On a sunny Monday afternoon in Tiananmen Square, the melody of the Welcome March livened up the Great Hall of the People, where the atmosphere echoed with cheerfulness and anticipation. As Xi Jinping and the other key leaders clapped rhythmically in synchrony with the music, they prepared themselves onstage amid a framework of vibrant red and gold colours.
The termination event of the Two Sessions, which encapsulates the parallel conferences of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, was a swift and lively affair. Hardly half an hour had elapsed since the distinguished guests had ascended the stage when they had to depart.
The main task at hand for the close to 3,000 NPC representatives was a sequence of voting rounds which all passed without a glitch. The only contention came from a moderately controversial decision related to the supreme court, with a minor opposition from 44 members. Contrary to the tradition of prior years where the premier would engage with the media post-session, this year there will be no press conference held by Li Qiang, with the same holding true for the following two years.
The orchestrated execution of the conferences emphasised the authoritative position of Xi Jinping and the lessening influence of the remaining collective leadership. The underlying message made it very evident there is a noticeable shift in focus and a likely change in the direction of policies.
The National People’s Congress of China underscores Xi’s supreme position and the dwindling influence of the collective leadership. The specifics concerning Beijing’s plans to rejuvenate economic growth in the near future were sparse, these details will probably be unveiled in the Third Plenary, which is a policymaking conference anticipated to be held before the summer season. The spotlight was instead directed towards the development of ‘new productive forces’, a fresh catchphrase symbolising a radical reorientation of the Chinese economy.
Xi Jinping’s ultimate aim is to supersede the obsolete economic growth pattern, which primarily relied on housing, traditional manufacturing and infrastructure erection, by introducing a new model that caters to advanced manufacturing and industries revolving around life sciences and artificial intelligence. China’s industrial policies have already allowed them to gain an upper hand in manufacturing battery cells, electric vehicles, and solar panels. Xi’s strategy includes marshalling state resources to foster the development of these new productive forces.
This year saw a decreased focus on security topics, a typical concentration of the administrational sphere in the past few years, and a marginal amount of geopolitical posturing. The enhanced rapport with Washington found resonance in Joe Biden’s message from his recent State of the Union address, underscoring the desire for rivalry with China while avoiding disputes.
In its rejoinder, Beijing took a step further, affirming China’s long-standing belief that the relationship should not be one where one side’s gain is another’s loss. This was added to their opposition in making competition the defining feature of the entire Sino-American ties.
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