xi jinping

The 20th Party Congress showed Xi Jinping doubling down on existing policy initiatives with little sign of major adjustments, but economic and structural developments will put growing pressure on Xi to deliver on his reform agenda The 20th Party Congress might well go down as one of the most significant in recent Chinese history. The reason for this is less due to Xi Jinping staying on for a third term, …

Predicting Chinese leadership changes is notoriously difficult, and China watchers have to rely on scraps of public information to gauge the chances of Chinese politicians to make it to the top. Whatever happens at the 20th Party Congress, the most fundamental rule of ‘China watching’ remains to focus on actions rather than words The quinquennial National Party Congresses are among the most important events in China’s political system. They also …

China’s role in the global economy has evolved faster than that of any other country in the world. These five new books try to explain the challenges China faces in its endeavour to become the world’s largest economy, and how to make sense of its presence in the context of its past. By Clizia Sala The Myth of Chinese Capitalism, by Dexter Roberts St. Martin’s Press, March 2020   Roberts’ fascinating… …

The reform and opening up policy introduced in 1978 not only changed China, but the entire world. FOCUS asks people that have laid witness to these four decades of change to share their thoughts on China’s past, present and future. Words by Ambassador Barbara Woodward, Lord James Sassoon, Kerry Brown, Lord Michael Heseltine, and Richard Robinson In December 1978, China’s leader Deng Xiaoping, announced that China would start a period …

A new anti-corruption commission has been established with even wider powers, and it may just be working, writes Tom Pattinson Since coming to power Xi Jinping has made it his mission to clamp down on official corruption. Xi pledged to crack down on both “tigers and flies” – everyone from senior officials to civil servants – and he has followed through on his promise. Since the end of 2012, over… …