F rom June 17 to 19， at the invitation of the CPAFFC， 21 representatives from the families of international friends from nine countries， foreigners living and working in China and journalists from media outlets from home and abroad visited Yan’an， symbol of the Chinese revolution， for an international forum — Legacy of the Snows in New Era.
　　On June 17， Lin Songtian， president of the CPAFFC， and the journalists visited Liangjiahe village and former residences of revolutionaries， including Yangjialing and Zaoyuan. They also climbed Baota Mountain.
　　On June 18， after the international forum， Lin answered questions of journalists from more than 20 media outlets at home and abroad， including Bloomberg， RTR， JoongAng Ilbo， Neue Zurcher Zeitung， Khmer Daily， South China Morning Post， Xinhua News Agency， China Media Group， People’s Daily， China Daily， Shanghai Daily and Shaanxi Daily.

　　Replying to the question why the Communist Party of China has won people’s support and succeeded at long-term governance， Lin said the CPC achieved continuous development in Yan’an， won the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the War of Liberation， established the People’s Republic of China and governed with a view toward the future. The key to the Party’s success， he said， lies in the fact that it has put into practice the concept of “The country is its people； the people are the country.” He pointed out that the Party has always represented the fundamental interests of all the Chinese people and quoted an old saying： “The way to gain the land under heaven is to gain the support of the people.”
　　First， Lin said， the Party holds high the banner of national independence and the liberation of its people. It stands on the right side of history and has won support from people of knowledge from all walks of life from home and abroad.
　　Second， the Party stands firmly with the people and implements its“mass line”， which means that the Party comes from the people， strives for the people， relies on the people and is fully supported by the people.
　　Third， Party members take the revolutionary spirit as their top priority and take as their aspiration and mission seeking happiness for the Chinese people and rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. The Party has carried forward this great spirit and distinct character， practiced a people-centered philosophy of development， conquered the COVID pandemic and poverty and earned a better living for 1.4 billion people. It will surely gain the support of the Chinese people and people from around the globe and make historic contributions to building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects. It will bring about the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and promote the building of a human community with a shared future. 　　Answering why international friends traveled to Yan’an in the 1930s and 1940s to fight side-by-side with the CPC， Lin said the CPC led the Chinese people in the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the New Democratic Revolution and won understanding， sympathy and support from numerous visionary people from around the world. The foreigners， Lin said， came to Yan’an and the Shaanxi-Gansu-Ningxia border area and supported the cause of justice in multiple ways. They made the voice of justice heard， launched the campaign known as “Save the Country Through Industrial Development”， served in military hospitals and even fought on the front lines. They came from the Soviet Union， the United States and Europe. They were far better off back home but resolved to come， risking their own lives and traveling thousands of miles to Yan’an， where life-supporting supplies were scarce and living conditions were extremely unfavorable. They were motivated by a strong sense of compassion and justice. Bearing in mind the lofty aspirations for humanity， they believed Yan’an stood for the future and hope of China and that the CPC was leading a struggle for progress and justice for all. The War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression led by the CPC was an important part of World War II and had a huge impact on the future of mankind. They had come in pursuit of truth and aspirations and fought for world peace and justice.
　　It has been proved that one who practices justice will gain many supporters， and one who doesn’t practice justice will gain only a few. The CPC practices justice， and it has never been alone. In the past， thousands of international friends overcame great difficulties， made tremendous sacrifices and fought alongside us. The CPC is working to promote the building of a community with a shared future for mankind and striving for a life of peace， development and prosperity for the people of China and around the world. It will surely gain more understanding， support and cooperation from countries and friends from all over the world.
　　Lin also noted the similarities between Chairman Mao Zedong and President Xi Jinping. He said that both qualify as great leaders of the people and have many qualities in common.
　　First， a full commitment to serving the people can be seen in both leaders. They have taken national independence， prosperity， rejuvenation and the well-being of the people as the initial aspiration and mission of the Party as well as of themselves and have seen the people’s interests as the top priority on the Party’s agenda， as well as in their own hearts. They have demonstrated a spirit reflecting the pledge， “I will fully commit to the people and never fail them”， and illustrate selfless， pioneering charisma. 　　Second， they have both shared their feelings with the people. Chairman Mao initiated the high ethic to “Serve the People Wholeheartedly”； President Xi initiated a “peoplecentered approach” to the country’s development. Both initiations are derived from the same origin and both take people’s position advocated in Marxism. They have compared the relationship between the Party and people to that of fish and water. They have worked for the people， depended on the people and promoted the welfare of the people. They have won the wholehearted support of the people.
　　Third， both exercised strict supervision over the Party’s selfmanagement. While in Yan’an， C h a i r m a n M a o s t a r t e d t h e Rectification Movement and realized an unprecedented unity of the Party in thought， politics and organization. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China， the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core continued to exercise strict intraparty governance， improve the solidarity， efficiency and creativity of the Party and generate a mighty force that will unite the whole Party and nation and gain every victory.
　　On why we need to remember Edgar Snow in the new era， Lin said， we remember him for two reasons： first， his strong sense of compassion and justice and great love based on internationalism； second， his commitment to journalistic ethics and finding truth based on facts. As a US journalist， he was without any ideological bias and introduced a real， comprehensive and objective China to the world.
　　Peaceful， open and shared development is the key to China’s success. It is also one of China’s targets in promoting the Belt and Road Initiative and building a community with a shared future for mankind. China will realize its modernization through win-win cooperation and shared development. It will not follow the Western way of development， which features zero-sum games. China believes in the win-win and allwin approach and pursues win-win cooperation and shared development.
　　Lin expressed hope that more journalists from international mainstream media， when covering issues concerning the future of mankind， will hold Edgar Snow up as an example in the pursuit of equity， justice， conscience， morality and journalistic ethics. He said he hoped they will take a view from the strategic level， with human progress and modernization； figure out that China and the world are closely linked when it comes to development； understand China in history， both now and in the future， by hearing， seeing and reading； present a real， comprehensive and stereoscopic China to the world in an objective and unbiased manner； and make the voice of justice heard around the world. 　　On the political advantages of the CPC and the institutional advantages of socialism with Chinese characteristics， Lin said the kind of political institutions a country chooses depends on whether the institution suits basic conditions and meets the interests of the majority of the people. The fundamental difference between socialism and capitalism lies in whether the fruit of development is shared by all or held in the hands of a few. Modern Chinese history has proved that only socialism can save China， and only socialism with Chinese characteristics can develop the country and realize national rejuvenation.
　　Since the very day of its founding， the Party has made seeking happiness for the Chinese people， along with independence， prosperity and rejuvenation for the Chinese nation， as its aspiration and mission. The Party has always represented the fundamental interests of all Chinese people. It has no special interests of its own. In the face of the COVID pandemic， a plague unseen in a century， the Party and government of China have put people’s lives first， taken every possible measure to save every patient and protect people’s lives and health at all costs.
　　Capitalist developed countries in the West put capital first and made all efforts to save money rather than saving people’s lives. The United States， as the most developed country in the world， has been reacting poorly to the pandemic but actively creating lies to shirk responsibilities and scapegoat others. There are more than 340 million confirmed cases in the US， and more than 600，000 people have died of the coronavirus. No consensus has been reached in that country on whether to wear a mask， let alone on how to protect people’s lives and health. The difference has made the Chinese people more supportive of the leadership of the Communist Party of China and socialism with Chinese characteristics.
　　Some Western politicians have fostered an anti-China mood in the world by smearing the CPC. Their aims are to fool others and themselves with lies. They fail to deceive the Chinese people and will only do harm to the interests of their own people and people of the world. The Party and government of China have been practicing a peoplecentered philosophy of development to make sure the 1.4 billion people in China enjoy the five fundamental human rights： food and clothing， jobs， housing， education and healthcare. They are guaranteed national security， harmony among different ethnic groups， safety， social justice， equality， economic prosperity and a beautiful ecological environment. In addition， they have an enhanced sense of fulfillment， happiness and personal security. The Party has won the sincere and firm support of the people. 　　On efforts to share China’s story with a global audience， Lin said， China has established various partnerships with more than 100 countries in the world over the past few years， including comprehensive strategic partnerships. The Trump administration venomously slandered China and poisoned public opinion on China. Western countries will not get used to or accept China’s development. They have kept the outdated Cold War mentality and spread rumors to slander and smear China. They have created a countertrend in the world featuring the socalled politically correct anti-China understanding， which formed a vicious cycle in which politics poisons public opinion and public opinion kidnaps politics. At the same time， we failed to tell a true story about our own achievements， resulting in misunderstandings.
　　When Western anti-China forces are slandering and smearing China， we need to insist on seeing is believing and expose lies by presenting facts and truth. We need to bolster and build up our capacity for engaging in international communication， construct an international discourse system that is popular to all and integrates the East and West， tell China’s stories in a way and language that are acceptable for the international community， and help foreign friends understand， remember and be touched by the stories we tell.
　　Lin said he met with US friends from all sectors of society either virtually or in person last year and felt cordial friendship and expectation for deepening cooperation， not animosity. Justice will prevail， he said. If we tell China’s story to the world well， make our voice heard across the world， present a true multidimensional and panoramic view of China and make the world understand China by listening， seeing and reading， we will gain understanding and support from people of all nations.