'Keeping a low profile' has been China's diplomatic strategy over the past few decades. It is precisely because of this that when China undergoes major changes, the outside world knows almost nothing. At the turn of this century, China surpassed other developed countries and has now become the world's second-largest economy. With the development of China not only in the economic field, but also in other fields such as technology and military equipment, China is opening up to the world. Last week, at the invitation of the Chinese side, I visited China for a week to participate in a ministerial level dialogue on cultural exchange and personally experience the remarkable changes in China. This is my third visit to China since 2017. Every time I come to this country, I learn something new. One obvious change is that many Chinese people are learning English now. A few years ago, this was still a major obstacle. In fact, Beijing appears more modern than many Western cities in many aspects. The vast land area of China is astonishing: the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which borders Pakistan, has an area almost twice that of our country. Many foreigners want to know whether China's development is limited to big cities like Beijing and Shanghai. During this trip, I had the opportunity to visit Yan'an and Xi'an in Shaanxi Province. Just ten years ago, a part of the rural population in Yan'an was still living in poverty. But now, what I see is astonishing progress. We visited a mountaintop village that was once struggling to make ends meet. Apples are grown in this region, but traditional planting methods mean that farmers have meager incomes. The government facilitated cooperation between villagers and private enterprises, introducing modern agricultural technology. Nowadays, one out of every seven apples in the world is produced in Shaanxi, and Yan'an accounts for the vast majority of them. The changes in the lives of Yan'an people are very obvious. Just ten years ago, the family was worried about food and clothing, but now they have a house and a car. But this is just the tip of the iceberg of China's broader transformation. We visited a robot manufacturing company and a high-speed train factory. China has opened the Beijing Shanghai high-speed railway with a speed of 350 kilometers per hour. This month, China launched a train that can reach a speed of 600 kilometers per hour and is currently testing a train that can reach a speed of 1000 kilometers per hour. From what I have seen and heard, China is no longer just silently accumulating strength, but confidently stepping onto the world stage. Nowadays, there is almost no doubt that China is moving towards becoming the next superpower in the world. (New Society)