International observers said they look to China's annual "two sessions" for insights into the country's future development blueprint, expecting high-quality growth and expanded opening-up to inject confidence into the global economy.
The "two sessions" are the annual meetings of China's top legislature, the National People's Congress (NPC), and the top political advisory body, the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC). Both bodies serve a five-year term and hold a plenary session each year, generally in March.
The fourth session of the 14th NPC and the fourth session of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC kicked off on Thursday and Wednesday, respectively.
Meira Hot, vice-president of the National Assembly of Slovenia, stressed the significance of this year's two sessions, which set the stage for China's 15th Five-Year Plan (2026-2030).
"This year's two sessions are especially important because they mark the beginning of China's 15th Five-Year Plan, a new stage of development at a time of global uncertainty. China will continue to focus on high-quality growth, technological innovation, green transformation and stable opening up. For the international community, the signal is stability and predictability," she said.
Others emphasized that the meetings are an opportunity to consolidate China's accomplishments.
"Under President Xi Jinping's leadership, China has made rapid advances in core technologies and the high-tech sector. The development of new quality productive forces has not only greatly enhanced the country's competitiveness but also benefited many countries, including Thailand. Chinese modernization is bringing greater certainty to world peace and development," said Wirun Phichaiwongphakdee, director of the Thailand-China Research Center of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).
Serik Korzhumbayev, editor-in-chief of Delovoy Kazakhstan newspaper, is covering the two sessions in Beijing. He said the meetings offered an excellent opportunity to witness China's future-oriented development strategy.
"The decisions made during the two sessions hold great significance for Central Asian countries. Like I said, China is our key partner. Many Chinese development initiatives, from infrastructure to digital economy, are directly linked to our bilateral cooperation under the Belt and Road framework. We are witnesses to the BRI's implementation. We do not merely discuss this initiative; we are practitioners of this historic endeavor, which creates opportunities for the development of all countries," he said.
Many said that against a backdrop of rising global uncertainty, China's steady progress in high-quality development demonstrates the country's sense of responsibility as a major country and injects valuable stability and certainty into the world.
"Of course, we follow the two sessions closely. I think the most important thing is that we can clearly see China's development trajectory for the coming years. This helps us progress together. For example, China has made huge leaps in robotics. Annual new energy vehicle production exceeds 16 million units. These are innovative achievements originating from China," said Peter Nussbaum, chairman of the IWS World Economic Council, an independent non-governmental organization based in Berlin, Germany.
Global observers eye China's "two sessions", hail blueprint for high-quality development
