My Take | Mixing Marx with Confucius: the heart of the matter for China

My Take | Mixing Marx with Confucius: the heart of the matter for China

In 2017, Chinese President Xi Jinping told the faithful at the five-yearly Communist Party congress that belief in people’s hearts would give strength to China as a nation. “When people have faith, the country has strength and the Chinese nationality has hope,” he said at the time. The phrase has been cited again and again … Read more

China’s Li Xiaopeng, son of former premier Li Peng, signals end to closely watched career

China’s Li Xiaopeng, son of former premier Li Peng, signals end to closely watched career

Li Xiaopeng, son of former Chinese premier Li Peng, has taken a semi-retirement role on the country’s top political advisory body, drawing an end to the closely watched political career of a member of one of China’s most powerful families. Li was assigned the role of deputy director of the economic affairs committee of the … Read more

China’s third plenum highlights the quiet rise of political theorist Wang Huning

China’s third plenum highlights the quiet rise of political theorist Wang Huning

Wang, 68, stepped away from his ideology role and became chairman of political advisory body the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) last year. But he continues to serve on the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s top decision-making body, where he was ideology and propaganda chief from 2017, in his first … Read more

China’s Politburo warns of economic risks as Communist Party readies for third plenum

China’s Politburo warns of economic risks as Communist Party readies for third plenum

“The complexity, severity and uncertainty of the external environment have spiked,” it said, according to a statement released by state news agency Xinhua. The session, also known as a plenum, traditionally sets economic strategy for the next five to 10 years and is often seen as the most important of the seven party gatherings held … Read more

Opinion | US-China thaw means Beijing can focus on development, not security

Opinion | US-China thaw means Beijing can focus on development, not security

But how long will the reset last? As the systemic divisions underlying US-China relations remain unresolved, people have reason to wonder. For example, Biden stressed that both countries should manage their competition responsibly to prevent it from veering into conflict while Xi wondered aloud “are we adversaries or partners?”. Few would expect the diplomacy between … Read more