Photo: Xinhua

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the 2021 World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit on Sunday, calling on the international community to seize opportunities and tackle challenges while conforming to the development trend of informatization, digitalization, networking and intelligence, the CGTN reported. 

Over 2,000 prominent Internet figures from more than 80 countries and regions are attending the meeting, which kicked off on Sunday in Wuzhen, East China's Zhejiang Province.

Xi said in the letter that China is willing to work with all countries in the world to take up the historical responsibility of making progress for the mankind. He also called for stimulating the vitality of digital economy, enhancing the efficiency of digital government services, optimizing the digital social environment, and building a digital cooperation pattern, the CGTN reported.

Under the theme of "Towards a New Era of Digital Civilization - Building a Community with a Shared Future in Cyberspace," this year's Wuzhen Summit is being held both online and offline. The summit has set up 20 sub-forums, focusing on the new trend of cutting-edge technologies, cyberspace governance, internet's role in the fight against COVID-19 and economic recovery.

The opening of the Wuzhen Summit comes at a time when China is urging the international community to strengthen digital cooperation and together pull the economy out of the COVID-19 fallout.

In a keynote speech delivered via video link, Chinese Vice Premier Liu He said that major scientific and technological breakthroughs in all fields will bring new development opportunities to all countries, noting that the security and reliability of internet infrastructure needs to be defended and promoted by the whole world, Xinhua reported.

"Governments across the world need to work together to ensure fair competition and effective innovation," Liu said.

The remarks from the Chinese leaders showed that China will continue to be a standard bearer for cooperation, openness and following through with consistent efforts to promote a secure and peaceful cyberspace for the world, Zuo Xiaodong, vice president of the Beijing-based China Information Security Research Institute, told the Global Times on Sunday.

However, China will not tolerate unfair treatment by a few Western countries which are opting to attack China over the issue of cybersecurity with unwarranted charges out of their Cold War mentality, Zuo noted.

According to the Data Security Law, China will impose countermeasures on any country or region that has imposed discriminatory measures or restriction on China involving data trade and data utilization, he said.

Liu noted that the Chinese government is actively strengthening the construction of new infrastructure to support the sound development of the private economy, cultivate entrepreneurs' innovation and entrepreneurship.

China's commitment to innovation is clear, as the country's 14th Five-Year Plan 2021-25 and its long-term development goal up to 2035 identify it as a top priority, said Cristiano Amon, president and CEO of Qualcomm, at the event.

"We see the recent China 5G Application Action Plan as a positive step toward bringing 5G into major industries and improving consumers' lives," he said.