Senior Party official Luo Gan has urged the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in northwest China to keep economic development and unite the local people for maintaining social stability.

Luo, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureauof the Communist Party of China Central Committee who had an inspection tour of Xinjiang during Aug. 27-31, said Xinjiang should bring into play its unique regional and resource advantagesin building up a material basis for securing local stability.

The balance between reform, development and stability lies in realizing and safeguarding people's interests and improving their living standards, Luo said, adding that social stability should bebased on both sustainable economic development and harmonious ethnic relations.

He reiterated the importance of implementing the Party's policies toward minority nationalities and religions in a thoroughand comprehensive way, calling for adherence to the system of regional autonomy for minority nationalities and urging the local governments to cultivate a contingent of cadres from the Han and Uygur nationalities.