Deeply Understanding the Significance of Advancing High-Standard Opening Up

Opening up brings progress, while isolation inevitably leads to backwardness. Since the 18th National Congress of the CPC,

开放带来进步，封闭必然落后。党的十八大以来，习近平总书记统筹中华民族伟大复兴战略全局和世界百年未有之大变局，深刻总结我国对外开放实践经验，指出“中国开放的大门不会关闭，只会越开越大”“改革开放是决定当代中国命运的关键一招，也是决定中国式现代化成败的关键一招”，强调不断加大高水平对外开放力度。习近平总书记关于对外开放的重要论述是习近平经济思想的重要组成部分，为新时代推进高水平对外开放提供了根本遵循。

On the new journey of the New Era, we must deeply understand the significance of advancing high-standard opening up, comprehensively grasp the new stage of development, and strive to build a new pattern of development, so as to promote high-quality development through high-standard opening up and comprehensively advance Chinese-path modernization through high-quality development.

新时代新征程，必须深刻理解推进高水平对外开放的重要意义，全面把握新发展阶段，着力构建新发展格局，以高水平对外开放推动高质量发展，以高质量发展全面推进中国式现代化。

First, advancing high-standard opening up is an objective requirement based on the new stage of development and adapting to the change in the principal contradiction in Chinese society.

第一，推进高水平对外开放是立足新发展阶段、适应我国社会主要矛盾变化的客观要求。

The principal contradiction in Chinese society has been transformed into the contradiction between the people's ever-growing needs for a better life and unbalanced and inadequate development; this is a historic change affecting the overall situation. At present, China's innovation capacity is still not suited to the requirements of high-quality development, the agricultural foundation is not yet solid, the gap in urban-rural and regional development and income distribution is relatively large, and there are shortcomings in ensuring people's wellbeing. At the same time, the content of the people's needs for a better life has become more extensive; the masses not only put forward higher requirements for material and cultural life, but also have growing demands in areas such as democracy, the rule of law, fairness, justice, security, and the environment.

我国社会主要矛盾已经转化为人民日益增长的美好生活需要和不平衡不充分的发展之间的矛盾，这是关系全局的历史性变化。当前，我国创新能力还不适应高质量发展要求，农业基础还不稳固，城乡区域发展和收入分配差距较大，民生保障存在短板。与此同时，人民美好生活需要的内容更加广泛，人民群众不仅对物质文化生活提出了更高要求，而且在民主、法治、公平、正义、安全、环境等方面的要求日益增长。

Through the rapid development since reform and opening up, a series of great achievements in China's economic development have fully proven that opening up is an important driving force for China's economic and social development, and that promoting reform and development through opening up is an important magic weapon for China's continuous achievements in development. Whether it is to better grasp the characteristics and requirements of the new stage of development, or to focus on better adapting to the change in the principal contradiction in Chinese society, it is necessary to continuously increase the intensity of high-standard opening up. By advancing high-standard opening up, we can expand imports of high-quality products and services to better meet the consumption needs of the people at different levels and in different fields; by better attracting foreign investment and making outbound investment, and by promoting stable scale and optimized structure of foreign trade, we can create more and better employment opportunities and continue to leverage exports' supporting role in the economy; by optimizing the layout of regional opening up, we can promote the orderly flow of factors and the rational allocation of resources, achieving more balanced and adequate development.

经过改革开放以来的快速发展，我国经济发展的一系列巨大成就充分证明，对外开放是推动我国经济社会发展的重要动力，以开放促改革、促发展是我国发展不断取得新成就的重要法宝。无论是更好把握新发展阶段的特征要求，还是着眼于更好适应我国社会主要矛盾变化，都需要不断加大高水平对外开放力度。通过推进高水平对外开放，扩大高质量产品和服务进口，更好满足人民群众不同层次、不同领域的消费需求；通过更好吸引外资和对外投资、推动外贸稳规模优结构，创造数量更多、质量更优的就业机会，继续发挥出口对经济的支撑作用；通过优化区域开放布局，促进要素有序流动和资源合理配置，实现更平衡更充分的发展。

Second, advancing high-standard opening up is an inevitable choice for promoting high-quality development and accelerating the construction of a new pattern of development.

第二，推进高水平对外开放是推动高质量发展、加快构建新发展格局的必然选择。

High-quality development is the primary task in building a modern socialist country in all respects. Accelerating the construction of a new pattern of development is a strategic decision made based on achieving the Second Centenary Goal [1]1 The Second Centenary Goal refers to the goal of building China into a great modern socialist country that is prosperous, strong, democratic, culturally advanced, harmonious, and beautiful by the middle of the 21st century, the 100th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. and coordinating development and security. At present, China's development faces new strategic opportunities, new strategic tasks, new strategic stages, new strategic requirements, and new strategic environments. Only by unswervingly promoting high-quality development and accelerating the construction of a new pattern of development can we place the development of the country and the nation on the basis of our own strength and firmly grasp the destiny of China's development and progress in our own hands.

高质量发展是全面建设社会主义现代化国家的首要任务。加快构建新发展格局，是立足实现第二个百年奋斗目标、统筹发展和安全作出的战略决策。当前，我国发展面临新的战略机遇、新的战略任务、新的战略阶段、新的战略要求、新的战略环境。坚定不移推动高质量发展，加快构建新发展格局，才能把国家和民族发展放在自己力量的基点上，把我国发展进步的命运牢牢掌握在自己手中。

Looking first at the international situation, a new round of technological revolution and industrial transformation is reshaping the global innovation landscape and restructuring the global economic structure, with uncertain and unpredictable factors increasing, and the international environment facing China's development becoming more complex and severe. Looking then at the domestic situation, China's development has many advantages and conditions, but the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development remains prominent, and the task of reform in key areas and crucial links remains arduous. In the past, China's economic development achievements were made under open conditions; in the future, China's high-quality economic development must be advanced under more open conditions. We must firmly seize the new opportunities brought by high-standard opening up, firmly grasp the construction of a new pattern of development as the strategic foundation for promoting high-quality development, and better coordinate domestic and international circulation. On the one hand, we must place the foothold of development domestically and rely more on the domestic market to achieve economic development. We must enhance the endogenous driving force and reliability of the domestic circulation, improve international competitiveness, and increase the attraction and driving force of the international circulation. On the other hand, the new pattern of development is by no means a closed domestic circulation, but an open dual circulation of domestic and international markets. We must improve the quality and level of the international circulation, make real efforts in attracting and utilizing foreign investment with greater intensity and improving the quality and level of trade and investment cooperation, better attract global resources and factors, and form new advantages in participating in international economic cooperation and competition.

先看国际，新一轮科技革命和产业变革正在重构全球创新版图、重塑全球经济结构，不确定、难预料因素增多，我国发展面临的国际环境更趋复杂严峻。再看国内，我国发展具有多方面优势和条件，但发展不平衡不充分问题仍然突出，重点领域关键环节改革任务仍然艰巨。过去，中国经济发展成就是在开放条件下取得的；未来，中国经济高质量发展必须在更加开放的条件下推进。必须牢牢抓住高水平对外开放带来的新机遇，牢牢抓住构建新发展格局这个推动高质量发展的战略基点，更好统筹国内循环和国际循环。一方面，要把发展立足点放在国内，更多依靠国内市场实现经济发展。增强国内大循环内生动力和可靠性，提高国际竞争力，增强对国际循环的吸引力、推动力。另一方面，新发展格局决不是封闭的国内循环，而是开放的国内国际双循环。要提升国际循环质量和水平，在更大力度吸引和利用外资、提升贸易投资合作质量和水平等方面切实发力，更好吸引全球资源要素，形成参与国际经济合作和竞争新优势。

Third, advancing high-standard opening up is an important aspect of coordinating development and security and firmly grasping the strategic initiative.

第三，推进高水平对外开放是统筹发展和安全、牢牢把握战略主动的重要方面。

Coordinating development and security, enhancing awareness of potential dangers, and being prepared for danger in times of peace is a major principle of our Party's governance. We must deeply understand that development is the foundation of security and security is the condition for development, while also properly handling the relationship between opening up and development, and between opening up and security, effectively preventing and defusing major risks affecting China's modernization process, actively shaping an external environment favorable to us, and safeguarding the new pattern of development with a new security architecture.

统筹发展和安全，增强忧患意识，做到居安思危，是我们党治国理政的一个重大原则。既要深刻认识到发展是安全的基础、安全是发展的条件，又要把握好开放与发展、开放与安全的关系，有效防范化解影响我国现代化进程的重大风险，主动塑造于我有利的外部环境，以新安全格局保障新发展格局。

On the one hand, the changes unseen in a century are accelerating, global sources of turbulence and risk points are increasing, and China's external environment is complex and severe. Preventing and defusing major risks and safeguarding national economic security is important and urgent. On the other hand, history and reality have repeatedly proven that integrating into the world economy is the general direction of history. If China's economy is to develop, it must dare to swim in the vast ocean of the world market. Only by opening the door to build and advance high-standard opening up can we obtain more high-quality resources such as capital, technology, markets, and talent necessary for promoting development, injecting new impetus, adding new vitality, and expanding new space for economic development, thereby achieving a higher level of security. It can be said that for China's development to gain advantages, take the initiative, and win the future, it must conform to economic globalization, rely on China's super-large market advantages, and implement a more proactive opening-up strategy.

一方面，世界百年未有之大变局加速演进，全球动荡源和风险点增多，我国外部环境复杂严峻。防范化解重大风险、维护国家经济安全，重要且迫切。另一方面，历史和现实一再证明，融入世界经济发展是历史大方向，中国经济要发展，就要敢于到世界市场的汪洋大海中去游泳。只有打开国门搞建设，推进高水平对外开放，才能获得更多推动发展所必需的资金、技术、市场、人才等诸多优质资源，为经济发展注入新动力、增添新活力、拓展新空间，从而实现更高水平的安全。可以说，我国发展要赢得优势、赢得主动、赢得未来，必须顺应经济全球化，依托我国超大规模市场优势，实行更加积极主动的开放战略。

Fourth, advancing high-standard opening up is a practical way to promote economic globalization towards a more open, inclusive, balanced, and win-win direction.

第四，推进高水平对外开放是推动经济全球化朝着更加开放、包容、普惠、平衡、共赢方向发展的现实途径。

The world economy thrives when open and stagnates when closed. China's development cannot be separated from the world, and the world's development also needs China. At present, the world economic recovery is weak. In addition to the impact of economic factors and the COVID-19 pandemic, factors such as the backlash against economic globalization and the rise of unilateralism and protectionism are also at play. It should be recognized that artificially cutting off the flows of capital, technology, products, industries, and people between countries, and trying to retreat the vast ocean of the world economy back into isolated small lakes and rivers, is impossible and does not conform to the trend of history. Facing the opportunities and challenges brought by economic globalization, we must conform to the general trend, take the initiative, make full use of opportunities, cooperate to meet challenges, and promote the process of economic globalization to be more dynamic, more inclusive, and more sustainable.

世界经济开放则兴，封闭则衰。中国的发展离不开世界，世界的发展也需要中国。当前，世界经济复苏乏力，这除了受到经济因素、新冠疫情等影响外，经济全球化遭遇逆流以及单边主义、保护主义上升等因素也在起作用。应该看到，想人为切断各国经济的资金流、技术流、产品流、产业流、人员流，让世界经济的大海退回到一个一个孤立的小湖泊、小河流，是不可能的，也是不符合历史潮流的。面对经济全球化带来的机遇和挑战，必须顺应大势、主动作为，充分利用机遇，合作应对挑战，推动经济全球化进程更有活力、更加包容、更可持续。

In this regard, we must firmly pursue a win-win strategy of opening up, continuously increase the intensity of high-standard opening up, improve the top-level design of the new system for an open economy, deepen the reform of systems and mechanisms in the fields of trade and investment, align with high-standard international trade and investment rules, steadily expand institutional opening up in rules, regulations, management, and standards, and enhance the linkage effect of the two markets and two resources, domestic and international; expand market access, comprehensively optimize the business environment, and improve the service guarantee system; promote the high-quality development of the Belt and Road Initiative, strengthen the alignment of development strategies and cooperation initiatives with other countries, facilitate the cross-border flow of various resources and factors, and cultivate more growth points for economic cooperation.

对此，需坚定奉行互利共赢的开放战略，不断加大高水平对外开放力度，完善开放型经济新体制的顶层设计，深化贸易投资领域体制机制改革，对标高标准国际贸易和投资通行规则，稳步扩大规则、规制、管理、标准等制度型开放，增强国内国际两个市场两种资源联动效应；扩大市场准入，全面优化营商环境，完善服务保障体系；推动共建“一带一路”高质量发展，加强同各国的发展战略和合作倡议对接，促进各类资源要素跨境流动便利化，培育更多经济合作增长点。

China has embarked on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects and advancing towards the Second Centenary Goal. We must adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, deeply study and implement Xi Jinping's economic thought, unswervingly expand opening up in all respects, and actively and proactively raise China's opening up to a new level.

我国已开启全面建设社会主义现代化国家、向第二个百年奋斗目标进军的新征程。要坚持以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想为指导，深入学习贯彻习近平经济思想，坚定不移全面扩大开放，积极主动把我国对外开放提高到新水平。

Online editor: Zhang Fujun

网络编辑：张福军