President: PLA garrison serves as loyal guardian

President Xi Jinping on Friday urged soldiers of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Garrison in Macao to comprehensively improve their capabilities to perform their duties and make greater contributions to successful implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle in the special administrative region.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, instructed soldiers to focus on training and become an elite fighting force to better carry out defensive duties in Macao.

Friday marked the 20th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland. The garrison has been responsible for Macao's defense since 1999 and its current commander is Senior Colonel Xu Liangcai.

Xi made the remarks on Friday afternoon during an inspection of the garrison, where he was greeted with a military parade drawn from defense personnel, riot control units, a counterterrorism task force and emergency response and rescue teams.

While visiting the garrison's combat operation center, Xi was briefed on the SAR's defense situation and said he was glad to hear that the PLA Garrison in Macao has made considerable progress since 2014, the year he visited the garrison for the 15th anniversary of Macao's return to the motherland.

Xi praised the troops' resolute implementation of the orders of the central government and the military commission for the past two decades.

The garrison has also carried out its defense missions with excellence and in accordance with the Basic Law and the Garrison Law of the Macao SAR, he said. These actions have portrayed a positive image of the PLA and proved that the garrison is a loyal guardian of the city that the Party and the people can trust and rely on, Xi added.

Xi stressed the significant role and glorious mission of the PLA Garrison in Macao and asked the troops to comprehensively enhance training and management to adamantly safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests.

At the same time, the garrison should also safeguard the prosperity and stability of Macao and make greater contributions to support the successful implementation of the "one country, two systems" principle in the SAR, he said.