China’s leader Xi Jinping has secured a third five-year term in office at the head of a new governing team dominated by his close allies but without an obvious successor. Shanghai party chief Li Qiang, who oversaw a two-month lockdown of the city in response to a coronavirus outbreak this year, emerged as the second-ranking figure and a likely prime minister.
Mr Xi led the seven-person standing committee of the Chinese Communist Party’s politburo into an appearance before the press in Beijing on Sunday after the end of the party’s five-yearly national congress. He said the new leadership team would keep China’s economy, which has been hit by the impact of a zero-Covid policy and a deflating property bubble, on a steady course.
“Our economy’s strong fundamentals will not change, and it will remain on the positive trajectory over the long run,” he said.
“We’ll be steadfast in deepening reform and opening up across the board, and in pursuing high-quality development, and create more opportunities for the world through our own development.”
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In a 25,000-word report to the party congress, Mr Xi warned China’s people to prepare for a turbulent international outlook and the United States has stepped up its rhetoric against Beijing in recent months. But he said on Sunday that China would remain open to the world, rejecting the idea of a decoupling from other economies.
“The world is grappling with unprecedented challenges,” he said. “Just as China cannot develop in isolation from the world, the world needs China for its development,” he added.
During the closing session of the congress on Saturday, Mr Xi’s predecessor Hu Jintao was unexpectedly escorted out of the hall, looking confused and initially reluctant to leave. The incident gave rise to speculation in the international press that Mr Hu (79) was being publicly humiliated or purged but Chinese state news agency Xinhua said he had been taken ill.
“Hu Jintao insisted on attending the closing session of the party’s 20th national congress, despite the fact that he has been taking time to recuperate recently,” the news agency reported.
“When he was not feeling well during the session, his staff, for his health, accompanied him to a room next to the meeting venue for a rest. Now, he is much better.”
For the first time since 1997, the 24-person politburo includes no women and its seven-person standing committee is older than before with the youngest member aged 60. Among those promoted was former Beijing party chief Cai Qi, who worked with Mr Xi for many years before he became party leader.
Ding Xuexiang, the youngest member of the standing committee, was Mr Xi’s chief of staff and has regularly accompanied the Chinese president on foreign trips.
Russian president Vladimir Putin and North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un were the first leaders to congratulate Mr Xi on his election to a third term as general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party.
