URUMQI, Sept. 24 -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday urged Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region to build a socialist modern Xinjiang that is characterized by unity, harmony, prosperity, affluence, cultural progress and a sound eco-environment, where people live and work in peace and contentment.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks after listening to work reports from the CPC Xinjiang regional committee and the regional government.

He emphasized the full, faithful and comprehensive implementation of the Party's guidelines for governing Xinjiang in the new era.

Xi noted that since the founding of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region 70 years ago, earthshaking changes have been taking place in the region, and Xinjiang has joined the rest of the country in embarking on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects.

Official data showed that Xinjiang's GDP has grown at an average annual rate of 7.04 percent since 2012. In 2024, it expanded by 6.1 percent, surpassing 2 trillion yuan (about 281.4 billion U.S. dollars) for the first time.

Leveraging its resources and industrial capabilities, Xinjiang should actively explore a path of high-quality development suited to its own characteristics and foster its new quality productive forces in light of local conditions, Xi stressed.

He also urged Xinjiang to promote the cultural tourism industry, enhance preservation and restoration of ecosystems, accelerate the building of the core area along the Silk Road Economic Belt, and give priority to ensuring and improving people's living standards.

Xi underscored all-out efforts in maintaining social stability in Xinjiang, and raising the people's awareness and readiness regarding combating terrorism and maintaining stability.

It is imperative to foster a strong sense of the Chinese nation as one community in Xinjiang and promote the construction of the community, Xi said, noting that the region should make efforts to ensure that religions in China conform to China's realities, and help officials and people of all ethnic groups to develop a correct view of the country, history, nation, culture and religion.

Strengthening Party leadership and Party building is the fundamental guarantee for advancing Xinjiang's modernization, he added.

Xi noted that the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC) serves as a major strategic force for achieving the CPC Central Committee's overall goal of the work related to Xinjiang, calling for deepening reform of the XPCC.

Senior officials, including Wang Huning and Cai Qi, attended the meeting.

Xi, leading a central delegation, arrived in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang, on Tuesday to attend activities marking the autonomous region's 70th founding anniversary.

On Wednesday morning, Xi visited a themed exhibition for the anniversary at a cultural center in Urumqi. He is scheduled to attend a grand celebration gathering in the city on Thursday.