Xi succeeds Hu

President Xi Jinping's resolve to work for "continued realisation of the great renaissance of the Chinese nation and the Chinese dream", expressed in his maiden speech as head of world's second largest economy, is sufficiently indicative of his government's intention not only to rethink its economic policies and to project power beyond the region but also to 'let many flowers blossom'. It is certainly a measure of his confidence that the time has come for China to move out of the economy-driven rut and to work for the revival of China's historical image as a great civilisation.
The economy should not slow down and it should keep growing at 7 to 8 percent annually that of course is going to be the policy of the new leadership. But it says that instead of banking on export markets it would endeavour to make its running efficient and innovation-driven. President Xi would like his forces to "win battles" but, as elaborated by new premier Li Keqiang, normalise relationship with Japan and increase trade ties with the United States, from the present two-way $500 billion volume. Given that almost all important portfolios have been assigned to the experienced hands, not necessarily from the party's inner circles, the kind of pragmatism China needs to inject in its policies as the emerging global player would be there. But that said the challenges faced by the new leadership are no less daunting. Over-driven economy has created wide gaps in the earnings, while suitable reforms didn't catch up, the labour class in angry.
There is the need for extensive reforms and that is being promised by the new leadership in Beijing. And that's quite feasible given that fact that the new cabinet members are essentially a product of post-Cultural Revolution period, having wide international exposure. In the words of Zhu Feng, a professor of international relations at the Peking University, "It means they are more cognisant of how the world reacts to China and that they will be more active in seeking changes". In fact there are already some early indicators of that kind of cognisance. Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who says he is of the "same generation as the two (President Xi and Premier Li) new leaders" and hopes to meet the Chinese leadership "soon to improve relations" that are strained in the wake of dispute over the chain of islands in the South China Sea. "I want to say that Japan's door is always open toward China," says he, and it is likely that new Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi arrives there. Yi is well-known in Japan because he was Beijing's ambassador in Tokyo for many years and had worked with the United States in clear disarmament talks with North Korea. As to how far the new Chinese leadership would succeed in realising actualisation of its vision much depends on the United States which is assiduously engaged in stitching up an anti-China military alliance in the region. China's intention, as Premier Li said in his inaugural speech, is to maintain its strong trade relations with Washington, and is not much swayed by American accusations of cyber-hacking which he said are absolutely groundless.
A strong China, and its vibrant economy, is always a matter of great comfort to Pakistan. With new leadership in place in Beijing, following entirely peaceful transition, Islamabad looks forward to more intensive co-operation for which quite new possibilities have emerged on the scene in the wake of Gwadar port agreement. As this understanding plays out - in the form of extended road and rail communication service between the two countries - Pakistan is bound to earn some criticism and suspicions by its perennial detractors. Already, New Delhi has cried foul over the Gwadar agreement. But that is entirely uncalled for; even before Pakistan could reject such criticism Chinese government made it abundantly clear that the said port would be use for commercial purposes only. Yes Pak-China relationship has pronounced strategic dimension, but that's not the only dimension to it; it is multi-dimensional like the ones China would like to have with the United States and many other countries. Asked to comment on President Obama's statement regarding hacking accusations Premier Li's reply was that China's relationship with Washington was vital and their mutual interests outweighed their differences, because "Conflicts between big powers are not inevitable". Last but not least. 'Harmonious society' and 'Harmonious world' - China's policy discourse under Hu Jintao - will be a guiding source to Xi to effectively deal with a variety of domestic and foreign issues. There is no denying that Xi's predecessor Hu inherited an increasingly divided society in 2002. On foreign front, China was found to be besieged with externalities, including international terrorism. Hu performed well in all areas, particularly economy. China was world's sixth-largest economy when Hu assumed power in 2002. In 2011, it leapfrogged Japan to become the world's second-largest economy, a title Japan had held for more than 40 years. China remains on target to take the number-one slot from the US between 2020 and 2030.