China Brief

President Xi Jinping’s 2026 New Year message

The year 2025 marks the completion of China’s 14th Five-Year Plan for economic and social development. Over the past five years, we have pressed ahead with enterprise and fortitude, and overcome many difficulties and challenges. We met the targets in the Plan and made solid advances on the new journey of Chinese modernization. 

We solemnly commemorated the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, and established the Taiwan Recovery Day. 

We sought to energize high-quality development through innovation. 

We endeavored to nurture our spiritual home with cultural development. 

We joined hands to build a better life and enjoyed it together.

We continued to embrace the world with open arms. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Tianjin and the Global Leaders’ Meeting on Women were very successful; and island-wide special customs operations were launched in the Hainan Free Trade Port. To better address climate change, China announced new Nationally Determined Contributions. After announcing the three global initiatives on development, security, and civilization, I put forward the Global Governance Initiative to promote a more just and equitable global governance system. The world today is undergoing both changes and turbulence, and some regions are still engulfed in war. China always stands on the right side of history, and is ready to work with all countries to advance world peace and development and build a community with a shared future for humanity.

We should unswervingly implement the policy of One Country, Two Systems, and support Hong Kong and Macao in better integrating into the overall development of our country and maintaining long-term prosperity and stability. We Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait share a bond of blood and kinship. The reunification of our motherland, a trend of the times, is unstoppable!

The year 2026 marks the beginning of the 15th Five-Year Plan. We should focus on our goals and tasks, boost confidence, and build momentum to press ahead. We should take solid steps to promote high-quality development, further deepen reform and opening up across the board, deliver prosperity for all, and write a new chapter in the story of China’s miracle.

China holds Central Economic Work Conference to plan for 2026

President Xi Jinping attended the conference and delivered an important speech. He reviewed China’s economic work in 2025, analyzed the current economic situation and arranged next year’s economic work.

Five imperatives in economic work:

1️⃣ Fully unlocking economic potential
2️⃣ Combining policy support with reform and innovation
3️⃣ Balancing flexible deregulation and effective regulation
4️⃣ Closely integrating investments in physical assets with investments in human capital
5️⃣ Strengthening internal resilience against external risks

Eight key tasks for 2026:

1️⃣ Prioritizing domestic demand and building a robust domestic market
2️⃣ Driving innovation-led growth and accelerating the cultivation of new economic drivers
3️⃣ Deepening reforms to energize high-quality development
4️⃣ Expanding opening-up and promoting win-win cooperation in various sectors
5️⃣ Pursuing balanced development through urban-rural integration and regional coordination
6️⃣ Honoring the carbon peak and neutrality targets to advance full green transition
7️⃣ Putting people’s livelihoods first and delivering more tangible benefits for the public
8️⃣ Safeguarding the bottom line and mitigating key risks proactively and prudently

Opening up New Horizons for Major-Country Diplomacy with Chinese Characteristics at a Crucial Historical Juncture

On December 30, Foreign Minister Wang Yi delivered a keynote speech on the international situation and China’s foreign policy.

• Facing a troubled world where peace is under threat, China acted as an anchor for stability. 
• Facing a new environment in its neighborhood, China acted as a pillar of the region.
• Facing a changing international order, China acted as a defining force.
• Facing the global development predicament, China acted as a main engine. 
• Facing critical challenges to international justice, China acted as a steadying force.

    On China-EU relations:

China and the European Union reviewed their cooperation over the past fifty years of diplomatic ties, and reaffirmed partnership as the basic tenor of their relations. 

We will carry forward the China-Europe tradition of respecting each other, seeking common ground while shelving differences, upholding openness and cooperation, and working for mutual benefit, and we will open up new space for China-Europe relations, and be true partners with Europe in firmly upholding multilateralism.

The revised law was passed on December 27, at a session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and will take effect on March. It includes provisions on:

• safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests
• advancing China’s efforts to actively align with high-standard international economic and trade rules, and to participate in the formulation of international economic and trade regulations

• strengthening intellectual property protection related to foreign trade

The revision also incorporates reform measures and established practices including negative list management system for cross-border trade in services, support for and promotion of new forms and models of foreign trade, encouragement of digital trade, and accelerated development of a green trade system.

China launched island-wide special customs operations in the Hainan Free Trade Port (FTP) on December 18, the world’s largest FTP by area, allowing freer entry of overseas goods, expanded zero-tariff coverage and more business-friendly measures.

With the opening of the Xi’an–Yan’an high-speed railway on December 26, China’s high-speed rail network has surpassed 50,000 kilometers — a major milestone in China’s railway development.

Key Remarks

On a question concerning the European External Action Service’s Statement on Taiwan:

On a question concerning the European External Action Service’s Statement on Hong Kong:

🔸A selected artwork from “Reviewing the 50-Year Journey of China-EU Relations, Joining Hands to Embrace a Shared Future” Creative Contest

Weekly Reflection

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the newsletter are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of China, except those from the official website of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Chinese Mission to the EU and other Chinese governmental websites.

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