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Hu is urged to cede his position to the vice president Zeng is proposed for state president Reuters Published: January 10, 2007 BEIJING: The Chinese leader Hu Jintao has been urged to cede the presidency to a rival-turned-ally, sources said, a step that would sweep aside two decades of established practice and let him focus on extending Communist Party power. Political allies of Vice President Zeng Qinghong have urged that he be promoted to state president at Parliament's annual session in 2008, the sources with close ties to the top leadership said, requesting anonymity to avoid repercussions for speaking to...

China Ex-President May Be Set to Yield Last Powerful Post By JOSEPH KAHN Published: September 7, 2004 China Photos via Reuters Portraits of Hu Jintao, left, and Jiang Zemin on a wall in Beijing. Mr. Hu succeeded Mr. Jiang as president and Communist Party leader. BEIJING, Sept. 6 - Jiang Zemin, China's military chief and senior leader, has told Communist Party officials that he plans to resign, prompting an intense and so far inconclusive struggle for control of the armed forces, two people with leadership connections say. Mr. Jiang's offer to relinquish authority as chairman of the Central Military...

China's power struggle by the seaBy John Tkacik When China's Xinhua news agency published an adulatory report of a conference at the seaside resort of Beidaihe on August 5, [1] I was puzzled. Chinese Communist Party General Secretary Hu Jintao had banned these meetings as a waste of money and time - they were boondoggles. And China's media (at least the press that wasn't totally in the control of the Central Propaganda Department) praised President Hu's policy as a "populist measure in support of good government" (qinmin qinglian). Now, it is true that Hu is in a weak position....

BEIJING (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney started a three-day visit to China Tuesday aimed at keeping a lid on tension between China and Taiwan and jump-starting talks to curb North Korea's nuclear ambitions. In his first closed-door meeting after arriving from Tokyo, Cheney reassured Chinese leaders that the United States did not support Taiwan independence and would oppose unilateral steps by either side, according to China's official Xinhua news agency. But Washington is increasingly concerned by China's build-up of ballistic missiles capable of striking Taiwan, and Cheney was expected to raise the issue when talks resume on Wednesday. China,...

China's pretender Zeng steward of Jiang's legacy [LatelineNews: 2002-11-5] BEIJING - Patronage is a potent force in Chinese politics, and perhaps none of the up-and-coming "fourth generation" Communist Party leaders knows its powers better than Zeng Qinghong. As head of the party's influential Organisation Department until last month, Zeng had long-time boss and benefactor President Jiang Zemin to thank for a job in which he had a hand in some of the most important decisions made in China. Chinese sources say that when the party holds its 16th congress starting on Friday and picks new leaders, Zeng will have Jiang...