What's another way of saying "needless to say"?

Learning beginner Mandarin reseources?

I'm thinking about starting to study Chinese. I have a couple of Chinese classmates, and I want to know what they're talking about when they start speaking in Chinese.

What websites are there for specifically learning Chinese? Any tips are welcome

Paraphrasing help! "The massive surge in domestic demand and the subsequent increasing external reliance in the 2000s, pushed energy security to the top of Hu Jintao’s international agenda. " How would you write that in different words? Thanks guys!