Xi Jinping Named President of China

Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee, was elected president of the People’s Republic of China and chairman of the People’s Republic of China’s Central Military Commission on Thursday.

The plenary meeting of the first session of the 12th National People’s Congress (NPC) also elected Zhang Dejiang chairman of the NPC Standing Committee.  Li Yuanchao was elected vice-president of the People’s Republic of China.  Also elected were 161 members of the 12th NPC Standing Committee.

Some 3,000 deputies to the National People’s Congress, the annual parliament session, took part in the vote at the Great Hall of the People.

According to the rules of election and appointment adopted at the NPC session, the elections of chairman, vice-chairpersons and secretary-general of the 12th NPC Standing Committee, president and vice-president of the PRC, and chairman of the CMC are non-competitive.

Also at the meeting, NPC deputies adopted a massive cabinet restructuring and streamlining plan which aimed to reduce bureaucracy and make the government more efficient.

Xi Jinping is expected to make his first overseas visit as president to the BRICS summit in South Africa at the end of March.  The Chinese Foreign Ministry said he is also expected to visit Russia.