.72% in 2021. Regarding digitalization, the role of the digital economy as a "stabilizer" in the national economy became prominent under the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic; in 2021, the scale of the digital economy reached 45.5 trillion yuan, accounting for 39.8% of GDP. Within this, the scales of digital industrialization and industrial digitalization were 8.4 trillion yuan and 37.2 trillion yuan, growing by 11.9% and 17.2% year-on-year, respectively. Regarding industrialization, our country has entered the late stage of industrialization, and various regions are practicing the "New Four Modernizations" [11] with specific focuses and differences, striving to achieve the resonance of mature industrialization with the "New Four Modernizations." Regarding agricultural modernization, the proportion of the agricultural labor force fell from 33.49% in 2012 to 22.87% in 2021, though there is still significant room for further reduction compared to developed countries. Of course, the increase in economic aggregates and the optimization of structure are inseparable from the support of developmental conditions. Looking at the current stage of development, our country already possesses a sufficient scale of capital, the human capital dividend is gradually becoming apparent, the industrial system is increasingly complete, transportation infrastructure is daily more perfected, and innovation capabilities have significantly strengthened. In terms of capital scale, our capital scale has grown rapidly, with asset scale increasing from 745.32 trillion yuan in 2012 to 1,695.02 trillion yuan in 2019, an increase of 127.42%, creating a "miracle of capital accumulation." In terms of human capital, the allocation of educational resources has been continuously optimized, forms of education have become increasingly diversified, and human capital has accumulated rapidly. In terms of the industrial system, China’s industrial system covers the most complete range of categories, and the scale of its manufacturing sector ranks first in the world. In terms of infrastructure, the scale and networking of high-speed rail, expressways, ports, airports, and information infrastructure have been further strengthened. Taking high-speed rail as an example: as of September 2022, China’s operational and under-construction high-speed rail mileage reached 40,500 km and 13,100 km respectively, accounting for 68.79% and 66.28% of the world's total, ranking first in the world. In terms of innovation capability, total R&D investment increased from 1.03 trillion yuan in 2012 to 2.79 trillion yuan in 2021; basic research and original innovation capabilities have been continuously strengthened, major breakthroughs have been made in key core technologies, strategic emerging industries have grown in development, and the volume of patent applications and authorizations has steadily increased. Data shows that in the 2022 Global Innovation Index, China ranked 11th, and placed first in nine indicators, including domestic market scale and domestic patent applications, entering the ranks of innovative countries. The achievement of these milestones will lay a solid material foundation for the irreversibility of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
(III) The System of Socialism with Chinese Characteristics Provides Perfected Institutional Protections for the Irreversibility of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation
Systemic stability ensures national stability; institutional advantages are a country's greatest asset. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is a scientific institutional framework formed by the Party and the people through long-term practical exploration. It encompasses fundamental, basic, and important systems, representing the organic unity of Party leadership, the people as masters of the country, and the law-based governance of the country. It is an organic integration of state and legal systems and constitutes a unique theoretical innovation and creation of the Communist Party of China (Sun Zhengyu, 2021). "The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the state governance system are systems of governance guided by Marxism, rooted in Chinese soil, possessed of deep cultural foundations, and deeply supported by the people," while "the state governance system and capacity for governance are the concentrated expression of a country's system and its institutional executive capacity." In other words, upholding and improving the basic system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and continuously advancing the modernization of the state governance system and capacity for governance provide the institutional guarantee for the new journey toward becoming a great modern socialist country. This is a major issue concerning the prosperity and development of the Party and state's cause, the long-term peace and stability of the nation, and the happiness and well-being of the people.
"The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the state governance system did not fall from the sky, but grew out of China's social soil, formed through long-term practice in revolution, construction, and reform." Since its founding, the CPC has united and led the people of all ethnic groups, persisting in combining the basic tenets of Marxism with China's actual conditions. Through continuous reform and innovation in practical exploration, the Party established and refined the socialist system, forming and developing systems for Party leadership and for economic, political, cultural, social, ecological, and military affairs. During the New Democratic Revolution [12], facing shifting central tasks brought about by changing national conditions in different periods, Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, began exploring how the Party should lead political power. On the relationship between the Party and state power, Comrade Mao Zedong explicitly emphasized in The Struggle in the Jinggang Mountains that "the Party's task is to exercise leadership over the government." Regarding inter-party relations, in response to varying central tasks, the Party engaged in cooperation with the Kuomintang [13], accumulating rich experience for the later establishment of the Party's leadership position. Through practical exploration across different periods, Mao Zedong proposed in On the People's Democratic Dictatorship the concept of a "state under the people's democratic dictatorship led by the Communist Party," further clarifying the relationship between the Party and the People's Republic. It is evident that during the New Democratic Revolution, the Party's leadership position was established, creating the fundamental social conditions for achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. During the period of socialist revolution and construction, following the promulgation of the first Constitution of the People's Republic of China in 1954, a new type of state system—characterized by Party leadership and the people as masters of the country—was established, laying the constitutional foundation for the Party's leadership over the state apparatus. During this period, Chinese Communists chose a path of simultaneous socialist construction and transformation. Through "one industrialization and three transformations" [14], the socialist system was comprehensively established, providing the institutional foundation for the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. During the period of reform and opening up and socialist modernization, as reform and opening up progressed, the scientific category of "socialism with Chinese characteristics" was formally proposed. At the celebration of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the CPC, Comrade Hu Jintao summarized "socialism with Chinese characteristics" as comprising the path, the theoretical system, and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It is clear that the socialist system became a vital component of "socialism with Chinese characteristics." During this period, the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics was proposed and further enriched and refined. The socialist economic system, as the foundation of the broader system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, also became a key means of reforming the constraints on the development of productive forces. This involved not only focusing on structural changes and forms of realization in the ownership of the means of production, but also on methods of income distribution and the socialist market economy system. The explorations at the institutional level during this period provided a systemic guarantee full of new vitality for achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Since the New Era, new characteristics, opportunities, and challenges have emerged in China's socio-economic development, leading to a shift in the principal contradiction [15] in society. The people’s need for a better life is manifested not only in higher requirements for material life but also in increasing demands for democracy, the rule of law, fairness, and justice. This necessitates further refinement of institutional building. Xi Jinping has pointed out: "Compared with the past, reform and opening up in the New Era have many new connotations and characteristics. One very important point is that institutional building carries more weight. Reform faces more deep-seated systemic and mechanistic issues, requiring higher levels of top-level design and greater systematic, holistic, and synergetic efforts. Correspondingly, the tasks of establishing rules and regulations and building systems are heavier." This places new demands on strengthening institutional building in the New Era, emphasizing systematic research. To this end, since the 18th CPC National Congress, Chinese Communists have applied dialectical materialism to correctly handle complex relationships—such as those between the whole and the part, the present and the long term, and key and non-key areas—highlighting the systematic and synergetic nature of reform. By comprehensively deepening reform through overall coordination, the fruits of reform and institutional building have benefited all people more equitably. After a decade of institutional building, "the framework for foundational systems in various fields has been basically established, historic transformations and holistic restructurings have been achieved in many areas, and the new round of reform of Party and state institutions has been fully completed. The system of socialism with Chinese characteristics has become more mature and finalized, and the modernization of the state governance system and capacity for governance has been significantly improved." This will provide a powerful institutional guarantee to ensure that the process of building a great modern socialist country and achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is irreversible.
III. Scientifically Grasping Strategic Opportunities on the New Journey to Comprehensively Advance the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation through Chinese-Path Modernization
On the new journey of the New Era, the "changes in the world, in our times, and in history" brought about by the accelerating evolution of the changes unseen in a century have profoundly shaped the internal and external environment for China's development. Consequently, the connotation of strategic opportunities has undergone profound changes. China is in a critical period for achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The closer we get to this goal, the less likely the path ahead will be smooth, and the greater the risks and challenges will become. Therefore, we should systematically review the evolutionary path of strategic opportunities, correctly understand their scientific connotation on the new journey, firmly grasp the "five major principles," [16] take high-quality development as the theme, accelerate the construction of the dual circulation development pattern, and comprehensively advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization.
(1) New Changes in the Connotation of "Strategic Opportunities" on the New Journey
The period of strategic opportunity is a comprehensive judgment made by Chinese Communists based on a keen assessment of the strategic environment of the country's social development. As society and the economy develop, the domestic and international environments change, and the scientific connotation of strategic opportunities evolves with the times.
The concept of a "period of strategic opportunity" was first proposed in the report to the 16th CPC National Congress: "Taking a comprehensive view of the situation, the first twenty years of the 21st century are an important period of strategic opportunity for our country, which we must firmly grasp and in which much can be achieved." From a historical perspective, this was a clear understanding and scientific assessment by Chinese Communists, with Comrade Deng Xiaoping as their chief representative, who viewed and considered issues from a strategic standpoint regarding China's current stage and historical position. In 1985, Deng Xiaoping pointed out: "The truly big issues in the world today, the global strategic issues, are the issue of peace and the issue of economy or development. The peace issue is an East-West issue, and the development issue is a North-South issue. In short, it can be summarized in four words: East, West, North, South." The issue of peace was the primary issue between East and West, concerning the survival of a country or region and serving as the foundation for development. Since the 1970s, the East and West camps, represented by the US and the USSR, reached a state of relative equilibrium. Chinese Communists, with Comrade Mao Zedong as their chief representative, initiated China-US exchanges and established diplomatic relations through "Ping-Pong Diplomacy" and other means. This led to a phased easing of the peace issue, creating conditions for the country to shift its focus to economic construction. Under these circumstances, the "North-South issue" began to surface, and development became the primary issue. Under the development logic dominated by capital, the capitalist mode of production objectively required the international division of labor to cross national boundaries, forming industrial and supply chains in the world market. At that time, China already possessed a complete industrial system, rich labor resources, and a massive market scale. This not only created a favorable investment environment and opportunities for international capital but also provided development opportunities for the Chinese economy. To this end, Chinese Communists, with Comrade Deng Xiaoping as their chief representative, fully assessed the domestic and international environment and took the initiative to propose the "three-step" strategy. [17] Guided by this strategy, Chinese Communists gave full play to their subjective initiative, continuously advanced systemic reforms, and achieved the strategic goal of quadrupling the GNP ahead of schedule. Entering the 21st century, the changes unseen in a century brought about transformations in the world, the times, and history. The "change in the world" is mainly reflected in the fact that the collapse of the Soviet Union and Eastern European socialist states led to the formation of a "center-periphery" world hegemonic pattern dominated by Western developed countries led by the US; meanwhile, the comprehensive strength and influence of emerging economies and developing countries, represented by China and India, have continuously increased, leading to new changes in the world pattern and the balance of power. The "change in our times" is reflected in the innovation of production modes brought by a new round of technological revolution, leading to changes in socio-economic forms and the accelerated formation of a "global village." The "change in history" is mainly reflected in the shifting contest between ideologies and social systems. As the "Sinicization and modernization of Marxism have achieved continuous success, Marxism has been presented to the world with a brand-new image, causing the historical evolution and contest between the two ideologies and two social systems—socialism and capitalism—to undergo a major shift in favor of socialism on a global scale" (Xin Ming, 2022). By deeply analyzing the domestic and international environment, Chinese Communists, with Jiang Zemin as their representative, found that peace and development remained the general trend of the times. They explicitly pointed out that the first 20 years of the 21st century remained an important period of strategic opportunity and formulated the goal of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by 2020. Although China faced shocks such as the international financial crisis during its development, it achieved its set goals as scheduled. So, after the achievement of the First Centenary Goal, does China’s development still face new strategic opportunities? General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "When the concept of a 'period of strategic opportunity' was first proposed, it referred to the first 20 years of this century. Today, twenty years later, how to judge the period of strategic opportunity is a major issue."
On the new journey, the Great Changes Unseen in a Century are accelerating. Changes in the world, in our times, and in history are unfolding in unprecedented ways. The "East-West issue" and "North-South issue" are becoming intertwined, and the instability and uncertainty of the strategic environment have significantly increased. By comparison, the strategic environment was relatively stable in the past, whereas now it is volatile and unpredictable, with risks and challenges that are difficult to discern clearly. Previously, there were many areas of cooperation under strategic objectives; now, areas of competition under strategic objectives are increasing. This dual change in the strategic environment and strategic goals inevitably endows "strategic opportunity" with new connotations. To this end, the report to the 20th CPC National Congress pointed out that "our country’s development has entered a period where strategic opportunities and risks and challenges coexist, and uncertain and unpredictable factors are increasing; various 'Black Swan' and 'Gray Rhino' events may occur at any time."
From the perspective of the strategic environment, both domestic and international contexts have potential impacts on our development. Looking at the international environment: first, a profound adjustment has occurred in the balance of power between emerging economies and Western developed countries. The comprehensive strength and international influence of emerging economies are continuously rising, breaking the "lopsided" global power structure and beginning to show a state of relative equilibrium. Second, the pandemic of the century has had a far-reaching impact, and downside risks to the global economy continue to grow. Third, the surge of anti-globalization sentiment, coupled with a significant rise in unilateralism and protectionism, has left the global economic recovery listless. Finally, uncertainties brought about by local conflicts and turbulence, such as the Ukraine crisis, persist. Overall, the world has entered a new period of turbulence and transformation.
From the perspective of the domestic environment, some new contradictions, risks, and challenges have begun to surface on the new journey toward comprehensively building a modern socialist country. The capacity for scientific and technological innovation is not yet strong enough, and "chokehold" problems remain prominent. Significant issues regarding the guarantee of primary product supply and the prevention of financial risks still need to be resolved. The gap between urban and rural regional development and income distribution remains severe, and the task of ecological and environmental protection is still arduous. It is evident that the strategic environment faced by the new journey is more complex and severe. We need to strengthen our awareness of potential dangers, take proactive actions, and seek our own development through the dialectical unity of strategy and tactics.
Combined with the strategic objectives of the current stage, we face the goals and tasks of building a great modern socialist country, where strategic opportunities coexist with risks and challenges. On one hand, the risks and challenges may increase and become more complex and global in nature. As the comprehensive deepening of reform continues to advance, more interests are involved. Reform, development, and stability face many deep-seated problems that cannot be dodged or bypassed; many "hard bones" [18] must be gnawed. Party building—especially the improvement of Party conduct, the buildup of clean government, and the anti-corruption struggle—faces many stubborn and frequent problems. We must resolutely prevent the collusion between government and business and the infiltration of capital into the political sphere, which damage the political ecosystem and the environment for economic development. As the strength of Chinese enterprises and products grows and areas of competition increase, external suppression and containment may escalate at any time. The risk of "chain throttling" or "severed chains" [19] has increased, bringing major challenges to the reliability and security of China's industrial and supply chains. In recent years, from the bursting of the dot-com bubble to the global financial crisis, and from the Ebola outbreak to the pandemic of the century, various "Black Swan" and "Gray Rhino" events have been liable to occur at any time, with increasing uncertain and unpredictable factors.
On the other hand, China’s development possesses its own advantages and favorable conditions; opportunities are becoming more strategic and moldable. On the new journey, China's development already has a solid material foundation: abundant capital, rich human resources, enhanced capacity for independent innovation, significant institutional advantages, long-term social stability, a continuously optimized industrial structure, strong economic resilience, sufficient potential, and vast room for maneuver. The fundamental reality that the economy is following a long-term upward trend has not changed, and the ability to resist risks is strong. Faced with a turbulent and complex strategic environment, development opportunities under the strategic goals of the new journey have become more trend-oriented in a strategic sense and uncertain in a moldable sense. "Challenges are unprecedented, but if handled well, opportunities will also be unprecedented." This means that opportunities are not unconditional; they will only emerge under the prerequisite that risks and challenges are handled well. Therefore, we need to enhance bottom-line thinking [20] and risk prevention awareness, give full play to our subjective initiative, and adopt correct political strategies and tactics to respond to these unprecedented challenges, thereby creating new strategic opportunities for China's development.
(II) Firmly Grasping the "Five Insistences" as a Major Principle to Provide an Important Guarantee for the Irreversibility of the Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation on the New Journey
The Chinese Communist Party’s century-long journey of struggle is a path of modern exploration under the Party's leadership, persisting in the organic unity of the minimum program and the maximum program [21] to seek the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. "Chinese-path modernization is a viable and steady road; it is the only correct path for building a strong country and achieving national rejuvenation." The essence and characteristics of Chinese-path modernization provide valuable experience for us to deal with risks and challenges on the road ahead. On the new journey, facing unprecedented risks and challenges in the process of building a great modern socialist country, we should adhere to bottom-line thinking, enhance our awareness of potential dangers, foster an awareness of opportunity, meet challenges head-on, turn situations to our advantage, and nurture new opportunities amid crises while opening new horizons amid changes. To build a great modern socialist country and ensure the irreversibility of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, we must vigorously advance Chinese-path modernization and firmly grasp the "Five Insistences" [22] as major principles.
First, insist on and strengthen the overall leadership of the Party. The issue of leadership has always been one of the core questions in the political party theory of scientific socialism. The concept of the political party belongs to the category of the political superstructure; it is determined by the economic base of society and, in turn, can lead social development. In the history of modern civilization, political parties in any country or region bring about changes in social structures and institutions during the process of modernization, but behind this lies the logic of the mode of production and the fundamental interests of the classes they represent. CPC leadership is the defining feature of socialism with Chinese characteristics. The Party always represents the fundamental interests of the broadest possible range of the Chinese people; it is the core force leading China’s modernization cause, possessing incomparable organizational, leadership, and execution capabilities. It is where the interests and destiny of the people of all ethnic groups lie. Only by insisting on and strengthening the Party’s leadership, and implementing it across all fields and links of socialist modernization, can we ensure the correct direction of our modernization drive. History and practice have proven that for over a century, the CPC has adhered to Marxism as its guide and has always been able to strategically recognize, analyze, and judge the major historical tasks of the current stage. It has formulated effective strategies and tactics, leading the people of all ethnic groups to overcome countless risks and challenges, continuously achieving new leaps and creating new miracles. It is evident that insisting on and strengthening the overall leadership of the Party is the fundamental guarantee for advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization.
Second, insist on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. Direction determines the road, and the road determines destiny. The path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is a broad avenue for the CPC to lead the people of all ethnic groups in creating a better life and achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. In other words, the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the only way to realize socialist modernization. The practical experience of global modernization shows that there is no single modernization path that is universally applicable or eternally valid. The national and popular conditions of different countries vary, and their choices of paths should naturally differ. As a true reflection of modernization in China, Chinese-path modernization is a late-comer modernization, representing an organic unity of generalities and specificities. This requires Chinese Communists to not only rely on technological change to drive economic development but also to innovate relations of production. Institutional innovation and reform have become important manifestations of this specificity. Unlike institutional innovation in capitalist countries—where the capitalist system replaced the feudal system to form a combination of private ownership and a market economy—China has formed an organic combination of socialist public ownership and a market economy through practical exploration. China’s modernization practice also shows that only by taking Marxism as a guide, grounding ourselves in the objective reality of national development, and achieving the "Two Combinations" [23], can we explore a development path suited to our national conditions and achieve the goals of modernization. It is evident that insisting on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics is the practical route for advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization.
Third, insist on the people-centered development philosophy. Looking at the modernization models of various countries in the world today, there are mainly two: capital-centered modernization and people-centered modernization. The essence of capital-centered modernization is that the majority of society's material productive forces are held in the hands of a few capitalists in the form of capital. It reflects the productivity of capital, and its purpose is the extraction of surplus value to maximize the interests of capitalists. In fact, historical materialism holds that the people are the subjects of social practice and the creators of history. "If we are to investigate the motives that lie behind... the motives of historical figures and constitute the real ultimate driving forces of history, then the question involves not so much the motives of individual figures, even the most eminent, as those motives which set in motion great masses, whole peoples, and in each people, entire classes." This shows that the true driving force of social history lies in the people; their practical activities construct the logical framework for the existence and evolution of society. As a Marxist proletarian party, insisting on the principal position of the people is a vivid manifestation of the CPC’s conscious adherence to the scientific guidance of Marxism. Comrade Mao Zedong also pointed out: "The people, and the people alone, are the motive force in the making of world history." The people are the subjective force for advancing Chinese-path modernization, a fact proven by the practices of the Chinese revolution, construction, and reform. In the process of socialist modernization, we must adhere to the working method of believing in the people, relying on the people, coming from the masses, and going to the masses. As a focus of general public concern, people's livelihoods are the basic content for meeting the people's needs for a better life and the fundamental purpose of continuously advancing Chinese-path modernization. Only by continuously promoting social fairness and justice, realizing the people's expectations for broader and more beneficial livelihood protections, and striving to enhance their sense of gain, happiness, and security, can Chinese-path modernization advance steadily and reach far. It is evident that insisting on the people-centered development philosophy is the value orientation for advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization.
Fourth, insist on deepening reform and opening up. Reform and opening up provide the fundamental driving force for building a modern socialist country through Chinese-path modernization and achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. In 1978, the Third Plenary Session of the 11th CPC Central Committee shifted the focus of work toward economic construction. Over the past forty-plus years, from the start of the new period to the entry into the new century, and from a new starting point to the entry into the New Era, the continuous advancement and deepening of reform and opening up have not only stimulated the enthusiasm, initiative, and creativity of laborers but have also continuously released institutional dividends through institutional reforms. This has created the "two miracles" [24] and became the most prominent feature and magnificent spectacle of contemporary China. In the New Era and on the new journey, reform and opening up have entered the "deep-water zone," shifting toward a historical stage of institutional building and systematic construction. "We are now at a point where the river is swifter at midstream and the mountain road is steeper halfway up; it is a time when the further we advance, the harder and riskier it becomes, yet we must push forward as there is no turning back. Reform and opening up have covered ten thousand mountains and rivers, but we still need to trek across more mountains and rivers. The mission before the whole Party and the people of all ethnic groups is more glorious, the tasks more arduous, the challenges more severe, and the work more great." This requires adhering to a problem-oriented approach, taking the persistence and improvement of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics and the promotion of the modernization of the national governance system and governance capacity as the main axis. Taking the maintenance of social fairness and justice and the improvement of people's well-being as the starting point and objective, we must further liberate, develop, and protect productive forces, "striving to break down deep-seated institutional barriers, continuously demonstrating the advantages of the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics, continuously enhancing the momentum and vitality of socialist modernization, and better transforming our institutional advantages into national governance effectiveness."
Fifth, persist in exerting the spirit of struggle. The Communist Party of China (CPC) creates history through struggle and will win the future through struggle. Having the courage and the skill to struggle is a distinctive character of the CPC and a powerful spiritual force for responding to various risks and challenges in the process of China’s socialist modernization. Chinese Communists grew and strengthened themselves through struggle, and this spirit of struggle has permeated every period of China’s revolution, construction, and reform. For over a century, facing tests and challenges from complex and severe domestic and international environments, the CPC has bravely shouldered its heavy historical responsibilities, engaging in bloody battles against powerful enemies at home and abroad through armed struggle, the Agrarian Revolution [25], the Civil War, and the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. Facing the serious shocks to world socialism in the late 1980s and early 1990s—such as the drastic changes in Eastern Europe and the dissolution of the Soviet Union—as well as domestic issues like the political turmoil of 1989, the CPC took decisive measures, winning this struggle concerning the life and death of the state and strengthening its confidence in persisting on the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics. "If the leadership of the CPC and China’s socialist system had also collapsed in that domino-like change, or failed for other reasons, then socialist practice might once again have had to wander in the dark for a long time, and the process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation would inevitably have been interrupted." On the new journey, the risks and challenges we face may increase and become increasingly complex, with uncertain and unpredictable factors constantly rising. This requires us to grasp the historical characteristics and laws of development of the spirit of struggle, strengthen strategic planning, grasp the general trend and overall situation, and take proactive initiative. Only then can we seize strategic opportunities, turn crises into opportunities, transform danger into safety, and seize new victories in the great struggle on the new journey.
(III) Accelerating the construction of a new development pattern to provide strong support for the irreversibility of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on the new journey.
The core of Chinese-path modernization is economic modernization, and the realization of the goal of becoming a great modernized power requires high-quality development as its foundation. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress also pointed out: "Development is the Party’s top priority in governing and rejuvenating the country. Without a solid material and technical foundation, it is impossible to build a great modernized socialist country in all respects. We must completely, accurately, and comprehensively implement the new development philosophy, adhere to the direction of socialist market economy reform, persist in high-level opening up to the outside world, and accelerate the construction of a new development pattern with the domestic cycle as the mainstay and the domestic and international dual cycles promoting each other." This indicates that on the new journey in the New Era, the core of persisting in the new development philosophy and achieving high-quality development in our economy lies in constructing a modernized economic system, and the focus of building a modernized economic system lies in constructing the dual circulation. Although China has already achieved some results in constructing the dual circulation, building it in all respects remains a long and heavy task. Facing new changes in the connotation of strategic opportunities on the new journey, "only by accelerating the construction of the dual circulation can we consolidate the foundation of China’s economic development and enhance the security and stability of development; only then can we enhance China’s survival, competitiveness, development, and sustainability amidst various foreseeable and unforeseeable fierce winds, heavy rains, and turbulent waves, ensuring that the process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is not delayed or even interrupted, and victoriously achieving the goal of building a great modernized socialist country in all respects."
To accelerate the construction of the dual circulation, we must first clarify its scientific connotation. From the perspective of political economy, the dual circulation is the external synthesis of the internal structure formed by the interaction and joint action of various factors in the process of economic development on the new journey in the New Era; it manifests directly as a new production pattern, a new supply-and-demand pattern, and a new trade pattern. The dual circulation is a pattern with the domestic economic cycle as the mainstay and the domestic and international cycles promoting each other, where the domestic and international economic cycles are complementary and dialectically unified. As a large country with a huge population and a super-sized market, the domestic economic cycle is the foundation and the basis for China’s participation in the international economic cycle. Since the dawn of the New Era, the "bottlenecks" in China's national economic cycle have mainly manifested as relative overcapacity caused by structural changes in demand, the mismatch between supply and demand, and "chokehold" technical problems [26] (Xie Fusheng and Kuang Xiaolu, 2022). On the new journey, the core of accelerating the construction of the dual circulation is to create a powerful domestic economic cycle system and a solid fundamental base, which is also the firm foundation for implementing high-level opening up and realizing the mutual promotion of domestic and international dual cycles. To this end, we should base ourselves on national conditions, seize the main problems, persist in the organic unity of short-term and long-term goals, coordinate development and security, formulate effective strategic measures, and accelerate the construction of the domestic economic cycle system.
First, uphold the logic of integrated urban-rural development, expand domestic demand by taking county seats as an important carrier, and accelerate the cultivation of a complete domestic demand system. Expanding domestic demand is the strategic basis for smoothing the domestic cycle, and using the built environment of county seats as an important lever to consolidate the foundational support for county operations is an important means of tapping the potential of domestic demand. In recent years, China’s urbanization process has advanced continuously, with the permanent population in over 1,800 counties and cities exceeding 900 million people. According to the goal of building a great modernized socialist country in all respects, it is expected that approximately another 200 million people will enter urban life. At the same time, the migration radius of migrant workers has shrunk, and choosing employment near their homes has become a new trend. Therefore, in light of the practical situation where obvious shortcomings exist in urban and rural infrastructure (such as disaster prevention and mitigation), we should take county seats as an important carrier, persist in the "dual-wheel drive" of people-centered urbanization and rural construction based on industrial prosperity, and reshape urban-rural relations through coordinated development. This is conducive not only to resolving overcapacity issues but also to achieving integrated urban-rural development at the county level and creating a county-level domestic demand system. First, target key county seats. Considering reality—such as levels of economic development, locational advantages, and industrial foundations—focus on 120 demonstration areas for county-seat construction, with the goal of undertaking industrial relocation and developing characteristic industries, carrying out county construction in an orderly and step-by-step manner. Second, take key areas as the lever. Currently, county construction should focus on advancing the construction of county built environments to create a favorable external environment for industrial relocation and the development of characteristic industries. As a long-term construction project, the construction of county built environments can focus on increasing infrastructure construction in county seats, such as flood control and drainage, public health, and underground pipe networks. This will attract large amounts of investment and provide numerous jobs, while resolving overcapacity and promoting the localized and nearby urbanization of the county population. Finally, use core issues as breakthroughs. To address problems like weak industrial coordination between counties, cities, and villages, and large income gaps, we must integrate county seats into the industrial division of labor systems of their respective urban clusters. Work such as "converting townships into towns" [27] should be carried out according to local conditions to expand market scale, create small-town industrial clusters, promote the coordinated development of large, medium, and small cities with small towns, and form a linked and integrated development of "cities (center cities), counties (center towns), and villages (center villages)."
Second, take improving the quality of the supply system as the main direction of attack to realize a benign interaction between supply and demand. The unhindered flow of the economic cycle is the key to constructing the dual circulation. Such flow requires that the combination of various productive forces—such as capital and labor—in economic activities be organically linked and smoothly circulated across the links of production, distribution, circulation, and consumption. This will help increase material products and social welfare, thereby forming a development process of spiral ascent. However, if "bottlenecks" or "blood stasis" points appear in the economic cycle, they will block its smooth operation. This manifests not only at the macro level as slowing economic growth and increased unemployment but also at the micro level as corporate overcapacity and declining resident income. In fact, the key to a smooth economic cycle lies in whether supply and demand are adapted to each other; the core is whether the effective supply capacity can match diversified demand. To this end, we should deepen supply-side structural reform. Building on the continued completion of the important tasks of "three eliminations, one reduction, and one improvement" [28], we must strengthen weak links, using self-controllable, high-quality, and effective supply to meet and create demand, forming a dynamic benign cycle system of: "improving supply quality → meeting existing demand and tapping potential demand → promoting demand upgrading → leading supply upgrading → ..." Specifically: in fields such as basic software and core hardware where there is high external dependence and a risk of supply chain disruption at any time, we must strive to improve independent innovation capabilities, leverage the advantages of the "new-type whole-nation system" [29] to concentrate resources on major undertakings, and quickly shore up weak spots. For diversified consumer services—such as high-quality brand goods, elderly healthcare, and cultural creativity—and high-end producer services like R&D and design, we should strengthen policy guidance, accelerate institutional building, promote the optimization and upgrading of industrial structures, and adjust and optimize the supply structure. Regarding the new changes and opportunities brought by the new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation, we must use them to vigorously develop the real economy, promote the high-end, intelligent, and green development of manufacturing, create a new system of high-quality and efficient service industries, and promote the development of new industries, new technologies, and new business models, creating new demand with new supply.
Third, use innovation as the driving force to achieve high-level self-reliance and strength. Relying on innovation-driven development to achieve high-level self-reliance and strength is the most essential feature of constructing the dual circulation. On the new journey, China’s economic and social development has entered a new stage: targets and constraints have undergone profound changes, the relative advantages of productive forces have shifted, and the importance of science and technology has risen across the board. Although China has achieved remarkable results in science and technology and has become an innovative country, it remains undeniable that many key core technologies in high-tech fields are still controlled by others, and "chokehold" problems remain severe. Strengthening scientific and technological innovation and breaking through key core technologies to overcome industrial bottlenecks is the key to achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology. To this end, we must comprehensively strengthen the strategic deployment of sci-tech innovation, leverage the advantages of the new-type whole-nation system, concentrate superior resources, and advance the systems and mechanisms for innovation breakthroughs in a powerful and orderly manner, consolidating foundations, shoring up weak spots, and forging long-term advantages to enhance the independent control of industrial and supply chains. In the process of innovation breakthroughs, the government should categorize projects according to their nature and implement precise policies. For projects in urgent strategic and global fields, the government should take proactive initiative and organize superior resources for concentrated breakthroughs. State-owned enterprises, especially central enterprises, should bravely shoulder heavy responsibilities, set an example, act as "chain leaders" of modern industrial chains, and guide private enterprises to actively participate in innovation breakthroughs, realizing complementary advantages and coordinated development. For projects in competitive and locally urgent fields, the government should provide full support. Leading enterprises with strong innovation capabilities should fully play their vanguard role, joining university research institutes and upstream/downstream enterprises in the industry to make breakthroughs, jointly building an innovation ecosystem, and empowering the high-quality development of the industry through innovation.
IV. Conclusion
Modernization is a global and irreversible world-historical process of human civilization, but the specific practical process is constituted by the different historical practices of different countries or regions. Looking at the historical process of world modernization, it is easy to find that the modernization process of every country or region possesses its own practical path characteristics. Some countries successfully escape the "poverty trap" and cross the "middle-income trap" during their modernization, continuously achieving leaps in their level of modernization; however, others have modernization processes full of twists and turns, experiencing stagnation, interruption, or regression. If one investigates the reasons, they are all closely related to the quality of government governance, the sustainability of the mechanism for transforming development drivers, and economic vulnerability. As the world's largest socialist developing country, "building a great modernized socialist country in all respects is a great and arduous undertaking; the future is bright, but the path is long and the task is heavy." Chinese Communists have always adhered to their original aspiration and founding mission of "seeking happiness for the people and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation," persisted in the organic unity of the minimum and maximum programs [30], and led the people of the whole country in achieving the great leap from standing up and becoming prosperous to becoming strong. The realization of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation has entered an irreversible historical process. It is easy to see that using high-quality development to achieve Chinese-path modernization and advance the irreversible historical process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation is the organic unity of history and logic, theory and reality. The "Two Inevitabilities" [31] are the theoretical cornerstone of the irreversibility of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation; strong economic strength is its material foundation; and the system of socialism with Chinese characteristics is its institutional guarantee. The theoretical cornerstone, economic foundation, and institutional guarantee together provide the basic safeguard and endogenous power for the comprehensive advancement of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation through Chinese-path modernization on the new journey.
On the new journey, China's development faces new strategic opportunities. Only by strengthening the awareness of potential dangers, adhering to bottom-line thinking [32], taking proactive initiative, and advancing in the face of difficulties can we seize the initiative and transform crises into opportunities or safety. In the process of building a great modern socialist country, we must consistently follow the "Five Major Principles" [33]: adhering to and strengthening the Party’s overall leadership, adhering to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, adhering to a people-centered development philosophy, adhering to deepening reform and opening up, and adhering to furthering the spirit of struggle [34]. These are not only a summary of the century-long experience of the Chinese Communists in modernization construction but also the fundamental principles that must be upheld for the construction of a great modern socialist country on the new journey. On this basis, by taking high-quality development as the theme and focusing on accelerating the construction of the dual circulation development pattern, we strive to build a great modern socialist country by the middle of this century, thereby achieving the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
(Affiliation: School of Economics, Renmin University of China) Online Editor: Lianyu Source: Management World, Issue 4, 2023