China has made major technological breakthroughs in numerous areas over recent years, but the country still displays a significant gap internationally in key areas such as basic research and original innovation, said Premier Li Keqiang.

Premier Li made the remarks at the first general meeting of the national Science and Technology Leading Group on Dec 6.

The world is at the beginning of a new industrial revolution, said Premier Li. “We should face up to the gap, and never be over optimistic about our technological development,” he said.