Politician Li Qiang, the number two of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and one of President Xi Jinping’s most trusted men, was elected prime minister on Saturday during the National People’s Congress in Beijing.
Li Qiang, 63, has been endorsed by the delegates of the Assembly, and has taken the oath in front of the Constitution, according to Xinhua news agency. He replaces outgoing Premier Li Keqiang.
Li served as secretary of the CCP in Shanghai, was responsible for the city’s harsh confinement during the coronavirus pandemic, and is one of the seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, the party’s highest organ of power.
Having joined the party at the age of 24, Li was also head of Xi Jinping’s Cabinet in 2004, and is believed to have been in the president’s sights ever since, who would now consider him one of his most trusted men.
Xi Jinping was unanimously re-elected this Friday as president of China, guaranteeing his third five-year term (2023-2028), in an unprecedented case in the country.
During the National People’s Congress in Beijing, one of the main meetings of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), nearly 3,000 delegates voted in favor of a new extension of the president’s mandate.
The president had already overturned the age and term limits at the 20th CPC Central Committee in October, when he consolidated his power by ratifying himself as secretary general.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
