Xi wants to control everything but heaven is watching

During the last 45 years, the Middle Kingdom has changed beyond recognition. This was seen again during the annual Two Meetings (or Two Sessions) which witness the plenary sessions of the National People’s Congress (NPC - the Chinese legislature) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC - the advisory body); both are held every year at the same time in March at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. In 1978, Deng Xiaoping, the then Paramount Leader, a term for the one who controls the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) as General Secretary and the Central Military Commission (CMC) as Chairman, coined his famous 24-character slogan: “Observe calmly, Secure your position, Cope with problems calmly, Hide you capacities and bide your time, Be good at maintaining a low profile, Never claim leadership.” Everything is different today under Xi Jinping who, apart from the two above-mentioned positions, is also President of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The New Emperor’s motto (also 24-character) is very different too: “Be Calm, Keep determined, Seek progress and stability, Be proactive and achieve things, Unite (under the Party’s banner) and Dare to fight.” This denotes a far more aggressive China. India is fully aware, having been at the suffering end in the Himalayas for the past three years. In his customary government work report, the outgoing Premier, Li Keqiang repeatedly mentioned ‘stability’, showing Beijing’s resolve to stabilise the country. According to the Tokyo-based Nikkei, the economy is undoubtedly the key to Xi’s stability (or survival). The Japanese newspaper analysed: “Stability’ was mentioned 38 per cent more times this year than in 2022, marking the most frequent use of the keyword under Xi, who became president early in 2013. Li stressed that China will stabilise prices, employment and supply chains.” The financial publication explained: “China’s lockdowns of major cities such as Shanghai under its zero-COVID policy last year helped slow the nation’s economic growth to 3 per cent, compared with the government target of roughly 5.5 per cent. Unemployment has remained high among young people.” It also reminded its readers that China experienced rare protests last autumn, during which people held up blank sheets of paper to object to the zero-COVID policy. Xi eventually had to do a U-turn and change his policy.   A new foreign minister Today, China is at a crossroad; in the coming months, Beijing will certainly become more aggressive, defending what it perceives as its interests, including in Taiwan. On 7 March, 2023, Qin Gang, the new Foreign Minister held a press conference; when a reporter asked his views on ‘Wolf Warrior Diplomacy’, Qin said: “When wolves block the way and the wolves attack, Chinese diplomats must ‘dance with wolves’ to defend their home and country.” Qin observed that when he went to the United States as an ambassador, the American media said: “Chinese wolf warriors are coming. …the so-called ‘wolf warrior diplomacy’ is a discourse trap. Those who create this discourse trap either do not understand China and Chinese diplomacy, or ignore the facts and have ulterior motives.” But he reiterated that when ‘evil’ wolves come to attack, Chinese diplomats must ‘dance with wolves’. It is the same Qin Gang who had attacked the Dalai Lama when unrest took place all over Tibet in March-April 2008. He was then a young spokesperson in the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The truth is that China is nervous today, especially after its disastrous lockdown policy which was entirely of Xi’s making. And when a country is nervous, the blame has to be diverted on someone else; it was the Dalai Lama 15 years ago, it is presently the United States.  Xi also blames Washington During his speech at the CPPCC, Xi Jinping blamed “a Washington-led campaign to suppress China for recent challenges facing his country.” In these meetings it is highly unusual to rebuke of an external actor: “Western countries — led by the US — have implemented all-round containment, encirclement and suppression against us, bringing unprecedentedly severe challenges to our country’s development,” said Xi who in the past has always refrained from directly criticising the US in internal gatherings. The Wall Street Journal puts it in perspective: “The accusation of US suppression of China’s development over the past five years comes as Mr. Xi faces charges from investors that China’s economy has been damaged by his policies, including the emphasis on national security.” Xi and PLA On 8 March, Xi Jinping attended the Plenary Meeting of the Delegation of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and the Armed Police Force (PAPF) and posed for a group photo with the six CMC members and the 270 defence delegates. Xi Jinping asserted in strong terms that new situations, new tasks, and new requirements are facing the military: “This requires, better coordinating the economic progress with national defense development. …promoting the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, realizing the centenary goal of the PLA, and accelerating the building of our army into a world-class army.” He added: “It is therefore necessary to unify the thinking and understanding, strengthen the responsibility of the missions, pay close attention to the implementation of desired task…” Behind the rhetoric, nervousness appears clearly, but at the same time, the will ‘to be ready’. During the meeting, six PLA delegates spoke, representing Science and Technology, the Equipment Development Department, the National Defense Mobilization and the Joint Logistics Support Force as well as the PLA Navy put forward suggestions. There is no doubt that Xi is serious about preparing the PLA to be a ‘fighting army’. Introducing reforms Consolidating and improving ‘integrated strategic capabilities’ is the new requirement set by Xi, according to the state broadcaster CCTV. Wearing a green colour suit, Xi reminded the military that it must follow the Communist Party: “China needs to better use defence science, technology and industry to strengthen its army and win wars,” he said. According to Reuters, Xi Jinping asked national laboratories to accelerate their research in defence technology so that China would not have to rely on foreign countries “to strengthen its army and win wars”. The industry supply chains must be more resilient. Xi called for: 1) A National Laboratory system must be established, seeking to direct national resources towards core technology sectors, such as semiconductor, aerospace, and new materials etc. 2) The Chinese government knows that the congregation of talent and resources only can spur innovation. It was necessary to identify and facilitate the communication between companies and R&D institutions. 3) A new Scientific and Innovation Supervisory and Evaluation system and a new Scientific Integrity System must be established, in order to create higher standards of innovation, by better identifying real and important breakthroughs for funding. But will the funds be sufficient considering China’s present poor economic performance? Edward Luttwak in an article entitled ‘The myth of China’s military might’, published on the website RealClear Defence noted: “The declared total of China’s newly increased defence budget at 1.56 trillion yuan amounts to $230 billion, according to the current exchange rate. If that were the case, it would mean that China is falling further behind the United States, whose own fiscal 2023 defence spending is increasing to $797 billion (and actually more, since that figure does not include its funding for military construction or the added help to Ukraine).” China is far from catching up with the US today. Heaven is watching In the meantime, different reforms will be introduced in the administration to strengthen the General Secretary’s hands. This does not please everybody. The Nikkei gave an example: “Set in a former imperial garden, the Zhongnanhai leadership compound in central Beijing is divided into the south and north courts. The south courtyard is the stronghold of the central organizations of the Chinese Communist Party led by General Secretary Xi Jinping and the north courtyard is home to the State Council, China’s government, that has been controlled by Premier Li Keqiang for the past decade.” It is clear from the latest reforms that Xi wants to control everything in the Kingdom. The Japanese newspaper explained: “Relations between the two courtyards have always been delicate, but since Xi’s era began in 2012 the south courtyard has gained the upper hand. That shift is being further accelerated at the ongoing annual session of the National People’s Congress, where legislation to shift powers away from the State Council to the party are being decided.” Interestingly, as Li Keqiang was about to retire, he invited 800 senior government officials serving under him for a farewell party. In a video available on social media, he is seen saying: “Heaven is looking at what humans are doing. The firmament has eyes." This was definitely aimed at Xi. At the tail end of the Two Meetings, Xi was reelected PRC President for an unprecedented third term with 2952 votes in favour, 0 abstention and 0 against. But heaven has perhaps not voted as yet… The author is Distinguished Fellow, Centre of Excellence for Himalayan Studies, Shiv Nadar Institution of Eminence (Delhi). Views are personal.  Read all the  Latest News,  Trending News,  Cricket News,  Bollywood News, India News and  Entertainment News here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.