Vigorously Enhance National Cultural Soft Power and the Influence of Chinese Culture

In October 2023, General Secretary Xi Jinping issued important instructions on propaganda, ideology, and cultural work, emphasizing the need to “continuously enhance national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture, so as to provide a strong ideological guarantee, a powerful spiritual force, and favorable cultural conditions for comprehensively building a modern socialist country and comprehensively advancing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” [1]1 The "Two Centenary Goals" refer to the goals of building a moderately prosperous society in all respects by the centenary of the CPC (2021) and building a modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, and harmonious by the centenary of the People's Republic of China (2049). The “Decision of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China on Further Comprehensively Deepening Reform and Promoting Chinese-Path Modernization” adopted at the Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC [2]2 The Third Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the CPC was held in July 2024, focusing on further comprehensively deepening reform and promoting Chinese-path modernization. takes “enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture” as an important element of “focusing on building a socialist cultural power,” thus providing the fundamental guidance for strengthening the communication power and influence of Chinese culture, rallying the mighty forces of Chinese-path modernization, and building a socialist cultural power.

2023年10月，习近平总书记对宣传思想文化工作作出重要指示，强调要“不断提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力，为全面建设社会主义现代化国家、全面推进中华民族伟大复兴提供坚强思想保证、强大精神力量、有利文化条件”。党的二十届三中全会通过的《中共中央关于进一步全面深化改革、推进中国式现代化的决定》将“提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力”作为“聚焦建设社会主义文化强国”的重要内容，为增强中华文化传播力、影响力，凝聚中国式现代化磅礴力量，建设社会主义文化强国提供了根本遵循。

Enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture must be guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Culture. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC, General Secretary Xi Jinping has delivered a series of important discourses and made important deployments on enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture, guiding cultural construction to achieve notable results. In 2013, at the 12th collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that “enhancing national cultural soft power bears on the realization of the ‘Two Centenary Goals’ and the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.” [3]3 The National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work is a high-level meeting convened by the CPC Central Committee to guide propaganda, ideology, and cultural work; the 2018 conference set out key tasks for the New Era. At the 2018 National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “To present an image means to advance the building of international communication capacity, tell China’s stories well, spread China’s voice well, and show the world a true, multi-dimensional, and comprehensive China, thereby enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture.” [4]4 Xi Jinping Thought on Culture was formally established at the National Conference on Propaganda and Ideological Work in 2023 as the guiding ideology for cultural work. On October 28, 2024, at the 17th collective study session of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, “We must continuously enhance national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture.” General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important speeches profoundly expound the great significance, work priorities, and future strategic tasks of strengthening national cultural soft power and expanding the international influence of Chinese culture, providing fundamental guidance for China’s building of a cultural power. New Thought leads a new journey. Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Culture, we must comprehensively enhance the national cultural soft power and the international influence of Chinese culture, display Chinese spirit, Chinese values, and Chinese strength, forge new brilliance for Chinese culture, enable Chinese culture to better reach the world, and allow the world to better understand China.

提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力必须以习近平文化思想为引领。党的十八大以来，习近平总书记就提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力等发表了一系列重要论述、作出重要部署，指引文化建设取得显著成就。2013年，习近平总书记在中共中央政治局第十二次集体学习时指出，“提高国家文化软实力，关系‘两个一百年’奋斗目标和中华民族伟大复兴中国梦的实现”。2018年全国宣传思想工作会议上，习近平总书记指出，“展形象，就是要推进国际传播能力建设，讲好中国故事、传播好中国声音，向世界展现真实、立体、全面的中国，提高国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力”。2024年10月28日，习近平总书记在中共中央政治局第十七次集体学习时强调，“要不断提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力”。习近平总书记的重要讲话深刻阐释了增强国家文化软实力和扩大中华文化国际影响力的重大意义、工作重点以及未来的战略任务，为我国文化强国建设提供了根本遵循。新思想引领新征程。在习近平文化思想的引领下，我们必须全面提升国家的文化软实力和中华文化的国际影响力，展现中国精神、中国价值、中国力量，铸就中华文化新辉煌，让中华文化更好走向世界，让世界更好了解中国。

Enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture must draw wisdom from fine traditional culture. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: “We should strive to draw nourishment and wisdom from the fine traditional culture formed and accumulated by the Chinese nation over generations, continue the cultural genes, extract the ideological essence, and display the spiritual charm.” Fine traditional Chinese culture is the crystallization of wisdom and the essence of Chinese civilization, the root and soul of the Chinese nation, the foundation for China to stand firm amid global cultural exchanges, and the deepest source and important pathway for enhancing our national cultural soft power. We must deeply excavate the spiritual symbols and cultural essence of fine traditional Chinese culture. In the long river of history, the Chinese nation has formed fine traditional culture, such as ideological concepts like cherishing benevolence, upholding integrity, and seeking common harmony, and traditional virtues like ceaseless self-improvement, being dedicated to work and finding joy in fellowship, and supporting righteousness and promoting goodness. These are the cultural genes for the Chinese nation’s continuous existence and enduring prosperity, and also the spiritual strength for realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The ideas, humanistic spirit, and moral norms it contains are not only the core of our Chinese people’s thought and spirit, but also have important value for solving human problems. We must refine and display the spiritual symbols of fine traditional Chinese culture, refine and display the cultural essence of fine traditional Chinese culture that has contemporary value and world significance, maintain a high degree of identification with our own culture, and strengthen cultural confidence. We must deeply cultivate the source of innovation in Chinese culture and forge the soul of Chinese culture’s charm. We must stimulate the cultural innovation and creativity of the entire nation, and create innovative cultural achievements that reflect the spirit of the times and lead the trends of the times. We must uphold fundamental principles and break new ground, constantly use the treasure trove of fine traditional Chinese culture to stimulate the cultural creativity of the entire nation, excavate the contemporary value and common values of all humanity in fine traditional Chinese culture, continuously promote the creative transformation and innovative development of fine traditional Chinese culture, so that Chinese culture displays its enduring charm and contemporary elegance.

提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力必须汲取优秀传统文化智慧。习近平总书记指出：“要努力从中华民族世世代代形成和积累的优秀传统文化中汲取营养和智慧，延续文化基因，萃取思想精华，展现精神魅力。”中华优秀传统文化是中华文明的智慧结晶和精华所在，是中华民族的根和魂，是中国在世界文化激荡中站稳脚跟的根基，是我们提高国家文化软实力最深厚的源泉和重要途径。要深入挖掘中华优秀传统文化的精神标识和文化精髓。在历史长河中，中华民族形成了优秀传统文化，如崇仁爱、守诚信、求大同等思想理念，自强不息、敬业乐群、扶正扬善等传统美德，这是中华民族生生不息、长盛不衰的文化基因，也是实现中华民族伟大复兴的精神力量。其蕴含的思想观念、人文精神、道德规范，不仅是我们中国人思想和精神的内核，对解决人类问题也有重要价值。要把中华优秀传统文化的精神标识提炼出来、展示出来，把中华优秀传统文化中具有当代价值、世界意义的文化精髓提炼出来、展示出来，保持对自身文化的高度认同，坚定文化自信。要深耕中华文化创新源泉，铸就中华文化魅力之魂。要激发全民族文化创新创造活力，创造反映时代精神、引领时代潮流的文化创新成果。要坚持守正创新，不断用中华优秀传统文化的宝藏激发全民族文化创造活力，挖掘中华优秀传统文化的当代价值、全人类共同价值，不断推动中华优秀传统文化创造性转化、创新性发展，使中华文化展现出永久魅力和时代风采。

Enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture must reconstruct the pattern of international communication. Communication power determines influence; discourse power determines the initiative. We must reconstruct the narrative discourse of China’s international communication. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “We need to accelerate the construction of Chinese discourse and Chinese narrative systems, use Chinese theory to explain Chinese practice, and use Chinese practice to elevate Chinese theory.” International discourse power has become a focus of great power competition. In the digital age, media communication discourse needs to achieve the reshaping of discourse power through the diversification of communication channels, personalization of communication targets, and diversification of communication content. We must adhere to the stance of Chinese culture, be rooted in the great practice of the Chinese people, establish a world vision, fully utilize new technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence, and VR/AR, establish an international communication media cluster covering traditional media, new media, and social media, form an all-media communication matrix with websites, client terminals, and social media accounts as the main body, and, centering on the overall layout of China’s diplomacy, combined with high-quality joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative, adopt precise communication methods close to different regions, different countries, and different audience groups, promote the globalized, regionalized, and segmented expression of China’s stories and China’s voice, enhance the affinity and effectiveness of international communication, and guide the international community to form a correct view of China.

提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力必须推进国际传播格局重构。传播力决定影响力，话语权决定主动权。要重构中国国际传播的叙事话语。习近平总书记指出，“要加快构建中国话语和中国叙事体系，用中国理论阐释中国实践，用中国实践升华中国理论”。国际话语权成为大国博弈焦点，数字时代的媒体传播话语需要通过传播渠道的多元化、传播对象的个性化、传播内容的多样化，实现话语权的重塑。要坚守中华文化立场、植根中国人民伟大实践、树立世界眼光，充分利用5G、人工智能、VR/AR等新技术，建立涵盖传统媒体、新媒体、社交媒体的国际传播媒体集群，形成以网站、客户端、社交媒体账号为主体的全媒体传播矩阵，围绕我国外交总体布局、结合高质量共建“一带一路”，采用贴近不同区域、不同国家、不同受众群体的精准传播方式，推进中国故事和中国声音的全球化表达、区域化表达、分众化表达，增强国际传播的亲和力和实效性，引导国际社会形成正确的中国观。

Enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture must promote China’s propositions and display China’s image. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, “We must widely promote China’s propositions, China’s wisdom, and China’s solutions.” [5]5 This quotation from General Secretary Xi Jinping is a directive for international communication; the specific source is a 2022 speech at the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference. The report to the 20th National Congress of the CPC calls for “telling China’s stories well, spreading China’s voice well, and presenting a credible, lovable, and respectable image of China.” As China increasingly moves closer to the world stage center, it has the ability and the responsibility to play a greater role in global affairs and make greater contributions together with other countries to solving the problems of all mankind. On various international occasions, General Secretary Xi Jinping has expounded China’s propositions, fully displaying the image of a civilized major country, an Eastern major country, a responsible major country, and a socialist major country, presenting to the world a credible, lovable, respectable, true, multi-dimensional, and comprehensive China.

提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力必须宣介中国主张，展示中国形象。习近平总书记强调，“要广泛宣介中国主张、中国智慧、中国方案”，党的二十大报告要求“讲好中国故事、传播好中国声音，展现可信、可爱、可敬的中国形象”。我国日益走近世界舞台中央，有能力也有责任在全球事务中发挥更大作用，同各国一道为解决全人类问题作出更大贡献。习近平总书记在各种国际场合阐述中国主张，充分展示了文明大国、东方大国、负责任大国、社会主义大国形象，向世界呈现了可信可爱可敬、真实立体全面的中国。

Enhancing national cultural soft power and the influence of Chinese culture must promote exchanges and mutual learning among human civilizations. Civilizations become colorful through exchange, and civilizations become rich through mutual learning. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out, “To forge new brilliance for Chinese culture, we must embrace a broader mind, conduct cultural exchanges with other countries more extensively, and more proactively learn from all the outstanding achievements of world civilizations.” [6]6 This quotation is from General Secretary Xi Jinping's speech at the opening ceremony of the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations in May 2019. The beauty of harmonious broth lies in the blending of different ingredients. [7]7 "The beauty of harmonious broth lies in the blending of different ingredients" is a classical Chinese saying from the Zuo Zhuan (Commentary of Zuo), used to emphasize the value of harmony in diversity. The charm of human civilization lies in its diversity, and the true meaning of human progress lies in mutual learning and mutual benefit. In recent years, China has learned from the outstanding cultural achievements of other countries by introducing and translating a large number of foreign classics, holding international academic conferences such as the World Congress of Classical Studies, and hosting international film festivals, embracing other world civilizations with a broad mind that is inclusive like the sea that receives all rivers. [8]8 "Inclusive like the sea that receives all rivers" is a Chinese four-character idiom (海纳百川) symbolizing broad-mindedness and openness to diverse elements. In the process of creating cultural achievements, we must consolidate the foundation of Chinese culture, base ourselves on the contemporary social development practice of China, and in exchanges and mutual learning with world civilizations, never forget our origins, absorb the strengths of others, and look to the future, creating more new and outstanding cultural achievements that conform to contemporary Chinese reality and the trend of world progress, embody the characteristics of modern Chinese civilization, and integrate the ancient and the modern, and reconcile China and the West. This will infuse contemporary value and ideological vitality into Chinese-path modernization. In the great process of continuing the historical lineage and writing contemporary chapters, we will create a new culture belonging to our era, and make new and greater contributions to advancing the process of human modernization and building a community with a shared future for mankind.

提升国家文化软实力和中华文化影响力必须推动人类文明交流互鉴。文明因交流而多彩，文明因互鉴而丰富。习近平总书记指出，“我们要铸就中华文化新辉煌，就要以更加博大的胸怀，更加广泛地开展同各国的文化交流，更加积极主动地学习借鉴世界一切优秀文明成果”。和羹之美，在于合异。人类文明的魅力在于多姿多彩，人类进步的真义在于互学互鉴。近年来，我国通过大量引进翻译国外经典著作、举办世界古典学大会等国际学术会议、举办国际电影节等方式学习其他国家优秀文化成果，以海纳百川的宽阔胸襟拥抱世界其他文明。在创造文化成果的过程中，我们要筑牢中华文化根基，立足于当代中国社会发展实践，在与世界文明交流互鉴中不忘本来、吸收外来、面向未来，创造更多符合当代中国现实与世界进步潮流、体现中华民族现代文明特征、熔铸古今、汇通中西的崭新优秀文化成果，为中国式现代化建设注入时代价值与思想活力。在赓续历史文脉、谱写当代华章的伟大进程中，创造属于我们这个时代的新文化，为推动人类现代化进程、构建人类命运共同体作出新的更大贡献。

(The author is a researcher at the Guangdong Provincial Research Base of the Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies)

（作者系广东省习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想研究中心广东外语外贸大学基地研究员）

Online editor: Huihui

网络编辑：慧慧