Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, delivered an important speech at a grand gathering celebrating the centenary of the CPC's founding at Tian'anmen Square in Beijing on Thursday.

Here are the highlights:

- China has realized the first centenary goal -- building a moderately prosperous society in all respects. This means that we have brought about a historic resolution to the problem of absolute poverty in China, and we are now marching in confident strides toward the second centenary goal of building China into a great modern socialist country in all respects.

- The CPC has united and led the Chinese people over the past 100 years for one ultimate theme -- bringing about the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

- Seeking happiness for people and national rejuvenation has been Party's aspiration and mission since founding.

- The Party unites and leads the Chinese people in fighting bloody battles with unyielding determination, achieving great success in the new-democratic revolution.

- The Party unites and leads the Chinese people in endeavoring to build a stronger China with a spirit of self-reliance, achieving great success in socialist revolution and construction.

- The Party unites and leads the Chinese people in freeing the mind and forging ahead, achieving great success in reform, opening up, and socialist modernization.

- The Party unites and leads the Chinese people in pursuing a great struggle, a great project, a great cause, and a great dream through a spirit of self-confidence, self-reliance, and innovation, achieving great success for socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era.

- The time in which the Chinese nation could be bullied and abused by others was gone forever.

- Only socialism could save China, and only socialism with Chinese characteristics could develop China.

- By pursuing reform and opening-up, a crucial move in making China what it is today, China had caught up with times.

- The CPC and the Chinese people, through tenacious struggle, have shown the world that China's national rejuvenation has become a historical inevitability.

- The people are the true heroes, for it is they who create history.

- The great founding spirit of the CPC is the Party's source of strength.

- Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Liu Shaoqi, Zhu De, Deng Xiaoping, Chen Yun and other veteran revolutionaries had contributed greatly to China's revolution, construction, and reform, and to the founding, consolidation, and development of the CPC.