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PUTRAJAYA, Malaysia. — The world has much to learn from China’s experience and Malaysia expects China to lead the world to reach new milestones, Malaysian Transport Minister Liow Tiong Lai has said.

The Communist Party of China (CPC) has demonstrated great determination that it can change not only itself but also the world, as shown by the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, the minister said in a recent interview with Xinhua.

Liow, who is also president of the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA), said Malaysia is one of the first countries to get involved in the initiative, and one of the first to have garnered good results.

He added that this partly explains why Malaysia expects China to lead the world to reach new milestones after the upcoming 19th CPC National Congress, which is set to open Wednesday in Beijing.

Recalling his interaction with the CPC and its general secretary Xi Jinping, Liow said he is impressed by the courage of the party with nearly 90 million members to spur itself on.

“The anti-corruption campaign … is a reflection that the CPC has attached great importance to strictly governing the party, on a level that matters to the survival of the party and the welfare of the people,” Liow said.

The world has much to learn from China’s experience, such as the rapid development of its infrastructure, he said, citing the fact that China now has the longest high-speed rail network.

China has shown that “it is possible to leapfrog over the established models of developed countries to achieve continuous innovation, especially in the information technology sector,” he added.

All of these achievements, Liow said, are inseparable from the good leadership and hard efforts of the CPC, whose philosophy requires that utmost attention should be paid to the welfare of the people.

“Every political party should learn from the CPC on its stance to side with the people, because only in this way can the nation achieve ever-lasting prosperity,” said the minister, who heads a major component party of Malaysia’s ruling coalition.

Liow also noted that as China is making great strides to achieve the country’s two centenary goals, it does not leave the weak behind, as the CPC has set a target to eliminate extreme poverty by 2020.

Malaysia, like China, has similar goals, as manifested in a national transformation plan that aims to elevate Malaysia to one of the top countries by 2050, he said.

“That’s why we need to learn from China, to make long-term plans,” said Liow, adding that the Belt and Road Initiative has greatly benefited the Malaysian economy and many cooperation projects have the potential to reshape relevant sectors.

Liow also noted that China is a peace-loving nation, and that is why Malaysia treats China as a reliable neighbor and a good friend.

He added that he has high expectations for the country and the world after the 19th CPC National Congress, as today’s China influences the world in its every move.

“I envision a future that China can continue to play a major role on the world stage, and help achieve a peaceful and progressive world,” he said. – Xinhua