It is the common aspiration and responsibility of Chinese people of all ethnic groups to accelerate the process of building "a prosperous, harmonious and stable socialist Xinjiang," he said.

Hu noted that like other regions of the country, the society's principal problem is the gap between the fast growing material and cultural needs of the people and the low level of social production.

Hu vowed to invest more to improve the region's public services by implementing major projects to provide local people with a "modern and civilized" living environment.

He added resource development should be directly linked to the welfare of the local people.

Hu also called for comprehensive education about ethnic unity in order to help local people identify with the "great motherland, the Chinese nationality, Chinese culture, and a socialist development path with Chinese characteristics."

He urged efforts to oppose and strike down all ethnic separatist forces to ensure social order and people's normal life.

Hu said the supportive policies will also apply to the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps (XPCC), a unique economic and semi-military government organization of about 2.5 million people, and pledged more government funding to boost its development and improve the social security of its employees.

ECONOMIC SUPPORT

At the meeting, Premier Wen Jiabao said the central authorities have decided to launch major support policies for Xinjiang, calling them necessary to accelerate the region's economic and social development.

He said Xinjiang will be the first region in China to start reform of resource taxes with a shift to taxing crude oil and natural gases by price rather than volume.

Under another tax policy to be introduced, qualified enterprises in impoverished areas in Xinjiang will be exempted from income tax for two years and allowed a 50 percent reduction for another three years, Wen said.

He said Xinjiang and the XPCC will continue to enjoy preference in receiving central government investment, which will more than double the total investment in fixed assets in Xinjiang over the next five years compared to the previous period.

The government will encourage joint-equity commercial banks, foreign banks, and banks of various kinds to open outlets and branches in remote areas in Xinjiang, he said.