At a Spring Festival symposium held for foreign experts in China on Jan 20, Premier Li Keqiang said that China has the confidence, conditions and power to maintain a good development trend in the new year, and will continue to promote reform and opening up.

“Just like the Scottish traditional clothes you are wearing today — it represents the diversity of world civilization,” Premier Li said to Sir James Fraser Stoddart, winner of the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. “Our dialogue is not only between Chinese culture and Scottish culture; it is a dialogue representing world civilization’s diversity.”

With the Chinese Spring Festival just around the corner, Premier Li Keqiang holds a symposium with foreign experts who are working in China on Jan 20.[Photo/China News Service]

“Your topics are about how to utilize China’s abundant human resources,” Premier Li summarized after several foreign experts made proposals. “We have a population of 1.3 billion, a labor source of 900 million, and over 170 million talented people who have received higher education and vocational training. This is not only labor and intellectual resources, but also the biggest market with consumption potential,” the Premier said.

Premier Li said that the Chinese government will always respect the knowledge, wisdom and creativity of scientists, continue to create the environment and conditions to support innovation, and fully invoke every person’s vitality and creativity. Meanwhile, more efforts will be made to attract foreign talent, he said.

With the Chinese Spring Festival just around the corner, Premier Li Keqiang holds a symposium with foreign experts who are working in China on Jan 20.[Photo/China News Service]

Regarding Stoddart’s question on stopping the free flow of people across international borders, Premier Li said, “Globalization is an irreversible trend that greatly promotes the development of human society. It surely caused some new problems, but these should be solved through development.”

The Premier stressed that reform and opening up is the key to the achievement of Chinese economic society. “China and the world is a community of common destiny. China will progress together with the world. We will be more open in the future,” Premier Li said.

After the symposium, the discussion continued into the evening reception. “I hope you can teach your students the importance of basic research, as it is the base of future development. Meanwhile, close attention should be paid to changes in the market and society,” Premier Li said to Stoddart.