Chinese President Xi Jinping nominated Li Qiang to become premier during an ongoing meeting of the Chinese Parliament.
Table of Contents
On March 11, during the annual meeting of China’s rubber-stamp parliament, Chinese President Xi Jinping nominated his old associate Li Qiang, 63, to become Premier of the People’s Republic of China.
In a bid to consolidate his iron grip on power, Xi Jinping trusted his long-term associate, Mr. Qiang, to lead the second-largest economy in the world.
Qiang as the Premier
Mr. Qiang will replace Li Keqiang, who will be retiring during the National People’s Congress session. Mr. Keqiang served two five-year terms as the Premier of China.
Mr. Qiang was appointed to the number two position on the Politburo Standing Committee during the Communist Party congress in October 2022. This elevation put him on track for the premiership.
Loyalist and ally
Similarly, for the president of the Supreme People’s Court, Zhang Jun was nominated as the candidate.
For the position of procurator general of China’s supreme people’s procuratorate, Ying Yong is nominated as the candidate.
Challenge for Premier
He will also have to manage the weak confidence among consumers and the private sector, as well as the global headwinds that are increasingly calling bluff on the propaganda of the peaceful rise of China.
On the opening day of parliament, Beijing sets a modest growth target of 5% for 2023, its lowest growth in nearly three decades. The Russia-Ukraine war and the dubious case of Chinese neutrality in the war have exacerbated the geopolitical tension brewing between the US and China. The surveillance balloon crisis and the visit of top Pentagon officials to Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province, are intensifying the strain in the US-China relationship.
On the domestic front, the zero-carbon policy of China and the crackdown on significant corporate and economic slowdowns after decades of upward trajectory will make the tenure of Mr. Qiang challenging. Mr. Qiang will be closely watched by the world on March 13, 2023, during the premier’s traditional question-and-answer session with the media after the parliament session ends.
Premiership
