FCCC Talk: Xi Jinping’s big moment: The 20th Party Congress and what comes next by Christopher K. Johnson

Christopher K. Johnson is President and CEO of China Strategies Group, a political risk consulting firm, and Senior Fellow at the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Centre for China Analysis.

Chris spent nearly two decades serving in the U.S. Government’s intelligence and foreign affairs communities. He worked as a senior China analyst at the CIA, where he chronicled China’s dynamic political and economic transformation, the development of its robust military modernization program, and Beijing’s resurgence as a regional and global power.

In a recent Asia Society report, Chris examined Xi Jinping’s supposed “annus horribilis,” and speculation Xi is facing political difficulties at home that could hamstring or even disrupt his plan to remain China’s top leader after the 20th Party Congress later this year.

“Such narratives rest on a series of faulty assumptions,” Chris argues, adding “Xi appears to be hurtling toward a substantial victory at the 20th Party Congress. The exact titles and other laureates that he will receive at the conclave still are unknown, but there is little doubt that he will remain China’s top leader, in whatever capacity, for the foreseeable future.”

In this FCCC talk, Chris will explain why and how Xi Jinping is in such a position of strength, and what we can expect from the upcoming Party Congress.