Widening the road of peaceful progress

Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) naval fleet conducted a training drill within international waters in the western Pacific Ocean recently, a regular exercise held in line with the PLA's annual plan. However, some Western media showed "surprise" at the "unprecedented scale", and some even denounced this legitimate act as a "regional threat". Some even challenged China's path of peaceful development.

China should listen to different voices with an objective mind. Some of the apprehension springs from a lack of understanding. The impact of China's rise has been associated by some with the historical rise of Western powers, and in response to this, we have to explain China's development with patience and sincerity. Some of the apprehension, however, is rooted in people's reluctance to accept China's development, or simply a sense of jealousy. They are aware that China's commitment to peaceful development poses no threat to others, but China's peaceful development is the last thing they want to see.

Pursuit of peaceful development is China's strategic choice, which has brought tangible benefits to the Chinese people and contributed substantially to world peace and development. China's peaceful development is not only based on its cultural and historical heritage, but also on the necessity of inter-dependence among countries for the creation of a harmonious world.