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Chinese leader Xi Jinping signaled Sunday that his government would maintain policies that have put it at odds with the U.S. and other nations and deepened Communist Party control of the economy and society.
Xi, speaking at the opening of a twice-a-decade party congress that is expected to give him a third five-year term, extolled the achievements of the past five years and said the party would strive to achieve what it calls the «rejuvenation» of the nation.
«Our future is bright, but we still have a long way to go,» Xi said to the more than 2,000 delegates attending the opening, held in the massive Great Hall of the People that overlooks Tiananmen Square in the center of Beijing.
«We must foster a firmer sense of purpose, fortitude and self-belief in the whole party and the Chinese people so that we cannot be swayed by fallacies, deterred by intimidation or cowed by pressure,» he said.
A third term for Xi would break with recent precedent and further establish him as arguably the most powerful Chinese politician since Mao Zedong.
Xi called for further investments in the party’s military wing, the People’s Liberation Army, and reaffirmed that China will not rule out using force to bring the self-governing island of Taiwan under its control.
«Reunification definitely must be achieved and reunification definitely will be achieved,» he said.
