He acknowledged that terrorism, separatism and extremism remain the greatest threats to the region's development.

"But we have the capability and confidence to safeguard our country's territorial integrity and ethnic unity," he said.

Xinjiang, with a population of more than 20 million, including 12 million people from ethnic minorities, accounts for about one-sixth of China's territory and is three times the size of France.

The region, which borders central Asia, has been suffering frequent sabotage from separatist forces.

Hou Xiaoqin, political commissar of the Xinjiang Armed Police Regiment, said the major threat comes from ETIM, which was listed as a terrorist group by the United Nations and the United States in 2002.

"As the country's front line in battling terrorism and separatism, Xinjiang's anti-terrorism fight is of crucial importance to the stability of the whole country," the senior officer said.

ETIM has been responsible for more than 200 violent incidents, including explosions, assassinations, arson, poisonings and assaults in Xinjiang and other areas between 1990 and 2001, killing 162 people and injuring 440.

The Ministry of Public Security placed ETIM, which is pursuing an independent "Eastern Turkistan", on a list of "East Turkistan" terrorist organizations in 2003.

Mamat Hasan, deputy political commissar of Xinjiang Military Command, said ETIM, which has links with foreign terrorist groups, is "manipulated and controlled by some foreign forces hostile to China".

Early last year, Xinjiang police raided an ETIM terrorist training camp, killing 18 terrorists and arresting 17 others. The camp was located on the Pamir Plateau in Xinjiang, near the borders of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan.