Former Chinese leader Jiang Zemin (江澤民) is to step down from his post as head of the armed forces today, completing a two-year transfer of power to his successor President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), Communist Party and diplomatic sources said yesterday.
The news came amid a four-day closed-door key meeting of the Communist Party Central Committee, attended by some 198 top party officials and hundreds of cadres.
The sources said there was a lot of pressure within the central committee for the 78-year-old military chief to retire, following in the footsteps of late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping (
They said the committee meeting, which ends today, would ratify his departure from the powerful post.
Hu is expected to be able to promote his political agenda of reforming the party more freely after the move.
"The theme of the plenum this week: Improving the governing abilities of the party, proved that Hu was well in control," said a diplomat.
Jiang stepped down as national president and secretary-general of the ruling Communist Party two years ago to make way for a new generation of leaders led by Hu, 61.
However the chairmanship of the Central Military Commission, arguably the most powerful body in the country's closed political system, gave Jiang immense power in areas such as security and foreign policy.
Most commentators have suggested Jiang would only likely step down from his last official post if his protege, Vice President Zeng Qinghong (
However, a diplomatic source said it was not certain Zeng would even be a member of the commission.
In Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post newspaper suggested Jiang could still wield influence even if he does resign his final post. It cited the example of Deng, who gave up all his official posts in 1989 but continued to hold power with no title for years.
"Mr Jiang's retirement is unlikely to produce any major changes in domestic or foreign policies," it said. "But as Mr Hu continues to consolidate his power and make his mark, subtle changes can be expected."
It quoted sources as saying that Hu's policies are expected to be more practical and flexible, particularly on China's foreign policy as well as its policies towards Taiwan and Hong Kong.
Rumors have swirled over a power struggle between Hu and Jiang in the days leading up to the central committee meeting and minimal information has been released to the public.
The secretive nature of the communist party meeting has made it impossible for analysts to make more informed predictions amid a flurry of rumors.
Just days ago, speculation was rife that Jiang was refusing to step down from the top military position, thus preventing Hu from wielding effective influence in his capacity as the nation's leader.
The China Youth Daily, a newspaper published by Hu's Communist Youth League power base, on Friday described the social situation as "urgent," saying if the party didn't move forward with the times it would risk social instability and losing credibility among the people.
GEARING UP: An invasion would be difficult and would strain China’s forces, but it has conducted large-scale training supporting an invasion scenario, the report said China increased its military pressure on Taiwan last year and took other steps in preparation for a potential invasion, an annual report published by the US Department of Defense on Wednesday showed. “Throughout 2023, Beijing continued to erode longstanding norms in and around Taiwan by employing a range of pressure tactics against Taiwan,” the report said, which is titled “Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China (PRC) 2024.” The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) “is preparing for a contingency to unify Taiwan with the PRC by force, if perceived as necessary by Beijing, while simultaneously deterring, delaying or denying
‘ONE BRIDGE’: The US president-elect met with Akie Abe on Dec. 15 in Florida and the two discussed a potential Taiwan-China conflict’s implications for world peace US president-elect Donald Trump has described Taiwan as “a major issue for world peace” during a meeting with Akie Abe, the widow of late Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, Japanese newspaper the Yomiuri Shimbun quoted sources as saying in a report yesterday. Trump met with Akie Abe on Dec. 15 at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, where the two discussed the Russo-Ukrainian war and the situation in the Taiwan Strait. During the meeting, Trump spoke on the implications for world peace of a potential Taiwan-China conflict, which “indicated his administration’s stance of placing importance on dealing with the situation in
QUICK LOOK: The amendments include stricter recall requirements and Constitutional Court procedures, as well as a big increase in local governments’ budgets Portions of controversial amendments to tighten requirements for recalling officials and Constitutional Court procedures were passed by opposition lawmakers yesterday following clashes between lawmakers in the morning, as Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) members tried to block Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators from entering the chamber. Parts of the Public Officials Election and Recall Act (公職人員選舉罷免法) and Constitutional Court Procedure Act (憲法訴訟法) passed the third reading yesterday. The legislature was still voting on various amendments to the Act Governing the Allocation of Government Revenues and Expenditures (財政收支劃分法) as of press time last night, after the session was extended to midnight. Amendments to Article 4
ALLIANCE: Washington continues to implement its policy of normalizing arms sales to Taiwan and helps enhance its defense, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said US President Joe Biden on Friday agreed to provide US$571.3 million in defense support for Taiwan, the White House said, while the US State Department approved the potential sale of US$265 million in military equipment. Biden had delegated to the secretary of state the authority “to direct the drawdown of up to US$571.3 million in defense articles and services of the Department of Defense, and military education and training, to provide assistance to Taiwan,” the White House said in a statement. However, it did not provide specific details about this latest package, which was the third of its kind to
RSS