No doubt the rapid development of China is the most prominent phenomenon in the 21st-century international relations. Even the US Secretary of State Rice said China is a "new factor" in the 21st-century international relations. There are obviously different reactions among various countries toward such a "new factor". There is the "threat theory", the "opportunity theory" and there is the so-called "unknowable theory", which believes the outlook of China's development to be "extremely uncertain".

However, compared with the situation ten years or five years ago we know at least one thing for certain, that is, there is no longer market for the "China collapse" theory. Pragmatically facing up to China's development has become one of the inescapable central topics for foreign policies of various countries. As far as China is concerned to unswervingly adhere to the peaceful development path and promote the joint development, long-lasting peace and common security of the Asia-Pacific countries or even the world as a whole through its own development are not only the only way prescribed by the current circumstances, but also China's voluntary strategic choice based on examination and weighing of its own national interests.

History has proved that the peaceful foreign policy that China has implemented has brought about a series of positive results.

China's development means opportunities and security for neighboring countries, not threat and conflicts. Accompanying China's development are not China's territorial expansion, but rather the successful solution of border problems or control of border problems, which are sought with mutual understanding and respect to history between China and neighboring countries; not China's economic expansion, but rather the ASEAN countries' seeing hopes for rejuvenation through economic contact with China as they gradually walk out of economic depression following the financial crisis; not China's military expansion, but rather multilateral security framework jointly built by China and its neighboring countries, whose goals it is to ensure the common security of Asian countries, as exemplified in Shanghai Cooperation Organization, 10+1 and 10+3. Its responsible stances expressed on hot questions such as regional cooperation system framework, new security-right view and the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula has won China the acknowledgement of most neighboring countries in Asia.

China's peaceful development gives rise to benign interaction of relations among big countries, not the reverse. One of the most prominent characteristics of China's development is to realize synchronous advance of national strengths on the basis of developing constructive cooperation and strategic partnership with the major countries, instead of being a "lone pacemaker" or a "challenger of status quo". In a global point of view world major powers or major power groups such as India, Russia and the European Union are also rising alongside China. Their relationship with China is mutual promotion rather than mutual counteraction. New development patterns for relationships between major countries advocated by China such as the China-EU comprehensive partnership, China-Russia strategic cooperative partnership and the China-India strategic and cooperative partnership for peace and prosperity provide a broad platform for the joint development of China and other major countries. Even the often fluctuant China-US relations are forming a pattern, like the boat going up as the river rises, within the framework of "constructive cooperation". There is no dispute that China's expectation and effort need cooperation and coordination from the US.

The particular pattern of China's peaceful development also lays out the most persuasive model for the diversified and multipolarized development direction of the world. That is, it sticks to an independent foreign policy of peace while at the same time pursues an opening up policy; it goes after efficiency and growth as well as harmony and balance; it stick up for sovereignty and integrity without losing flexibility and creativity. What "building a moderately prosperous society in all respects", "a scientific outlook on development" and "building a harmonious society" embody is far more than China's internal development strategy. They indicate that China will seek a new development path most appropriate for China for the sake of independent and self-improving developing countries. The significance it means for world peace and development will merit the just judgment by history.

This is a translation by People's Daily Online of an article carried on the first page of People's Daily Overseas Edition on April 14.