DDuring his speech at 20th At the Chinese Communist Party convention, President Xi Jinping referred to “New China” without explaining much about its specifics, objectives and ultimate goal. Experts in China will be busy reading between the lines, analyzing minute-by-minute footage of events and deciphering the meaning of the signs. Chinese leaders express their views more in signs and signals than in transparent direct dialogue. New Delhi should start reading signs emanating from Beijing, especially about “New China”, mentioning 1962 and honoring the president for the third time, the People’s Liberation Army soldier killed in the 2020 Galwan Valley conflict honors.
During his visit to the PLA Museum, Xi mentioned how the CCP is leading the armed forces in increasing its ‘political loyalty’ and intensifying military training for better war preparedness. It’s no surprise that the museum includes a panel blaming India for the 1962 war, a panel honoring a PLA soldier killed in the Galwan conflict, and a “Karakoram stone” that shows visitors to PLA soldiers. to press a button to show his support. range. Xi refuted claims that China has an expansionist agenda and insisted on having a strong PLA for the country’s security and peaceful purposes, not conflicts. But he warned”dangerous stormOn the horizon. New Delhi must learn to read the tea leaf.
The third term for Xi may not be as rosy and easy as the first and second term. During Xi’s second term, the US under Donald Trump withdrew from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and left an economic void in Asia to be filled by China. But now, as Xi takes stock of the domestic and global situation, his party, the economy and Chinese society may turn into his opponents, not to speak of his ideological opponents.
full control
19. during the run-up ofth The CCP Congress in 2017, where Xi Jinping was re-elected as the party’s general secretary for a second five-year term, was an unprecedented publicity blitzkrieg Xi is credited with everything about the “Five Years of Shear Endeavor” – from PLA modernization to success in space programs that evoked memories of President Mao.
Mao, with a larger-than-life stature, was a ruthless leader, feared more than revered, who introduced elements of a personality cult, implementing the disastrous ‘Great Leap Forward’ project, resulting in mass starvation. and purged many of his associates. and include distractions Xi Jinping’s father Xi Zhongxun. Incidentally, Xi Jinping’s father was among those who opposed Mao’s appropriation of the success of the revolution and his distortion of Communist Party history. But then Mao overtook the CCP.
Once Xi Jinping’s second term was confirmed, party insiders began to notice a change in his style of functioning – Xi was ‘distracted’ from the collective leadership model introduced by Mao’s successor, Deng Xiaoping. Deng introduced a collaborative leadership arrangement in the CCP in the 1980s with rules amendments that sought to limit the terms of leaders in office and proposed retirement ages for members of the Politburo and Standing Committee.
After tasting power and realizing the bitter truth of the communist system that power comes from absolute power, Xi Jinping decided to abandon Deng’s path and follow Mao’s path. Therefore, they had to eliminate opponents, find an excuse like an anti-corruption campaign to eliminate potential successors and opponents and establish their supremacy in the party, political system and power circles such as the PLA and technology and financial institutions.
Visuals of former Chinese President Hu Jintao being taken out of the final session of the 20th Communist Party Congress sitting next to Xi sent a strong message to that effect. after all, Hu JintaoThe Last Samurai, against authoritarianism, was part of the decentralization process.
Now, the CCP is in full control of Xi Jinping. But authoritarian rulers and dictators are fully aware of the personality flaws and dangers of riding a tiger. After Xi Jinping took office, he visited Yan’an with his team to tell him about the need and importance of the party, which he ruthlessly subdued. In an organized tour of the caves in Yan’an, Xi Jinping reportedly gave lengthy lectures about the passage of the resolution of the 7th Party Congress, 1945, and the fight to end under the leadership of Chairman Mao.
The bottom line was what Mao said about the party – the people supervise the party. Xi reportedly couple“It indicated that the party had moved towards maturity in its politics, its ideology and its organisation.”
So, the indication here is to the members of the Standing Committee and the CCP that as the party’s general secretary, the country’s president, and the head of the military commission, Xi Jinping is the new Mao of the new China. Like the biblical proverb (all those who take the sword will perish by the sword), in China, the saying goes ‘all those who kill the party are killed by the party’.
Read also: Don’t just ‘monitor’ Chinese spy ship in Sri Lankan port. emulate the enemy
Delhi game
On the economic front, China may face problems as the new team, with no known economist to deal with the emerging situation, tries to reconcile manufacturing with a highly restrictive zero-Covid policy. China’s industrial policy spending was far higher than that of many major economies, accounting for at least 1.73 percent of GDP in 2019, or more than $400 billion in purchasing power terms. It’s more than China defense spending in 2019. The slow recovery from the pandemic and the Ukraine conflict has cut spending on most of China’s client economies, except perhaps, India.
The Galwan conflict and the COVID pandemic have forced India to seriously rethink its economic ties with Beijing. there was a drop During April-August 2022, India’s iron ore exports to China declined by about US$1.5 billion, cotton exports by US$700 million and some metals, plastics and paper. India imposed 15-45 per cent export duty on iron and steel inputs to ease pressure on domestic manufacturers and stabilize prices, which also had a significant impact on exports.
The developed economies of the West will sooner or later change their independent and collective standards of engagement with Beijing. The need for manufacturing center will arise. New Delhi should re-examine its economic policies but also keep the powder dry.
The author is a former editor of ‘Organiser’. He tweeted @seshadrichari. Thoughts are personal.
(edited by Prashant)