China’s leader, Xi Jinping, extended his dominance on Saturday, fostering an army of Communist Party loyalists ready to defend his power, expanding his influence. water for the economy and strengthen National security.
Mr. Xi has transformed China through his authoritarian rule over the past decade, purging potential rivals, quashing dissent and reasserting the Communist Party’s central role in the world. Chinese society as a whole. Mr. Xi has long been expected to secure a third five-year term as party general secretary. But evidence of him holding the party even tighter appeared on Saturday, when the Communist Party congress approved a list of new members for the Central Committee, the elite body from which top leaders China’s most are drawn.
That list shows a number of senior figures have resigned, paving the way for many Xi-backed officials to join the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s highest decision-making body. Xi’s control at the top will become even more solid, meaning elites are less likely to resist his policies, including his tenacious stance on Washington and his day-to-day direction. the party’s greater influence on the economy, technology and the internet.
“China has entered a new era of maximum Xi,” said Neil Thomas, an analyst on Chinese politics with Eurasia Group. “A Standing Committee more focused on Xi means more supportive of Xi’s policies, which means a stronger focus on political control, economic statistics and assertive diplomacy.”
The new term of Xi and his leadership team will not be officially confirmed until Sunday, when the new Central Committee meets and holds a carefully controlled vote. But the scale of Xi’s victory was clear from a scan of the Central Committee list, experts said. Hu Chunhua, now deputy prime minister, may be the only new candidate for the ruling Politburo Standing Committee, who does not have close ties to Mr. Xi.
The premier, Li Keqiang, and another senior official, Wang Yang, both resigned on Saturday from the Central Committee, indicating that both are preparing to retire. Mr. Li has served as China’s prime minister for the past decade, the second most powerful post in China with direct authority over government agencies. But Mr. Xi has eclipsed Mr. Lee for years, including in economic policy, an area where prime ministers once dominated.
“There’s a lot of talk about the top savior – that these officials could stay and go against Mr. Xi, but that’s clearly not going to happen,” he said. Christopher K. Johnson, chairman of the China Strategy Group and a former CIA China political analyst. “Being close to Xi is all that really matters right now.”
The congress also approved amendments to the party’s constitution – its basic rules – aimed at enhancing Xi’s official status and underscoring his ambition to make one-party rule an eternal reality. far for China.
“The party is the supreme political force,” one of the amendments passed by the congress. Another change further emphasizes Mr. Xi’s noble “core” status, which is already in the charter.
The departure of senior leaders from the Central Committee with a track record of favoring market-oriented policies and a less confrontational stance against the West has given Xi complete control of the national agenda. family.
“By pushing moderates and potential opponents out of leadership roles, Xi conveys his overall priorities for stability,” said Cheng Li, an expert on Chinese politics at the Brookings Institution. sociopolitical stability, national security, and policy continuity now and in the years to come”. “Xi Jinping has further consolidated his near absolute power by promoting his defenders to the top leadership positions.”
Wang Huning, a senior party thinker who has honed Xi’s ideas and image, and a longtime critic of the United States, has stayed on the Central Committee and is likely to remains a key political lieutenant.
Emerging officials are among the 205 members of the new Central Committee and are considered possible additions to the next Politburo Standing Committee including Li Qiang, Chief of Staff of the Shanghai Municipal Party Committee, who oversaw the Covid lockdown earlier this year. He was basically Xi’s chief of staff when they both worked in Zhejiang province 15 years ago. Ding Xuexiang, now a senior aide to Mr. Xi, is also a strong candidate for the next top line-up.
Mr. Xi’s progress towards his new term has been hampered this year by China’s painful economic slowdown, which has left the public frustrated over the country’s strict Covid regulations and news reports. rumors of internal dissent. However, the congress seemed to put all that aside with a standing ovation for Mr. Xi.
It ended with an appeal to the group to stay with him “in thought, politics and action.”
John Liu and Zixu Wang contribution report.
