Identify the last three paramount leaders of the People’s Republic of China.
At the moment, Xi Jinping is the paramount leader of the People’s Republic of China. Three last paramount leaders that held the posts of General Secretary of the Communist Party and President of China were as follows: Hi Jintao (2002-2012), Jiang Zemin (1992-2002), and Deng Xiaoping (1978-1992). All of them contributed to the development of China as a key international player. Nevertheless, the leaders-successors after Deng Xiaoping used to have less political control and weaker charisma. So the political system of China became more balanced. The new paramount leader Xi Jinping began to strengthen his power and therefore the experts believe that he will be the next strong paramount leader of China (Heydarian).
Identify the current members of the Central Military Commission.
The Central Military Commission manages the People’s Liberation Army of China that includes more than 2.5 million people. This organ of power consists of the chairman, two vice chairmen and eight members. The Central Military Commission is elected for the 5-year term. Xi Jinping is the Chairman of the Central Military Commission. The members of the Central Military Commission are Fan Changlong, Xu Qiliang, Chang Wanquan, Fang Fenghui, Zhang Yang, Zhao Keshi, Zhang Youxia, Wu Shengli, Ma Xiaotian, and Wei Fenghe (Mulvenon 2).
General Fan Changlong and General Xu Qiliang are Vice Chairmen. The other members are in charge of the following departments: Ministry of Defense, General Staff, General Political Department, General Logistics Department, Navy, Air Force, and Second Artillery (Lawrence & Martin 25).
Describe the duties of the Premier and the State Council. What is the rank of the Premier in the Chinese political system?
The State Council, analogue of a cabinet of ministers in the other countries, is the executive body of power and is headed by the Premier. The Premier is nominated by the President and approved by the National People’s Congress every five years. The Premier also has to be a member of the Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee. The premier is the most senior economic official in China (Lawrence & Martin 29). He is responsible for the overall economic and social development of the country. All ministries must report to the State Council and the Premier. Below the premier, there are four Vice Premiers and five State Counsilors that are responsible for various portfolios such as education, health, State Council affairs, military, public security, foreign affairs, etc. There is no Vice Premier that would be responsible for the foreign affairs, because a State Councilor is in charge of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Lawrence & Martin 30). Different ministries, commissions and State Council offices such as Legislative Affairs Office, Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, Overseas Chinese Affairs Office and Research Office are subordinate to the State Council (Lawrence & Martin 30).
The Premier has one of the highest ranks in the Chinese political system. As it was written above, he is responsible for the work of the Chinese government. In addition, he is second ranked in the Politburo Standing Committee. Li Keqiang is the current Premier. He was selected by the National People’s Congress in 2013 (Lawrence & Martin 29).
Works Cited
Heydarian, J. Xi Jinping: China's "Game Changer"? The National Interest.16 September 2014.
Web. 22 January 2015
Lawrence, S., Martin, M. Understanding China’s Political System. Congressional Research
Service. 20 March 2013. Web. 22 January 2015
Mulvenon, J. The New Central Military Commission. Hoover Institution. Stanford University.
