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China’s Communist party leaders have vowed to accelerate the country’s push towards self-reliance in cutting-edge technology amid rising tensions with the US.
The statement came as the party’s elite central committee met at Beijing’s Jingxi Hotel this week for the four-day “fourth plenum”, to lay the ground for the country’s 15th five-year plan, which will be released early next year.
A communiqué released after the meeting said that the country would pursue policies aimed at “substantially improving the level of scientific and technological self-reliance and strength”.
“By 2035, China’s economic strength, scientific and technological capability, national defence capacity, overall national power and international influence will have risen markedly,” read the communiqué, which was published by Xinhua, the state news service.
The party’s five-year plans were central to Mao Zedong’s command economy and remain important platforms for conveying the leadership’s political, economic and social priorities. They are closely watched by foreign governments and investors.
Beijing’s signal that it will continue to push industrial policies to support the country’s high-tech manufacturing sector comes as China has faced snowballing restrictions on access to technology from successive US presidential administrations.
“The country faces a stage where strategic opportunities coexist with risks and challenges, and uncertainties and unpredictable factors are increasing,” the communiqué said.
This is a developing story
