Global Courant
BEIJING (Reuters) – At a dinner reception ahead of the 74th anniversary of the founding of modern China on Thursday, Chinese President Xi Jinping urged the nation to “stand together in unity” in a speech usually delivered by the prime minister. to work”.
Since becoming president in March 2013, Xi has previously delivered two speeches at the annual reception, usually held on the eve of the National Day on October 1. In other years the speech was delivered by his Prime Minister.
The first time Xi presented it was in 2014 during a reception with more than 3,000 guests, far more than the 1,200 that was normal at the time. In 2019, Xi delivered another speech at the reception, which marked the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China that year.
The third time was Thursday, three days before the 74th anniversary.
“Our future looks bright, but the road ahead will not be smooth,” Xi told his roughly 800 guests, some of whom were foreign diplomats, at the Great Hall of the People in the heart of Beijing.
As Xi’s precedent-breaking third term as president begins in 2023, China’s domestic political landscape has changed, such as with the unexplained disappearance of two ministers and top military commanders.
Such a change at the highest levels of the Chinese government has fueled debate among diplomats and scholars about political purges, with the growing unpredictability potentially clouding expectations for policymaking and hampering cooperation with foreign governments.
The last official to inexplicably disappear from the public eye was Defense Minister Li Shangfu. He was last seen in Beijing on August 29, delivering a keynote speech at a security forum with African countries.
It is unclear who the Chinese face of the military will be when Beijing holds its largest defense diplomacy outreach event, the Xiangshan Forum, on October 29-31.
At Thursday’s reception, Xi told his guests that China must keep climbing over “obstacles” as his current premier, Li Qiang, listened intently at his banquet table, according to footage broadcast by China’s national broadcaster.
“Our strength comes from unity and trust is more valuable than gold,” Xi said.
(Reporting by Ryan Woo; Editing by Hugh Lawson)
