Translated by Claude, edited by Sinocism.com

Source: People's Daily | Byline: Liu Guozhong (刘国中), Member of the Politburo and Vice Premier of the State Council | August 18, 2026

This morning we listened to General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech, warmly recalling Comrade Jiang Zemin's lifelong course of struggle, his historical contributions and his lofty character, and my heart is filled with reverence and remembrance. Comrade Jiang Zemin was the core of the Party's third-generation central collective leadership and the principal founder of the important thought of the "Three Represents." At the turbulent turn of the century, he led the Party's central collective leadership, relying closely on the whole Party, the whole army and the people of all ethnic groups across the country, and successfully carried socialism with Chinese characteristics into the 21st century, leaving us a precious spiritual wealth that grows ever fresher with time. Shortly, Comrade Cai Qi will deliver a speech, and we must do a good job of studying and implementing it. Below, centering on studying and implementing the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech, I would like to share a few points of understanding and reflection.

上午聆听习近平总书记重要讲话，深情回顾江泽民同志一生奋斗历程、历史贡献和崇高风范，内心满怀崇敬与感念。江泽民同志是党的第三代中央领导集体的核心，“三个代表”重要思想的主要创立者，在风云变幻的世纪之交，带领党的中央领导集体，紧紧依靠全党全军全国各族人民，成功把中国特色社会主义推向21世纪，为我们留下了历久弥新的宝贵精神财富。一会儿，蔡奇同志将作讲话，我们要抓好学习落实。下面，围绕学习贯彻习近平总书记重要讲话精神，谈几点认识和体会。

I. Carry on the bloodline of theoretical innovation, and more consciously use Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era to forge our souls and point the direction. The history of our Party is a history of continuously advancing the adaptation of Marxism to the Chinese context and the needs of the times, and a history of continuously advancing theoretical innovation and theoretical creation. Throughout Comrade Jiang Zemin's life, he always held fast to his Marxist faith; grounded in the profound changes in the situation at home and abroad, he pooled the wisdom of the whole Party to found the important thought of the "Three Represents," deepening our understanding of the laws of advancing the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics and of strengthening Party building under new conditions of the times, and fully demonstrating a theoretical character of holding fast to the source, keeping close pace with the times, and upholding fundamental principles while breaking new ground. Practice has no end, and neither does theoretical innovation. As we study and appreciate his life and thought, we must continuously strengthen the Party's armament with its innovative theory, study and grasp thoroughly the scientific connotation and essential purport of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, uphold and apply well the standpoints, viewpoints and methods running through it, use scientific theory to assess situations and solve difficult problems, resolutely support the "Two Establishes" and resolutely achieve the "Two Upholds," act as executors, doers and hands-on performers in implementing the Party Center's decisions and arrangements, and ensure that all work advances steadily along the direction charted by the Party Center.

一、传承理论创新血脉，更加自觉以习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想凝心铸魂、指引方向。我们党的历史，就是一部不断推进马克思主义中国化时代化的历史，就是一部不断推进理论创新、进行理论创造的历史。纵观江泽民同志一生，始终坚守马克思主义信仰，立足国内外形势深刻变化，集中全党智慧创立了“三个代表”重要思想，深化了我们对新的时代条件下推进中国特色社会主义事业、加强党的建设的规律的认识，充分彰显了坚守本源、紧跟时代、守正创新的理论品格。实践没有止境，理论创新也没有止境。我们学习感悟他的生平和思想，要持续加强党的创新理论武装，学深悟透习近平新时代中国特色社会主义思想的科学内涵和精髓要义，坚持好、运用好贯穿其中的立场观点方法，用科学理论研判形势、破解难题，坚定拥护“两个确立”、坚决做到“两个维护”，当好贯彻党中央决策部署的执行者、行动派、实干家，确保各项工作始终沿着党中央指引的方向稳步前进。

II. Uphold development as the top priority, and more consciously advance Chinese modernization through high-quality development. Development is the Party's top priority in governing and rejuvenating the nation. As early as the 1990s, Comrade Jiang Zemin keenly grasped the laws of economic development and clearly put forward strategic ideas such as transforming the mode of economic growth and carrying out strategic adjustment of the economic structure. He pointed out that we are a developing country, and that to realize modernization and narrow the gap with developed countries, the key is to blaze a path of national economic development that combines relatively high speed with relatively good returns, to shift the mode of economic growth from extensive to intensive, and to maintain sustained, rapid and healthy development of the national economy. He stressed that the issues of agriculture, rural areas and farmers are always a fundamental question bearing on the overall situation of our Party and country, and that coordinating urban and rural economic and social development, building modern agriculture, developing the rural economy and increasing farmers' incomes are major tasks in comprehensively building a moderately prosperous society. Looking back on these expositions today, they remain of important value. As we study and appreciate his life and thought, we must fully, accurately and comprehensively implement the new development philosophy, accelerate the building of a new development pattern, solidly promote high-quality development, better coordinate development and security, develop new quality productive forces in accordance with local conditions, propel the economy to achieve effective qualitative improvement and reasonable quantitative growth, and continuously consolidate the material foundation of Chinese modernization.

二、坚持发展第一要务，更加自觉以高质量发展推进中国式现代化。发展是党执政兴国的第一要务。早在上世纪90年代，江泽民同志就敏锐把握经济发展规律，明确提出转变经济增长方式、对经济结构进行战略性调整等战略思想。他指出，我们是发展中国家，要实现现代化，缩小同发达国家的差距，关键在于要走出一条既有较高速度又有较好效益的国民经济发展路子，实现经济增长方式从粗放型向集约型转变，保持国民经济持续快速健康发展。他强调，农业、农村、农民问题始终是一个关系我们党和国家全局的根本性问题，统筹城乡经济社会发展、建设现代农业、发展农村经济、增加农民收入是全面建设小康社会的重大任务。今天回顾这些论述依然具有重要价值。我们学习感悟他的生平和思想，要完整准确全面贯彻新发展理念，加快构建新发展格局，扎实推动高质量发展，更好统筹发展和安全，因地制宜发展新质生产力，推动经济实现质的有效提升和量的合理增长，不断夯实中国式现代化的物质基础。

III. Forever maintain a pioneering and enterprising posture, and more consciously use deepened reform and expanded opening to stimulate the drive and vitality of society as a whole. Reform and opening is an important magic weapon by which the cause of the Party and the people has caught up with the times in great strides. In the 13 years from the Fourth Plenary Session of the 13th Central Committee to the Party's 16th National Congress, Comrade Jiang Zemin further deepened his theoretical reflection on China's socialist reform, drove the establishment of a socialist market economic system to be set as the goal of China's economic system reform, and carried out a series of far-reaching reforms in state-owned enterprises, finance, fiscal affairs, the distribution system and other areas. At the same time, firmly grasping the accelerating trend of economic globalization, he stressed that if China was to develop, progress and become prosperous and strong, it must open to the outside world and strengthen economic, scientific-technological and cultural exchange and cooperation with other countries; and he made the strategic decision to join the World Trade Organization, winning precious opportunities for China's development. Reform and opening is always in the present tense, never in the perfect tense. As we study and appreciate his life and thought, we must further deepen reform comprehensively, uphold and improve the basic socialist economic system, give full play to the decisive role of the market in allocating resources and better play the role of the government, build a high-level socialist market economic system, advance high-level opening to the outside world, and provide strong impetus and institutional guarantees for Chinese modernization.

三、永葆开拓进取姿态，更加自觉以深化改革扩大开放激发全社会动力活力。改革开放是党和人民事业大踏步赶上时代的重要法宝。从党的十三届四中全会到党的十六大的13年中，江泽民同志进一步深化了对我国社会主义改革的理论思考，推动把建立社会主义市场经济体制确立为中国经济体制改革的目标，并且在国有企业、金融、财政、分配制度等方面推行了一系列影响深远的改革。同时，他紧紧把握经济全球化不断加快的趋势，强调中国要发展、要进步、要富强，就必须对外开放，加强同世界各国的经济、科技、文化的交流合作，并作出了加入世界贸易组织的战略决策，为我国发展赢得了宝贵机遇。改革开放只有进行时，没有完成时。我们学习感悟他的生平和思想，要进一步全面深化改革，坚持和完善社会主义基本经济制度，充分发挥市场在资源配置中的决定性作用，更好发挥政府作用，构建高水平社会主义市场经济体制，推进高水平对外开放，为中国式现代化提供强大动力和制度保障。

IV. Stand firmly on the position of the people, and more consciously, through solid and effective measures, continuously realize the people's aspiration for a better life. Serving the people wholeheartedly is the fundamental purpose of our Party; in the great practice of revolution, construction, reform and the new era, our Party has always adhered to development for the people, development relying on the people, and the fruits of development shared by the people. Comrade Jiang Zemin personally experienced the historic transformation from the old society to New China; he cherished deep feelings for the Chinese people and held a strong wish to let the Chinese people live good lives. He stressed that the starting point and ultimate aim of all the work of building socialism with Chinese characteristics is to continuously realize, safeguard and develop the fundamental interests of the overwhelming majority of the people. He required leading cadres at all levels to bear in mind the purpose of serving the people wholeheartedly, to establish a strong sense of being public servants, to cherish a heart of loving the people, to keep faith with their responsibility to the people, to be adept at devising strategies to enrich the people, and to do many things beneficial to the people; to keep the safety and well-being of the masses in their hearts at all times, to care about the hardships of the masses, and to strive to do real things and good things for the masses. As we study and appreciate his life and thought, we must always place the people in the highest position in our hearts, establish and practice a correct outlook on performance, persist in ensuring and improving people's well-being in the course of development, firmly grasp the interests the people care about most, that are most direct and most real, continuously improve the system of basic public services, do a good job of practical matters that benefit the people—around employment, education, health care, and services and guarantees for "the old and the young"—and let the fruits of reform and development benefit all the people more fully and more fairly.

四、牢牢站稳人民立场，更加自觉以扎实有效的举措不断实现人民对美好生活的向往。全心全意为人民服务是我们党的根本宗旨，在革命、建设、改革和新时代的伟大实践中，我们党始终坚持发展为了人民、发展依靠人民、发展成果由人民共享。江泽民同志亲身经历了从旧社会到新中国的历史巨变，对中国人民怀有深厚感情，对让中国人民过上好日子怀有强烈愿望。他强调建设有中国特色社会主义全部工作的出发点和落脚点，是为了不断实现好、维护好、发展好最广大人民根本利益。他要求各级领导干部牢记全心全意为人民服务的宗旨，树立强烈的公仆意识，深怀爱民之心，恪守为民之责，善谋富民之策，多办利民之事，时刻都要把人民群众安危冷暖放在心上，关心群众疾苦，努力为群众办实事、办好事。我们学习感悟他的生平和思想，要始终把人民放在心中最高位置，树立和践行正确政绩观，坚持在发展中保障和改善民生，紧紧抓住人民最关心最直接最现实的利益问题，不断健全基本公共服务体系，围绕就业、教育、医疗、“一老一小”服务保障等办好惠民实事，让改革发展成果更多更公平惠及全体人民。