XINING, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that not a single ethnic group should be left behind in the country's efforts to fully build a modern socialist China.

Xi made the remarks on Tuesday afternoon while visiting a village and talking with villagers in Shaliuhe Township in Gangcha County, Haibei Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, during his inspection tour of northwest China's Qinghai Province.

"We are a family, and we are all brothers and sisters," Xi told the villagers, calling on them to have confidence in a brighter future.

"Great changes have taken place in the village," Xi said when talking with the villagers. "We are very glad to see that every one of you is leading a happy life, and we can feel the profound bonding you have with the Party and the government."

"By the time New China celebrates its centenary, the Chinese nation will, without a doubt, stand firmer and stronger among the world's nations," Xi said, adding that by that time China will surely be a happy and modern country.

Xi stressed that the Chinese nation is closely united like the seeds of a pomegranate. "We are all members of the community of the Chinese nation."