China after the 17th Communist Party Congress: Crisis or Continuity?
Thursday, 27th September, 2007
16:00 BST / 11:00 EDT / 17:00 CEDT
President Hu Jintao will preside over his first Chinese Communist Party (CCP) National Congress as party leader when it meets on October 15. He took over at the head of the party in 2002; he can be expected to step down in 2012. (He will hang on to his state offices until 2013) In 2002, his predecessors, under Jiang Zemin, set the agenda and levered protégés into the nine man Politburo Standing Committee. This year, to a large degree Hu gets to say who will run China and to set the policy parameters of his last five years at the helm.
This call will ask what we can expect at the party congress and what its main implications will be for China and the world. Questions addressed will include:
- What will the new leadership line-up under Hu look like?
- Will the CCP hold on to power in the next five years? Will its credibility increase or diminish?
- Will a refreshed leadership be able to tackle China’s many and varied domestic problems?
- Will it be able to balance the expectations of the middle classes and the rural population?
- What direction will US ties and relations with the new Taiwanese leadership take in 2008?
- Will Beijing be able to maintain good relations in key regions such as Africa?
- How will changing alliances affect Chinese security policy?
- Can Beijing reconcile its relentless pursuit of resources with its responsibilities as a Security Council member?
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