As China walks from the edge of the international stage to the center of it, China's development is no longer just the Chinese people's business. The world more and more is observing China, says an editorial in People's Daily. Excerpts:

The German news television station opined: "As Europe and the United States slide into an economic crisis, the whole world is focusing its attention on China before its annual two sessions."

The new messages from China's leaders on reform and economic transformation will shape not only China's future and Chinese society, but the whole world's as well. The thousands of reporters from home and abroad covering the two conferences are all eager to capture and interpret such messages.

The two conferences also provide the international community with an opportunity to observe the changes of China's diplomatic and domestic polices. Some foreign scholars studying China say that if they do not study the reports of the two conferences carefully, their studies will not keep up with China's reality.

Apparently, such attention to China is due to China's development and growing global influence. The domestic policies of China, now a global economic engine, have more international significance than before.

The next 10 years will be crucial in China's economic transformation. China should be prepared for the world's increasing scrutiny and get used to the international community's expectations of it.

As the Nation newspaper of Thailand put it, although we cannot verify the road China will take, it is a certainty that all Asian countries and peoples are expecting some great things to happen.