At a party congress following the conclusion of the Communist Party Congress, which is held twice every decade, President Xi introduced the newly elected members of the seven-member Standing Committee, the pinnacle of power in the Communist Party. Mr. Nishi is the top.
The Chinese people, led by the Communist Party of China, have put in “sweat and effort” to “pave the way for China’s modernization,” Xi said in his speech. It is the enormity of the work that makes it great and infinitely glorious. ”
A week ago, he opened the 20th National Party Congress, delivered a victory report to more than 2,000 delegates, and announced the party’s mission to transform China into a socialist superpower and mankind’s “new choice.” emphasized.
By not stepping down from two of the most important posts in the Communist Party, General Secretary and Chairman of the Central Military Commission, for a decade, Xi said that previous leaders had institutionalized a peaceful transition of power. , overturned the norm that hoped to prevent a return to the one-man rule. Xi, 69, who scrapped presidential term limits in 2018, shows he doesn’t follow unspoken principles successor.
“There are no conclusions. There are no rules. “There was still resistance before, but his report this time shows that China’s future is entirely driven by his will.”
When Xi came to power in 2012, he was seen as a low-key pragmatist, but some expected him to become a reformer like Gorbachev, or at least Gorbachev’s own father.
But he resolutely moved in another direction. He called Gorbachev a coward and ordered his officials to study the collapse of the Soviet Union. The party expanded the surveillance state and oversaw a large-scale detention campaign in Xinjiang that the United Nations said could constitute crimes against humanity. Authorities cracked down on China’s civil society, and lawmakers imposed strict national security measures on Hong Kong to thwart anti-Beijing protests.
As A supreme leader who demands absolute loyalty, Mr. Xi has undermined the system of collective control and power-sharing between factions within the party, which the party has honed since the 1980s to ward off a cult of personality. It is customary. He declared an “unlimited” partnership with Russian President Vladimir Putin just before the Kremlin invaded Ukraine in February.
Under the banner of nationalism promoted by President Xi Jinping, an army of “wolf warriors” appears increasingly willing to defy diplomatic norms in order to appear more patriotic at home. increase.At the Standing Committee announced on Sunday, these seven members his closest allies.
“He is entering his third term as a very strong leader. He has consolidated power and placed his own people on standing committees,” said Yang Zhang, an assistant professor at the American University School of International Services. I’m here.
By stacking standing committees, Xi is upending age norms that have been largely upheld since the 1990s. Jiang Zemin, then-leader of the party, used the unofficial cutoff of 68 to oust old leaders and expedite succession, a trigger that pushed turnover to the top in his next 30 years. . no more.
During his third term in office, Xi will focus specifically on national security, upgrade the country’s technology sector, China is on the cusp of the world order.
Still, his power is not unlimited. He must navigate a draconian zero-covid policy that has stalled the economy and left large segments of the population vulnerable to the more contagious Omcron variant of the coronavirus.
China’s increasingly militant relationship with the United States and a slowdown in the Chinese economy, exacerbated by rising unemployment and a deteriorating property market, will pose additional challenges. In his speech at the opening ceremony of the Communist Party Congress last week, Mr. Xi warned that the Communist Party must be prepared to weather a “dangerous storm” in its efforts to “intimidate, contain and pressure” China.
With the resignation of top leaders, economic emperor Liu He and former party secretary of Guangdong Province Wang Yang, who were seen as helping to facilitate smooth relations with the United States, Xi has become tougher on Washington. approach is likely to be adopted. And as Beijing renegotiates its ties with the West, China is expected to turn increasingly inward.
“President Xi Jinping has set a clear path toward realizing his vision of a self-sustaining state-led economy for the Chinese economy.” Cornell University School of Economics.
But in his third term, Mr. Xi will face risks ranging from fragmentation within his own allies to the danger of overly centralized power.
“If all power is in the hands of one person, then that person must bear all responsibility,” said former professor Tsai. “If he makes a disastrous mistake, not only 1.4 billion people will bear the consequences of this disaster. This person himself will have to pay the price.”
Pei-Lin Wu of Taipei contributed to this report.
