July 1 is an important day for China. It is the Communist Party of China's (CPC) 95th anniversary.

The day also marked the return of Britain's former colony Hong Kong 19 years ago.

Activities celebrating the special day were held in Hong Kong on Friday. The annual marches of protest also took place, though the scale was smaller than last year.

But the meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing took central stage on Friday. Party leader Xi Jinping answered the world's concerns about how the CPC's vitality can be maintained and what CPC governance means to the country and the world.

China faces a variety of challenges. The arbitration tribunal in The Hague is about to deliver an "award" over a South China Sea dispute. "Taiwan independence" forces are reemerging. Tensions are still building on the Korean Peninsula. The US and its ally Japan are also exerting growing pressure from the seas.

But all these are  hurdles that we can overcome. On July 1, we found it is more important than anything to keep the Party's progressiveness and fighting power, its appeal to the Chinese public, and the nation's long-term union and advancement.

China has been developing enough power to protect itself from lethal danger from outside. The outside challenges may be "unavoidable annoyances" during its peaceful rise.

The West's global influence is declining. But its radical forces are as loud as before in pressuring China over ideological issues. Claims of the "collapse of China" or "tackling China" come on and off.

The main reason is that they believe they can hamstring China's solidarity.

Actually the outside forces are aware that they can not crush China. The attempts to pressure China only meet some geopolitical needs, beside hopes that they may stir some "internal changes" in China.

Whether China can keep sustainable development lies in the quality of the CPC's governance, which in turn is determined by the managing of the Party members. Xi's speech on Friday hit the core of China's national interests.

The CPC has taken solid steps in the past decades, largely changing the country and driving the world's changes. China has been striving to interact with the outside world. Some people are reluctant to accept China's efforts. But China is developing greater influence in the world.

After all, the key issue is to make the CPC stronger and more mature. If the CPC can firmly take its growth in hand, Chinese people will also be able to take their future in hand. If we want to coexist with the world peacefully, no one will force a showdown with us.