Suchergebnisse

The People's Republic of China went through a peaceful and orderly transfer of power from November 2012 to March 2013, the second one in its 64-year history. The first one was the 2002–3 change of leadership from Jiang Zemin to Hu Jintao. While largely following the same pattern, the recent leadership change, from Hu Jintao to Xi Jinping, illustrated a few interesting and potentially significant differences even as the succession system was further consolidated. This article compares the recent leadership change with the previous one, analyses the differences and discusses their political implications. The increasingly institutionalised procedure for China's leadership succession now features the state leaders' tenure being limited to two consecutive five-year terms, and the choice of successors through a gradually broadening elite consensus. For the Chinese Communist Party, the purpose of the term limit is to prolong its one-party rule by having orderly power transfers and avoiding succession crises. The limited term of office is likely to contribute to China's political stability while promoting a degree of institutionalised intra-party factional competition.

In spite of the fact that substantial progress has been made in the improvement of relations between China and Taiwan, there have been no talks on sensitive political issues. Beijing's proposal for a cross-strait peace agreement is put on hold. Disagreement over the sovereignty of one China and the political reality in Taiwan have conspired to create an apparent impasse and contributed to an indefinite delay of the negotiations. At the moment, a large section of Taiwanese people do not seem to want this peace agreement. The ruling Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) cannot afford to start negotiations without a strong domestic consensus. This article examines the political situation in Taiwan, analyzes the main obstacles to reaching a cross-strait peace agreement, and explores possible solutions. (Asian Aff/GIGA)

Since Chinese president Hu Jintao took office in March 2003, Beijing has gradually developed a new approach to the Taiwan issue. The new strategy appears to be "speak softly and carry a big stick" toward proponents of Taiwanese independence and relying on Washington to rein in the proindependence Democratic Progressive Party on the one hand, and, on the other hand, actively seeking reconciliation with the anti-independence Chinese Nationalist Party by offering economic benefits to Taiwan and making limited concessions on some difficult bilateral issues-including the sovereignty issue-to promote better economic and social relations and to undercut support for Taiwanese independence. Although the new approach has contributed to the current reconciliation, there is no change in Beijing's fundamental principles, and the current rapprochement is largely limited to the area of economic cooperation. The long-term impact of the rapid economic integration should not be underestimated. Taiwan may also become socially and culturally integrated with the People's Republic of China, and the foundation will be laid for eventual reunification. (Asian Aff/GIGA)