Editor's note: The Information Office of the State Council, or China's Cabinet, issued a white paper on the history and development of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps on Sunday. It includes four parts: I. Founding and Development; II. Responsibilities and Structure; III. Development and Construction; IV. Safeguard the Frontier, Maintain Stability and Promote Ethnic Unity. Following is the full text:

Preface

The practice of stationing garrison troops to cultivate and guard its border areas is a legacy of China's several thousand years of history of developing and safeguarding its frontiers. The central government first adopted this practice on a large scale in what is known as the Western Regions (the major part of which was today's Xinjiang) more than 2,000 years ago, during China's Western Han Dynasty, and it continues to this day.