Grasp strategic opportunities in developing China

BEIJING - China has made remarkable progress in the first decade of the 21st century from its wisdom and measures to grasp strategic opportunities. Such efforts are needed for further development in the next 10 years.

China launched its first manned spacecraft Shenzhou-V in 2003, and less than 10 years later, the successful docking of the Shenzhou-IX and Tiangong-1 lab module marked a new height for the country's space exploration.

According to Zhou Jianping, chief designer of the manned space program, the success owed much to the country's independent innovation based on grasping opportunities of worldwide development of information and electronic technologies.

Likewise, the quick development and the rising international standing of the entire nation as well as the rapid improvement of people's livelihoods are results of efforts to grasp and utilize strategic opportunities.

During the past decade, China's GDP climbed from 12 trillion yuan ($1.9 trillion) to 47 trillion yuan in 2011 with an average annual growth rate of more than 10 percent, making the country the world's second largest economy.

Opportunities have been a result of a relatively favorable international environment where the Western countries' strategic deployment and show of strength were restrained after the September 11 attacks.

Long Guoqiang, a senior research fellow with the Development Research Center of the State Council, attributed the opportunities to China entering the World Trade Organization and the country's advantage of low labor costs.

With keen senses and flexible strategies, as well as the material accumulation and systematic preparation over the 30 years of reform and opening up, China has grasped opportunities and secured stunning development. This development, in turn, helped the country to deepen its understanding of the opportunities available.

Just as ancient Chinese philosophers put it, crisis and opportunities may be interconvertible. China has successfully turned the global financial crisis into a chance for the country to adjust its economic structure and transform the development pattern.

China's voice and presence in international society have also increased.

There was little surprise about this year's takeover bid of China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) for Canada-based oil and gas producer Nexen Inc. It represented another case of Chinese enterprises "going global" in recent years.

Even against the backdrop of a more complicated international situation, the country's development will not halt in the following decade.

In July this year, President Hu Jintao pointed out that China's development is still in an important period of strategic opportunities and great achievements can be made.

The targets of industrialization, informationization, urbanization and agricultural modernization in the country have not yet been fulfilled. The efforts to reach these goals will provide a broad space for China's economic and social development.

Moreover, unlike Western countries, China's huge domestic demand will be new opportunities.

Opportunities may also lie in the efforts of the strategic adjustment of the economic structure, the international competition in science and technology and the all-round opening up.

Furthermore, domestic and overseas situations have presented China with a "window period" for innovation in both systems and minds.

These opportunities are also challenges. If the country fails to make good use of them, the gap between China and foreign developed countries may be further widened.

To grasp these opportunities, China needs courage to push forward  reforms to work out more fundamental solutions to systematic problems. Reforms in key areas have become imperative.

The country also needs to further emancipate people's minds and implement the established principles and policies with more concrete measures.

Moreover, at present, China should consider not only its development in the next 10 years, but also in a longer period through to the mid 21st century.

The entire country should be more aggressive in reaching out to grasp the opportunities, as well as the nation's future, in hand.