Interaction key for think tanks

China's influence and executive power in the world are rising fast. At the same time, there are many big, difficult and urgent matters China has to address. China needs more high-quality think tanks to contribute their wisdom to help the government and Communist Party of China solve these challenges.

China has a complete system of research institutes. But there are big differences among them. Many economic studies institutes, through years of practice and accumulation, have good interactions with the decision-making departments. In contrast, the agencies studying international politics and strategies lag behind in serving the policymakers. The operating mechanism for these research institutes does not suit the modern decision-making process, and they cannot attract high-end professional talent either.

President Xi Jinping has emphasized the construction of a new type of think tank and improvement of the consulting system for policymaking. Several times since the 18th National Congress of CPC in November 2012, President Xi has raised the two tasks to the level of the nation's soft power and the modernization of China's governance system.