Since entering office, the new Chinese leadership has become more confident in its diplomacy, and the country has taken a higher diplomatic profile than it did before.

In the past, albeit former Chinese leaders did visit a number of countries, mostly the major ones such as the United States, they tended to focus on "what China does not want" when making diplomatic claims. For instance, don't interfere in China's internal affairs, don't support Taiwan's "independence", and don't heap groundless scorn on China were usually the messages in leader-to-leader talks.

But there has been a significant change in Beijing's diplomatic style recently, and it has become more proactive.

For instance, abiding by international law, China established its Air Defense Identification Zone over the East China Sea last year, and supported the China National Offshore Oil Corporation operating an oil rig in the South China Sea in July. Moreover, the Beijing-proposed "Belt and Road Initiatives", indicate that China is no longer afraid to take the lead in global governance.

Meanwhile, Beijing has also been able to see the bigger picture in selecting the destinations for its high-level visits.

And both President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang have visited diplomatically important countries, however big or small.

In July, Xi's first state visit to the Republic of Korea, also the first by a Chinese leader to Seoul before making a trip to Pyongyang, greatly tightened the China-ROK ties which are crucial for a stable Northeast Asia. In the following month, his trip to Mongolia, which bridges the north line of the Silk Road Economic Belt, thus unveiled Beijing's determination to implement the initiatives.